Cupidopolis

“I really want to take my family on holiday but it is not easy coming up with something that suits everyone. Do you have any suggestions?”

There are a whole range of holidays you can take. A nice holiday in the sun is always a fun treat. Everyone loves the beach, the sun and the sea. Just remember to take the sunscreen.

Another alternative would be getting a cheap flight to Orlando to visit Disney World. There is always something for everyone young and old! And so far I have never heard of anyone being disappointed with going to disney world!

It is not always about sad things. Birthdays are a great way of marking someone’s birthday. It is a way of saying, you know I am really happy that you were born. You make a difference to my life.

There are many ways of marking someone’s birthday and they need not cost the earth. Make a card, bake a cake or even buy a small token gift that could be appreciated. Even sending a text can make that person’s day. So don’t forget anyone’s birthday!

“My three year old watches too much TV! She could happily sit in front of TV all day. She throws a tantrum when she is not allowed to watch TV. So I have to let her watch it!”

You should be made aware that you are the grown up in the relationship and you actually know what is best. As you know you cannot let a child stay all day in front of TV. However you do need to provide alternatives. A walk in the park, help with cooking, reading time, playing with Play Doh etc.

TV can be interesting for them as so much is going on but you do need to limit it. Or they will become couch potatoes. Don’t worry about her throwing a tantrum. It is her way of trying to get what she wants. It will die down in a few minutes when she realises that you are not paying her attention.

“I want a Laptop for Christmas. My parents don’t want to get me one. They say it is too big a gift. I told them I need it for school and they still refused. How can I get them to give me one?”

Your parents are right in the fact that a laptop is a big gift. Laptops are very expensive. Trying to coerce them into buying it for you is not nice and very disrespectful too.

If you really need a pc perhaps you ought to consider a desktop rather than a laptop, as they can be substantially cheaper.

If you are a teenager, you could get a part-time job and start saving to buy one. Your parents are more likely to partially fund a pc than fully pay for it.

Why don’t you take a look at websites to see just how large a gift you want. A good place to start could be PC World. You could also ask your aunts, uncles, grandparents and anyone who asks you what you would like for a cash gift to go towards your pc. You could also ask for individual parts eg a tower, a monitor, a cd reader, a modem etc. If you split it up, it won’t seem so big and you might have yourself a Merry Christmas after all.

“My family is so messy. I am simply going out of my mind. Help me please!”

Most of the time, messiness is a result of lack of storage space. If you can organise some storage solutions, you will find that you are half way there. The rest will boil down to be strict and insisting that until they tidy their mess they cannot get dinner / dessert / go out / do something fun etc! You will need to put your foot down but get organised first so that they cannot have any excuse for not tidying up.

“My children want a Puppy for Christmas. The truth is I do not want to be lumbered with looking after another being and I am not sure that they will want the responsibilities that come with Puppies!”

The saying is A Dog is for life and not just for Christmas! Get your kids one of these stickers and explain your thoughts and feelings. Perhaps you can puppy / dog sit a friends dog for a week or two (perhaps when they head off for holidays) and ensure the children do everything that having a dog entails eg feeding, washing, walking and poop cleaning! I think after a couple of weeks, the kids would lose interest unless they are really ready.

An alternative is getting a cyber pet. Places like The Gadget Shop or I want one of those Ltd sell them.