The challenge of having a sane children with Christmas is increased if you don't approach it sanely when your kids are little. For several years we have been inching back off of a Christmas of surplus (Mom went shopping, Dad went shopping, not much coordination, big bang). With one child still a Santa Claus believer, we have pared back a little each year (we don't want "mean Santa" to be the talk of the town). For anyone with young children, holiday time rituals, like all rituals, are worth planning together.
