Christmas is supposed to be the most wonderful time of year, but it can also be a very stressful time for parents. Between shopping for gifts, planning meals, managing family expectations and upholding traditions, it can feel overwhelming.
Children can also find it hard to cope in the lead up to the BIG DAY and BIG EMOTIONS can lead to BIG MELTDOWNS!
Adults are desperate for everything to be “just perfect”, especially if they’re entertaining relatives, but lack of sleep, hyperactive kids and disrupted routines can lead to some real challenges.
Team @everythingsrosie have some positive parenting tips to share to help you navigate your way through the tricky bits and still find time to enjoy Christmas yourself.
Photo credit: 1800flowers
Take time out to relax
We know Christmas is all about spending time with your family but it’s hard to divide your time between shopping, wrapping gifts, entertaining relatives and keeping the kids happy. If the cooking and cleaning are taking over, it’s time to take stock and delegate some jobs to other members of the family. Visitors are usually very happy to help out and be made to feel useful, so don’t be a martyr – share out the jobs and spend as much time as possible playing, laughing, snuggling and relaxing.
Prioritise PRESENCE not PRESENTS 💖
Photo credit: Psychologytoday
Have Realistic Expectations
No family is perfect and your children are not suddenly going to morph into little angels just because it’s Christmas day. There are going to be tiffs and tantrums, that’s just part of life and expecting anything else is just setting yourself up to fail.
The excitement of Christmas can be overwhelming for small children who are not yet able to manage big feelings and the change in their daily routine. So make sure everyone has realistic expectations. Take your foot off the pedal a bit, relax, and remember that for something to be “special” it doesn’t have to be “perfect”.
Plan Ahead
It pays to plan ahead and we’re not just talking about stocking up on batteries or cooking mince pies for Santa! (important as that is). Planning travel time, if you’re visiting relatives, or mealtimes/bedtimes, if people are visiting you, will all help keep disruption to a minimum and ensure you don’t get caught on the hop! Consider preparing some engaging activities to keep young children occupied or involving them in the Christmas preparations. The earlier you start planning, the more manageable everything becomes.
Create a checklist
You can download a simple checklist app to your phone where you can list gifts to buy, meal ideas, people to send cards to etc. Having everything written down, in a logical order, gives you a sense of control and motivates you as you start to see tasks ticked off.
Techugo shares their Must-Install Free Christmas Apps for Online Deals and Shopping here
Keep an eye on Finances
Finances can be a significant source of stress over the Christmas period. We all like to impress everybody and buy our children the latest gadgets and toys but PLEASE REMEMBER it isn’t necessary to overspend to keep everyone happy.
Christmas certainly shouldn’t leave you struggling in January!
Set a realistic budget for food, gifts and decorations – and STICK TO IT.
Prioritise experiences over material things a family game night or a family outing and nice meal will become cherished memories and save money too!
Consider organising a Secret Santa for larger family gatherings where everyone is limited to £10 or £15 to buy ONE gift for someone.
Zena’s Suitcase shares some TOP TIPS for a stress-free family Christmas here
Dealing with the In-Laws
Children can be a handful at Christmas but one of the hardest things can be managing the adults! Sharing your house with a whole bunch of people you don’t usually spend a great deal of time with can be stressful and fractious.
Being watched (and judged) while your kids have a tantrum isn’t the nicest experience for any parent. If you have to set down any rules, it’s best to make these clear to everyone. Most importantly, try to be on the same page as your partner if you can so that nobody feels they are being undermined.
Different people have different approaches to parenting, and to Christmas, so it’s best to talk through any potential issues before they escalate and divide the workload fairly so that everyone gets a break and tempers don’t fray.
Photo credit: Stephens-scown
Just like families, no Christmas is every 100% perfect but with a good dose of planning, realism and laughter, it will have moments to make it special 🎅🎄🎁
Sending love and good wishes to everyone from the @everythingsrosie team 🌹
To keep kids entertained and watch the best free cartoons for preschool girls and boys – check out our official YouTube channel here.
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