Issue link: http://hvparent.uberflip.com/i/1042844
6 Hudson Valley Parent n November 2018 Publisher TERRIE GOLDSTEIN tgoldstein@excitingread.com Editor CASSIDY BRIGHTON cbrighton@excitingread.com Dir. of Consumer Development PAMELA PERRY pperry@excitingread.com Dir. of Business Development KATHLEEN MERZ kmerz@excitingread.com Executive Assistant LESLIE CORTES lcortes@excitingread.com Media Advisors MATTHEW SILVERMAN msilverman@excitingread.com JESSICA HIGGINS jhiggins@excitingread.com Layout & Design ENGLE PRINTING also publishers of MY TripPlanner.com family MY TripPlanner.com family Hudson Valley Parent is published monthly by: The Professional Image Marketing & Public Relations Inc. 174 South Street • Newburgh, NY 12550 Phone: 845-562-3606 • Fax: 845-562-3681 hvparent.com This publication is copyrighted by the publisher. Reproduction without written permission of the publisher is prohibited. Hudson Valley Parent welcomes submissions, although we cannot accept responsibility for work submitted nor guarantee publication. A s we transition from pumpkin spice to peppermint and from leaves falling to snow, what memories fill the hearts and minds of your family? Every year, after the last spooky spiderweb was removed from the house and the faces on my jack- o-lanterns had all drooped past recognition, a new energy would fill my heart. I always make sure to take moments for reflection amid baking, traveling and Black Friday shopping madness. Holiday festivities in the Brighton household were always filled with laughter and loads of food. We would gather around the island in the kitchen and snack on tasty appetizers while my mother put the finishing touches on her famous pumpkin pie. While I look back on these memories with fondness, families with food allergies see gatherings like this as treacherous. How can you keep the holidays holly jolly when simple snacks pose huge dangers to your children? This month, mothers and doctors share tips on how to make the most of any holiday party even with allergies. Don't miss out on a minute of family togetherness! For one special family in the Hudson Valley, this time of year didn't always signify a warm feeling of holiday cheer. This month's I am a Hudson Valley Parent profile highlights Melissa Banks, an Ulster County mom who turned hardship into a huge volunteer project. Through her organization, Christmas Wishes, she gives back to families in the community she grew up in. As the weather gets colder, hearts get warmer and the spirit of giving fills the Hudson Valley. This generous attitude also fills the Hudson Valley Parent office each year during the holiday season. Since I have been working at Hudson Valley Parent, the holiday season has come to signify a time to give back to the libraries that give so much to us all year long. This year, we are asking you to help us show local libraries just how grateful we are for them. When I was growing up, we spent many rainy weekends on the colorful carpets in the just for kids area of the library down the road from our home. One year right around Thanksgiving, my twin and I made a very special craft. We folded and cut paper turkeys and covered them with glue. We sprinkled them with seasoning just as we had seen our father do to the real holiday dinner year after year. My mother still has huge plastic bins filled with crafts and art like this that we made at library programs over the years. She was thankful for a safe, free place to take her children and we were grateful for the fun we had and the memories we made. (And we always left with another storybook to hear that night at bedtime.) Why are you grateful for your library? On Giving Tuesday (the Tuesday after Thanksgiving) share what makes you thankful for the libraries in your community. Two winning libraries will receive $500 dollars in books from Hudson Valley Parent as a well deserved thank you! What do the holidays mean to you? CASSIDY BRIGHTON Editor's Journal