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Where (and How) to Shop for Groceries Online

December 17, 2015 by

You shop for clothes, shoes and books online… but what about your groceries? If you hate battling the crowds at the grocery store (or simply can’t find the time to make it there), online grocery shopping may be the answer to your problems. Here are a few great places to shop for groceries online!

Peapod
Whether you want to pick up your groceries on the way home from work without ever leaving your car or simply have them delivered straight to your door, Peapod offers custom options for all types of anti-grocery shoppers. Browse the site’s large selection of organic produce, high-quality meats and seafood items, and fully prepared meals, and be sure to take advantage of its frequent sales and coupons.

Amazon
Your favorite place to shop for electronics may also become your go-to place to shop for groceries. By using the Prime Pantry option, you can fill a box with your favorite snacks, spices and fresh groceries—all for a flat shipping rate of $5.99.

Fresh Direct
Fresh Direct offers one of the largest selections of grocery items of any site, including deli meats and cheeses, bakery items, baby foods, and even wines and spirits. There are new products being added daily, as well as frequent sales just like the ones at the traditional grocery store.

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4 Diet and Weight Loss Tips for Men

December 3, 2015 by

Here are four diet and weight loss tips designed especially for men to help you trim down, tone up, and increase your overall health.

  1. Count your calories. Because many diet websites focus on women, their recommended diet plans might not apply to men. Be sure to work out a healthy eating plan with your doctor to ensure that you get the right amount of calories for your body type.
  2. Think about your younger years. If you played football or frequently lifted weights in your teens and twenties, think back on your healthy habits from these days when planning a weight loss plan. You can even pull out an old photo of yourself at your fittest for some inspiration.
  3. Keep a log. Use your phone or a discreet notebook to record your meals and workouts and to ensure that you stay on track.
  4. Know the risks. Men generally store fat in the upper body (which often shows up as a “beer belly”). This area is easier to lose weight in, but it can also cause heart disease if you hold on to it. Be sure to lose the weight and practice slow, steady weight loss techniques in order to keep it off.

3 Weight Loss Tips for Men [Spark People]
Weight Loss for Men [Weight Loss Resources]

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Calling All Telecommuters: Here’s How to Create a Functional At-Home Workspace

November 19, 2015 by

Nowadays more and more people are working from home full-time, whether you’re a telecommuter or a freelancer who works for yourself. While working at home has many perks, it can be difficult to find a space that’s free of distractions to get the job done. Here are a few smart tips for creating a functional workspace in your home—even if you don’t have a designated office.

  1. Choose the right space. If you have a separate room for your office, that’s great, but if not, you’ll need to create your own area. Pick somewhere where you can shut yourself away and avoid outside noise, and make sure it’s a spot where you can avoid distractions.
  2. Invest in a desk. Instead of working on the kitchen table (or worse yet, the sofa), invest in a designated desk that’s reserved only for work.
  3. Create storage. Keep your supplies organized by adding a file cabinet, shelving, pencil holders—whatever you need to minimize clutter.
  4. Add a comfortable chair. Instead of focusing on style, choose a chair based on what’s most comfortable for long hours in front of the screen.
  5. Make your Internet work for you. Fast, reliable Internet is essential for telecommuting, so to avoid unnecessary headache, choose a carrier that comes highly recommended in your area.

Telecommuting Tips: Setting Up A Home Office [Drive Less. Save More.]
4 Great Tips for a Functional Home Office [Flex Jobs]
10 Quick Tips to Create a Home Office You’ll Actually Want to Work In [Fast Company]

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Add These Two Foods to Your Diet for a Boost of Iron

November 5, 2015 by

Consuming iron-rich foods helps your cells transport oxygen throughout our body, preventing fatigue and supplying energy. So getting enough iron each day is important, and it can be very easy if you know which foods to look for. Incorporate these two iron-rich foods into your diet if you're lacking in the mineral:

  1. Dark chocolate. Treat yourself and do something good for your body by indulging in a piece of dark chocolate every now and again. Just one serving of 80% dark chocolate contains 4.1 milligrams of iron, so dessert can be an integral part of your healthy diet.
  2. Red meat. While you do want to be careful not to over-consume red meat, it is one of the most iron-rich foods. So you can select a package of lean ground beef to meet your daily needs.

Best Foods For Iron: 20 Foods Packed With Iron [Huffington Post]
Iron Rich Foods [WedMD]
Top 10 Foods Highest in Iron [Healthaliciousness]
Iron Rich Foods [American Red Cross]

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Bring the Fall Season Indoors With These Home Decor Projects

October 22, 2015 by

The change in seasons from summer to fall is one of the most dramatic, from the colorful leaves filling the trees to the acorns strewn across the ground. Bring the beauty of autumn into your home with a fun and creative DIY project that you can customize to your own liking.

Pumpkin Basket How-To [Martha Stewart]
If you usually decorate your home with plump pumpkins, get a bit more creative this year by turning one of those pumpkins into a basket to hold fresh flowers, pine cones, or other decorative accessories. Use a keyhole saw to hollow out the pumpkin and create a handle across the top that looks just like a real basket.

Botanical Leaf Pages [Real Simple]
You’ve likely seen vintage-inspired framed botanical prints lining the walls of chic homes, so create your own just in time for fall by using a few fallen leaves and some wax paper. Using a standard iron on low heat, press rows of leaves together between two sheets of wax paper and get creative with the arrangement.

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Delightful Recipes for Rich Chocolate Pudding

September 17, 2015 by

Just about everyone loves chocolate, and pudding is a simple dish that can be prepared a number of different ways. Combine the two tastes to create decadent chocolate pudding with these easy recipes.

Hasty Chocolate Pudding [AllRecipes]
When your guests are arriving in just a few minutes, this recipe tastes great but takes only a little while to prepare.

How to Make Perfect Chocolate Pudding from Scratch [The Kitchn]
Forego the boxed, prepackaged mixes and learn to make a real chocolate pudding with this recipe.

Best Chocolate Pudding [Smitten Kitchen]
Dark, rich, and just a pinch salty, this recipe makes a truly elegant chocolate pudding dish.

Chocolate Pudding [Food Network]
Learn to make Tyler Florence’s chocolate pudding from this gourmet recipe.

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Sweet Meets Savory in These Fresh Strawberry Recipes

August 20, 2015 by

From strawberry salads to fresh fruit salsas, the little strawberry is getting a major makeover in savory, salty, and sometimes even spicy dishes. If you want to find out how to incorporate strawberries into your dinner creations, these simple recipes will offer some great inspiration.

Spinach and Strawberry Salad [Southern Living]
Combining spinach and strawberry into a salad is one of the most common examples of a savory strawberry dish, and it’s not hard to see why. The combination of the mild greens with the sweet, juicy strawberries tastes delicious, and it perfectly complements anything from marinated chicken to steaks on the grill.

Brie with Strawberries and Honey [Coastal Living]
If you’re hosting a dinner party and want to provide your guests with an attractive hors d’oeuvres, this is a wonderful choice. Rich, creamy brie cheese is topped with warm honey and sweet strawberries in an appetizer that’s just as tasty as it is pretty.

Asparagus with White Balsamic Strawberries [Seasonal and Savory]
This healthy side dish is simple to make and requires only a few simple ingredients. Sliced strawberries warmed in a white balsamic vinegar make a perfect addition to the slightly bitter asparagus.

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Good Vibes Only: The Basics of Feng Shui

July 23, 2015 by

Have you ever considered applying the art of feng shui to your home's decor? This 300-plus-year-old Chinese belief system involves organizing the home in a way that promotes the flow of energy, and you don’t have to be an experienced scholar in order to reap its many benefits. Use these simple feng shui tips for organizing your home.

  1. Get rid of clutter. This is one of the most important aspects of feng shui. If you don’t use it, get rid of it. Try donating, gifting or recycling unused items.
  2. Know the health “trinity.” The feng shui trinity includes the bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen, the rooms most associated with health and vitality. Keep these areas clean, filled with light, and free of clutter.
  3. Properly position your furniture. Your furniture should allow for easy flow and movement from one room to the next. Avoid blocking doors or walkways, and keep hidden areas (like closets) free of blockages.
  4. Consider color. Colors like red and orange are associated with passion and energy, so use these in offices or dining rooms. Soothing shades of blue and green promote trust, peace, and harmony in the bedroom or bathroom, while cheerful yellow should be kept to the kitchen.
  5. Clean up the air. Add plants throughout your home to promote air purity, and keep the windows open as often as weather permits.

How To Create Good Feng Shui in Your Home [About.com]
Feng Shui Basics [Feng Shui For Real Life]
Feng Shui Basics: How Your Space Can Affect Your Mood [Tiny Buddha]

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Add a Touch of Color to Your Space With These Easy-Care Blooming Houseplants

June 18, 2015 by

If you want to breathe new life into your home’s decor, there are few better ways than by adding a few blooming houseplants. These unique plants give you a pop of green and a burst of bright color from their blossoming flowers, and they’re surprisingly easy to care for.

  • Begonia. Although most people think of begonias as outdoor plants, they also look beautiful inside your home. Types with fibrous roots work best indoors, and they bloom almost continuously throughout the year.
  • Peace lily. This elegant plant features a beautiful, white flower against its lush green leaves, and it’s one of the easiest to keep alive. The peace lily even does well in low light.
  • African violet. If you’re looking for a plant that will last for years to come, this is the one to choose. Their purple, red, or white flowers bloom almost year-round.
  • Orchid. Although orchids can be quite finicky plants, they flourish when placed in bright, indirect sunlight. Plus, they’re some of the most beautiful flowering houseplants.
  • Geranium. If you’re prone to forgetting a few waterings here and there, the geranium is the plant for you. These vibrant flowers thrive in dry soil between waterings, and they really bloom when placed in a bright window.

Flowering Houseplants [About Home]
The 16 prettiest and most colorful indoor flowering plants [Today Home]
16 Drop-Dead Gorgeous Flowering Houseplants [AOL Real Estate]

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Seeking Original Artwork? Here’s Where to Shop for It Online!

May 21, 2015 by

Furnishing your home with original artwork is a very fulfilling hobby, but unfortunately it can also be very expensive. There are quite a few websites that offer artwork created by independent artists for much less than gallery prices, which makes them beneficial to both you and the artist. Here are a few of the best.

Etsy
Etsy has become the internet’s go-to spot for handmade art and home goods, and for very good reason. This online marketplace enables independent artists to create an online shop and sell their goods, whether those goods are paintings, sculptures, or even wall hangings made out of old license plates. Best of all, you can search Etsy by keywords to find exactly what you have in mind for any room in your home.

Fine Art America
If you’re looking for more traditional paintings or photography for your home, Fine Art America is a great resource. This site features artwork from artists and photographers from around the world, at all price points.

Zatista
While many online art stores sell reproductions of famous works, Zatista offers only unique, original works that none of your neighbors will have. If you live in a small town or city that isn’t teeming with art galleries, this is the ideal way to browse thousands of pieces from artists who could be the next big thing.

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