Happy New Year Carnival of Family Life

In many different respects, 2008 was a challenging year for most. But on New Year’s Eve, we pause to remember the good things that happened during the past year. On this night, we forget our problems and cares, looking hopefully to the future. Precisely at midnight, we’ll be singing and toasting the arrival of 2009!

Hope you brought your family and good friends along, because the party is just getting underway. The champagne has been on ice all day and the waiters are popping the first bottles now. The hors d’ oeuvres will be served momentarily. Grab a few noisemakers and select a silly hat! The orchestra is tuning up and will begin playing in just a few minutes.

You look wonderful in your most festive attire! Grab your dance partner because the New Year’s festivities are getting underway!

Family Cooking & Recipes

Myscha Theriault presents Cooking with Canned Pumpkin: Fresh Ideas for a Frugal Super Food at Wise Bread.

Emma presents How to get away with cooking once a week for your baby at Baby-Log.

Family Crafts and Activities

HowToMe presents How To Make an “Angelic” Kitchen Towel Set at HowToMe.

Catherine Eagleson presents Games for the Brain – Perfect for Rainy Days! at Crosswords For Fun. “If the weather decides to put a dampener on your family holiday,” Catherine writes, “games for the brain are the perfect solution to keep your kids occupied for hours at a time.”

Family Finance

Polly Poorhouse presents Drama For a Song at Economic Crunch, suggesting that you “comparison shop for kids’ activities, as well as for peanut butter and soap.”

Jim presents Total Cost of Owning A Dog at Blueprint for Financial Prosperity, taking a detailed “look at the cost of making a new furry addition to the family.”

Credit Shout presents TrueEarnings Card from Costco and American Express Review at CreditShout. If you shop at Costco, there is now a credit card with which you can maximize savings.

Raymond presents The Best Online High Interest Savings Accounts at Money Blue Book.

freefrombroke presents You Are Richer Than You Think at Free From Broke, reminding us that “family and friends are our richest resource.”

Renae presents When Circumstances Squeeze Wish Lists at Life Nurturing Education.

Terri Mauro presents Teaching Money Management With a Credit-Card-Free iTunes Account at Terri’s Special Children Blog.

Silicon Valley Blogger presents Ebates Review: Online Rewards, Double Cash Back When You Shop! at The Digerati Life, recommending an online shopping site that features savings and cash back rewards.

Family Health and Wellness

Matthew presents Allergy to Milk at Fast Medical Information. He explains that “lactose intolerance” is the term used to describe an allergy to milk which prevents digestion or absorption of lactose, the sugar in milk.

Peter Garant presents Cool Mist Humidifiers: Important Traits at Humidifier Reviews, offering tips about selecting the cool mist humidifier that is safe, clean, and efficient.

Aparna presents Tips for dry winter hair at Beauty and Personality Grooming. Aparna explains that “the sebaceous glands in the scalp produce oil to lubricate hair but are less active in cold weather and slow down production with age.” She offers suggestions for keeping your hair lustrous in the winter months.

Alvin Hopkinson presents Acid Reflux Diet at The Best Way to Be Acid Free, listing foods to avoid in order to prevent acid reflux or heartburn.

Isaac Yassar presents You Are Your Habits at Isaac Yassar .com.

Super Saver presents The Bright Side for my 2008 at My Wealth Builder.

Matthew presents Allergy to Latex at Fast Medical Information.

Family Spirituality/Belief/Worship

Leticia Velasquez presents Merry Christmas from Connecticut at cause of our joy.

luvmy4sons presents Just Think… at Do You Weary Like I Do?. “Just think — He came to us,” she writes.

luvmy4sons presents Mary at Do You Weary Like I Do?, observing, “To be Mary . . . wow!”

Family Travel

Ruth presents Camp For Free or Nearly Free! at Camping Tips. “There are more places than you’d think where you camp for free or nearly free,” Ruth writes.

Marilyn Terrell presents Jenss Family Travels: Harris Hill Farm at Intelligent Travel Blog, detailing “the Jensss family’s stop in New Zealand on their year-long round-the-world adventure.” They had fun on a farm!

The Smarter Wallet presents Plan Your Vacation Well: Travel Tips For The Early Bird Traveler at The Smarter Wallet.

Parenting Tips and Advice

Chief Family Officer presents Review: Graco Nautilus at Chief Family Officer.

Kevin presents Family New Years Resolutions at More4kids.

Brip Blap presents how to soothe a crying baby at brip blap, describing “how our crying babies taught us about learning to back off.”

Well, it’s certainly hard to believe that 2009 is here so soon!

Carnival of Family Life 2009

The Carnival will kick off 2009 at Domestic Cents on Monday, January 5, 2009! Click here to submit your family-related posts.

The guidelines and other information about the Carnival is available here. Would you like to host a future edition? The hosting schedule can be viewed here. Then drop a line advising which week you would like the Carnival to visit your site.

THANK YOU for coming to the party so that we could all ring in 2009 together. Hope you had a great time and enjoy a healthy, happy, prosperous, and gratifying New Year!