DotMoms

He's a believer

By Amy M.

The story of Santa was alive and well in our interfaith household this year. Alex believed strongly in jolly old Saint Nick and was thrilled to discover the plate with cookie crumbs and half-eaten carrots on Christmas morning. I think he considered that better proof of Santa's existence than the presents under the tree.

Keeping up the ruse was more challenging than I anticipated, especially because Santa was not a fixture in my Jewish upbringing. I found myself asking Alex questions to see if he accepted the Santa story at face value, or if he had thought it out.

"So how does Santa get to everyone's house in one night?" I asked. "He flies, and that's faster than driving," Alex replied.

"We don't have a chimney, so how does Santa get in our house?" I asked. "He comes in through the front door," Alex said. "But why don't we hear him?" I pressed. "Because he tiptoes!" Alex exclaimed.

That's when I realized I had a true believer on my hands. And it was really a lot of fun to see Alex's excitement on Christmas morning. We always have family Hanukkah celebrations that include lots of gift-giving (and opening), but I guess there's something special about coming downstairs on Christmas and discovering presents under the tree.

Like babies who enjoy the packaging more than the gift inside, Alex was most excited about an inexpensive item he found in his stocking—marshmallow Peeps in snowman and Christmas tree form. In his excitement, he started calling them "Bo Peeps." Eventually we corrected him, but hearing his glee as he discussed his "Bo Peeps" made for a funny holiday memory.

It will be interesting to see whether Alex believes in the Easter Bunny this year. We don't really celebrate the holiday, but around Easter usually give him a "springtime basket" with a small toy and some candy. And what will he find in that basket? His beloved "Bo Peeps."

Amy M. lives in Pennsylvania with her family and works full time as a writer/editor for a large university.

Those moments that matter most

By Amanda

Lately my work life has become so hectic that I find I don't really fully separate from it and concentrate on my children unless we get out of town. So on Thanksgiving we did just that. As a journalist it was my first Thanksgiving off in many years and I decided that cooking was definitely not on the agenda.

The fantasy of spending a weekend with my children in the mountains was too good to resist. Of course, I never considered the reality: the fighting in the car (before we had even left our street), the complaining about why Mommy's Volvo station wagon doesn't have a built in DVD player, and don't even get me started on sharing a hotel room with two kids.

But despite the frustrating moments (my 4-year-old's temper tantrum in the hotel lobby when she hid beneath the Christmas tree almost sending it teetering over), I was able to disconnect and re-connect with being a mother again. 

My main method was to put down the Blackberry, turn off my computer, and let nothing else distract me, like laundry or dirty dishes. When I do make these rare moments to be just a mother, they remind me that there's no place I'd rather be than in those moments.

Dancing with my 4-year-old to goofy big band music in front of hundreds of strangers in the hotel lobby was one of those moments. Cuddling in bed with both of my girls, their faces still soft with sleep, their legs wrapped around me like octopus tentacles, was another one of those moments. Watching them delicately hold baby chicks and squeal with delight at a nearby farm was yet another one of those moments.

At the end of the day, life is made up of moments. Some are more precious than others. I need to find a way to have more of "those moments" and less of the ones that don't really count. That's my resolution for 2008.

Amanda Lamb lives in North Carolina with her husband and two daughters. Her new book, "Smotherhood," was just released.

'Twas the Lights Before Christmas

By Anjali

Since our first child came into our lives, and since that first child started noticing the other houses in our neighborhood with all their splendid Christmas lights and giant snow globes and blown up characters with cheesy smiles, our home has experienced a post-Thanksgiving tension every December regarding holiday curb appeal.

Last year, things really came to a head. While Brian and I were looking for random stuff at the The Home Depot, Mira and Leela were stomping their feet and angrily shaking their fists in the holiday aisle, protesting the fact that theirs was the only home that didn't look like a circus in the front yard.

It's not that we didn't do anything. I had what I considered four tasteful bows lined along the front porch railing, a smiling Santa wreath, and a small wooden stand sitting on our porch flanked with three plump snowmen. I thought our house looked simply adorable. Our girls thought our home was the epitome of lame.

We held them off by explaining that we'd buy outdoor lights the following Christmas, after moving to a new house. A few more moments of annoying whining passed, but by the time we reached the check-out counter, the girls were satisfied that for the next holiday, they would get their due.

A few days after Thanksgiving this year, we found ourselves back at The Home Depot. Negotiations began amidst a colorful carnival of inflatables, bulbs, blinking Christmas trees, reindeer, chubby towering snowmen and cheeky Santas. At first the girls pleaded for the most enormous, brightest, blinkiest structures around, but we talked them down. We just couldn't find something fun yet tasteful.

And then what to our wondering eyes did appear, but one small but colorfully lit Santa, and a matching snowman, that would fit perfectly on the inside of our front windows! It was a compromise we could all live with. The kids got a little bit of Vegas-style décor, and Brian and I avoided grazing deer with bobbing heads or giant-sized snow globes on our front lawn.  And, we had a happy ending for our Christmas dilemma.

Happy holidays to you all, and I hope your home lights up with peace, love and joy in the coming year.

Anjali lives near Atlanta with her husband and two young girls. She'll be enjoying her holiday lights until the next electricity bill arrives.

DotMoms Daily: The new Toys 'R Us kids, Letters to Santa, and more

Photo: Deutsche Post AG, Kay Herschelmann

In family-related news:
> Study links abortion and preemies (Time)
> Many kids may not outgrow milk allergy (Reuters)
> Santa to get more than 6 million letters (AP/ABC)
> Keeping an eye on Chinese toymakers (CBS)
> Recall recoil prompts 24% to spend less on toys (Zogby)
> Targeting the next generation of Toys 'R' Us kids (ABC)
> Scholastic plans successor to Harry Potter (NYTimes)
> Mom lobbies for tougher Web harassment laws (AP/MSNBC)
> A district where no two schools are alike (NPR)

DotMoms Daily: "Teddy bear" teacher home, Dinner table deception, and more

Photo: Ray Ng, Time

In family-related news:
> New "fertility diet" gives couples hope (Newsweek)
> Anorexia risk may start before birth (HealthDay/USN&WR)
> More obese women die in childbirth (Reuters/MSNBC)
> Smaller babies grow up to be sadder adults (Reuters/MSNBC)
> The next Attention Deficit Disorder? (Time)
> Fever may improve behavior in autistic kids (ABC)
> Honey may help soothe kids' coughs (CBS/WebMD)
> Peanut allergies striking at earlier age (Reuters/ABC)
> Persistence key to kids eating veggies (CBS/WebMD)
> Does deception belong at the dinner table? (ABC)
> British teacher jailed over teddy bear arrives home (Reuters)
> Is "Golden Compass" selling atheism to kids'? (AP/CNN)
> Hey Santa, think outside the toy box (MSNBC)
> Girls make history by sweeping top honors at a science contest (NYTimes)
> Couples still view husband's career as more important (Reuters)

Top 10 things I'm thankful for this holiday season

By Amy Heesacker

Research has demonstrated that writing down the things you are grateful for on a daily basis can actually make your life happier. The first entry in my new gratitude journal consists of the top 10 things I'm especially thankful for this year.

10. My son losing his first tooth. Although most of his friends walked into the first day of school like shoddily carved jack-o-lanterns, Javi's Cheshire Cat smile looked as if it might remain intact until spring. I'm not in any hurry to see those bumpy, future-brace-wearing man-teeth replace his tiny little pearl strings, but my son couldn't feel more proud.

9. My daughter's successful transition to preschool. It seemed touch and go for a while but after a school change and the expulsion of a particularly hostile classmate, it appears that she is actually looking forward to school these days. She can't wait to show me how she makes her name on the chalkboard in the morning: I – S – A (I can't make my computer write the S backwards). She glows from the tips of her toes as she smiles and exclaims, "That's MY name." Yes, baby, it is.

8. My last child's successful completion of all that is baby -- breastfeeding and weaning, diapers and potty training -- with a minimum of problem and fuss.

7. My darling husband, for "taking care of things" so that we will never have to go through number 8 again! (Thank you, honey!)

6. The cinnamon sugar cappuccino –- my current reason for getting up every morning.

5. The woman at my 20th high school reunion who nominated me for "Most Improved" which I'm sure was meant as a compliment. Sorry, I don't remember your name.

4. The drought in our region, for providing the perfect excuse to wash fewer dishes, do less laundry, and shower with my husband.

3. Showtime, for airing the show "Weeds" -– and then for putting it out on DVD so that I could see it.

2. Dr. Doom-Minnow for outliving every other fish my son has owned.

And the number one thing that I'm thankful for this year...

...I am able to spend this holiday season with my three favorite people in the whole wide world, wiggling teeth, practicing S's, and conserving water.

What would make your top 10 list this year?

Amy Heesacker is a thirty-something SAHM and part-time psychology professor living in the deep South with her husband and two children.

Happy Thanksgiving, from our family to yours

To celebrate how grateful we are for you, our readers, here are some previous holiday hits:

• Learning to be thankful
• Still grateful after all these years
• Everybody's a (food) critic
• Pumpkin pie perspective
• Crafting quality time

Happy Thanksgiving, this year and in all the years to come.

DotMoms Daily: Losing baby weight, School bus safety, and more

Photo: AP/CBS

In family-related news:
> Want to lose that baby weight? Get some sleep (Reuters)
> Kid inventors get creative with Bubble Wrap (AP/MSNBC)
> Calif. sues Mattel, Toys 'R Us over tainted toys (AP/MSNBC)
> Feds spell out new school bus safety rules (AP/CBS)
> A troubling case of readers' block (WashPost)
> For want of a good proofreader, a reading exam is lost (NYTimes)
> Recipe for stress: Students' holiday homecomings (CNN)
> Web site aims to help 'sandwich generation' (Reuters/MSNBC)
> Om for the 'Olidays (WashPost)

DotMoms Daily: Faking it, Holiday toy sales, and more

Illustration: Disney-Buena Vista Pictures/Newsweek

In family-related news:
> Infants of obese mothers have higher mortality risk (Reuters)
> Sales of children's cold remedies drop (WashPost)
> Is your kid really sick or just faking it? (WebMD/CBS)
> Family life may affect puberty onset (ABC)
> Child health fight grim sign for broader U.S. reforms (Reuters)
> Recalls bring bad tidings for holiday toy sales (AP/MSNBC)
> Disney's $4 billion 'Princess' brand (Newsweek)
> In trouble for show and tell (Newsweek)
> Are the kids alright? (Newsweek)
> 'No Child' data on violence skewed (WashPost)
> English, Algebra, Phys Ed ... and Biotech (NYTimes)
> Campus Culture/Couture (WashPost)

DotMoms Daily: "Little-Bang Theory," Thanksgiving travels, and more

Illustration: Slate.com

In family-related news:
> U.S. among worst in world for infant death (AP/Yahoo)
> The breast and the brightest (Slate)
> China confirms poison was on toy beads (NYTimes)
   Related: Sign up to receive recall e-mails
> Skateboarding rolls out of the suburbs (NYTimes)
> Study debunks theory on teen sex, delinquency (WashPost)
> Little-bang theory of violence: It all begins with a toy gun (WashPost)
> Va. Tech tragedy divides family  (WashPost)
> When one of me suddenly became three (NYTimes)
> Thanksgiving doesn't always lead you home (AP/MSNBC)