What do abs and holidays have in common?

I saw an article on the web last week which was debunking fitness myths. One of the myths they mentioned was that you had to work your abs really hard in order to be able to see them. Apparently that’s not true; what really needs to happen is that we need to get rid of the fat that is covering them up. No matter how hard you work your abs, if they’re covered in a layer of fat then you’ll never see them.

I could ignore that little tidbit because, quite frankly, I have no need to see my abs. But the truth still applies, just in a different way. We run into the same myth when it comes to enjoying our holidays; we believe that if we just work hard enough and employ enough time management techniques, enough self-discipline, and enough organization, that we will be completely overjoyed. If we do everything just right we’ll be able to say, “I love my holiday!”

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The Secret to Stand-Out Party Decorations

I am absolutely not artistic so when I was preparing for my interview with Jill Kirsh about her color system for clothes and makeup and I saw what a dramatic difference a little color made, I started to wonder how it would affect our events. I wondered what could we do with color to make our celebrations more of what we want.

So I started poking around on-line and was amazed at some of the great things you can do and how you can transform a space or create a feeling through the colors you choose. You can make your event feel more fun, more dramatic, or more relaxing simply through your color choices.

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Giving Gifts of Love

We give presents to lots of different people for lots of different occasions. But there are times when we want to give a special gift, or we want the recipient to feel truly loved; we really want them to know we care. Those are times when we can get stuck, shopping and shopping for the perfect gift. But making it special isn’t only about the present; there are other ways to show our feelings too; by adding a personal touch or by making the giving a special experience. Here are a few tips for giving a special gift:

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How to Organize Your Pictures so You Can Enjoy Them

One of the great things about celebrations and special occasions is going back and reliving the best moments. Most of us use photographs to document these occasions, but how often do you actually get them into a frame or an album so you can enjoy your pictures and relive your memories?

If you’re like me you’ve pulled out the boxes of photos from many years ago and started sorting them only to get stuck trying to figure out the date things happened or to get caught up in reminiscing, and you only get through about 20 pictures.

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Handmade Valentine Cards with Thumbprints

I was doing a little surfing and I discovered these Thumbprint Valentines on brown paper packages blog. I adore these little handmade Valentines cards, in fact they’re so cute that I’d call them little homemade Valentine’s gifts! If I received one of these with my kids thumb-prints it would melt my heart. That little item would head [...]

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Tips for Celebrating Chinese New Year 2012 The Year of the Dragon

Chinese New Year is right around the corner. This coming Monday marks the beginning of this annual celebration of a new year and new energy.

Preparing for this holiday is simple and a great way to get the house in order. You’ll start out by cleaning your house as thoroughly as you can prior to the new year. However, don’t sweep during the first few days of the new year so you don’t sweep out the good luck. Brooms and dust pans should be stored out of sight.

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Let Martin Luther King Jr. Inspire You to Bring Joy into Your Life

Occasionally in life there are those moments of unutterable fulfillment which cannot be completely explained by those symbols called words. Their meanings can only be articulated by the inaudible language of the heart. ~ Martin Luther King Jr.

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A Geeky Christmas ~ Fun Celebrations

I’ve been talking to people about our “geeky Christmas”. There were many things that happened that made me laugh. For example: During our Christmas visit at my parents house my teenage niece pulled out a dictionary and started asking people to spell words – hard words! We all laughed but the next thing you know we’re having an informal spelling bee. Another time I found myself sharing a joke that is totally based on chemistry.

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Blending Two New Years

Last Monday’s show was all about New Year’s, the traditional New Year and Chinese New Year. Either way you look at it the holiday ends up being about getting your ‘house’ in order; that can mean making your life better through your New Year’s resolutions or literally cleaning your home and getting rid of the clutter.

What I really love about the Chinese New Year is that it’s based on the lunar calendar so it arrives a few weeks into the new calendar year. That gives me time to de-clutter the house and scrub the floors which I like to do after the holidays. It also gives me time to ponder and to create some real, attainable goals. Let’s face it, December and the holiday season is just way too busy to spend time on introspection.

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Celebrating Epiphany, the Arrival of the Three Kings

It’s January 6th and it’s another day of celebration. This is Epiphany, the day the three kings arrived and baby Jesus received his presents. In many traditions this is the day that gifts are given and celebrations are held. If you feel like you’ve lost something in your Christmas season, things were too rushed, or you simply want another chance to celebrate, this is a golden opportunity. It’s also a wonderful time to talk to your kids about the reason you celebrate Christmas and to share stories and your beliefs with them.

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