How to make Christmas magical as a single parent

Like anyone else, Christmas for me comes in multitudes: something I look forward to and dread in equal measure. Being a single parent or co-parent at this time of year means double the work and double the effort to keep everyone’s spirits high and cheerful (and double the stress when things go wrong).

- VICTORIA RICHARDS

During the bleak midwinter of the Covid years, when I was restricted to staying at home alone with two under-10s and my parents kindly dropped off a Christmas dinner in Tupperware to our doorstep, it was hard work, bracing work, to keep smiling and perky and make sure everyone had a good time. I had to be Santa, Mrs Claus and the elves all wrapped into one - crying over the turkey simply wasn't an option (or, at least, I had to hide it behind a white, fluffy, stick-on beard).

And the ultimate sting of doing Christmas solo? Nobody even gets you a present to put beneath the tree. For a good couple of years, in fact, when my kids were still too young to think of it, the only gift for me (who had single-handedly bought and wrapped all the presents for everybody else, as usual) to open on Christmas morning was a bottle of wine from my boss (thanks, David!). It was much appreciated, I can tell you that much. And it did not last long.

Sure, Christmas isn't really about presents - we all know it's about spending quality time with the people you love. But that's when single (or co)-parenting over the holiday season can become not only tough, but painful: you put all of your efforts into making it magical, only to have to watch them drive away with the other parent halfway through the holiday (or, even worse: have one year on, one off. When that happens, one friend of mine swears by spending December 25 volunteering for Crisis at Christmas, which sounds like an excellent way to beat the blues).