10 Ways To Cope With Not Having Your Kids For the Holidays

Hey everyone! It’s been a while since I posted but I wanted to get back into it. Being a divorced mom, I get the holiday blues every year not being able to spend them with my kids. I just wanted to let you in on some tips of things that I do to stay happy and keep my mind off of how much I miss my kiddos!

1. I make a list of all the things I can get done while they’re gone and I do them!
2. I do something fun that I wouldn’t have been able to do with the kids. It makes me look forward to something even though I am wanting to be with them.
3. I try not to think about them. This is extremely hard. Especially around the Holidays. You work hard for your children and then can’t spend holidays with them. I get it, but the best thing you can do for yourself is to try to think about anything else. I know that as soon as I start thinking about my kids, I start missing them, and then I start crying and it’s all over from there.
4. I spend time on my Hobbies. What parent doesn’t want time for their hobbies?
5. I catch up on work. I am a work from home mom and have TONS of work to catch up on. While my children are gone is the best time!
6. I turn on my favorite shows or music. This is one thing that really helps because I can just leave it on while I’m doing other things, and the house never seems too quiet.
7. I do the shopping. Shopping is definitely one thing that is extremely hard with kids. It can be so helpful to do this while they’re gone so that you don’t have to drag them to the stores with you!
8. I try to think about what makes my kids happy. Do they want to spend time with both of their parents? Yes they do. It usually makes them happy and I want them to be happy.
9. Sometimes – I spend nights away from home. If I’m not home alone with all of their things, I don’t miss them as much.
10. And last but not least, I think of all this as a blessing and opportunity for me. I  miss them, but I wouldn’t be able to get these things done if they were with me. Thinking this way helps me so much. Especially around Christmas because for me it is the hardest holiday to spend without my children.

Now I’m curious to know if there’s anything else that you have to add to this list? I would love to have more ideas of how to keep my mind off it, and I’m sure others would too!