The holiday season is amongst us and that often includes lots of family and friends. For our little family this means a December full of events all month leading up to Christmas. Christmas Day is our ultimate juggling act because we are a house-hopping family. We do no less than 3 Christmases on December 24th. It doesn’t come without a few lessons learned so here are my tips for fellow house-hopping families.
Bring everything.
Bring any and everything you think your kids may need while you are away from home. For us, this is our typical packed diaper bag with a few additions and a travel toddler chair. If you are visiting family without kids, consider baby/kid items they won’t have like little chairs, kid utensils, or toys.
Don’t forget to go containers.
Chances are, if you are a house-hopping family, you may be spending the full day away from home and not eating a holiday meal at home. Bring along to-go containers to bring home food for leftovers the next day.
Consider hosting.
House hopping with kids can be stressful. You may want to think about hosting in future years and have family and friends come to you instead.
Gifts for the Host.
Hosting family for the holidays is a big undertaking. Don’t forget to bring a gift for the host to thank them for their time, space, and hard work.
Ditch the schedule.
My kids are schedule kids. Christmas is one of those days when we completely ditch the schedule. It is nearly impossible to house-hop and stick with a strict schedule. Just focus on the purpose of the day and I promise the kids will adjust back to their schedule after.
Pack pajamas.
If you will be out late, pack pajamas to change the kids into before you head home. If you do as much of the bedtime routine as possible before departure you can have a smoother transition to bed when you get home.
Consider another day.
You may want to think about spreading out your holiday celebration. Consider starting a new celebration of celebrating with some family on Christmas Eve or the day after instead of squeezing it all in on Christmas Day.
