give up on perfection and have fun anyway

There’s a lot of pressure to be happy this time of year. Put all your cares aside, buy everyone you know gifts, and find time to spend with a hundred people that you otherwise don’t take much time to see during the year.

Crazy, isn’t it?

And while you’re at it – eat a years worth of sweets in one 2 week period.

The stress and poor diet is enough to kill you. Literally.

Now add all of your hopes for a magical perfect holiday. Which of course is rarely ever going to happen.

You’ve got to give yourself a break already.

People are going to have too many plans, and your party might be the one to get nixed.

You might have too many plans, and can’t make every party.

It might snow and no one is going anywhere.

You might not have the money to buy the kinds of gifts you’d like to give.

You might not have the time to get everything set up perfectly.

You have 2 choices. Accept things as they are and make it as special as you can anyway, or mope and let everyone know how miserable you are – and make them feel miserable too. It’s easy to make people feel miserable. It seems we’re predisposed to that sometimes. But it takes a special person to say – fine, we’re going to have fun anyway.

I had 4 days of merriment planned for this year. As things fell apart one by one, I am now having Christmas Dinner. That’s it. Oh, I’ll have houseguests, but the plans for each day have fallen apart in one way or another.

My daughter and I will be alone for most of Christmas Eve. That might seem sad. But, we haven’t had a chance to bake those cookies, and this will be the perfect opportunity. We can have a nice dinner together, and finish up any wrapping and surprises for Christmas morning. I know the time will go way too fast.

Like many of you, money for gifts is limited. I focus on my daughter, and my best friend and her kids. Everyone else gets something created from Gifts from the Heart(h). I got Christmas coffee mugs at Walmart for 70 cents each. I picked up Christmas kitchen towels, pot holders, and stuff like that – cheap. I’ll pair those with a nice coffee or hot chocolate. If I have time to make the fudge and ‘people chow’ fine. If I don’t – oh well.

I don’t know about you, but I like getting Christmas towels. Mine really need replacing pretty much every year or two. I bring out the Christmas mugs at Thanksgiving. I always appreciate ornaments or other decorations. Some of mine are so old and falling apart – but I hate to get rid of them. Many were gifts. Many were hand made.

Wouldn’t you like your gift to be cherished like that?

My friend was telling me that her tree is up, and she loves it. Every ornament has a story. She knows who gave her each one, or why she picked up a special one. That’s what makes a Christmas tree magical. Not white ornaments on a black tree, or whatever the current trend may be. It’s the stuff from the heart.

A couple other quick gift ideas –

Netflix subscription is a great gift. Anyone I know who’s gotten one has really liked it.

A gift certificate from Restaurant.com. You pay half of the face value, and you can print it right up on your way out the door. I’ve given those a few times. You can even slip the certificate into a card for those people who live farther away – but it probably won’t get there by Christmas at this point L 

So don’t be beating yourself up because you can’t afford to spend hundreds of dollars. It truly is the thought that counts – if you took some time to put some thought into it. Spending a lot of money on meaningless gifts isn’t any fun.

The best way to enjoy Christmas? Be flexible and don’t expect perfection. Sometimes good enough is perfect.

Hey, while I was writing this article, my Christmas Dinner went from 6 people to 15 people. I don’t have 15 chairs. And I only bought a 20-pound turkey. So I’d better get going! And it won’t be perfect. But it will be a wonderful day filled with family and friends. What more could you ask for?

OK, OK, I didn’t mean to give me your whole list. I hope Santa brings all you’ve asked for

Have a Very Merry Christmas.

Carole

a.k.a. – ‘Mother’

keep your pets safe through the holidays

Some things around the holidays can be very harmful – even fatal for your pets.

Eating tinsel can cause choking, and it’s not fun to clean up after. While eating ribbon is not necessarily toxic – (though they could choke), it’s also a real pain to clean up after. I’ve had to resort to stick on bows. No more curling ribbon in this house!

Eating pieces of broken ornaments can cause cuts and bleeding.

Poinsettia, holly, and mistletoe can cause stomach upsets. If they are drooling, vomiting, or have diarrhea, get them to the vet.

Depending on the size of the dog and how much Chocolate they eat, chocolate can cause a caffeine-like overdose which may lead to high heart rate, agitation, tremors, or seizures. 

Grapes and Raisins can cause kidney disease. If your dog is lethargic, not eating, or vomiting – get them to the vet.

Macadamia nuts can make them extremely sick, but it goes away in a day or two. They may be weak or unstable, vomiting, or have pale mucous membranes.

Onions can cause a type of anemia that causes the red blood cells to rupture. They may not get sick for a couple of days after eating onions.

Bread dough can expand inside your pet causing extreme pain, poisoning, and kidney failure.

Peelings from fruits (including tomatoes) or potatoes can cause stomach upsets. Do not give your pet any green peelings from fruits or potatoes. They can eat green vegetables though. My dog loves broccoli.

 Remember that table food is generally not good for your pets. This time of year it seems so caring to feed your pet some extra treats in the form of scraps. But it’s best not to feed them something they don’t normally eat. The extra hub-bub is already stressful for them. Keeping your pets healthy is the most caring thing you can do.

Carole

a.k.a. – ‘Mother’

Avoid Online Shopping Hazards

I love to shop online. It saves me time and a bit of my sanity. But there are some things you need to watch out for.

1. Never click on a link in a spam e-mail. Never, Never, Never. Period. I don’t care how good the deal sounds.

2. Always look for the padlock before entering any personal information.

3. Watch for sales. You can sign up for email alerts at your favorite sites.

4. Take time to compare prices. Just like shopping at the store, you want to make sure you’re getting the best price. And online - it’s easier to get from one store to another!

5. Pay attention to the amount you need to spend to get free shipping. many time, buying one more item will make shipping free. It’s like getting that item for free.

6. Shop where you can earn rebates.

7. Always right down or print out your reciept and tracking information. Email is not always reliable anymore. You may not get a copy if your filters stop it from getting through. And you want to be able to keep track until you recieve your order and make sure it’s ok.

In all the years that I’ve been shopping online, there was only one time when I didn’t get what I had ordered, and paid for. I ever ordered a bicycle one year. The postman was thrilled with me that year - NOT!

Online shopping is basically safe and secure as long as you take a few precautions. And the time and gas you’ll save! Plus, you can shop at 2 in the morning if that’s when you have some free time.

One more tip - make sure you get your holiday shopping done soon to avoid higher shipping fees, or risk not getting the presents in time!

Happy shopping!

Carole

a.k.a. – ‘Mother’

Survive the Holiday Chaos without gaining 100 pounds

When you’re running around like a crazy person, it’s so handy to grab fast food, and whatever is on the desks at work. Problem is - those foods will leave you feeling sluggish and make you more prone to getting sick. And we don’t have time for that right now, do we? We need every bit of energy we can muster!

Here are 10 tips for getting through all those hectic days without gaining 100 pounds, losing energy, or getting sick. You might even lose a few pounds!

1. Drink 8 glasses of water throughout the day.
* It fills you.
* It satisfies your thirst, which is often mistaken for hunger.
* It flushes out toxins and wastes (including fat) from your system.
* It keeps your organs working their best, which means they can absorb nutrients, get rid of the garbage, your skin will look better, you’ll think better, you’ll have more energy, your immune system will be stronger, and you’ll burn more calories.

2. Make 5 a Priority.
Even if you change nothing else, make eating at least 5 servings of vegetables and fruits a priority each day. At mealtime, eat the fruits and vegetables first, leaving less room for the worse things on your plate. You’ll be surprised at how big a difference this one little change will make.

3. Eat Something From Every Food Group Every Day.
Your body needs all sorts of foods to operate its best, including fats and some sugar. The better your body works, the better you feel, and the more calories you burn. Be leery of any diet that tells you to eliminate an entire food group. It’s not healthy, and it will be hard to stick with.

4. Added Nutrition.
At a minimum, take a good vitamin and mineral supplement everyday. It’s almost impossible to get every single nutrient your body needs everyday just by diet alone. Besides, who has the time to spend counting calories and nutrients?

5. Get Some Sort Of Exercise Every Day.
Take a walk, take the stairs, vacuum, dance, just get moving. Even if it’s 10-minute spurts a few times a day. It doesn’t have to be earth shattering. Exercise helps you beat stress, strengthens your immunity and your bones along with your muscles.

6. Eat Fresh Food.
Fast food and prepared foods have a lot of saturated fat, salt, chemicals, and they don’t taste all that great. Cooking healthy is really very fast and easy. Use lots of raw vegetables and fruits. No cooking required! You’ll feel so much better and have a lot more energy. Just plan ahead so you have fresh food easily avaliable for the day.

7. Get Enough Sleep.
Your body repairs itself while you sleep. You’re even burning calories! When you don’t get enough sleep, you tend to compensate by eating a lot of empty calories that further drain your energy.

8. Try Not To Over Schedule Yourself.
When you’re running around like crazy it’s too easy to just grab junk food – which only drains your energy even more.

9. Eat All Day.
The secret is to keep your body fueled all day. Most people make the mistake of not eating all day, and then eating too much at night when you’re not going to do enough to burn it off. (But stop eating when you’re full.)

10. Stop Eating a Couple of Hours Before Bed.
If you feel hungry at bedtime, have a piece of cheese and a few baked crackers just to take the edge off. It’s actually not good to go to bed hungry. But stay away from sugar and caffeine before bed.

The truth is, it’s not that hard to lose weight and stay healthy. Just by following these 10 simple tips you will start losing weight almost effortlessly and you’ll find you’ll have more energy and you won’t be getting sick as often. Who has time to be sick now?

Want to speed up your weight loss even more? Cut our saturated fats and pop, and get more exercise. The whole key to losing weight is to burn more than you take in. In time, once you’ve mastered better eating habits, you can make it mathematically impossible to gain weight.

For more information on what you can eat to stay thin, healthy, and full of energy for life >>>

No Fail Thanksgiving Planner

TGIF! It’s been a tough week, hasn’t it? And now – when you thought you could relax… Thanksgiving is just 3 weeks away. But if you’ve been on my list for longer than a year – you know that I have a plan. 

Thanksgiving is my absolute favorite meal of the year. So much good (and would you believe healthy?) food. Family. Friends. I just love it. But my first couple of years through, it was a nightmare trying to get everything done. Now, it’s a piece of cake.  

Just like everything we do at CommonSenseLiving – I’m going to show you how to break it down into little manageable steps. Grab your free Thanksgiving planner and starting doing little things this weekend. You’ll sail through, and everyone will be asking – “How do you do it?” 

 You’ll have a clean house, a great dinner, and you’ll be the coolest, calmest most together hostess they’ve ever seen. The entire plan includes planning, shopping, cleaning schedule, recipes, and a complete checklist for getting that dinner out in grand style. 

And I’m giving it to you free because I’m thankful that you’ve stayed with me. I really appreciate it. Thank you, thank you, thank you! 

Whether you want to give them a copy is up to you. ;-)  

Pick up your free copy of How To Dance Through Thanksgiving ’07 >>>

Carole

a.k.a. – ‘Mother’