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in Episodes on December 7, 2015 by The Mom Hour

Meagan & Sarah’s December Favorites To Watch / Listen / Read: Episode 31



Have you been meaning to watch old holiday film classics but never get around to it? Or are you just as disturbed as we are by some of the mid-century Christmas TV programming (looking at you, Rudolph)? In Episode 31 Meagan and Sarah talk about our favorite – and not-so-much – holiday movies, TV, books, and music. Join us!

BEYOND At Home

Meagan mentioned that we’ll be doing some holiday special mini-episodes of The Mom Hour, so look for those later this month! She also let it slip that she’s leading a virtual retreat beginning in January and that podcast listeners will get a special discount when it launches. Be sure to subscribe to The Mom Hour if you haven’t already!

Holiday Favorites from The Mom Hour

Links we discussed in Episode 31

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MOVIES & TV

  • It’s a Wonderful Life, Holiday Inn, and White Christmas
  • Miracle on 34th Street (the 1947 version and the 1994 remake)
  • The Snowman
  • Annie (the 2014 version)
  • Love Actually
  • A Christmas Carol (the 1984 version)
  • The Polar Express
  • Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer
  • How The Grinch Stole Christmas! (the 1966 animated version)
  • Mickey’s Once Upon A Christmas and Mickey’s Twice Upon A Christmas
  • Christmas Vacation, Home Alone, and A Christmas Story
  • One Magic Christmas (favorite listener award goes to anyone who also watched this movie as a kid!)
  • The Nutcracker (the 1993 Macaulay Culkin version and the 1977 version with Baryshnikov)

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BOOKS

  • A Christmas Carol (Charles Dickens) – FREE on Kindle!
  • The Christmas Magic (Lauren Thompson)
  • The Little House series (Laura Ingalls Wilder)
  • Books by author Jan Brett
  • The Nativity (Julie Vivas)
  • Oh, What a Christmas! (Michael Garland)

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MUSIC

  • Meagan’s Christmas Hour (Spotify playlist)
  • Come Let Us Adore Him and Sing Noel (The Lower Lights)
  • Sarah likes this version of The Nutcracker (The Orchestra of The Royal Opera House Covent Garden)

OTHER STUFF

  • ABC Family’s 25 Days of Christmas 2015 Schedule
  • 25 Christmas Movies You Can Stream (Digital Trends)
  • Best Holiday Movies for Kids (Commonsense Media)

Related

Filed Under: Episodes Tagged With: books, Christmas, holidays & celebrations, pop culture

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« Moms Deserve A Magical Holiday, Too: Episode 30
Great Gifts For Moms (Any Time Of Year!): Episode 32 »

Comments

  1. Holly F says

    December 9, 2015 at 6:58 am

    Loved this episode. A more recent movie that I really liked was The Holiday with Kate Winslet, Cameron Diaz, Jack Black (being very un-Jack Black) and Jude Watson. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0457939/

    Reply
    • Sarah Powers says

      December 9, 2015 at 3:46 pm

      That’s a great one, Holly! Thanks for the reminder!

      Reply
  2. Carol says

    December 9, 2015 at 1:42 pm

    The Barenaked Ladies – Barenaked for the Holidays is a favorite around my house every year! Also, my favorite 80’s band, Erasure released a holiday album a few years back that is wonderful – Snow Globe. Enjoy!

    Reply
    • Sarah Powers says

      December 9, 2015 at 3:47 pm

      My kids love BNL! Will have to check that one out for sure. Thanks, Carol! 🙂

      Reply
  3. Melissa says

    December 9, 2015 at 9:05 pm

    Obsessed with Meagan’s playlist in case anyone was wondering, it’s perfect!

    Reply
  4. Tiffany says

    December 10, 2015 at 9:17 am

    We celebrate Christmas and Hanukkah in our house and my son watches Full Court Miracle on Disney Channel On Demand. It tells the Hanukkah story with a basketball theme which my sports loving boy loves. It’s from some years ago.

    Reply
  5. Danielle says

    December 10, 2015 at 9:24 am

    I have seen “One Magic Christmas” many times!! Hallmark channel used to play it regularly on their Christmas movie rotation after Thanksgiving. The angel Gabriel takes her kids; and in the movie he is depicted kind of like a cowboy. The actress is great, but I always thought it was a really weird movie.

    I love the podcast! You guys are great!

    Reply
  6. Beth says

    December 10, 2015 at 10:04 am

    I love the George C Scott Christmas Carol but I don’t think it’s the one Megan was referring to. It’s not a musical. Could she be thinking of Scrooge with Albert Finney? It’s from 1970 but it would have been on TV in the eighties.

    http://www.amazon.com/Scrooge-Albert-Finney/dp/B0000AQS5D/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1449759761&sr=8-1&keywords=scrooge

    Awesome podcast guys! Now I’m in the mood to watch some Christmas specials!

    Reply
    • Meagan Francis says

      December 10, 2015 at 8:44 pm

      OMG, Beth, you’re totally right! THANK YOU!! There was something nagging at me that the name wasn’t actually A Christmas Carol, but I wouldn’t have remembered that on my own.

      Reply
  7. Lindsay says

    December 12, 2015 at 4:33 am

    The night before listening to this podcast I watched Love Actually and wrapped presents after my kids went to bed! Loved listening to you guys chatting about it, it’s definitely my favorite. I also have enjoyed Meagan’s playlist… such a good mix. Celine Dion also has a great Christmas cd, it’s not all the classic songs, but I still love it.

    Reply
  8. Erin says

    December 15, 2015 at 10:25 am

    You can get all the Christmas Scenes from Little House in one volume. A Little House Christmas: Holiday Stories from the Little House Books – Published in 1995.

    Reply

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New episode! Let's go deep on the fluffiest of to New episode!

Let's go deep on the fluffiest of topics: personal adornment. In today's More Than Mom episode, Meagan and Sarah share our approaches to everyday jewelry, special gifts and heirloom pieces, jewelry trends and finding our personal styles. We also talk about where we like to buy jewelry, how motherhood seasons have intersected with accessorizing phases, and what our storage wins and woes are these days.

Find the episode wherever you get your podcasts, or click this image at the link in our bio!

#themomhour #motherhood #mompodcast #podcastsformoms #parenting #parentingpodcast #podcastlove #trypod #podcastersofinstagram #shepodcasts
Two things happened to me in the past few weeks. Two things happened to me in the past few weeks. 

One, my youngest child - my baby! - turned 14.

Second, I went on a trip with said baby (Clara) and her next-older brother Owen, who’s 17, and was reminded that few experiences are quite as humbling as being a middle-aged mother outnumbered by teenaged offspring...in public.

Whereas I was once the sun they orbited around, my teens are now spinning off on their own path. It’s not they don't like me (I hope, though it can feel that way at times), it’s just that the gravitational pull around which they organize their lives has changed. 
 
I was struggling to find words for this new state of affairs, when it struck me: I’m a lame-duck parent now, counting down my last days of power while adult and nearly-adult children look eagerly ahead to whatever’s coming down the line. 

Instead of ruling like the sun to their planets or some kind of benevolent monarch, as I did when they were little, I’m more akin to a city manager who must be tolerated and placated in order to get enough budget allocated for one’s pet projects. 

After twenty-five years of organizing my time, my home, my energy and my heart around small people, the emotional shift in these not-quite-empty-nest years has been surprisingly disorienting. 

There’s a self-protective urge to rush these last four years or so of parenting minors - to check out of all this confusion and skip to the part where I claim a whole new life for myself as an empty nester and they seem to value my wisdom again (as a mom to 20-somethings I know this is also a real thing.)

But I can’t abdicate my throne just yet, friends. 

Even though my subjects often don’t see things my way, I’m still their leader…and I still have a job to do. -M

(Friends, if you like these glimpses of my life as a mom of older kids, I'd love for you to follow my personal account at @meaganfrancis! I write there regularly about midlife motherhood, raising teens, and reinventing your life after 40.) 

#parentingteens #raisingteens #lameduckparent #motherofreinvention #midlifemom #midlifemotherhood #raisingadults #parentingbigkids #momlife
I (Sarah) have been pleasantly surprised at how lo I (Sarah) have been pleasantly surprised at how long my kids have hung in when it comes to decorating Easter eggs. Not only that, but as fine motor skills and - ahem - frustration-management skills have improved for my three, the sophistication level of our egg-dyeing adventures has increased dramatically.

Click this image at the link in our bio to read more about the egg decorating kits, products, and techniques that have worked well in our house for older kids, tweens, and teens!

#eastermom #easterfamily #eggdecoratingideas #eggdyeingideas #easterwithkids #easterwithteens #craftsforteens #craftsfortweens #eggdecorating #easter2023
New episode! It's our Podcastaversary (yep, we ju New episode!

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👇 For an episode! 👇 It's the first day of 👇 For an episode! 👇 

It's the first day of SPRING, which means we're already thinking about SUMMER. And, specifically, making our own lives as moms and home managers easier and more joyful for Summer 2023.

If you have a tip or hack that falls into the general bucket of "do this now; enjoy summer later", we'd love to hear it! We'll be sharing our own in an upcoming episode and hope to include some from listeners as well. Can be from any area of summer enjoyment from childcare to travel to self-care to home management to backyard gardening!
Hear for yourself why The Mom Hour podcast is stil Hear for yourself why The Mom Hour podcast is still going strong after eight years, 644 episodes, and more than 15 Million listens! Click the subscribe links in our bio or ask your smart speaker to "play the latest episode of The Mom Hour podcast".

New episodes release every Tuesday and alternating Sundays all year round. Our archives have conversations about every stage of parenting from before-baby through launching young adults - and every aspect of motherhood, too.

#podcast #podcastformoms #mompodcast #parentingpodcast #mommypodcast #mamapodcast #womenpodcasters #podcastersofinstagram #shepodcasts #themomhour #motherhood
Do we call it a birthday or an anniversary? A podv Do we call it a birthday or an anniversary? A podversary? Birthcast? No matter how you slice it, The Mom Hour turns EIGHT years old on March 19!

Want to totally make our day? Leave a comment that tells us - in life milestones - how long you've been listening (i.e., "the baby I was pregnant with when I found you guys is now in kindergarten" OR "I have a middle schooler who was in preschool when I started listening" OR "I was on leave with my first when I discovered the podcast; now I have four kids!")

We appreciate this community so much - and we're not slowing down! Thanks for being here, friends. Talk to you Tuesday!

-M &S
Happy Friday! It's time for our monthly sponsor ro Happy Friday! It's time for our monthly sponsor roundup, where we thank our partners and remind you of their great deals. For our unique promo codes and links, just tap our saved "Sponsors" highlight or search the brand name on our website. Remember, when you check out our sponsors and use our links + codes, it helps support our show. Thank you!

We also collect ALL our active promo codes in our email newsletter - which is full of our latest episodes and blog posts, personal updates, community news, and more. Tap on this image at the link in our bio to subscribe today.

Shoutout to our NEW partner:
💰 @fearlessfinance ($50 off your 1st meeting!)

And welcome back . . .
⭐ @everyplate (meal kits for just $1.49 per meal!) 
⭐ @scholasticinc (books for kids of all ages!)
⭐️ @caraway_home (10% off cookware!)
⭐ @caredotcom (local, background-checked care!) 
⭐ @prepdish (2 weeks of free meal plans!)
⭐ @minted (art, bags, gifts & more!)
⭐ @chatbooks (the easiest photo books ever!)
⭐ @fabletics (2 workout bottoms for $24!)
⭐ @todoistofficial (2 mo. free of Todoist Pro!)
⭐️ @theessentialcalendar (10% off calendars!)
⭐️ @hiyahealth (50% off 1st order!)
⭐️ @kiwico_inc (50% off your 1st mo!)
⭐️ @athleticgreens (1yr of Vit.D + 5 travel packs!)
⭐️ @vionicshoes (free shipping on comfy shoes!)
It can *seem* like everybody has travel plans comi It can *seem* like everybody has travel plans coming up for Spring Break, but we know that every single year, just as many families aren't going anywhere - and that's OK, too!

This week on the blog @emilyeroark offers suggestions for mixing up your same ol' same ol' when kids are off for Spring Break. Check out the post by clicking this image at the link in our bio!

#stayathomemom #springbreakathome #staycationideas #stayathomeparent #toddlermom #preschoolmom #momofthree #springbreak2023 #spring #springbreakathome #kidsactivities
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Find the episode wherever you get your podcasts, or click this image at the link in our bio!

#themomhour #motherhood #mompodcast#podcastsformoms #parenting #parentingpodcast#podcastlove #trypod #podcastersofinstagram #shepodcasts
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It isn't always easy to appreciate the mundane tasks of our daily lives, or to see the glass half-full when something goes awry. Inspired by yet another social media trend that had us scratching our heads at first (and then reflecting in spite of our forty-something selves), today Meagan and Sarah talk about situations from our own lives where we romanticized the hard stuff to get by.

Find the episode wherever you get your podcasts, or click this image at the link in our bio!

#themomhour #motherhood #mompodcast #podcastsformoms #parenting #parentingpodcast #podcastlove #trypod #podcastersofinstagram #shepodcasts
If you fill Easter baskets for your kids, do you g If you fill Easter baskets for your kids, do you give them a theme? On the blog this week @hopefulsmiles makes a case for themed Easter baskets helping to simplify shopping, avoid clutter, and stay on budget.

Check out Sandy’s ideas for themed Easter baskets by clicking this image at the link in our bio - she's got over 35 different gift ideas listed!

#easter2023 #easterbasketfillers #eastergiftideas #themedeasterbasket #giftsfortoddlers #giftsforpreschoolers #giftsfortweens #giftsforkids #eastergiftguide #eastertips #easterwithkids
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New episode! Let's go deep on the fluffiest of to New episode!

Let's go deep on the fluffiest of topics: personal adornment. In today's More Than Mom episode, Meagan and Sarah share our approaches to everyday jewelry, special gifts and heirloom pieces, jewelry trends and finding our personal styles. We also talk about where we like to buy jewelry, how motherhood seasons have intersected with accessorizing phases, and what our storage wins and woes are these days.

Find the episode wherever you get your podcasts, or click this image at the link in our bio!

#themomhour #motherhood #mompodcast #podcastsformoms #parenting #parentingpodcast #podcastlove #trypod #podcastersofinstagram #shepodcasts
Two things happened to me in the past few weeks. Two things happened to me in the past few weeks. 

One, my youngest child - my baby! - turned 14.

Second, I went on a trip with said baby (Clara) and her next-older brother Owen, who’s 17, and was reminded that few experiences are quite as humbling as being a middle-aged mother outnumbered by teenaged offspring...in public.

Whereas I was once the sun they orbited around, my teens are now spinning off on their own path. It’s not they don't like me (I hope, though it can feel that way at times), it’s just that the gravitational pull around which they organize their lives has changed. 
 
I was struggling to find words for this new state of affairs, when it struck me: I’m a lame-duck parent now, counting down my last days of power while adult and nearly-adult children look eagerly ahead to whatever’s coming down the line. 

Instead of ruling like the sun to their planets or some kind of benevolent monarch, as I did when they were little, I’m more akin to a city manager who must be tolerated and placated in order to get enough budget allocated for one’s pet projects. 

After twenty-five years of organizing my time, my home, my energy and my heart around small people, the emotional shift in these not-quite-empty-nest years has been surprisingly disorienting. 

There’s a self-protective urge to rush these last four years or so of parenting minors - to check out of all this confusion and skip to the part where I claim a whole new life for myself as an empty nester and they seem to value my wisdom again (as a mom to 20-somethings I know this is also a real thing.)

But I can’t abdicate my throne just yet, friends. 

Even though my subjects often don’t see things my way, I’m still their leader…and I still have a job to do. -M

(Friends, if you like these glimpses of my life as a mom of older kids, I'd love for you to follow my personal account at @meaganfrancis! I write there regularly about midlife motherhood, raising teens, and reinventing your life after 40.) 

#parentingteens #raisingteens #lameduckparent #motherofreinvention #midlifemom #midlifemotherhood #raisingadults #parentingbigkids #momlife
I (Sarah) have been pleasantly surprised at how lo I (Sarah) have been pleasantly surprised at how long my kids have hung in when it comes to decorating Easter eggs. Not only that, but as fine motor skills and - ahem - frustration-management skills have improved for my three, the sophistication level of our egg-dyeing adventures has increased dramatically.

Click this image at the link in our bio to read more about the egg decorating kits, products, and techniques that have worked well in our house for older kids, tweens, and teens!

#eastermom #easterfamily #eggdecoratingideas #eggdyeingideas #easterwithkids #easterwithteens #craftsforteens #craftsfortweens #eggdecorating #easter2023
New episode! It's our Podcastaversary (yep, we ju New episode!

It's our Podcastaversary (yep, we just made up a new word)! Today we are celebrating eight years of The Mom Hour by reflecting on some of your most-asked questions over the years. Beyond recurring queries like "should I have that third baby?" or "what's the ideal spacing between kids?," we're digging into some deeper through-lines that point to the fears, insecurities, and hopes of our community. We also provide snapshots of the many places we have recorded our 640+ episodes (the floor, the bed, different states and more).
👇 For an episode! 👇 It's the first day of 👇 For an episode! 👇 

It's the first day of SPRING, which means we're already thinking about SUMMER. And, specifically, making our own lives as moms and home managers easier and more joyful for Summer 2023.

If you have a tip or hack that falls into the general bucket of "do this now; enjoy summer later", we'd love to hear it! We'll be sharing our own in an upcoming episode and hope to include some from listeners as well. Can be from any area of summer enjoyment from childcare to travel to self-care to home management to backyard gardening!
Hear for yourself why The Mom Hour podcast is stil Hear for yourself why The Mom Hour podcast is still going strong after eight years, 644 episodes, and more than 15 Million listens! Click the subscribe links in our bio or ask your smart speaker to "play the latest episode of The Mom Hour podcast".

New episodes release every Tuesday and alternating Sundays all year round. Our archives have conversations about every stage of parenting from before-baby through launching young adults - and every aspect of motherhood, too.

#podcast #podcastformoms #mompodcast #parentingpodcast #mommypodcast #mamapodcast #womenpodcasters #podcastersofinstagram #shepodcasts #themomhour #motherhood
Do we call it a birthday or an anniversary? A podv Do we call it a birthday or an anniversary? A podversary? Birthcast? No matter how you slice it, The Mom Hour turns EIGHT years old on March 19!

Want to totally make our day? Leave a comment that tells us - in life milestones - how long you've been listening (i.e., "the baby I was pregnant with when I found you guys is now in kindergarten" OR "I have a middle schooler who was in preschool when I started listening" OR "I was on leave with my first when I discovered the podcast; now I have four kids!")

We appreciate this community so much - and we're not slowing down! Thanks for being here, friends. Talk to you Tuesday!

-M &S
Happy Friday! It's time for our monthly sponsor ro Happy Friday! It's time for our monthly sponsor roundup, where we thank our partners and remind you of their great deals. For our unique promo codes and links, just tap our saved "Sponsors" highlight or search the brand name on our website. Remember, when you check out our sponsors and use our links + codes, it helps support our show. Thank you!

We also collect ALL our active promo codes in our email newsletter - which is full of our latest episodes and blog posts, personal updates, community news, and more. Tap on this image at the link in our bio to subscribe today.

Shoutout to our NEW partner:
💰 @fearlessfinance ($50 off your 1st meeting!)

And welcome back . . .
⭐ @everyplate (meal kits for just $1.49 per meal!) 
⭐ @scholasticinc (books for kids of all ages!)
⭐️ @caraway_home (10% off cookware!)
⭐ @caredotcom (local, background-checked care!) 
⭐ @prepdish (2 weeks of free meal plans!)
⭐ @minted (art, bags, gifts & more!)
⭐ @chatbooks (the easiest photo books ever!)
⭐ @fabletics (2 workout bottoms for $24!)
⭐ @todoistofficial (2 mo. free of Todoist Pro!)
⭐️ @theessentialcalendar (10% off calendars!)
⭐️ @hiyahealth (50% off 1st order!)
⭐️ @kiwico_inc (50% off your 1st mo!)
⭐️ @athleticgreens (1yr of Vit.D + 5 travel packs!)
⭐️ @vionicshoes (free shipping on comfy shoes!)
It can *seem* like everybody has travel plans comi It can *seem* like everybody has travel plans coming up for Spring Break, but we know that every single year, just as many families aren't going anywhere - and that's OK, too!

This week on the blog @emilyeroark offers suggestions for mixing up your same ol' same ol' when kids are off for Spring Break. Check out the post by clicking this image at the link in our bio!

#stayathomemom #springbreakathome #staycationideas #stayathomeparent #toddlermom #preschoolmom #momofthree #springbreak2023 #spring #springbreakathome #kidsactivities
New episode! Bowling. Bonfires. The mall (no, rea New episode!

Bowling. Bonfires. The mall (no, really.) And board games (maybe?). What's fun for our families right now looks quite different than it did years ago, so today Meagan and Sarah revisit an oft-discussed hot topic on The Mom Hour: family "fun." We share several ideas for ACTUALLY FUN family activities that work for our current seasons, as well as some gripes about things that feel like they should be fun but aren't. Join us!

Find the episode wherever you get your podcasts, or click this image at the link in our bio!

#themomhour #motherhood #mompodcast#podcastsformoms #parenting #parentingpodcast#podcastlove #trypod #podcastersofinstagram #shepodcasts

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