Breathe
- At December 11, 2015
- By CGMontessori
- In CGM BLOG
- 0
It is HERE! The holidays! From Halloween to Christmas, we feel it. The start of the planning and stress of the holidays. From the turkey baking to the Christmas cookies…it’s HERE! Some, including myself, dread the holidays. I LONG for my childhood years. When my dad was alive, and all I had to worry about is what everyone was going to get ME! What I was going to open, WHEN will I get to open presents, and how much food and treats could I stuff in my stomach without getting sick!….yes, I really do miss that.
The holidays are stressful for all of us, children included. A lot of fun things going on that you don’t want to miss, bedtimes get pushed back, routines are thrown out the window, and then we have tired and cranky children. Here are a few tips to help.
Try not to throw the bedtime and routine totally out the window. Avoid over planning. Plan so your child is out late one night, but then skip the next night. Plan a calm evening at home, with the routine and regular bedtime to get them back on track.
Pay attention to what they are putting in their body. The food they eat can wreak havoc on everyone’s mood. Counter act the sugar treats with some healthy treats in-between, and lots of water.
Focus on the traditions and family time, not the going, going, going.
Settle on traditions that feel right for your family. Children take tremendous comfort and security from being able to count on the same rituals and traditions every year, whatever they are in your family. These do not have to be monumental events. They can be simple activities like decorating your home, eating certain foods, or watching ALL your favorite Christmas movies every year. Every year we have eggnog while decorating the house and tree, Christmas movie nights as much as possible between thanksgiving and Christmas, and our traditional Christmas Eve dinner, is my dad’s recipe of hamburgers and French fries on the grill with my mom’s biscuits and gravy to follow Christmas morning.
These are things my children are going to remember, not how many parties we attended, how perfectly decorated the house was, or how beautifully wrapped all the presents are under the tree. Involve your children in all these traditions. This is hard for some of us! We like it to look a certain way or do things a certain way. Having my kids place the decorations WHEREEVER they want on the tree is a challenge for me (even now!) but they love it. They take pride in placing the ornaments, and are now enjoying looking at the preschool ornaments they once made. They both remember when they had their own special cookie day with mom when they were in preschool! They got to pour, sort, cut and decorate cookies all day (It really ABOUT killed me. A bottle of wine was opened sooner than later that evening! =)…and it is one of their favorite memories.
Remember what the holidays are all about. Create your space and time about being not doing.
I am a grown up now, and I am on the other side of it, it not being all about me. Making sure the presents are bought, wrapped and hoping it’s what they want. Menu planning, grocery shopping and cooking to make sure all those favorite, special treats are ready for my family. And trying to take the time to breathe, relax, watch, listen and smile, so my kids can have the memories I do of my family being all together. Get all the snuggles, hugs, pictures and moments together that I can. Unfortunately, you just never know how long it is all going to last.
Have a wonderful Holiday season.