The Blur and Bustle

The coordination of the holidays quadruples a mother’s already overloaded workload. The parties, the presents, the hosting, the shopping, the wrapping, the cooking, the cards are a delicate dance and we can’t help but fumble the moves. Would I say I’m my best self during this holidaze? Uh sure. In the way a mom is camera-ready 3 seconds after giving birth.

I read an article recently about how we should be the most patient with our kids during this season of little patience. If we see it from their perspective we make them dress in itchy clothes (thank you SNL for getting this so right), constantly change their daily routine with breaks off school and overstimulated outings, fill them with enough sugar to power Santa’s sleigh, and dangle presents over their heads as motivation for good behavior. How can we expect our kids to be their best during this time of year, when we are not?

As my husband would say, how do we solve the problem?

Let’s start by setting ourselves up for success by managing expectations. I watched my 3-year-old niece glow brighter than Rudolf’s nose at the sight of Santa last weekend, while my own daughters were more cautiously curious. And that’s OK.

I’ve learned, you cannot manufacture joy.

Sure, you can give a two-year-old bubbles and are almost guaranteed a smile. But toys and stuff are just stuff. The core ingredients we provide for our children this season will be what they carry with them as memories and that’s: love, togetherness, and gratitude. So don’t forget to peek your head up out of the blur and the bustle, as it’s the only way to witness the magic.