Advent In An Hour: Dec 12

As this is JJ’s third Holidays, we’re going full-bore, introducing him to lots of traditions so he can be good and indoctrinated in all things Apple Christmas by next year. Aiding in this process have been three awesome iPad/iPhone apps…

1) A Charlie Brown Christmas ($6.99, on sale for $4.99 for a limited time) is not only a great way to familiarize our son with everyone’s favorite Holiday special, but it’s also an interactive storybook. Its subtle, pop-up style animation is also peppered with little surprises (exploding snowflakes!) and as a gigantic, nostalgic bonus, it’s narrated by Peter Robbins… the original voice of Charlie Brown!

2) Toca Hair Salon (FREE) is a goofy little app akin to Wooly Willy (but way more involved), where you can trim, blow dry, color, accessorize and even grow hair on both Santa and a freaky-looking Christmas tree. Santa skeeved JJ out a bit, so we’ve been spending more time with Mr. Tree. Worth the download time just to see the blow dry effect!

3) Christmas Song Machine ($2.99) is a fun way to teach JJ to sing along to several Xmas favorites including “Jingle Bells,” “Silent Night,” and “We Wish You A Merry Christmas.” The voices (sorry kids, you’re no Sinatra. Or Muppets, for that matter) can get a little grating after a while, but nothing a little eggnog can’t remedy.