Jeff Natalie: Hi! I am Jeff Natalie and this is our second blog and I thought that today I would talk a little bit about the idea of making it through Christmas season. Christmas is almost up on us, getting very close to being at that day that all the kids look forward to and it really is a remarkably magical day. The kids really enjoy and I still enjoy it but I really thought that would be a good idea to talk a little bit about surviving the Christmas season in really four simple steps.
So without further due here they are when it comes to kids in their mood and struggles that they have in dealing with being irritable and that sort of thing there are some very basic physical things that we should attend to as parents that can make the Christmas season a lot more enjoyable for them and the first of which is sleep and sleep is not something that we want to try and implement the day before Christmas; really the idea of our being able to sleep and sleep restfully requires us to have a routine in our sleep patterns and it really is because we train our brains to click off and click back on unless the sun rises and sets and for those of you who live in Northwestern America like we do here in Erie. Our days are much shorter, gloomier, the sun is out less so there is a lot more dark of course and it's colder and that can really affect our moods.
So we really want to make sure that our kids get to bed on time and we want to have healthy bed times for them and really healthy bed time routines and that's that 30 minutes or so before your child goes to bed, brushing their teeth, really soft activities; things like reading a book, no video games, television is probably still even maybe a little bit too much. So we want to do soft things with them and we want to prepare them -- their beds should be prepared to be warm so they don't get cold in the night. Those kind of things those you know self evident things that we as parents can do to help them rest well throughout the night and get and sleep well so they can get those deeper levels of sleep.
The second thing that we want to consider is they are feeding are bodies and really that's really important and specially on the days that you plan on taking them out to visit family and that sort of thing and then often when as is in our tradition, in our culture to eat very big meals on holidays; its not such a good idea for kids. So what we want to do is when we take our kids out whether its to go shopping or to go to grandmas house or to go visit other relatives or friends is want to make sure that they have eaten something even a sandwich or something small that they can have in their stomach because appetite has such a large bearing on a child's mood.
The other thing that you want to consider if you are not going somewhere to eat, if you are going taking them shopping and alike is you want to bring snacks with you and feed them regularly maybe every 20 or 30 minutes let them if she wants something Pretzel or things like that, that are healthy, that have maybe complex carbohydrates in them but that also can fill their stomachs. Again because we want to regulate the blood sugar and which has a direct impact on their mood.
Another thing that you want to do as your kids are off, especially for the holidays you want to get them outside, you want to get them out in whatever sun that there is. You want to get them out in the sun, you want to get them out little fresh air, you want them running around, be Xbox 360 and play stations, couch potatoes is not a good idea; they really ought to be outside, running around, going sliding if there is snow where you live or just getting out enjoying the sun really having as much time in the fresh air as possible. It does too really the things, one for you it keeps them out of your hair and gives you some much deserved time without that craziness.
Every time they get some exercise that they need so they can again sleep more restfully at night. Finally on Christmas day itself you really need to know your child and most importantly you need to know when to say when. As adults we love to socialize, we love to get together with your friends and our families and spend time with them but not such a great idea to spend inordinate amounts of time with friends and families when it comes to the kids; you really, really want to try and be mindful of your child's routine even over the holidays because remember your children do have to return to school.
So be mindful of that routine and know your child when they are over stimulated or it's just too much for them then its probably time to say your goodbyes and head back on. So I hope this was helpful and I think that if you follow these four little tit-bits of advice I think you will have a much more happier and healthy holiday season and thank you for joining in ErieKIDS.
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