Looking for the perfect accessory to accent your Halloween costume or wardrobe? These skull earrings are to die for and they come in several ghoulish colors! They're scary enough to adorn during a  haunted house visit, classy enough to wear to the office, and fun enough for a Halloween evening on the town. Get one or more to match your Halloween costume or outfit!

#Halloween #Jewelry #Accessories #Costumes #Fun #Fashion #Earrings
#Skulls #Wardrobe #Clothing #Style #Holidays #DayOfTheDead #Samhain #AllSaintsEve

by Lyn Lomasi; Co-owner of Brand Shamans & Write W.A.V.E. Media                                                                                                                               

What do you do when you have a list of people to buy holiday gifts for and a budget to stick to? Some websites are now helping you keep track of  gifts, as well as any budgets you may have. Here’s how to manage holiday budgets and gifts online using Gift Box Home.

Manage Holiday Gifts and Budgets Online

Gone are the days of going through pages and pages of paper to keep track of your budget. It's the computer age and time to get with the program. Speaking of programs, you won't even need one to manage your holiday gifts and budgets online. All you need is a computer and an Internet connection. One Website to check out is GiftBoxHome.com, which allows you to manage multiple holiday gifts and lists in one place. Simply sign up and start using it right away.

Why Should You Manage Budgets and Gifts Online?

When you choose to manage your holiday gifts and budgets online, you are doing the planet a favor. Every little bit helps. By using the Internet, you are saving paper and wasting fewer trees. Another reason to manage gifts and budgets online is the benefit of having everything neat, organized and all in one place.

Lists and sheets of paper can get lost in the hustle and bustle of holidays. With the information stored online, you know it's a log on and a password away, not wedged under some stack of papers on the desk. Speaking of passwords, at GiftBoxHome.com, your information is password protected and not shared with anyone. Only you can see it, which is a good thing considering that some people like to peek at holiday gift plans.

How to Manage Holiday Gifts and Budgets Online

To manage your holiday gifts and budgets online, simply log on and sign into the website you will be using. GiftBoxHome.com allows for tracking several items. You can manage budgets as well as track your own wish lists and the wish lists of others. This way you won't duplicate or forget a gift. Also included is a way to manage refund dates, upcoming holidays and more. GiftBoxHome.com instructions are easy to use and follow.

by Lyn Lomasi; Co-owner of Brand Shamans & Write W.A.V.E. Media

Need something super fun and creative to dress up in as a couple? If you don't know where to start, here's our top 5 fun couples costumes.

by Lyn Lomasi; Co-owner of Brand Shamans & Write W.A.V.E. Media

Halloween can be filled with fun. But it’s important to know your stuff before treating the kids. We asked experienced parents to give us their best Halloween advice to help you out.

Let the children pick their own costume, carry a flashlight, watch for cars and make sure you know where your child is at all times. Don't rush, take your time and let them have fun. There is plenty of time to worry later. - Laurie Childree

Drive around your neighborhood a week to a few days before to scope out any "haunted" houses and plan a route to get there according to little legs. Carry flashlights. And don't have children eat the candy while you walk so you can check for ingredients in case of allergies. - Amanda Kimberley Linstruth-Beckom

Get back to the original history of the day. Then study the Wiccan and other earth based religions take on this day. - Sally Franklin Christie

Pick a small community, where there are a lot of older folks or folks with children. Stay with your children. The end of the walk is fine, but I usually dressed up to and followed them from house to house. NO eating anything until it's checked out by the adult or until they get home. Tell them to say thank you, even if they don't like what they got. Or dress up for a Fall Festival at church or schools and skip Trick or Treating all together. Before Halloween there are usually Apple Orchards that have corn mazes, pumpkins, wagon rides, etc. - Cherley Grogg

Always, always make sure you know your area. Have the kids walk in a group (with you behind if they are older, you don't want them to feel like they are being chaperoned). Discuss before you leave your house of a meeting area if you get separated. No eating candy unless it came from grandmas house. Rule of thumb...no candy gets ate until parents check it, and when you do check it you are allowed to keep 1 of each kind of candy, as payment for your ever so watchful eye!!! Lol... it's really using your common sense...it will keep your children safe. Oh...and really they don't need a crap load, teach them moderation. - Tina Sawyer Roberge

Parents, be consistent... If your parents, like mine, feel that Halloween is a pagan (read negative) celebration where millions of children whip themselves into a candy induced state of ecstasy and you refuse to allow your children to "partake", don't let them then dress up in a ghost costume made out of a homemade sheet and pass out candy at the front door to other God-less children... -because you don't want to answer the door on Oct 31... They didn't believe in sugar either... My sister and I still refer to this day as All Hypocrisy's Day. - Julie Bell

Have kids dress up and set up a stand in your front yard to hand out candy and hot chocolate. Teaches them to be willing to give instead of receive. - Donna Thacker

Hand crafted costumes are just as much fun as store bought and usually a lot more budget friendly. Get your kids involved with choosing and creating them. You're not only making a costume, you're making memories, too. - Aimee Plesa

Remember Halloween is just a holiday and kids should be taught in a fun way that it's not an excuse to eat too much or expect expensive costumes. Making them is much more fun. Teach them to respect other people's property, and to carve pumpkins with pride. Teach them to respect that little animals may be bewildered by it all and to above all be gentle to them and to other folks. - Rachelle Write

When you walk with your kids on Halloween night, leave your cell phone at home. Be present and fully enjoy the experience with your children. - Colleen Larson

Chew very quietly with the shower running. They will never know it was you that ate it all. :-P - T Lynn Morgan

by Lyn Lomasi; Co-owner of Brand Shamans & Write W.A.V.E. Media

Trick-or-treat safety is not the only thing for parent to think about this Halloween. Choosing safe Halloween costumes for kids is also vital. Sure, that fuzzy bear costume may look sweet on your little one. But is it safe? How can you tell? From one parent to the next, here are some safety tips to keep in mind when choosing your child's next costume.

Check for sharp edges. Before ever putting that costume on your child, check for things that may scrape or scratch. Sharp edges can most commonly be found on masks and other costume accessories. But also check the costume itself for sharp edges and other pieces that jut out.

Test for allergies to latex and other masks. The last thing you want on Halloween is to rush your child to the ER over a reaction. Do an allergy test at least 48 hours prior to your child wearing his Halloween costume. Check each mask label for the manufacturer's instructions on testing for allergies. General instructions will likely include exposing a small area of the skin to the material for a certain amount of time.

Test for makeup and accessory allergies. Face makeup and other Halloween costume accessories may also cause an allergic reaction. You might avoid face makeup and certain accessories, use hypoallergenic face makeup, or do a skin allergy test at least 48 hours in advance.

How well can your child see through masks and around hats? Tiny holes for the eyes are just one no-no when it comes to Halloween masks. Be sure your child can see fully when wearing any hats, masks, and face accessories. If your child cannot see side to side and directly in front of him without rotating his head, that's a bad sign.

Is the costume weather-appropriate? Sure, that fairy princess costume is adorable. But if it's snowing outside, your child better also have some cute warm clothing on top or underneath. On that same token, if your child is wearing a thick bear costume and it's 80 degrees outside, there better be some air filtration and/or fans inside of it.

Pay attention to length. Tripping over a costume might be funny. But it can also be quite painful. Be sure your child's costume is no longer than 6 inches above the ankles to prevent accidents on stairs and while walking or dancing.

Use appropriate accompanying footwear. Tired after a long day at work? You know that feeling your feet get? Help prevent that in your child on Halloween by making sure footwear is appropriate. Try finding shoes that are both comfortable and appropriate to the costume. Slippers and other dress-up shoes can be bought in a larger size to slip over more comfortable footwear.

Be sure costumes are bright, glowing, or have lighted accessories. Traffic can be busy on Halloween with all the activities going on. Make sure your kids are bright enough to be seen from a good distance.

Check faux weaponry for real dangers. True, these are supposed to be fake weapons. But that doesn't mean they aren't still dangerous. Look for sharp edges, removable parts, and other potential hazards to kids before sending them off to have fun on Halloween.

by Lyn Lomasi; Co-owner of Brand Shamans & Write W.A.V.E. Media

Keeping the Santa Claus belief alive in kids can be tricky, especially when they start to get older. Older family members and sometimes friends will try to convince them otherwise. If you'd like to keep the Santa belief alive in your kids, perhaps an experience I had with my kids will help.

Being very open-minded and cherishing many faiths and traditions, we celebrate the magic of Santa with our kids during Christmas. We feel it is something fun and allows kids another opportunity to dream. They know about various religions surrounding Christmas and we share traditions with them from many winter holidays, Santa being one of them.

Reading The Santa Letters

Reading over the letters that the eldest three kids had left out for Santa one year, along with his Christmas Eve snack, I wondered how long they'd continue to believe. "Is Santa real" is a common question among kids their age, and many times even younger.

One portion of the eldest child's letter inquired "Santa, are your reindeer really real? If so, prove it and leave me one of the reindeer's jingle bells." How Santa would pull that off with hardly any time, I was not quite sure.

Moving on further in that letter, reindeer footprints were requested. Only problem is that we lived in a city where snow does not stick, if it snows at all. Where Santa would allow his reindeer to leave a footprint was a mystery to me.

This girl is one smart kid. She even requested stories of how Santa met Mrs Clause and one other Santa fact, along with other hints and undertones of Santa proof. Could Santa pull this one off? It was a longshot, but this is after all, Santa. He's magic. He can do anything.

The next letter was not quite so demanding. However, again the existence of the reindeer was challenged, namely Rudolph. "Is Rudolph really real and is Rudolph's nose really red? Does it really glow?"

The 3rd of the older children simply left Santa a paper and pen with no questions. Santa has been known to write back to the kids, so I assume him leaving only the paper and pen was related.

What Did Santa Do with the Challenge?

The kids and I had left the camera on the table next to Santa's treats and letters as we had been taking Christmas Eve pictures. Little did we know, Santa would be able to utilize that. He took a picture of his reindeer in the grass. There was a slight glare, but you could still see the reindeer.

He apologized about the glare in the picture, explaining about Rudolph's shiny nose being too bright to take a better one. It rarely snows in Houston, but we could tell the reindeer had been in our yard because they did leave tracks in the mud. As for leaving a reindeer bell, Santa had to take a picture of that, too. It would have messed up sky traffic if any of the reindeer were missing their bells. How else would people know they were coming?

That Santa Claus is one smart and resourceful person...

*I originally published this via Yahoo Contributor Network

While browsing the internet a few years ago, as well as local department stores for ideas on Halloween costumes, I noticed a frightening trend. While the costumes remained scary, ghoulish, and otherwise Halloween-themed, I noticed the costumes for little girls were overly revealing.

The skirt and dress portions of the costumes had gotten much shorter. Many cat costumes for children resembled the revealing or sexy ones made for adults. Witches were sporting miniskirts and minidresses that hauntingly revealed too much.

I can understand that children enjoy looking like adults, but does that mean they should be dressing this revealing? I’m not talking about a normal-looking short skirt. I’m talking about dresses and skirts that are not just above the knees, but are mid-thigh and higher. There are even costumes that look like sexy women's lingerie that are targeted to and sized for very young girls.

By the descriptions of the costumes above, it might appear that I am describing costumes for teenagers. Wrong. I am describing costumes designed for children 6 years old and up. Major retailers, one of which I am generally very fond of, were even carrying these seemingly inappropriate costumes for little girls.

At first, I wanted to blame this retailer for carrying these costumes, if they can be called that, as this was my first stop during my costume search. Then, with the next stop, then the next, and thereafter, I realized these were everywhere. I saw many little girls princess costumes that were made extremely short. The Disney Princess costumes were not this way at that time and thankfully, were widely available. There were also unisex costumes, like dogs and other animals that were not drawing the line. So, all may not be lost.

After my terrifying search at retailers big and small, I decided to search online for an appropriate costume, but again, I was horrified as my internet search revealed the same results, at some times, even worse. Afraid of the trend I'd found, I searched and searched to find a site that did not offer any of these costumes. You would think my search terms were affecting my search, but not so. They were simple and short, such as "Halloween costumes for kids". Search after search turned up so many inappropriate costumes for girls.

After that, I determined that I would continue to design and make my children's costumes, as usual. I did find many costume accessories that were much more appropriate than the costumes. There were plenty of princess crowns, wands, false teeth, capes, swords, various masks, and many other accessories. So, indeed, all was not lost.

I was just left to wonder who came up with the idea that children needed to dress up in costumes that reveal too much. Was it parents? Perhaps it was the retail stores. Maybe it was even the manufacturers of the costumes. If the parents agreed to this, that would be more frightening than the costumes.

UPDATE: As the years passed, I thought maybe the situation would improve. However, instead it has worsened. Yes, non-revealing costumes can still be found. But unfortunately, the sexy ones are growing increasingly popular as the time passes by. What message are we sending retailers when we allow this and even buy these costumes? More importantly, what are we teaching our children?

*I originally published a version of this via Yahoo Contributor Network

Do you have an NBA basketball fan on your gift list? Have no clue what to get? Try these basketball gifts directly from a fan (your author) that any NBA fan is sure to appreciate. These 5 great gifts for NBA basketball fans are sure to score plenty of points with your favorite sports fanatic.

Season tickets for their favorite team

What NBA basketball fan doesn't want season tickets? If this is a gift for your significant other or a close friend or family member, be sure to get a package for yourself as well. That is, if you also enjoy the game and don't mind tagging along. Tickets can be purchased from the NBA site or any major ticket retailer. Obviously, this is at the top of any list of gifts for NBA basketball fans.

Cable Package with All NBA games

It's impossible to catch all the games without a special cable package. The NBA basketball fan in your life will greatly appreciate this gift. Just don't ask him to do anything but watch a game afterward because he'll be glued to the screen. But that's quite alright if he's happy. Join him with some good snacks. Contact the local provider for details on this.

Basketball Tote for the Eco-Friendly Fan

Gifts for NBA basketball fans should be as useful as possible to make them last. Is your basketball fan Eco-conscious like me? Maybe she just likes to carry her items in a bag she can enjoy. Get her one or more basketball-themed totes so she can buy her groceries and other items in style. Zazzle has a large selection of environmentally friendly tote bags with various basketball designs. For official NBA totes, check the NBA Store.

The Mug With a Hoop

Does your NBA fan have an appropriate mug to hold his favorite beverage? The Mug with a Hoop is a must-have when it comes to gifts for NBA basketball fans. If they happen to enjoy hot chocolate, they can toss the marshmallows in the hoop. This is the perfect NBA game-watching accessory for couch basketballers.  This oversized basketball fan mug makes the perfect sports gift as it holds 16 ounces of any beverage.

Autographed Basketball

Give your NBA basketball fan a gift he can proudly display and treasure. Autographed basketballs can be found in memorabilia shops and auctions. If you are looking for a signature from a particular player, you may need to do some extra hunting. But your efforts will be appreciated by any true lover of the game. Memorabilia gifts are some of the best gifts for NBA basketball fans and  collecting these  basketball gifts may pay off later.