Simply Delicious: holiday specials with simply delicious lingerie

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Friday, December 16, 2011

Our Pets and the Holidays

Winter can be a magical time of year for family, friends, and furry companions alike. Holidays are such a joyous occasion to decorate and get festive! I love my cats and like most pet owners, we treat them like part of the family. It seems many pet owners have accepted that our pets are like children, so of course we enjoy indulging them more than ever. To keep everyone happy and safe, consider which holiday traditions might be potential hazards for your pet and please take proper precautions— before the season begins, but what about the decorations you put out specifically for the holiday season? Do pets get into these things? Oh you bet they do. They are mischievous just like children are except generally when a child takes something we find it in their room or toy box. What did you do when things turn up missing and your pet gets caught in the act as the thief? My mother has cats and they get into everything at the holidays.

Let me share a funny story with you...things turn up missing at mom and dads house all the time, this year, we had a good laugh over our nativity set. Mom has it under the Christmas tree. Nothing ever bothers it. Year after year they put it out and then pack it away for next holiday. One night mom was sitting on the couch and noticed one of the three kings and baby Jesus were MIA? The king was found under the island in the kitchen and baby Jesus under the sofa in family room, both unharmed., thank goodness! The little baby Jesus is once again swaddled in the crib glued down, along with all others. Yes, those who were lost are once again found.
How can we be sure this will not happen again next year? The next morning I woke up to the stinky smell of hot melting glue. As I came around the corner, there was my mom was bending over the manger with glue gun in hand. Now,each of the 3 Kings, Mary, Joseph and Little Baby Jesus are safe and sound and they aren;t going anywhere!

Lets face it, pets get into things on a daily basis but at the holiday season, they tend to get into even more things...Keep close eye on them they could be allergic to ingredients in human perfumes, (we get a lot of these for gifts and tend to leave them boxed under the tree) also, air fresheners, oils and candles need to be watched...but there are pet-friendly versions of some scented products. People who use those might even find themselves wheezing less, my thought have always been, what's good for pets is good for people. NOT TRUE! My sister has a chocolate lab named Riley and she thinks she is a human,...oh she'll try to eat everything in sight and she's been caught on her hind legs pulling things off the kitchen counter top. There are foods that cats and dogs simply cannot have that can be quite harmful to them, so please, although you might want to sneak the critters something yummy, ask first or you may be handed a very expensive vet bill. No chocolate, raisins or onions for doggies! These are s deadly for them.

Jingling bells and other holiday decorations can offer a host of new toys for pets to play with or explore, which may put them in danger.Pets are curious and observant.They can find things you may not even notice.

Therefore, decorate with safety in mind:

Place ornaments higher on the tree, away from playful cats or dogs.
Move surface decorations that pose a choking hazard out of reach. Bite-sized adornments, or nativity scene pieces, may cause severe internal injury if ingested.
Tie back or tape down electrical cords so animals who love to chew won’t nibble and get a jolt. Loose cords can also tangle around a pet, posing a risk of strangulation or possibly capsizing heavy decorations, such as a Christmas tree.Keep open flames inaccessible. Open chimney fires, menorahs, and other flame sources can burn animals or cause a house fire if disturbed.

Remember; During holiday feasting, pets should not participate in the gluttony. Feeding a pet scraps can cause serious stomach and intestinal upset from overfeeding or more severe illnesses if the foods are toxic to animals. Pets hanging around the kitchen should be kept away from any alcohol, chocolate, macadamia nuts, or raisins that may have been left out. For a more comprehensive list of toxic foods and poisonous house plants, visit the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) Animal Poison Control Center’s website at www.aspca.org/ apcc.

Saturday, December 10, 2011

What Do I Wear to the Holiday Party?

Not sure how to dress? First off, holiday parties are a time to be festive and bold...that means showing up looking festive in your holiday attire, NOT looking like someone decorated you for Christmas with flashy bold neon sparkling colors that hurt ones eyes. Knock off the party jitters and show up looking classy. Sure it’s a great excuse to break out of your normal wardrobe rut, but think about those around you..play it fun, and safe. Want my recommendation? I have one word for this holiday season: sequins! If the idea of sequins conjures up memories of cheesy, sparkly gowns from the 80’s, relax. Designers have revamped sequins, making them more muted, but still festive while looking current and chic. And they are everywhere this season, at every price point. Today, sequins aren't dresses that are covered in sequins, they might have just an added touch to give an accent to the dress that will catch ones eye from a distance. Let’s break down some of the common party types and what you can wear to shine, in a good way.

Black Tie

A Black Tie invitation calls for formal attire. Men wear tuxedos, women wear cocktails, long dresses or dressy evening separates. A little black dress is completely appropriate for black tie functions.
Formal usually means the same as Black Tie, but in some trendier cities like New York or Los Angeles, it could mean a black shirt, no tie with a tux. Women wear cocktail, long dresses or dressy evening separates.
A White Tie or Ultra-formal invitation requires men wear full dress, with white tie, vest, shirt. Women wear long gowns.
More about dressing

Semi-Formal

Semi-Formal or After Five means that tuxes are not required, nor are long dresses. An evening wedding (after 6 PM) would still dictate dark suits for him, and a cocktail dress for her. Daytime semi-formal events mean a suit for him and an appropriate short dress or dressy suit for her.

Business Formal is the same as Semi-Formal for him, but for women it suggests that women opt for more tailored dressy suits and dresses. The idea is to still be business appropriate -- which means nothing too sexy or slinky - but still dressed up.

Cocktail Attire

Cocktail Attire means short, elegant dresses for her and dark suits for him. The little black dress (my all time favorite) is the ultimate cocktail dress and appropriate for most special occasions.Wear it with very little accessories, a necklace and classy earrings that dangle a bit. Make sure that you have the heels to accent the dress as it seals the deal.

Informal

Informal is often interpreted as the same as Casual but it actually calls for the same dress as Semi-Formal - dark suits for him, short dresses for her -- especially when associated with a wedding or special event. Ladies, just know how short 'short' means? Don't got slutty to a party. Have some style. If you are single looking for a possible potential date or hook up, short and creepy is not going to win you the eye of a man who seeks style, class and a touch of sophistication. Men want extraordinary gals, not a tramp. If you are going to dress the part of class, you better be able to back it up. If you dress like a two bit whore, you'll attract the wrong kind of man and he certainly won't respect you.

Festive Attire

Festive Attire is usually seen around the holidays, with the mood of the party being Informal or Semi-Formal. For her, it means to choose looks with a bit of sparkle or holiday bent (i.e. a beaded sweater with black pants, a red silk blouse with a black skirt). Or a party dress/cocktail dress with sparkle and glitter that defines you and your classy look.

Casual

Dressy Casual calls for dressed-up versions of casual looks. For him, it could be trousers and a sportcoat, for her a dressy pants look. Jeans, shorts, T-shirts and other casual looks are not appropriate for Dressy Casual.
Casual generally means anything goes (including jeans, sneakers, etc.) If the host or hostess wants a more dressed-up approach, it would be dictated on the invite.
And when in doubt about what to wear, remember you can always ask the host or hostess what they expect party guests to wear.

Saturday, December 3, 2011

Family, Stress, and the Holidays

The holidays are the time for giving and they present many opportunities to bond with family, and that's a good thing,...but this time of year can also present significant stress, particularly when family conflict arises. Some conflict can come from having to decide which relatives to see, if any. Here are some ways to divide up your time over the holidays and handle conflicts and holiday stress that may arise. So how do you 'de-stress' the holiday atmosphere?

The great thing about the holiday season...besides the gifts...is having the chance to spend valuable time with our loved ones, show our appreciation for one another and overall, give thanks.Holiday traditions are important in every family, regardless of religion or how you choose to observe the holiday season. They provide meaningful and cherished lifelong memories and more so, an opportunity to spend quality time together.Family traditions can be as simple as you make them, but even so, they can turn into stressful events, and they shouldn't. Here are some ways to relieve tension at the holidays and things you should expect;

Host Celebrations At Your House. If the stress of traveling each year is more than you'd like to handle, you may want to have family over to your home for the holidays. This is also a good solution when you have too many groups or relatives to take turns seeing: invite everyone to celebrate together, and you will get to see everyone more often. While this won't work in every situation, it can build bonds between groups of relatives that may not know one another very well.

Take Turns with Relatives. If you and your spouse both want to celebrate with your families of origin, if you're dealing with a divorce situation where not everybody wants to celebrate together or if you just have a lot of family, it can be stressful deciding who to see, and when. Taking turns is an easy solution.Then you can eventually see everybody.

Just Say No. If seeing family causes you great amounts of stress each year, it's OK to say no sometimes. Celebrating with just your partner or kids can be a wonderful alternative to seeing people who make you feel consistently stressed.

Be Prepared to Encounter a Little Conflict. If you usually have conflict when you get together with your family, it's a good idea to be prepared for it. I'm not suggesting that you go looking for trouble, but rather, approach the situation with a sense of realism. If your mother always criticizes your appearance or your brother always makes rude jokes, don't expect them to change their habits; just have a sense of humor about it and remind yourself what you love about them.

If stress consumes too much of you and your holiday spirit, you need to re-evaluate things, because it's supposed to be the time of year to celebrate, not pull one an others hair out in grandmas kitchen drinking eggnog. Remember what the true meaning of this special holiday is and why we celebrate it.If you have forgotten my friend, you need to get back to the basics.

Christmas and the holidays have a variety of meanings and depending on the family and their customs, we all celebrate a little differently. Regardless of your religion, or what holiday it is that you are celebrating, remember...family is what brings and keeps everyone together, so don't make it stressful.

Be happy, enjoy the season and be grateful for all that you have, for so many people don't have family and would give anything to be in your shoes right now. Be thankful and smile during the holidays and appreciate all that you have. What you have may seem like nothing to you, but for that one person that you may pass on the street, or in the employee cafeteria that you see everyday but never speak to, or that man or woman at church that doesn't have anyone to celebrate with and sits all alone year after year, that smile will mean the world to them. Give the gift that costs nothing, that doesn't need to be wrapped in fancy tissue or decorated boxes. Love one an other...for that my friend is a gift that is priceless.