Your baby’s first Christmas may not look exactly as you envisioned. The Coronavirus pandemic has changed many people’s plans this year, and the 2020 holiday season looks different from winters past. You may experience feelings of grief, anger, frustration as you navigate your little one’s first Christmas, but this list will hopefully offer some suggestions that will help you and your loved ones celebrate and connect in safe and fun ways.
Deck the...windows! Focus the Christmas and holiday decorations where friends and family can see without coming inside. You can keep it simple and hang holiday crafts or ornaments in your windows, or get creative or elaborate—creating a window or sidewalk advent calendar with festive decorations that you can swap out each day that Christmas approaches.
Make your baby the center of attention. Instead of planning large parties or decorating the entire house, focusing on your baby might help you enjoy the festive season, even if things are different from previous years. Find a great Christmas outfit (or five...got to be prepared for spit up, right?), read holiday stories to your little one, introduce them to your traditions, and make new ones too.
Bundle up, get outside. Outdoor celebrations with a baby might sound daunting, and depending on your local weather, they might be difficult. However, ensuring that you and your baby have warm clothes can help you enjoy the Christmas connection outside. Try a babywearing coat or extender to keep both of you cozy while using a sling or carrier.
Share the love. Your baby is probably bringing you a lot of joy. Even though it can be sad not to gather in person, you can still share this tiny new person with others. Consider your boundaries and privacy, and find an app or sharing solution that lets you share words, videos, or photos of your little one and motherhood journey with the world or just a select few loved ones. Apps like Tinybeans let you share images of your baby with a select audience and applications like TouchNote let you send images as postcards from your phone, without having to hunt for postage stamps or write down an address.
Spend time together, in real time. All the photos in the world don’t quite hold the same magic as time spent together, even when you aren’t physically touching your loved ones. Show off your baby’s Christmas outfit and share a laugh or a smile with grandparents, extended family, and friends by gathering on Zoom or another video conferencing software, or even by waving from the other side of a window.
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Even though Christmas 2020 is different from past holidays, there are many ways to connect to loved ones and celebrate with your new baby. Some families are finding that the pandemic has given them more time with their children, and that can be both a blessing and a curse in postpartum. Get creative and find ways to boost your and your loved ones’ spirits while staying safe. If you’re breastfeeding or pumping this Christmas, check out our post Breastfeeding and Pumping During the Holidays—Covid Edition.
