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4 Friday, December 16, 2016 brooklintowncrier.com Our Brooklin Kids By Leanne Brown Are the holidays stressing out your kids? The Christmas holidays are typically a time of joy for kids, but sometimes they can be anything but. Kids feel the stress of the holidays just as much as the adults who love them. At a holiday gathering a few years back, someone asked my daughter what she wanted Santa to bring her. She burst into tears. What happened? As it turned out, her tears were due to her not knowing what she wanted for Christmas. She felt stressed to come up with an answer. Sounds silly, but to put it in perspective, in a child's mind making a Santa list is akin to you attempting to write a letter to Prime Minister Trudeau. If you consider all of the season's highs and lows, for kids, it's a roller coaster of emotions. What's more, as parents we're often so busy at this time of year that we may miss the signs our kids are stressed? Holiday gatherings can be challenging for kids who aren't used to being around lots of people. How about dealing with those boisterous cousins with whom you have to suddenly share your room? Teens may struggle to balance family time with time spent with friends. Kids from divorced and blended families find they are "sharing" the holiday between two families or parents and may feel divided in their loyalties leading to mixed emotions. For others, it's the opposite - too few relatives nearby and the feeling they're missing out. Those from large families may feel lost in the crowd. And for some whose family is far away, they may feel lonely and jealous of their busy friends. Kids are off their routines. School-aged kids may be prepping for concerts and recitals, attending holiday parties and parades, helping their community, and all the while keeping up with regular sports, activities, and homework. Much of the stress comes from kids feeling frustrated at simply being out of control. They usually don't have a say about all the obligations that are added to their schedules. Since it cuts into their down time and time with close friends, they can feel resentful. Money can also stress families. They may feel frustrated because they're unable to afford a gift for a loved one. Children may feel disappointed knowing they won't get the expensive new toy or cell phone their friends are getting, not to mention how stressful it can be worrying if you're on the "nice" list when there's an elf in your house watching your every move. What can we do as parents? Watch for signs they're acting out and for snippy remarks. Stressed kids tend to misbehave and get more emotional. Look at your schedule. At holiday time children tend to stay up later and become sleep deprived, so plan downtime. Are they doing too much? Keep as much routine as possible. Watch what they eat. If they've eaten nothing but cookies at the party, their sugar levels may be out of whack. Give them a proper meal before attending parties so they won't be hungry for sweets. Finally, it can be easy to ignore children when you're caught up in holiday plans, but that only increases their stress. Remember, kids' stress is often due to lack of control so get them involved in the holiday planning whenever possible. Speaking of plans…I'm off to take my little girl to mail a very important letter. Happy Holidays! Community Calendar If you have a community not-for-profit event you would like included in the calendar, please email it to editorofBTC@gmail.com with the subject line "calendar."Priority will be given to Brooklin events. Some editing may occur. Mondays 6:30-7:00 pm: French Family Storytime: Children of all ages and their caregivers are invited to join Madame Sue for our weekly French Family Storytime! Enjoy a half hour of stories and songs in French, with a dash of English too! Registration is not required. Just drop in! LOCATION: Central Library - Children's Program Room Tuesdays: Brooklin Toastmasters, 7:15 pm for Meet & Greet, Meeting from 7:20 to 9:14 pm at the Brooklin Community Centre & Library, 8 Vipond Road, 2nd floor Boardroom. For more information, contact John at 905-683-4439 or jajhj@sympatico.ca or Loran Weston-Smyth at lorn@lornawestonsmyth.com or 416-910-4109. Brooklin Toastmasters provides a supportive and positive environment where members have the opportunity to develop their communication and leadership skills. Basic Foot Care: Community Care Durham provides basic foot care services by registered foot care nurses on the 1st and 3rd Tuesday of every month at St. Thomas' Anglican Church. Please call 905-668-6223 for more information. Thursday evenings: Love to sing! The Brooklin United Church adult choir welcomes new voices to join us. Practices are Thursday evenings 7:30 - 9:00 pm. You do not need to read music to be part of the choir. Practice CD's are made available. For more information, please call the church office at 905-655-4141 or by email at office@brooklinunited.ca Brooklin's Guide to Home Based Businesses Sarah's Sewing Alterations, Mending, Crafts, Costumes -- Call or text: 905 242-4251 blue.dragonfly@rocketmail.com Need Post Holes? We can help! FBG Fencing Inc. Brian 416-795-9469 www.fbgfencing.com Ding - Dong, AVON Calling! To receive a bi-weekly brochure email me at AvonRep.judyfry@outlook.com or drop by 60 Penhurst Drive, Brooklin Photos by Dianne www.istockphoto.com/search/portfolio/13554221 CLASSIFIEDS Custom Closets & More www.dream-space.ca 905.409.8681. Authorized HomeAdvisor Guitar Drum Lessons Repair Fret Replacement Leveling, Setup, patricksguitarstudio.com Sarah's Sewing Alterations, Mending, Crafts, Costumes - Call or text: 905 242-4251 blue.dragonfly@rocketmail.com Searching for an Insurance Account Executive Superstar! Experiencing long days in traffic just to get to the office? End your commute, get back weeks of your life every year, and partner with a Top 10 Canadian Brokerage. Are you client-centric and dedicated to your profession with a burning desire to excel? Let us show you how we can help accelerate your passion. Contact rshaw@brysoninsurance.ca today WORSHIP DIRECTORY WORSHIP DIRECTORY Burns Presbyterian Church 765 Myrtle Rd West (just 4 minutes north of Brooklin) 10am Worship, Kids Zone Fun & Nursery Care "Discovering God, Sharing God's Love" 905.655.8509 www.Burnschurch.org St. Thomas' Anglican Church 101 Winchester Road East Sunday Services: 8:30 and 10:30 am Sunday School & Nursery Program (10:30am) Wednesday 10:00 a.m. Communion and Healing Service 905-655-3883 www.stthomasbrooklin.ca Brooklin United Church 19 Cassels Rd. E. Christmas Services December 11 Service of Music (10:30 am) December 18 4th of Advent (10:30 am) December 24 Christmas Eve Family Services at 5:00 and 7:00 pm Candlelight Communion 10:00 pm December 25 Christmas Day Service (10:30 am) www.brooklinunited.ca 905-655-4141 Come catch the Spirit! Renaissance Baptist Church of Brooklin 40 Vipond Road (Just West Of Library) Sunday Worship & Kids Program 10:30 a.m. 905-655-4554 www.brooklinrbc.ca We're here for Brooklin!