Advance Planning Is Key

Renew Supervision's Service Support Coordinator and Registered Early Childhood Educator Techenia Archer says, "Remember to plan for holidays in advance." Start planning and communicating your holiday plans in September with your co-parent. Never assume your co-parent knows what your holiday plans are and will accommodate you without a request in advance. If you have something special like a trip to the cottage or a vacation for the holidays, plan with your co-parent so no one is left disappointed, upset or frustrated.

Put It In Writing 

The next tip Techenia says for co-parents during the holidays, is to put all requests in writing. Whether your separation or divorce is amicable or difficult, if you are a visiting parent who values time with their children, putting your requests along with dates in writing is always best practice. If there is a no-contact order in place, utilize a family mediator or lawyer who can help communicate your requests.

Stay In The Moment

Celebrating the holiday season while going through a separation or divorce provides the opportunity to make new holiday traditions with your children. As your family dynamic changes, so can your family traditions. Get your child involved in creating new holiday traditions. The winter break is a 2-week holiday, so there is flexibility on when your child can open gifts. Whatever the new tradition, the focus is on staying in the present moment while making lasting memories with your kids. It's easy to get caught up in, "This is not how the holidays used to be," and become distracted from the joy, happiness and love of the present moment. You will feel less stressed if you keep your child's best interest at the forefront of your mind this holiday season.