Parenting Tips for the Holiday Season

The folks at WebMD had these tips to help reduce the stress of the holiday season.

You know the drill: The "gimmes," the sugar meltdowns, the "are we there yets?" Then there is the awkward problem of divorce and how to apportion time and attention. Kids reach a high pitch of excitement and sometimes invent surprising new behaviors that require your best holiday parenting skills.  Try these three simple tips to make this a more positive, happier holiday season.

Give the Pleasure of Giving

"Children will model your behavior," Newman says. "If you bake for the homeless shelter (and they help) or if you visit people in the hospital, they will remember that. These patterns stick."

Keep Routines as Best You Can

Newman suggests bedtimes be maintained, even if relatives plead, "Let them stay up, it's the holiday." People need sleep, she says, even adult people. "The next day is a holiday, too," Newman says, "no one wants to deal with sleep-deprived kids. You do them a disservice if you allow them to stay up."

Start Your Own Traditions

Besides joking about holiday stress, you can start some other traditions:

• Go to the Nutcracker, a lighting ceremony or just drive around to see house lighting
• Build a snowman
• Open an Advent card
• Go to church or synagogue

Gift Giving Made Simple

During the holidays many families struggle trying to teach their children the spirit of giving, instead of spirit of wanting.  While it is fun to buy gifts, their is often a sense of entitlement, the constraints of a tight budget and sometimes it seems impossible to not by "just one last thing!"  A staff member at BHF found the following guide for gift giving, as a simple, practical tool to help parents and children set boundaries around the holiday season.

Each child, or family members receives:

1 Thing they Want,

1 Thing they Need,

1 Thing to Wear

1 Thing to Read.

Not only does this make shopping simple and practical, but celebrates literacy and a life-long love of learning.

Cute Crafts to Give Thanks

Have a few days off school for Thanksgiving?  Why not give kids some crafts that not only keep them busy, but help them show thanks, work on fine motor skills and explore the history of the holiday?!?!

Here are some cute ideas we found at www.parents.com

1. Family Wall of Thanks

 Divide a bulletin board into equal sections for each family member to tack up notes, images, and drawings of what they cherish this holiday season.

2. ABC Journal

Designate a small notebook as your ABC journal. Have your little ones practice writing the alphabet, and help them draw a picture of something they are thankful for that begins with each letter.

3. Handy Thanksgiving Tree

High-fives for all the awesome things your kids are grateful for!
Start by covering a bulletin board with white paper to make your canvas. Then, trace your children's hands on sheets of red, orange, green and yellow construction paper. Once you've traced and cut out handprints, have your kids write what they are thankful for. Cut a tree from brown paper (you can use your kids hand and forearm for a template), and glue on all your "leaves."

Homemade Musical Fun

While there are lots of ideas for homemade instruments on the internet, we loved this one for www.housingaforest.com for its simplicity, use of basic household materials and the look of pure joy on any kids face when they hear the unique noise it makes!

Materials

• 2 Popsicle Sticks (we used the wide ones)
• 2 Rubber Bands (you could also use string)
• A strip of paper the same size as the Popsicle Stick
• 2 toothpicks cut the width or just wider than the Popsicle Sticks

Assembling your Popsicle Stick Harmonica is simple.

1. Sandwich the paper strip in between the 2 Popsicle Sticks.
2. Wrap a rubber band around one end until it is snug.
3. Slide a toothpick to the inside of the rubber band.
4. Sandwich the last toothpick at the other end of the Popsicle sticks, and wrap with a rubber band.

We found it worked best when you placed one toothpick on top of the paper and one toothpick under the paper.  No toothpicks?!?!  We had great results with paperclips!

Building Healthy Families Child Development

Halloween Handprints

If Halloween is your thing, why stop at Trick or Treating?!?  Commemorate the day with a fun hand print craft.  We loved the ideas below!

Halloween Safety

Trick or Treating should be one of the great adventures of Halloween for kids! They can get dressed in scary costumes and go door to door, begging "Tricks or Treats!" from neighbors or at the local shops. It should be a fun time, without trouble and pain, so following some easy tips can keep your child safe every Halloween.

	Children should always go out trick or treating accompanied by a responsible adult. If you have a group of kids going, the parents should choose two or three of them to go along and keep an eye on things.
	Plan a safe route so parents know where their older kids will be at all times. Set a time for their return home. Make sure that your child is old enough and responsible enough to go out by themselves. Make sure that they have a cell phone.
	Instruct your children not to eat any treats until they bring them home to be examined by you. This way you can check for any problem candy and get the pick of the best stuff!
	Instruct your child to never go into the home of a stranger or get into their car. Explain why this is not a god idea and what to do if someone approaches them and tries to talk to them.
	Make sure your child carries a flashlight, glow stick or has reflective tape on their costume to make them more visible to cars.
	Let them know that they should stay together as a group if going out to Trick or Treat without an adult.