How to Have a Fun, Safe Holiday Party

Photo: Westbay Management

There are plenty of things to look forward to during the holidays—beautiful music, decorating your house both inside and out, and just being with your nearest and dearest, whether it’s at an informal get-together or a black-tie holiday gala.

No matter how you choose to celebrate, you want to keep both your guests and your property safe. Below are a few tips to host a fun, safe gathering.

Make it family-friendly.  It’s not easy for everyone to get a sitter. Alleviate some of the pressure on your guests by inviting the kids along, too.  Have activities for the little ones, like a holiday-themed craft, movie marathon, and some games. Designate one or two responsible teenagers to oversee the activities so both the kids and adults can enjoy the night.

Suggest a potluck. If you’re on a budget, a potluck meal is your best option. If you’re having a traditional dinner, as host you’d be responsible for the main course and your guests can bring the side dishes. Or if you’re laying out a buffet, make one or two dishes and ask your guests to bring the other items (including paper goods).  

Choose a theme. Theme parties can make planning much easier because the food, décor, and dress code are all tied together.  Ugly Christmas sweater parties have been the big trend around the holidays for the past few years, but other trends are starting to catch on. One is a “vintage” Christmas party, where guests bring dishes right out of their mother’s or grandmother’s cookbooks from the 1960’s or 1970’s (and don’t forget to dress accordingly!) Another trend is a crafting party (or “Santa’s Workshop party”, if you will), where you and your guests create and decorate wreaths, ornaments, and package toppers (if not the packages themselves) for yourself and everyone on your list.  

Serve both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. Not every guest will want to imbibe, so take that into consideration when planning your drink menu. Have a variety of food and beverage options so none of your guests feel uncomfortable or pressured to drink.

Be a responsible host.  Hosting an event is a lot of work. It falls on you to keep all food, drinks, and supplies stocked, guests mingling, and the night flowing smoothly.  It’s not always easy, but your most important job by far is keeping your guests safe. If it looks as though some of your guests have had a little too much, offer to drive them home, call one of their friends or family members to give them a ride, or ask another guest to take them home.

The holidays are definitely a time to celebrate, but if you’re planning to host a party this year, help your guests celebrate responsibly.

Are there any other tips you’d add to our list? We’d love to hear from you in the comments below!

Five Reasons to Shop Small This Holiday Season

The day after Thanksgiving is known as Black Friday, the official start of the holiday season. And the day after that is Small Business Saturday, one of the most important shopping days of the year for Mom and Pop retailers. American Express started this initiative back in 2010 as a way for shoppers to support their local businesses.

It’s important to support the small businesses that remain the heart of the communities they serve, but it’s just as important to support local service providers, such as banks, medical professionals, and yes, insurance agents!

Working with local businesses has many benefits, such as:

-Getting to know the vendors you patronize regularly helps to build camaraderie in the community. During the holiday season, many small establishments hold Open Houses or other events that allow customers to stop in and see what they have to offer. You might discover a new favorite lunch spot or shop for that perfect last-minute gift.

-Strong customer service and personalized attention—owners often learn their regular customers’ tastes and preferences and can recommend new products or services accordingly.

-Boosting the local economy by keeping your dollars in the community.

-Encouraging entrepreneurship among local students and young professionals.

-Stressing quality over quantity. You might find a smaller selection of items at a Mom and Pop operation, but they likely have better craftsmanship and will last longer than those you find at a larger chain store. Service providers like insurance agents can work with you to find better deals or cost savings to stretch your dollars further.

ETA Insurance Group is proud to be a small business and member of our local community. We are located in the heart of Nesquehoning, PA, but work with clients throughout Pennsylvania. We encourage everyone to think of their small businesses first when shopping. After all, it’s not only important to shop small this holiday season, but all year round!

Five Car Care Mistakes You Don't Want to Make

Photo: RepairPal

Your car is very much like your body—the more you take care of it, the better it will perform. And like your body, your car needs checkups now and then just to keep everything running like it should. Cars are incredible machines and many models can run for years before they start slowing down a bit, but that doesn’t mean they run forever. They have expiration dates just like everything else.

As a responsible car owner, one of the worst things you can do is ignore warning signals from your car. A small, fixable problem that you ignore today could lead to serious, more expensive problems later. Today’s models have warning lights for essentially every function—if your dashboard is lighting up, it’s time to stop and investigate the problem. It could be something simple (low or empty washer fluid) or serious—in any case, listen to what your car is telling you.

Below are just a few of the mistakes you don’t want to make when it comes to taking care of your car:

Put off scheduled maintenance. Pennsylvania state law requires annual vehicle inspections. Although this is the ideal time for you to take care of your car, don’t let it be the only time of year you take care of your car! Simple maintenance like changing the oil and filter (ideally every 3,000 miles) and keeping the fluids filled are all easy ways to keep your car running well all year long.   

Try to fix a problem yourself. Unless you have experience working on cars, or a warning light pops up for something simple like low oil, fluid, or you get a flat tire and know how to change it, let your mechanic pinpoint and repair other problems. Trying to fix it yourself can actually make a problem worse, and you’ll likely have to take it to a mechanic to undo your “repair” anyway, so just eliminate a step and go right to a garage.

Take your car to an unqualified mechanic or service center. If you’re going to go to a 

professional, however, make sure they know how to service your vehicle.  

Ignore the “check engine” light. The engine is the heart and soul of your vehicle, and if the “check engine” light on your dashboard is on, make an appointment with your mechanic as soon as possible. That light could signal a wide range of problems, so it’s not something you want to leave unchecked.

Keep driving when your car overheats. If your engine is overheating, pull over immediately (or as soon as you can do so safely).  Continuing to drive with an overheating engine could lead to an engine fire, which could cause serious bodily injury to the driver (or death). Don’t take the risk. If your engine overheats, pull over and call for a tow truck or roadside assistance.

Even the most diligent driver can experience an issue or collision because of factors beyond their control, but keeping up with basic maintenance is one way to keep your car as safe and reliable as possible.

National Stress Awareness Day: Tips for Relieving Stress

November 7 is National Stress Awareness Day.  But if you’re living with chronic stress, you’re already aware of it. Stress can cause a wide range of health problems, from physical conditions like weight loss or gain, high blood pressure, and sleep disorders, to mental conditions like anxiety and depression. It can impact every area of your life, and although you probably can’t eliminate it from your life completely, it’s important to find healthy ways to live with it. 

Photo: Success Under Pressure

Below are a few tips to help manage your stress:

Learn to say “No”. One of the single biggest stressors for most people is simply taking on too much, whether at work, home, or volunteering in the community.  As the saying goes, “If you want something done, ask a busy person”, but even people with jam-packed calendars should take a break from doing it all now and then. Saying “no” doesn’t come naturally at first, but the more you say it (and you can be selective—many of us just like keeping busy), the easier it becomes! Giving yourself some time to relax and recharge is healthy…and necessary for your overall well-being!

Practice good time management skills. Remember the panic you felt as a kid when you waited too long to do a homework project that had been assigned several weeks earlier? And maybe you were up until midnight or later the night before the project was due, scrambling to finish? If you were that kid, unless you develop better time management skills, that feeling won’t go away when you’re an adult. Get yourself a calendar and keep it updated. Refer to it often. Virtually every type of device out there has a calendar, so there’s really no reason not to keep track of bill payments, social events, appointments, and various lists.

Exercise regularly. Between work and family, your spare time is likely limited. But taking care of your physical health is important for keeping your stress level in check. Just taking a brisk walk around the block a few times a week can help keep your weight down and burn off excess nervous energy. If you have more time, try to fit in a few regular sessions at the gym or take up a hobby with a physical component, like running or hiking.

Get enough sleep. It can be a vicious cycle—if you’re stressed about something, it often keeps you up at night. Lack of sleep causes you to feel sluggish, cranky, and just not feeling your best, so you can’t tackle the problem weighing on your mind very efficiently.  If you have trouble sleeping or just unwinding after a stressful day, try reading (preferably something not work-related), keeping your mobile device in another room so you’re not tempted to check messages or scroll through social media every few minutes, or jotting down some thoughts in a journal. Regular journaling is a great way to get your inner thoughts and worries down on paper and ease some of your mental burden.

Practice yoga, meditation, or another relaxing activity. Yoga and meditation are effective ways to manage stress because they both require focus and concentration on something other than the worries on your mind. Meditation is the practice of sitting quietly and focusing on your breath; yoga is an ancient practice incorporating physical, mental, and spiritual components that focus on breathing and includes a series of stretches and controlled movements.  

Make a regular habit out of managing your stress. It’s easy to get overwhelmed by the many demands on our time; you’ll be surprised how much better you’ll feel if you make a conscious effort to reduce or eliminate some of your major stressors.