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4 Hudson Valley Parent n December 2016 ON OUR COVER In this issue COLUMNS FEATURES 5 Marketplace: Hudson Valley products and services 6 Editor's Journal: The gift of caring BY FELICIA HODGES 34 Calendar: Great places to go and things to do 42 Last laugh: A light-hearted take on current topics BY GLORIA SMITH ZAWASKI AND ILLUSTRATOR CLAYTON BUCHANAN HV PARENT READER FEEDBACK What are your chil- dren's favorite toys? My son Bryce...will be 3. He played with matchbox cars and Pixar CARS all year long. He went every - where with a car or truck in hand. Any automobile was and is still a toy played with always. — Denise Patterson, Newburgh Legos! It's allll about the Legos. In the car on trips, on the way to school, at the movies, playground or anyplace else. He absolutely loves being creative and playing with Legos. — AnneMarie Andrews, Poughkeepsie My daughter loved when they brought tickle me Elmo back!! She's 11 now so she has outgrown that. My son loves his plush dolls, espe- cially SONIC! — LisaMarie Hyde, Garrison My daughter is 5 and has loved her Leapfrog pal Violet since she was a baby. Although she is a "big girl" now, she still sleeps with it. She now loves shopping for new babies and picks either a Violet or Scout for all our friends who are expecting. — Kim Andrews, Poughkeepsie My son is 5. He loves his Hot Wheels Ultimate Garage, and basi- cally anything Hot Wheels tracks-re- lated. They are the only toys he will repeatedly play with. — Tara Martinez, Fishkill Last years Christmas gift from Grandma & Grandpa: Fisher Price Jeep. He can't stop driving! [He's] 4 years old. — Everett Terwilliger, Wallkill 8 I am a Hudson Valley Parent Christine DerOhannesian: Soaring above it all BY BRIAN PJ CRONIN 10 Hudson Valley Parent's Favorite Docs Looking for a health care provider? See which area doctors across a variety of specialties got rave reviews from our readers 25 The empathy connection: Helping kids learn to care How to teach your children the importance of understanding others' feelings BY MJ HANLEY GOFF 28 Circumcision 101 Experts and parents weigh-in on having the procedure done on newborns BY LINDA FREEMAN 32 Photo Spread: Most-loved toys for kids Reader pictures and age-by-age favorite children's toys 41 Holiday finds for babies and toddlers Occupy and entertain the wee ones this season with these new fun treasures BY FELICIA HODGES This month's cover kid is Chase, 4, of Newburgh photographed at Echo Boutique in Bea- con. He enjoys Tae Kwon Do, going fruit and vegetable picking and spending time with his older brother and younger sisters. Photo by Michael Bloom