How to keep cool when your routine goes out the window over Christmas.
I’m a huge fan of Christmas. I love the movies, the food, the songs and the excuse to eat chocolate as soon as I wake up. I also kind of dislike it too. The expectations to show up to certain things, the buying of “just for the sake of it gifts” and the fact that my consistent routine often goes to pot.
I’ve always been big on having a routine. It’s just who I am and what I like and it’s most definitely got deeper since becoming a mum and knowing/feeling the benefits that come with having a good routine for my wee guy.
I will admit though that routine has got the better of me sometimes over Christmas in the last few years and I’ve worked hard to make some wee changes to make it more enjoyable and reduce the pressure I put on myself.
Here are some of the key things I remind myself of/boundaries I put in place to ensure overwhelm and added pressure aren’t on my Christmas list:
Try and be flexible when it comes to your little ones sleep. They may need to nap on the go (pram/car rather than cot), have a little less day sleep to attend their Christmas party or stay up a little later so you can spend some extra time with loved ones. The aim is to avoid overtiredness as much as you can but staying up a little longer a few nights won’t be the end of the world. Especially if your little one is 1+ and much more engaged in what’s going on. FOMO can be worse than overtiredness and trying to enforce your usual bedtime routine rather than letting them place for an extra 30 minutes might just be more effort than it’s worth.
Be okay with saying no. There can be so many expectations put on your plate by others, as well as the 12.6 million you put on yourself. It’s a lot. So control what you can control and say no to the things that a. don’t bring you joy and b. you simply don’t want to do. If the thought of actually doing this makes you want to run for the hills, I’d suggest maybe starting slowly and saying no to one thing, see how you feel and take it from there. Honestly, life can be hard enough at times without you putting yourself through displeasure to please others.
Take a travel cot. If you’re going to a hotel, visiting loved ones and friends, this can really help give you some extra “you” time, whilst your little one catches some ZZZ. Pack some used covers from home to put on it so it smells familiar and use it on those days/nights when you don’t want to have to rush home for bedtime. Be adventurous, let them fall asleep somewhere else in their PJs, pop them in the car seat and then transfer into bed when you get home. If it goes to Sh*!, please remember, it’s just one night. Most often it will not and instead you will have a lovely time and be pleasantly surprised at how things “work out” when you let your usual routine slip a little.
Have a “check in” with yourself. I do this a lot. Often its not actually the fact I have let my routine slip that’s got me wound up/feeling anxious. It’s just a symptom of something else. Some times it’s as simple as admitting I haven’t given myself enough time, filled on my own cup so to speak and that I need to change that or especially around Christmas, it can be the WOW of all that I have to do and how the hell I will actually do it. I’m daft for a list. Write down what actually needs done and what’s a nice to have/do. Then, if time is a challenge or anxiety is too high, cut the nice to haves for another time. If they were super important, they wouldn’t be on that side of the list.
