5 Practical Insights / Tips to Make this Christmas a Parenting Success

I don’t know about your home, but Christmas is the most wonderful time of the year for us. It’s the most wonderful time for family and fun. It’s the most wonderful time for temptation and sin. So, maybe “the most wonderful time” is not the right title. Maybe “it was the best of times…it was the worst of times” fits better.

I find that going into something with our eyes wide open can help contribute to its success. And having some tools when you see it helps even more. So, to that end, here’s 5 tips that you may find useful. (If not, send us some of your own so I can be more helpful next year.)

1. Your children’s sin patterns will be enhanced this Yuletide: With presents tempting their selfishness, extended family members discouraging discipline, and the inevitable loss of sleep that comes from travelling about, sin will most likely abound. Expect it. Don’t be surprised by it. Respond out of intention and not out of reaction.

2. Give everyone an empty trash bag: There is something about clutter that makes parenting harder. And Christmas provides its fair share of clutter with wrapping paper, empty boxes, etc. So, spread around the responsibility for trash removal. And keep extra bags handy, because my non-scientific research reveals that December 27th or so, a second echelon of trash makes its move on the family room.

3. Continue (or Begin) the annual December 26th Sleep-in Celebration: No earthly medicine is as effective as the medicine of rest. And, after a day filled with enhanced sin patters and boundless clutter, a good and long night’s sleep will serve the whole family. Or, you could consider a close cousin of this tradition…the annual December 26th mandatory nap day. That is one of my favorites.

4. Consider creating teaching episodes rather than preaching a Christmas message: “Keeping Christ in Christmas” is far from a novel idea. But most children, regardless of age, have exciting things on their mind each Christmas. Much of the time, they are happy to give you their attention and their heart for a reading out of Luke or a Christmas lesson…but have mercy and keep it short. Create a couple of times throughout the day where you gather again for the next installment. But don’t teach them in a 90 minute lesson what could be taught in four “10 minute” installments.

5. Toy dump before…or at least after: Many families in America have more toys than we know what to do with. Consider creating some room for new things by selecting a good number of old things that have to go. You could donate them to less fortunate families or non-profit organizations. Or, you could store them in a corner of your attic or garage until June/July. Pulling out old toys and storing other ones makes it like Christmas all over again in the summer.

There are hundreds more tips/insights that could be shared and many may be better than the 5 that I did share. The bottom line, though, is that parenting during the holidays provides us with great family memories…and some that are not so great. It gives us the best of times and the worst of times. Being prepared for the temptation might just afford you a year of Christmas lived in the best of times. That would be parenting success.