FUTUREPINK.COM December 2007

CHRISTMAS

Christmas is almost upon us and I for one am definitely ready for some turkey and champers! But I have a confession to make: in recent years I have found the almost unbearable hoopla attached to the event just a little trying, and I've even been caught muttering 'Bah Humbug' under my breath as I make the packed lunches. Christmas shopping now starts in mid-August, with magazines running features about Christmas wrapping ideas while the scent of Ambre Solaire still hangs in the air. Throw three over-excited children into the mix and I generally want to disappear to the Outer Hebrides for the week!

If you too feel it is all getting a little over the top, here are some ways of keeping it real while making it more enjoyable for the whole family:

Limit the presents. Try limiting every family member to giving only one present, which can't cost more than a tenner, and do a lucky dip to decide who gives to whom. Bags not my father-in-law again! For kids this is almost impossible - there are so many fantastic toys, books and games to give them - but if you can even set yourselves a 'no more than a total of three presents per child' limit you will find that it's less of a distasteful consumerism orgy, and more of an exciting time with gifts being appreciated. If you are on a budget, keep presents to a bare minimum on the day itself, and spoil them on Boxing Day when everything is in the sales!

Make the cards. Essential. A real Christmas card has had glue and glitter spread liberally all over it by a child, and falls apart by Boxing Day.

Cut down on the chocolate. Kids find Christmas exciting enough as it is, without pumping them full of stimulants all day. Chocolate, Coke, sweets and other sugary things all spell HYPERACTIVITY for your offspring. Indulge them, of course, but try to give them a break from the additives as well.

Get them outside. There's nothing like the blast of a fresh, winter day to clear the most difficult moods kids can throw at you. Go out for a walk every day, and they'll be much calmer in the evenings when you're back home, playing with all those new toys.

Let them cook. If this idea fills you with dread, think of it as investment in your future, when they'll be cooking Christmas dinner for you one day. Mince pies are fun to do together, as are all those little Christmas biscuits you used to make as a child with your Mum. Get the flour out, and start rolling!

And finally, always remember that behind the presents, television marathons, brandy butter, party poppers, nuts, mince pies, carol singing and hangovers, whatever your religious beliefs this is an opportunity for you all to be together - and that happens far too little in most families. Season's greetings to you all.