Holiday stress

Hi dhnimo703074, The holidays can be depressing, if we let them be. I have decided to conquer my sadness and move forward. I know that having family out of time at this time of year is unfortunate, for me too. We have decided to get together using the webcam and for Christmas the children will get gifts but not as extravagant as before; times are though and I am not going to pretend otherwise. You are right your daughter is too young to know about Santa, you are lucky. This will give you the opportunity to get back on your feet and be in a better position before she can start understand the gifting process which includes spending lots of money. We will never pass this way again, so the journey must be carefully planned.

Hi dlmnimo, You aren't alone with the holiday stress. The economy being what it is, I'm sure many are in your spot. Being out of work makes things even more stressful. I was a single mom and I remember all to well feeling bad that I couldn't give my girls the Christmas that I would have liked to....not even close. Also the trying to divide up time for both sides of the family. For the gifts, I know that the Salvation Army has a wonderful program to help families that are struggling. You should check into it. There are other programs to help also but I'm not sure just what they are. As for family, I began having a Christmas eve celebration at my home. Both sides of the family were invited. Everyone brought a dish and their own drinks. The adults would all draw a name to bring a gift and we all brought a small gift for each child. We opened our family gifts on Christmas eve. It was a great time. Christmas morning was nice because I could spend it at home with my girls and not worry about dragging them out. Happy holidays and welcome to Mylot!

I am feeling the same way except for the fact that my family is all close by that I will spend the holidays with. I am struggling to provide my 13 year old daughter with a nice Christmas this year and I know that she would understand,but kids should not have to understand that parents are struggling to make ends meet. I hope to find ways to provide nice gifts for her.

I'm really so sorry for your situation at this time of the year. However, you are not alone. There are so many people in your same predicament. Do you realize how many will still have a Christmas because they will charge up their credit cards like crazy just to give their kids a decent Christmas. I think you are wise especially since your daughter is only 2 and will not really understand. A child of that age does not need a lot of toys. Do you know how many times I have witnessed a child getting a bunch of new toys and what are they playing with the box that the toy came in. Just pray to God that next year will be a better year for you and your family. As for stress of holidays visiting this person versus visiting this one. I live in Puerto Rico and my daughters lives in New Mexico. So I will send my one gift for each of my daughters and a little more for my granddaughter but not as much as I would like due to not having a job myself. That is all I can do and they all understand. Christmas has become for many in this society about gifts meanwhile it should be more about Jesus being born on this day and about family and love. Not so much about the gift you give or receive. God Bless and keep the faith.

It's always the thought that matters when spending holidays. I've always enjoyed spending time with family regardless of where we spend it at.

You are definitely not alone. I am unemployed also, but no child. So I bet you are stressing even more. I too have to split thanksgiving and christmas with my family and my husbands. It would be nice if we could all spend it together, but unfortunately my family is spread out across the U.S. On another note, did u ever consider Good Samaritan or Good Will. You can find really nice things sometimes. And Christmas is not all about the presents. This really bugs me because this is what it has become. Christmas is about celebrating life, being with family, and loving who u are with. Yes, presents are exchanged, but thats not what it is all about. I hope your stress level goes down some though. :o)

Unemployment is difficult any time of year, but especially at this time. So sorry about that. Lots of families struggle with the "who do we spend it with this year" thing. Just know you are not alone. As for your daughter, show her something else of the Christmas spirit. Bake cookies, watch the holiday classics like Rudolph. Do something to make you Happy about the season whatever that is for you. Sometimes we get too caught up in the details. One year, I didn't have family in town, and my then boyfriend and I were pretty broke. We fixed a nice supper, and had a sock ball fight in the living room with the laundry since it hadn't snowed. Then we watched It's a Wonderful Life at like 2 am on our old 13 inch tv. One of the only nice memories I have from that relationship. No money, not even a tree

For me it is so stress if you were not passed the occasion in your family.

Yes, you're not alone with what you feel. I'm also unemployed because I'm a fulltime mom. This coming CHRISTmas I still don't know how we're going to celebrate it. It's always a family get together and gift-giving since we're living in a compound. But up to this time I haven't buy a single gift due to my tight budget.I think we get stress not because of the occasion but because of how we view CHRISTmas. We begin to look on others instead of us thinking some other ways to make it more meaningful even without the material things. I just come to think why alot of people are saying that CHRISTmas is stressful. Isn't it unfair for the celebrator to say that? CHRISTmas is not about us but it's about JESUS.

I'm so sorry to hear that you are unemployed right now , seems to be a problem for a lot of people after the crisis, and am very sorry for your little girl that breaks your heart, it breaks my heart too. Think of it this way, the holiday is really about the birth of a saviour that saves and thanks giving is all about a great nation and how it become to be and not about material things. You are so lucky that you still have a place where you can spend holidays even when it is split, In my country their are families of 6 or more living under bridges and living on an income of less than a dollar a day, surviving on instant noodles and rotten veggies the kid picked up on the market streets, yes maam no Christmas or thanksgiving for them either.