The day after Christmas, I was reading my daughter a bedtime story. It was Zen Shorts by Jon J. Muth, a book about three siblings who each learn a Zen principle in an encounter with a giant panda named Stillwater.

Christmas came and went so fast, but seemed to wrap up the most perfect way. On Christmas Eve, my children wrote letters to Santa, prepared the fireplace for his landing and set out all his favorite things.

Here are some guidelines that we adhere to throughout the holiday season:

1. Do wear holiday gear.

2. Do something in the name of altruism, at least once.

3. Homemade gifts are for suckers - unless you have some sort of super talent.

4. Do use Christmas to your advantage as a parent; threaten your kids with no gifts until the cows come home - or until Christmas Eve, at which point you need a new tactic.

This is my favorite time of year.

I love walking into a lobby and smelling Christmas and seeing the beautiful decorations, I love coming home to the scent of my cinnamon scented candles that are lit with Christmas music playing in the background.

I hate Christmas shopping.

Julie Cole is the co-founding VP of Mabel’s Labels, the leading provider of labels for the stuff kids lose!
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So I’m at Target today doing a little Santa shopping for my four-year-old, Elby (luckily she’s not one of those super advanced four-year-olds you hear people brag about who can already read - otherwise I couldn’t even write this column) when it occurred to me that... horrors...

All you need in the world is love and laughter. That's all anybody needs. To have love in one hand and laughter in the other. - August Wilson

I live in a small beach town in New Jersey and as my profile states, no, I do not know Snooki. I don't lunch with any of the Housewives of New Jersey either. Although I'd love to be their personal Pilates instructor, so if anyone has an in, let me know.