Marin Mommies presents a guest article by Marin children's librarian Lisa Katz, who highlights some fantastic Hanukkah books for kids.

On November 28, for the first time ever (although there is some dispute over this and some say it won’t happen again until 2070), Jews around the world will celebrate the first day of Hanukkah and Thanksgiving together. Thus, Thanksgivukkah!! Have you heard of potato latkes with cranberry sauce and turkey? Or how about sweet potato latkes or cranberry applesauce?

Ok, let’s put food aside and talk some great books. There are some wonderful children books to help us celebrate the festival lights. Below is my list with some of my favorites as well as new books for this year. Those books with an asterisk are for families who celebrate both holidays.

Hanukkah Books in alphabetical order by author:

Our Candle by Eve Bunting
Engineer Ari and the Hanukkah Mishap by Deborah Cohen
Hanukkah Moon by Deborah da Costa
Papa’s Latkes by Michelle Edwards

Thanksgiving is almost here, which means it's time to start planning for the holiday season. Tickets to that time-honored holiday tradition, San Francisco Ballet's Nutcracker, are now on sale and going fast. Experience 200 costumed characters, dazzling scenery, and Tchaikovsky's beautiful score performed live by the San Francisco Ballet Orchestra.

There are many different performances of Nutcracker that take place in the Bay Area during the holiday season, but San Francisco Ballet's is really the one that sets the standard. Did you know that San Francisco Ballet was the first ballet company to bring the Nutcracker to America?

We've made it a family tradition to attend the Nutcracker every holiday season, and it's always a truly magical experience for all of us. It's really a holiday tradition not to be missed. Order your tickets now and make sure you get your preferred time, date, and seats.

We always try to see one of the ballet's family performances, which include a special gift for the first 500 children to arrive, complimentary beverages and sweet treats by Miette at intermission, and photo ops with Nutcracker characters in the Opera House lobby one hour prior to curtain. Family peformances take place on Thursday, December 12 at 7 pm, Friday, December 13 at 2 pm and 7 pm, Sunday, December 15 at 7 pm, and Tuesday, December 17 at 7 pm.

Here's a delicious Thanksgiving side dish recipe from our friends at Agricultural Community Events Farmers Markets, the non-profit group that puts on the Marinwood, Downtown Novato, Fairfax, Petaluma East, and Santa Rosa Community Farmers' Markets, among others. What's great about this recipe is it tells you which farmers' market vendors you can buy the ingredients from!

Ingredients

• 8 medium carrots, chopped (Calvillo Brothers at Marinwood Farmers' Market, Ortiz Brothers at Marinwood, Petaluma East Side Farmers and Santa Rosa Farmers' Market, Tolay Valley Farm at Marinwood Farmers Market)
• 4 tablespoon unsalted butter (Springhill Cheese at Petaluma East Side and Santa Rosa Farmers' Market) plus more for ramekins
• 1 small onion finely chopped (Calvillo Brothers at Marinwood Community Farmers Market, Ortiz Brothers at Marinwood, Petaluma East Side and Santa Rosa)

Marin Mommies presents a guest post by Lindsey Johnson, director and writing specialist at Sage Educators.

Sage Educators is a Marin-based customized tutoring and test-prep center, with offices located in both Mill Valley and Larkspur.

It’s time to start submitting college applications! The University of California system accepts applications from November 1–30, and early application deadlines at many private colleges have been set as early as November 1. Now is the time when many high school seniors are writing—and rewriting—those dreaded college application essays.

Still working to craft your winning college essay? Here’s what I tell my students:

1. Be vulnerable.
   The college essay is not the proper forum for your list of dazzling accomplishments. (That is what the rest of the application is for.) Rather, the essay is the place to show your true self. When were you scared, anxious, or lost? When were you hurt? When did you fail, and how did you recover? The point of the essay is to tell admissions officers what kind of a person you are, not what you’ve done.

I used to be a pumpkin pie traditionalist, until I had a taste of this deliciously different pie that my mother-in-law makes every Thanksgiving. With a graham-cracker crust and a crunchy topping of walnuts and brown sugar, it's a tasty variation on the standard pumpkin pie, and it's fast and easy to make.

Of course I still love the more traditional varierty—I like to splurge and have one slice of each kind on Thanksgiving!

You can buy a ready-made graham cracker crust, or you can make your own if you're so inclined.

Ingredients

• 1 6-ounce prepared graham cracker pie crust (or make your own)
• 1 15-ounce can pumpkin
• 1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk (not evaporated milk)

While it's been a really dry year in Northern California, there's a storm on the horizon this week, which means snow in the Sierras and the start of ski and snow play season in Lake Tahoe. In fact many of Tahoe ski resorts have their opening days scheduled within the next two weeks. Make sure you check before you go, as opening dates are tentative and dependent on snowfall and weather; we've included website links and phone numbers.

Our favorite mountain destination is Northstar California Resort near Truckee, but the Tahoe area boasts numerous resorts and ski areas to suit anyone's taste and budget.

Here's our guide to places to ski, snowboard, tube, sled, and play in the snow around Tahoe. We're tried to focus on spots that offer not only skiing and snowboarding, but tubing, snow play, and other winter activities, as well. If we've omitted your favorite, please let us know!

Marin Mommies presents this week's guest recipe from Nicole Cibellis, Marin mom and author of the blog A Family that Eats Together, where she shares meal plans and recipes that will please foodies and children alike. Here's her meal plan for this week.

For as long as I can remember, my mom made cornbread stuffing for Thanksgiving dinner. Her stuffing is sweet from the cornbread and savory from the herbs. This recipe can’t be beat. It is always so popular at our Thanksgiving dinner that I have to double the recipe to feed everyone!

Servings: 12+
Prep time: 40 minutes
Cook time: 1 hour

Ingredients

• 1 loaf of day old bread, cubed – the more dry the better, ideally a white bread but can be a plain wheat bread
• Cornbread, cubed – recipe follows*
• 6–7 cups warm turkey or chicken stock

ODC/Dance's adaptation of the classic children's story The Velveteen Rabbit has been a holiday tradition in the Bay Area for 27 years. With music, dance, and powerful narrative, ODC/Dance tells this classic tale of a well-worn stuffed rabbit who become real, and the little boy who loves him.

This popular production brims with wit, festive costumes, colorful characters—including the 10-foot-tall Nana, a skin-horse, toy soldiers, a crocodile, dolls, and a pack of "real" rabbits, and, of course, plenty of holiday cheer. The Velveteen Rabbit features ODC's renowned company of dancers, 10 young dancers from the ODC school, a score by Benjamin Britten, and narration by legendary actor Geoff Hoyle. This production is suitable for children ages 3 and up. Running time is 90 minutes, including one intermission.

Performances of The Velveteen Rabbit take place November 29 through December 15 in the Lam Research Theater at San Francisco's Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, 700 Howard Street (at Third Street). Tickets are $15 for 11 am weekday matinee performances, and range from $20 to $75 for other showings.

Do you have a middle- or high-schooler who loves to write? In the Teen Writers Workshop this winter at Northbay ArtWorks in Novato, budding authors can indulge their love of storytelling while also learning valuable writing techniques.

Students will focus on creating compelling characters that come to life for readers. In the end, they'll write short stories to be included in a professional-quality class anthology! This workshop is run by Brenda Zahn, a professional writer and journalist with 20 years of experience.

The next session begins December 2 and runs through January 27. Classes are held Monday afternoons from 4 to 5 pm at Northbay ArtWorks, 7049 Redwood Boulevard, Suite 208 in Novato. Each seven-week session costs $110.

For more information or to register, contact Brenda Zahn at bmz70@comcast.net or (415) 893-0426 or visit the Young Writer's Workshop Facebook page. To learn more about Northbay ArtWorks, visit www.northbayartworks.com.