For Mom: Tips to Survive the Holiday Season
/The holidays are a time meant for joy, peace and love, but for some they can be a time filled with stress. It can become difficult to navigate the many children’s activities that are catching your eye, holiday shopping, family events and family relationships and traffic—traffic everywhere. Here are a few general tips to help you navigate the holiday season with some level of relative ease.
Plan ahead - Think about what you would like to focus on during the holidays to make sure that you are able to fit in everything you want to do. Whether this includes taking a family photo for you holiday cards, going to see those special holiday shows, taking family pictures with Santa, spending time at multiple houses to visit with family—plan ahead. The holidays tend to come with a number of obligations and it is best that you know what you’re signing up for. If you are able to, give yourself a Birdseye view using a calendar or the appropriate mode of organization for yourself and your family to keep in mind what is going on.
Be realistic & set boundaries - Know that you don’t have to do everything. Stay away from social media pressures and the desire to keep up with the joneses. Succumbing to social pressures will likely land you in an emotional and/or financial depression. Do what works for you. DIY projects may not be your thing, but that doesn’t mean that you don’t have a keen sense of creativity to spruce up the place.
Keep it simple - If you need to. You don’t have to do everything. You don’t have to buy 10 gifts for your kid. You can keep it simple and do what means the most to you. The memories are the most important and if your child is at least 2 years old, he or she will remember. It’s the excitement that brings the joy about the holidays. If you focus on that and figure out what “keeping it simple” means for you, then you’ll be good to go. Finding your niche during the holiday season makes it a little smoother.
Know your limits - Know when it is time for you to take a time out. Know when you need to press the ‘pause’ button and stop. Know when you are filtering too much input, whether it is from other persons’ opinions, too much interaction with crowds or traffic, too much shopping or eating. Just know when you need to stop. Be okay with saying ‘no’ or ‘I can’t do that right now.’
Use your resources - Shop online! Avoid the commotion and overstimulation from going into the stores during this busy season. You never realize how much stress in-store interactions cause, not to mention how much time you save by shopping online. Use grocery delivery services like Shop Rite At Home, PeaPod, Prime Now (Amazon via Whole Foods), Walmart, etc.). Don’t forget to use the Drive Up or Pick Up options are stores like Target and Walmart. Of course, Amazon Prime will always be your friend. Saving time in these ways allows you to allocate those extra hours elsewhere.