December 17, 2021
top trending topics
🔗 Take advantage of the holidays and connect with your kids.
✨ While the kids are home for winter break, make some memories.
😫 If your kids are driving you a bit crazy, you’re not alone.
☃️ Start some fun & frugal new traditions with your family.
🤗 Don’t let life steal your holiday joy this year.
tips & tricks for growth
navigating winter break with your newly independent college kid
You may be feeling anxious and excited to see your college student. This may be their first time home since you took them to college. It would help everyone in the family to consider how things have changed in that time. Your college student has experienced some new independence while the family at home has created a new “normal.”
Think about these things for your college kids extended time home for break:
☑️ Make Your Home A Haven.
☑️ Spend Time With Your College Student.
☑️ Remember, They’re Not In High School Anymore.
☑️ Set Clear Expectations.
☑️ Encourage Them To Find Constructive Things To Do.
By creating a plan, you decrease the likelihood of misunderstanding, disappointment, and miscommunication. It allows everyone in the family to enjoy the extended break you have with your college student at home.
Time isn’t a commodity simply to be spent; it is to be invested.
be in the here and now when you’re talking to friends & family
Want to be successful and valued at work and at home—really anywhere? Be present with who you are with and who you are talking to. I know you’re gonna say, “But I am present—I’m standing right next to them!” That’s the easy part of being present. The hard part is being mentally present.
It’s impossible to be mentally present with someone when we are full of our own thoughts. Our minds are usually rethinking the past or wondering about the future.
A study by Harvard University psychologists concluded that we spend 46.9% of our waking hours thinking about something other than what we’re doing. In conversations, we are often waiting for our chance to speak, thinking of something interesting to say, or thinking about our appearance and the impression we are making.
We aren’t listening. We aren’t present. Be mindful of the moment you’re in.
Practice a few of these tips to be more present with your kids, friends, family, etc., and see the difference it makes. You can do it!
what we’re lovin’
This week’s picks come from Kris Nash, wife to her husband of 25 years, Greg, Mom of 3 girls, and the Editor here at First Things First. Take a peek at her recommendations for this week because they are just THAT GOOD. Check ’em out👀:
📗 The Lost Art of Listening is a recent read that has rocked my world in so many ways. Listening to it as an audiobook lets me know that I want an actual copy I can hold in my hand. It’s a must-read, and the parenting principles for listening can help you build a stronger relationship with your kids, no matter how old they are. I wish I’d read this before I had kids!
📲 Check out the Hoopla app if you want to read or listen to some parenting books on your own or hear classics with your kids! It’s totally free with certain library cards, and the ebooks, audiobooks, movies and music choices are AMAZING. I’m listening to books while I’m in the carpool line, folding laundry and cleaning up the kitchen. It’s a game-changer for me!
😋 One of my favorite memories as a kid was making and drinking homemade hot cocoa using this recipe from Hershey’s. It’s on the box of cocoa, but I love the variations (peppermint, anyone?) you can find on their website, too. I make this nostalgic classic when we go to look at Christmas lights or before we go ice skating. It’s the BEST! (Oh, and let me know what you think!)
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