Fireworks safety tips to consider this New Year’s

• Stay Alert. Never mix alcohol with fireworks, sparklers and novelties.
• Adult supervision. Never allow children to light or handle them.
• Take Precautions. Always keep a hose and a bucket of water nearby in case of emergencies.
• Let Sleeping fireworks, sparklers and novelties Lie. Don’t try to relight fireworks, sparklers and novelties that don’t ignite. Wait 15 - 20 minutes, then douse and soak them with water and throw them away.
• Obey All Laws. Please obey state laws regarding the use of fireworks, sparklers and novelties.
• Protect Your Pets. Animals are often frightened by the sounds of fireworks, sparklers and novelties. To protect your “best friends,” keep them indoors — away from the loud noise — and secure.

Tampa Bay Collection Sites Fill Up with Shoe Box Gifts as Web-Savvy Volunteers Pack Their Boxes of Hope Online

Volunteers have been working tirelessly at 16 Tampa-area collection sites where thousands of shoe boxes packed with school supplies, toys and necessity items were dropped off by caring Tampa Bay residents. National Collection Week is wrapping up for the world’s largest Christmas project of its kind—Operation Christmas Child—where participants fill empty shoe boxes with items for kids suffering from natural disaster, war, terrorism, famine, and poverty. Soon, these shoe boxes will be delivered to 8.5 million kids worldwide.

For families who haven’t yet packed their gift of hope, it’s not too late. Many local families are choosing to pack shoe box gifts virtually through “Build a Box,” an online giving tool. It’s a simple, quick, yet meaningful way to impact a child in need. Families can visit the project’s website at www.samaritanspurse.org/occ, select a child’s age and gender, shop through an online selection of gifts, “pack” them in an empty shoe box, and finish it off with a note of encouragement. Then through tracking technology, donors can "follow” the box to the destination country where it will be hand-delivered.

Operation Christmas Child, a project of international Christian relief and evangelism organization Samaritan’s Purse, uses simple gift-filled shoe boxes to let hurting children know they are loved and not forgotten. For many of these children, the simple shoe box will be the first gift they have ever received.

Since 1993, Operation Christmas Child has hand-delivered more than 86 million gift-filled shoe boxes to needy children in more than 130 countries.

For more information on how to participate in Operation Christmas Child, call 727-403-2109 or visit www.samaritanspurse.org/occ.

The Procrastinator's Guide to Holiday Shopping

More than one-third of consumers have already finished most of their holiday shopping, a figure released by the American Research Group on Monday that's particularly irritating to procrastinators. Just because you waited until the last minute, however, doesn't mean you have to pay top price for the dregs of merchandise.

In an effort to reduce their inventories further, some stores are dropping prices as Christmas approaches, so it sometimes pays to wait. Still, it's a lot more stressful and shoppers are more likely to grab the first thing they see, regardless of price. Avoid overshooting your budget by following these six tips for last-minute holiday shopping.

1. Skip the Hottest Toys
The odds of finding a Nerf Vortex or a Sesame Street Let's Rock Elmo rank up there with winning the lottery. Even if you could locate the object of your child's most expensive affection, stores will likely have jacked up prices as they know shoppers are desperate.

2. Read Your Junk Mail
Remember all those merchant e-newsletters you receive throughout the year? Well this is the time to start reading them. Online retailers usually include coupon codes that allow you to score great last-minute deals.

3. Take Advantage of Free Shipping Day
It's not too late to order gifts online. Scheduled in its fourth year for Dec. 16, Free Shipping Day allows procrastinators to shop from over 2,000 merchants with free shipping by Christmas Eve. You'll find both big-name and small business merchants at FreeShippingDay.com, along with many great deals.

4. Keep Comparing Prices
Stressed shoppers will often pay whatever a retailer charges for an item just to cross it off their gift list. However, it's important to comparison shop even when you're in a hurry, which is why sites like PriceGrabber.com are so helpful this time of year. Simply enter the product name and the site locates a store near you with the lowest price. Better yet, get notified via FreePriceAlerts, a free browser download that updates you via e-mail or mobile app when your desired item drops in price.

5. Seek Out Free Gifts
Victoria's Secret is making 100,000 fans very happy with free gift cards given away on Facebook each day through Dec. 15. American Express cardholders who spend $25 or more at select stores are receiving a surprise gift by email through their "Gift Chain Program" (while supplies last). Keep an eye out for such special deals as they're all over the place this year.

6. Last-minute Lifesavers
The secret to successful procrastination is making it seem like you plan things well in advance. Gift cards are a go-to solution for anyone facing a last-minute gifting challenge, especially now that they're available in printable, e-mail and mobile formats from popular merchants. You can also find printable gift wrap for small purchases from sites like gift-wrapit.com for last-minute packaging.

About the Author: Andrea Woroch is a consumer and money-saving expert for Kinoli Inc.

How to Survive Holiday Gatherings and Avoid an Aneurysm Tough Love Author Shares Tips for Disarming the Debbie Downers

For those of us from families built on Debbie Downer DNA, there’s only one direction a mood can go during holiday get-togethers and that’s down.

Sure, the running negative commentary, bubble-bursting barbs and rampant self-pity were funny coming from comedian Rachel Dratch on “Saturday Night Live’s” Debbie Downer sketches. But few of us can foresee our own Negative Nancys giving us a good belly laugh.


Whether you’re the smiley face among frowners, or a bit of a Depressing Dan yourself, there are tricks you can use to keep the table talk from getting lethal, says Paula Renaye, a professional life coach and author of The Hardline Self Help Handbook, (www.hardlineselfhelp.com). 

“You can take control simply by thinking about what you choose to say – or not say,” Renaye says. “If you hear yourself criticizing, judging or complaining, you’re part of the problem. Happy, self-respecting people don’t find it necessary to dump on others to make themselves feel good.

“If someone else is the problem, simply don’t give them the ammunition they need,” she says. Instead try these tactics:

Do not say anything negative. Period. And no one-downing! One-downing is the opposite of one-upping. It’s the art of coming up with something worse when someone else talks about their problem. No matter what negative thing anyone says, or how much you agree with it or don't, resist the urge to respond with a negative. Instead ….

Dodge, distract and detour. Turn things around with a question -- a positive one. If you need to, make a “happy list” of questions before you go, so you’ll have some at the ready. And remember, there's no law that says you have to answer a question just because someone asked it. With negative people, it’s best if you …

Do not talk about yourself. The only reason negative people care about what you’re up to is because they want something to ridicule, brag or gossip about to make themselves look or feel good. Don’t go there. Whether you just filed bankruptcy or won a Nobel Prize, keep it to yourself. No good can come of it. None. And why do you need to chatter like a chipmunk about yourself anyway? Might want to think on that one, too. Better to find some praise for someone else than to expect someone to praise you.

Do not share your woes. Even if you’re in a tough place and could really use a shoulder to cry on, don’t start laying your woes on a Negative Nell. Even in a weak moment, when you’ve had a terrible day, talking about it with a negative person is a bad idea. You might get a microsecond of sympathy, but that’s only so they can launch into telling you how much worse they have it. So, no talking about yourself unless you want to be the talk of the party, the family and the town.

Do your homework and become like Teflon. Think of the times people said things that made you feel bad or made you feel the need to defend or explain yourself. If you want to avoid going down that trail again, start hacking away at the jungle of your own emotions. Get over needing anyone's approval or blessing. If you are still waiting for negative relatives to validate you, you’re in for a long wait. Don't set yourself up to be miserable. Get over it and go prepared.

About Paula Renaye

Former eggshell-walker, emotionally-bankrupt wreck and utter failure at keeping her world from falling apart, Paula Renaye uses her journey out of despair into joy as a breadcrumb trail for others. She has been a consultant for 18 years, holds a degree in financial planning with a background in journalism and psychology, and is a member of the International Association of Coaches. Paula is the multi-award-winning author of The Hardline Self Help Handbook.

Stocking Stuffers and Great Gifts This Holiday

This holiday season we had so many products to review that we could not fit them all in our gift guides! But I wanted to make sure that some of these products still got their moment in the spotlight, because they are fantastic options for stocking stuffers and gifts!

Stocking Stuffer Ideas:

Mini-Mergency Kits: These kits may be little, but they are HUGE lifesavers! I was able to review one, and needless to say it has gotten me out of a few pickles! Small enough to keep in any bag, it makes it easy to have all emergency necessities easily accessible. These packs are available for males, females, moms, dads, brides, bridesmaids…you get the point! There is one for each individual and occasion. Perfect for a stocking stuffer, secret holiday gifter or just because! http://www.msandmrs.com/

Nonni’s Biscotti: From the classic biscotti, to biscotti bites, anyone would be happy to receive these delectable snacks in their stocking. With so many flavors to choose from such as Turtle Pecan (my favorite) to Triple Milk Chocolate, the family will be fighting over the crumbs! http://www.nonnis.com/index.html

DVD’s To Make Any Kid Happy:

Some of our favorite DVD’s available this holiday season are:
Winnie The Pooh: http://disney.go.com/pooh/
AfricanCats: http://disney.go.com/disneynature/africancats/
The Lion King: http://disney.go.com/lionking/?cmp=dmov_dvd_lio_url_dcomgolionking_Extl
Nickelodeon’s Merry Christmas!: http://www.amazon.com/Nickelodeon-Favorites-Artist-Not-Provided/dp/B005DKS1SU
Nickelodeon’s Celebrate with Dora 3 Disc Set: http://www.amazon.com/Dora-Explorer-Celebrates-Three-Pack-Christmas/dp/B005JZBP82

Preventative Gifts:

There is no greater gift than health, and some of the products we received this year could be perfect stocking stuffers as we fight our way through the cold and flu season:

Boogie Wipes: http://www.boogiewipes.com/
Xlear Nasal Spray: http://www.xlear.com/nasal-spray.aspx
Topricin Junior Children’s Pain Relief and Healing Cream: http://www.topricin.com/prod_detail_list/topricin-junior

ENTER TO WIN! Tampa Bay Parenting Magazine's Subscription Giveaway!

Give the gift that gives all year!

Sign up 1 to 100 of your friends for a subscription to Tampa Bay Parenting between December 1st and December 15th and be entered to win:

Grand Prize – Two (2) Night Stay in December, for four people to Christmas Gaylord Palms in Orlando, 4 tickets to ICE! featuring Dreamworks Shrek the Halls, ShreakFeast Interactive Character Meal, souvenir photo and a Character Passport Meet & Greets!

First Prize – Five LEGOLAND Florida Passes

Second Prize – American Girl Doll as seen on pg 16 of the December issue

Third Prize – Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows DVD and tickets to Nights of Shimmering Lights.

Fourth Prize - Family four pack of tickets to Ruth Eckerd Hall’s Miracle on 34th Street

Fifth Prize - Family four pack of tickets to The Velveteen Rabbit at the Straz Center for the Performing Arts

Sixth Prize – Family four pack of tickets to Wild Wonderland at the Lowry Park Zoo

Seventh Prize - Family four pack of tickets to School House Rock at Largo Cultural Center

SIGN UP FOR SUBSCRIPTIONS HERE AND BE ENTERED TO WIN!

Each sign up will be counted as an entry to win.

Happy Holidays!

Waste Not — Want Not! Go Green this Holiday Season!

Think outside the box this holiday season. Even if you aren’t a very crafty or creative person, or have never thought much about “Going Green,” the holidays are a great time to start! Those who are seriously into preserving the environment often cringe at the mere thought of all the waste that goes along with the holidays, such as not so eco-friendly gifts, wrap and dispensable party wares. I’ve come up with a few simple solutions to give you the opportunity to have a healthier holiday season. Not only will you help preserve the planet in the long run, but you may even save a few bucks by using some of the belongings you already own and incorporating them into your holiday décor.

Decorations

Think long term. Eliminate wasteful paper products and disposable pans and other bake wares. Purchase or use glass cookware and dinnerware. Invest in cloth items such as cloth napkins, placemats and tablecloths or make them yourself from fabric. Hint: if you purchase blue or red fabric items, they can be used many times through the year for other holidays or everyday use.

Collect pine cones for free. Bring the outdoors in!

Decorate the house with live greenery—the best choices are herbs such as basil and rosemary, which have a wonderful fragrance, and you can use them for cooking all year long.

Look in your kids rooms for decoration ideas. Whoever said you couldn’t build a menorah or tree decoration out of Legos? Or a cool snowflake scene from an Etch-a- Sketch or Lite Brite!

Christmas Trees

• Get a live tree that you can have in your house and then plant outside after the holidays—in your yard or somewhere else. The planet needs more trees and they sequester carbon. Real trees are a renewable, recyclable resource. Artificial trees contain nonbiodegradable plastics and possible metal toxins such as lead. (Please read the warning labels.)
• Grow it yourself: Plant a few seedlings each year, and, in a few years, you will have your own tree that you can bring in for the holiday season.

Save Money

Energy: Attach your indoor and outdoor lights to a timer, and program them to be on only for the several hours in the evening when people will see them.

Wrapping paper: Wrap presents with recyclable wrapping paper or get creative and make your own. Gifts can be wrapped in newspaper, fabric or make use of some of your child’s artwork that you have been holding onto! How about putting your gift in a reusable bag?

Cards: Make your own holiday cards! Recycle children’s artwork or use some of the cards from last year. Or make your own recycled paper! Take old newspaper, mix it with water in a blender and pour out over a screen and set out to dry. Try sprinkling some seeds in it and the recipient can just plant the card! How clever! Or check out the website www.sproutem.com and you can order custom seeded paper.

Gifts:

If you must purchase a gift, look for items made from recyclable material.

Give gift certificates for goods or services you know the recipient will use.

Shop consignment stores! Not only will you help keep items recycling, but you will also save some money too!

Think Green – Great gift ideas include water bottles, plants, battery chargers, cloth napkins, energy saving light bulbs and a reusable shopping bag. Better yet, create your own “green” bag and put a bunch of small items in a reusable shopping bag.

Make Something! Whether it’s a cake, pillow, home accessory, scrapbook, painting, ornament or scarf—be creative.

Some of these ideas are great to continue on throughout the year at any other gift giving time or holiday. The kids can easily pitch in and may even come up with some new clever ideas to reuse items and to help save you some money—and to cut down on waste.

About the Author:

Kara Ferraro is a publisher and freelance writer with two elementary aged children. She is always looking for clever, budget friendly activities to do with her family and ways to save money.

Vegan Options For the Holidays

Vege USA is committed to taking vegetarian and vegan cuisine to a whole new level by offering a diverse line of authentic Asian and internationally-themed gourmet meat alternatives that combine premier-quality ingredients, essential nutrients and deliciously satisfying flavors in a convenient frozen packaged product.

By offering delectable and nutritious products which can be savored by devoted and occasional vegetarians alike, Vege USA is dedicated to helping consumers embrace healthy eating not just for now, but for life. To find out more about their products and place your order before the holidays visit: http://www.vegeusa.com/

The Votes Are In: Children Pick Top Holiday Toys, Goddard Schools Announce Top 10 Toys of 2011 that Encourage Playful Learning

Are you shopping for a preschool-aged child this holiday season? Look no further! Children and educators from select Goddard Schools – leaders in early childhood education – have announced their top toy picks for infants through children six years old for the 2011 holiday shopping season. The Goddard School® Toy Test is the only national toy test designed exclusively for children in the preschool age range.

After a national call for submissions, Goddard educators and children evaluated entrants based on a number of criteria, including:

• Interactive, child-initiated play focus
• Creative, social or engaging
• Appropriate for infants through children six years of age

“Our play-based FLEX™ Learning Program focuses on the value of playful learning,” said Lisa Fisher, Communications Director at Goddard Systems, Inc. “We feel that our Top 10 Toys list will serve as a great resource for parents, grandparents and other family members as they enter the gift-giving season.”

Top 10 Preschooler-Approved Toys (in alphabetical order):

· Animal Sounds Hay Ride (Learning Curve)

· Bristle Block® Stackadoos® (B. Toys by Battat)

· Citiblocs Camouflage 100 Piece Set (CitiBlocs)

· Citiblocs Little Builders Rattle Blocs (CitiBlocs)

· Count Your Chickens!™ board game (Peaceable Kingdom)

· Elemenosqueeze (B. Toys by Battat)

· Hoot Owl Hoot! ™ board game (Peaceable Kingdom)

· Little Shopper Playset (Earlyears)

· Sassy® Sensory Ball Set (Sassy)

· Soft Chime Garden (Lamaze)

For more information on the Top 10 Preschooler-Approved Toys, visit www.goddardschools.com/toys.

ABOUT GODDARD SCHOOL

Recently named No. 1 Childcare Franchise in the United States by Entrepreneur magazine, for the tenth consecutive year (January 2011) and one of the Top 200 Franchise Systems (in worldwide sales), by Franchise Times, for the fourth consecutive year (October 2010); Goddard Systems, Inc. (GSI) is expanding The Goddard School® network throughout the United States. Headquartered in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, GSI currently licenses 370+ franchised schools with more than 45,000 students in 34 states. With a successful system in place and dedicated franchisees, GSI is the acknowledged leader in franchised childcare and a premier childcare provider in the United States.

Gadgets That Make Holiday Travel a Breeze

Talking on a cell phone while driving is dangerous. But a mid-transit chat pales in comparison to the distraction of driving with one (or two!) children wailing in the backseat. Nothing increases adrenaline and quick recall of four-letter words quite like crying kids.

As parents, we can mentally cope with crying kids to and from the grocery store. But long-distance trips need more finesse. Careful preparation and a few necessities can prevent a few glitches and keep your travel going smoothly. As you prepare for holiday travels, make the most of your trip with these handy gadgets.

1. Snack Container
A signature trademark of a kid-friendly car is a Hansel and Gretel-worthy crumb collection on every surface. If you can overlook this completely annoying parenthood perk, I applaud you; otherwise invest in some creative cups. Munchkin offers an ingenious design with handles and no spill rubber top--two for under $7. Sporting a similar design but with an attachable rope (and additional solid top) is the Spill-Proof Snack Buddy Cup from One Step Ahead.

2. Window Shade
Getting on the road is tough enough; stopping to shade a sunset shouldn't be on your list of priorities. Grab a light-cutting window shade to curb the brightness. Measure your windows and buy the widest shade possible, making sure you have enough visibility in your back and rear passenger windows. Check out your options at Great Baby Products for window shade reviews.

3. Lacing Toys
Kids above age 3 (who don't suffer from motion sickness) will work on lacing boards for hours. Growing Tree Toys has a fantastic range of simple lacing activities, like necklaces and ABCs, to complex connect-a-dot boards. Bring a bucket to set in your child's lap so that she can contain the blocks without dropping them on the floor.

4. Finger Puppets
For the dramatic types in your crew, a set of finger puppets can be a space-saving lifesaver. My favorite are high-quality puppets that tell a familiar story, like Thumbelina or the Frog Prince from puppet master Folkmanis, but folks on a budget can definitely afford IKEA's popular set of circus characters or animals for just $4.99.

5. Favorite Music
Not your favorite music, mind you. Junior may not appreciate the vocal stylings of Rihanna for hours on end (and, honestly, you shouldn't either). Enjoy some traditional Disney favorites and throw in some award-winning movement songs from Hap Palmer and Joe Scruggs to keep the mood kid-friendly. Bring on talk radio when it's time for a snooze.

6. Bubbles
So what if you have to clean up the residue later! Bubbles are total fun for all ages, especially when the road seems never-ending. Unless you have an older child, mom or dad needs to commandeer the liquid and blow them toward the back. The best bubbles on the market, hands down, come from Gymboree. These bubbles float forever and the solution never dries out.

7. Barf Bag
Close to 30% of people are susceptible to motion sickness, and kids are no exception. The barfies can strike at any time--there's no guarantee that your child will or won't get sick on a road trip. Prepare for the worst by investing in a few leak-proof barf bags with fun pictures printed on the outside and show your child how to "cough" into it if his tummy starts to hurt. And bring an extra couple of towels just in case.

8. Neck Pillow
This is a tricky one. Your younger child may or may not like the feeling of something so close to her neck. Try it on short stroller trips ahead of time to practice. If your kiddo will wear it, she'll be far more comfortable during naps. Pillow companions like the Dora neck pillow attach to the straps of your car seat or stroller, making it a bit more accessible.

9. Small Baking Sheets
This ingenious idea from Family Fun keeps the ever-present I-dropped-it-on-the-floor wail at bay. Use a conventional (but smaller) lipped baking sheet as a drawing, magnetic and keep-it-all-in-one place surface. Glue one or two layers of foam shelf paper on the bottom to make it less likely to fall and affix white contact paper to the top for the drawing surface. Turn it into multiple activities by attaching magnets to buttons for checkers or bingo games. Older travelers might prefer a more sophisticated travel kit like this one from Martha Stewart.

10. iPad
No, I'm not a fan of hours of screen time for little eyes, but during a road trip this godsend is a total catchall. From apps for all ages to music and movies, the iPad is the perfect device for tiny travelers. Purchasing gift cards at a discount from sites like GiftCardGranny can help you pay for the pricey device at such retailers as Target and Walmart, who are currently offering deals on iPad 2 bundles. Then, let your kiddos learn letters with Starfall or everything nursery-rhyme cooky from Duck Duck Moose. When all else fails, strap it to the seat and watch a movie. 


About the Author:

Ashley Grimaldo comes from a long line of penny pinchers and enjoys blogging on money-saving tips and advice for frugal-minded parents. She lives with her husband and three children in Bryan, Texas. Ashley has been featured among such media outlets as Redbook, The Chicago Tribune, Time.com, and CBS News-Houston.

Grand Opening of H&M at the International Plaza Mall

There has been a lot of buzz circling around Tampa’s International Plaza Mall, as shoppers anxiously awaited the grand opening of the clothing store, H&M and H&M Kids. For individuals who have never been to H&M or even heard of it, it is easily defined as a store that gives you more “Bang for the buck!” This store has something for everyone and every budget. As stated on H&M’s Facebook Page:

“Offering fashion and quality at the best price, H&M offers a varied assortment for the entire family, including concepts for ladies, men, teenagers and children.”

Don’t get me wrong, customers will find pricier clothing articles throughout the store, but there is an abundance of selection for everyone’s budget and everyone’s different fashion styles.

Before I divulge on the grand opening I have to commend the H&M staff for how calm and collected they were with such chaos going on around them. Everyone I talked to was friendly and helpful, even with a huge crowd that was non-stop. I was able to speak with H&M representative Tony Everett, as he kindly took some time out of his big day to walk me through the kids store and tell me about some of the reasons why this store is so fantastic, and what it means for the Tampa Bay community.

When discussing what makes H&M a great place to shop for kids, Everett pointed out the unbeatable prices (one being an adorable girl’s holiday dress for only $10) as well as informing me that H&M has a “Basic & Conscious” clothing line. He stated “These items are made of 50 percent organic cotton blend,” and that, “ H&M is proud to be able to cater to the various lifestyles that their shoppers encompass.”

At the International Mall, H&M opened a kids store in addition to their regular store, providing clothing from babies to adults and to males and females. Everett explained that H&M is truly “A one stop shop for the entire family.”

As for what the opening of these affordable fashion stores means for Tampa Bay, Everett enlightened me by saying, “It means great things. The other day we had a special opening for the Boys and Girls Club of Tampa Bay in which we were able to give them a catered, mini-shopping spree as well as donate $2,005 to their organization.” It was refreshing to see the genuine smile on his face as he spoke about that evening and the impact this store can have on our community.

Now onto the details about the grand opening and advice on how to attack this shopping spree with the least amount of stress possible:

Let me first say, if you plan on visiting the store this weekend, be prepared for lines. Lines to get in the store, to try on and to check out. If you absolutely cannot handle waiting in lines, I suggest holding off visiting the store until the weekend is over. Be advised though, the opening sales are WORTH THE WAIT! If you have even the littlest of patience, I encourage you to check it out before the weekend and sales are over.

Pros:

• $10 off purchases $50 and more coupons: People in line received this coupon, which allows shoppers to save a little (or buy a little more…). I am not sure if these will be available the whole weekend, but stapled to the receipts were also a $10 off gift card.

• Opening sales: H&M is already reasonably priced for the most part, and adding these sales on top is a shopper’s bank account dream! This is a great time to get holiday shopping done, because as stated before you can find something for everyone! Some of the sale highlights I saw were: $35 pencil skirts for $10, $35 sweater dresses for $15 and kid’s tops and dresses for $5-$10.

• A gracious return period: Why is something that every store has listed as a pro? Because you can skip the dressing room line, make your purchases and if they don’t work out, you have 30 days to return them (BIG time saver)!

Cons:

• Lines: After asking around most people said it took them about 20 minutes to get into the store. The check out lines seemed to take around the same amount of time (mid-day). Lines are expected at grand openings, so it seemed like most customers did not mind, and it was apparent that H&M did everything they could to speed it up.

• Temperature: If you go, wear layers or something breathable. This will not only help you try stuff on without going into the dressing room, but I assure you it gets a little toasty as the bodies fill up in there.

• Sales prices: Be careful when you choose the items that have the opening sales prices. Customers told me that items that were on sale racks did not always have the sales tag, and when rung up, they would sometimes register as the regular price. Before you walk away, be sure to check your receipt and make sure you are getting the sales price on the correct items.

Tips for Parents:

After speaking with multiple parents, it seems as though the key to staying sane during the grand opening weekend is to leave the kids at home. After seeing a few moms try to maneuver their way through the lines and crowds with strollers, I can confirm it does not look enjoyable for any party involved. So do yourself a favor and hire a babysitter for a few hours while you shop ‘til you drop!


For more information on H&M visit: http://www.hm.com/us/

Lindsay Olives Gears Up for Holiday Giving Program, Pledges $3,000 Donation

Lindsay Olives will launch a holiday giving program and contest November 1 called Lindsay’s Santa Cause. The purpose of this holiday program is to get families, youth groups, schools and churches involved in the spirit of charitable giving. Lindsay Olives will donate a $3,000 prize to the winning class, youth group or sports team, to name a few.
 


“We at Lindsay are committed to promoting peace, prosperity and giving during the holiday season,” said Jennifer Fuchs, consumer marketing manager at Lindsay Olives. “There are so many people in need in these difficult economic times, especially during the holidays. Santa Cause is a wonderful way to help food banks and involve kids and parents in the spirit of giving, which leaves a lasting impression all year long.”


According to news sources, 40% of federal funds have been cut from food programs across the country this year (food banks, soup kitchens and food pantries). Food banks are in dire need this year, and Lindsay is hoping to help.


The Santa Cause program is comprised of two elements. The first is a canned food drive where Lindsay Olives will invite youth groups nationwide to collect canned goods for their local food banks. Participating classes and groups will compete to win a $3,000 grand prize for the group that donates the highest percentage of cans. 
 
The second component is a Buy One, Give One effort, which will allow members of the community to help food banks, even if they are not part of a youth group, team or class. For each can of Lindsay Olives that a customer purchases from November 1-December 31, 2011, Lindsay Olives will donate a can to a food bank. Lindsay Olives will match customer purchases up to 25,000 cans.
 


Santa Cause Details
Participants in the canned food drive contest will be entering to win $3,000 to be used for the group purchase of equipment, supplies or to fund a program, which is Lindsay’s way of giving back to the community. Students can begin collecting cans November 1 and must deliver all collected cans to a food bank of their choice by December 20. 
 
“We know that many schools and organizations are also in need this year, and we hope this $3,000 donation will benefit the kids and the programs they are a part of,” said Fuchs.
 


To be eligible for the contest, groups can enter at www.LindsayOlives.com/holiday beginning November 1. All groups must enter online by December 31. Groups can consist of 45 members or less. Each group should collect a receipt from the food bank where they donate their canned goods and email, fax or mail it to Lindsay Olives for verification of the donation.


Buy One, Give One Details
Lindsay Olives is also holding a Buy One, Give One program so that those who make purchases can also give back to food banks. For each can of Lindsay Olives purchased, the company will donate a can to one of several food banks around the country. Lindsay Olives asks that purchasers for the Buy One, Give One program visit www.LindsayOlives.com/holiday and enter the UPC code from their can or cans of olives. This will ensure that Lindsay tracks their purchase and matches their purchase with a donation. 


As a company, Lindsay Olives values the idea of giving and sustaining life, which is symbolic of the olive branch. This idea inspired Lindsay Olives to launch the canned food drive contest.
 
Supporting Resources
For more information and official rules, visit www.LindsayOlives.com/holiday