Going, going, gone – that’s the way it appears it is heading with Christmas at least as far as one pre-school is concerned. On the news this morning I heard about a pre-school that has decided to ignore Christmas. Not just the Christmas carols and religious content but even things like Santa and reindeer. They are aiming to have an end of year party but there will be no mention of Christmas in any way shape or form. Their reason is they don’t want to offend anyone. What about the people who are offended by them ignoring Christmas? On the … Continue reading →

Following on from ways to reduce stress on your marriage and family at Christmas, here are some more ideas. If you are planning on visiting parents, in-laws or siblings and have to travel a long way, leave yourself plenty of time. Don’t try and rush from one place to the other. This only leads to stress and accidents. Try and amuse the children on long road trips. Sing songs, talk – children often open up a lot while someone is driving, play I spy, read a book together and talk about it, let them play games or listen to music. … Continue reading →

Yesterday I looked at some of the pressure on couples during the Christmas season and a couple of suggestions for easing the tension. Here are some other suggestions you might want to consider implementing. Don’t go overboard with gifts. Some people are generous by nature and love to give gifts. I admit I’m a person who loves to buy presents for those I love, so this is something I have to watch. But it can backfire and have a negative effect. The problem with going overboard is twofold. Firstly, it is not helpful if you spend more than you can … Continue reading →

Yesterday on the radio I heard a sad statistic. According to statistics more couples break up over the next four weeks than at any other time of year. For a time that should be happy and rejoicing and is about the gift of love as revealed to all of is through God’s gift of Jesus this is a horrifying statistic to hear. The cause of the break ups between couples is largely stress. Dealing with visits to respective families, or families that don’t get along with each other and all the interpersonal squabbles and jealousies and interactions that go on … Continue reading →

My husband isn’t the type of person who likes stuff. He has books and he has some classical music CDs, but his wants are few, and this makes shopping for him very tricky. I love him and would enjoy piling presents under the tree for him, but what do you give someone who doesn’t want anything? When asked, he’ll say things like, “I have you. What more could I want?” While that’s really terribly romantic, and he gets major husband points for that, it doesn’t help when it comes to celebrating the holidays. If you’ve got a person like this … Continue reading →

Our neighborhood held trick-or-treating last night to avoid going out on the Sabbath, and my kids had a ton of fun dressing up and heading out to collect their loot. I took them around, and my husband stayed home to hand out candy to those who came to our house. This is very representative of our personality styles. I’m the one who likes to go out and do things. I can more comfortably navigate my way through social circumstances, and because I’m the “mean” parent, I can herd four overly excited children up and down the street. My husband likes … Continue reading →

This is the last one, I promise, on the subject of holidays. This time it’s looking at holidays with family. It could mean just taking your children on a holiday but I was thinking more of holidays with in laws or siblings or other family members. A lot of how a holiday with family goes depends on how well the family gets along and how comfortable and relaxed they are in each other’s company. If your spouse doesn’t get along well with your parents, or even if you don’t, then a holiday with family is not going to be the … Continue reading →

One of the biggest considerations for your marriage with a holiday plan is whether you are going to camp. For many families this is a cheap alternative. But unless you are the type of people who enjoy this sort of thing, then don’t even consider it. For Mick and me, camping would not be a holiday but a nightmare. I would rather stay home than go camping. Thankfully Mick feels the same. As a result we could probably count on or fingers, maybe even one hand, the number of holidays we have taken in our married life. And that’s okay. … Continue reading →

There are other considerations you might need to take into account regarding holidays and your marriage. One is how much planning. Do you want to stay in one place or keep moving? Some people are happy to get in the car or on the plane or train and go off and let the holiday just happen. Others would prefer to plan well beforehand. This can have advantages in getting better hotel or bed and breakfasts deals if you plan but it may mean ending up staying longer at a place even if you don’t like it overly because up have … Continue reading →

Are you taking the right sort of holiday – the one that is right for your marriage? The reality is when it comes to holidays, not all of us want or need the same sort of thing. For some people, in a busy lifestyle with a marriage where both partners are working long hours, the answer may be a holiday at the beach or somewhere they can just relax and not do a lot at all. It can be a time of renewal, of recharging the batteries and being able to spend more time just enjoying each other’s company. But … Continue reading →