If It's Not Working, Do Something Different

Have you ever become so stuck in your way of doing things that you can't realize there's a better way? Do you insist on doing things the way they've always been done?

Could it be time for a change at your house?

From our Thriving at the Holidays:A Stepparent's Guide to Success e-book:

"From my early years, I had wonderful childhood memories of my parents and three sisters picking out a tree together and decorating it while engaged in lively conversation, enjoying Christmas music in the background. I was determined to carry out that blissful tradition with our blended family. But I soon discovered ... that wasn't possible.

Every year, my husband and I would gather our four children together and hit the streets for the best looking tree we could find within our budget. But every year we ended the evening with grumpy kids who were fighting over what tree looked the best. And we noticed the kids were competing with each other over what sized tree they had at their other parent's home, creating further tension and division among themselves.

So, after several years, my husband and I finally decided to forego the stress-filled tree-shopping excursion and buy an artificial tree.

It was sad for me at first to admit that our family couldn't enjoy the same blissful tree-shopping experience my family of origin had. I wanted our family traditions to be a way of uniting our family, though, and I knew this tradition wasn't working for us. I soon discovered that the new tradition of retrieving the artificial tree from the attic, putting its branches in place, carefully arranging each string of lights and actually enjoying our time together was worth the change."

What about your traditions? Are they working for you or do you need to consider a change?

Related Posts:

Holiday Tip: Live by Faith, Not Fear

Coping with Change