Win a free book CONTEST!

So, are you ready for the holidays? Would you like to be? An inspiring author and good friend of mine, Connie Sokol, is launching her newest book "Simplify & Savor the Season", a three-part holiday planner to help you savor the celebrations!

You can WIN A FREE COPY by sharing in the comment box below what you do to celebrate and enjoy this holiday season, which includes Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's. I'll pick a winning entry and send you a copy of her ebook and eplanner!

 Connie's fun book details the to-dos, including menu and gift planning, with quick tips on how to lose the unnecessary and focus on the essential. After organizing, sit back and enjoy the season with “5 Holiday Juicers”—tips that teach how to keep life joyful, not stressful. Then curl up and relax with “Savory Suggestions, Snippets, and Stories,” a collection of laugh-out-loud anecdotes including “How the Real Halloween Fright Happened the Next Day,” “Thankful for Warbling,” and “Let Go of the Cookie-Cutter Christmas.” Make your holiday celebrations meaningful and memorable as you Simplify & Savor the Season!

To learn more about this book and others, visit www.conniesokol.com where you can also sign up to receive her fun newsletter. Some testimonials of her newest book are:

“Reading Simplify & Savor the Season is like getting an early holiday gift: permission to let go of meaningless frills and pageantry and instead, focus on family and love. And it helps the most diehard procrastinators get organized in time to enjoy the holidays.” —Elyssa Andrus, author of Happy Homemaking: An LDS Girl’s Guide 

“Love it! I don’t have to hold my breath anymore. Connie is the master at bringing clarity to the chaotic. This book brings to light the little things that make all the difference. I want to tell all women that serenity during the holidays really can happen. What a gift! –Kalli Wilson, International Wellness Coach 

Connie Sokol is a mother of seven, a national and local presenter, and a favorite speaker at Education Week. She is the Motherhood Matters contributor on KSL TV's “Studio 5 with Brooke Walker”, and regular blogger on www.ksl.com. She is a former TV and radio host, newspaper columnist. Mrs. Sokol is the author of several books including The Life is Too Short Collection, Faithful, Fit & Fabulous, Create a Powerful Life Plan, 40 Days with the Savior, and Caribbean Crossroads. She marinates in time spent with her family and eating decadent treats. For her blog, TV segments, podcasts and more, visit www.conniesokol.com

Let's be honest...Halloween is a weird American holiday!  The rest of the world celebrates something somewhat similar called Carnival.   Costumes are adorned and parties are plentiful.  So what makes Halloween different than Carnival? Well, for starters, we add the creepy, spooky element to the festivities.  Carnival usually occurs in the spring, while here in America, we often need coats or umbrellas to protect our costumes in the crisp fall when we celebrate.

Anciently, the Celts celebrated their new year during this time, marking the end of the warmer weather harvest and the beginning of the cold, approaching winter months.  They believed that on the night before the new year, the boundary between the worlds of the living and dead was blurred.  They also believed that as they surrounded a big bonfire, dressed in costumes, that they could predict the future, as well as protect themselves in the upcoming year against bad fortune.

In the eighth century, Pope Gregory III designated November 1st as "All Saints Day", a day to honor all saints and martyrs, possibly as an attempt to veer Christians away from the Celtic pagan traditions.  The night before the holiday, October 31st, was known as "All Hallows' Eve" which eventually became more secular, including parades and sweet treats for the children.

Today, Halloween festivities involve community events, trick or treating, and an attempt to focus on the fun party atmosphere, rather than on the religious tones, although death and superstition are definitely still part of the mix.

Here are some Halloween words for my international friends who are trying to make sense of it all:

* apparition - an unusual or unexpected sight, a ghost

* macabre - grim, horrific, repulsive

* cackle - to laugh, especially in a harsh or sharp

manner

* Jack-o'-lantern - a lantern made of the rind of a

pumpkin in which holes are cut to represent eyes,

nose, and mouth

* poltergeist - a noisy, mischievous ghost

* bloodcurdling - arousing fright or horror

* ghastly - terrifyingly horrible to the senses

If you're a fan of my books, then you can probably guess that I'll never write a spooky fiction novel, using any of those words!  My kids think I'm a dork because I refuse to decorate my home with creepy decor.  Instead, my Halloween decorations consist of happy harvest and smiling pumpkins.

Whether you like getting scared or not, have fun out there this year!  Wear a costume, share treats, create your own fun traditions, and be safe!   Happy Halloween!