Rexanne's Web Review - Issue #35

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I'm on time-crunch! I still have Christmas presents to buy and wrap ... the holiday parties are back-to-back ... there will be no less than 12 hungry family members and friends arriving at my home on Christmas Day for a lasagna feast .... wish me luck! With all the hoopla on Christmas morning (not to mention the night before), things will be pretty wild around here. I can't imagine a better time! :-) I love this holiday. Love my children's pure ecstasy over the insanity of it all and the traditions leave me beaming. Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanzaa! I wish you all a sparkling holiday season and many blessings in the new year.

In this issue, we have excellent reader's comments and goodies to help you along the holiday march so let's jump right in ...

One last time before the big day hits: Rexanne's Christmas - Everything for a splendid holiday:

"My daughter is in the first grade and she does get an allowance. I don't pay her for each chore or even by the day. I give her money on the weekend based on how much she helped out all week. Of course that means allowing for the fact that she is only 6 and she really never wants to clean her room.

My parents are the culprits who pay her for her grades. Actually, I think it's great. My parents want to do the same for their grandson, but my brother-in-law won't allow it. He says that his son should make good grades because it is expected of him. So my parents have resorted to putting the money into an account for him for when he's older."

"I think it's wrong to pay the kids for getting good grades. I agree that they should get a reward for this but not payment. They should be praised and told that we are proud of them but that's all. No payment of money or toys for this. Except for the usual allowance you can give them some work that is NOT their usual chores and they can get paid for it.

I hope you don't think I was judging you for giving allowance for grades. Anyone is entitled to his own way of educating. I was just thinking out loud."

That's what this newsletter is about, Klara. We are all in this position of parenting together and everyone's opinion matters. I think it makes our jobs easier when we hear other ideas, then decide which work for us. Thank you for sharing your views!

"I gave my girls allowance for chores and am happy I did. They learned to work to earn money. I gave them specific chores to do weekly and never nagged or reminded them. At the end of the week if the chores weren't done, I did them and I got the money! My girls are freshman and sophomores in college now and both work to earn their spending money. They don't expect me to provide it, which is a good thing!"

"We have given our boys money for good grades on their report cards. In fact, my father used to give us a quarter for every A my sister and I got on our report cards and it never hurt us.

Chores are a tough thing. A few years ago I created a chart for my three boys for doing chores. We now have two charts. Daily chores, which mainly focus around dinner time and weekly chores for the weekends. Daily chores consist of jobs split up three ways, for three boys, you would have to change around for other family sizes. These chores are also posted for one week, meaning they would have to do the chore the whole week. We used to change daily, but that became too much.

I have one sheet that I post with names across the top and chores in boxes underneath with week numbers off to the side. Week 1 is by itself, weeks 2 & 4 are in the next box, and weeks 3 & 5 are in the last box. Weekly chores are posted the same way with the names of the months off to the side. We change these now monthly.

This has all been tested by trial and error over the years. My mom and mother-in-law love my system and keep telling all our other relatives about it. The boys have gotten used to it and it's pretty automatic. Still have to nag now and then ... guess that's what mom's are for."

"I just wanted to say that I will be calling my mother and thanking her for her generosity in doling out the allowances each week to me and my two brothers. We got a dollar a day. That was over twenty years ago! And I always thought it was such a small amount."

"When my children were young someone at school had head lice. All children were to be treated since it was a small school, K-8. After looking at the price of the 'treatments' in the stores, I called my doctor. We used plain old mineral oil. It is inexpensive and works great. Saturate their hair and scalp with the oil. Leave on 15 minutes or so (we left theirs on over an hour while they watched their nightly TV programs). Then wash out. Four nights of this and all was well! If you have 3 kids, believe me, the price is well worth the try as compared to treatment shampoos."

Quote of The Week: A child's education should begin at least one hundred years before he is born. - Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

We all have our special holiday and celebration traditions. Whether it's bringing home the tree for Christmas on December 15 every year or baking Great Grandma's special custard pie, there are certain traditions that help create our own holiday magic. While they hold particular meaning and sentiment for us, our children learn those rituals and can adopt them as their own when they're grown and begin their own families. Some children cling to tradition like a favorite teddy bear, even at a young age.

Though we might not realize how deeply our kids are touched by family traditions, most children look forward to the holidays and the little ways we make them special. It's a form of security for children to know that certain events and personal touches will always be part of their celebrations.

Whether your family is large and boisterous or small and mellow, they are the people we belong to. Uncle John might be a bigot and Grandma Sue chews tobacco but hey, they're our family. Children feel this sense of belonging and have no clue that the world is different beyond their family circle. Soon enough they might realize what a dunce Uncle John is and find Grandma's chew a little harsh, but for the first part of their lives, kids are tolerant and filled with love for the relatives who've shown them love.

If your children are older and wiser, they will still find comfort and fun in the family holiday spirit. Let them help decorate the tree or light the menorah. They can help wrap presents, learn to bake your favorite holiday cookies or read special stories to the younger kids.

Holidays and special traditions are part of what make a family close. Your children will be forever grateful that you took the time to create and honor these special times and memories.

There are many articles and stories of family gatherings, traditions and holiday events online. Here are a few:

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Rexanne Mancini is the mother of two daughters, Justice and Liberty. She is a novelist, freelance writer and maintains an extensive yet informal parenting and family web site, Rexanne.com – http://www.rexanne.com -Visit her site for good advice, award-winning Internet holiday pages and some humor to help you cope. Subscribe to her free newsletter, Rexanne’s Web Review, for a monthly dose of Rexanne: http://www.rexanne.com/rwr-archives.html

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This article is available for reprint at no charge providing the resource box with the writer's information is included and remains intact.

Have an opinion about this topic or a story to share? Please send it: My Opinion

Don't let the name fool you if you're not into "old fashioned." The holiday recipes and cooking tips on this site are simply awesome!

On Old Fashioned Holiday's recipe site, you'll find main meals, appetizers, breads, desserts, beverages and plenty of culinary gifts to make for your family and friends. You might even find a special recipe that will become part of your family's traditional holiday spread from this year on.

Yes, this is my Christmas for Kids page ... ;-) It was so hard to choose from all the great holiday sites for children. Let the kids have a go at my page, filled with categorized links to all the very best holiday pages and fun things to do online.

And for my shanapuddin' Jewish munchkins (thought I didn't know Yiddish? LOL!) here's a super kid's page, filled with Hanukkah activities, games and stories: Torah Tots

Here are links to various wonderful sites that will help make your festivities more organized and less crazy:

Also found these super tips for creating holiday traditions from Khatt Kountry, a fun and informative family newsletter. A link to subscribe to Khatt Kountry is below the list of traditions.

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Christmas Traditions

Christmas traditions are important to children and the strength of the family. Long after the wrapping paper, toys and festivities are over, your family will remember the traditions you created and repeated every Christmas. Traditions need not be difficult or time consuming. If you care to start your own family tradition, check out these ideas.

Attend Church on Christmas Eve together.

Bake Christmas Cookies together, as a family, during the Holidays.

Bake goodies for friends and neighbors and deliver them together.

Go Christmas Caroling.

Pop a large bowl of popcorn and drive around looking at Christmas
lights.

Display Christmas photos from years past and keep them updated.

Design a "Memory Book" for Christmas and each year document special
things that happened to your family during the Holidays.

Pick out your family's Christmas Tree and decorate it together with
Christmas music playing and a cup of hot chocolate.

Turn on "Alvin and the Chipmunks" Christmas album and dance around the
living room with your kids.

Buy Santa hats for the family and wear them shopping.

Make at least one Christmas craft every year with the kids.

Put jingle bells on your shoe laces.

Wear RED the entire month of December.

Decorate your children's bedrooms with Christmas decorations.

Visit someone who is housebound and bring them a home baked gift.

Go ice skating together.

Visit Santa and have a family portrait taken while the family is
sitting on his lap.

Host a cookie/ornament swap party for your kids.

Buy new Christmas PJ's every year and wear them on Christmas Eve.

Build a cozy fire and relax as a family playing a board game.

Remember the true meaning of Christmas ALL YEAR LONG.

Tips from Khatt Kountry newsletter. To subscribe, send an email with the word "subscribe" to: AllyKhatt@aol.com

Got a tip or trick your fellow readers would enjoy or could use? Please send it here for possible publication in one of the next issues: Tips

On this page, you'll find all manner of holiday goodies, from free graphics, fonts and cursors for your computer to patterns, books and Furbys for the kids.

Kelly sent in this great Time Waster site to share. Oh dear ... I've been lost at this site for the past two weeks! Thanks loads, Kelly! ;-)

At Lottery.com, you can play a variety of solitaire games, from my new favorite, Pyramid Solitaire to Video Poker. Not only can you waste valuable time in here, you can rack up points as you play and turn them in for prizes. Can the Internet get any better? All we need is free food and beverage delivery ... we'll be set for life. ;-)

Have a great time. Get the rest of the Christmas shopping done before you settle in and remember ... Feed the kids first ...

Marilyn has captured the essence of traditions in this beautifully designed page. Beautiful music and wonderful words will touch your hearts with the inspiration of the season.

Proflowers sends flowers for all occasions direct from the grower for guaranteed fresh, beautiful bouquets, centerpieces, plants and some of the most spectacular arrangements to grace a home or business.

Holiday orders can be placed NOW for the perfect arrival date. Order early for guaranteed holiday delivery*!

Ashlane Gift Baskets make the perfect present, whether for loved ones
far away, business associates who deserve special recognition at the
holidays or for children. Baskets that will delight, inspire and be
fondly remembered. Gift baskets are the perfect, thoughtful holiday
present. Order today for holiday delivery!

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The fine print: This newsletter is copyright - 2000 - in its entirety. Please pass it on, but also please leave it intact. :-) You are receiving this email because you sent a specific message asking to be placed on the mailing list for this newsletter. If you wish to be removed from this list, see the unsubscribe notice above. This is NOT SPAM, nor will you ever see a recipe featuring SPAM in this newsletter! ;-)

I have personally checked out the links provided here but they could possibly lead you to any number of bizarre and/or offensive sites. Surf at your own risk. The DIRECT links on this page are all family friendly unless stated otherwise. While this newsletter is family friendly, it is not necessarily intended to be read by children. Parents should always monitor their children while they are on the Internet.