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    Blog Posts by Redbook

    • The Top 9 Foods that Cause Bloating

      By Dana Vogel, REDBOOK

      What you eat can have a huge impact on your waistline, and not just because of the calories. Learn which foods and drinks make your belly pooch worse.

      Related: 50 Under $50 Frugal Finds for Spring

      1. Cocktails

      Alcohol often gets blamed for causing bloating and puffiness, but what you're putting in your alcohol could be the real problem. Avoid bubbly mixers like sodas and seltzers to prevent the air from getting trapped in your stomach. And-as strange as it might sound, says Keri Gans, registered dietitian and author of The Small Change Diet-talking while drinking and drinking through a straw can also cause you to swallow excess air.

      2. Frozen Meals

      Gans says she regularly sees women in her practice eating frozen meals, often targeted at dieters, for lunch at the office and for dinner at home. While some frozen meals are low-calorie, many also contain upwards of 500 mg of sodium-almost 25 percent of your daily recommended

      Read More »from The Top 9 Foods that Cause Bloating
    • Moms Confess: My Craziest Worry when My First Baby was Born

      By Charlotte Hilton Andersen, REDBOOK

      "Don't forget to hold his head! And keep his feet covered! And, please, don't walk while you're carrying him!" As my friend shouted instructions to the two of us sitting on the couch holding her baby, my other friend and I looked at each other and blurted in unison, "First-time mom!" As we giggled, I remembered what first-time motherhood was like for me. Two years of trying to have a baby can make you a little crazy, so when my first son was born, I was a wee bit overprotective. And by that, I mean I slept next to his bassinet on the floor with the lights on all night long so I could check his breathing. Every 20 minutes. Thankfully, we're not alone in our neuroticism. 10 moms share their best first-time mom stories:

      Related: 17 5-Minute Marriage Makeovers

      1. "I wouldn't drive with my first baby for almost a month. I refused to leave her alone in the back seat. Baby and I went nowhere unless my friends came to pick me up and drop me off. Read More »from Moms Confess: My Craziest Worry when My First Baby was Born
    • 5 Ways to Refresh Your Wardrobe

      By REDBOOK

      June Ambrose has been styling celebs-Mary J Blige, Mariah Carey, Sean Combs and Jay-Z, to name a few-for over a decade. She's appeared on several hit shows, including her latest, VH1's Styled by June. Here, she shares her top five rules for updating your look.

      Related: 50 Under $50 Frugal Finds for Spring

      1. THE #1 CLOSET ESSENTIAL IS...

      "A pinstripe suit. I constantly reinvent mine by wearing the pieces separately and dressing them up or down. They add effortless drama and a timeless feel to your look."

      2. THE NEW WAY TO MAKE A STATEMENT:

      "Sparkle for day. Wear beaded shoes to liven up a work outfit, or pair a sequin top with simple sweatpants for a playful feel. Sparkly stuff takes an outfit from a 5 to a 10 every time."

      Related: 25 Snacks Under 150 Calories

      3. EVERY MOM NEEDS...

      "What I like to call 'glamouflage.' If I run out in sweats to drop the kids off, I throw on huge glasses and a funky hat: Now I'm in an outfit!"

      4.

      Read More »from 5 Ways to Refresh Your Wardrobe
    • 7 Pieces of Jewelry Every Woman Should Own

      By REDBOOK

      Elena Kiam, creative director of the family-run jewelry company lia sophia, tells us which items are must-haves for a jewelry wardrobe.

      1. Stud Earrings

      Stud earrings don't have to be boring. You can wear them every day, and they serve as a backdrop for the rest of your jewelry. They're more of a finishing touch than anything else. Also, if you want to have a minimal or pared-down look, studs are great for that.

      Example: Forever 21, $3.80; forever21.com.

      Related: 50 Under $50 Frugal Finds for Spring

      2. Cuff

      This should be something substantial. Some women are afraid to wear cuffs because they feel they're too heavy or clunky. If you're not a fan of them, try a delicate bangle set so you get the same effect.

      Example: Blu Bijoux, $46; maxandchloe.com.

      3. Long Layering Necklace

      The best thing about a long necklace is that you can throw it on over any other necklace you're already wearing and it instantly puts together your look.

      Read More »from 7 Pieces of Jewelry Every Woman Should Own
    • We’re All Doing the Best We Can

      By Alicia Harper, REDBOOK

      There are times when seemingly well-meaning parents provide unsolicited advice to me about the way that I take care of Aiden.

      "Put a hat on that little boy; he must be freezing!"

      "Isn't he too big for you to lift him up?"

      Umm...thanks, everyone.

      Related: 17 5-Minute Marriage Makeovers

      Then, there are times when other parents aren't as well-meaning. In fact, they don't provide me with advice at all. Instead, they seem to be judging, well, everything: my parenting style, me, Aiden-everything.

      Aiden and I were at the playground one spring afternoon. He was going through his one-day-he's-Dr. Jekyll-the-next-day-he's-Mr. Hyde terrible two's phase. To say that it was a challenging phase for me is an understatement. The counselor in me took a child-centered approach to Aiden's behavior in an attempt to get both of us safely and sanely through this phase. I lowered my expectations, ignored his tantrums, and applauded his appropriate

      Read More »from We’re All Doing the Best We Can
    • Parental Peer Pressure: A Game I Cannot Win

      By Joslyn Gray, REDBOOK

      While my kids are certainly subject to more challenging peer pressure than I am, I've realized there is also a certain insidious peer pressure among parents. It is a game I cannot win.

      Related: 50 Under $50 Frugal Finds for Spring

      Depending on whom I'm talking to, I'm either too liberal with my kids or too strict. If I allow my children to have three cookies a day, I'm too indulgent; but if I limit their sugar consumption, I'm giving them eating disorders. I'm uptight because I don't let my 10-year-olds watch Glee; I'm letting their brains rot because I let them watch SpongeBob. I'm a helicopter parent because I don't let my kids play on the playground by themselves, but I'm also a slacker because I do let them walk to school on their own.

      I cannot win. I have ceased trying to. I do not have the energy to defend my parenting choices-I'm too busy and too exhausted.

      Every mom and dad brings something different to the parenting game. We

      Read More »from Parental Peer Pressure: A Game I Cannot Win
    • Kristi Yamaguchi's Tips: Fighting the Bedtime Battle

      By Charlotte Hilton Andersen, REDBOOK

      I am, at this very moment, engaged in one of my favorite parenting games: bedtime whack-a-mole. Every time one of my kids pops out of their bedroom for another drink/snack/hug/kiss/announcement-that-he-has-a-diorama-due-tomorrow, I don't get a rubber mallet with which to bop them back into their holes-er, beds. For me, getting infants to sleep was comparatively easy. They can't get out of their cribs. But preschoolers? They get their second wind at 9 p.m. and can open doors. What's a mom to do?

      Former Olympian Kristi Yamaguchi to the rescue! The figure skater, now mom of two, shared her bedtime tricks during the Tom's of Maine Silly Strawberry Story Hour.

      Related: 23 Power Foods to Eat More, More, More Of

      What is bedtime like in the Yamaguchi household? Kristi says, "I like bedtime to be soothing, the calm in our day. It's a time for me and the girls to spend quiet time together. My girls will only be little for a short while Read More »from Kristi Yamaguchi's Tips: Fighting the Bedtime Battle
    • 4 Skinny Ice Cream Picks

      By Lisa Lillien, REDBOOK

      Everyone going out for ice cream? So are you, with these surprisingly low-calorie picks from Hungry Girl Lisa Lillien.

      1. AT BASKIN-ROBBINS

      I love the Bright Choices ice creams - so many options, so little guilt! My favorites are the Premium Churned Light ones in Aloha Brownie, Cappuccino Chip, or Mint Oreo. Each scoop has 140 to 150 calories and 5 grams of fat or less. Add sprinkles!

      Related: 50 Under $50 Frugal Finds for Spring

      2. AT BEN & JERRY'S

      Go for the guys' Chocolate Fudge Brownie or Half Baked frozen yogurts (mmm... chunks of brownie and cookie dough) for 160 calories and under 3 grams of fat per scoop. (But skip the No Sugar Added Vanilla Fudge Chip - it has a whopping 13 grams of fat.)

      3. AT FRIENDLY'S

      As far as single-scoop stats go, Friendly's rocks! Many flavors have 110 to 130 calories per ½ cup; even the Peanut Butter Cup flavor clocks in at only 150 calories. Forgo the sundae (it can have up to five

      Read More »from 4 Skinny Ice Cream Picks
    • 15 Room Makeover Tips on a Budget

      By REDBOOK

      Convince your friends that you hired a fancy decorator-and possibly won the lottery-with genius home decorating tips from Good Morning America anchor and thrifting savant Lara Spencer. Her new book, I Brake for Yard Sales, shows you how to turn castoffs into gold and decorate your home on a budget.

      1. Think outside the trunk. I turned this $100 metal trunk from a thrift shop into a table. I didn't have to do anything to it!

      2. Look for a sign. The graphics, shapes, and textures of industrial pieces like this old sign make amazing art and add a little masculine, throw-up-your-feet feel.

      Related: 23 Power Foods to Eat More, More, More Of

      3. Don't forget the extras. Keep 'em quirky and inexpensive. See that roulette wheel I found at a yard sale? It's a great conversation piece. I'm all about fun animal accents too - hence the ceramic owl and the pair of black Foo dogs. You can never go wrong with a Foo dog. Trust me.

      4. Consider Lucite. Because they're

      Read More »from 15 Room Makeover Tips on a Budget
    • Do Grandparents Know Best?

      By Charlotte Hilton Andersen, REDBOOK

      Your parents raised you, so you should automatically agree with them on ground rules for parenting, right? Exactly... and Elmo can actually play the piano. Whether it's a sign of the times ("Carseats are mandatory, even just down the street, Dad!") or a genuine difference of opinion ("I know you let us trick-or-treat alone, but my husband and I aren't comfortable with that"), disagreeing with your parents can make them feel like you're questioning their parenting skills. That's something you really don't want to do if your parents are the only available babysitters for the weekend of that getaway you were hoping for. For those of us lucky enough to have our parents involved in our kids' lives, deciding whose rules rule can be a tricky question. (Multiply that by a factor of 10 if it's your in-laws you're dealing with.)

      Related: 25 Snacks Under 150 Calories

      On one hand, you're the parent and you know your children best, so ultimately you Read More »from Do Grandparents Know Best?

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