Christmas is one of my favorite holidays. The lights. The food. Two weeks off from work. Christmas pajamas. More time with family. Christmas carols. The nativity scene. Watching the kids rip open their presents.
What I don’t love about the Christmas holidays is what it does to my kids after it’s all over. The late nights with family mean too much sugar and not enough sleep. What do you do after you’ve eaten too much and your kids are way too stimulated? I’m so glad you asked!
Only Adjust Bedtime by an Hour
I’ve learned the hard way why this is a disaster.
When you have a big family, Christmas is a time of bouncing from relative to relative. Everyone wants to see the kids, and dinnertime/presents are scheduled from 6:00 pm and later.
The problem with late dinners and holiday celebrations is that everyone will enjoy talking, socializing (and maybe drinking) while you watch your children slowly melt into characters that you despise.
Do yourself a favor and sneak out of family functions a little early. If you delay bedtime, only delay by an hour.
This will also help when you are attempting to ease your kids back into a regular routine before they go back to school, or you go back to work. You will thank me for this later.
Keep Sugar in Moderation
There’s something about the holidays that makes everyone want to over indulge.
This includes your children. Am I the only one who gives a family member the side eye when I see them sneaking tons of sweets to my kids?
Please tell me I’m not alone!
So you’ve got tons that leftover cake and cookies? Don’t use your kids as a garbage disposal.
You will regret it later.
If your Kids Focus on One or Two Gifts, Pack the Others Away
If you’ve little ones and they haven’t opened all their gifts, pack away the toys they were uninterested in.
Reintroduce them for Easter, birthday or even next Christmas.
They will also come in handy for re-gifting at last minute birthday parties. Enjoy getting away with this as long as you can. Worried about seeming ungrateful in front of the relatives?
Pack away the toys later.
Make sure to take pictures with your kids and all their gifts to send to the relatives. After the holidays, they won’t ask you about the toy anymore!
Go Outside for Fresh Air
I love Christmas as much as the next girl, but I can get overstimulated just as much as the kids at times.
The extra sugar, lack of sleep and holiday fuss can make us all a little stir crazy. Believe me, fresh air is never overrated.
Take a break from the phones and tablets to enjoy God’s creations.
Don’t Forget the Real Reason Behind the Holidays
Keep in mind that we all get swept away by the gift-giving season and the pressure of family get togethers. Instead of feeling overwhelmed by all the tasks at hand, take some time to enjoy those vacation days with your kids, spouse & other family members. You are modeling for your children how to celebrate Christmas.
I hope these tips help you ease back into a regular, pre-holiday routine. How do you calm the Christmas crazy in your house?
We try to stick to routines as much as possible. I do the same an put toys away to bring out another time. Keeps my kids from getting overstimulated.
The toy box is great for hiding toys that are too noisy, or that they just aren’t quite interested in anymore. It’s like Christmas all over again when we swap some out!
I know how you feel even the adults are injected with Christmas crazy and it can be very difficult to snap out of it. Great ideas here.
You’re so right Ana! It can take over us too. Moderation is a good word for adults & children alike.
Go out take fresh air is something I definitely do after all the hectic holidays. It’s true about keep sugar in moderation, especially when the health issue is the most reason. Great tips, btw!
Yes, I didn’t even mention the most obvious reason-health! Thanks for pointing that out.
those days after christmas are pretty strange aren’t they. My kids are overexcited just from what they see around them and we don’t even do christmas. Great tips for families for those days after christmas
Thanks for sharing Orana. What do you celebrate?
I definitely agree with the bedtime suggestion. When I was younger, I was notorious for not wanting to go to sleep and it made going back to school so much harder. I really love the suggestion about packing away the toys they weren’t interested in yet. Sometimes kids are just too overwhelmed and can’t process all of the toys at once!
Kiersten, I’ll be heading to bed earlier myself before heading back to work. Time to stop all the late nights!
Great tips! I can imagine it might get a little crazy if you don’t do something about it!
I have re-gifted so many times! haha I am happy I’m not the only one. Great advice!
You are not the only one! Refitting has been given a bad name, but it often comes in handy for busy parents whose kids have too much stuff!
That is so smart to reintroduce the gifts later; kids always go through phases where they’re WAY into something for a short period of time and then move on!!
Controlling the intake of sugar is a huge one! My family thinks I’m absolutely crazy for limiting how many cookies and candies my boys can have, but it saves our sanity!
Christmas can get super crazy. We are starting our New Year off tomorrow with a long walk! Getting outdoors will help restore us back to normalcy.
I took my kids to the park today before we got rained out. It keeps them from being so wild before bedtime.
I freeze cake, cookies, and muffins and dole them out for months! IT is so easy and the kids appreciate the treats later on.
What a great idea Stacey! Thanks for sharing! Oh, and I loved your blog!
High five to getting fresh air. Literally taking a breather.
Christmas Crazy is a real thing! There’s SO much going on, and yes, the sugar. It reminds me of when I worked after school daycare — November 1st was my LEAST favorite day of the year, haha!
Becca, I work in a school so I know exactly what you are talking about!
Great tips for getting the family ready to start the new year.
Thank you!
I love your ideas! Your family is lovely! I especially like the idea of toys the children aren’t interested in, reintroducing at a later date! A fun time of year but it can be crazy!
Thanks Eileen! I enjoy all the extra time with family, but I had to find a balance with my kids so they didn’t drive me too crazy 🙂
We should have read these tips because my family got way out of routine over the holidays. We were okay with the sugar but the sleep schedule went out the window. My family isn’t big on going to sleep most nights anyhow though.
I’ve learned from my own mistakes when my children were itty bitty.
We’ve always tried not to get our kids to bed too late during the holidays. I have relatives who let their kids stay up really late and they always pay for it in the days following.
Experience is the best teacher!
Great tips! We pack away a lot of toys each year and introduce them when they begin to tire of their normal choices.
Yes! The toy box is my remedy for the annoying toys.
Great tips! We don’t let the kids stay up much later than their regular bed time either! It’s not worth the trouble the next day! And we totally stash away the toys and re introduce them later too!
You are so right…it’s definitely not worth the trouble because no matter how late they go to bed, they still wake up early!