Thanksgiving Day is a time to offer thanks for all of the special things in your life and a day of recognizing the importance of one’s family.  It is a time of turkeys, stuffing, and pumpkin pie. A time for Indian corn, holiday parades and giant balloons. 

Single dads everywhere are faced with the responsibility of creating a memorable Thanksgiving for their children and extended families.  Some lucky dads have someone to help in creating a magical holiday experience and some dads must face the challenge on their own.  The Men’s Divorce Law Firm has searched high and low for the top 10 challenges and solutions to ensure this holiday season goes without a hitch.

1. Sharing and Teaching Your Children the Importance of Family:  Sometimes it is important to stop and take time to appreciate the important things in life, how fortunate we are, how blessed to have made it this far. Family is often the one constant in many peoples lives, and even if the relationship has been testing at times, family is often the one part of our lives that cannot be denied. Even when times have been tough there are still things that we can be thankful for and often the tough times are the very reasons for people pulling closer together than before.  Many families will have had their stressful times. Money worries, divorces, health concerns can test a family to the limits, but often the result is that when they come together again, through the difficulties, the bonds become stronger as a result. They know more about each other, and still continue to love, accept and support each other. Family loyalty is a powerful connection.  Whatever else is going on in people’s lives the rest of the year, there is a constant theme and connection of family values, attitudes, outlook which are reinforced with the time spent sharing meals, celebrations, being reunited. Taking time to stop everything else and say ‘thank you’ with actions says it all.
2. Dinner Recipes:  For many dads out there, this may be the first Thanksgiving dinner that you must create on your own.  Have no fear, click here for various recipes and tips on how to make a simple yet splendid meal your kids will love.
3. Share the History and Origins of Thanksgiving With Your Children:  Tell The Thanksgiving Story – Ask your kids if they know the Thanksgiving story. Unless you have taught them the story, they may not even know what Thanksgiving is about. Visit your library and check out a few interesting books about this American tradition.  Make it Interesting – While you are discussing the Thanksgiving story, make it interesting to your kids. They don’t want a boring history lesson. Bring the Thanksgiving story to life when you talk about the pilgrims and Indians. Add dialogue when you tell your kids how Thanksgiving became a national holiday during Abraham Lincoln’s presidency.  Incorporate Today Into the Thanksgiving Story – Once you’ve discussed the history of Thanksgiving with your kids, bring it full circle, back to today. Ask them what they are thankful for. Remind them of the little things we so often take for granted that kids in other countries may not have. Ask them how they can be more thankful for their blessings.  For facts you may not even be aware of, click here to visit History.com for a complete synopsis on the origins of Thanksgiving.
4. Thanksgiving Visitation Frustrations:  A recent article, “Single Dad Wonders About Thanksgiving Drama” was recently published acknowledging a single dad’s frustrations.  His Dilemma: “My ex and I alternate holidays. Our parenting time schedule for Thanksgiving begins on Thanksgiving Day at noon.  Last year, I had a wonderful day planned with my brother’s family. But when I picked up the boys — who are six and seven — at noon, I discovered that my ex and the rest of her crazy family had already celebrated Thanksgiving with a complete turkey dinner served at 10:00 a.m. I pretended that everything was okay and left with the boys, who were sleepy, cranky, and stuffed. And, just to make the situation worse, one of the boys got carsick.  What should I do next Thanksgiving to make sure this doesn’t happen again?”  The consensus seems to be that no matter how much you feel that you’ve been wronged, you should always take the high road and treat your ex with the utmost respect and kindness. Hopefully, that person will reciprocate later, but if not, at least you are setting the right example for your children.
5. Fun Fall Activities to Enjoy with Your Kids:  As the leaves turn to hues of brown and orange and the air gets cooler, children often become fidgety at the thought of staying indoors. Click here to visit our recent blog for some creative ideas for making memories, strengthening relationships, and having fun with your children during the fall season.
6. Tips for Flying with Children During the Busy Holiday Season:  With the advent of the holidays, many families will spend part of the winter season traveling around the country, visiting loved ones and then returning home for the new year.  Because making a trip to the grocery with your kids can be a harrowing experience, flying with them tends to be an even more stressful and exhausting.  Click here to visit our recent blog filled with helpful tips for flying with children. These tips should make traveling fun for your kids and allow you to better enjoy the spirit of the holidays.
7. Tips for Single Parents During the Holidays:  Thanksgiving is right around the corner and you love your little rascals and want to be with them; you want to share all the wonderful experiences the holidays promise—but you’re divorced—or you are getting a divorce—and you don’t want to share them with your ex. What to do?  Click here to read the top three rules geared towards single parents; including:  Rule #1 – The Kids Come First  Rule # 2 – Start Some Traditions with Your Kids.  Rule #3 – Be at Peace.
8. Step-Mom 101 – Do’s and Don’ts from One Who Knows:  Click here to read the Do’s and Don’ts suggested for new Step-Moms that have been faced with the challenge of discontinuing the ideas children have about “Step-Monsters.”  The whole transition is a huge challenge for anyone and the adjustments needed are most likely twice as difficult for the children. These kids suddenly have a virtual stranger in their lives, telling them what to do and what not to do, and they see very little necessity for your presence.  Help merge yourself into the family with these tips and tricks to make the upcoming holidays special.
9. Safety Tips Every Parent Should Read:  Did you know that Thanksgiving Day has more than double the number of home cooking fires than an average day?  In fact, each year more than 4,000 fires occur on Thanksgiving, according to the United States Fire Administration.  It is always better to be safe rather than sorry.  Click here to read Thanksgiving Day safety tips presented by the American Red Cross.
10.  Don’t Have Visitation with Your Children this Year?  The Men’s Divorce Law Firm has many past and current clients that face the difficulties of not being able to see their children as much as they would like.  This is especially true with holiday visitation schedules and you find that you might not have your children this year.  We suggest to not let the holiday pass by without reaching out with a loving and warm phone call reminding them that daddy is thinking of them and that he is most thankful for the opportunity to have such wonderful children.  Send them a playful Thanksgiving Day card so they can be reminded of your love while you are apart for the holiday.  And never underestimate the cliché of “better late than never.”  During your next visitation with your kids, plan a smaller version of your Turkey Day so that they can feel twice as special and prolong the happiness that goes along with Thanksgiving each year.