Work It: a blog for Working Moms

Do you love chocolate?

Of course you do! Well do I have a giveaway for you! The folks at See's Chocolate candy love you!

  If you tool around the See's Candies site, you see quite an impressive array of chocolate. And it's organized by type, occasion and price. That makes it easy, especially if you're shopping for hostess gifts or co-workers. Or you know some chocolate for you. As I've mentioned elsewhere, chocolate is like a religion to some of us. Well, that and wine.

So those aforementioned lovely people at See's Candies want to share it with you (And by "it" I mean the chocolate, not the wine!)  They are giving one lucky Work It reader a  $25 gift certificate for See's chocolate, or really any of the candy on their site.

I am partial to the dark chocolate, but ordered 1lb. of milk chocolate because it's the majority preference in my family. However, I am now intrigued by the Egg Nog Truffles. Egg Nog is in my personal Top 5 Favorite Things of the Holidays. And surrounded by chocolate, well there is nothing bad about that.

In addition to loving you. See's Candies also loves your PTO, church group, scout troop etc. They have a fabulous candy fundraiser program. Pass it on!

The giveaway rules: take a look around the See's site, leave one comment below about what looks good to you. The winning comment will be chosen by the infamous Internet randomizer.

To leave a second comment: go twitter about the giveaway or post about it on Facebook, come back and tell me in a comment. (That quadruples your chances of winning! Okay, math = not my strong point.)

If you win, you will be notified by email so please make sure you include it with your comment.

You have until Friday, December 12 at 5:00 EST to comment.

Holiday Coffee Break: Procrastination one link at a time

Today's Link: Mom Central Holiday Gift Guide

Why: You know the proliferate reviewers at Mom Central? Well the very smart women over there have organized previously and newly-reviewed products and services by recipient and price range.

And? They're throwing a doozy of a holiday giveaway. Actually it's many giveaways. Every day until 12/18, daily prizes, each with a theme!

To be eligible, log-in (or register if you haven't already) and leave a comment on the post.
In addition, if you tweet or email friends about the giveaway, you can earn another entry!

While you're there, sign up to be part of the Mom Testing panel. You can take part in the reviewing process!

Where is the play?

By Laura L.

When my oldest was wee – like 2ish – I was feeling some pressure. The kind of pressure applied when you hear stories of other children excelling at something. The kind of pressure parents feel just by noticing the Baby Einstein product line. Was my kid behind? Already? Then, I read Einstein Never Used Flash Cards: How Our Children Really Learn-- And Why They Need to Play More and Memorize Less Okay I read parts of it. It’s technical and contains a certain level of psych speak that goes well above my freshman year Psych 101 class. The authors suggest “children learn best through simple playtime, which enhances problem solving skills, attention span, social development and creativity.” It also assured me that my hesitance to go about raising my children the way one trains a dog or a seal was okay.

Two years after my self-centering on the matter, the American Academy of Pediatrics endorsed the idea that play is learning, the good kind. Parents, educators and the psych experts are getting the word out …to get the play back.

Martin Luther King Day - For Kids

by Amy S.

We buy a $3 large, hang-up style calendar from OfficeMax every year and hang it on the back of Olivia's door. We started last year when she was four to count days until special holidays, birthdays, etc. This year it's become even more educational, as she can now recognize the words "No School" - and she gets giggly and does the "no school" dance.

This morning she read "No School" for tomorrow's date and then proceeded to tell me, "It's Martin Luther King Day tomorrow. We should light a candle in his honor."

Just another moment in which I silently thank her incredibly wonderful preschool teachers, including the new one she has now. It made me think about how easy it can be to overlook "teachable moments." I'm not sure I would have really taken the time to explain to her at age five, who Martin Luther King, Jr., is and why he's so important. But obviously they've been doing some of it at school, so she's ready.

I found a couple of Web sites that provide age-appropriate lessons to review on Martin Luther King Day. So we'll spend some time tomorrow talking about him and at least introducing the concepts that we can build on as she gets older. And we will also light a candle in his honor.

Easy Holiday Appetizer Recipe

Here is a great recipe for any Holiday gathering. It is for an appetizer that takes only minutes to make, can be made virtually fat free, and will be gone within minutes of you making it. I always keep extra ingredients ready to go as it seems everyone always wants seconds.

Ingredients:

1. Cream Cheese (Full Fat or Non Fat version)
2. Salsa
3. Shredded Cheddar Cheese (once again, this can be the fat free version)

Instructions:

1. Take any microwavable plate or serving dish. Cover the bottom of the dish with cream cheese.
2. On top of the cream cheese layer, cover that with salsa.
3. Over the salsa, generously spread the shredded cheese.
4. Microwave this on high for 1 - 2 minutes, or until the cheese on top is melted.
5. Serve with tortilla chips or anything else that makes a good dipping tool.

And that's it! This is a favorite of mine for a couple of years...I think I might need to make this tonight...

Gifts for the Teachers and the rest of the world...

by Amy W.

I know we have discussed this before on this site.

But it is killing my wallet this year.

We have two kids in daycare. They each have two teachers, a floater teacher, as well as a cook, receptionist, director, and an owner.

Do you see the dilemma with my wallet?

Don't get me wrong, the teachers (as well as the cook, receptionist and all the employees at their daycare) are fabulous and deserve every bit of every gift they receive this year. It shows in that my four year is beginning to read, and is excited about it.

So the gift cards have been purchased, cute ornaments bought for the receptionist and owner...

But is that where we end? In previous years, we have given to the mail carrier. Come rain or lack of rain in our area, our mail is delivered. But this year, the mail carrier broke our mailbox shoving our mail in. And is a giftcard what they want? What is the appropriate amount?

And garbage collectors? I have heard before of people leaving six pack of beers or other items for them. Is that what they want?

And don't even get me started on coworkers. I had my boss tell me she purchased my gift months ago. What in the heck do I get her??

Gotta love the holidays...

A Very Important Part of Hanukkah

by Coletta

I believe that my son is the only Jewish child in his Pre-school class of 12 kids. I am anticipating that a friend or a teacher may ask him questions about the holiday...and, in preparation for this, I asked my son why we celebrate Hanukkah. Now, my son is three and rather free spirited but I was still disappointed when his answer was "for presents!" I promptly explained that Hanukkah was a celebration of the miracle of the lasting oil and that we celebrated God's power to give us light. Then I asked Morgan again. "What is the meaning of Hanukkah?"  Morgan responded, "MOM...presents are very, very, very important." 

He's right.They are. 

I spend most of the holiday season shopping, stressing about shopping or making a list of what to shop for. It doesn't help that we celebrate both Hanukkah and Christmas so Morgan will be getting gifts in some form for 2 weeks.

When I told my husband about my discussion with our son he was adamant about concentrating on one of the other big Hanukkah traditions, charity. So each night, after we light the menorah we find change to put in the tzedakah box. We also picked out a gift for the Angel tree at school. I am very happy that we are doing this. But I have a feeling that, for him to really understand charity, we, as a family, will have to do more. This holiday season I am on the lookout for opportunities for us to be generous and give not only from our wallets but also our talents and time. I honestly believe that it is better to give than to receive and the sooner my son learns this, the richer his life will be. I am also hoping to get all of my holiday shopping completed early this week so that my evenings will be free to spend time with my son, do projects, bake cookies, watch holiday specials and visit with friends, I want to show him good examples of the MOST important reasons for the season. 

The Grinch, er, obligations, ate my Christmas funds...

by Jennifer

It's happened again. Despite my careful planning -- I even waited months to submit my dependent care reimbursement forms as a way to have some holiday cash -- it looks like we're going to be really strapped this Christmas.

As I've mentioned in some previous posts, I started a new job in October. Over the summer, my husband began treatment for adult ADD. New job means new insurance... and a new deductible. That means the nearly $600 cost of the last two ADD-related visits of the year will come completely out of our pockets. What's more, I joined the ranks of the temporarily uninsured during the month of November. And, wouldn't you know it, I got very sick and needed to go to the doctor. Nearly $200 and a load of antibiotics later, I was better.

It's not as if we spend a fortune at Christmas. We're buying our son one gift... and (please understand my rationale) rewrapping three or four birthday gifts he received. We put them away to avoid new toy overload. We're spending $50 total on our two young nephews, with whom we'll be spending Christmas. We'll splurge a little for my husband's parents since they save us every time day care is closed but our offices aren't. We'll probably spend another $200 or $250 total on six more people -- my parents and younger sister and my husband's siblings. My husband and I are using American Express points to buy a joint gift for each other.

We'd be fine if that were all the gift-buying we needed to do. But, there are more people to buy for or tip: The two women who care for my son at the family day care (the pressure to figure out the right gift is weighing on me, as is the question of whether to instead follow the advice of several local New York magazines, which call for a cash gift equal to a week's day care rate); our dog walker (rule of thumb, I'm told, is a week's pay; for us, that's $50); the doormen, workmen and our building super (even though our super is useless and our doorman crew is small, if I follow the rule of thumb, I'll be handing over an envelope with at least $350); our date-night sitter (a night's pay, I'm told, but I'm thinking half-a-night's pay and a personal gift); the parking attendants at the garage we use (other garage-goers say $50 pr $60 since we only use the car on weekends). I am sure I'm forgetting several someones and many of the someones I have mentioned rely on their holiday tips as part of their income; and they deserve it... they do so much for us throughout the year. That $800 or so I never planned to spend was mostly to be divided between all of these people.

I'm not sure how I'm going to manage this. In the past, I might have turned to credit cards, but we resolved to cut them up (well, hide them) and pay them off. We've held to that for the last 11 months and I'm not inclined to break now. I'm sure I feel too much peer pressure on what and how much to give. And, I'm sure this will work itself out, just like it does almost every year.

How do you manage the holiday cash crunch? What do you do if you unexpectedly come up short?

Here comes Santa Claus, Here come Santa Claus…

by Joy

It’s that time of year again!  It’s the time of year to purge my children’s toy chest to make room for the new ones that will be coming down from Santa. My seven and four year-olds are eagerly looking forward to Christmas morning to see what great things are waiting for them under the tree.  I am trying to read the future myself and see what’s going to be under the tree for them, because I still can’t figure out what to get them for Christmas.

My oh-so-grown-up seven year old is not really into toys anymore.  Being the only female granddaughter born to a family of all grandsons, she has been inundated with pink frilly princess items since she the day she was born.  Disney princesses, Barbie, Polly Pocket, My little Pony, all these items have come and gone through the holidays, and the funny thing is that I realized a couple of years ago, she was no longer interested in these items anymore.  Oh don’t get me wrong, she lights up when she opens up her package and plays with her dolls for a little while. However, after about a month or two, her interests wanes, and it’s almost like the dolls don’t exist anymore. My son loves toys; however he is definitely the toy of the moment kind of child. Last Christmas, he was really into Star Wars. A few months ago, it was Ben 10, now (just in time for Christmas) it’s Transformers.  How much do you invest in buying a slew of toys for your 4-year-old’s passing fancy?

My husband and I are also trying to get back to the Christmas’ of our childhood when item we required for every day life were intermingled with a few new toys to play with. New toys were packaged along with new socks and clothes for the year.  Play a recreational sport? Well new gear for the sport to fit that growing body also made up the Christmas stash.  There’s of course, the whole notion of a budget.  We try very hard not to splurge at Christmas.  It’s so easy to do so, because you love your children so much, but my husband and I want to ensure that our children understand the true meaning of Christmas.  The gifts are a side-note in the grand scheme of things. So what to do? What to do?

My situation is not quite as hopeless as I make it seem though. My daughter is a budding artist in the making. Give the girl a blank piece of paper and a pen or pencil; you’ll get a pretty impressive piece of art.  So I’ve got that to work with. While my son is a toy of the moment child, he also still loves every single toy he’s ever been given. My aforementioned purge has to be done with the greatest of care so as not to tip him off.  So I have a wide range of toys to work with. As for recreational sports, both my children ice skate, and what do you know, they both need new skates. 

So I guess I should get shopping. Here's to happy success on Christmas Morning!

Does anyone else agonize over their children’s gifts like this? Or am I just nuts?

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

By Jessica

It is hard to believe but the holidays are right around the corner. Less than two months for Christmas and less than four weeks for Thanksgiving. 

I've been discussing Christmas with Thing 2. He has been informed that for every toy he puts on his list for Santa, he has to donate a existing toy, of equal size or bigger, to Goodwill. He is totally on board with this idea, for now. I am quite sure it will be met with many cries of anguish, or tears of frustration, when the time arrives to actually give them up. 

For me it is simple. The child has too many toys to play with as it is. Most of them he has outgrown and they need to be replaced with a more age appropriate toy.  I can not see bringing one more thing into our home until the mound of existing toys is diminished by at least half. It already looks like Santa's workshop has exploded in our house.

Thing 1 is not much easier. Since he is 12, he goes for the more high end items, iPods, a digital camera, games for the PS2 that cost a small fortune, clothes from stores that I would not step foot in unless they were giving them away, etc. He was told to make a list and hope for the best. Santa's money tree got lost in the last big storm so funding is low.

So, what are your plans on gifts for the kids for the holiday?  Do you have a set amount you are willing to spend? How soon do you start buying? Do you require your children to weed out their existing toys prior to Christmas?