By Audrey van Petegem, Senior Editor

Now with this Social Media revolution there are truly no secrets anymore. Within seconds all your poor taste, poor judgment and poor you will be over the internet. With the help of Viddy, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and (God help me) LinkedIn, last nights indiscretions will be the talk at the water cooler, PTA meeting, yoga class, Starbucks and everywhere else you go.  There is now a way to help protect yourself from – well – yourself with the Holiday Party Sobriety Test app.

Spin the wheel and find out which three coordination or cognitive test you need to take to determine if it is time to go home and keep your dignity. Plus, ensuring that you get home safely by doing a search for nearby cab services based on your location.

This tongue-in-cheek app is for entertainment purposes only, but it still may help as a humorous reminder to avoid social media and over-sharing when one is enjoying a few too many libations over the holiday season.

Available for both the Android and iPhone devices. Go to Webroot for free download information.

By Jennifer Urezzio, Contributor – Spiritual Affairs

It’s so cliché to do an article about the New Year, and yet clichés are clichés for a reason – because of the wisdom those formulas hold.

As the year draws to a close, you will find yourself naturally reviewing the year and remembering what you “wished” to accomplish. I believe review and reflection is good for the Soul. Judgment is not and we tend to judge what we did or didn’t do this year.

The first step of transformation is to make a different choice. So let’s help you create some different choices around how you close one year and start another one.

Year in Review

Let’s start with the highlights. Create a list of the following:

• What are some of the moments that make you still smile when you think about them?
• What were some of your accomplishments this year?
• What are some of the compliments that you received this year?

Search your memory banks and how you were feeling just before or as those big moments were happening? Some of those emotions could be joy, confidence, love, full of fun, happy, etc. (see chart below).

Feelings and Experience

We tend to think that the experience creates the feelings, but the big spiritual concept is the reverse – the feelings create the experience. Whatever you wish to experience this year, the key is to start with the feeling of that experience and you will attract situations that reinforce those emotions.

The big question for 2012 is, “What do you wish to experience, love, joy, abundance, prosperity, etc.?” Most of us answer this question with our minds, when the real answer lies is in the heart.

I suggest conducting the exercise below to really determine what your Soul and Heart truly wish to experience in 2012.

Take a deep breath and focus on your tailbone (this allows the mind to follow the heart) and write the answer to the question below:

“What does my Soul and heart wish to experience in 2012?”

Co-creating with the Divine

Now, ask yourself how committed you are to this experience. Do you believe it is possible? Are you willing to feel joy, love, and prosperity everyday in every tiny occurrence to create this experience?

Often there isn’t room in our lives for more joy, love, abundance because we tend to think and feel in limitations. So the question for you about 2012 is, “What are you willing to let go of in order to make room for more of what you truly desire (some examples are: fear, doubt, struggle)?” Remember, you don’t have to know how you are going to let go. Just by bringing awareness and writing it down, things are already changing. (see chart)

Creating Your Commitment to Yourself

I suggest you start the New Year with an affirmation, a saying that you can turn to when you are wavering in your commitment to experience the year that you desire. An affirmation is a statement that starts with I AM and is in present positive tense. Some examples are below:

I am experiencing a year of joy and harmony

I am experiencing a year of prosperity and joy

I am experiencing a year of love and balance

It’s Your Year! Your Choice!

Your life is your own.  Each moment is a new option for you to experience actually what you desire.  It’s up to you!

By Marjie Killeen, Contributor- Midlife Wisdom

If you follow my video posts here at The Succulent Wife, you know I’ve been having a midlife crisis. But hooray! As 2011 winds down, I now declare it officially over. Yes, my big 5-0 birthday creeps ever nearer and my son is heading off to college in the fall, but since I’ve addressed many of the issues that come with this age and life stage, I have to say I’m feeling damn good.

Middle age can be a sweet, sexy, and liberating time of life. Check out this short video where I pass on a few straight tips (including one about hormones) to make your midlife transition more satisfying – whenever it occurs. In the meantime, have a happy New Year!

Editor’s Note: To follow Marjie’s “My Midlife Crisis” adventures, visit her Midlife Crisis posts right here on The Succulent Wife or read more of her midlife-centric trials & tribulations on her blog at FortyFabulous.Blogspot.com.

By Audrey van Petegem, Senior Editor

Heading out or staying in, chances are that some form of alcohol consumption will take place over the holidays, particularly on New Year’s Eve. Regrettably, some of us may overindulge and may be less than our normal cheery selves the next day.

Although hangovers are probably one of the best deterrent to repeat over-drinking, we – I am sure – have all said ‘yes’ when we should have said ‘no’ to that one last drink, leaving us full of regret the next morning.

To help ease the morning-after-why-did-I-do-that feeling are a few remedies:

	Zaca Patch – Here is a way to enjoy your New Year’s over-indulgence and feel better the next morning without the headache and blurry eyes. Zaca is a simple, all-natural recovery patch that is infused with 11 different organic ingredients, such as prickly pear and milk thistle, plus a powerful blend of antioxidants, vitamins and amino acids. Simply apply one patch to clean, dry skin before you head out and leave it on for 24 hours. Buy on Amazon, $19.95 for 6 patches.
	Drinkin’ Mate Tablets – These effervescent tablets are made with Wild Guava leaves that helps the body recover from consuming too much alcohol by helping process the alcohol through your system more efficiently. Dissolve the berry flavored tablet in water and drink either before, during or after a night of drinking. Buy on Amazon, $14.00 for 6 tablets or see the list of retailers on DrinkinMate.com.
	B-50 Complex Remedy – After a night of over-consumption Doug DiPasquale, an Holistic Nutritionist, recommends taking a B-50 Complex vitamin and an entire 8 oz glass of water with unrefined sea salt dissolved in it before you go to bed. It works two-fold. First, the B vitamin detoxifies the alcohol from your system. Second, B vitamins are the energy vitamin which are depleted when alcohol is consumed, leaving you sluggish and tired the next day. The salted water helps hydrate you (as we all know, dehydration is the reason for the next day headache) and replaces the minerals and electrolytes we have lost during the evening, allowing us to rehydrate without the water passing straight through our system.

We hope these help. Do let us know which one worked for you. And, of course, no drinking and driving. Not sure if it is safe to drive? Read last year’s article on this Disposable Breathalyzer that conveniently fits in a pocket.

Happy New Year!

Since we know you’re always ready to appreciate the new and unusual, we’re sure you will – or your teens will – enjoy this new sound of Christmas! Brought to you by Japanese beatboxer maestro, Hikakin.

Merry Christmas!

Eeeeek! Tomorrow is Christmas Eve and you just realized that you still have a few people you need to buy for!! No need to panic. Here are some great ideas that keep on giving up to a full year (although monthly, three, six and nine month subscriptions are also available) – showing them that you did not forget them after all. Whether you put a card under the tree of send them an e-card from afar, these gifts will thrill anyone on your list. And, p.s. you may just want to treat yourself! We’re totally ok with that.

	Not Another Bill – For people who dread going to the mailbox. This one will have them checking the mail to see what (delightful) surprise they will receive this month. Just let NotAnotherBill know for whom the subscription is for and where they would most likely be found (i.e. shopping, in a gallery…) from a list of choices and they will receive a unique gift (from Europe) with an explanation of why and how it was chosen for them. Start the surprise deliveries here. $36.00 per month.
	Birchbox – We have written about Birchbox before. For $10.00 per month, the recipient will receive a hand-packed box with four or five luxury beauty samples. Great for the college student or anyone who loves beauty products. Check them out here.
	Cravebox – Similar to Birchbox, but instead of just including beauty products, it also features food, home goods and other fun stuff. Go to Cravebox to sign up. $10.00 per month.
	Lollihop – Share healthy snacks all year round. Is someone on your list wanting to start the new year off to a healthier start? This monthly subscription will introduce them eight to ten wholesome alternatives, plus recipe cards and tips for healthy living. Get their New Year’s resolution off to a good start with Lollihop. $19.00 per month.
	Citrus Lane – Know someone who is going to have a baby or has just become a new parents? This monthly care package is based on the child’s age (from newborn to 3 years old) and will be filled with four or five much needed products for the little ones (and their parents). Great for first-time parents. Check them out at Citrus Lane. $25.00 per month.
	Umba Box – Brand new, this unique monthly subscription will feature the best handmade products accompanied by information on the artist. From jewelry to accessories and bath products to home goods, each month will be a surprise for the recipient. Perfect for a mom and anyone else who likes indie products. Go to Umba Box to sign up. $26.00 per month.
	Conscious Box – This eco-friendly monthly delivery is full of pure and sustainable products from businesses that care about the planet. Perfect for the environmentally conscious student or anyone who wants to make a difference through conscious consumption. Sign up here at Conscious Box. $12.00 per month.

Still need more? Introduce your gift recipient to one of these great online services which are all can’t-live-without’s in our family now:  Netflix, Fandango, Restaurant.com, Spafinder.

Also, last year’s Impossible-To-Buy-For Gift Guide  will  inspire you with altruistic last minute gift ideas.

Now that you are done – sit back, drink some (spiked) eggnog and get into the holiday spirit. Phew!

You are welcome!

By Anne-Marie Kovacs, Chief Wife

I never used to get my nails done. Nail polish is completely wasted on me. It lasts about… ok, let me be generous and say 24 hours. That is before the polish gets scuffed or chipped. Usually, there is at least one nail that gets smudged within the hour. So, manicures were never my thing. Simply no worth the time and certainly not the expense. That is, until I tried the “No Chip” (aka gel) mani. That changed everything.

I first tried a No-chip a year ago, right before a big event that I was organizing and I needed to look, well… polished. I decided to test the no-chip as I knew that I was in for an afternoon of setting up the room for the event. That meant moving furniture, scratching off labels, tearing open packaging of all sorts and working with lots of nail-unfriendly tools. The result: not a chip in sight and my nails still looked freshly painted, even two weeks later.

I only thought I’d share this now because I’m still meeting so many women who have not treated themselves to getting their nails done recently for the very reasons I mentioned above. It seems that they have been timid to try the gel manis. So, for those of you still on the fence, here’s the scoop:

• Gel lacquer takes NO time to dry. Each coat of applied gel is cured for two minutes under a UV light. The gel finish is hard and dry and you can pay for your manicure immediately after the fact since fumbling for your wallet and keys in your purse will not damage your nails.
• The gel manicure will last up to three weeks with nails still as lustrous as the day the polish was applied. The only problem that I have with this is the visible nail growth that occurs over that period.
• Nails are stronger with the gel coating. That’s great if you want to grow your nails. It would probably help nail bitters too.
• Many of the gel lacquers are free of DBP, toluene and formaldehyde, which makes them safer and healthier to use. Kinda.
• Don’t peel off the gel by yourself. This will damage your nails. A nail technician should do it for you by soaking them for ten minutes or so.
• A no-chip manicure is about $15 more expensive than a regular one. But it will last, in my case at least, infinitely longer. That is two to three weeks.
• The Shellac brand is my favorite, for its colors, adherence and long lasting-ness. It doesn’t look visibly thicker than regular polish. Just glossier.

Here’s what my nails look like after 8 days following my recent gel/no chip manicure. I chose red to match the festive season. They look perfect, no? I think I have another 10 with these, at least!

So, as you can guess, my conclusion is try it. I can’t get to the nail salon on a weekly basis, but I do treat myself and go a half dozen times a year now, knowing that the expense will produce results for a good two weeks.

Also, still on nail trends, but more on the DIY side, you’ll want to know all about Magnetic Polish. Along the lines of the metallic polish trend that we reported last spring, but taken to new heights! Indeed the magnetic polish by Nails Inc. works by separating the iron powder in the polish when a magnet is run over it to create a distinctive pattern.  It’s exclusively available in three colors through Sephora for $16. Could be great fun for New Year’s Eve.

Enjoy!