Are You a Black-Friday Parent?
by Cinda Chatfield
Thanksgiving is a wonderful holiday: it provides us priceless time to spend with our friends and family, as well as the runway to prepare for our children’s upcoming Winter Break. However, one sneaky “holiday”, and a potential parenting nightmare, follows Thanksgiving: BLACK FRIDAY! For those of us who participate by grabbing the last TV at Best Buy, adorned with leftover gravy still on our cheeks, I would like to borrow your experience into a metaphor that I call BLACK FRIDAY PARENTING.
If You Want Fun & Good Deals…. Read Carefully
Although the Black Friday shopping adventure sounds fun, there are a few things we can glean from it. Instead of planning purchases throughout the year, the Black Friday shopper typically prefers the frenzy of the morning, although it’s coupled with sobering buyer’s-remorse the next day.
A Black Friday Parent is the type of parent who waits until the last minute rush-hour of the holidays in order to spend time with their children. Parents who only make hasty holiday time to enjoy their families may not be making the sweet, happy memories they would like to year-round. So I’m here to encourage all of you to not be “Black Friday” kind of parents. Plan family time for yourself and your children even if the sleigh bells aren’t jingling. Children form memories year-round, so try to plan small family outings or quality time at home, even if there are no holidays in sight! Show love, receive love, and trust me, it will last longer than the $10 video game at Best Buy that you elbowed someone to grab at 4:00am.
But seriously, for those who go for midnight-shopping fun, here are some strategies to set your infants & toddlers up for Black Friday Success:
- Ensure that your children get a good night’s rest prior to the shopping adventure. In the morning dress them in comfy footsie pajamas (to avoid shoes being kicked off as well as having little feet kicking you). Bring a favorite stuffed animal which doubles as a pillow for resting heads and the security of closely hugging a favorite toy when the environment becomes over stimulating.
- If you can predict it you can prevent it – How many times have you said… “I knew the children would whine and cry over the snacks.” or “Why do you boys always grab toys from eachother?” Rather than waiting for them, plan ahead!
- Prepare each child their own bag of snacks, with identical items and their name on the bag. Let them decorate their bag with stickers.
- Prepare a small back pack with highly preferred, yet rarely used activities, which can easily be utilized while sitting in a stroller or cart.
- The Last Resort, They Can’t Make it Much Longer Item… iPad/Phone/Leap Frog Movie with earplugs. This will allow 100% of your child’s visual and auditory to focus on a relaxing and calming movie, while drowning out the overstimulating and inappropriate nature of some Black Friday Shoppers.
About the Author: Cinda Chatfield has worked for over 15 years as a Child Development Specialist, Parent & Family Educator and Advocate. Cinda is the founder of Chatfield & Company, a collective dedicated to creating a harmonious home environment for parents and children. To find out more visit: chatfieldandcompany.com
