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Holidays, Parties, Santa, New Food, New People, Presents…it’s a LOT.
The festive season is full of fun, food and, if you’re in Australia, lots of sun. And while the magic of the holidays shape many of our childhood memories, we need to remember that our babies and kids thrive on consistency. More often than not, things aren’t always consistent during our celebrations, get togethers and activities over this period. This can lead to meltdowns for babies, kids & parents!
My advice is to try to minimise meltdowns but don’t fret if they do happen. There’s so much going on at this time of year, prepare yourself and your kids as much as possible and try not to get caught up in trying to make everything picture perfect.
Here are my top 10 tips for the holiday season:
TIP 1: Be prepared if you’re travelling
- Packing up to go anywhere is a much bigger job when you have babies and toddlers
- A team effort is key, don’t leave one parent responsible for everything, work together
- See my blogs on flying with babies and kids and long car trips for all the ins-and-outs.
TIP 2: Presence over presents
- Your kids won’t remember the perfectly wrapped whatever – but they will remember how you made them feel
- Children can never have too many books, but they can probably have too much of everything else
- Your baby is going to play with the box and wrapping paper more than the toy!
TIP 3: Prepare everyone for what to expect
- This is particularly important for toddlers. Talk to them about all the NEW things that are going to happen, who they will see, what food there will be, presents, etc.
- Role playing festivities or Christmas morning can be terrific fun, you can watch the Bluey episode ‘Verandah Santa’ and jump into the bed and play together!
TIP 4: Practice/role play greetings and saying thank-you
- Being a great gift receiver at any age can be difficult… even as adults it’s tricky to fein politeness when we get given something we don’t love! These emotions are supercharged for toddlers who don’t yet have impulse control!!
- Pick items from around the house and practice gifting them to each other … you can make a funny joke about saying thank you for the dustpan and shovel and all the things you’ll use it for! This way you can showcase being polite with less desired gifts and opening cards first etc.
- Don’t force kids to kiss or cuddle people – you can set them up for success with a greetings chart at the front door and let your child pick … a high five, handshake, kiss, cuddle, fist bump, etc. this will make greeting people they see less frequently easier and give them autonomy over how they interact with different family and friends.
TIP 5: When it comes to managing people & illness during festivities, be practical.
- Babies have developing immune systems, so if people are sick, they should avoid newborns,for big gatherings, this can be tricky… if anyone has a cold and you want them to keep their distance just blame me and say “our paediatrician said you can’t cuddle or kiss the baby if you’re sick”.
- If a regular carer hasn’t updated their whooping cough vax they should be encouraged to
- Set your own boundaries and be clear.
TIP 6: If a meltdown happens, keep your cool
- Remember our kids drink more than milk, they will pick up on all your emotions
- Be aligned as parents & as much as it seems impossible at the time, don’t stress about what anyone else thinks, this is a completely normal part of parenting a toddler
- Regulate your emotions. When it comes to managing toddler tantrums, the number one thing that escalates a power struggle into a full on tantrum is the parents’ own emotions. If you enter a power struggle noticeably stressed or frustrated, your children will sense this and reflect those emotions back to you – alcohol can make this tougher
- While considering your emotional response, also de-escalate your physical response. If your voice gets louder, so will your toddler’s. Lower your voice and your toddler will follow suit
- For babies, be conscious of reading their signs even when you’re busy – tired, hunger, wind, etc.
- See my full blog on how to deal with toddler tantrums for more.
TIP 7: Bedtimes & routines:
- While things might be all-over-the-place for a day or two, they will quickly return to normal
- Keep your routine as much as possible but don’t sweat if you can’t. Babies and kids will naturally return to their baseline
- See my blog sleep on holidays for more.
Pro tip: if you’re travelling, take a copy of your routine & stick it on the fridge wherever you’re staying, that way everyone in the house will know what you’re working towards.
TIP 8: Santa photos aren’t compulsory
- I get asked my opinion on these all the time… and I have no opinion other than they are not compulsory
- They can be gorgeous and a great Christmas tradition, but if your baby or child seems traumatised don’t make them sit with a stranger in a red suit by themselves, jump in the photo with them.
Tip 9: Be sunsmart – this goes for babies, kids and adults!
- Slip, slop, slap, slide and seek!
- For babies it’s not recommended you use sunscreen under 6 months
- I don’t recommend any particular brand of sunscreen, I always recommend buying children’s sunscreen (even for adults) as it’s usually made with less perfumes and ingredients
- Australian guidelines for sunscreen manufacturing are very strict so as long as it’s got an Aust L, is 30+ or 50+ as per the guidelines, it should be fine
- Remember when trying a new brand of sunscreen to always test a small amount on your child before you lather them up, due to unforeseen reactions to any ingredients
- See more in my sunsmart blog.
TIP 10: Don’t sweat the small stuff
- Relatives may not agree with your parenting style, things can go wrong, kids aren’t robots – just roll with it
- We can get caught up in silly details at this time of year, invest your energy in things that make you and your new family happy and try to let the rest wash over you.
- Don’t get caught up making every moment perfect… just enjoy all the slightly imperfect ones along the way.
