Search Results for: blog getting away from it all this holiday season

Get Organized Before the Holidays Hit

My scrapbooking area looks like an F-5 tornado ripped through it. Sadly, it looks that way after completing just one back-to-school memory book. Imagine what will happen if I leave it this way until the holidays. With Halloween just about a week away, and Thanksgiving and Christmas right around the corner, now is the time to get your scrapbooking materials organized. The holidays are chaotic enough without having to search high and low for specific embellishments, paper and tools. What’s more, if you are planning to design scrapbooks as gifts to give for Christmas or Hanukkah, then you have added … Continue reading →

Staying Healthy During the Holidays

Tis the season, for coughing, sneezing, runny noses, tummy aches and any other kind of germ your kids can drag home. It’s no fun to be sick for the holidays but in my house it seems like someone always is. Maybe it’s because we are spending more time in crowded shopping centers and malls, maybe it’s because we are exposed to more germs at all the holiday parties we attend or maybe germs just like us better during the holidays. Whatever the reason, we need to do what we can to fend off illness so everyone can enjoy the holidays. … Continue reading →

Preventing Injuries as You Prepare Your House for the Holidays

Whoever thought that decorating your home could be dangerous? Well according to the “U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission,” injuries from holiday decorating and decorations are on the rise. I read that many people are cut from shattered glass ornaments and falling from ladders while trying to put up lights or other holiday decorations. Burn injuries and deaths are also issues when it comes to fires caused by candles or Christmas trees. No one likes to think it could happen to them but we really do need to keep safety in the back of our minds as we prepare our homes … Continue reading →

How Do You Get It All Done?

During this holiday season, how do you get it all done? There are so many activities and preparation, from baking cookies to chauffeuring kids to play and concert rehearsals, buying gifts to decorating the house. Today on the Families.com Facebook page, the question to answer was how do you get it all done? How can you fit in all of the things that you need to do during the holidays? There were a lot of great responses, such as to be more like our husbands and ignore it all to play video games without guilt (Gardens of Time, anyone?). But … Continue reading →

Tips for Getting Your Customer Service Issues Resolved

The amount of shopping that you do during the holiday season may increase the amount of time that you spend dealing with customer service issues. Here are a few tips for getting what you want and need from customer service. You may want to keep this list handy after the holidays too, because you never know when you might need it. The very first thing to do when you have a customer service issue is to clearly and politely ask for what it is that you want. Do not be shy, it will not get you anywhere. It is important … Continue reading →

Retailers Hope You Have Frugal Fatigue This Holiday

The Los Angeles Times is reporting that retailers are really hoping that you, the consumer, will be suffering from frugal fatigue this holiday season, and they will be doing everything they can in order to encourage you to let go of frugal habits and spend this season. The holidays are usually a time to spend and indulge, so it really a danger zone when it comes to falling off of the frugal wagon. If you aren’t careful, you may wind up spending more than you planned. If you have solid financial goals, such as to pay down debt, to save … Continue reading →

The Season’s Hottest Hotel Deals

Office Depot is offering rock bottom Black Friday deals each Friday from now until November 25th, while Carter’s is practically giving away select children’s outfits during its series of doorbuster sales that run through the end of the month. However, retailers are not the only ones looking to entice frugal shoppers during the countdown to Christmas. The travel industry, specifically, major hotels and resorts, are looking to drum up seasonal business as well by offering amazing deals at popular properties. Some of the hottest holiday-related deals include: IHG, the parent company of Holiday Inn, InterContinental, Crowne Plaza, and Staybridge Suites … Continue reading →

Getting Ready for the Holidays

As October draws to a close it’s time to start thinking about the rest of the holidays. What holidays do you celebrate and how do you celebrate them? At our house Thanksgiving means lots of food and lots of company. December means baking, lots and lots of baking. The beginning of November I start making lists. I figure out what I’m making for each holiday and start cleaning out the pantry to make room for all the stuff I’m going to have to purchase. I make a list of each recipe and then a shopping list, what do I need, … Continue reading →

Get the Kids Involved in Holiday Gift Giving

The other day my 6-year-old daughter informed me of her plans to raid her father’s coin container, so she could make my Dyson dreams come true for Christmas. I strongly discouraged her thoughtful, yet immoral plan, explaining that he had already gifted me with a vacuum cleaner a few years back and that I didn’t think he had $500 worth of coins in his container anyway. Still, the fact that my daughter actually thought of someone other than herself this holiday season got me thinking about ways parents can foster a child’s spirit of giving. Instead of choosing, wrapping and … Continue reading →

Cleaning Your Holiday Best

The holidays mean decking your halls and your body with your seasonal best. For guys and gals that often translates into wearing silk. While the luxurious material makes for elegant evening wear, silk can also be a pain to clean when it gets soiled or stained. Fortunately, there are ways you can preserve the look of your holiday best by following a few simple tips: Time: Timing is critical when it comes to cleaning silk. If you notice a spill on your silk tie or shirt, don’t wait until you get home to treat it. Immediately blot at the stain … Continue reading →