Holiday traditions make parenting easier

• As a mom, I know how stressful the holidays can be when it comes to making magic happen.
• Still, I think traditions make parenting during the holidays easier.
• My kids know what to expect every year because we do the same thing starting October 1st.

The pressure on parents is so great Make the holidays “magical” for their children. It’s no longer just the holidays we’re supposed to celebrate, but an entire season. With work, school, sports, extracurriculars, and everything else life throws at you, it sometimes feels impossible to create something magical during this busy time of year.

My secret to making the end of the year easier as a mother of two is giving birth Family traditions for the holidays.

It depends on what to expect

The key to Family traditions is that they are repetitive events that continue throughout life. My children know what to expect when fall is around the corner.

Activities may include visiting the local pumpkin patch, preparing a special meal, or reading a favorite Christmas story. Preserve these traditions More or less the same every year means you’re giving your kids important memories they’ll treasure forever without having to do mental exercises to find ways to entertain them.

I want less stress in my life

Traditions don’t have to add extra strain to your already busy schedule. Instead, think about the tasks you need to complete to prepare for the holiday season and make some of them a family event. Whether it’s Thanksgiving meal prep or Christmas shopping, you can turn these tasks into fun family traditions.

One of my family’s favorite days of the year is when we decorate the Christmas tree. I still have to do it, but instead of making it a chore, I involve my kids.

We play Christmas music and bring out some of our favorite snacks to make it an event. My oldest son hangs the star at the top of the tree and my youngest gets to flip the switch to turn on the light. Your commitment makes the tradition even more special and unforgettable for all of us.

We rely on our community

Community events like a Christmas parade or seasonal festival are easy to incorporate into traditions because you don’t have to do much planning other than figuring out where you’ll park and what time you’ll get there. You should put a little effort into making the community event feel extra special and stage it so your family has time to look forward to it, because anticipation is the key to creating traditions.

Our family’s holiday season begins on the first Friday in October. This is a lot earlier than I would like, but this is the date of our town’s annual pumpkin drop-off. We attended this event a few years ago and my kids absolutely loved it. Now they look forward to it all year round. Before we head to the pumpkin market, I make sure the Halloween decorations are ready by the time the kids get home from school. We eat a quick dinner and then head downtown to watch some spooky dance performances, drink apple cider, and of course watch a giant pumpkin being dropped from a 15-foot crane.

My biggest realization was that I had to do what worked for our family and forget about the others.

I thought it would be fun to have a family gingerbread house craft night, but I found it too stimulating and messy and I hated it, so we didn’t do it again. Now we just do things that bring us all joy and are memorable for the whole family.