From New York Times bestselling author and acclaimed “Scary Mommy” blogger Jill Smokler comes a funny and practical guide filled with essays, recipes, and tried-and-true tips sure to get any parent through the holiday season—without losing your marbles. Ah, the holidays: a time of joy, celebration, serenity, and peace… Unless, of course, you have whiny, screaming children demanding presents, attention, and a personal appearance by Santa or Judah the Maccabee. Then you’re screwed. But wait, there’s hope: Scary Mommy Guide to Surviving the Holidays to the rescue! Yes, in this handy holiday guide, you’ll find everything you need to survive the fall/winter rush of cheer in style, and without having a mental breakdown. From relatable, hilarious essays on everything from the Santa myth to being seated at the dreaded kids’ table, to easy-to-follow recipes that might include just a little something special to take the edge off (can anyone say Kahlua?), to fun and accessible gift ideas, this book is your ticket to peace of mind—and a laugh—during the busy, crazy holiday season!

Sure, it’s the most wonderful time of the year – but during the holiday season, you have to be ready for anything. You never know when you might be trapped in an increasingly embarrassing family photo shoot; or haunted by ghosts who want to teach you life lessons; or cornered by carolers demanding figgy pudding when they really mean cash. Luckily, the narrators are here to show you how to make it through New Years in one piece – and the holiday play won’t be one of your worries with a flexible cast, easily adjustable length, and minimal set. 10 Ways to Survive the Holidays is a crowd-pleasing whirlwind tour through the hilarious pitfalls that we all power through to make merry. (Note: the length is adjustable, as the playwright allows cutting segments and adjusting the number in the title accordingly to create a shorter evening. Please see script for details.)

The official course book for the International University of Santa Claus (IUSC) this 246-page book is a complete training course, written by one of America's most recognized, premiere Santas. Over 4,000 copies of this course book have been sold and over 3,500 have attended the IUSC's School4Santas in the past 15 years. Written for both Real Bearded and Theatrically bearded Santas, Mrs. Claus, and Holiday Professionals and Volunteers, this is one of the most comprehensive training books offered. Subjects covered include; A Brief History of Santa Claus - The Basics of Being Santa - #1 You are there for the Children - Working with Children - Special needs children & families - Grooming and Appearance - Your Image as Santa - Santas Magic Wardrobe - - Work Environments - Mall Santa or Private Event Santa? - Appearances at Special Events - Children's Parties & Home visits - Parades & Tree lightings - Entertainment & Presentation styles - Posing for Photos - Talking with Children - Answering Difficult Questions - Working with Pets - The basic business aspects of being a Santa - Marketing & Promotion -- Get a Head Start on the Holidays - Being prepared for the job - Checklists of supplies and equipment -- What Qualities do Great Santa's Possess - A Santa of Character. and how to HO, HO, HO School4Santas, officially The International University of Santa Claus, has been seen and featured on NBC, CBS, CNN, Fox News, the Discovery Channel, National Geographic, the Travel channel, the History Channel, in over a dozen documentaries and featured in the Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times and over 800 other news articles, radio and television news stories.

The hilarious holiday handbook for those who are starting to see Scrooge's point of view. Let's face it-sometimes the joys of Christmas are enough to make us want to run away from home-with all of the eggnog, of course. But with a little wry humor, Ann Hodgman is here to tackle Christmas stress and bring cheer back into the holiday. Delving into such diverse topics as making Christmas for kids and adults, how many traditions are just too many, and much more, I Saw Mommy Kicking Santa Claus is full of helpful advice, recipes, and true holiday horror stories to let you know you're not alone.

For a parent, losing a child is the most devastating event that can occur. Most books on the subject focus on grieving and recovery, but as most parents agree, there is no recovery from such a loss. This book examines the continued love parents feel for their child and the many poignant and ingenious ways they devise to preserve the bond. Through detailed profiles of parents, Ann Finkbeiner shows how new activities and changed relationships with their spouse, friends, and other children can all help parents preserve a bond with the lost child. Refusing to fall back on pop jargon about "recovery" or to offer easy suggestions or standardized timelines, Finkbeiner's is a genuine and moving search to come to terms with loss. Her complex profiles of parents resonate with the honesty and authenticity of uncomfortable emotions expressed and, most importantly, shared with others experiencing a similar loss. Finally, each profile exemplifies the many heroic ways parents learn to live with their pain, and by so doing, honor the lives their children should have lived.

With compassionate insight, this handbook helps those in mourning through what can be the hardest time of year—the holiday season. Mourners will better understand their complex emotions after reading about such topics as honoring thoughts and feelings, creating new traditions, finding ways to de-stress, and incorporating healing rituals into the holiday season. This book's practical wisdom also covers issues such as decision-making during the holidays and coping with the blending of mourning and celebration. All of the answers and advice in this guide are provided in the popular 100 ideas format that features one idea per page, allowing readers to fully absorb each suggestion.

As parents, we want to shape our children into emotionally mature and healthy human beings. But we cannot effectively shape our children's emotional well-being until we've addressed our own traumas and emotional needs. In It Starts with You, marriage and family therapist and parent coach Nicole Schwarz offers a nonjudgmental, shame-free guide to parenting children with a calm confidence. Working from a place of grace and compassion, she encourages us to explore how our history, thoughts, and assumptions impact our parenting decisions. Moving away from traditional discipline strategies, Schwarz focuses on the importance of having a calm brain, connected relationships, respectful conversations, and a coaching mindset with our kids. It Starts with You lays out a five-step process you can turn to whenever you're stuck in a difficult parenting situation. Each step is grounded in research and presented in a way that is easy to understand. Rather than adding unnecessary pressure, we learn that kids do not need perfect parents, but parents who are willing to learn, grow, and move forward with them in a positive direction.