Okay, I can’t feel my toes right now, which is slightly disconcerting. But I digress.

We’re here to provide you with top-of-the-line watching recommendations, and in this installment, for the kiddies, many of whom will be home for a long weekend starting tomorrow.

First off, our daughter, my wife, my wife’s friend and her daughter all LOVED Madagascar 2, so if it’s like minus 20 in your backyard, jump in the car and go see it already.

Second. I haven’t seen it, but I overheard a bunch of folks with slightly older kids (9,10) say that they LOVED Wall-E, so if you believe some people that I overheard, as well as a myriad of critics, I say, you’re probably safe with a lovable, animated robot.

Third is my favorite throwback pick (and largely because our daughter started wearing pull-ups with Jasmine on them): Aladdin. You absolutely cannot go wrong with anything involving Robin Williams. Best. Blue Genie. Ever. (Of course now that I see that it was made in 1992, I feel so damn old.)

Finally, if you’re looking for something new on the tele, I just got word from my peeps that Nickelodeon will have a new show based on those awesome Olivia books by Ian Falconer (my personal faves). Guess what it’s called? Oh. Yes. “Olivia.” Premieres on January 26, but if you click here, you can check out some online games to occupy your child’s time while he or she bides the time waiting for the first delightful episode.

Happy watching!

As the winter rolls on and the post-holiday TV season begins, some of the usual guys are back in action, like “Lost” and “Monk” and maybe a few others on their last legs.

I am here to save you from monotony and share with you a few highly entertaining shows that you may have missed or whose promos gave you the wrong impression (the obvious disclaimer of subjectivity still applies here).

Three you don’t want to miss:

1. House - one of the best-written shows on TV and one of the worst marketed; trust me, it’s so much better than Fox makes it out to be (but it is about a pain-killer-addict brilliant doctor).

2. Eleventh Hour - this is a new show that combines science and crime, and it’s sharp and fast-paced (and I just found out that there were like seventeen other shows and movies called “The Eleventh Hour” dating back to 1912 - who knew?).

3. Top Chef - there may be some of you out there who have not yet discovered this gem of a reality show; well, time to jump on the bandwagon. Nuff said.

Seen em? Like em? Let me know.

Okay, so you like to go to the movies, you don’t get out enough, and you certainly don’t have enough time to take in all of the Oscar favorites.

Well, I’m here to help - not by telling you what to go and see (because I haven’t seen them all either), but rather by giving you the breakdown on a few of the top films as I know of them and hopefully you can decide which one is worth your babysitting money.

Here goes:

*Milk - Sean Penn as Harvey Milk in 1970s San Fran (the obvious pick for best actor).

*Slumdog Millionaire - Orpaned Indian boy seeks to win the Indian version of "Who Wants to be a Millionaire." And so much more. (See it).
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OMG!

How many days does your little one have off over the next two weeks? (Ours is off from December 24 through the Monday after New Year’s, and not to mention the current snowstorm, which caused all local schools to be closed today. Awesome.)

So, what to do with all that time? Of course, we’ll go to the museums, read books, and do art projects, but this is the “what to watch” edition, no? And I’m here to tell you what to watch - the holiday classics:

*Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer - the bonus here is that our daughter has been singing the song endlessly after having learned it at school. Always good times with old-school animation.

*How the Grinch Stole Christmas - if they’re not too little (and thus not scared by the very green title character), this should be a winner.

*Frosty the Snowman - we will be sure to reenact this one after the 12 inches of wonderful whiteness stops falling.

*It’s a Wonderful Life - for the older kids in the family, you must expose them to this, the ultimate classic holiday movie. Oh, the drama. (”Zuzus Petals!”)

Got any more to share?

With all of this TV Talk happening on WIM, I thought I’d chime in to give you a parent-approved suggestion for what your kids can watch and have you feel good about it - because they will be LEARNING.

The show is called “Wordgirl” and it’s on PBS: check this link for your local times.

Basically, you’ve got a preteen girl with a pet monkey (named Captain Huggyface - how cool is that?) who save the city from crime all the while helping your child build his or her vocabulary - each episode features two new words and each word is defined in the context of the show, so they can really understand what the words mean.

Not only is the show ridiculously addictive for kids, it’s got that added “adult” humor so you can enjoy it, too, while following along the adventures.

Definitely check this out and…Woooooooooooord up!

ps: the most fun is the funkadelic dancing that Captain Huggyface performs at the end of each episode - don’t turn it off until the very end.

Whether you love your job, like it OK, or can barely deal on an average day, learning to be more produtive during your workday is a good idea. Because if you love your job, you can get better at it, if you like it OK, you can accomplish more and maybe get promoted to a job you love, and if you can barely deal then getting things done quickly is a way to create more time to devote to non-work stuff (like, say, reading blogs.)

So here are some great tips to help you be more productive at work:

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When your TV is not tuned to the endless football games being played Thursday through Sunday, how about a little Thanksgiving love for the kiddies?

Here are a few picks to occupy your little ones as you do the dishes:

*A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving - you might have caught it on ABC on Thursday night, but I am sure your local Blockbuster has a copy; or, watch it online
*A Winnie the Pooh Thanksgiving (which is part of the “Winnie the Pooh - Seasons of Giving” collection) - who doesn’t love Winnie and friends?
*Garfield’s Thanksgiving - another animated winner, if you’re into fat cats

And if you MUST get out of the house with them, go to see the animated thriller “Bolt” (with the lovable John Travolta as the voice of the lead dog).

Happy Turkey-eating!

Don’t let the economy cramp your style. Here are some great tips to find cheap wall art.

Get rid of clutter and be a good eco-friendly citizen with these 10 tips for re-using plastic bags.

Be prepared and safe — here’s what to do in 12 scary emergency situations.

Need new lunch ideas for your kids? Here’s how to make a great bento box.

It’s getting cold (well, at least for some of us). Warm up with some mulled wine.

Don’t let the economy stop you from going out to eat. Here’s how to get a $25 Restaurant.com gift certicificate for $2 (until Halloween).

We’ve searched some of our favorite blogs and found a few helpful links for you to check out:

Make your next dinner party a bit more special with these awesome Secret Message invitations

Have fun and save money with Kids’ Recycled Crafts

Get your home office in order with tips from Home Office That Works Overtime

Speaking of your home office — don’t forget to enter our All-in-One Epson printer giveaway !