We are one month post Chinese New Year, but do you still feel like you’re running around without purpose? Even with Chinese New Year decorations packed away, and you still feels like you are always rushing to catch up.
Daily routines and schedules go out the window.
Meals are often “catch as catch can”, with sugary, fatty snacks counterfeiting as nourishment.
Bedtimes get delayed due to visiting, family trips, school works.
Like post-vacation blues that leave you with an “overall decrease in well-being and work productivity following a satisfying vacation” the month after the holidays can leave us feeling let down. And our children feel it too. They had free time, parties, treats, and fun throughout February.
The only way out?
It’s not nagging. It’s not yelling.
It’s a routine.
That’s right. Routines bring in the structure your children are needing right now. Even if your child can tell time, he won’t always order his day by hours and minutes. Rather, to a child, life is a series of events. And when those events are predictable and routine, your children develop a healthy sense of structure. That structure helps them feel safe which means they’re happier, more cooperative, and less inclined to fight.
Now that the holidays have passed and all the big plans and parties that filled your schedule are no more, mealtime and bedtime can finally be your priority again. Use these tips to get your family back into routine after Chinese New Year.
START WITH BEDTIME
We all know our children don’t function well if they’re not getting enough sleep. With extracurricular activities (sport practice or tuition class) restarting after the holiday break, your bedtime routines may be getting pushed back a bit.
Take time to reconnect with children at bedtime using reliable rituals, like singing a lullaby or reading a bedtime story together.
FIGURE OUT THE BEST WAKE-UP TIME
With enough sleep under their belts, your children will be able to wake up with plenty of time to get everything done in the mornings. Add up all their morning tasks, estimate how much time they each take, and then add an extra five-minute cushion. Now, using that time, count backwards from the time they need to be walking out the door. That’s the time they should be waking up each day.
REGULAR AND STRUCTURE MEALTIME
Eating at the same time every day not only reduces hangry but also eliminates snacking between meals.
Mealtime is a good way to introduce good eating habits.
Make sure that your children are eating a healthy breakfast every day. Breakfast is important for every member of your family as it improves your concentration, strength, endurance, and performance.
EAT TOGETHER
Your meals don’t have to be fancy, or pretty. But the act of spending set time together can have a big impact on our children. Sit around the table and share some thoughts, such as a highlight of each person’s day – each person takes a turn describing a good thing that happened that day and a tough problem they had to deal with.
TOSS THE SWEETS
If you don’t want your children to come home from school and choose cookies over healthier snacks. Toss or give away the rest of those candies or cookies that are sitting around. Make plenty of healthy choices available to them.
PHYSICAL ACTIVITY
Make time for exercise during the day as it helps to tire your child out and improve their appetite at mealtime.
BOTTOM LINE
There’s no one magic food or drink that will counter nutritional damage done over the Chinese New Year. All in all, the most important thing is to get back to the basics of building a healthy eating pattern and routine – get a good night’s sleep, make exercise a part of your daily routine, choose healthier foods and clear all the sweets out of your house.
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