http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/7324127.stm Click on the picture of the penguins. Enjoy!

Wouldn't be nice if for extended family gatherings, everyone just did a white elephant gift exchange? It would accomplish so much--it would be lots of fun with lots of laughs, everyone would get rid of unwanted stuff, and no one would have to spend money--relieving much time & financial pressure for all. If you've never done a White ...

This column was syndicated by Scripps Howard News Service on 12/12/2007There was a time when Christians did not celebrate a season that could becalled the 30-something days of Christmas.In the year of our Lord 1939, the National Retail Dry Goods Associationasked President Franklin D. Roosevelt to move Thanksgiving to thenext-to-last Thursday in ...

I've noticed lately, from the homeschool groups I'm in, from the news and from friends, that it seems most people have been struggling and having difficult times this month, including me. It makes me wonder if it could be related to the shorter and shorter days, as we gather closer to the Winter Solstice this week. I've been feeling on ...

My sister-in-law did a fun group Christmas gift one year, and we are giving it this year. She ordered a variety of gourmet treats from Ethel M, and had the package shipped on ahead to the grandparents house. Over the holiday, we all enjoyed the treats tremendously--it was a generous gift to everyone. These chocolates and treats are expensive--be ...

Check out No Impact Man's letter to Santa--this sums up what Christmas is and what it could be!

My goal every year is to have all the Christmas shopping done by Thanksgiving. That way I can enjoy all the festivities in December at a slower pace. Plus, if you're going to visit relatives at Thanksgiving, you can hand them their wrapped Christmas gifts to put under their tree, and avoid having to ship them a week or two later. I ...

With my nine-year-old's recent birthday, I wanted to give her a "quest" to fulfill this year, to help build her character. I may start doing this for all of my children on their birthdays (maybe I'll even do one for myself--I'm turning 40 this year!). Since my daughter turned nine, I decided to give her nine tasks to ...

One of our daughters just turned nine recently. I decided this year I wanted to add a spiritual dimension to our birthday celebrations, so they're not all just materialistic in nature. So here is a simple tradition we've just started. Sometime during the actual birth-day, when it's just the family together, gather around the ...

Saturn is close to earth right now--look for a bright-looking "star" coming up the East right after sunset. Here's the link for more info.