Will your family celebrate the new year with a party?

It's an occasion that can fluster the most experienced hostess--and if you're new to the art form, you can experience a royal case of the jitters. We've got some printable forms that will get you started, but throwing a party is a learning experience.

That's why I want to tell you about my birthday party a couple of years ago. It was a surprise, cooked up by my sweet but not domestic husband.

A few days before, we'd been talking, idly, about birthdays. I realized aloud that I'd not had a birthday party since I was 15, not to mention a birthday cake. Over the years, I'd become the party giver, not the guest of honor.

Doctor Steve decided to fix things. First, he did something smart: he went to see Joyce, our area's premier party diva. She advised him to have a little dessert party. A cake, some cheese, keep it simple, she said.

I'm not sure she realized how literally he would take her words.

December blows in with a flurry of holiday invitations. If you're a parent of young children, don't miss out: arrange for child care early. Babysitters' schedules fill up early, too, so book your favorite caregivers soon.

Alternatives to traditional in-home babysitting include swapping child care with another family, or encouraging neighborhood sitters to host "sleep-over"parties for children from several families. Look into holiday sleepovers, too: many churches, dance studios and youth organiziations host holiday weekend events designed to entertain children and give Mom and Dad an evening out.

Adding Santa's bounty to overstuffed kids' rooms is a recipe for January clutter disaster. Clear the decks and cut kid clutter with a pre-holiday toy clear-out.

to do today ... toy declutter!

Too many toys! About this time of year, it's a good idea to contemplate the toy situation in your child's room.

It's a fact of modern life. Children's playthings have exploded in number, size, and complexity, while children's storage options have remained static. Just try storing a Happy Meal collection in the average toy box! Even the best-organized kid's rooms can easily drown in today's toy avalanche.

And nowhere is the clutter more apparent than at Christmas. Time for a sneaky/secret/flat-out toy reduction.

Everyone loves a bustling, busy holiday season, until there’s too much of a good thing. Result: meltdown!

Consider scheduling regular “Family Nights”--no parties, shopping, performances or activities—to give family members time together during the height of the season. Quiet activities, like board games, build family togetherness and make holiday memories!

Counting down the days to Christmas--or looking for a simple Advent craft? Try this Advent Calendar made from an altered clipboard, from blogger (and friend!) Jackfrosty.

Using simple tools and supplies, you'll create a pretty focus that counts down each day to Christmas. Craft more than one, for holiday giving!

Altered Clipboard: Advent Calendar

Simple enough for children to make, but elegant enough for adults, this free printable Advent calendar will brighten your home as you count down to Christmas. From JanBrett.com:

Christmas Treasury Advent Calendar

Santa knows if you've been naughty or nice, so what does he leave for naughty little girls and boys? Reindeer Poop!

To make this silly stocking stuffer, place a handful of malted milk balls in a zipper food storage bag.

Seal and label with the following poem or print our free Reindeer Poop Gift Tag.

Today's guest editor, Cub Reporter Perry Bear, takes on a ticklish parenting dilemma. How do you teach children to give during a holiday focused on receiving?

today's message ...

Dear Countdown friends:

It's me, Perry Bear Ewer. I'm Miss Cynthia's teddy bear; you may also know me from my Web site for kids, Perry Bear's Fun Page

It can be very hard for children to think about others during the holiday season. Everywhere they go, people ask, "And what do you want for Christmas?"

We have to help children learn to give, not just receive. Miss Cynthia has some ideas in the essay below.

I have an idea, too. Unless you're Santa Claus, just change the holiday question! Not, "What do you want for Christmas?", but "What are you giving this year for Christmas?"

The answers will surprise you!

Your bear friend,
Perry Bear Ewer

It's the holiday chore nobody wants: wrapping gifts at midnight, Christmas Eve. To head off last-minute wrapping, wrap gifts as you go.

Wrapping in small doses, you'll do a better job and enjoy it, too. To track whose gift is which, use small stickey notes to identify gifts. (Deter snoops with a numbering system tied to the master gift list!)

Another way to ease gift-wrap chores is holding a gift-wrap party with friends. Pour hot cider, put out a plate of holiday cookies and stack Christmas music in the CD player as you chat and wrap together.

A clutter-busting bonus? Swap leftover gift wrap at the end of the event; a friend's tired roll end becomes your family's fresh new pattern.

Savvy holiday planners know that making a Christmas notebook is the first and best way to simplify the holidays and celebrate the season.

But who says they have to be three-ring binders? While a standard Christmas binder is easy to make and to use, there's been an explosion of creativity across the Web. Papercrafters, scrapbookers, rubber stampers and quilters are creating personalized, custom Christmas planners that showcase their crafting skill. Better, these creative crafters share how-to tutorials to make it easy to build your own creative Christmas planner.

To create Christmas planners from altered file folders, pocket folders, index file cards or paper bags, check out the planner tours and tutorials at ChristmasPlanner.com. Get inspired ... to get ready for Christmas:

Christmas Planner Tours and Tutorials