Melissa Stanton is the author of "My Pen Pal, Santa" (Random House), a story based on the actual after-Christmas pen pal correspondence between her daughter, Ava, then 6, and Santa Claus. (See the "For Adults Only" section of mypenpalsanta.com to learn how that communication was achieved.) While out of the workforce to care for her son and twin daughters Melissa wrote "The Stay-at-Home Survival Guide: Field-tested strategies for staying smart, sane and connected while caring for your kids" (Seal Press/Perseus Books, stayathomesurvivalguide.com). Earlier in her career she was a senior editor at LIFE and People magazines. Melissa is now a website editor in Washington, D.C. She lives with her family -- and a flock of egg-laying hens -- in a rural Maryland suburb.