Not one of my favorite Natasha looks....

A New Survey Says Men Don't Hate Valentine's Day . . . They Fear It:

It would make sense if men hated Valentine's Day. It's a day where there are about eight billion ways to screw up, and you can only really nail it if you read minds . . . or if years of disappointment have lowered your wife or girlfriend's expectations. But according to a new survey, men don't hate Valentine's Day. No . . . they FEAR it.

--33% of single men say they intentionally avoid getting into relationships between Thanksgiving and Valentine's Day because of the pressure it causes. --And another 35% say that, this time of year, they don't bother even trying to date.

--41% would never schedule a first date for Valentine's Day. 62% of single women say they'd be fine having a first date on February 14th. --BUT . . . once Valentine's Day is over, men start trying to date again. 42% of single men said that finding a girlfriend was their number one priority for the year . . . compared to 24% who said their career is the top priority.

Ranch Burgers and Homemade Fries

Jay and I tested out a new recipe and trust us, this is one you're gonna love so much that you might make it twice in one week! We wanna say a special thanks to Stauffers of Kissel Hill Supermarket for supplying the groceries and the recipe. You can find the recipe below and also at http://www.skh.com/

Ranch Burgers-

Ingredients: 1½ pounds ground beef, 4 teaspoons Ranch Rub, 4 hamburger buns, split, ¼ cup prepared creamy ranch dressing, 2 tablespoons canned French-fried onions, Romaine lettuce and tomato slices.

Ingredients for Ranch Rub: 2 tsp sweet paprika, 2 tsp dried thyme, 1½ tsp salt, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp onion powder, ½ tsp ground black pepper, ½ tsp ground red pepper, ½ tsp ground white pepper

Instructions for Ranch Rub: combine all ingredients. Store in airtight container. Shake before using.

Directions: lightly shape ground beef into four 3/4-inch thick patties. Press Ranch Rub onto patties. Heat large nonstick skillet over medium heat until hot. Place patties in skillet; cook 12 to 15 minutes to medium (160 degrees F) doneness, until not pink in center and juices show no pink color, turning once. Serve in buns with dressing, onions, lettuce and tomato.

Homemade French Fries-

Ingredients: potatoes, flour and salt.

Directions: cut potatoes down to French fry size, slicing about ½ inch wide and 2-3 inches long. Fill large bowl with water and 2 tablespoons of salt. Place fries in water and allow to soak about 15 minutes. While fries are soaking, heat oil in deep fryer or skillet. Remove fries from water and dry with paper towel. Pour 2 cups of flour into ziplock bag and add potatoes by handful then shake until fries are completely covered. Add fries to hot oil and cook 4-6 minutes. Allow to cool before serving

Five Popular Valentine's Day Flowers, and What They Supposedly Mean:

Giving red roses on Valentine's Day is kind of 'safe,' so some guys like to branch out. But BEWARE . . . the magazine "Marie Claire" says the flowers you get might be sending the wrong message. Clearly this is total nonsense, but here are the secret meanings behind five popular types of flowers.

#1.) Yellow Tulips. They mean he's hopelessly in love with you, but he's worried you're not that too into him.

#2.) Orchids. They supposedly represent "refined beauty", but "Marie Claire" also says they make your man look pretentious.

#3.) Pink Carnations. They represent "a mother's love", so they're more appropriate for Mother's Day than Valentine's Day.

#4.) Coriander. It's actually an herb, but it's used as filler in bouquets. And according to "Marie Claire", it represents "lust", and means he's more interested in whoopi than in having a meaningful relationship.

#5.) Peonies. They look kind of like carnations and represent "shame and bashfulness" . . . so they might represent that your guy is having affair. (???) Anyway . . . let's thank "Marie Claire" for adding even more anxiety to a 'holiday' that already has enough. And remember: Getting ANY kind of flowers on Valentine's Day is better than not getting any at all!

Dry Shampoo. Does it REALLY work???

I don't know about you, but I can never seem to get enough sleep. Between long work hours and juggling the other things in my life, most nights it feels like my head hits the pillow and as soon as I shut my eyes, it's time to get back up.

I have to wash my hair every day. I’ve got oily skin and oily hair. If I skip a day of washing my hair, it looks like someone poured a bottle of oil on my head. If it’s not bad enough that I have to wash my hair every day, I also have to blow dry and straighten it because it’s thick and wavy and a complete frizzy mess. Getting ready in the morning can take FOREVER.

So I was pretty psyched when I found TRESemmé Fresh Start Dry Shampoo. Could this be the answer to sneaking in a little bit more sleep on those mornings I don’t really have to shower?

I have to warn you that TRESemmé Fresh Start Dry Shampoo isn’t cheap. Mine was on sale, but still cost me almost 6 bucks. So what I did this morning was hop out of bed, grab my can of dry shampoo, spray it through my hair (just like hairspray) focusing on the roots and then let it sit while I got dressed. After I got dressed, I brushed my hair and was amazed at how much body and bounce it had. No joke-my hair went from oily to full of body in less than 2 minutes and I didn’t even have to blow dry or straighten! I could have done without the smell of the shampoo- kinda had a chemical smell to it, but it wore off after about 15 minutes.

All in all, I’m super happy with this shampoo and can totally see using it on days when I’m in a rush or when I oversleep. Here are some pics I took after using TRESemmé Fresh Start Dry Shampoo this morning:

Five Subtle Ways You're Getting Ripped Off at the Grocery Store:

#1.) Sneaky Packaging Tricks. Look at the bottom of basically any jar of peanut butter, and you'll notice that it isn't flat, it curves in. And they do it for one reason: So they can get away with cheating you out of 2 ounces of peanut butter. -Other companies do the same thing: Toilet paper still has the same number of sheets per roll, but the sheets are getting shorter and thinner. -And the same goes with cereal boxes. They're the same height and width, but the boxes are getting skinnier.

#2.) Bags That Are Half Full of Chips . . . And Half Full of Air. This one probably qualifies as a "sneaky packaging tip", but it's so outrageous it gets its own spot on the list. -If you've bought a bag of Ruffles in the last ten years, you know that half the bag is actually filled with air. And in the food industry, there's a term for it: It's called "slack fill". -The FDA allows "slack fill" because if there was NO air, the chips would get crushed during shipping. But a lot of companies slack fill their bags way too much so customers think they're buying more than they really are.

#3.) Charging More for High SPF Sun Block. SPF 5 and SPF 50 both cost the same to manufacture. But companies assume that if people see a higher number on the bottle, they'll be willing to pay more. And they're right.

#4.) Injecting Meat With Broth. It sounds gross, but companies do it to add flavor and make the meat juicier. At least that's what they SAY the reason is. -The REAL reason is because broth is basically just water and salt, so it's cheap. But it makes the meat weigh more, which also makes it COST more. And according to Consumer Reports, some brands of packaged chicken are up to 30% broth.

#5.) Expiration Dates. People assume that expiration dates are regulated by the government to keep us from getting sick. But that's not true. The federal government has nothing to do with expiration dates. -It's the manufacturers who decide what they should be. And companies figured out a long time ago that when things like dairy products pass their expiration date, people freak out and throw them away . . . then go out and buy more.

Some random Valentine's Day facts if you're interested....

1,317. The number of candy and chocolate manufacturers in the U.S. California has the most, Pennsylvania is second.

24.3. Total number of pounds of candy consumed by the average American in 2009. That averages out to about one candy bar every one-and-a-half days.

18,509. The number of florists in the U.S.

26,683. The number of jewelry stores in the U.S. Last February, they combined for $2.4 BILLION in sales.

2.1 MILLION. The number of marriages in the U.S. in 2009. That's an average of about 5,800 per day.

28.2 and 26.1. The average age of men and women, respectively, getting married for the first time in 2010.

73%. The percentage of married women who made it to their 10th anniversary.

393. The number of dating services in the U.S., including online dating sites.

19%. The percentage of married people who are on their second marriage.

8. The average length, in years, of first marriages that end in divorce. For people who get remarried, it happens an average of three-and-a-half years after the first marriage ends.

Own your very own Kate doll!

If you're a royal wedding nut, then you'll love this. Star magazine has an ad for the KATE MIDDLETON royal engagement doll. A limited edition, fully poseable porcelain figure including a replica engagement ring exactly like PRINCE WILLIAM gave his bride to be. Retail price: five easy installments of $29.95. Here's the site where you can buy your very own doll: http://www.ashtondrake.com

Does the Super Bowl Lead To Domestic Violence, Avocado Shortages, Heart Attacks, and Sewage Problems?

There are a ton of myths that start circulating every year around Super Bowl time. It leads to heart attacks! It leads to domestic violence! It leads to people gorging on avocados! Here's your guide to what's true and what's not:

--Everyone flushing the toilet at halftime does not cause sewer problems. It's been at least a century since sewage systems could be overwhelmed by something like a halftime bathroom rush. We're in the clear.

--Domestic violence does not increase. This is an old myth that says the combination of drunkenness and disappointment leads to an increase in men attacking their wives. No statistics have EVER backed this up.

--We don't eat half of the country's avocado supply on Super Bowl Sunday. There's a popular rumor that Americans eat HALF of the avocados consumed in a year as part of their Super Bowl guacamole. It's not that high . . . but it is a solid 3% of the total.

--It might cause heart attacks. There's a new study that just came out . . . that hasn't been debunked yet . . . that says the Super Bowl MIGHT lead to more heart attacks. --The study analyzed heart attacks in L.A. from Super Bowl Sunday 1980, when the L.A. Rams lost . . . and from 1984, when the L.A. Raiders won. After the loss, there was a significant increase in heart attacks . . . after the win, there wasn't.

Six Things You Should Always Negotiate the Price Of:

Most people think haggling is for street fairs and yard sales. But according to CBS Money Watch, you can get a better deal on a lot of things if you just ask. Here are six things you should always negotiate a better price for . . .

#1.) Credit Card Rates. After the economy tanked in 2008, and the credit card reform bill went into effect in February of last year, it was a lot harder to get a good rate on a new credit card. --But in the third quarter of last year, 1.2 billion credit card offers were mailed out, which is three times the number sent out in the third quarter of 2009. --And since there's more competition now, credit card companies are more likely to give you a better rate, because they want your business. All you have to do is say you have another offer at a lower rate, and ask them to beat it. --According to a study done a few years ago by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group, more than half of the people who ask for a lower rate get one. And their average APR drops from 16% to 10.5%.


#2.) Mortgage Rates. Mortgage lending is a lot harder than it used to be, so lenders are more willing to reduce certain fees, or even waive them completely. --So the best thing to do is compare the rates at a few different mortgage lenders, then ask each one to beat the best price you found. And you can spend less out-of-pocket money if you ask for discounts on all the fees they make you pay up front.

#3.) Home Improvements. According to the executive director of Consumer Reports, business is still slow for contractors, and they're willing to do more work for less money. --In a survey done last year, 80% of contractors said they were willing to lower their prices to get a job, compared to 43% in 2008. Of that 80%, half were willing to drop their prices by 10%, and almost one-quarter said they'd drop prices by 20%.

#4.) Major Appliances. According to a study by Consumer Reports, 75% of shoppers get a better deal if they negotiate the price on appliances, and the average savings is around $100 per appliance. --But don't go in the middle of the day when it's busy. If other customers can overhear you, the manager is less likely to offer a good deal because he'd have to offer it to everyone else who asked too. --And if they won't budge on the price, you can still negotiate a better deal by asking for free delivery.

#5.) Medical Tests and Procedures. The price varies depending on where you go. For example, a recent study revealed that having an MRI done on your knee in Washington D.C. costs between $400 and $1,500 depending on where you go. --And if you know what one hospital charges, you can use that to negotiate a better deal with another hospital. Sometimes, you can save 50%.

#6.) New Cars. Negotiating the price of a car isn't just acceptable, it's expected. And you can save over a thousand dollars on a new car if you do it right. --All you have to do is shop around and find the best deal you can, then ask dealerships to beat it. --And instead of negotiating down from the sticker price, ask what the INVOICE price is . . . which is the price the dealer paid for it . . . then negotiate UP. You can find the invoice price for most new cars at the website Edmunds.com.

Cool Website: Snow Day Calculator

If you're tired of waiting until the last minute to find out whether or not your kids have a snow day, I've got an awesome website for you. It's called the 'Snow Day Calculator.'

You enter your zip code, your type of school, the number of snow days you've had so far this year, the leniency of your school's administration, whether there's a special event the next day, and whether you're in a mountainous region.

There's also something where you enter the level of 'hype' for a snow day . . . meaning how much kids, teachers, administration, and the media are talking about a possible storm. Then click 'Calculate,' and the site grabs data from weather.gov.

The site was built by a 16-year-old 11th-grader in Watchung, New Jersey named David Sukhin. He came up with the algorithm when he was in the sixth grade . . . and he says it's never failed him once.

You can check out the site here: http://imsoweird.com/predict.php

Traci and Jay's Stauffers of Kissel Hill Big Game Binge Recipes

The big game is next weekend and Jay and I teamed up with our facebook friends and Stauffers of Kissel hill Supermarket to cook up and test out some recipes to serve to the football fans in our lives.

BBQ Franks recipe from Renita Marshall

Ingredients: package of little franks, package of bacon and brown sugar.

Directions: wrap franks with 1/3 slice of bacon, place in baking dish, cover with brown sugar and bake at 350 degrees until bacon is as crisp as you'd like.

Buffalo Chicken Dip from Danielle Fink

Ingredients: 2-10 ounce cans of chunk chicken drained, 2- 8 ounce packages of cream cheese softened, 1 cup of ranch dressing, 3/4 cup of hot sauce, 1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese, 1 bunch of celery cut into 4 inch pieces, 1 box of chicken flavored crackers.

Directions: heat chicken and hot sauce in skillet over medium heat until well heater. Stir in cream cheese and ranch dressing and cook until well blended and warm. Mix in half of the shredded cheese and transfer the mixture to slow cooker. Sprinkle the rest of the cheese over top. cover and cook on low until hot and bubbly. Serve with celery and crackers.

Southern Caviar recipe from Valerie Hobbs

Ingredients: 1 can of corn, 1 can of black beans, 1 can of chick peas, 1 can of black eyed peas, 1/2 cup of onion, 2 chopped tomatoes, half cup parsley, 2 cloves of garlic, 8 ounces of italian dressing.

Directions: chop and mix all. Refrigerate at least 2 hours and serve with tortilla chips.

Loaded Potato Skins recipe from Heather Barthold

Ingredients: potatoes, bacon, green onions and cheddar cheese.

Directions: bake potatoes in tin foil for 1 hour at 350 degrees. Let cool. Cut potatoes in half and scoop out middle. Set middle aside in a bowl. Deep fry potatoes at 350 degrees for about 2 minutes or until crispy. While potatoes are frying, mix together all ingredients with center portion of potato that you set aside. After potatoes have deep fried, let cool and then scoop mixture into skins. Serve with a side of sour cream.

In honor of the big game, Jay and I decided to make a sandwich native to Pittsburgh and one native to Wisconsin.

Pittsburgh Ham BBQ Sandwich

Ingredients: 1/2 cup butter, 1 small onion, finely chopped, 2 cups ketchup, 1/3 cup distilled white vinegar, 1/2 cup water, 3 tablespoons brown sugar, 2 teaspoons prepared yellow mustard,2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, 1 1/2 pounds chipped chopped ham, 8 Kaiser rolls, split, 1 cup pickle relish

Directions: Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat; cook and stir the onions in the butter until translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir the ketchup, vinegar, water, brown sugar, mustard, and Worcestershire sauce into the skillet with the onions; simmer about 10 minutes. Stir in the ham; cook until heated through and the sauce is bubbling, 5 to 7 minutes more. While the ham simmers, heat the Kaiser rolls in the preheated oven until toasted, 5 to 7 minutes. Assemble the sandwiches by dividing the ham mixture among the toasted Kaiser rolls, topping the ham with pickle relish. Serve hot.

Wisconsin Corned Beef Sandwich

Ingredients: 1 can of corned beef hash, 2 tablespoons mayo, 1 table spoon basil pest sauce, ½ teaspoon hot sauce, bacon and frozen Texas toast.

Directions: cook corned beef to desired doneness. Combine mayo, pesto and hot sauce and add to corned beef mixture. Cook bacon and Texas toast according to package directions. Lay a piece of Texas toast in frying pan that’s been coated with cooking spray. Put bacon on toast and then cover with corned beef mixture. Place slice of tomato on top and cover with another piece of bread. Heat until toast is golden brown.

The four most satisfying jobs...

If you're thinking of changing careers, Yahoo has a list of the four most satisfying jobs in the United States, based on opportunity, salary, flexibility, and how easy it is to advance your career. Here's the list.

#1.) Freelance Graphic Designer. It's creative, and you can work from home. And according to the American Institute of Graphic Arts, the average freelance graphic designer makes around $55,000 a year.

#2.) Critical Care Nurse. According to a survey done by the University of Chicago, jobs that involve helping other people rate highest in job satisfaction. And according to the Department of Labor, the average critical care nurse made around $66,000 in 2009.

#3.) Quality Assurance Managers for Software Companies. According to a 2010 poll, 45% of them have flexible work schedules. And after five years, the average salary is around $85,000.

#4.) Hospital Administrator. The Department of Labor predicts steady growth in the healthcare industry through at least 2018. And health care managers make $90,000 a year on average, with the top ten percent making more than $140,000.

Crazy Funny Face Lift Exercises

Wait. What?!?!?!?

The Seven Craziest Diets In History:

If you think today's crash diets are crazy, check out this list of the weird diets from the past. Just to be clear, these are all diets you should NEVER try, because they don't work . . . and some of them can even KILL you.

#1.) The Vinegar Diet. It was popular in the 1800s, and basically consisted of drinking massive amounts of vinegar, which resulted in vomiting and diarrhea. --It was made popular by the poet Lord Byron, who suffered from severe anorexia and bulimia.

#2.) The Chewing Diet. In 1903, a San Francisco art dealer claimed that he dropped 40 pounds by over-chewing his food. And he said anyone could do it, just by chewing each bite at least 32 times. --After chewing, you were supposed to let the food "trickle" down your throat instead of swallowing . . . which sounds like a major choking hazard. --Then if any pieces of food were too big to "trickle", you had to spit them out in your napkin . . . which is just nasty.

#3.) The Tapeworm Diet. This one was popular in the early 1900s, and the crazy thing is, it works. If you ingest a tapeworm, it'll live in your stomach, feed off the food you eat, and make you lose up to one or two pounds a week. --On the downside, you've got a worm living in your stomach that could eventually KILL you. And it's so dangerous, the importing and selling of tapeworms is illegal in the United States.

#4.) The Cigarette Diet. In the 1920s, cigarettes were also marketed as appetite suppressants, and Lucky Strike ads included the line, "Pass me a Lucky . . . I pass up the sweets." The main side effect of the diet: cancer.

#5.) The Slimming Soap Diet. In the 1930s, special soaps were sold that could allegedly WASH your fat away. Long story short, they didn't work.

#6.) The Drinking Man's Diet. A book called "The Drinking Man's Diet" came out in 1964, and it was a hit with chubby alcoholics everywhere. In two years, 2.4 million copies were sold, in 13 languages. --It's basically all about avoiding carbs. So it's like the South Beach diet, but you also have to drink hard liquor with every meal. --Some people still swear by it, but that much drinking can obviously lead to OTHER problems in your life.

#7.) The Cotton Ball Diet. Rumor has it, models still use this one to stay skinny. It involves soaking cotton balls or tissues in water, then eating them before meals so you feel full on less food. But it can seriously damage your digestive tract. --Plus, you can accomplish the same thing by drinking a big glass of water before dinner, or eating sugar-free Jell-O . . . which tastes a lot better than cotton.

Sweet Birthday Memories

My birthday is coming up and I always get a little nostalgic this time of year. My mom made birthdays big. When I say big, I mean BIG! Of the 7 of us kids, 3 were born on holidays. I was first on Valentine's Day, Jeff was next on Easter and Brian rounded out the three holiday babies by being born on Christmas day. Mom didn't want our birthdays to get lost in the excitement of the other holidays, so she did things on a much grander scale than most moms.

My birthday week celebration started in the kitchen with me and my mom making huge heart shaped sugar cookies that were decorated in white icing and then very carefully, we’d write out the names of each of my classmates in pink icing. They were taken to school and passed around- a tradition carried on long after the days of elementary school snack sharing. Then the decorations would go up. I never saw mom decorate. I’d wake up and there would be red hearts strung all over the downstairs.

The day of my birthday, I’d wake to the smell of pancakes, but not any old pancakes- pink heart shaped ones. I’d walk out the door to go to school and be greeted by my birthday sign. Mom found a huge roll of butcher paper at a garage sale and used it to make handmade signs that she’s hang from the front porch so anyone going by our house would know it was someone’s birthday. I can’t even imagine how she found the time to draw and color everything by hand big enough that it could be seen by the whole neighborhood, but she did. I wish I could remember all of the messages she wrote on that butcher paper over the years, but I can’t. However I do remember one year the sign said something like “Happy birthday to my Valentine baby, love Mom.” I always looked forward to walking out the front door to see what message was posted on my birthday sign. And my friends and the people in our neighborhood got a kick out of it too.

I can’t remember one year when it didn’t snow on my birthday, but I can remember as a special birthday treat, a few times mom drove me to school instead of me walking. We always had a family birthday party that included lots of games and singing and dancing and giggling. Somewhere along the line my mom got the idea to start the birthday whipped cream tradition. Anyone who was over at my house had to stand in a line with our heads tilted back and mouths open. Mom would walk down the line and fill out mouths with canned whipped cream. She never got mad if it spilled out onto our clothes or the carpet. She just laughed as she wiped it up. I remember my 16th birthday after doing the whipped cream thing; all my friends went outside and had a snowball fight. Whipped cream and snow don’t smell so great, but it was fun!

Mom had a challenge when it came to my birthday cake. I don’t like cake. And I don’t care for chocolate. And I’m not a big fan of icing. So she had to get creative. I LOVE cookies and cream ice cream and mom found the perfect cake for me. It’s the one thing as an adult that I’ve missed the very most about my birthday- the special cake mom made me every year from as far back as I can remember to the day I moved away from home. And so, I now share with you the recipe for the cake that holds so many special memories for me:

Icebox Cake
2-3 packages of Nabisco Famous Chocolate Wafers
3 cups heavy whipping cream
1 Tablespoon vanilla
3 tablespoons of powdered sugar

Beat the cream with the sugar and vanilla until soft peaks form.

On a serving plate, arrange seven cookies in a circle, with one in the center. Spread the cookies with half a cup of the whipped cream. It should be at least a quarter inch thick between the layers. Repeat until you get to about four or five inches high, finishing with a layer of cream. Do a little decorative stack on the top if you like.

Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least four to six hours. Dust with cocoa powder or crumble leftover wafers and top cake with them before serving.

The Best Months to Buy Things in 2011

You can save a lot of money if you buy things when they're off-season. So if you're planning a big purchase, you might want to hold off for a few months. Here are the best things to buy throughout the year . . .


This month Is a Good Time to Buy . . . Bikes and sporting goods because retailers have to bring in new inventory and slash prices on old stuff. --And it's also a good month to buy an air conditioner, because NO ONE is buying an air conditioner this month.

February Is a Good Month to Buy . . . Digital cameras, because most of the big electronics trade shows will be over by then. That means all the new models will be available in stores, and the old models will cost less. --Chocolate is also cheaper after February 14th . . . for obvious reasons.

March Is a Good Month to Buy . . . Winter clothing, because winter is almost over. And luggage, because it's not a popular time of year for traveling. --Boat show season also ends in March, so if you're in the market for a YACHT, wait a few months.

April is a Good Month to Buy . . . Car parts and sneakers. And vacuum cleaners go on sale because the new models arrive in June.

May is a Good Month to Buy . . . Patio furniture and party supplies. And cookware goes on sale because of all the upcoming graduations and weddings.

June is a Good Month to Buy . . . Gym memberships, because the weather is nice. It's also a good month to buy tools and men's suits, which both go on sale for Father's Day. --April, May, and June are also good months to find sale prices on TVs that are manufactured in Japan, because the fiscal year for most Japanese companies ends in March.

July Is a Good Month to Buy . . . Furniture, because stores start trying to push their old inventory.

August Is a Good Month to Buy . . . Camping equipment, because it takes up a lot of space, and stores won't have room for it during the holidays. --And laptops, which go on sale in August because that's when recent high school graduates are about to leave for college.

September Is a Good Month to Buy . . . Cars, because you can still find last year's model on the lot, but it'll be a lot cheaper than earlier in the year.

October Is a Good Month to Buy . . . Jeans, because there's always a lot of leftover inventory from the back-to-school sales.

November Is a Good Month to Buy . . . A new TV, because there are good sales leading up to Christmas, and the technology isn't outdated yet.

And December Is a Good Month to Buy . . . Anything wedding-related, which is convenient if you're going home for the holidays and want to do some wedding planning with your mom.

Six "Healthy" Foods That Might Be Ruining Your Diet:

If you've been trying to lose Holiday weight but can't, here's a list that might help. These are six foods that are usually considered healthy . . . but can actually make you gain weight . . .

#1.) Sushi. Obviously, a Philadelphia roll with cream cheese isn't the healthiest choice. But even a standard California roll can easily be five or six hundred calories. --And soy sauce is loaded with sodium, which doesn't actually make you gain weight. But it makes you retain water so you LOOK like you gained weight.

#2.) Dried Fruit. Since it's dehydrated, one cup has five to eight times more calories than fresh fruit. For example, a cup of fresh grapes has about 60 calories in it, but a cup of raisins has 460.

#3.) Bran Muffins. They have a lot of fiber, which is good. But other than that, it's basically cake. A decent-sized bran muffin can have about 20 grams of fat, 400 calories, and 30 grams of sugar. --In comparison, a Hostess Cup Cake has 7 grams of fat, 180 calories, and 20 grams of sugar.

#4.) Bottled Iced Tea. If it has sugar or honey in it, one bottle can have 150 to 200 calories, which is basically like a bottle of soda. --And too much juice can ruin a diet too. A 16-ounce glass of orange juice or apple juice has about 55 grams of carbohydrates . . . which is the same as five pieces of bread.

#5.) Rice Cakes. They're fat-free and low in calories, but they have no fiber or protein. That's why you can eat three of them and still feel hungry. And the flavored ones are almost as bad as potato chips.

#6.) Tofu. The problem is it's too bland on its own. So if you order it at a restaurant, they'll add salt, butter, or sugar to make it taste better . . .which also makes it a lot less helpful if you're trying to lose weight.

The Least Expensive and Most Expensive Cars to Insure in 2011:

A lot of things determine how much your car insurance costs, including your age, your driving record, where you live, and your credit report. But the one way you can control your rate is to make sure you're driving a car you can afford to insure.


The website Insure just released its annual list of the cheapest and most expensive cars to insure. Here's what it said.


#1.) Minivans Are the Cheapest to Insure. The four cheapest cars on the list are all minivans, including the Chrysler Town and Country, the Toyota Sienna, the Sienna LE, and the Honda Odyssey LX.

--On average, insuring each of them costs right around $1,100 a year for someone with a good driving record.


#2.) SUVs Are the Second-Cheapest. In fact, all of the top ten cheapest cars to insure are either minivans or SUVs. And all of the SUVs cost between $1,100 and $1,200 a year, on average.


#3.) Most of the Best-Selling Cars Are Also Cheap to Insure. The number one best-selling car in 2010 was the Ford F-150 pickup truck, which carries a $1,500 annual premium. But that's higher than its competition:

--The Toyota Camry . . . which was the third most-popular car in 2010 . . . costs $1,275 a year to insure, the average driver of a new Nissan Altima pays $1,370, and the Honda CR-V costs $1,155.

#4.) The Most Expensive Cars to Insure Are Probably Out of Your Price Range Anyway. All of the cars in the top 20 are made by Mercedes, BMW, Aston Martin, Porsche, and Jaguar.

--But the Mercedes SL65 AMG took the top spot. It goes from zero to sixty in 4.2 seconds . . . and the insurance costs $3,600 a year. That's if you're a GOOD driver, with no tickets or accidents on your record.

--But of course, if you can afford to buy a Mercedes SL65, you're probably not that worried about your insurance rate. The recommended retail price is just a shade under $200,000.