With the Winter Holidays approaching, here are tips to make the winter and holiday season bright.
The Gift of Time with your child is priceless.
Here are some fun winter ideas:

1. Make Hot Cocoa and read a book together.
2. Go Sledding.
3. Make paper snowflakes.
4. Make a graph showing the high and low temperatures.
5. Have a game night with your favorite board game.
6. Go to your library to check out winter stories.
7. Collect something of yours that you don't use anymore and donate them to a charity.
8. Make holiday cards to give to patients at a hospital.
9. Draw and color a winter scene.
10. String popcorn, or make paper chains.

Holiday Tips for Single Parents - Divorced or Separated to make the Holidays Merry for the Kids:

Vacation Schedules: Do not argue over your child's holiday vacation schedule. Establish a reasonable schedule of where your child will be and with which parent. Let your child know where he/she will be throughout the winter vacation ahead of time. This will reduce anxiety and help your child feel more secure. While your child is gone, make plans to do something for yourself, such as getting together with friends, going to a movie, ordering take out etc. Make sure you take care of yourself!

Negative Talk about the "Other" Parent: Even though you may have strong feelings about you child's other parent, make sure you do not put him/her down or talk negatively about that parent in front of your child. Allow your child to talk about the other parent and freely express himself/herself. Try to take the high road. It will be the best for your child in the long run and make the holiday season better for you and your child.

Overcompensation of Gifts: It is easy to think that you can make your child's holiday a little bit brighter by buying them more presents. However in the end, this tactic will leave them feeling empty and unfulfilled. What children really want is time in your presence. So rather than heading out to buy one more toy or the latest video game, consider making cookies together, popping popcorn and watching a holiday movies together.

Change:  When parents separate, it is very important to help the kids find a balance between the past and the future. Too much change may cause your kids to feel unsettled, however, refusing to incorporate any change at all is unrealistic and can leave children feeling stifled in their effort to grow beyond the loss they have experienced. The best way is to find a balance that suits your needs and decide together what traditions to keep and which new ones you want to start.  

Keep Options Open: If there are invitations to join other families for a holiday dinner celebration, or a friend or neighbor's offer to help in some way, like wrap gifts, babysit, or pick something up at the store for you, don't make the mistake of being too prideful. It does "take a village" to raise a child, look at these offers as gifts.
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May you and your family have a happy and healthy holiday season!
~Miss Cohen