PULSE ORNAMENTS MAKE WISHES COME TRUE.

Make room on your Christmas tree for just one more ornament - a pewter snowflake with sparkling Swarovski crystals. The large, engravable design is priced at $17.95 at Things Remembered stores, and proceeds will benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation for children with life-threatening illnesses. For more information on the ornaments, call [phone]; for information about the charity, call [phone] or visit www.wish.org.

The Lenox company, best-known for fine china, has designed a little bear ornament to benefit the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation. The ornament is sold with a larger plush teddy bear for $40 at Macy's in Westfield Shoppingtown at the Promenade in Woodland Hills. Don't have a Christmas tree? Charms for Charity by Manuel.Zed are charm bracelets with designs in choice of stainless steel, gold, enamel and semiprecious stones from Italy that raise awareness and money for the charity of your choice. For information, call [phone] or log onto www.zed.us.

- Barbara De Witt 

A CUP OF GOOD CHEER: When you've got the holiday blahs, chase them away with a dose of Holiday Blues by Philosophy. It's an aromatic foaming bathtub antidote for stress from too much shopping, or dropping the turkey, or trying too hard to please everybody. Relax in a mixture of aloe leaf juice, chamomile, and coconut and avocado oils, and take comfort in knowing that all proceeds go to charities for the homeless. It's $20 at Nordstrom.

- B.D.

MIDWIFE AND A HOSPITAL: When Tanya Moore became pregnant with her first child this year, she wanted it to be delivered by a certified nurse midwife. She also wanted the safety net that a major hospital and medical technology can provide.

Moore, whose baby is due in June, turned to Kia Winlock, a certified nurse midwife at UCLA Medical Center. Her timing couldn't have been better. Winlock and five other certified nurse midwives had just teamed up with three obstetrician-gynecologists to form a new practice called UCLA Maternity Associates. The partnership allows patients to choose midwifery care, OB care or a combination of the two.

``It's been great,'' said Moore, a 34-year-old interior designer from Sherman Oaks. ``There's a lot of personal attention.''

Members of the practice say their partnership evolved from a sense that demand was growing for natural births with fewer medical interventions, with the backup of OBs and lifesaving technology should the need arise. The OBs benefit from the arrangement, too, with the midwives providing support to their patients until it's time for delivery, Winlock said.

``You need that constant emotional support, to have another woman with you who has been through it,'' Winlock said. ``A birth is such an intimate experience in someone's life.''

Though the doors have only been open for three months, the practice reports drawing patients from up to 100 miles away. Kaiser Permanente is known for having certified nurse midwives at its hospitals. Otherwise, few area hospitals provide the service, Winlock said.

UCLA Medical Center has found that using certified nurse midwives for uncomplicated births often leads to a faster recovery and cost savings for the hospital. At UCLA, women can stay in the hospital for up to 48 hours, but many midwife patients choose to go home 24 hours after birth.

Women who opted for midwife-attended births at UCLA Medical Center also were less likely to undergo Caesarean section. UCLA's C-section rate for midwife deliveries was 11 percent in 2001, compared with the national rate of 24.4 percent.

However, the group cautions that having a certified nurse midwife doesn't guarantee a natural birth. The goal is for women to feel comfortable with the outcome and to feel that they were partners in the process.

``Safety comes first, along with making it a good experience,'' said Dr. Julie Henriksen, an obstetrician-gynecologist. ``We have a good blend. The OBs aren't the overly aggressive, move-everything-along types. And we know our midwives meet national obstetric standards. We share the same philosophy.''

For more information on UCLA Maternity Associates, call [phone].

- Mariko Thompson

HOLIDAY TRAVEL: When you're visiting relatives over the holidays or just on a weekend sleepover, it's way too much trouble to pack all those jars of beauty creams and makeup removers. To the traveler's rescue comes Swabplus Makeup Remover, cotton-tipped swabs with aloe and vitamin E for removing eye shadow, mascara and lipstick. A tiny travel box of 12 individually wrapped swabs is $1 at drugstores and supermarkets.

- B.D.

DON'T CHEW IT: Super-strong breath mints like Altoids have some new competition from the Wrigley's chewing gum company. It's Eclipse Flash Strips - little transparent strips of mint ``paper'' that dissolve instantly on your tongue. A tiny pack of 24 strips costs $1.49 at drugstores and supermarkets.

- B.D.

CAPTION(S):

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Photo:

(1) no caption (Make-A-Wish Foundation ornament)

(2) no caption (Bear ornament to benefit the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation)

(3) no caption (Holiday Blues by Philosophy)

(4) no caption (Eclipse Flash Strips)