For Better or For Worse by Lynn Johnston for December 16, 2012

Ya know, I never thought of it that way.

They pooped out because they were bored. Mom was the only one excited.

They the kids get excited ?

Reminds me of the classic taking the husband Shopping.

Susan, that wasn’t “fake” enthusiasm.

Iam 69 and still believe in santa the tooth fairy and all those kid fantasies.

This is going to be me if I ever have kids. I will be bubbling over with Xmas enthusiasm, wanting to see every window & decoration, & the kids will be jaded & bored.

My dad (rest in peace) used to tell me that Santa Claus and those other things stimulate a child’s imagination, and thus are very good. I think they stimulate our hearts, too.Dad was right.

Why do you hate Elly so much? And if you get that annoyed at her all the time, why do you read the comic in the first place? I think the majority of people stop doing something optional if it bugs them.

20 years from now, (or even, in the case of my kids, 20 minutes after they get home!) they will probably remember these times as the best of their lives, and do the same to their children.

didnt seem fake to me

Thank you for these; I very much enjoy reading them. I like Elly… I like Lynn Johnston. Lynn loved her children, and that’s how she intended to portray Elly. I’m sorry it reminds some of a mother whom they thought didn’t love them, but perhaps they should rethink their stance - maybe their mother DID love them after all, if she acted like Elly! At least Elly raised good kids who grew up to be upstanding young people — and her children loved HER… as Lynn’s love their mother.

I’ll never forget the time my sister in law dressed up the small kids and we went to a bank party in the middle of the day where one of the bankers got slap ass drunk, drinking eggnog from a faux toilet! About a year later, my brother (who also worked at the bank) told me the man had gone into recovery!

I think it’s unfair to say Elly’s enthusiasm is fake. As a mother to a small child, I am giddy with excitement for her. She has no clue what’s going on and probably could care less (yes, she cares a little)… being a parent to a child at Christmas is very exciting :)

But why assume it’s fake?

I think it’s wonderful for Elly to take the children out.