Seaonal and Holidays

(BPT) – From decorating, shopping, cooking and cleaning, there’s a lot to do during the holiday season. Time is running out to get it all done before your next big gathering, and you may be thinking, “where do I even start?” Merry Maids, the nation’s largest home cleaning company, is making it simple by sharing the easiest ways to clean the messiest spaces in your home this holiday season.

1. Inside your oven

Between roasting turkey and baking pies, your oven will see seen a lot of action. Let your oven racks clean themselves overnight. Remove the oven racks, place them into large plastic trash bags and spray them generously with a degreaser solution. Let them sit overnight in a ventilated area away from pets, children and other hazards. The following morning, remove the oven racks from the plastic bags, rinse them in the sink with warm, soapy water and wipe them dry. Wipe down the inside of your oven with a microfiber cloth, then slide in your newly cleaned oven racks.

2. Carpets and rugs

From footprints to spilled wine drops, your rugs take a beating during all the holiday festivities. With any stain, make sure to tackle it right away and blot the stain with a paper towel or microfiber cloth to remove excess liquid. Even if the stain has been lingering, mix one tablespoon of liquid dish soap with two cups of cool water and one tablespoon of white vinegar. Using a clean microfiber cloth, dip it in the cleaning solution and blot the stain.

3. Toilet

Hosting families and friends means your bathroom works overtime. Surprisingly, vinegar is perfect for cleaning the hard-water deposits in your toilet bowl. Pour a cup of white vinegar and a few fizzy denture tablets into the toilet bowl and let it sit overnight. The following morning, scrubbing will require less time and less elbow grease.

4. Windows

Kitchen windows are an unexpected place for grease and grime buildup, but heavy cooking and baking can do a number on them. Rather than reach for a cleaning product, make your own. Mix one cup of rubbing alcohol with one cup of water and add a tablespoon of white wine vinegar. You’ll be looking outside at the snow through a grease- and fingerprint-free window!

5. Refrigerator

Refrigerators are home to lots of meals throughout the holidays, so now is the perfect opportunity to refresh yours. A quick and easy trick: place an orange peel filled with salt in the refrigerator to deodorize it and help keep the fridge smelling clean and fresh. Just cut an orange in half, scoop out the pulp, fill the rind with salt and place it in a bowl at the back of the refrigerator. Replace as needed!

If you’re taking on cleaning your home (whether before or after the holiday season) and need a time-saving tip, or lifesaving stain removal tip (even if it’s a stain from last year’s celebration), Merry Maids is here to help. Ask the experts via Facebook or Twitter, using #SeasonsCleanings in your question, and Merry Maids will share its best tips and tricks to get your home in order.

(BPT) – It’s almost that time of year again – you prepare for the holidays and start thinking about what you want your New Year’s resolution to be.

According to research from Nielsen, one quarter of Americans want to spend less and save more money in the New Year. If you’re one of these people, follow these five easy tips to stay on track financially in 2017.

Automate payments into your savings account.

When payday rolls around, it can be tempting to pocket every last dollar. But realistically, it’s difficult to save money that’s right in front if you. Instead, automate payments into your savings account before it makes it to your checking account. This way, you won’t miss it from your budget, and you’ll be on the road to staying true to your New Year’s resolution all year.

Dine in.

Everyone knows eating out is more expensive than dining in, but you might not even realize how often you’re doing it. When you’re on the go, buying lunch or ordering take-out, costs quickly add up. Pre-planning and preparing meals for the week ahead will not only save money but help you eat healthier at the same time.

Rethink your wireless plan.

Do you feel like you’re paying too much for your data? In 2017, set yourself free from your overpriced wireless plan. For only $40 a month, Net10 Wireless’ no contract cell service makes this easy. You’ll get nationwide coverage on one of America’s top four networks and the first 3 GB of data at high speeds, then at 2G*. Plus, you can make the switch while keeping your current phone and number with the Net10 Wireless Bring Your Own Phone program. “Ringing” in the New Year is all about making changes for the better, and switching your plan could save you lots in the long run.

Bring the gym home.

Exercising is important, but monthly gym membership fees can make a huge dent in your savings. Instead, try working out at home for a few months by following exercise videos, running outside (weather permitting) or modifying your favorite utilizing home items. If that’s not enough, try pay-per-class offerings coupled with your own exercise outside of the gym.

Cut out your cable bill.

Similar to spending too much on a cell data contract, your monthly cable bills could also be hindering your financial goals. How often do you really watch specialty channels anyway? Opting for monthly streaming services can cost you as low as $7.99 per month while offering the same programs and movies you love. Meanwhile, the average cable bill is $99 per month. Making the switch could save you more than $1,000 per year, which just goes to show how sticking to your New Year’s resolution can pay off.

*At 2G speeds, the functionality of some data applications, such as streaming audio or video may be affected. Please refer always to the latest Terms and Conditions of Service at NET10wireless.com.

(BPT) – No matter how big or small the group, gathering with loved ones over a delicious meal is a holiday season essential. However, if you’ve offered to host the event, panic is likely to set in as you realize the amount of work it’s going to take to cook a memorable meal for friends and family.

Fortunately, with some tips and tricks, cooking a feast doesn’t have to be stressful. Just use these time-saving kitchen hacks and you can enjoy more time savoring the season with your guests and less time in the kitchen.

Prep side dishes early: Prepare as much as you can in advance. In the week leading up to the event, chop, boil and blend whatever you can to save countless hours in the kitchen. You’ll cut down on stress and have enough time to visit with guests as they begin to arrive.

Use multitasking methods: What if you could make a quick dinner in one simple step? With meals that taste like homemade and use high-quality ingredients, Marie Callender’s(R) allows you to serve signature holiday meals without the extra work. The Vermont White Cheddar Mac & Cheese will have guests thinking you slaved away in the kitchen, but all you had to do is open and close the oven.

Buy cooking mesh: From blanching to boiling, you can quickly run out of stove-top space when cooking a holiday meal. To save time and space, use cooking mesh so you can boil several foods at once in the same pot of water while keeping items conveniently separated.

Fluffy mashed potatoes: Whipping up a big batch of mashed potatoes? To avoid dense spuds and save time endlessly mashing, use a pinch of baking powder when whipping. The baking powder reacts with the heat from the potatoes to create tiny air pockets and, ultimately, fluffy mashed potatoes.

Utilize the slow cooker: Slow cookers are one of the most useful tools when hosting a holiday meal. You can cook early and keep virtually anything warm, including gravy, mashed potatoes or drinks like hot chocolate and cider. Need more slow cookers than you own? Borrow from friends or hunt down some at a bargain price at second-hand stores.

Grate frozen butter: Baking a special dessert for the holidays? Rather than waiting for frozen butter to thaw or risk melting it in the microwave, use a cheese grater instead. Hard butter thaws quickly when shredded.

Keep drinks outdoors: Fridge space goes fast when hosting a holiday soiree, so instead of worrying about where you’re going to fit cans and bottles, put them outside instead. The winter chill will keep them cool and you won’t have to give up precious fridge space. Just hang a sign so guests are directed to the right location to quench their thirst.

Clean as you go: Rather than cooking everything at once only to end up with an unbearable amount of dishes, try cleaning as you go. By multitasking you’ll end up with less mess at the end when all you want to do is sit down with a slice of pie and visit with loved ones.

Embrace simplicity: Following a big day of entertaining, give yourself a break by re-purposing leftovers and weaving in quality, already-prepared meals from your freezer. Marie Callender’s Turkey Pot Pie makes a perfect next-day meal or midday snack with its premium turkey breast, assortment of vegetables and flaky, made-from-scratch crust.

(BPT) – Holiday gatherings and backyard barbecues have a lot in common as they are occasions for gathering and for eating. And for both, successful execution of a shared meal means preparing what everyone likes and preparing it perfectly.

While holiday staples such as turkey, ham and brisket create the centerpiece for many of our holiday dinners, it is important to remember that the way they are prepared need not be limited to the printed instructions on your meat’s plastic wrapping.

“Famous Dave” Anderson is the founder of the popular Famous Dave’s Bar-B-Que Restaurants and has won over 700 awards for his expertise on smoking and grilling meats. He was recently crowned “Smoked Champion” on the TV show Smoked, taking home the top honors for being “The Best of the Best” when it comes to smoking meats. Anderson shares his expert tips for adding flavor to your holiday meal.

“To elevate the taste of your ham, turkey, brisket or other meats, consider applying the lessons learned during the warmer seasons,” Anderson says. “I’ve always wondered why smoking seems to be forgotten as soon as the holiday decorations come out. Holidays are a time to bring joy to the table. And if you want to see joy, watch your guests take their first bites of cherrywood smoked turkey, or hickory smoked ham!”

In order to help you bring out the best flavors in your meats for your next family gathering, Anderson offers these three important tips:

Smoke it low and slow.

Holidays are a time to escape the hustle that consumes us the rest of the year. Why not apply the same relaxed approach to your holiday meal? As Anderson explains, rushing the process can rob your meats of both texture and flavor. “Slow smoking under low heat allows the meat to relax, and for the fat to properly render,” Anderson says. “It doesn’t matter what piece of meat you are cooking, it’s all about temperature and time.”

He suggests cooking temperatures of between 225 and 250 degrees Fahrenheit for the tastiest and juiciest final product.

Skip the wood chips.

Wood chips are popular and convenient, but you will never get the same satisfying smoke flavors out of wood chips that you will from using a small log. “Wood chips are a shortcut. And who takes shortcuts when preparing the perfect holiday meal,” Anderson says. Wood chips also have the tendency to catch fire, which can negatively impact your cooking temperature and cooking time.

Though a fan of the flavors derived from oak and applewood, Anderson takes a different approach when the weather turns colder. “I like cherrywood for Turkey. And for ham, nothing beats the smokey aromas that come from hickory,” he says.

Season(ing)s greetings.

In order to treat your guests to the most vibrant, mouthwatering flavors, Anderson insists that you check the dates on your spices. Spices greater than 6-months-old will lose much of their flavor, robbing your meal of the holiday’s signature tastes. “At home, I grind my own spices. There’s no better way to achieve the best possible flavors,” he says. For the rest of us, Anderson suggests we refresh our aging spice racks in order to bring real flavor to the table.

Smoking the meats you typically serve over the holidays takes the best of tradition and introduces a new level of flavor. “This is the time when treating the people who are most special to us really matters. A little extra effort can make a holiday meal more meaningful and memorable than ever before,” Anderson says.

To learn more about Famous Dave’s and how you can make your holiday meal even better, visit FamousDaves.com/Holiday. There, you can also find Anderson’s recipe for his famous bread pudding.

(BPT) – Good hosts want positive experiences around the dishes they prepare for the holidays – great conversation and good memories.What’s a sure way to mar the feast? Not being consistent in following safe food handling techniques that every home cook…

(BPT) – Take a look at your family. How many changes have crept in since last year? And one year from now, when it’s time to send out holiday cards again, think about how much more they will have changed.Sending a family photograph as your holiday card…

(BPT) – For entrepreneurs and small businesses owners, the holiday season offers an incredible opportunity to boost sales and increase the bottom line. Just like how the early bird gets the worm, starting holiday promotions early will position your bus…

(BPT) – Shiny silver and gold, the warm glow of lights, dazzling bursts of color — O Christmas tree, your magic helps fill our homes with laughter and love during this merriest of seasons. And while gathering together to trim the tree is a beloved family tradition for many of us, let’s be honest; for others, it’s an intimidating decorating nightmare. But don’t be overwhelmed, it’s easy to go from dazed to dazzling with a few insider tips.

Step one: Find the tree that fits your lifestyle.

Designer John Griffith decorates dozens of trees and leads holiday design seminars for dinnerware giant, Replacements, Ltd. Griffith recognizes since we all live in different spaces, the picture perfect 7-foot tree won’t work for everyone.

“People like myself who live in apartments, condos or smaller living areas often feel stuck having to get a tiny tree because of limited space, when there are so many more options,” Griffith says. “Flat trees, which are very low profile and sit close to the wall, are perfect for tight spaces. Half round trees are another great option because they’re basically half a tree, while corner trees reflect their name because they’re shaped to fit into corners. These types of artificial trees create the impact of having a larger tree that in reality doesn’t take up all that much room.”

Step two: Light it up.

Once you find the perfect tree, figure out how many lights you really need. Griffith suggests using at least 150 lights per foot of tree to decorate just the tips. For more depth, use at least 250 lights per foot.

And consider LED lights. Griffith notes that while upgrading to LEDs may be expensive initially, they’re a good investment in that these lights burn much cooler, last longer and are more energy efficient.

Step three: Think in thirds.

One of Griffith’s best practices: decorate in thirds.

“This is one of the easiest ways to make sure your tree is balanced from a decorating standpoint,” says Griffith. “Start by looking at your tree as what it is, a huge cone, then section it off in thirds around the tree. For example, if you have 1,500 lights, use 500 for one section, 500 for the middle and 500 for the last section. Do the same thing with your ornaments by dividing them into three groups before you start arranging those on the tree.”

Stylize with ornaments.

While lights create seasonal glow, ornaments dazzle and delight, bringing out the child in all of us. Our choice of ornaments reflect more than individual style and taste — they’re distinctively sentimental.

“Annual ornaments are always popular from a nostalgic standpoint because of the special memories connected to each one,” says collectibles specialist Kristen Pulley. “For instance, those made by Lenox China are very dear to me because of my two daughters. I started a collection for each of them when they were born — I began the teddy bear series for one and the gingerbread man for the other. As they got older and started decorating the tree, they liked them so much that now I have to get two of each series every year. It’s become part of our family tradition.”

Among Replacements’ most sought after holiday annuals, the Wallace Sleigh Bell and Gorham Snowflake collections remain family favorites, having been in production going on 50 years.

“Blown glass ornaments have really kept their popularity,” adds Pulley. “Production costs have gotten less expensive without compromising the quality making these more affordable to collect. For instance, Merck Family’s Old World Christmas ornaments are huge sellers, because you can find everything from traditional ornaments to fun, off the wall ones such as a piece of sushi or even Chinese takeout boxes.”

What’s hot for 2016?

Griffith says one of this year’s big decorating trends centers on monochromatic, such as using the same color lights (regardless of the hue) with ornaments in either all silver or all gold, but not both.

“One of my favorite techniques is adding bullion to a tree,” Griffith says. “Bullion is a very thin wire you add on the outside tips in geometric shapes that gives the tree a different kind of texture, movement and depth. It really adds richness to the tree, and the way the light reflects off this wire looks very luxe.”

Finally, Griffith notes no tree is complete without an over-the-top tree topper. Really nice bows made from high quality ribbon look lovely, while he favors using feathers, branches, floral stems and other natural elements to put an exclamation point on the top of the tree. With these great tips, it should be easy to find your own flair to kick-off what’s sure to be a memorable holiday entertaining season.

(BPT) – Shiny silver and gold, the warm glow of lights, dazzling bursts of color — O Christmas tree, your magic helps fill our homes with laughter and love during this merriest of seasons. And while gathering together to trim the tree is a beloved family tradition for many of us, let’s be honest; for others, it’s an intimidating decorating nightmare. But don’t be overwhelmed, it’s easy to go from dazed to dazzling with a few insider tips.

Step one: Find the tree that fits your lifestyle.

Designer John Griffith decorates dozens of trees and leads holiday design seminars for dinnerware giant, Replacements, Ltd. Griffith recognizes since we all live in different spaces, the picture perfect 7-foot tree won’t work for everyone.

“People like myself who live in apartments, condos or smaller living areas often feel stuck having to get a tiny tree because of limited space, when there are so many more options,” Griffith says. “Flat trees, which are very low profile and sit close to the wall, are perfect for tight spaces. Half round trees are another great option because they’re basically half a tree, while corner trees reflect their name because they’re shaped to fit into corners. These types of artificial trees create the impact of having a larger tree that in reality doesn’t take up all that much room.”

Step two: Light it up.

Once you find the perfect tree, figure out how many lights you really need. Griffith suggests using at least 150 lights per foot of tree to decorate just the tips. For more depth, use at least 250 lights per foot.

And consider LED lights. Griffith notes that while upgrading to LEDs may be expensive initially, they’re a good investment in that these lights burn much cooler, last longer and are more energy efficient.

Step three: Think in thirds.

One of Griffith’s best practices: decorate in thirds.

“This is one of the easiest ways to make sure your tree is balanced from a decorating standpoint,” says Griffith. “Start by looking at your tree as what it is, a huge cone, then section it off in thirds around the tree. For example, if you have 1,500 lights, use 500 for one section, 500 for the middle and 500 for the last section. Do the same thing with your ornaments by dividing them into three groups before you start arranging those on the tree.”

Stylize with ornaments.

While lights create seasonal glow, ornaments dazzle and delight, bringing out the child in all of us. Our choice of ornaments reflect more than individual style and taste — they’re distinctively sentimental.

“Annual ornaments are always popular from a nostalgic standpoint because of the special memories connected to each one,” says collectibles specialist Kristen Pulley. “For instance, those made by Lenox China are very dear to me because of my two daughters. I started a collection for each of them when they were born — I began the teddy bear series for one and the gingerbread man for the other. As they got older and started decorating the tree, they liked them so much that now I have to get two of each series every year. It’s become part of our family tradition.”

Among Replacements’ most sought after holiday annuals, the Wallace Sleigh Bell and Gorham Snowflake collections remain family favorites, having been in production going on 50 years.

“Blown glass ornaments have really kept their popularity,” adds Pulley. “Production costs have gotten less expensive without compromising the quality making these more affordable to collect. For instance, Merck Family’s Old World Christmas ornaments are huge sellers, because you can find everything from traditional ornaments to fun, off the wall ones such as a piece of sushi or even Chinese takeout boxes.”

What’s hot for 2016?

Griffith says one of this year’s big decorating trends centers on monochromatic, such as using the same color lights (regardless of the hue) with ornaments in either all silver or all gold, but not both.

“One of my favorite techniques is adding bullion to a tree,” Griffith says. “Bullion is a very thin wire you add on the outside tips in geometric shapes that gives the tree a different kind of texture, movement and depth. It really adds richness to the tree, and the way the light reflects off this wire looks very luxe.”

Finally, Griffith notes no tree is complete without an over-the-top tree topper. Really nice bows made from high quality ribbon look lovely, while he favors using feathers, branches, floral stems and other natural elements to put an exclamation point on the top of the tree. With these great tips, it should be easy to find your own flair to kick-off what’s sure to be a memorable holiday entertaining season.

(BPT) – Brace yourself – the holidays are coming, and so are post-holiday bills. How will you cope with yours?Last year, Americans spent an average of more than $800 per person on holiday shopping, according to the National Retail Federation. In 2016, …