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Showing posts from April, 2013

10 Easy Ways to Lose Weight for Summer

Beach season is 59 days away! Here are some helpful tips that are super easy to get you swimsuit ready! 1. Substitute Greek Yogurt for mayo, sour cream, potato salad, Cole slaw, dips and tartar sauce tastes great with this substitute. 2. Substitute Ground Turkey for Ground Beef- If you use the right seasonings no one would ever know. 3. Substitute Dry Beans for Can Beans-  Soak dry beans overnight and prepare according to recipes, can beans have tons of sodium, that cause water retention. 4. Substitute fruit for a cupcake or a piece of chocolate. 5. Substitute a dill pickle for potato chips, dill pickles are lower in sodium and fat and calories. 6. Substitute mustard for ketchup, mustard has zero fat. 7. Substitute brown rice for white rice. 8. Substitute a salad for a hot appetizer. 9. Substitute a vinaigrette for a cream based dressing. 10. Bake instead of frying, if you bake fries at 425 it actually comes out crispier than if you deep fat fry. 11. Dilute all

Mother's Day- Tea's, Brunches, and Dinners

When it is May, then it is time for Mother's Day. Mother's Day Tea: If you are in a new relationship 6 months or more and he has introduced you to his mother, then don't expect an invitation to family's Mother's Day gathering. Instead you can his mother over your place or meet at a nice hotel the Saturday before Mother's Day for tea, a gift of a nice scarve from a Musuem Gift Shop is appropriate. If you give an expensive gift it comes across as you are trying too hard. Mother's Day Brunch: This for your mother if you have sisters and are in relationship longer than a year you can invite your significant other's mother. You can go out for brunch or if you feel comfortable showing off your culinary chops, here's a suggested menu: 1. Fresh Fruit, Granola, and Greek Yogurt Parfait 2. My Famous Friatta's one with Breakfast Meats and the other with Veggies 3. Fresh Muffins or Biscuits- Muffins you can get Blueberry Muffin Mixes make two boxes

Getting Your Summer Home Ready

Memorial Day marks the beginning of the summer exodus out of main cities. If you are on the East Coast, everyone is flocking to the Hamptons, Fire Island, Vermont, Martha's Vineyard, or New Hampshire. If you are on the West Coast, its Nappa Valley, Lake Tahoe, Vancouver, Canada. So, now is the time to get those summer homes ready! Now is the time to call your groundskeeper and have them check on the indoor plumbing, water pressure, heating, and time to keep your property in tip/top shape for the summer. Also, you should visit the grounds just to make certain things are followed up on and if you even need a coat of paint either inside or outside. Then, it is time to make the summer calendar, who do you plan to visit and when? and Who needs to visit? Make certain you send invitations to your gatherings at least a month in advance. Downtime, your summer home isn't a hotel, so you should have a few weekends that you and your family are just enjoying each other. Now is the

What's Blooming in Your Garden?

You know what they say April Showers brings May flowers? We love fresh flowers or plants in our homes, brings out so much life and character. Here are our picks for Spring Flowers? 1. Tulips 2. Sunflowers 3. Hydrangeas 4. Lillie's 5. Orchids 6. Roses You can pick up the planting bulbs at your nearest Home Depot or Botanical Gardens. Cheers to the wonders of flowers and life!

Charity Spotlight: Ronald Mc Donald House/LLS

A few years ago, I had the pleasure through the Young Professional Society of LLS, to participate in an life altering experience. What seemed so simple began me on a journey of everyday gratitude and humility. I decided to participate in a Summer Luau for the children at the Ronald McDonald House, these are children who come from all the world to seek NYC's excellent medical care. I was in charge of decorations so,  I had brilliant colored pinatas and lei's and colorful napkins for these children. I was assisting to make this a great event not only for the children, but their families. The other group was on the grilled getting the hot dogs, hamburgers ready, another had the play list of cheerful music. As the children began to come in for the treat, I noticed that the brightly colored leis, they weren't wearing because one child told me " I have a condition, that makes me itch uncontrollably, when I wear things, like this." Another child with the brightes

Deals for Your Teen Girls

Teen Young Women love to shop, from my niece she is always talking about the latest fashions from Teen Vogue to Seventeen, etc. However, you want to give your daughter a little indulgences. However, you need to set boundaries and starting her with a budget, this teaches her responsibility and the value of money. Most teens would say look at what you have, no matter your income level, and make comparisons to you and her. However.  tell her she has got to go to school and work in order to afford  your designer clothing. Here are our finds: Forever 21 finds: There are great deals the maxi skirt that you see the legs only is only 12.00, hot pants she can wear for the season is only $10.00, graphic tees are $15.00, and tank maxi dresses in stripes, racer backs, are only 17.00 max. Accessories: Fedora hats are $12.00, and get jewelery that teen appropriate she can get all for under 20.00- earrings, necklaces, and bracelets. Sephora: Teens should have really beautiful skin so I am

How to Assist a Caregiver

Many people in Boston, will now be faced with caring for a loved one. Caregiving is extremely hard on any family no matter what the illness. However, as we all turned our attention to the patient and make certain that all of their needs are taken care, what happens to the caregivers? Caregivers are extremely important because if not for them our patients would not have their needs met, and be comfortable during the course of their illness. Caregivers especially those who are married go through periods of extreme denial, anger, and fear. This manifests differently in different people, many caregivers lash out at the patient or those whom they are closest with, because it is difficult, they feel robbed and hurt. OK, these are some practical ways you can support caregivers: 1. Give them a call and let them vent- Don't take things personally if they start to scream or cry. 2. If it is a close family member, offer to "visit", while they go to hairdresser, spa, barber

Brunch Time: Friatta's Rule!

As my Dad would say a what??? A friatta is a baked omelet served in Europe, what I love about friatta's are they are super easy. You can have you eggs, bacon, cheese and veggies all in one delicious wedge and it's half the calories of a full brunch of bacon, eggs with cheese and toast. So here is my recipe: In a skillet: 1 diced onion 1 scallion 1 cup of mushrooms 3 pieces of turkey bacon with one tablespoon of Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Turn your oven on to 350 degrees. Then beat 6 eggs and one package of shredded sharp cheddar cheese, n a separate bowl. Make certain the veggies, and the turkey bacon is all thoroughly cooked and cooled. When the veggie and meat mixture is cooked and cooled, then add to the egg mixture, then add to a pie dish that has olive oil coated. Put, all of the mixture into the pie dish and bake for an hour. Come out piping hot! Serve with whole wheat toast and your favorite hot beverage. For a sweet element try fresh berries with

Healing: Survivor to Surivivor

As I look at all the headlines from the Boston Marathon, terror attack, which brings me to own experiences as a 9-11 survivor. These are my experiences and people should seek medical attention immediately.  It is OK to cry, to be angry, and to question God. It is also OK to talk about the incident as much or as little as possible. Even if you haven't sustained any major physical injuries, many news reports feature people with missing limbs, and the loss of life. However,  you may experience headaches my injuries manifested itself in different ways. I had, flashbacks for 3 years,  I spent days of crying, not wanting to be left alone, not wanting to go out or going out then calling loved ones when I got to my destination. This is all normal, I went through it, it is a a part of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. There are also physical ailments, I experienced disorientation, confusion, my ability to process complex information was stifled, I went from doing derivatives to re- 

How to Shop Designer Labels

Many people ask me I really want to try the new Prabal collection at Target, but whenever a high-end designer does a retail those clothes never fit. In defense of these designers, they normally design their luxury collection for a model whose measurements are that of a size 0 or someone who is at max. 100 pounds. They are constantly around women who are these measurements, that is what their world dictates. The average American woman is a size 16, so when they do mass retail collections their clothes always will run on the smaller size, you must always size up at least one size. So if you are an 8 and wear a small in non- designer brands, then size up to a medium, if you are a 10 size to a large, and if you are a 12 or 14 size to an extra large. Does this mean that you need to go on a fast or diet? No, not at all this is just the way the fashion design world works, but that does not mean to say that you can't parttake in their collections, just know the measurements. Don

Aging Gracefully

Now teens are getting plastic surgery,society has given women the notion that they would never age, so long as we can nip//tuck we will be OK. However, there will come a time when many of us, simply can't do the things that we need or should do for ourselves. I know as I am writing this article, with a broken toe, I was told to stay off of it for a month, yes I am young, but there are simple things that I have to ask someone to do for me. Which leads me to the question: How can we age graceful? We can age gracefully by admitting that there will be certain times we need help. I have found these services to be helpful: . 1. TaskRabitt.com- This is an online service, where people are carefully background checked, who would come and do errands, such as hang a picture, go to the post office,pick up dry cleaning, and if you were in the middle of Spring Cleaning when I injured myself, they will even have people assist you in Spring Cleaning. 2. Transportation- I still need to ge

Our Sincerest Thoughts and Prayers

Positivexpert would like to express our deepest thoughts and prayers to everyone who was involved with the Boston Marathon. We sincerely hope and pray that all those innocent people find strength and comfort of loved ones during their healing process. Stay strong and remain POSITIVE!!

Spring Pocket Book Check!

Now, that everyone has recovered from the holiday season. We are moving into warmer weather and does that mean we open our pocket books and start to spend again? Nope! Hopefully, if you were reading this blog for some time you would have booked your summer vacation in the Winter when rates were 50 % cheaper. Online shopping is great however to save mega bucks: 1. Never have an account that stores your credit card information.       1. If you are an impulsive shopper you may purchase something you would later regret.       2. Identity theft- there are hackers who monitor certain algorithms on certain sites that would steal your credit card information.       3. If you put something on a wait list especially with certain flash sites, when that item becomes available they would automatically deduct that from your account, not a good way to money manage. 2. Positive Side- Always shop when there are sales that give an additional extra percentage off. I was able to get a wonder

How to Cut Your Beauty Bill in Half

Spring has sprung, and you heard me say it that it is time to raid your beauty closet and get rid of all of last seasons products! As I reflect, last year I spent 50.00 on the latest eye shadows in a grouping only to wear 2 out of 10 colors that was offered. Next lip gloss, I spent 14.00 a tube on the latest lip gloss, which added up to 48.00 Then, everyone was obsessing about Argan Oil, another 35.00 Get my point, close to over 300.00 for things that are not tangible. So, here is how I and you can cut that beauty bill in half. Sign Up for a Full Size-  Nail Polish Club, I highly recommend julep.com, for 20.00 a month you get the latest colors according to your profile, average price of nail polish is 8.75, so 9.00 multiplied by 3 is 27.00, savings- 7.00 Nature's Old- Fashion Lotion- Olive Oil, my mother used this on our skin growing up and for our hair, works wonder, especially if it is slightly warmed. So the next time Olive Oil is on sale at the grocery pick one

The BJ's Challenge

One can't ignore the fact that millions of Americans go hungry everyday. Many of them are hard working, who have jobs; however when it comes time to pay rent or eat, many choose rent. Several people have argued that who need to be "wealthy" to eat a plant based healthy diet. We happen to disagree, one day while we were shopping, I noticed that BJ's was packed and many of the patrons were obese with bags of BBQ chicken wings, onion rings, cookies, were in their carts. I asked the clerk, why was the store so packed and she told me EBT or SNAP day. Many of the patrons were on food benefits, but the choices of foods were extremely poor and was furthering any existing conditions. So, we took the EBT, BJ's challenge for $200.00- the monthly allowance what healthy foods could we buy: 1. 8 boxes of Whole Grain Pasta 2. 2 packages of 16 Whole Wheat Rolls. 3. 2 20oz. containers of Plain Greek Yogurt 4. 1 sack of Onions 5. 3 packages of fresh Portabella Mushr

Playlist to Invoke the Sexy

Spring is the here and here are some songs that will stir up the sexy. 1. James Blunt- Your Beautiful 2. Savage Garden- I Knew I Loved You 3. Stevie Wonder- For Once In My Life 4. Kelly Roland- Lay It On Me 5. Beyonce- Love On Top 6. Ne- Yo- Sexy Love These songs are perfect when you are getting ready for night on town. Cheers to a Wonderful Sexy Spring!

Leftovers: Delicious Fried Rice

We haven't seen any grocery store that sells just two pork chops? For food safety you must prepare all the chops at once. Here is our recipe for a delicious fried rice using, left chops. 1. Take the left over chops and cut them up into cubes. 2. Take onions, scallions, and garlic and dice them 3. Extra Virgin Olive Oil 4. 3 tablespoons of low sodium Soy Sauce 5. Cooked rice for two 6. Two fresh tomato's In a skillet, put the olive oil, onions, scallions, garlic, and tomato's. When the veggies are cooked down, then add left over diced pork chops, with soy sauce, and saute Then add rice to skillet mixture and blend well. Serve piping hot with green salad and red wine. Cheers to tasty leftovers!

Book Report: Seductive Tables for Two: Moll Anderson

I am always looking for great books on entertaining, this month's Book Nook recommendation is: Seductive Tables for Two: Tablescapes, Picinics, & Recipes that Inspire Romance This is an amazing book, the photography is excellent, the tablescapes are for anyone to use, and the Recipes great as well. The key selling point of this book is the extensive spice rack encyclopedia, and what spices can really spice up your love life. After getting through the spice rack there really is no reason for Viagra, or why men suffer from Low T? Also, did you know that artichokes were forbidden for women to eat because it heightens, women's libido. Guess men only wanted to be the ones who had a harem. On a serious note, for novices Moll also has an extensive section on what the difference between water goblets, and formal place settings. As the weather gets warmer time to head to the bookstore and pick this book up, so you can plan a one of a kind day with your honey. Cheers to

Tribute to the Masters of a Great Quote

We are certain that we have heard the quote "When people show you themselves, believe them the first time." that quote came from the great Maya Angelou, who told Oprah Winfrey, who made the quote famous Someone asked me how can they apply that quote to get the full benefit. I could only relate it to myself: 1.Listen to People When They Speak!  When meeting new people or reconnecting with family members and friends, I have discovered that people will tell you about themselves, within the first 15 min. of a conversation. A few years ago I had someone tell me that she slept with her best friend's ex-boyfriend and wanted my take on it: I told her, there are many men out there and I wouldn't pick up any one's trash, especially if it was was someone so close to me.  I thought about it, if this person would do this to her best friend, whom she use spend vacations, shopping, etc. then what it God's name would she do to me if given the chance. So, she "sh

Decadent Desserts from Box Mixes for Spring Celebrations

There are certain people who are gifted in baking. They can get the right measurements and ratios to baking soda to salt to chocolate, you got the picture. Personally, we are not that gifted so I resort to box mixes, as we are in the thick of wedding season, then BBQ's and other summer events, what do you do for dessert? We bought a couple of box mixes and experimented. 1. Ghiradelli Dark Chocolate Brownie Mix- We added milk chocolate chips for that added sweetness  and toasted coconut flakes. We also used two boxes instead of one and doubled the recipe according to boxes baking instructions. What came out was thick rich brownies that you can serve with a rum based drink, to pick up on toasted coconut. 2. Krustaez Pecan Bars: Pecan Bars are delicacy, we added our own twist to the box mix, by adding already shelled pecans and toasting them in butter and Bourbon, then adding them to the mix. Wow! Serve with a Mint Julep for Kentucky Derby. 3. Krustaez Crumb Cake: Cru

To Our Readers: Loads of Love

To Our Global Readership: We at positivexpert want to thank you for being so loyal and such a great source of inspiration. Every time, I buy a new product, read a new book, or experience something new, I have your best interest at mind, how will this benefit YOU!! Every article is written with great care and love. We want everyone to be a POSITIVEXPERT!!! So, we have amazing things lined up for you for next month, but we felt it our duty to stop and express our GRATITUDE and LOVE for you!! Cheers to a great Spring and beyond!!! Love, Positivexpert!