I feel as if I've known Kristin Brandt and Erin Kane of Manic Mommies forever; in reality, I’ve known Kristin since college (well, that kind of feels like forever ago…) and Erin since the Disney mom bloggers mixer. They both are smart, hilarious, and impressive in their juggling of work and home; whenever we meet up there's a lot of laughter and also serious parsing of all things social media and family life. For the twelfth installment of my Simplifying the Holidays guest blog series, I’m thrilled to welcome Kristin; read on to learn about the important lesson she learned from her mom, plus a series of holiday tips that have served Kristin well as a full-time working mom.

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From Kristin:

When I was a kid, we begged and pleaded my mom to decorate our house for Christmas. My brother and I loved all the twinkle lights that adorned our neighbor's homes, and wanted our house to twinkle in a similar fashion. But my mother refused, telling us that the decorations were tacky. Fast-forward 30 years, and today my parents' home (the same one I grew up in) is decked out for the holidays - complete with twinkle lights, animatronic reindeer, a toy soldier, and much to my disbelief, an inflatable Santa Claus. When I asked her why the change of attitude, her answer was simple: "I was a working mom. I didn't have TIME to keep up with the neighbors."

And so, I received my first valuable lesson about how to survive the holiday hoopla while holding down a full-time job and managing the multitude of commitments that have clogged our schedule: don't try to keep up with everyone. Here are some additional lessons (some may call them concessions – tomato, tomAto) I've learned since become a parent:

Set your DVR. You could buy DVDs of all of the holiday classics (Rudolph and the Red Nose Reindeer, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Santa Claus is Comin' to Town) or you can save a few bucks by setting up "Season Passes" for each. That way, you don't have to remember to record them each year -- they will just appear, like magic, on your DVR.

Go faux. I love the smell of a real Christmas tree, but I also love the time saved by my pre-list Christmas tree from Sears. We bought the tree the year our second child was born, mainly because I could not face dragging two children out into the snow to find a tree. Four years later, I continue to happily avoid the tree-seeking activity, and can set up our tree whenever the mood strikes (or I find a stray hour). Did I mention that it also doesn't drop any needles and doesn't need to be watered and disposed of?

Stick to traditions. I always set up our creche in the front foyer, the tree in the "solarium" (a fancy way of describing our back room), and the Santas on the map drawer. We have Swedish meatballs for Christmas Eve dinner, cinnamon rolls for breakfast, and Paula Dean's Foolproof Standing Prime Rib Roast for dinner.

It's not that I'm not interested in trying something new, it's that traditions such as these keep things easy, and reduce the amount of stress. And, they become something regular and anticipated for the kids.

Take a day off. If you have the time available, consider taking a day off before the holidays are in full swing. Bring the kids to school or day care then use the "free" time to get holiday chores done – gift shopping, holiday card addressing, decorating, whatever!

Forget perfect. While we all want to plan the "perfect" holiday, the truth is "perfect" doesn't exist. Remember, a little goes a long way (for example, you don't have to decorate every surface of your home to make it feel festive). If you can manage your expectations, you are sure to enjoy the season!

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Looking for more holiday tips from the Manic Mommies? Check out these posts from their Real Simple Simply Stated blog:

Tips for managing the card chaos
Holiday food tips from a non-domestic diva
Hosting Tips

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You can follow Kristin on Twitter at @kristinsb, Erin at @emkprgal, and the Manic Mommies at @manicmommies.

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Image credit: FreeDigitalPhotos.net.

Pursuant to last week’s local and indie awesomeness post, if you want to shop local and support artists and crafters this weekend, there will be plenty of crafty awesomeness to be had at the SoWa Holiday Market in the South End, CraftBoston at the Cyclorama, and the Cambridge Center for Adult Education Holly Fair in Harvard Square. Enjoy!

Image credit: Made in Lowell, showing at SoWa Holiday Market

I met Amie Adams of Mamma Loves… at the Brand About Town inaugural advisory board retreat in October, during which time I was struck not only by Amie's warmth, humor, and smarts, but by her photography skills. You could almost see the wheels turning when something would attract her eye and she’d pause briefly, capture the perfect image, then resume conversation. It seemed natural and effortless; clearly a part of her creative flow. So I’m thrilled that today, for the tenth installment of my Simplifying the Holidays guest blog series, Amie shares easy and fabulous tips for capturing gorgeous photos this holiday season.

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From Amie:

I received a call from a friend recently. She was a little frantic, what with juggling four kids and their homework and family coming in town over the weekend for their annual hunt for the perfect Christmas tree. We were scheduled for a photo shoot of all of the cousins and she wanted to settle on the details.

“We’re having a major discussion over what the kids should wear” she said. What they should wear? “Do your kids always dress alike?” I asked, knowing her house is as crazy as mine and that like me, she’s lucky if her kids choose clothing that is appropriate for the weather.

“Let’s capture them as they are,” I suggested. “Let’s tell the story of who they are right now.”

Does that take the stress off of your holiday photos a little? I hope so.

When you’re capturing this holiday season for posterity, think about the story you want to tell. What are the details that make your celebration memorable? Each family has its own traditions. What are yours? What is special about this year? Your children will never be this age again.

Pick up your camera and try to shoot those details that will make you smile when you see them again in February or July. Get up close. Not every shot needs to contain a smiling face.

I promise you’ll like those photos better than the one of all of the kids lined up in front of the tree—unless listening to your kids whine and complain and fighting with them to smile at the same time is a big tradition in your house.

Now how do you capture those details in a pleasing way? You have more power in your point and shoot then you ever imagined. And if you own a DSLR and you’ve never switched out of auto mode, we have to talk.

1. Whether you own a point and shoot or a DSLR, there is a portrait setting on your camera. It usually looks like a person’s head. Switch over to the portrait setting for those close up shots. You’ll notice that you’ll get shots that leave your subject in focus and the background a bit blurrier. Pros refer to that as depth of focus. The rest of us just call it awesome.

2. Take your subjects outside to capture the action if it isn’t too cold. Morning and late afternoon light is the best for avoiding harsh shadows.

3. Need to stay inside? That’s okay. Move to the closest window. Have your subject stand near the window and stand to their side to capture the light falling on their face.

4. Work off a few of those extra holiday calories by moving around a bit. Take your shots from different angles. If you’re shooting kids, get down to their eye level. If you want to get closer to your subject, move your feet, not your zoom button. Crawl under the tree and see what kind of shot you get shooting up into the branches. Changing your position can result in more interesting photos.

<img alt="amie-adams-5.jpg" src="http://s3.media.squarespace.com/production/2381826/19415521/images/2009_12/amie-adams-5.jpg" width="350" height="235"

5. Changing the position of your subject in your viewfinder will definitely result in more interesting photos. Don’t center your subjects. Photographers think about photos in thirds—whether horizontally or vertically. Place your subject off-center. If your subject is landscape, don’t center the horizon line.

Have fun with your camera this holiday season. Try these tricks and shoot away. The greatest part about digital is that mistakes don’t cost you a thing.

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When Amie Adams isn’t getting ready for the holidays, chasing her three boys, running off to work, or practicing her photography, she’s sharing embarrassing stories or ranting and raving on her blog Mamma Loves… You can follow Amie on Twitter at @mammaloves.

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Image 1 credited to FreeDigitalPhotos.net. All remaining images credited to Amie Adams.

Today, parent educator Hetti Wohlgemuth of Alphabet Soup 4 Parents shares tips for bringing back your holiday mojo:

“Many of us have a love/hate relationship with the holidays. For example, I love spending time with my family, playing board games and cards fireside, finding a special gift for each of my girls, attending Christmas Eve services, winter walks, and more. Then there’s the stuff I hate: the excess, the stress, and sometimes my memories of Christmases past. Here are some classic holiday related struggles and how to cope with them.
Identify friction and look for an alternate solution. Although my husband and I are Jewish, Bob grew up celebrating Christmas and I was amenable to continuing that tradition. But as our daughters grew, the tree got bigger (not Bob's plan) and the presents got more plentiful (probably my fault, I do like to shop) and I felt more and more alienated from the whole concept until Christmas just felt very wrong to me. To cope, I decided that while the family decorated the tree, I needed my own activity that worked for me. So, I baked cookies: for my family and for gifts. Christmas has since evolved to be less about gifts and more about hanging out together. We focus on what special food our Christmas morning breakfast might include (monkey bread this year) and what movie we should see on the day (last year it was Slumdog Millionaire). Identifying friction and finding an alternate solution has made the season cheery once again.

Focus on the real meaning of the season. We need to focus more on the simplicity and real meaning of the season -- offering warmth and kindnesses -- and keep material gifts to a minimum. Admittedly, that's hard for me: I love to shop. I love the malls and the town centers and I love finding the perfect present for that special person. I used to buy in excess; not wasteful or daffy gifts, but still too many. We have since scaled back and now that our girls are older, each of us buys or makes each other one gift, and Bob and I also get some small stocking stuffers for our daughters. And all through the season, we keep in mind giving the good way: saying something nice to someone or spending quality and fun time with friends and/or family. It feels healthier now.

Find traditions that everyone can look forward to. Over the years, we've identified some great traditions. For example, Bob is a nervous shopper; he has no clue what I want and even if he did, he's sure I wouldn't like it. So every year, we go out for a nice dinner a few weeks before Christmas, then window shop. I’ll point to something I like and he goes back and buys it the next day. Sometimes we enjoy dinner so much that we barely get to the shopping, which doesn’t matter a bit. It’s the simple ritual that’s fun. We also go to a Christmas Eve church service with friends who have children the same ages as our girls and then we eat a festive family dinner together. Christmas day, the four of us choose a movie and eat Chinese food (this is considered a Jewish Christmas). We're not reinventing the holiday wheel but we’re enjoying treading on it.

Mourn Christmases past. I am a huge fan of confronting one's past. I'm also a huge believer that much of holiday misery stems from bad memories. We think we're weak if we dwell on the past. And we believe that harkening back will make us more miserable. Not so. Facing the un-decorated, unadorned past frees us. As Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish say in How to Talk So Kids Will Listen, "Not until the bad feelings come out, can the good feelings come in."

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Image credit: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

One of the great things about BlogHer Boston was that it gave me the opportunity to emerge out of my blogging cave and meet fabulous local bloggers in real life. And one of those bloggers was Roxanna of Miguelina. Roxanna is a lovely person; smart, kind, and funny, and mysteriously, she always manages to look perfectly assembled despite tweets that might otherwise suggest she’s unraveling (to her credit, she’s allowed some unraveling…she just delivered her third son in October). Perhaps that’s why she’s so adept at blogging beauty. I’m thrilled that today, for the ninth installment of my Simplifying the Holidays guest blog series, Roxanna shares a wicked easy makeup routine so you can spend less time fussing in the bathroom and more time enjoying time with family and friends.

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From Roxanna:

Everyone is busy around the holidays and there is very little time to worry about something as frivolous as beauty -- except that everywhere you turn there's someone with a camera ready to save the way you look (post-holiday stress and with very little sleep) for posterity.

They do this out of love, of course.

The best way to look your best in pictures is to get plenty of rest, drink water, and eat healthy. But when you're talking about the period between Halloween and New Year's that's the exact opposite of what you're doing (if you're doing it right!).

I'm here to help. Here is a very simple makeup routine that will see you through the holidays and beyond. Because life is too short to hide from the camera.

1. Eyes

A little concealer will go a long way to making you look more polished and rested. Don't listen to the old advice and buy a concealer that's too light for your skin tone -- it'll only turn your dark circles gray. Concealer should be a shade lighter than your foundation at most. My favorite concealer is by Bobbi Brown (their site has a shopping guide to help you choose your shade).

After applying concealer, swipe some light eyeshadow over your lids and add some black mascara for a simple eye, or line your top lid as close to your lash line as possible for more polished results.

2. Cheeks

Apply blush to the parts of your face that would be more sun kissed in the summer. How do you find that? Smile. Highlight what stands out. Don't suck in your cheeks to "sculpt" your face, unless you want to look like one of the girls in that Robert Palmer video.

3. Lips

Since your eyes will be very simple, this is where you can have fun! I know everyone loves gloss these days, but if you're truly pressed for time lipstick is a better bet. Gloss needs to be reapplied over and over, so if you want to look polished in candid pictures and videos, go for an old-school tube of lipstick. Wear a darker color than you normally would -- maybe even red! -- to add a little excitement, but don't wear something that will make you self-conscious. Real Beauty offers an excellent roundup on how universally flattering red, brown, and deep berry lipstick can be.

That's it! Now get out of that bathroom and enjoy the holidays!

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Roxanna lives in the Boston area and blogs at Miguelina and Everyday Treats. She's currently a contributing editor for BlogHer, writing about lipstick and bubble bath at BeautyHacks. You can follow Roxanna on Twitter at @Miguelina.

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Image credit: Bobbi Brown Creamy Concealer Kit

From our very first e-mail -- back when I was just starting out and she was very much established already -- Asha Dornfest of Parent Hacks has always amazed me with her warmth and openness. Asha is funny and smart and clever and I just adore her; I only regret that neither of our scheduled in real life event meet ups this year have worked out. The good news is that Asha is so effective at translating her warmth and smarts online, which is what makes Parent Hacks so great (and gives me my Asha fix in absentia). I’m thrilled that today, for the eighth installment of my Simplifying the Holidays guest blog series, Asha shares her favorite holiday hacks; a useful mantra plus tips for maintaining your merry and bright this holiday season.

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From Asha:

I'll put this out there right up front: I'm perplexed by "holiday stress." Stress? Because of a holiday? Now I'm not 100% Pollyanna; I get that this time of year is fraught with family politics and time/money pressures, but I'm not talking about that. I'm talking about the stress caused by too many party invitations, or sub-par decorations, or last-minute shopping, or getting just the right tree, or cooking just the right food, or wearing just the right outfit. Are these things really worthy of your stress?

I submit to you my number one holiday hack: Be kind to yourself. You and your family deserve this time to rejoice. You have worked hard all year -- in your jobs, in your homes, raising your kids -- and you deserve a break. Go only to those parties filled with the people you want to see, and politely decline the rest. Keep the decor and the food simple, and let the company make it special. Do those things -- and only those things -- that make the holidays happy for you and your family. Then sit back and relax with some egg nog.

And now for some of my favorite holiday hacks, all submitted by the very smart readers of Parent Hacks:

How to buy gifts for young kids when they're always with you at the store.

How to organize a holiday gift for your kid's teacher.

Simplify shopping with kids by taking pictures for the "wish list."

Number the gifts under the tree to keep the kids guessing which ones are theirs.

On Christmas Eve, let Santa take away the old toys, too.

How to involve your kids in Christmas tree cleanup.

Skip time-consuming return lines; donate unwanted gifts instead.

Have a wonderful holiday. You've earned it!

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Asha Dornfest is the founder and editor of Parent Hacks, a site that has been described as "McGyver meets parenting." She's also one of the moms of Momversation -- the twice-weekly video show that brings together outspoken mom bloggers to talk about what matters most to them. You can follow Asha on Twitter at @parenthacks.

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Image credit: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Though we tend to go minimal and handmade for the holidays (column on this topic forthcoming), when we do buy gifts, we shop local and/or indie as much as possible. And oh how the local and indie awesomeness abounds in Boston! Worth checking out this weekend: the Boston Bazaar Bizarre (Sunday, December 6) at the Cyclorama, Boston Handmade’s retail gallery featuring 30+ local artisans and crafters at Downtown Crossing (open now through December 24), and the Harvard Square Holiday Fair (open now through December 23).

Image credit: locally operated Murdock Design (showing at the Boston Bazaar Bizarre on Sunday).

As a designer, I can’t help but adore the amazing craftiness at Craft. So what an honor it is to be featured on their site today. In my guest post, I share the how-to for creating the fabulous photo bookmarks that I first fashioned for my family a few Christmases ago and now create for clients. How can you not love a gift that's pretty and inspires reading? Only problem? Now my family knows what my holiday token is this year.

Marie LeBaron is a blog friend who I have yet to meet in real life, but we share a passion for crafting and food and I so admire all of the crafty awesomeness she shares on her site, Make and Takes. And though Marie and my friendship is relatively new, her enthusiasm encouraged me to sign up with her and ten other bloggers for what no doubt will be a (somewhat insane) major bonding experience: a 200-mile relay run come spring (gulp). I’m thrilled that today, for the seventh installment of my Simplifying the Holidays guest blog series, Marie shares easy yet engaging holiday crafts to enjoy with your kids.

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From Marie:

We're now officially in the holiday stretch and there are presents to buy, the house to decorate, and treats to make. Here are a few fun projects we're making and taking in the next few weeks to celebrate the holidays.

Beaded Ornaments: Decorating the tree is part of the fun of decorating the house for Christmas. And all you need to make your own ornaments are beads and pipe cleaners. Create traditional shapes as shown here, create shapes for other winter holidays (e.g., a Star of David for Hanukkah), or let your kid’s imagination run wild. These ornaments are fun to give as gifts or to make to hang on your own tree. No doubt your kids will love to look back on them when they're grown up.

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Fruit Loop Garland: This is a classic holiday craft that’s fun for kids while encouraging motor development. All that’s involved is threading Fruit Loop cereal (or check stores such as Whole Foods for a natural/organic alternative) onto string. We make a lot of these fruity garlands to put on our tree, even though my kids typically eat a lot of the cereal while we’re stringing! And a tip: attach a little bit of tape to the threading end of the yarn or string (to form a shoelace type end) to help little fingers thread the cereal through. (Garland shown in first image above.)

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Stained Glass Christmas Trees: To give your windows a festive feel, try these bright and cheery stained glass trees. Simply fold green paper triangles, cut holes in them (as you would a snowflake), then add some wrapping tissue paper to the back, letting the colors shine through. Attach a brown rectangle for the tree stump and a yellow circle of paper (or a pom-pon) at the top.

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Homemade Lollipops: Lollipops are the one candy that we make every December. They are fun to make and eat, and are a perfect gift to give to the neighbors. These are mostly made and poured by me, but my kids love to help set up the sticks and watch as the lollipop liquid gets poured. You can make these with metal molds, but we like to have them come out all wonky, simply pouring them over the sticks. Click here for the lollipop recipe.

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M&M Graphing: With so many flavors of M&Ms, this is a fun taste testing activity to do with the kids. We poured all kinds of M&Ms into our bowl, then closed our eyes and picked one out. We graphed what color it was, what flavor it was, and if we liked it. This activity is a fun one to do in a classroom setting for younger or older grades, helping them have fun as they eat and learn! If you’d prefer to use a natural alternative (for example, SunSpire Sun Drops) you could change the parameters of the game to guess and graph colors.

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Marie LeBaron is the owner and founder of Make and Takes, a website sharing kids crafts, home crafts, easy recipes, and parenting tips. She’s a crafter, foodie, and mother of 3. She also loves to read, run, and blog. You can follow Marie on Twitter at @makeandtakes.