A New Mom’s Guide To Reducing Stress This Holiday Season

Now that you have a little one, it helps to decide early what you’re willing to take on and what level of participation you will have in this year’s holiday celebrations. Where will you have dinner? Will you be preparing any food? Where will you open presents? Will you be having guests staying with you? What new traditions will you begin? Continue reading to learn how you can successfully manage this holiday season with a new baby. 

If You’re Hosting The Big Dinner

Set Reasonable Expectations And Delegate The Rest

Try to be realistic about the limitations put on you by your new baby, and cut corners where you can. 

Does the pie really need to be completely homemade? Do the presents really need to be meticulously wrapped with fancy bows? Does the house need to be decked out like the North Pole? If the answer is yes to any of these, get someone else to do it. Delegating is a wonderful skill for a new mother. People love helping out, and you’ll love having the extra help. 

Make Lists

Having lists to reference helps keep the sanity when you feel overwhelmed and can’t hold all the details in your head. Here are some examples of the types of lists that can be helpful:

Menu items– list everything from the entrees and sides, down to the dish of butter you’ll set out with the bread

Print recipes– having all the recipes handy keeps you organized, and helps you create a thorough shopping list

Shopping lists– keep two lists, one for everything to buy a week ahead, and one for things to the week of (bread, for example)

Guest list– so you know how many people you’ll be serving and generally how much they eat 

Buy ahead

Don’t risk the stores being sold out of an ingredient you need! Buy early, and buy plenty. It’s always better to have extra of an item rather than not enough. And now with so many curbside pickup and delivery options, it’s even easier to get everything you need.

Have a prep party

A day or two before, order pizza and invite the family to help with anything that can be done ahead of time. Chop vegetables. Assemble casseroles. Prepare your meat (trim, rub, marinate, brine, whatever your protein requires). Set the table. Wash and lay out serving dishes and utensils. If you have a big family, put people on teams to work together: Team Ham, Team Bakery, Team Presentation, etc. If the chaos is too much, put someone on baby duty and take a walk alone. Whatever it takes to preserve your sanity so you can be relaxed and enjoy the holiday.

Take care of YOU

Take just a little time to pamper yourself a bit!

A quick manicure, haircut, or a nice bath are all things that take under an hour and can make you feel amazing, yet are often put on the back burner by exhausted new moms. Taking care of yourself also includes mental health. If you don’t feel up to attending holiday parties or to being the host, it is okay to say no. Do not feel like you need to say yes to everything and create unwanted stress. People will understand. 

Ask for the help you need

This one is purposefully redundant. People want to help. Let them. Make a list of tasks that would be helpful to you. They can be as small as unloading the dishwasher, walking the dog, or holding the baby while you shower. 

Managing guests and visitors

Having people over is already stressful enough as it is, but with a new baby, it can be even more overwhelming. Click here to learn how to manage guests around your little one.

If You Aren’t Hosting, But Want To Contribute:

In reality, you’ll probably get a pass on contributing anything besides the new little bundle of joy, all dressed up in something adorably festive. However, if you really feel you must, decide in advance what you are willing and able to contribute, and claim that item before someone else does. We recommend cookies- here’s why:

1) They keep well and transport easily. 

2) The effort required is variable. You can set out with the most optimistic plan to bake from scratch using your grandmother’s famous recipe, and if the baby throws you a curveball, buy a roll of packaged dough. If the baby throws you a series of curveballs, just buy them premade anywhere on the way. 

3) Baking or decorating can become a tradition that your children grow into.

Remember, preparation is the key to keeping the holiday stress in check.

Happy Holidays From All Of Us At My Pure Delivery!