Month: December 2022

2022-12-07T09:01:00

(BPT) – There’s nothing more magical than a journey to visit loved ones during the holiday season. Unfortunately, it’s also one of the most treacherous times of year to drive.

If you want to be ready for wintry roads, four-wheel drive and skilled driving aren’t enough. It’s vital to ride on the right set of tires — and to make sure those tires are ready for the road. Here are some helpful tire safety tips as you prep for holiday travel.

Check Your Inflation and Tread Depth

Use a pressure gauge to make sure your tires are inflated to the level recommended on your driver’s-side door jamb. This is especially important if you’re traveling into higher altitudes or expect dramatic temperature swings.

Check your tread depth to make sure you don’t need new tires — if you put a penny upside down inside your tread and can see all of Abe Lincoln’s head, it’s time to buy a new set.

Make Sure You’re Driving the Right Tires

Do you see a three-peak mountain snowflake emblem on the sidewalls of your tires? If not, your tires aren’t approved for use on winter roads. Traditional all-season tires aren’t actually meant for driving in all seasons — their rubber hardens and loses traction at temperatures below 45 degrees, and their tread patterns are built for rainy roads, not snowy or slushy surfaces.

If you plan to visit winter — or expect winter to visit you — look into buying a set of all weather tires instead. An all-weather tire has a softer compound built to maintain traction in cold weather, and its tread pattern is crafted to carve through snow and slush. Best of all, you can still drive it year-round.

If you live in an area with sustained wintry weather, nothing is safer on the road than a set of dedicated winter tires.

Nokian Tyres invented the winter tire and produced the first all-weather passenger tire. To learn more about staying safe on challenging winter roads during the holidays, visit NokianTires.com/Weather.

2022-12-06T08:01:00

Visitors can take in the famous Mount Fuji from hotel rooftops or check out the Sumida River that ripples through several Tokyo neighborhoods. Additionally, exciting nightlife buzzes in Shinjuku, Roppongi and Shibuya. And, calling all foodies! Tokyo is also well-known for its exquisite cuisine options, representing an incredible international dining scene. Grab a bite at a top-rated restaurant like Den or taste the flavors of renowned dishes at French-Japanese restaurant, Florilège.

Now it’s time to plan. What’s a great way to help make these trips possible? Savvy consumers have travel credit cards that are tied to their favorite hospitality loyalty programs, giving them the opportunity to earn points toward hotel accommodations, dining, excursions and more. For example, the Chase IHG Rewards Premier Credit Card earns cardmembers IHG One Rewards points with every purchase. Right now, new cardmembers can earn 140,000 bonus points after spending $3,000 in the first three months from account opening. 2023 travel dreams are within reach and the right planning can bring them to life!

Chase credit cards are issued by JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Member FDIC. Accounts subject to credit approval. Restrictions and limitations apply. Offer subject to change.

2022-12-06T11:05:00

(BPT) – The season of giving is upon us. Whether you’re brimming with ideas or struggling to find the perfect present, it’s easy to forget the impact this time of the year has on the environment. With these five gifts made using recycled¹ and sustainably sourced materials, this challenge becomes less frustrating and more festive. Oh what joy, knowing more trash has been diverted from landfills with your thoughtful holiday choices, preserving our world’s most natural resources along the way.

Cheerful towels for a joyful kitchen

These high-performance towels from Williams Sonoma are a cheerful addition to any kitchen. Made from responsibly produced cotton and Naia™, a versatile, quick-drying cellulosic fiber, these soft, durable and eco-friendly dish towels are a delightful choice for friends and family, as well as for the environment.

Power tools for the eco-conscious DIYer

This sustainable line of power tools is the perfect gift for the eco-conscious DIYer. BLACK+DECKER^®’s reviva™ cordless drills, sanders and jigsaws are built from Tritan Renew, a 50% certified recycled material created with plastic waste that has been diverted from landfills. Compact and lightweight, the reviva tools are just as tough and reliable as you need them to be — and once they’ve lived a long, hard-working life, you can recycle them too.

Raise your tumbler to planet Earth

The coffee-loving, always-on-the-go friend on your list is sure to love this array of BrüMate’s bottles, tumblers, and barware that provide a real alternative to single-use plastic cups. Transitioning all its lids to Tritan™ Renew with 50% recycled content makes them even more sustainable, impacting the environment by diverting waste equivalent to 15 million single-use plastic water bottles from oceans and landfills. Cheers to that!

Reframe your wish list

Your bespectacled loved ones will look super stylish with these shades from Kenmark Eyewear’s Paradigm Collection. The frames are crafted from Eastman Acetate Renew, made with 40% recycled plastic and 60% biobased content derived from renewable sources. The lenses are made from Tritan Renew, with 50% recycled content. Everyone will see the impact in that!

Bring together beauty and responsibility

For the chic and eco-savvy beauty queen in your life, consider this Timeless Bloom Collection Palette. It delivers nine gorgeous shades of eyeshadow nestled together in Dear Dahlia’s signature marble-designed compact, created with Tritan Renew, making it the trifecta of style, function and recycled content.

1 All mentions of recycled content throughout the article are based on certified recycled content allocated using ISCC mass balance.

2022-12-06T12:01:00

(BPT) – It’s the most wonderful time of the year, and this season, consumers are prepared to spend extra on festive gatherings, gift-giving and spreading holiday cheer! However, the holiday hustle can also significantly strain financial and mental well-being, especially in today’s challenging economic environment.

“Money can elicit so many types of emotions — from the delight we may feel when a loved one opens a gift we purchased, to the loneliness that may accompany an inability to travel to loved ones or partake in certain festivities,” says Lindsay Bryan-Podvin, Certified Financial Therapist (CFT-I) and Upwise contributor. “So, it’s important to recognize how those emotions might influence our spending and saving habits as well as our relationship with money overall.”

For example, a fear of overspending can lead to excessive frugality and cause individuals to miss out on some of the most enjoyable aspects of the holiday season. Meanwhile, others may chase feelings of joy by splurging on gifts, hosting elaborate events, and booking vacations — only to feel regret when a massive credit card bill arrives in the new year.

The leading concern for almost half (46%) of working Americans when considering their top drivers of lower mental health is financial concerns, according to MetLife’s 2022 Employee Benefit Trends Refresh Study. This is even higher for working women (51%) and Gen Xers (52%). On the flip side, 85% who say they are financially well, report feeling mentally healthy.

To keep the holiday season joyful and on budget, consider these expert tips directly from Bryan-Podvin:

1. Understand the emotional connection to money

Emotions like guilt, anxiety and impulsivity majorly influence how we manage and confront monthly expenses. Getting to the root of your feelings about money now (e.g., anxious, avoidant, stressed) is key to understanding how you want to feel about money in the future (e.g., calm, relaxed, confident).

One way to do this is by journaling your feelings about money regularly. Free tools can make this even easier. Upwise is one of the few financial wellness apps that assesses emotions tied to financial activity with its ‘money mood’ tool to help make managing finances more personalized, achievable and rewarding.

2. Make gifting intentional by planning for it

Creating a “gift account” where you can allocate funds over time is an easy but extremely effective way to isolate and stick to a spending amount that fits your budget. To take this a step further, using Upwise’s “Spend Control” feature allows individuals to pick a category (e.g., retail/shopping) or even a specific merchant to track and set spending limits — alerting holiday shoppers to over-spending in real-time and helping them avoid falling too far into the red zone.

3. Eliminate redundant expenses with ease

There are small decisions you can make in the present to get closer to reaching your long-term financial goals. Consider cutting out smaller, unnecessary costs such as monthly subscription services you don’t really use. If you need an extra push to get you started, try leveraging digital tools that allow you to consolidate subscriptions — some, like Upwise, even have fun and engaging challenges like the “Subscription Buster” to motivate you through the process.

4. Celebrate the “small wins”

While it’s great to be ambitious and have lofty aspirations for your financial future, set yourself up for success by establishing reachable goals and celebrating each small win to help create a foundation for a more positive relationship with money. For example, if you struggle with spending too much on dining out or food delivery, try challenging yourself with Upwise’s “dining out challenge,” which will allow you to select from a list of cost-saving actions, commit to those and then track your progress. And when you do succeed at spending less? Pat yourself on the back, text a friend, or open up that kombucha to celebrate.

5. Reflect and recover

If you go beyond your holiday budget, give yourself some compassion (it happens!) and then dig into what led you to overspend. Was it the excitement of seeing loved ones for the first time in years? Feeling you needed to spend the same on everyone? Once you determine why you overspent, you can create a plan for potential spending triggers in the future.

Upwise is a product of MetLife Consumer Services, Inc. Upwise is available at no cost to all individuals and regardless of any MetLife relationship or product. Upwise is for educational purposes. Each individual is advised to consult with their own attorney, accountant, and financial professional regarding their specific circumstances. MetLife does not provide legal, tax, or investment recommendations or advice.

2022-12-06T08:01:00

(BPT) – All parents struggle with raising their kids to the best of their ability, and each generation has its unique challenges. A new study shows that today’s millennial parents are having a hard time relaxing and having fun with their kids and that they wish they could create more spontaneous family moments. Between the looming potential of an economic downturn and the realities of today’s busy households, parents worry their kids are being shortchanged and that they’re unable to devote enough time to family activities — whether planned or spur of the moment. The study, conducted by Wakefield Research* for Hostess Brands, uncovers some of the obstacles getting in the way of family fun, as well as identifies actions parents would like to lean into while their kids are young to create more spontaneous moments of joy.

Just how worried are millennial parents?

Today’s parents are quite concerned about providing more fun for their children. Nearly three out of four parents (70%) admit they’re worried they don’t spend enough time doing fun activities with their child(ren), with approximately one-third (31%) reporting being “extremely” or “very worried” about this. Nearly all of the parents surveyed (93%) cited a specific obstacle they feel gets in the way of being spontaneous with their kids.

What are the biggest obstacles getting in the way of family fun?

The survey identified two of the biggest hurdles preventing parents from creating and enjoying fun with their kids, whether through planned family activities or unplanned adventures.

• Finances: Perhaps not surprisingly, a family’s finances are often an issue, with approximately two-thirds of parents (63%) saying money limitations prevent spontaneity and nearly half (46%) reporting that planned activities with their children are among the first to be cut when budgets are strained. The survey also found that those with household incomes less than $100,000 were significantly more likely to cite finances as an obstacle (73%) than those with household incomes more than $100,000 (51%).
• Busy schedules: Between jobs, school and after-school activities, today’s over-booked families often lose out on opportunities to simply enjoy being together. Nearly one-third of the parents surveyed (30%) say weekly schedules crammed with activities are among the top obstacles to family spontaneity and 41% cite job demands as getting in the way of being spontaneous during family time. Nearly three in five parents (59%) say they’re so focused on planning structured activities for their children that they don’t allow enough time for spontaneous fun.

Keeping up with the (social media) Joneses

One obstacle today’s parents face that their parents and grandparents did not have to deal with is the pressure they feel to post their family fun online for all to see. Nearly three out of five (58%) parents report feeling pressured to create “shareworthy” family moments to post on social media.

The value of fun experiences

On the plus side, parents clearly recognize the value of spontaneous fun and the elements required for creating those special moments. Parents believe their children value experiences over material goods, with nearly two-thirds (62%) agreeing that their children would be more excited about a surprise trip to somewhere they’ve always wanted to go than a surprise gift of a toy on their wish list. And parents also value experiences more: Three out of four parents (75%) report they would get more joy and fulfillment from giving their children experiences during the holiday season as opposed to physical gifts.

Having special experiences together may be the key to more joyful holidays. The vast majority of millennial parents (90%) say creating spontaneous family moments this holiday season will be more emotionally rewarding than previous years — and over half (51%) believe spur-of-the-moment family adventures are the most memorable. What is one crucial element of fun, spontaneous moments? Nearly all millennial parents (99%) say sharing indulgent snacks is a big part of enjoying spontaneous moments as a family.

Find delicious snacks for the whole family while enjoying fun, spontaneous moments at HostessCakes.com.

*The Hostess Brands Survey was conducted by Wakefield Research among 1,000 nationally representative U.S. millennial parents, between Aug. 9-15, 2022, using an email invitation and an online survey. This data has been weighted to ensure accurate representation of U.S. millennial parents.

Results of any sample are subject to sampling variation. The magnitude of the variation is measurable and is affected by the number of interviews and the level of the percentages expressing the results. For the interviews conducted in this particular study, the chances are 95 in 100 that a survey result does not vary, plus or minus, by more than 3.1 percentage points from the result that would be obtained if interviews had been conducted with all persons in the universe represented by the sample.