Start a New Holiday Tradition

It can be very challenging to organize a group picture. Getting family coordinated for a photo to use on Christmas Cards can be frustrating and a hassle. Avoid the trouble of getting family organized by taking photos when your family is already gathering at Thanksgiving!

What better time for a photo session than when your family is already dressed up and in great spirits after a delicious meal. For great holiday card photos you can capture candid shots or have a neighbor take a large group photo. If you are planning on using a picture of just your immediate family on your holiday photo card you can still take advantage of the situation and have another family member take the picture. This is your perfect opportunity to not be the one behind the camera!

Christmas is a great time to celebrate and start new traditions. Why not start the fun early with the tradition of coming up with a creative holiday card photo? Here are some fun ideas to get you started.

Baby playing with lights

Put your child on a dark blanket and give them a lighted string of Christmas lights to play with. Make sure all lights are off and utilize only natural light. Snap away while your baby inspects the lights. (Disclaimer- Christmas lights contain some lead so do not let your child put them in their mouth and wash your child's hands thoroughly after you take your photo). What can this look like?

Stealing Santa's Cookies

Place an empty plate of crumbs near your child dressed in holiday attire. A guilty look on their face is perfect if you can capture it. The goal if to make the photo look like your child is "stealing" Santa's cookies. You can caption your holiday photo card to say "I'm sorry Santa". Or a similar phrase.

Naughty and Nice

Combine a photo of your child looking sweet and angelic with a picture of your child mad and upset (Moms, you know we all have one!).

Christmas wreath

Hold a wreath and let your child pear through the opening. This makes for a classic stunning photo.

Our Christmas Gift came early

This idea is perfect for a new baby holiday birth announcement. Place your baby on some wrapping paper with a bow and caption your card "Our gift arrived early this year".

Ho Ho Ho

Let your baby play in the bath with a Santa hat on. Make a beard with bubbles and snap away!

These are just a few ideas to get you started. Have fun capturing that perfect moment!

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Never Gain a Pound - Learn to Eat What Ever You Want

"I EAT ALL DAY LONG AND NEVER GAIN A POUND." Why It Is Important to Eat Five Meals a Day

How would you like to become that skinny person who says “I eat all day long and never gain a pound.”?

It’s true that for some people, that way of life is so natural that they never even realized that they were doing anything right. We ask them their secrets and ultimately we chalk it up to the mystery of a “great metabolism,” and wish that we had one too.

It’s not a mystery.

The truth is that anyone can maximize their metabolism not just personal trainers if they just learn to eat like a skinny person. We’re not talking about a lifelong sentence of salads and carrot sticks. We’re talking about eating little meals all day long.

From a health standpoint, one of the worst things that happened to us as a society was the advent of the three meal day that came with industrialization. The problem with eating three times a day (or fewer for some of us), is that it allows too much time to pass between meals. We let ourselves get too hungry, and then eat to overcome that sensation.

We are just innocently eating the way we were taught. Meanwhile, we are sending signals to our bodies that are not so innocent. We get overly hungry and that tells our body that there is a shortage of food; it’s time to store fat just in case. Then, we get so hungry, we eat more calories in one sitting than our body can process. Our bodies can’t discern how much to feed itself. It just knows that it can’t process it all and dumps everything we’ve eaten to fat storage as well.

The key is to eat five, small meals throughout the day to avoid the valleys and peaks of hunger and fullness (see Live’s sample nutrition plan). By providing enough calories for your metabolism to burn at a steady rate throughout the day, you are telling your body that there will always be enough food for it to burn at a higher rate and feed off of the stored fat in your body as well as the food you consume. When you combine this eating plan with exercise, you will be able to raise your metabolism even further, making you that skinny person who eats all day and never gains a pound.

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Nutrition Key for Anti Aging

I would guess that growing old does not worry most Americans. However, the loss of strength and balance that can go together with the aging process can be frightening.

Live Lean Today can help with its anti aging fitness plans. Is there a way to prevent the frailty that is often associated with an older age? The solution may include protein, selected vitamins and dietary supplements.

Frailty is characterized as low overall muscle strength, a regular feeling of exhaustion with minimal activities, slow walking speed, and an overall reduction in activities of daily living. Although the number of elderly who could be defined as frail is un-known, frailty may increase the risk of falling as well as susceptibility to disease. In addition, frailty also negatively affects quality of life.

A recent study published in the Journal of Gerontology: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences demonstrated that the lack of specific nutrients increases the risk of becoming frail. In this study, 802 participants were assessed for nutrient intake and frailty. The study showed that the risk of frailty was correlated with a diminished intake of protein and vitamins A, D, C and the B vitamin folate.

If a person was deficient in two or more nutrients, the risk of frailty more than doubled. In addition, as we age, our ability to absorb nutrients from the food we eat decreases. The quality and quantity of food eaten also may be influenced by a fixed income. This suggests that nutrient insuffi-ciency may be more common in the elderly that we believe.

Fortunately, frailty may be easily prevented and even reversed. Meat is an excellent source of protein but, for those on a very fixed income, may not be part of the daily diet. However, beans and nuts can also supply a significant amount of excellent protein at a very reasonable cost. They also are rich in folate. Fruits and vegetables are good source of vitamins A, C and D. Dietary supplements may also be valuable and can provide more than adequate levels of folate and vitamins A, D and C in a number of easily digestible forms.

When I was in medical school, we learned that all nutritional needs could be met by having three "square" meals a day. We now know that nutrition and health involves a much more complex set of interactions and that proper amounts of protein and specific nutrients, like vitamins A, D, C and folate are essential. Frailty may be avoidable and, with a little effort, we all may be able to enjoy the "golden years" a little more.

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How to Eat for Health: Fats and Oils

Fats are an extremely important part of a healthy diet, and the essential fatty acids are named essential for a reason. They aid in just about every bodily function as they play a crucial role in cell wall function. Working as a transporter, they pass oxygen and nutrients through the cell wall and help to keep invaders and other foreign bodies out of the cell. Other functions performed include brain cell function, immune system, nervous system and hormone function.

So what is hydrogenation and what are the results of ingesting partially hydrogenated fats into your body? Well, hydrogenation is simply the process of heating an oil to the point where hydrogen bubbles enter, becomes attached to the fatty acids and form a solid in fully hydrogenated and more of a thick cream, or butter texture when partially hydrogenated. Hydrogenated oil has a high level of trans fats and these trans fats act within a cell in a confused manor and will keep nutrients out and let the foreign bodies in. Not only do these trans fats lead to obesity, but also are linked to disease such as diabetes and coronary disease (the leading killer in America).

Trans fats and partially hydrogenated oils can be found in a number of foods, and are used because they are a less expensive alternative to other cooking substitutes such as butter. Baked goods, potato chips, cookies, crackers, are just a few of the food categories that contain partially hydrogenated oils, the worst of which is partially hydrogenated soybean oil. This soybean oil is noted to negatively affect the thyroid function resulting in feeling sluggish, a decrease in energy and reluctance to want to exercise.

How much trans fat is bad? When you find out something can lead to heart disease and obesity, I wouldn’t take any chances and I would avoid any of it at all costs. Some reports have shown that .5g of trans fat is equal to approximately 1.5g of unsaturated fat in terms of how it affects your health. You won’t see this in the label of many products as .5 g can still be labeled as 0% trans fat due to federal law. But when you scroll down the ingredients, you might come across partially hydrogenated oil present in the first few lines.

The best way to avoid trans fat is to read your labels thoroughly. Avoid grocery shopping in the middle aisles for food and stay on the outskirts of the store where the fresh produce, dairy and meat are located. When cooking, choose to cook with virgin coconut oil, although high in saturated fat, and low on many health food lists, it is unaffected by heat, and it is metabolized differently than other oils as it will be burned as fuel and not stored into the fat cells. Fats are extremely important to our diet, but you can make healthy choices about fats by reading labels and learning about the different types of fats and how they affect the body.

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Tips for a Great Halloween Photo Card

Halloween photo cards are the perfect way to show of your growing children to family and friends. Here are some ways to capture the perfect Halloween photo.

1. Costume Photo

A snapshot of your child in their Halloween costume is a very popular choice for a Halloween photo card. What could be cuter than dressed up babies? To capture a great shot of a small immobile baby lay them on a solid colored blanket as a backdrop. This will ensure there are not distraction objects in the photo. For older babies and children shots taken outdoors work great.

2. Pumpkin Patch

Colorful pumpkins make a festive backdrop for Halloween photo cards. Make sure to snap lots of pictures as your child picks out the perfect pumpkin. This is also a great setting for family photos to be used on fall cards or a holiday photo card.

3. Face Paint

A unique idea for a Halloween photo card is to feature a photo after your child has had their face painted at a fall festival event. Close ups work best for this type of photo.

4. Fall leaves

If you live in a cooler climate rake up those leaves and let your child have a blast playing in them. These shots are great for both Halloween and Seasons Greetings photo cards.

Focus on the photo - Photo cards are becoming a popular choice for girl birth announcements, boy birth announcements, birthday invitations and other events. Holiday cards will be included in this trend this year. We are predicting that consumers will seek out collage photo christmas cards or cards that focus on one unique photo. We will be seeing more families choose a creative or artistic photo rather than a traditional family portrait.

Custom Cards - Stylish families will seek out a unique custom card vendor such as Addie Kate Creations to tailor their holiday card in their own unique vision. Cookie cutter designs offered by large realtors will be passed over in favor of a more unique look. Discerning customers are looking for a more personal experience and are seeking out vendors that create a custom holiday card to suit their taste.

Simple Messages - Long verses and text will be forgone in favor of short and simple phrasing. This year’s designs feature simple greeting such as “Peace, Hope and Love”.

Simplicity is key this year when it comes to the message on your holiday card.

Retro Design - You will find many cards that feature traditional elements with retro color schemes as well as modern characteristics on this years holiday card offerings.

Elegant and Simple - Elegance is always in style. This year there will be many consumers that opt for simple clean lines and an upscale elegant look.

Whatever idea you choose to incorporate, remember to take lots of shots and have fun!

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It’s a Resolution to Anti-aging

Five, four, three, two, one. Happy New Year! Whether you were dancing in the streets at midnight or sleeping beneath the sheets long before the ball dropped, the world rang in 2007, which means you will celebrate another birthday before 2008's big bash. However, while "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve" countdown and the counting of candles on your birthday cake may be unavoidable year after year, the way you age is certainly in your control.

Aging gracefully and comfortably (without the aches and pains of arthritis and osteoporosis) can be as simple as choosing the right foods in your diet, as well as exercising regularly. Because even more than preventing wrinkles, anti-aging also means preventing memory loss, heart disease, cancer, and osteoporosis. For this reason, the anti-aging diet is receiving much attention and can certainly complement your everyday life.

The anti-aging diet is a combination of both nutrition and lifestyle factors. Not only is it important to pile your plate with healthy choices from the food pyramid, it is doubly important to keep your body fine-tuned by exercising, avoiding UV light and cigarettes, and even doing crossword puzzles. Yes, researchers have proven that mental activity forms a strong connection between your brain cells and the way your transmit thoughts, so as you age, you are less likely to develop Alzheimer's. Even more, according to the American Dietetic Association, not only can mental activity reverse damage to your cells, but also with adequate amounts of vegetables and fruits, including blueberries and spinach, age-related losses in motor function and cognition can be reduced.

If you want to see your age grow to high numbers, then you need to make sure the scale shows you the lower ones. From weight training to cardio to yoga, a fusion of activity will keep you feeling young at heart and looking ageless in your jeans. Weight training will help you build muscle, maintain strong bone density, and burn fat. That's right. The more muscle you have, the more fat you will burn. And while pumping weights will keep your muscles strong, cardio will help keep your heart pumping while yoga will keep your body stress-free.

Stress is one of many free radicals, which can cause damage to healthy cells, leading to internal aging as well as visible signs of external aging. Now, just as science has proven how dangerous free radicals are for our cells, antioxidants have proven to defend our cells by fighting against oxidation. Therefore, on the nutrition side of things, choosing antioxidant-rich foods, such as berries, may be one tasty way to living a longer, healthier life. According to the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, cranberries, blackberries and blueberries rank highest in antioxidant levels. In addition to berries, other anti-aging foods include garlic, fish, whole grains, cruciferous vegetables, nuts, soy, water and red wine.

Don't let time pass you by. To stay looking and feeling younger than ever, make sure to exercise regularly, challenge your mind, avoid harmful UV light, and enjoy a low-calorie diet full of anti-aging foods. Start today and by 2008, you'll be ringing in the New Year without having aged a day. Eat your heart out Dick Clark!

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Food and Diet for More Energy

Do you find that you get fatigued during the afternoon? There are better choices than reaching for that candy bar, soda, or the latest energy drink. Food and diet is essential to giving your body more energy during the day. With making some easy diet choices you can have more energy and feel alive during those once sluggish hours.

The fatigue and lack of energy you feel is associated with how you fuel your metabolism. Another way of looking at it is the food you eat or not eat is causing you have low energy and want to take a nap at work. If you are having any lack of energy throughout the day, now is a great time to start making better dietary choices.

The common diet programs that create this lack of energy are low calorie diets or eating 3 meals a day or less. Also, if your diet habits consist of fast food, candy, or soft drinks then your body is simply not getting the energy it needs and how it wants it was balanced energy levels. Another aspect that affects your energy with poor food choices is a lack of essential vitamins, minerals, complex carbs, and amino acids. All of these are building blocks for proper metabolism functioning.

The major issue with the ineffective diet programs of Americans is bad habits actually create more bad habits. Many people think that if they just had will power they won't succumb to food cravings that crush their diets. The reality is that poor choices create times when your body is in low blood sugar and that period is what causes your cravings. It is physiology that causes them not a lack of mental strength. Did you know that once you start eating 5 small meals during the day your cravings for sugar go away? Follow me on this person's day. We are starting with breakfast though they don't eat breakfast because they have noticed that if they skip breakfast they don't feel hungry till lunch. So at lunch they go out to dinner with their coworkers. Now, from a lack of energy they over eat more food than they should at any one meal. The problem is this doesn't feel or looks like too much food because this is what they are used to. How do I know this is too much food because at around 2 or 3 pm they are crashing. Their energy is low and they have become exceptionally irritable. Does this sound familiar?

So what are we supposed to eat? The goal is to eat 5 small meals throughout the day. For the average American this is cutting their normal meal in half and eating the other half as a snack. Breakfast starts the day either burning fat or storing fat. You know you had a proper breakfast because you are hungry 2-3 hours later, and it is time for another snack. You want to keep having small meals every two to three hours throughout the day. The reason this is good is because your body is burning calories and wants more fuel to keep burning. I know it seems logical if you don't eat you will lose weight. The problem is when you don't eat your body stores the food you eat as fat. When you fuel your body every 2-3 hours your body starts to burn more energy and will stop storing energy. This is the key to healthy losing weight.

Another key aspect to controlling your energy levels is the use of caffeine. Caffeine is a stimulant that supports your body to release adrenaline into your system. Caffeine in moderation, as in one cup of coffee doesn't throw your body out of balance. Having a multiple cups or some of the energy drinks and your body is running on artificial energy and then you crash. Once you crash you want that good feeling again, and so you are off on another Starbucks run. I know people who go to Starbucks every 2-3 hours or after each time their body crashes. One thing on energy drinks, Red Bull has less caffeine than a cup of coffee though I can't guarantee what is in the rest of the energy drinks.

Do you need more protein or more carbs in your meals? If you find that your meals are made of mostly carbs or simple sugars than eating protein with your meals with balance you out. Most Americans are over eating protein. If you are not getting a small amount of complex carbs in each meal, this is another reason why you are low on energy. Carbs are you body's fuel. Protein is designed to rebuild your muscle tissue and your body doesn't want to use it as energy.

Adding proper supplementation can make easy healthy and throughout the day easier. For most people getting that mid morning or mid afternoon snack can be a challenge. Having a meal replacement bar or shake can give you the healthy fuel you need. Also, most meal replacement supplements are fortified with vitamins and minerals which is a far cry from the candy bar. Supplements allow you to get exactly the right amount of calories in your meal as well. Especially, if you are going after a weight loss goal you don't need to eat any extra calories. What should I eat for my 5 small meals? The first answer is the same things you are eating now only cut them in half. You will find that the sugar cravings go away so we automatically start eating less sugar. The goal is to go to the super market thinking about what you want to eat for your meals. If you buy it at the grocery store than you will have it ready when it is time to eat? Liveleantoday.com's diet program creates weekly menus that print out grocery lists to make this process easy. Start eating every 2-3 hours and turn your metabolism into a fat burning machine. I know you might be laughing, not your metabolism. Today if you start eating 5 small meals your body will start to turn over. You will know this is working because you will have more energy than you have ever had before.

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