Quick Guide to Managing Holiday Stress with Kids
With the busyness of the holidays, you likely need to find ways to relieve & manage holiday stress…
(especially while the kids are out of school)
Get some much needed holiday relief with our quick guide to managing holiday stress with kids!
Take a look…
Quick Guide to Managing Holiday Stress (with kids)
There are many things to do to reduce stress.
Be sure you unplug for the holidays, so you can enjoy time together!
Unplug and Recharge to Relieve Holiday Stress
Let’s face it, we all love our smart devices and most of you probably can’t imagine a minute without them.
But we all need to unplug sometimes and take a break from technology especially during the Holidays. This Holiday, focus on putting your phones down and interacting with the people around you.
#1 No Devices at Mealtime
Designate all mealtimes as periods where devices are put away and face-to-face conversation can be had. That’s how our grandparents used to do it! For added ambiance, play some relaxing music at mealtimes to help fill in the gaps in conversation.
#2 Discuss and Write Down Goals
Let your kids be apart of setting the goals and sharing their input. Schedule (limited) time that both the kids and parents can use technology.
#3 Stick to Your Guns
Like every good goal, it needs to be enforced. Parents, let your kids know you are serious and set tech time limits. Your kids can help keep you in line as well.
#4 Use Technology Together
If you must have access to the Internet and use technology, use it together. Look for games and activities on apps that everyone can play together.
#5 Don’t Check It If There Isn’t a Notification
Kids watch and learn from their parents. If you are constantly checking your phone, your kids will too. Think before you check; use downtime to improve family time rather than your relationship with friends and coworkers. You’ll be surprised to discover how leaving your phone at home can help you with your holiday stress relief goals this year.
#6 Go Old-Fashioned Style
Challenge each other to have fun offline. Play versions of your favorite games that don’t require technology. Get creative! Do you plan to reduce or eliminate your technology use this Holiday Season?
Apps to Manage Holiday Stress & Shopping
Tis the season for long lines and crowds of people… But holiday shopping doesn’t have to be stress-full! Check out these 6 Apps from our tech expert, Burton, that are sure help make your holiday shopping stress-free!
I’ve never done the whole Black Friday shopping in KC. I’ve always spent the day after Thanksgiving helping people with their technology. So, I’ve never had the pleasure of standing in line after midnight to fight large crowds trying to get the best bargain on the hottest holiday gifts. Thanks to technology, days of standing in line and fighting crowds may be a thing of the past. There are some handy apps that can help you find the best deals on the gifts you plan on purchasing this Holiday season. Here are my recommendations for the best apps to make your holiday shopping in Kansas City easier.
#1 The Coupons App
This app gives you coupons and online promo codes from over 100,000 retailers. You can search for deals from stores and get notifications when they become available. You will also get reminders when your saved coupons are about to expire.
#2 Shopular
Shopular is an app that provides news on deals and coupons based on your location. Downloading the app also puts you in contact with the Shopular community which allows you to swap savings tips.
#3 ShopSavvy
Shop Savvy will keep you up to date with the best deals at a wide range of popular stores. The app allows you to use your smartphone as a barcode reader to check the prices on products. Once you you’ve scanned this items in, you can save them to a wish list which will monitor when the price drops.
#4 Flipp
This app allows you to skip scanning the newspaper advertisements and allows you to get them directly on your smartphone or tablet. You can have access to the circulars from over 800 stores.
#5 Santa’s Bag
Santa’s Bag is a great app that allows you to set and manage budgets for the gifts you are purchasing. You can also create an archive of gifts so you can keep track of what gifts you’ve purchased for members of your family.
#6 Store Apps
Once you decide where you’re shopping on Black Friday, download that store’s app. These generally include features such as coupons and customer reviews of products. Some retailers have added maps to their app so shoppers know exactly where Black Friday deals will be located within the store.
How will you shop this year? Will you brave the crowds in the store or will you use technology to do your shopping?
From iFamily to Yours,
