I’ve found my go-to Happy Hour cocktail for summer!  One of my favorite Mexican restaurants turned me on to the Fresca Margarita, and they are awesome!  Finally, a Skinny Margarita that tastes like a real margarita and is easy to make at home.

This light and fruity drink is a refreshing alternative to . . . → Read More: A Fresca Margarita Is The Best Skinny Margarita]]>

I’ve found my go-to Happy Hour cocktail for summer!  One of my favorite Mexican restaurants turned me on to the Fresca Margarita, and they are awesome!  Finally, a Skinny Margarita that tastes like a real margarita and is easy to make at home.

This light and fruity drink is a refreshing alternative to the average margarita.  I use a premium blanco Tequila in mine. The little plastic lime shaped container of lime juice works fine if I don’t have fresh limes on hand.  If you are averse to Fresca, sub in grapefruit juice and splash of club soda instead.

Here’s my recipe:

Get yourself a festive 16 oz glass and add:

1 1/2 oz of premium blanco tequila (or to taste, depending on how hard your day has been )

1/2 oz of lime juice (fresh, lime shaped container or bottled)

Fill glass with fresca

Stir!

If you are feeling especially festive  add a “drunken lime” floater made from a cored-out half lime filled with a shot of tequila or Grand Marnier.

Sure, you can add the contents to a shaker first, then shake them and pour over ice, but truthfully I can’t taste the difference.  If you like salt with your margarita you can also wet the rim of the glass w/lime juice and cover with Margarita salt or Kosher salt.

Read more at Marthastewart.com: Paloma Cooler – Martha Stewart Recipes

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Right now, I am loving animal prints. They can be worn anywhere: to school, to a party, whatever. They’re perfect for any occasion! Here are some great ways to wear them:

As shoes! They’re a perfect pop of color to a casual outfit. Try jeans, a bright shirt, and . . . → Read More: Hot Right Now: Animal Prints]]>

Right now, I am loving animal prints. They can be worn anywhere: to school, to a party, whatever. They’re perfect for any occasion! Here are some great ways to wear them:

As shoes! They’re a perfect pop of color to a casual outfit. Try jeans, a bright shirt, and some animal prints. Try the Zebra Print Keds From Zappos. Another cute way to go would be leopard print flats – they’re perfect with jeans and a black blouse for a party.

Belt it! Animal print belts are just the perfect pop of “fun” into your outfit. I’d love to wear this belt by Anne Klein (which also comes in zebra print) with a black dress and red shoes. Perfect way to have fun and still keep your outfit classy.

To a party, school, or on a date, a leopard print cardigan is the perfect way to improve your outfit. If you’ve seen the popular show Pretty Little Liars, you probably saw Aria wearing hers in the season premiere (if not, click here to check it out). Well, I fell in love with her outfit and now a leopard print cardigan is the number one item on my wishlist! I like this inexpensive one by International Concepts. Pair it with a black dress and pumps for a date, or a white tanktop, boots and jeans for school! You can’t go wrong with this look.

And finally: wear it as a dress! But be careful, this isn’t for someone who’s shy: this is a LOUD way to wear this trend. I think this Leopard Print Dress by Gabriella Rocha is affordable and definitely cute. Wear it poolside as a cover up or at a Girls Night Out with your friends – either way, you’ll be making a statement.

This was originally posted by my friends at Teen Style Today.

I’m kind of addicted to the whole app world, so I was interested to see this list from Tech Crunch of the Top 40 iPhone Apps . . . → Read More: Top iPhone Apps of 2010]]>

OK, so I love my iPhone. I’ve had one since the beginning, and have upgraded to every new model that comes along. I admit I’m a gadget girl.)

I’m kind of addicted to the whole app world, so I was interested to see this list from Tech Crunch of the Top 40 iPhone Apps of 2010. I’ve already started downloading the ones I don’t already have!

I’ve listed a few of the top picks here, and you can read the entire list at TechCrunch.com.

Top iPhone Apps:

Kindle: I’m one of those people who prefers reading off an e-ink Kindle to an LCD iPad. For the millions like me, the Kindle app makes a perfect companion. However, while I don’t take my Kindle everywhere, I always have my phone. Just boot up the app and you can continue reading from where you last left off.

Groupon: This is a solid companion app to the daily-deal service Groupon, which offers up a deeply discounted product or service for a limited time. The app makes the process easier to manage without the need of the website. There are a few ancillary features like Discussion, but the real reason to keep it around is to easily check out the daily deals.

Chase Mobile: While I don’t use Chase for banking, this app deserves some serious recognition. For an industry that isn’t known for pushing the technology envelope, Chase did something pretty cool here. Instead of going to a banking center or ATM, you can simply take a picture of the front and back of a check and the amount is deposited into your account. Beats driving to a bank.

Price Check by Amazon: Sure, there are several barscanning apps out there. Some work better than others, but Price Check is just about flawless. Considering I buy nearly everything from Amazon (from vitamins to electronics), I may be a bit biased. But regardless, this app offers an easy, effective way to check the price of physical goods in a store to see if you can get it cheaper online.

Let me know what your favorite apps are, no matter which phone you have. My two favorites (so far) are Kindle and Groupon.

Read a Good Book on . . . → Read More: A Few Good Ways To Spend New Year’s Day]]>

Looking for things to do on New Year’s Day? We often spend all of our time planning for New Year’s Eve, but the first day of the new year is just as important. Here are a few fun and practical ideas about how to spend New Year’s Day 2011:

Read a Good Book on the Beach

Obviously the #1 choice.  But if you aren’t doing this, I’ve got a few other suggestions.

Re-connect with Friends, Extended Family and Colleagues

You can never have too many friends and New Year’s Day is the perfect day of the year to reach out to those who you haven’t spoken to in awhile. We all get so busy, especially around the holidays.

Also, in this economy with more layoffs announced daily, keeping in touch with friends, extended family and colleagues is very important. When it’s time to change employers, having an inside contact can make a significant difference, considering all the competition. They can help get your resume directly to the hiring manager.So, grab the telephone and make some quick New Year’s Day greeting phone calls. Perhaps, send a brief email, sharing some personal, professional or family updates, wishing recipients a Happy New Year and inviting responses.Creating or updating your Face Book, Linked In or other social networking site profile is a great idea on New Years. Find friends, family members or key contacts on the site and send them invitations to connect.

Take a Hot Yoga Class

Yoga is well known for it’s healing, cleansing and renewal effects. What better day for cleansing and renewal than on New Year’s Day! Hot Yoga classes are taught in a heated room, with temperatures ranging from 90 degrees to 104 degrees. The heat promotes muscle flexibility and sweating, which helps get the toxins (ex. bottle of champagne on New Year’s Eve) out of your body. If you are new to yoga, almost any class can be adjusted for students at all levels, from beginner to expert.

Do Some Expiration Date Cleaning

Have you ever prepared a salad, added the dressing, taken a bite and then stopped chewing because you could taste that something was wrong? Then, when you looked at the salad dressing bottle your read that the “best used by” date was from the prior year? We tend to be so busy in our day to day lives, we don’t take the time to remove the outdated items.

On New Year’s Day, set aside an hour and do some expiration date cleaning. Take a look in your refrigerator door and toss everything with expired dates. Look in your freezer and toss the items that are no longer recognizable and are likely infused with freezer burn. Also, look inside your medicine cabinet and toss the old medications and ointments as well as older make-up items, like mascara, that should be replaced on a regular basis.

Host a New Year’s Day Brunch or Open House
Invite your friends and family over for a New Year’s Day brunch. Keep it relaxed by using an “open house” format where attendees can come and go as they please. More and more people are staying at home on New Year’s Eve, and would look forward to an event the next day.

And, finally, my personal favorite:

Do A Whole Lotta Nothing

Get up as late as possible, lounge around in comfy sweatpants and your favorite tee shirt, drink mimosas, down an entire bag of potato chips or plate of home made cookies, order in Chinese Food or Pizza, watch a Law and Order marathon, cuddle etc. etc. etc.

It’s the only time when nations, religions, festivals and other regional or local occasions cease to become a factor. Pretty much everyone and . . . → Read More: It’s Just Another New Year’s Eve]]>

The world’s biggest combined party is New Year’s Eve. It starts around Sydney and travels time zone by time zone around the globe like some sort of well-coordinated pre-planned pyrotechnic explosion.

It’s the only time when nations, religions, festivals and other regional or local occasions cease to become a factor. Pretty much everyone and everyplace around the globe recognizes the New Year with some type of celebration.

Because of the scale of the night, one eternal question burns: Where is the best place to spend this momentous occasion?

For me, the answer is someplace near a beach.  Stick a cool beverage in my hand on a sunny beach and I’ll be happy for a week. Alas, I haven’t been near a beach on New Year’s for quite a few years.  Work and family obligations, you know.   Instead, I will be at our annual neighborhood NYE bash. It is always a great party with fabulous, food, drink, friends, and music, so I anticipate a great time will be had by all.  And really, isn’t being surrounded by great friends and loved ones really is the best place to be on New Year’s Eve?

Wishing you and yours a safe, happy, and prosperous New Year.