Holidays

There are many people who really get into the holiday spirit in Marin, and of all places in the county I think that Marinwood, the small community sandwiched between Novato and San Rafael, has the most decorated holiday houses per capita!

It's only natural then that one of our favorite Christmas houses happens to be located in Marinwood: the Nisja's Bear house, which has been delighting Marin and Bay Area families for 30 years.

Looking for something for the kids to do over the upcoming winter break? Check out some of the great day camps here in Marin!

• For young nature fans, Wildcare in San Rafael offers camps for kids from kindergarten through second grade. Their first session, Nature Detectives, runs from December 21–23 and is for children in kindergarten and first grade. Campers will have fun with animal tracks, fur, feathers, and more, and will search for clues and investigate the evidence that wildlife leaves behind.
  
  Wildcare's session two, Winter Wonderland, is for students in first and second grade. Get up close and personal with our animal friends, and learn how they survive the winter.
  
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For many of us, the holidays mean it's time to bake cookies and other seasonal treats. It's always fun to get the kids involved, and this gingerbread cookie recipe via What's Cooking's Michelle Stern is a perfect one to use. It doesn't take a long time to make (no rest time in the refrigerator), and it can be worked and shaped like play-dough. Unlike a lot of cookie doughs it holds its form and doesn't melt into a shapeless blob in the oven.

Gingerbread Cookie Play-Dough

5 ½ c. flour
3 t. baking soda
1 ¾ c. dark brown sugar
¼ c. dark molasses
4 ½ t. ground cinnamon
3 t. ground ginger
½ t. cloves
¼ t. salt
1 c. melted butter
½ c. boiling water
1 egg, beaten

This holiday season, Marin Mommies has taken the trouble out of finding local Christmas tree farms and lots with our new interactive Christmas tree map!

Click on a Christmas tree marker on our customized Google map to open a popup window for that location—clicking on a link in the window will take you to a listing with location details, hours, and contact information for that tree farm or lot, as well as information about tree types and special features like gift shops, petting zoos, complimentary refreshments, and more.

The Marin and southern Sonoma County Christmas tree farms and lots currently listed on the map some of our and our readers' favorites. If we've missed one that you think should be included, please let us know and we'll consider adding it to the map.

Go to the Marin Mommies Christmas Tree Map »

Presenting a guest article by Mill Valley parent educator Julie King and co-author Joanna Faber. It's especially relevant for this time of year! You can learn more about Julie and her services, workshops, and presentations at www.julieking.org.

Have your kids been known to announce, upon opening a gift in front of the gift-giver, “I already have this one. You should’ve gotten me the other kind!”? Many of us have had kids burst into tears upon opening a gift, or angrily declare "I don't like this," causing great distress to the startled giver and great embarrassment to the hapless parent.

It can be hard not to be horrified by such unseemly behavior, or to question our own parenting, worrying that we’ve brought up greedy, spoiled brats. The urge is to punish them, to take things they value away from them, or to lecture them about all the less-fortunate children in the world. However satisfying these tactics may seem, though, none of them tend to create the grateful child of our dreams.

As we head into the potentially hazardous season of gift exchange, now is a good time to start preparing children to be gracious gift recipients and head off some of the hurt feelings and mortification. Here are some ideas to get you started:

1. At a neutral time talk with your kids about getting presents that are disappointing. Share your own memories from your childhood when you were not just disappointed, but offended by presents you received – the toy that was “too babyish,” or the sweater that was downright ugly. Devise a plan with your kids for what to do in such a case. After all, the person was thinking of you and trying to please you. Can your kid have a special signal he can give you to let YOU know he is disappointed? What will he say to the gift giver? Perhaps a "Thank you so much!" said with enthusiasm, or “It was so nice of you to bring me a gift!
2. Play the Present Giving Game. Let your kid find something thoroughly unappealing in the house or yard to wrap up and give to you (a rock, dirt, a spoon.) Now your challenge is to unwrap it and say something nice (“Oh, look at this beautiful rock. It’s so hard and smooth, I could use it as a paperweight; I know just where I’ll put it…” or “This is just what my flower pot needs so my petunias bloom,” or “Wow, what a shiny spoon. I can’t wait to use it to stir my tea in the morning…”). Now reverse the challenge and wrap up something icky for your child to open.
   
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Bring the kids to the Dream Circle Holiday Concert at Marin Center on Tuesday, December 8, 2009, featuring an all-star local lineup including Tim Cain, Judy Nee (AKA Miss Kitty), Cindy Cohen, and Christopher Smith. This holiday family performance will feature songs from their It’s a Holiday CD that includes music for a diverse lineup of winter holidays, including Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, and Chinese New Year.

There will be 2 shows, at 9:30 am and 11 am, at Marin Center’s Showcase Theater in San Rafael. Advance tickets are required: (415) 457-4878. The Showcase Theater is located at 10 Avenue of the Flags (off Highway 101) at the Marin County Civic Center in San Rafael. For directions, go to the Marin Center's website. Read our 2008 review of the Dream Circle CD here.