Finding some Calm-mas for your Wee Seeds
Growing calmness amid the Christmas craziness
Christmas is undoubtedly an exciting time of year! All the decorations, presents, special foods, the promise of Santa and his magical reindeer, nativity plays and Christmas performances, seeing lots of friends and family…
…so it’s no surprise our littlest ones can spend the whole of December in an excitable frenzy! But that can be exhausting for them and for parents! So we’re here to help you cultivate some calmness amid the Christmas chaos.
Our exercises on our digital toolbox promote finding some quiet space, but before we tell you about them, we asked some for some of your tips, tricks and techniques were to bring some steadiness to December.
We had a great response. There was a real theme around the outdoors, helping children burn off that excess energy, and sleep — thank you to everyone who contributed with their #toptips. What are yours? Join us on socials to tell us — links below.
Top tips to finding some Christmas calm:
1. “We spend as much time as possible just ‘being ‘outside. Nothing planned. Maybe some music to jiggle too but the cold, the crackling of the wood from a huge fire and, ideally, stars in the sky is just the best!” — Samantha Wells
2. “Make sleep a priority whenever you can. When children are overtired, their bodies produce stress hormones, such as cortisol and adrenaline, causing them to fight going to sleep, sleep more restlessly, and wake sooner. Frequently, when children are overtired, they are hyperactive and wired. The knock-on effect can last 18–24 hours. Some children can handle late nights okay and for others, it’s more of a challenge, so knowing your child’s temperament helps.” — Mary Foster, Sleepy Lambs Sleep Consulting — find them on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter
3. “Last year we built a cosy den a few days before Christmas and let everyone know they were welcome to go there any time. On Christmas day and the days before we spent as much time as possible outside. We went for woodland walks and had lots of time playing in the garden. Christmas dinner was sausages round the fire so no-one felt pressured. I think all this meant we were all relaxed and focused on spending time together.” — Susan Humble
4. Try Wee Seeds’ Heart to Heart — . This exercise requires you and your wee one to sit very close together, so that you can hear each others’ heartbeats and match your breathing for a connected moment of calm. Christmas can also be a super overwhelming time for our littlest ones, and this exercise really helps to ground them and help them feel safe and secure when they need it most.
5. “Spend time doing activities together such as playing games, going for a walk or listening to music. Music has such a powerful effect on memory and children will associate songs with memories for many years. Going to a carol concert/music gig or even just having favourite Christmas songs on can be relaxing and help build special memories of Christmas.” — Shona Birrell from Little Sessions. Find them on Facebook and Instagram
6. On exciting evenings before bed, we can’t recommend our Cosy Toes — Cosy Heart enough. This guided meditation, brought to life by the wonderful Lorna Walker, is so soothing and helps to relax the body, helping both you and your wee one reach a state of calm relaxation and preparing them for a restful sleep. Find Lorna on Instagram or Twitter
7. “Reading to them once they get home in the afternoon from a busy day at school, helps them to unwind and having time to get in a sneaky cuddle helps settle them too.” — Sam Proctor
8. Try Wee Seeds’ The Bird. Although similar to our signature exercise, the Pause Button, this exercise also entails a bit of movement and requires some focus in order to move your and their arms in the correct rhythm with the bird. Cumulatively, although playful and fun, we think this has a calming effect. Let us know!
9. “Pay attention. It can be easy at this time of the year to become distracted by To Do Lists, planning, keeping up to date with the calendar, and sorting out who is going where for Christmas dinner! But spending time each day to pay attention to your little one, and yourself, notice how you’re both feeling, what would make you feel better, or what you need, might help you as we move closer to the big day.” — Christina Cran, Wee Seeds Founder
10. “Don’t plan too much in the run up to and over the festive season. Don’t do everything and get too caught up in the hype — there’s no need for endless Santa visits, elf on the bl**dy shelf, too many presents, visits to family etc etc. The more stressed you are, the more stressed they’ll be.” — Kerryn Kirkpatrick
