It’s only natural that you will be missing your children over Christmas if you are separated. Yet you aren’t alone, and there are always things you can do to make the day a little more bearable.
Come to an Arrangement with Your Ex
You should try to arrange something with your ex-partner that suits everyone. Maybe you won’t see your kids on the day. But that’s OK because at least you know they are having fun wherever they are. Of course, seek legal advice from a firm like Beyond Law Group Solicitors if you are being prevented from seeing your children. Yet, you can arrange something. In the UK, for example, around 30% of separated parents alternate Christmas day with their kids each year.
Surround Yourself with Friends and Family
Friends and family are wonderful for support when you are missing your kids. So try to surround yourself with others you love and care about to ease your mind a little. The day will be hard. But having a great family dinner with your parents, friends, and relatives will help ease the burden. With getting ready to go out, helping out with dinner, and playing fun Christmas games, your mind will be focused on other things rather than fretting over missing your children.
Try Another Day when Missing Your Children Over Christmas
If you aren’t able to see your kids on Christmas Day this year, you can just act like it’s another day. For example, you can act like it’s Christmas on Boxing Day. This means you get to do the same fun things as the kids, but you get to do them twice. This is good for them because they can do it again. And you can still do all the great things you love to do as a parent. Obviously, it’s harder with older kids, like teens. But little kids just see Christmas as magical.
Use the Time for Yourself
The best thing to do with your time is to spend it with your kids. But once Christmas is over, they will be gone, and you will have more time to yourself. Which is a blessing, given how hard we work these days. So make good use of your time. You will definitely miss the kids. You’ll see them again soon, though. So, this is a chance for you to spend some time on yourself. There might be something you need to do. Or maybe there’s a new play at the theatre near you.
Connect with Others
There are parents all over the world who will miss their kids this Christmas. If you don’t get to see them this year, you’ll probably get to have the kids next year. You can definitely look forward to that. But you can also find comfort in the kindness of other people and the fact that you’re not alone during the festive period. If you want to be heard and need to connect, you can find groups on social media sites like Facebook that help parents get through the worst times.
Summary
Missing your children over Christmas is natural and can take some time to get used to. However, you can make amicable arrangements, do it on Boxing Day and find support online.