I really would like real life to slow down in December so that we can do the fun Christmas-y stuff in a non-frenetic, non-fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants, non-panicky way. Next year I think we are going to plan for no school in December by starting earlier in the year. And try to get Christmas shopping for extended family done before Thanksgiving. I find the shopping for those not living under our roof the most difficult and/or annoying and I would like to have it behind me when the concerts, activities, parties, projects, etc. start. There doesn't seem to be anyway to slow down the acceleration at work for DH (or my bookkeeping at church for that matter.) Why does everything pile on in December?

Assuming you can't make any money on savings, pay off the van.

Hands down my favorite christmas cookies are jam thumbprints. There's fairly little variation between recipes. Here's one: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Jam-Thumbprints/Detail.aspx?event8=1&prop24=SR_Thumb&e11=jam%20thumbprint%20cookies&e8=Quick%20Search&event10=1&e7=Home%20Page&soid=sr_results_p1i1

I've come to the conclusion that they all basically come down to one thing. More vegetables (and fruits) and less of everything else. That's enough of a goal for me, because it's so easy to let slide and there's always an opportunity to do better. :)

Do it!

We've done Starbucks cards; a basket with pancake mix, instructions and bottle of maple syrup; a small box of chocolates chosen from the local chocolate shop; gift certificate for a pedicure; and flowering plants. Always with a note. I can't remember which were year-end and which were Christmas. My favorite was when a mom at my daughters' preschool got organized and took donations to buy every single teacher in the school a kindle. Wrapped and given to the teachers with stacks of personal notes from parents. She rocked. Some of the teachers cried! I also do small boxes of homemade treats for people who don't work with tons of people/kids. I figure they aren't as inundated with baked goods. I think the key is to keep it small and pretty with baked goods. Better three each of four different things in a beautiful package than a couple dozen of a batch of something piled on a plate or in a storage container. The packaging costs more than the baked goods, which seems ridiculous, but it also comes across more heartfelt, IMO.

There's something about one's first child where it is really difficult to see how young they really are. And then you realize once your second comes along and reaches the same age that you were asking your older one to do certain things - your expectations were just too high. I think a lot of moms here are seeing you struggle with this. Based on your siggy, your 4 year old is doing at least twice the work that my almost 6 year old is doing. I think the advice to back off is good. <hug>

No, every project that my kids were sent home with the child could do with help from the parent, none independently though. Yes, some of the assignments looked like the parent did the whole thing. It never really bothered my DS, he could see right through it and didn't care. The one exception was the curious George journal that was sent home every weekend with a different child along with the stuffed curious George. You were supposed to take pictures of your child going about their weekend with George. And then write several pages in the journal about George's weekend at the child's house, complete with the photos. This happened twice per year. It stressed me out because it appeared to be a competitive thing. DH did it for me - it didn't bother him that our DD had a mundane weekend. :) They're all usually silly busy work, and adds to Mom's workload regardless. That and the fundraisers, teacher appreciation, charity drives, assigned supplies for special occasions, fundraisers, valentines, book drives, requests for items for themed stations, did I mention fundraisers, lunches for staff meetings - it drives me batty.

Off topic a bit..... Schools CAN put their foot down. My ds's montessori school laid down the law on birthday celebrations after they got out of hand. Muffins and fruit kabobs only. No pizza or Chik-fil-a and gift bags brought in for the entire class. Anyway carryon...

I was just telling my Dh last night how much I am glad we are homeschooling this time of year because I don't have all of those stupid preschool/elementary parental holiday obligations to fulfill. Drove me nuts. As if we don't have enough extra stuff to do in December. I understand. Not sure my DH got it. I must have shielded him from it too much. LOL.

I have an adopted brother. I've never heard my parents call him their "adopted" son, though it's not a secret. They celebrate his adoption day. I have on a few occasions explained to people that he is adopted, but usually only when they seem to be having trouble with the HUGE age difference or in conversations about adoption.

I've been threatening to use the wagon...

Suave Professionals captivating curls mousse. Try it - it's the best thing I've found for my curly hair in 25 years. Cheap and no crunchy hair! I've found that to get a good haircut for curly hair it's going to cost $100, so I only get a haircut two or three times a year, but I think it's money better spent than fancy hair product. The beauty of curly hair is that it's not hard. Good haircut, daily rinse, mousse/gel, scrunch, airdry/diffuser.

We're sort of flailing with kindergarten math over here too. Right Start's too expensive, but I would like some good solid understanding of addition, subtraction, place value and relationships between numbers (skip counting and the like). She's ready for it, and I feel like all of the time, seasons, money etc, is just needless filler with stuff they pick up along the way anyway. Shrug. I'm not really stressing. I just wish I could have found what I needed/wanted the first time. Hahaha!

I don't think it's too early. Time in December has a way of getting away from you, so if you want to do some baking for gifts, I'd go ahead and start. No reason why you can't give it away early, because most people are sick of that stuff by the time Christmas day rolls around anyway! Also, yes, the freezer is your friend. I've found that most drop cookies do well if you drop them on a tray, freeze them and then store them in a freezer bag. On baking day, lay them out on the cookie sheet and let them sit at room temperature while the oven heats. Then bake them at 25F lower than the original recipe called for (and for longer of course).

I think you might be making it too hard on both of you. Though my hair didn't go curly until puberty, so you can take what I say with a grain of salt. Curly Girl? Meh. I think go ahead and wash her hair frequently with conditioner. No need to pin it up for the rest of the bath or whatever. When you get her out comb the gel through and scrunch it. I LOVE Suave Professionals Captivating Curls mousse. I'd think a mousse rather than a gel would work better on her fine hair, so I wonder if you'd like it too. On non wash days, I'd brush it. The Wet Brush is great. I'd rather have a girl without tangles and some frizz than a rats nest. Like grantmeawish says, just braid it! Cute!

Thanks! I was able to get Pioneer Girl for MIL at budget! :thumbup1:

I totally loved their commercial last year (?). The little kid peeling one and talking about how he could do it himself. I haven't seen it yet this year. That's marketing done right!

My boston cream pie fell so badly there was no covering it up. So we are having a boston cream trifle. Oh well, gave me an excuse to add some sherry.

If it's not too late, I think I'd ask my family for more. My mom usually makes up a general list of what she'd like to see prepared for Thanksgiving and sends it out to those of us attending. We (guests) pick up enough off of that list to make it so that she is not preparing the majority of the food. When we hosted last year, I did the same. Mom even brought the turkey.....I wonder if she doesn't trust anyone else to do it.....hmmmm. Glad she did though, she's a wonderful cook who's skill I'll probably never reach.

thanks! I'll try this.

You should be able to copy and paste and take the spaces out. I broke the link because I wasn't sure what the rules were here at WTM. =-=-=-=-=-=- I want to try sourdough waffles!

redsquirrel, this is the recipe I use. It is not sour at all, nobody knows it's sourdough unless you tell them, so I think your kids will like it. It doesn't take half as long to rise as the recipe says. I think that's why it's not sour. http://www.thenourishing gourmet.com/2009/01/669.html I make a quadruple batch each time, and I found that we like it better with only 1 t. of salt per loaf. Also, I weigh the sourdough rather than measure volume, so to make 4 loaves I use 32 ounces of starter. I've never needed as much flour as the recipe calls for. Three cups per loaf is really the upper limit IMO (maybe because my starter is thick?), you want it sticky. I feed my stater with white flour, so this ends up being probably only 2/3 whole wheat, which is fine with me. I've added yogurt to this with good results. Try experimenting with this one!

I keep a small amount in my fridge (less than 1 cup) and get it out a couple of days before I need it. Then I feed it twice a day until I have enough for my bread recipe, saving 4 ounces to feed and put directly back into the fridge. It works well for me!

double posted.