10 Techniques for a Smooth Holiday in a Split Family Home

The holidays are pretty much a stressful time for everyone.   If you Google holiday stress you get over 2 million results.  And it isn’t just parents who feel these pressures.  Kids-especially kids with split-family homes-pick up on their parent’s feelings during these times, which is why it is especially important to manage your own stress as well as the anxiety your kids may be feeling this holiday season.  None of us want our kids to have the same stressful holiday experiences and memories we had, but all too often we unconsciously create new kinds of holiday stress for the ones we love the most-our children. To have a joyful holiday there are three big items you need to shelve this holiday season-shame, blame, and perfectionism.  According to researcher and author Brene Brown, shame and blame are the chief stealers of joy, and perfectionism is a one-way street to despair. “Want to be happy? Stop trying to be perfect.” Shame and blame are super tricky characters in homes with divorced parents, especially when holiday stress is added to the often already tough dynamics. But they are, I believe, the primary reasons holiday stress has 2 million results. After 13 years of holiday transitions as a split-family home here are some tips I have learned that help everyone hold onto an authentic joyful spirit this holiday season. 10 Techniques for a Smooth Holiday in a Split Family Home  

• Be the person you want to be no matter what the other parent is doing. Try really hard to not blame for one holiday season and see if you don’t feel better.  Remember, we have to be the kind and compassionate adults we want our kids to be, and we have to embody those traits during the hardest of times sometimes.

 

• Bigger isn’t better. Don’t compete with gifts and don’t buy gifts out of shame or guilt you may feel about your kids going back and forth.  Your present to yourself-and your kids- this holiday should be to let any guilt or shame melt away into a hot drink, like a marshmallow in a yummy hot cocoa.

 

• Don’t stress the mess. Holidays are breading grounds for emotional and actual mess.  Be ok with a little messiness.  Go outside and get some fresh air every time you feel the urge to immediately perfect something-whether it is a kid having a breakdown or a messy kitchen, you deserve a little break before deciding how to handle it.

 

• Be the rock for your kids and step-kids. Remember that it is harder for them than for you and our job as parents is to be the best role models we can be. Even if you might be sad about being alone, your kids don’t need to know that. They need to be able to enjoy their time without worrying about the other parent. When you are without your child, that’s a great day to take care of yourself!  Treat yourself to a day of total relaxation.

 

• Make sure you get or make gifts for the other parent and their family if that’s been a tradition. Giving is a good way to hold onto joy.

 

• Co-parenting is really hard. So, ask for professional help when needed. Using a great attorney like Long Island Divorce Lawyers– to help mediate is always a great option. Sometimes we need to have adult supervision for the adults too!

 

• Smooth out transitions and travel from home to home. Let kids take whatever they want back and forth.

 

• Kids feel safer and more in control when they know what’s happening, so if possible, let them have a say in holiday planning and input on celebrations.

 

• Be the rock for your kids and step kids. Remember that it is harder for them than for you and our job as parents is to be the best role models we can be. Even if you might be sad being alone, your kids don’t need to know that! They need to be able to enjoy their time without worrying about the other parent. When you are without your child, that’s a great day to take care of yourself!

 

• Kids should be able to easily contact the other parent free of stress. Try making a daily time to call or Skype the other parent. If the kids are older, make space for them to have private conversations with the other parent.

      About Stewie BOOM! The Stewie BOOM! series of children’s books by Christine Bronstein address the tough issues families face during sensitive transition periods. The books can be used as a tool to help children cope with change as they teach kids to overcome adversity and be their own (real-world) superhero.  For more information visit: www.StewieBOOM.com “The Stewie BOOM! series should be on every pediatrician\’s recommended reading list.” –Dr. Bill Sears, 40-time Bestselling Author     About Christine Bronstein Christine Bronstein is the author of the Stewie Boom! series and founder of both A Band of Women, a social network and information website for women and Nothing But The Truth Publishing. She is a graduate of the Columbia/UC-Berkeley executive MBA program.  Her writing has been published on Forbes.com, in The San Francisco Chronicle, and on Maria Shriver\’s website. Christine has been featured in Elle.com, 7×7 Magazine, and the San Francisco Chronicle. Christine is married to Center For Investigative Reporting Executive Chair Phil Bronstein and is mother to three children.