The background noise–democrats persecuting their political enemies, throwing a former President in jail, you know, normal things–has never been louder, but as I get older, and as I have more children, I can’t help but feel that as much as it matters, what’s in my immediate purview somehow matters much more.

America’s colleges have fallen to the enemy; send a child there at your own risk.

My dirty little secret is: I may be a hardcore domestic extremist, but I am not a natural housewife. I am not, how shall I put this, enthusiastic about chores. They do not spark joy! But it’s not my fault—I was raised to be a pampered suburban princess waited on by a staff of undocumented servants, not a harried Old Mother Hubbard dishing out gruel from her hovel. And yet, fate took a hand and led me towards a more domestic life.

Some traditions are very traditional. Other traditions are, well, not. We’ll have more classic recommendations for you next week. But amid the holiday flurry and the mad rush to finish work and get everything ready before the big day, we thought it might be nice to have a little fun and offer some outside-the-box activities, gifts, and more for you to consider this Christmas season.