You think that I have lost my marbles thinking that I can have a Stress-Free Christmas. Well, my mind is still intact and we have enjoyed a lot of Stress-Free Christmases in the past few years. I thought this would be a great idea to share some of the experiences I've learned in helping to reduce the stress during the holiday seasons.
READ GODS WORD EVERY MORNING
Starting my day with Gods Word seems obvious, but sometimes gets left out. I need to hear from God & speak to God each day so I am strengthened and ready to be the mom He wants me to be. At breakfast, we have family devotions and can start our kids day on the right foot as well. Each of the kids know they are to read their Bible when they wake up. Of course, some need a little more reminding than others.
DON'T DO EVERY ACTIVITY THAT COMES ALONG
Although evident, it took me a couple of years to learn this lesson. In reality, my husband helped me lessen the activity in our lives during the holiday season.
In the past, I wanted our kids to experience everything available during this season. What was actually happening was I began to harbor stress that would usually explode around Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. (I'm sure none of you have ever experienced this.
WHICH ACTIVITIES DO I PICK
What works for us is to select 1 or 2 Christmas activities to go to outside our home. Other than those 2 activities, most time is spent in our home. This way I'm not harboring stress by bothering my husband to attend one more Christmas activity each week. He is still providing for our family and loving it. Therefore, he is much happier going to a few activities and enjoying being with family and friends at home.
Having other people in our home gives us a lot of satisfaction, so we capitalize on this. With cooking and cleaning done by the children, our work is lessened and I am not feeling stressed when our visitors arrive.
HAPPINESS IN YOUR HOME
I always more activities for our family than we ever have time for. In our Thanksgiving weekend I decided which activities can be postponed until next Christmas season.
REMEMBER: YOU CANT DO EVERY THING, EVERY YEAR.
I try to select activities that inspire my children to do something for others, instead of only thinking of themselves during the holiday season. One of the things we used to do is charity work by raising money for a missionary family. The kids would take orders for pumpkin bread loaves and chocolate chip cookies. After making and delivering them to their customers, they would pay me back for the ingredients and supplies used. The remaining money was their profit, which was used to buy useful gifts for a missionary family.
This year we hope to have some kids over to bake cookies so their moms can do some Christmas shopping alone. We would might host a Christmas card stamping party for younger kids. Im still brainstorming how that will work.
I have some other ideas that are included in Celebrate Advent, Christmas & Epiphany Advent, Christmas & Epiphany Celebration Ideas
LIVEN UP SCHOOL WITH CHRISTMAS
For those of you who homeschool, lessen some of the formal academics and enjoy these times. As we bake, shop and prepare for Christs birthday, we are also doing math and writing and reading with these activities.
At our house, we still read aloud each morning and then work on a Christmas project. This may include handwork type crafts or other quiet projects.
DO YOU FEEL STRESSED DURING THE HOLIDAYS? Take a moment right now and prioritize all the activities available to your family. Choose only 1 or 2 activities that the entire family can enjoy and pass on the rest.
Its a wonderful experience having your family at home. Invite another over to roast marshmallows and have fun with the fellowship. And don't forget, keep your eyes and hearts focused on the Child Jesus. Without His love for mankind, you won't be celebrating the true meaning of Christmas.
But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8
For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. Ephesians 2:8 - 16463
READ GODS WORD EVERY MORNING
Starting my day with Gods Word seems obvious, but sometimes gets left out. I need to hear from God & speak to God each day so I am strengthened and ready to be the mom He wants me to be. At breakfast, we have family devotions and can start our kids day on the right foot as well. Each of the kids know they are to read their Bible when they wake up. Of course, some need a little more reminding than others.
DON'T DO EVERY ACTIVITY THAT COMES ALONG
Although evident, it took me a couple of years to learn this lesson. In reality, my husband helped me lessen the activity in our lives during the holiday season.
In the past, I wanted our kids to experience everything available during this season. What was actually happening was I began to harbor stress that would usually explode around Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. (I'm sure none of you have ever experienced this.
WHICH ACTIVITIES DO I PICK
What works for us is to select 1 or 2 Christmas activities to go to outside our home. Other than those 2 activities, most time is spent in our home. This way I'm not harboring stress by bothering my husband to attend one more Christmas activity each week. He is still providing for our family and loving it. Therefore, he is much happier going to a few activities and enjoying being with family and friends at home.
Having other people in our home gives us a lot of satisfaction, so we capitalize on this. With cooking and cleaning done by the children, our work is lessened and I am not feeling stressed when our visitors arrive.
HAPPINESS IN YOUR HOME
I always more activities for our family than we ever have time for. In our Thanksgiving weekend I decided which activities can be postponed until next Christmas season.
REMEMBER: YOU CANT DO EVERY THING, EVERY YEAR.
I try to select activities that inspire my children to do something for others, instead of only thinking of themselves during the holiday season. One of the things we used to do is charity work by raising money for a missionary family. The kids would take orders for pumpkin bread loaves and chocolate chip cookies. After making and delivering them to their customers, they would pay me back for the ingredients and supplies used. The remaining money was their profit, which was used to buy useful gifts for a missionary family.
This year we hope to have some kids over to bake cookies so their moms can do some Christmas shopping alone. We would might host a Christmas card stamping party for younger kids. Im still brainstorming how that will work.
I have some other ideas that are included in Celebrate Advent, Christmas & Epiphany Advent, Christmas & Epiphany Celebration Ideas
LIVEN UP SCHOOL WITH CHRISTMAS
For those of you who homeschool, lessen some of the formal academics and enjoy these times. As we bake, shop and prepare for Christs birthday, we are also doing math and writing and reading with these activities.
At our house, we still read aloud each morning and then work on a Christmas project. This may include handwork type crafts or other quiet projects.
DO YOU FEEL STRESSED DURING THE HOLIDAYS? Take a moment right now and prioritize all the activities available to your family. Choose only 1 or 2 activities that the entire family can enjoy and pass on the rest.
Its a wonderful experience having your family at home. Invite another over to roast marshmallows and have fun with the fellowship. And don't forget, keep your eyes and hearts focused on the Child Jesus. Without His love for mankind, you won't be celebrating the true meaning of Christmas.
But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8
For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. Ephesians 2:8 - 16463
About the Author:
Kerry Beck offers free advent calendars with daily Christmas activities to prepare your family for Christmas. Your family will learn more about Christmas around the world with many of the daily projects.
