Resolve to be Thankful!

Well its time to ring in another year and with that comes the familiar list of resolutions, probably the same ones from the previous year but this time we are really going to accomplish them. We are all guilty of this! As Oprah Winfrey said “Cheers to a New Year and another chance for us to get it right.” I won’t deny I have my list of things that I did not accomplish in the last year that I will be tacking onto this year’s list.

During this final week of the year though I have been recapping 2009 and I have to say I am very thankful and appreciative of this past year. Maybe not everything was great or worked out how I wanted but overall it was pretty good. Unlike many people throughout our country I have a job. I managed to get back in touch with friends and family (thank you FB!). I even made real plans and got together with some of them. I spent the summer going away most weekends on affordable mini-vacations thanks to us buying our new camper. I tried things I had never done before (parasailing, kayaking, white water rafting, zip-lining to name a few) and found some new interests. Who knew I could be ‘adventure girl’?! By the way all of these activities will help me with my most common resolution year-after-year – lose weight!

So if I manage to accomplish a few things then that is good enough. And if you accomplish some of your goals too, don’t forget to reward yourself by going to metrostyle.com. I wish you all a happy and safe New Year! And most of all don’t worry, be happy!

By Izzy

“Are you wearing a girdle?”

OK, I’ll admit it…since Thanksgiving, and leading up to the holidays, I’ve put on a few extra pounds. So for Christmas, I bought myself a pair of jeans with a built-in tummy slimmer.

Honestly, I didn’t have much faith that they would make any difference at all, but from the moment I arrived at the Christmas party, people kept telling me how thin I looked.

I was feeling pretty good about myself until my 85-year-old, hearing-impaired great Aunt asked very loudly, “Did you lose weight, or are you wearing a girdle?”

My face was as bright red as Rudolf’s nose. I then found myself the center of attention trying to explain the concept of jeans with built-in slimming panels – which is light years beyond a girdle!

But seriously, next time I wear my slimming jeans, should anyone ask, I’m just going to say, “Thank you,” and walk away.

By: Ben B

It's that time of year...food, food, and more food!

If you are wondering what to make for the holidays as a quick, easy, and inexpensive dish- Mexican dip with tortilla chips!!!

It's not only easy but it's everyone's favorite no matter what the occassion is!

Here it goes...

cream cheese softened on bottom of dish

layer 1 can of refried beans

layer with salsa of your choice

layer with shredded mexican cheese

Bake for 20 min at 375 and you are ready to go! You can top it off with olives/chopped tomatoes or shredded lettuce if you'd like.

Enjoy!

Tips for Your New Year’s Day Recovery!

1. If you are going to stay out most of the night on New Year’s Eve make sure that you have a place for your children to be on New Year’s Day or at least have a babysitter at the house. While recovering, it may be difficult to relax if you have young children.
2. Pick someone in your group to be the designated driver or arrange some type of transportation.
3. Make sure you have your return to healthy state foods ready in advance such as chicken noodle soup, salad mix, fruits, vegetables, juices and plenty of water. You won’t be in the mood to drive to the grocery store on New Year’s Day.
4. Make sure you don’t have any plans on New Year’s Day. You want to be able to relax all day without any distractions.
5. Resist the urge to get up early. The more sleep you get, the easier it will be for you to recover. Sleep until you feel like getting up.

Happy New Year!

By Diane

Christmas Costume Contest!

Do you dress up your animals for the holidays? Would you like to win a $25 e-gift certificate to metrostyle? We have lots of animal lovers over here and we'd love to see some cute holiday pics!

All you have to do is dress up your furry little friends & submit your pics to metrostyleblog@gmail.com. The metrostyle team will review the submissions and post the winner on January 15th! Good luck!

5 Things NOT to Wear to Your Work Holiday Party:

What Not to Wear #1: Tacky Holiday Sweaters
OK, self explanatory... Sweaters are a great choice for a professional holiday party, especially if you live in a colder region. Even guys can pair a nice sweater and slacks to look stylish and professional for the big bash. But avoiding shirts that showcase holiday animals and characters is the way to go for a professional holiday soirée.

#2: Things That Blink and Buzz
If your outfit requires batteries, look past it and onto something less distracting for adult conversation. If it’s bling you’re after, try getting the same glittery effect on a sweater, shirt, necklace or even earrings.

#3: Barely There Skirts
Think about how your shoes compliment your skirt. The higher the shoe, the longer the skirt should be. The flatter the shoe, the shorter the skirt can be and still look professional. Be careful wearing super high heels and a super short skirt.

#4: Your Child’s Clothes
What really intrigues you about your child’s clothes? Is it the sparkle of the necklace or the funky one shoulder? Take what you like about it and see if you can rework an outfit that you’ll feel good about and flatters you and your best assets.

#5: Santa Suit
Unless you’ve been asked to wear it, the joke is on you. Once the initial “Santa surprise” is over, there’s not much left to say. If feel you need to make an entrance, put on a Santa hat or a pair of antlers. You can take them off after a few minutes.

Impressing people in a pinch…………….

OK the holidays are here and you have been invited to a party. If you are like me you hate to cook and you hate to bake even more. Here is the answer to your dilemma, Oreo Truffles………….Everyone will think you are the best cook in the world
And you don’t even have to turn on the oven.

Ingredients
1 – 16 oz package oreo chocolate sandwich cookies divided
1 – 8 oz package cream cheese softened
2 – 8 oz packages semi sweet baking chocolate, melted

Directions
Crush 9 cookies to fine crumbs – reserve for later use
Crush remaining 36 cookies and place in medium bowl, add cream cheese, mix until well blended. Roll cookie mixture into 42 balls about 1 inch in diameter.

Dip balls in chocolate place on wax paper-covered covered backing sheet
Sprinkle with reserved cookie crumbs

Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour

Enjoy-------------Happy Holidays

By: Crystal Ball

The Science Behind Santa's Yearly Trip Around the World

Ever wonder how Santa does it all? Gregory Mone wants you to know: the real Santa uses wormholes.

In The Truth About Santa: Wormholes, Robots and What Really Happens on Christmas Eve, author Gregory Mone explains the elaborate systems that make it all possible.

"The trick is that he has at his disposal some of the most advanced equipment, devices, and means of transportation in this or any other universe..." says Mone.

For instance...

Santa's red suit: It's designed for the extreme conditions that he encounters while traveling at warp speed and bending space and time. The suit is laden with metamaterials, which have the effect of bending light around a person so that they turn invisible, which can come in handy if there are curious children peeking during his Christmas deliveries.

Santa's reading glasses: They are actually equipped with what's called a "heads-up display" that lets Santa see the residents of the house he's visiting, what presents to leave, directions to the next house and more.

Santa's present detecting device: Santa knows what we want, but he doesn't know what presents our parents have already given us until he gets to the house and looks under the tree. He uses a terahertz wave radiation scanner to see through the wrapping and make out the toys inside. That way, he can leave a different one.

Worried that all this technology takes away from the magic of Santa? Not so says Mone, who cites Arthur C. Clarke, "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic."

Q&A: What tops would make me appear smaller and taller?

I'm a 53 year young women, 5'' 2 inches tall and big breasted. What tops would make me appear smaller and taller at the same time, without having too wear 6 inch heels ? I do a lot of walking on my job. Thank you for any suggestions you can give.

- Sharon Douglass-Green


Hi Sharon,

Thanks for writing in. Here's what we recommend:

Try a surplice style top (like item #71823...it's one of our customer favorites). The deep V-neckline of surplice styling is flattering to the bust, while side ruching on the top gives the illusion of a longer torso. We offer a metallic colorway which is good for parties of special events, but we also offer black in white which can be worn to the office or in more casual settings!

Given your height, opt for straight-leg or bootcut pants and jeans. Pinstripe pants and pants with a front crease or seam can also give the illusion of a longer, leaner silhouette. Try our Pinstripe Pants (#66690) for work and Seamed Jeans (#72200) for a casual look.

Last but not least, when it comes to blazers (such a hot look right now for work or weekend), you'll want to make sure you get a style that hits right at your hips for the best effect. A blazer that is too long can make your legs look short, while a cropped blazer may over-emphasize an ample bust. The Seamed Leather Blazer (#13014) might be a good fit for you.

Hope these tips help!
April

Do you have a fashion dilemma that you need advice on? Our fashion experts are here to help. Just send an email to: metrostyleblog@gmail.com

Watch Out World...Here We Come!

Better Baking Creative Cooking

With the holidays approaching everyone is always looking for ways to save time and money (...money saved equals better gifts right!). I’m sure many people will be cooking and baking in the next few weeks making preparations for celebrations. Here are a few good tips for the kitchen that might help during this busy and costly season.

*To determine whether an egg is fresh, immerse it in a pan of cool, salted water. If it sinks, it is fresh, if it rises to the surface, throw it away.
*To keep potatoes from budding, place an apple in the bag with the potatoes.
*Zap garlic cloves in the microwave for 15 seconds and the skins
slip right off.
*Brown sugar will not harden if stored in the freezer.
*Sweeten whipped cream with confectioners’ sugar instead of granulated sugar, it will stay fluffy and hold it’s shape better.
*If you don’t have enough batter to fill all cupcake tins, pour 1 tablespoon of water into the unfilled spots... this helps preserve the life of your pans!
*To get the most juice out of fresh lemons, bring them to room temperature and roll them under your palm against the kitchen counter before squeezing
*Spray your tupperware with non-stick cooking spray before pouring in tomato-based sauces, no more stains!
*Substitute half applesauce for the vegetable oil in your baking recipes. (You’ll greatly reduce the fat content!) (Example: 1/2 cup vegetable oil = 1/4 cup applesauce + 1/4 cup oil)
*Don’t throw out all that leftover wine. Freeze into ice cubes for future use in casseroles and sauces
*Don’t panic if your soup’s too salty: Add cut raw potatoes and throw them away once they are cooked and have absorbed the salt. Your soup’s saved!
*Instead of throwing away a sponge that has a stale odor, simply toss it in the dishwasher and wash it with the next load of dishes. It will come out clean and fresh smelling and will kill any bacteria in the sponge, so it’s a good idea to toss your sponges into the dishwasher often.

As Julia Child once said, ""Life itself is the proper binge." :)

Ever Throw a Shoe At a Guy? You're Not Alone!

While online looking for Christmas fun facts, I ended up stumbling upon some fashion fun facts. The more I looked, the more bizarre the facts became. They were so much fun, I had to share...

40% of women claim to have hurled footwear at men.

Prince Philip, the eldest son of Charles XIII of Spain, adored gloves so much that he often wore 16 pairs at a time.

Pants became a women’s fashion phenomenon only after actress Marlene Dietrich wore them in the 1930 film Morocco.

In the royal courts of India, blue-blooded women used to change their clothes several time a day. And, they never wore the same outfit twice.

In the middle ages, purses were often exchanged between couples as tokens of love and courtship.

The skirt is the second oldest women’s garment in history. It’s preceded only by the loin cloth.

Queen Elizabeth I loved hats so much that she made it mandatory for all females over the age of 7 to wear a hat on Sundays and holidays.

The newsboy cap has been dated back to the 14th Century in England where it was worn by working class men. Today, it’s a casual fashion staple of A-list celebrities!

By Bren B

Gift Giving

There was a recent debate in my family about gift giving this year. It is no secret that everyone is effected by the awful economy and money is tight all around. Everyone is pinching pennies in every way and Christmas is no exception. The debate started because the usual discussion of “what to do this year” came up.

Last year we did a yankee swap for the gift giving and the kids of the family got to pick a kid to buy for. Make them feel part of the process.

Let me just stop by saying, I do not care about the “gift” for Christmas. I care about the fun we have during the Yankee swap! It’s the time during the holiday that we are together and enjoying the moment.

The debate started with …
“Well do we want to just do the kids gift swap and the adults will just do nothing…”
I of course totally disagreed and said that we should just do the typical Yankee swap and if money was the issue then we would have a limit of $10.
Of course some people piped in with “You cant get anything with $10!”

The debate continued like this for quite some time!

I would like to say that I won that battle! We will be doing the yankee swap with a $40 limit… Not sure how $10 turned into $40 but I am not complaining!!

Do you have funny traditions or quirks that gets your family or friends in an uproar during this festive time of year??

by Jani

Why I Prefer Shopping Online!

For the second year in a row, I decided to head to the outlets at midnight
on Thanksgiving night. I was so excited to shop the sales! Has anyone ever done that before? I’ve been doing it for the past 2 years, even though I vowed never to do it again after last year. It occurred to me at 12:30 am why I said I would never do it again. I sat in traffic with all of the other crazy people who wanted to get a jump start on their Holiday shopping. I arrived at the outlets around 2:00 am, exhausted & still stuffed from Thanksgiving dinner #2! I thought I should eat one more late night turkey sandwich for the extra boost of energy. We all know turkey makes you exhausted, but how could I pass it up?

Anyway…finding a parking spot took me 20 minutes & the lines were ridiculous! I bought a few sweaters, 2 pairs of boots and a pair of jeans—not bad for the first hour. The only problem was, they were all for me. I needed to reward myself for the hassles—similar to that last turkey sandwich—at least that’s what I believed! I think I was either delirious or in a food coma. I finally ended up getting a couple things for my family & then high-tailed it out of there because it was just too much. The rest of my shopping will be done online, I suggest you do the same! No LINES, no hassels, great sales, no gas (the kind you put in your car)—just the way I like to shop!

I want to hear your crazy shopping experiences! You all must have a good story to share. In my opinion, the holiday season is the best time to laugh!
~Sally