Last week my son’s daycare had their annual Christmas party. He had to bring a gift to exchange with a boy from his class and I was told to buy something that my son would want because “sometimes the two-year-olds don’t like to share the gift they brought.”

My son has been doing OK in this area — participating in a weekly “bring your toy to share” day has helped, but I wondered if he would have a meltdown when asked to give away the present he carried through the front door. He did well and came home with a different gift than the one he brought.

Giving is such a key component to Christmas that I want to teach it early on. I did a couple of searches for toddlers and givng, but found mostly teaching toddlers how to share. While sharing is probably the first step to giving, I want to find ways to teach about giving at this time of year.

Related:

• Helping toddlers learn about sharing at Christmas
• Teaching your child to be generous, not greedy

I didn’t get my packages in the mail as I’d hoped this weekend, nor did I mail my Christmas cards. So, now I’m even further behind schedule. And, Christmas, need I remind you, is one week from tomorrow.

I did get some down time this weekend, so at least I have my sanity.  Tonight I’ll have to hustle to get the rest of my “to dos” done.

I’ve been running around like crazy making lists, buying gifts, decorating the house (moving furniture back into the living room), making cookies and doing everything to get ready for Christmas. Last night, while at a friend’s house, I learned that some people don’t send Christmas cards. Got me to thinking of ways that we can eliminate stress during Christmas.

1. Don’t send Christmas cards this year. if your friends are truly your friends they won’t blacklist you from their card list.
2. Stop baking. We all have enough sweets as it is, don’t we?
3. Buy your child one less gift than you plan.
4. Stop decorating. If you don’t have a decoration up by now, don’t put it up. Will you really miss it for one year?
5. Shop online.
6. Decide to go to lunch or dinner with a friend after the holidays instead of exchanging gifts.
7. Use gift bags instead of wrapping paper.
8. Skip at least one party.
9. Do one thing for yourself: read a magazine, watch your favorite show, take a bath.
10. Take time to reflect. Step back, knock one thing off of your list for today so that you can sit back with a glass of Chardonnay and reflect on what the season is really about.

I stumbled upon an inspiring mom blog the other day: “my toddler’s lunchbox,” where a working mom chronicles what’s inside her son’s (he’s two) lunchbox. This is no ordinary lunchbox — I doubt most adult lunches are this healthy.

Every week day there is a close-up photo along with a detailed description of each food item (usually four items) as well as a rundown of what is eaten and what is left behind.

Here’s a sampling of food items:

• smoked salmon
• boiled and mashed broccoli with olive oil and raw pressed garlic
• sliced cucumbers
• sundried apricots
• fresh papaya swirls
• whole wheat pasta with spinach sauce

Most of the food that “mamajon” puts in her son’s lunchbox are things regular moms don’t even attempt to feed our kids at home, let alone prepare an exquisite meal the night before.

Here’s how “mamajon” explains her site:

This blog is about refusing to settle a junkfood lunchbox. it is about taking the time to create something healthy and interesting. it is a daily challenge, but our priority is to have a healthy and energetic toddler and we try our best to stay away from the following:

• sugar
• pre-packaged foods or canned goods
• foods containing colourings, E-numbers or additives”

Quite ambitious, and it looks like, so far, this mom is finding a way to make healthy eating a priority in her family. We should all be inspired.

Last night I walked in the door carrying four three-foot tubes of Christmas wrapping paper in cute patterns. One has penguins on it and I’m sure my son will love it. Well, he noticed first thing. “Crap,” I thought, now he’ll know all the presents are for me and not Santa. Luckily, it doesn’t really matter this year since he just turned two, but next year I bet he’ll catch on. I have to be smarter.

As he gets older he notices more and is wise to my acts of deception - he can spot a single green pea with his eyes closed and still manage to spit it out. I’ll have to pay more attention and get organized earlier so that I can sneak everything in at night. Thank goodness we get a couple of years of practice to learn these important milestones of parenting.