Ah, the World Wide Web. It brings people, information and cultures together like nothing else ever has, and probably ever will. The mysteries and magic of the unknown cease to be, replaced by the infinite possibilities of knowledge. The Internet can also cure boredom and wreak havoc on parents, especially around the holiday season. This Christmas (like those of the past ten years, apparently), kids who simply can't wait to get the holiday season started can set up a Christmas Countdown through the site A North Pole Christmas with Santa.

For those of you who eschew traditions like the nativity thingee I can't remember the name of right now (you know, that thing where you open each day and there's a piece of cheap and therefore not-so-tasty chocolate under there -- oh, right -- an ADVENT CALENDAR!) the site offers kids the chance to count down to Christmas Day with their own personalized calendar. Not only that, but kids can also take a quiz to see if they've been naughty or nice and even get a print out document to prove so! One would hope by this time of year kids knew if they'd been naughty or nice, but you never know--and there's always that one kid who thinks everything has to be notorized to have merit. The site also offers kids a chance to check out Rudolph's hijinks via a Rudolph Cam, send an email to Santa and print our Christmas coloring pages.

To be honest, I didn't attempt to set up the personal countdown myself as my computer is still considered unsecure from my move, so I don't know how easy or difficult it is for a kid or an adult to set it up. Still, it might be worth the effort and trouble to keep your child (or yourself) occupied until the big day. I know as a kid I wanted Christmas to last the whole month of December, so this is one way of doing that. Plus, for adults, it serves as a gentle reminder to get those holiday cards out, buy the presents, clean the house, plan Christmas dinner and all that other stuff that makes us dread Christmas instead of relish it like kids do. Seriously, with all that you have to do, how can you afford NOT to show this site to your kids? Hey--maybe this nifty countdown, or the North Pole Christmas with Santa site, can bring your holiday spirits back up. I'm going to go check out the Rudolph Cam right now!