Welcome to our ✨Holiday Special✨! In an episode that is ostensibly about Elf On The Shelf (or Mensch On The Bench — for Sarah), we explore our collective annual search for meaning and self with the great Meaghan O’Connell, author of And Now We Have Everything and noted Elf On The Shelf apologist.

Pressing items interrogated lightly include: Should Elf On The Shelf be a Dad thing? Does holiday magic necessarily include lying to our kids? What do we say when our kids ask if we’re Santa? What is the true magic? How do we even know what we enjoy and what we don’t in a season this busy, and should we take Miranda’s recommendation to do a witchy ritual to remind ourselves?

Links:

* Meaghan O’Connell’s book, And Now We Have Everything

* St. Nicholas day

* Mr. Willoby’s Christmas Tree

* ‘Lazy Mom’ Elf On A Shelf

* Elf on a Shelf Book

* The first Mother of it All holiday special, featuring

Sara Petersen

* Mensch on a Bench (“as seen on Shark Tank”)

* Sarah on Boo Baskets (The Cut)

* When Things Fall Apart by Pema Chodron

* Miranda’s Grandma Ruth’s Peanut Butter Balls

* Meaghan’s Substack

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