Tag Archives: eating disorders

A Marriage with Heart

For a number of people Christmas can be an extremely lonely time, if they don’t have family or don’t get along with family or live too far away to get together. Helen and David Esdaile have found a way to help those who are on their own this Christmas. Till two years ago this married couple operated a bed and breakfast. However, when they sold up and moved to Bomaderry, they wanted to find a way to help out in their new community. Since October they have, with support of the Melbourne organization ARMS (Australian Relief and Mercy Services) been … Continue reading →

Family-Friendly Christmas Displays

My neighbor’s 8-foot tall inflatable snowman didn’t survive last night’s blizzard. The nearly two feet of snow and 35 mph sustained winds that ripped through our rural Wisconsin neighborhood proved too much for Frosty to take. Such a shame. The snowman is just a small part of an elaborate Christmas display that our neighbor painstakingly erects each year. His holiday light show has all the pizzazz associated with professional displays put on by major cities, only on a slightly smaller scale. If you are looking to take in the sights and sounds of the season this month, consider visiting the … Continue reading →

Stocking Stuffer No-Nos

I don’t parent a teenager… it just seems like I do, sometimes. Fortunately, my daughter is young enough that her Christmas wish list wraps around the block, and I’m not forced to rack my brain trying to come up with stocking stuffers I know she will enjoy. This is not the case with my friends who have tweens and teens at home. According to one of my pals, with each passing year she is tempted to pull the plug on the stocking stuffing tradition because she simply can’t come up with worthwhile gifts to cram into her kids’ oversized Christmas … Continue reading →

Where to Find Nice, Inexpensive Ornaments

Most years I dread taking down the ornaments for the tree, not because of all of the work involved but because of the fear that we won’t have enough ornaments. Most of the ornaments we have are either broken or long faded. Since they were never family heirlooms, with the exception of a handful of ornaments, I don’t feel bad about replacing them. They were mostly hand me down and tacky dollar store ornaments. The problem is, that buying new ornaments can be expensive, especially when you have an entire tree to fill. So that was my mission: find some … Continue reading →

Gluten Free Christmas Cakes

Have you made your Christmas cake yet? I know some people who have. Somehow I’ve never got around to it. I’m usually one who makes it in the last week. Of course the other reason is I adore fruit cake so the less time it is around the better. This is my sort of recipe, because it is so easy. It’s an all in together recipe that came from a dear friend who invariably caters to me, her gluten free friend. Thanks, my friend. Gluten Free Fruit Cake 2 generous cups Gluten Free S R Flour 2 cups of Mixed … Continue reading →

“Prep & Landing” Latest Christmas Classic

Picture the Christmas elves: cheery, squeaky-voiced workers wearing green pointed clothes and singing Christmas carols to themselves as they toil building toys in the days leading up to Christmas Eve. Once the big night arrives, however, their job is done and they fade into the background as Santa Claus takes the reins for the main event. “Prep & Landing” tells a different story. The new Disney animated Christmas special, airing on ABC tonight at 8:30 EST, reveals the existence of an elite task force of elves. This group, dubbed Prep and Landing, travels to each house on Christmas Eve just … Continue reading →

Pervert Ruins My Daughter’s Christmas Tradition

My daughter has been writing letters to Santa since she was two years old. I’ve documented the sweet tradition on this site with parental pride and a touch of sadness knowing that her childhood belief in an oversized gift-bearing elf would not last forever. Little did I know that my daughter’s annual holiday letter writing tradition would come to a screeching halt before she learned the truth about Kris Kringle. Thanks to a pervert in Maryland, my sweet, innocent, Santa-loving five-year-old may not get a reply from Mr. Claus this year. The pervert responsible for ruining this joyous tradition is … Continue reading →

How Much Should You Spend on Christmas Gifts?

We talk a lot about ways to save money, don’t we? And since we are in the holiday season, we’ll be sharing more ideas that focus on saving money during the holidays. But one thing that I notice is missing in the frugal living posts is an actual guideline about how much, in a dollar amount, that you should be spending on Christmas gifts. We all tend to go a little bit overboard during the holidays, and we figure that we will just cut back on other things later. Each of our families have their own financial limitations when it … Continue reading →

How to Navigate the Food Court

With the holiday season having arrived you may find yourself out and about at the malls and other retail stores, getting gifts, decorations and more. It is easy to get distracted from your weight loss plan when you are tired, hungry and faced with the fast food. Instead of being forced to give up all that you worked so hard to achieve, use the following strategies to help you navigate the food court. Be prepared Obviously, if you are able to eat before your shopping trip and bring some healthy food with you, then you will be ahead of the … Continue reading →

Make an Advent Calendar With Your Preschooler

In our house, the little elves bring a special gift on December 1st. They creep through their elf door downstairs and place the gift in front of the door, along with a helping of fairy dust. Or perhaps it’s elf dust. Let the Christmas count down begin! What special activities do you do to mark the beginning of December? Got an advent calendar? For those of you who haven’t yet gone out to the store to buy the chocolate variety, here are a few ideas that you can make with your preschooler today! The simplest calendar is a paper chain. … Continue reading →