Ground yourself: be home for the holidays

Two naked Ken dolls walk into a bar...

Brunette: Dude, you get a spray-on tan or what?
Blonde: It's all natural, baby.

Hence, we should always be cautious around the marketing claim 'natural.' As, there's clearly nothin' natural about Ken dolls, or 'man Barbies' as my two girls call them. Now, you might be wondering why I have two naked Ken dolls hanging out in my home. Let me explain. The kids put Man Barbies on their Christmas wish list this year. So when I was at that final Catlin Gabel rummage sale in November, and I happened upon the Barbie department, I did wonder why they were all naked (except for one who, I swear, was dressed like a Chippendale dancer. It was a real conundrum: birthday-suit Kens or Chippendale Ken, and how to explain the exotic dancer concept to two impressionable girls...) So I opted for the nakey ones. I figured, how hard could it be to sew up some board shorts and t-shirts? Well, probably pretty hard. It's already been filed under the 'what in the hell what I thinking??!' category. I hope to heck these aren't fully leaded, but kinda feel good about buying them second-hand. More than anything, I want to eavesdrop when my kids play with these guys, since they've only had female dolls up until now.

I was happy to see Heather's post bah-humbugging green gifts for her kids this year. I, on the other hand, scored pretty big with second hand stuff at rummage sale and whatnot. So why in the world did I find myself out in the 'burbs looking for new PJs, socks/undies and various other things they really don't need (um, and maybe just maybe a quick run to Toys R Us to find some Ken doll clothes)? It's insidious, this holiday commercialism. Here I am: EnviroMom, dangit. And I'm out there making myself crazy with holiday shopping! The more stores I went to, the more frustrated I became. The high prices! The questionable quality! And just what is the deal with all girl clothes looking like mini-prostitute-wear once they are out of toddler-hood? I ended up with nothing purchased, less gas in my car, and a really pissed off frustrated feeling.

If there's any wisdom gained from this weird exercise I put myself through is that there's lots of pressure during the holidays. If you are new to being green, don't kill yourself trying to make all the 'right' decisions. Not everything can be local, organic, fair-trade, etc., especially when it comes to shopping for kids. I did ultimately decide that their big 'Santa' gift will be an experience (instead of a thing), which will new for us.

I managed to re-ground myself by making apple butter with my daughters. Once again, I feel at peace, and ready for the 'home for the holidays' spirit. Simple pleasures. Put on some Christmas music. Bake cookies. Let the kids wrap gifts and use as much tape as they want. Find a wee bit of alone time to sew up the Ken doll clothes for my kids.

How do you keep yourself grounded at this crazy time of year? What's your favorite part of being home for the holidays?

PS Please don't say anything about Ken One and Ken Two to my kids. These bay boys are going in their stockings.