8 Habits to Implement for a Stress Free Holiday Season

We all know the holidays can be filled with stress, and that stress can completely suck the joy out of all of the festivities. Let's chat about 8 very simple habits you can implement this holiday season to enjoy the holidays and focus on what matters most, the memories. These are in no specific order, and there's a habit tracker, activity calendar, and meal planner for you to download for FREE at the end of the blog. 

If you are dehydrated, your body is not functioning properly, and therefore may cause increased levels of stress. Studies have shown that even as little as a half liter of dehydration can bring your cortisol levels up. With high cortisol comes high stress!

Unfortunately, even with all the busyness of the holidays, our family still wants three meals a day. Crockpots, insta-pots, and even take out are great options for dinner! For breakfast and lunches I love things like sandwiches, frozen kodiak cakes or waffles, fresh fruit, and yogurts. Think things your family can make themselves if necessary. Make it a priority to meal plan and shop once per week, include plenty of easy meals that you can set up in the morning and forget about it until dinner time, and let your family help you because as moms, we already do a lot without the added task list of the holiday season. 

Set school out first thing each morning and have a conversation with your kids on what's expected each day. Give yourself permission to ditch the hands on school and focus on independent studies (or to take a break altogether depending on the age of your kids). Check out 4 ways to beat the holiday slump for fun ways to include learning during the holiday season while ditching the workbooks. 

Spend 30-60 minutes cleaning each night before bed going through each room and tidying up. Waking up to a clean(ish) house each day helps you not feel overwhelmed.

Start each day with a journaling and devotion session. Practicing gratitude will allow you to focus on the good and not worry over the bad or stress over the never ending to-do lists. Not sure how to start journaling, click here for a free guide. 

This is such an easy one to implement, and it makes all the difference! Start your laundry and your dishwasher before bed, put the clean dishes and laundry away when you wake up. Throughout the day, put dirty clothes and dirty dishes straight into their respective homes and repeat. 

I'm not saying you have to work out, just that you need to get out and move your body for 30 or so min per day by doing something simple like taking a walk with your kids, having a dance party in your living room, taking a quick trip to the park. Get those mood boosting endorphins flowing. Bonus points if you can get in some fresh air in the process. 

Just because Sally has a homeschool Christmas party every year doesn't mean that you need to. Say what? Susan has a HUGE thanksgiving school day with a full on feast each year for her kids... ok? Doesn't mean you've got to replicate it. Don't try to keep up with the Joneses. If you do, you'll be overwhelmed the entire season and enjoy very little of it. Use the calendar attached below and plan a couple big, fun activities, (seeing a play, visiting a Christmas village, etc.) and a few smaller ones (making gingerbread houses, grabbing a couple friends and driving around seeing the lights, etc.) , and then plan plenty of at home activities that require minimal prep (movie nights and hot chlorate, game nights and pizza, craft time, etc.) and ENJOY the season. You don't need to do every Pinterest worthy seasonal activity in order to be a "good mom." 

Thank you so much for taking time out of your schedule to check out this blog. We hope these tips help you prevent overwhelm during the holidays and help you enjoy the season with your family. 

Shout out to last week's gift card winner: 

If you'd like to enter this week's giveaway, just share this blog (or the corresponding YouTube video) to your social media and tag us @helpingheartshomeschool or @tonyagrayjohnson.

Happy Sunday!