Politics and religion at the dinner table, over a Christmas meal with all the relatives – what could possibly go wrong? Writes Peter Ellerton. If the thought doesn’t appeal to you, it’s worth considering how this potentially fraught situation could be understood with a view to...
It’s easy to get hot and bothered during a family Christmas. But the science of gratitude can help you not only cope, but enjoy, the festive season, writes Aaron Jarden. Christmas can be a stressful time of year. You will blow your budget, your relatives will...
Kelly McBurnie has started making some adjustments to her relationship with Christmas. I have a love/hate relationship with Christmas. I love the decorations, carols, food and music, but can’t stand the crowded shopping centres, overindulged children or pressure to see distant relatives and spend inordinate amounts...
This month we look at books out in time for Christmas and some books for holiday reading aloud to littlies. Reading to preschoolers and infants is very revealing when you are reviewing picture books. The genre of picture books really does rely on the talent of...
The holiday season doesn’t always have to be stressful. Freya Higgins-Desbiolles suggests ways you can enjoy it a bit more. Holidays are a time of high stress. Despite the delight of not having to work for several days or even weeks, holidays come with pressures. These can...
Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey reviewed by the Australian Council on Children and the Media (ACCM) Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey is a fun and different twist on the usual holiday movie genre. What it lacks in coherent plot lines, it makes up for with...
Mark Boulet & Kim Borg report how Festive celebrations can leave you with more than one kind of hangover – what to do with the debris of leftover food, gift wrapping, damaged decorations and mountains of plastic packaging? But with some preparation, a little restraint and...
It’s nice to sit on a beach and watch my girls play with their team of cousins, knowing that they will all share the same fond memories of Christmas, writes Joseph Kelly’s who finds his large family holidays at Christmas have come full circle. Having emigrated...
Kristine Whorlow warns of hidden festive-season asthma triggers. It’s time to drag out the Christmas decorations, put up the tree and get into the spirit of the festive season, but people with asthma can find themselves short of breath during the holiday season for a range...
Fit for lunch with a politician or a Christmas gift for teachers or friends, this homemade recipe for rhubarb and rose cordial from Kitchen Cabinet's Annabel Crabb and her best mate Wendy Sharpe is sure to please. Cordial was a constant of my childhood, and I have since found that,...
