Shipping holiday presents and Christmas cards can sometimes be challenging.  But the United States Postal Service says it's doing what it can to make it easy for you.

In downtown Portland, KGW found some already shipping Christmas cheer.  Some came in specially wrapped boxes, others in thin envelopes.

If you want your holiday mail to arrive in time for Christmas, there are key shipping cut-off dates.

- Parcel Post: Dec. 16

- First-class / Priority Mail: Dec. 20

- Express Mail: December 23rd

You don't even have to step foot in a post office if you don’t want to.  Spokesperson Ron Anderson says you can print your postage online and save up to 10 percent on shipping costs.

“We've actually seen that portion of our business increase dramatically as more and more people are going online to shop and to ship,” says Anderson.

Sending things on time isn't enough.  The USPS says to pack your shipments in sturdy boxes and with ample padding.