The leaves are falling and Fall is in the air. Halloween has come and gone. To your amazement, Christmas music is already playing and it is early November. Getting ready for Christmas used to be your favorite thing to do: i.e. cards, decorating, baking cookies for the grandchildren and planning that special gift for each person.

Now Christmas has become your most dreaded time of the year because your loved one is gone. You ask yourself, “How am I going to survive this year without him or her?” There are hundreds of people in this same situation and here are some tips that worked over time:

Plan ahead for Christmas and what you want you to do this year. Be sure to include important family members in making your decision so no one’s feelings get hurt.
Options to consider in your Christmas planning: Do you want to do a traditional thing as always? Do you want to change the tradition by adding something new? Do you want to skip Christmas all together this year? Do you want to celebrate the winter season by going on a trip or cruise?
Look at your priorities once you have made a decision on how you and your family want to celebrate Christmas. Remember that everything doesn’t have to be Perfect. Trying to be perfect doesn’t serve us and it can be very frustrating.
Let others help you with what you would like to have done. If you can afford it, have dinner catered. You can have a potluck with family and friends. Go to someone else’s house for dinner.
Be sure to member that we all go through the stages of grieving at a different pace. If you feel that you are stuck in a phase, please get help through a local support group or work with a professional counselor.

Holiday Tips

Holiday Grief – Help and Tips

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The following make great party games for your Chinese New Year Party.

Wonderment Chinese New Year Party Games

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The Wonderment game is sure to take the players of your Chinese New Year party game by awe. The Wonderment game is played with just two people in the party who will be in the know of the game, resulting in “wonderment” for all the others. First, before the commencement of this Chinese New Year game, two players need to agree on a signal word such as the word “and”. Then one of them declares that he/she is gifted with second sight and that he/she can name, through a closed door, any object touched by any person. The player then chooses a confederate as if by random, while actually selecting the other player. Then the player leaves the room and the selected player proceeds to call out different objects. The trick is to call out a variety of objects but precede the selected object with the signal word. For instance, the player can call out “table, rug, piano, footstool and chair, inkstand, lamp”, adding a lot of object names to confuse the other player. The player then touches a chair in the room and asks the other player “what am I touching now”? The player will answer “Chair” to the amazement of everyone present in the room. Of course, the player finds the right answer because the signal word “and” was spelt immediately before the word “chair”.

Wall Charger for Nintendo DS Lite by eForCity Review

Wall Charger for Nintendo DS Lite by eForCity Feature

• NOTE: For Nintendo DS Lite ONLY, NOT compatible with Nintendo DS or Dsi.Conveniently gives your DS Lite battery a boost whether you are on a business trip, in a hotel, or at home.
• Small and lightweight accessory
• Features fold-away prongs for easy travel and storage
• World traveler (100-240V). The innovative travel charger automatically adjusts to all voltages and frequencies in the U.S., Europe, and Asia.
• Great for users who frequently travel and as a replacement charger.

Wall Charger for Nintendo DS Lite by eForCity Overview

Compatible with: Nintendo DS Lite only

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When played skillfully, the Wonderment Chinese New Year party game will fill your Chinese New Year party with a lot of amazement and wonder.

Postman’s Knock Chinese New Year Party Games

The Postman’s Knock Chinese New Year party game begins with one player going out of the room and giving a postman’s knock (a double knock) at the door. One of the players must stand inside and answer the knocks made. First, the player should ask the postman “Who is the letter for?” The postman then names a member of the Chinese New Year party game, usually of the opposite sex. The player then must ask the postman how many cents need to be paid. The postman replies with a number say “six”. The person for whom the letter is meant for will then pay the postman with the same number of kisses, instead of cents. The person then takes the turn as postman and the Chinese New Year party game continues.

Chinese New Year Party Games

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Christmas time is coming up fast! And, Christmas time is about family and togetherness. We have put together some really cool recommendations for great movies to watch for the Christmas season that the whole family will enjoy. These are all brilliant movies to rent or buy to watch all year long! Watching these movies will be great for the whole family to watch, while remembering Christmas‘s past.

10. The Polar Express

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Staring an animated Tom Hanks. On The night before Christmas, a doubtful boy boards a magical train that’s headed to the North Pole and Santa Claus’s home town.

9. The Muppet Christmas Carol

Starting in this Christmas classic, Michael Caine and The Muppet characters tell their side of the movie classic tale of an mature and bitter miser’s recovery on The night before Christmas.

8. The Santa Clause

Tim Allen stars in this witty tale of when a man not meaning to, kills Santa on The night before Christmas, he finds himself magically recruited to take his place.

7. The Nightmare Before Christmas

In this early 90′s classic Jack Skellington, king of Halloweentown, discovers Christmas Town, but doesn’t quite understand the concept.

6. A Christmas Carol (1951)

This is a classic telling of Charles Dickens, An old hateful miser is given a chance for recovery when he is preoccupied by ghosts on The night before Christmas.

5. National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation

The generally memorable Christmas Movie. The Griswold family’s is getting ready for a good family Christmas unsurprisingly it turn into a huge failure.

4. Home Alone

A true Christmas classic of an eight year-old, who is unintentionally left behind while his folks flies to France for Christmas, he must defend his household against two dumb burglars.

3. Elf

By far the newest movie on our Christmas movie list, but it quickly becoming a classic tale of inadvertently wreaking havoc on the elf village due to his clumsy size, a guy raised as an elf at the North Pole is sent to the U.S. in seek out of his true character.

2. Scrooged

Bill Murray stars as a sarcastically selfish TV executive who is haunted by three ghosts that educate some lessons on The night before Christmas.

1. A Christmas Story

No Christmas Movie List would be full without Ralphie trying to satisfy his teachers, Santa and parents that a Red Ryder BB gun truly is the just right gift for the 1940′s.

10 Great Christmas Movies to Watch This Season

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As we begin 2011, there is much uncertainty in the areas of both estate planning and asset protection. For much of 2010, we expected 2011 to greet us with a 55 percent estate tax on all assets over million. Toward the end of 2010, President Obama gave in to Republican demands of a reprieve on this exorbitantly high death tax and agreed to reduce the estate tax for 2011 and 2012 to 35 percent, with a million exemption amount. If you plan on dying in the next two years, you may be relieved. However, if you plan on living well past 2012, uncertainty still remains. As of today, the estate tax rate for 2013 will revert to 55 percent, with only a million exemption amount. We will hope for the best but must plan for the worst, which is why we recommend that our clients set up Irrevocable Life Insurance Trusts for all life insurance policies over 0,000 and Bypass trusts for all marital estates over million. As the estate laws change, we will continue to update you so that you may better serve your clients and protect yourself and your family.

The world of asset protection was turned slightly on its head as well in 2010. On June 24, 2010, the Florida Supreme Court issued its long-awaited opinion in the case of Shaun Olmstead, et al., v. The Federal Trade Commission and raised the question as to whether Florida limited liability companies (LLCs) will continue to have charging order protection. A charging order is a remedy that a creditor of a member in an LLC can receive from a court that instructs the entity to give the creditor any distributions that would otherwise be paid to the partner or member from the entity. Generally, a creditor who receives a charging order with respect to a member’s interest in the entity does not have any authority to mandate distributions from the entity or to participate in the management and affairs of the entity, nor are they able to access the assets of the company.

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Charging orders are governed by state law, and in many states, a charging order is the exclusive remedy for a creditor with respect to a debtor’s LLC membership. However, the Olmstead ruling allowed the creditor to “pierce the corporate veil” of the LLC and access the actual assets of the LLC. While the LLC at issue in Olmstead was a single-member LLC, many attorneys are concerned about the slippery slope that would allow the piercing of multiple-member LLC’s as well. It is definitely something that we will keep an eye on in the coming months.

New Year, New Rules: Estate Tax and Asset Protection 2011

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The Chinese New Year falls in the months of January to February, depending on the year in question. The Chinese food that is served for New Year is the foods that are symbolic of fortune, luck and wealth. The most common foods are those that are traditionally associated with fortune for the coming year, such as oranges and uncut noodles.

Fish – Fish is a very traditional Chinese food that is served at the New Year, often for both the first and last course of the day. Fish is considered a food that will bring good fortune, and can be served in a variety of ways. The most common way of serving fish for Chinese New Year is to cook and serve the fish whole, with seasoning served on the whole fish.

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Oranges and Tangerines – Oranges and tangerines are also very popular during the Chinese New Year. Oranges and tangerines can be eaten whole, or used in dishes such as Orange Glazed Chicken. If you are looking for an orange-infused accent for your favorite Chinese food dish, then you may want to try using an orange sauce on your New Year.

Chinese Dumplings – Chinese dumplings are also a favorite Chinese food that is served on New Year, symbolizing togetherness and blessings from heaven. The dumplings are typically filled with cabbage, mushrooms and a combination of pork and beef or chicken.

The great thing about Chinese dumplings is that you can choose the combination of vegetables and meats that your family likes best, as long as the seasonings are authentic. The seasonings for Chinese dumplings include sesame oil, ginger and soy sauce.

Eggs – Chinese food often contains eggs, whether scrambled directly into the meal, served whole, or simmered in a delicious stock for soup. Eggs are a symbol of fertility in traditional Chinese cooking, and they are also a great addition

to a Chinese New Year feast.

A beautiful and festive New Year‘s dish is made from whole eggs, which are hard boiled and then steeped in a mix of star anise, cinnamon, soy sauce and tea.

The hard boiled eggs are cooked and cracked before they are placed in the broth, which gives the eggs a wonderful cracked appearance once they have been peeled. The eggs can be eaten whole as a snack, or used a side dish for another part of the meal.

Sticky Rice Cakes – Rice is one of the most traditional Chinese foods, and is also one that is included in Chinese New Year‘s recipes. Sticky rice is made by using a Chinese Sticky Rice, which is sold in specialty stores. The traditional way to make sticky rice is to use a steamer, which allows the rice to cook without burning.

You can use sticky rice for a special Chinese food recipe that is used on New Year‘s to make a cake with fruits such as dates and cherries or papaya and pineapple. All you need to make the cake is some sticky rice, and the fruits that you want to use.

Chinese Lunar New Year Food

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Thanksgiving is a holiday for families and football, and a lot of hard work and money goes into preparing the feast! As the host of your family’s Thanksgiving dinner try planning ahead this year.
Use these tips to help you save yourself some headaches and money:

Watch for supermarket loyalty programs.

Holiday Tips

Many supermarkets offer special incentive programs around the holidays that can earn you free groceries. Read your local newspaper and check the weekend circulars, and be sure to capitalize on the chance to earn free Thanksgiving turkeys!

Check wholesalers for better bargains.

For every day items and groceries, wholesalers don’t offer the lowest prices. Many families however, hold multiple holiday parties from Thanksgiving through New Year’s Eve. If you’re hosting multiple parties this year, buy in bulk from Sam’s Club, BJ’s or Costco; you’ll get more items for a cheaper price.

Vary your shopping.

Supermarkets recognize that consumers plan ahead for their holiday dinners. Stay on top of the weekly specials at various supermarkets in your area. You may save money on one item at a store this week and more money on another item a few weeks later.

Outsource your courses.

As host of the party, it is your job to cook, clean, decorate, prepare and entertain. Ask your guests to pitch in this year by bringing a side dish to Thanksgiving dinner. If you’re cooking the turkey, stuffing and desserts, relatives will be more than happy to bring the potatoes, vegetables or cranberry sauce!

Tips for Successful Holiday Planning

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There are things we love so much about Christmas. First there is the wonder Christmas Story, which we had seen in school plays and on television since we were very young. Then there is the beautiful white snow, the snowmen we built, special programs on television like Charlie Brown’s Christmas, the Christmas carols and the Christmas songs coming from the radio, the special decorations – especially the Christmas trees with all the presents under it. Speaking of presents, there is also one thing we just love doing – Christmas shopping, won’t you agree?

It will be quite difficult if not impossible to pass a Christmas without any Christmas shopping. But what is this new thing called online Christmas shopping that many are talking about, and also doing it themselves? Has it stolen away a once much coveted activity from us? And why in the world did those people allowed such an activity they so much loved be taken away from them? Let us take a closer look at it.

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One key word that pops up concerning with the reason for doing Christmas shopping online is ‘convenience’. As much as there are those who loves mingling with and pushing through the crowd, there are those who prefer to avoid it. It enables you to do the shopping right from your home, without having to hop from one store to another in search for the perfect gifts for the perfect people. With just a couple of mouse clicks, you can have the item you wanted to buy delivered right to your doorstep. And you really don’t have to worry about or fight for a parking space at the department store with other Christmas shoppers.

Another word that may come up is ‘variety’. The shelf space at any store is definitely limited. It in turn means that there is a limit in variety and choices from which you can choose from. But that is not the case with online shopping. You can find thousands of items in each website and unlike moving from one department store to another, moving from one website to another website is just a mouse click away. You can compare products and prices without wasting time or money. The time and money saved can be used in many other ways together with the family.

Another advantage of shopping online is that you can do it 24 hours a day, which means, you can easily fit the shopping into your schedule, no matter how tight it may be. And of course, you can also read through the reviews by other customers, while at the store, the only person you can discuss with is the salesgirl right in front of you with all her eagerness to get the sales done.

There is one more thing. You no longer have to wait for the window decorations at the stores to know that Christmas is round the corner. All the homepage designs in the internet are telling you just that, and also that it’s time to do your Christmas shopping.

Christmas Shopping Online

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Christmas traditions around the world are unique and reflect the local culture. However, what remains common throughout the world is the holiday spirit. Russia too, celebrates Christmas with gusto. But unlike the rest of the world, some Russians who follow the ancient Julian calendar celebrate it on the 7th of January.

Before the Communists banned Christmas celebrations, St. Nicholas was very popular in Russian culture and a common choice of name for baby boys. With time however St. Nicholas became Grandfather Frost. He often travelled with his granddaughter to give gifts in person. Things however changed during the communist era; Grandfather Frost was declared to be a friend of the Church and celebrating Christmas was prohibited. The Bolsheviks also tried to stamp out the Christmas tree, believing it to be a garish remembrance of the festive season. People however were reluctant to part with their cherished holiday. It was Stalin who decided to co-opt it. Thus the New Year’s or Novyi Godi became the new festive season, Christmas trees became New Year’s trees, and Grand Father Frost gave anti religious literature as gifts to children.

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The people accepted this with gusto and lined up their streets with bright lights, decorated their trees with handmade dolls and anxiously waited for Grandfather Frost.

With the fall of the Communists in the 90′s people started celebrating Christmas. Almost three generations of Russians were raised on anti-religious sentiments and the fact that they were now free to celebrate Yuletide was slow to seep into the minds of the Russians. However, with time the festive spirit of the season soon caught up with people.

Today, Christmas is growing in importance and is one of the biggest celebrations of the year,after the New Year’s celebrations. Both New Year’s and Orthodox Christmas (usually in the first week of January) are celebrated with a lot of enthusiasm. Festivities begin with the customary fast that ends with the evening service. Dinner is soon served, but not before the family joins the father to pray and ask for happiness from the Lord.

Homes are decorated with beautiful Russian handicrafts like babushkas, cheburashkas, and other handmade dolls. Christmas ornaments of various types are decorated on the yolka (Christmas tree). Animals like wolves, foxes, horses, birds, fish, and bears are very popular. Balls and figurines of clowns, snowmen and maidens and various dolls are also popular. Nesting dolls in various colors are lined up for display by children. Some of the dolls in display are family heirlooms passed from mothers to their daughters.

With geographical borders becoming insignificant, these dolls and ornaments are now easily available. Thanks to the expansion of trade and exports between Russia and many countries combined with many Russians moving abroad, buying these in the US is not difficult at all. Indeed, obtaining Russian gifts online in the USA is much easier than trying to track down reliable stores and good prices somewhere in Russia.

Christmas in Russia

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What’s the best thing about Christmas? To many people it is receiving presents and gifts. To others it is the pleasure of giving. Many others simply love the business of shopping for and selecting Christmas gifts. No matter how a person gets enjoyment from Christmas gifts one thing is for sure – one way or another, gifts and presents bring pleasure at Christmas! However, choosing Christmas presents can be a long arduous job- in fact, it can take ages just to find the right wrapping paper or gift box!

Still, choosing Christmas cards is straight forward – or is it? I don’t have a problem choosing cards to send to my personal Christmas list. Even though I know that mine will end up on the wall or on the mantle piece with everyone else’s, I will be in the company of friends and relatives. But the Christmas Greeting that I send from our company, now that’s a different matter! I want that product to say something positive about us. I want that card to stand out above everyone else’s – and that’s what you want for your company. In order to achieve those objectives, why not move away from a standard card and go for a pop up Christmas greeting instead.

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How about a pop-up Christmas gift box? The theme is very positive and association with this feeling has to be a plus factor in your plans for a Christmas promotion. The pop-up action brings with it surprise and fun – elements that are always associated with Christmas. The product makes a great little mailing pack. The very fact that they arrive on your customer’s desk in their own custom printed mailing envelope gives the mailer a gift feel, being chunky and “boxy”. Slide the contents out of the mailer and hey-presto – the Christmas gift box pops up right there in your hand! The mailing pack itself can be designed to look like a Christmas present rather than a card so it will be opened with anticipation. In all likelihood, the pop-up will be passed around your customer’s office, spreading the good word about your company and it will certainly stand out above all the standard Christmas cards scattered around your customer’s office.

The Christmas Attic Review

The Christmas Attic Overview

After three seasons of radio and sales success with Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24, the Trans-Siberian Orchestra presents the second installment of a planned trilogy. The Christmas Attic is told through a blend of symphonic and rock music.
No Track Information Available
Media Type: CD
Artist: TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA
Title: CHRISTMAS ATTIC
Street Release Date: 10/13/1998
Domestic
Genre: XMAS INSTRUMENTAL

The Christmas Attic Specifications

Fans of Andrew Lloyd Webber will discover he has a soul mate in one Paul O’Neill, the “conductor” of the Trans-Siberian Orchestra. A dyed-in-the-wool sentimentalist, O’Neill presents this pop-rock tale from 1998 with all the glitz and glory of a Lloyd Webber Broadway show. Playing to the common themes of the season through a tale about a little angel sent to Earth to leave behind a gift, O’Neill creates a big-sounding production heavy on lead guitars and orchestral filigree. There are pieces of familiar Christmas carols and hymns and a handful of unembellished acoustic numbers to offset the brighter parts of the musical melodrama. While his singers and players are all professional sounding, O’Neill often mistakes sentiment as a grand gesture when it needs to be something less ambitious or noticeable. Nonetheless, there’s a TV special or Broadway show wrapped up in this attic and it won’t go away until it gets done. –Martin Keller

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These versatile promotional pop up boxes can be made to order or certain companies can offer different shapes and sizes of boxes to suit your Christmas promotion. Pop up cubes are often available in standard sizes as are some pop up cuboids. These are the best shapes to use for adaptation to the theme of Christmas Gift Boxes.

In order to lift your own promotion above the level of the competitions’ then you need to add a wow factor. Pop up promotional products do exactly that, adding high impact value as soon as the mailer is opened and then proving to be a very interactive product thereafter. What applies in every day promotional circumstances is even more important at Christmas time when the level of mail landing on your customer’s desk is dramatically increased.

Company Christmas Card Idea – A Pop Up Gift Box Will Stand Out Above Your Competitors’ Cards

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The holiday season is just around the corner, and you are thinking: “Who knows some great Christmas gift ideas for a sister-in-law?” Well, here you go! Because there is no way of telling whether your sister-in-law is closer than a sister or further from you than Mars, this list of five thoughtful gift ideas ranges from very personal to very impersonal, but still classy:

1) Spa Day – If you know everything about her. She works hard, meets the needs of everyone else, and would never give this gift to herself-get her the massage, facial, mud wrap or full-boat special spa deal you know she’d love. It’s incomparable!

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2) (Fill in the blank) of the Month Club – If you know anything about your sister-in-law’s collections, habits, or fetishes, you can go to amazingclubs.com and find a membership for it. No kidding! Start with a three-month gift membership.

3) Bracelets & Baubles – If your sister-in-law wears jewelry and has funky, eclectic taste (NOT diamonds), search for original artsy baubles at some of your local fall craft fairs to find her something no one else has. She will really adore the item if you can find it in her favorite color.

To carry this perfect Christmas gift idea for a sister-in-law over to the internet (because who has time to scour craft fairs?) check out the massive internet craft fair: Etsy.com. They have gobs of original stuff you can get your hands on quickly. Look at their top creators on the main page, but don’t be afraid to dig deep to find some really interesting stuff.

4) Unique Gifts – So you know your sister-in-law a little, but frankly you haven’t got much in common. She’s a meticulous housekeeper and crunchy granola eco-freak, and you’re…well…not? It’s okay. There are tons of Christmas gift ideas for a sister-in-law at RedEnvelope.com where you can buy gifts like the extremely pretty and useful Envirosax floral market bags. They’re so pretty you don’t notice how useful they are.

Maybe she is a chocolate lover. Who doesn’t enjoy chocolate?

• Does your sister-in-law have just about everything? Does she have real estate? Land? Land in all 50 states? You can get her a real legal Deed of Land and she will be the virtual owner of a square inch of land in each of the fifty states of America. A land deed can be bought via email, ready to be printed and framed. This is a very cool gift item that’s bound to make her smile.

Christmas Gift Ideas for A Sister-In-Law

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