Tuesday, December 25, 2012
"This time of year generally brings out the best in people, and we have certainly seen that here at the American Red Cross."
- VOLUNTEERS IN THE NEWS
-
Tuesday, December 25, 2012
This Letter to the Editor is from Cindy Erickson, Regional CEO, American Red Cross. This time of year generally brings out the best in people, and we have certainly seen that here at the American Red Cross. Because Service to the Armed Forces is a key mission area for the Red Cross, during the month of November, we asked the community to help send holiday greetings to service members around the world, their families and veterans in homes and hospitals. While a holiday card might sound like a small thing, we hear every year that it means a great deal to those who are away from their homes and/or families. Last year, the American Red Cross collected and sent an amazing 1.3 million cards around the world… and 4,000 of those cards came from …
Monday, December 24, 2012
How much will we spend this year? And what's the best-selling Christmas song of all time? Find the answers below.
We know that there were three Wise Men, 12 days of Christmas and that Santa delivers all his presents around the world in one night. But did you know... $23,439.38 How much it would cost to buy your "true love" all the gifts in the 12 Day of Christmas . 12.9 billion hours, $447 billion How many hours Americans were expected to spend shopping, wrapping and returning gifts last year. That was about 42 hours and $688.87 per person. Get your postman/postwoman a gift According to Hallmark, Christmas is the largest card-sending occasion . Nearly 1.5 billion cards are sent to friends and family every Christmas Season. (That's actually down 400 million cards since 2004.) $983 million The value of U.S. imports of Christmas tree ornaments from …
Make your family's comfort foods a bit healthier this holiday season.
Over the course of this week and next many traditional or “comfort” foods will likely grace your table and since these foods might only appear once a year the inclination is to enjoy them as much as you want. While this is fine, you can find a midpoint that allows for enjoyment and some degree of healthy eating. Enjoying special foods of the season is part of what makes the season special but if recipes still retain the more traditional high fat, high sugar, high calorie bent it might be time to make some modifications. Recipe changes that are easy to make include: In addition to recipe changes, you can maintain the comfort of traditional foods by choosing smaller portions, by eating more slowly to savor the flavor and by focusing on …
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
When shopping for wine, visit a local wine shop where experts are on hand to help you select the perfect vintage.
Patch asked three local wine experts what they would recommend for holiday gift giving and was suprised to get the same answer. “What do they like to drink?” In the world of wine, there’s no one perfect bottle. The best gift wine is given with ample thought towards the recipient. Do they like sweet dessert wines or a bold Cabernet Sauvignon? Would they like a bottle from a faraway land, or one from their favorite local Missouri winery? When pushed, wine experts reluctantly will give a few recommendations. But they’d much rather talk with you in person where they can show you around the shop and point out popular or underappreciated wines. Straub’s (Clayton, Webster Groves) “The hottest category in wines are pinot gris from Oregon,” said …
Friday, November 23, 2012
What's Christmas without a moose hanging on your tree?
For most families, decorating the Christmas tree is a personal exercise. Branches are filled with kid's ornaments made through the year at school, or items that carry a sentimental value. Some ornaments reflect the decorator's personality or interests, like the glass pickle that hangs on the tree, or the golf ball ornament that has a cherished place each year. If you're looking for something other than those boring glass balls, or the Christmas balls to adorn your tree, here's a selection of odd and unusual things at Walmart to hang on the tree this year: Merry Christmoose -- Looking a lot like a hedgehog with antlers, the Christmas moose is available for $1.97. St. Louis Cardinals Gnome Game -- Sporting a St. Louis Cardinals on his cap, …
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Hand turkeys are a Thanksgiving staple for many elementary school students who make the their own unique bird after tracing their hand on a sheet of paper. Patch gave them a bit of assistance this year, collecting hand tracings from local officials.
If you are the parent of a grade schooler, you have probably received, at one time or another, a "hand turkey" piece of art around Thanksgiving time. It's a simple concept, students trace their hand on a sheet of paper and then make a turkey out of the resulting shape. This year, Patch collected the hand silhouettes from a number of community leaders in order to give students at High Ridge Elementary, Murphy Elementary and Brennan Woods Elementary schools a leg up on a traditional Thanksgiving project. Hand tracings were provided by the Northwest School District superintendent and school board members, the High Ridge fire chief, the Northwest High School principal, City of Fenton officials and officers in the Fenton Area Chamber of …
Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday rule the shopping roost after Thanksgiving.
If you have a black belt in Black Friday shopping, listen up: area big-box retailers are gearing up to dazzle bargain hunters even earlier this year — starting on Thanksgiving Day! Walmart announced that it would open its doors at 8 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 22 and offer holiday doorbusters while supplies last. These include deals on TVs, iPads, an electric scooter for $79 and a steam mop for $39. Not to be outdone, Target and Best Buy are also planning all-out holiday shopping assaults. Target's deals begin at 9 p.m. According to an ad leaked online, the best deals will be for TVs, a Nook, a Nikon camera and an XBOX 360 Kinect bundle. At Best Buy, doors open at midnight. Doorbusters include deals on TVs, phones and Samsung laptop bundles. …
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
The Gardenland Express is only one of a wide variety of events marking the holiday season. Traditional celebrations for Chanukah, Christmas and Kwanzaa are also planned.
The Missouri Botanical Garden outlined its season-long schedule of holiday events in a news release recently. Included in the holiday events are flora, toy trains, holiday crafts and plenty of holiday decorations. The Missouri Botanical Garden is sharing the spirit of the holiday season with an abundance of festivities to create lasting memories for young and old alike. Enjoy the return of the colorful Gardenland Express holiday flower and train show, two weekends filled with holiday carols and visits with Santa, holiday décor, traditional Chanukah and Kwanzaa celebrations, and more. For detailed information on the complete lineup of holiday happenings, visit the Garden's website. Gardenland Express The annual Gardenland Express holiday …
Saturday, October 27, 2012
Patch wandered through Barnes and Noble and found a baker's dozen of great reads for kids big and small.
38.511815
-90.445565
Barnes & Noble Booksellers
721 Gravois Rd, Fenton, MO
/articles/13-children-s-books-that-make-awesome-gifts-this-holiday-season
1515346
/locations/8072820
Thad James
8:37 pm on Friday, November 23, 2012
These are great! Reminds me of my aunt's tacky tree from my childhood. She would find the most horrific decorations. Thanks for the pictures. more ›