Holiday Countdown

Holiday Countdown Tulsa World Supplement, Sunday, December 9, 2018

Smartphone

Wish List last-minute

Gift Ideas

Fun for Your Family Board Game

GUIDE

tulsaworld.com/holidays

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Jingle through the holidays with these smartphones Just about everyone on your shopping list probably has a smartphone, but the holiday season is a perfect time to treat them to an upgrade. Many people keep the same phone for years — even as much better, faster and smarter models hit the market — so a new device will be an especially appreciated and useful gift. Here are the top five smartphones for the 2018 holiday season.

By Samantha Grossman, CTW Features

1. Samsung Galaxy Note 9 Though it’s one of the priciest smartphones on the market, the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 has so much going for it. For starters, it has a big, beautiful display and a powerful stylus. It also boasts tons of storage space, a bestin-class processor and a huge battery, which is a major perk for anyone whose phone always seems to be dying in the middle of the day.

Specs Display: 6.4 inches Memory (RAM): 4 GB Storage: 128 GB Battery capacity: 3,300 mAh

2. LG V30+ With plenty of storage, high-tech audio capabilities and decent earphones included, this is the perfect phone for the music lover in your life. It also has a large battery that will last all day. (The upcoming LG V40 is rumored to have even more great features, including a button for Google Assistant and a fingerprint sensor on the back.)

Specs Display: 6 inches Memory (RAM): 4 GB Storage: 128 GB Battery capacity: 3,300 mAh

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smartphone Guide 4. Motorola Moto G6 3. Apple iPhone Xs Max You can never go wrong gifting someone the latest iPhone model.

The Xs is the largest iPhone to date, and one of the most popular features on the newest iPhones is Portrait Mode, which creates a depth-of-field effect, keeping your subject sharp against a blurred background. This allows you to take professional-looking photos right on your phone. It includes a faster processor and updated face-detecting technology to replace home buttons and fingerprint sensors.

Specs Display:6.5 inches Memory (RAM): 4 GB Storage: 64-512 GB Battery capacity: 2658 mAh

One of the most affordable smartphones you’ll find, the Moto G6 still packs quite a punch, and it is widely considered the best bargain smartphone on the market.

Some of the biggest draws (beyond the extreme affordability) include a headphone jack, sleek design and a fast-charging feature.

Overall, this is a solid phone at an incredible price point.

Specs Display: 5.7 inches Memory (RAM): 3 GB Storage: 32 GB Battery capacity: 3000 mAh

Holiday Countdown was produced by Tulsa World’s Advertising Department.

For more information, call 918-581-8524.

Fun for the Family

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Holiday activities that foster togetherness and keep your loved ones in the Christmas spirit As the holiday season progresses, the excitement of buying gifts — and waiting to open them — can overshadow some of the more precious moments of the season. This year, reclaim that warm and fuzzy feeling that the shopping crowds won’t provide and try some of these family-friendly activities. A few of them can be shared with neighbors and close friends as well. ‘Tis the season for togetherness!

By Denise K. James, CTW Features

Gingerbread House Construction Does anything say the holiday season quite the way gingerbread does? Ring in the month of December (or even earlier; we won’t judge) and let the kids go to town decorating their own gingerbread

houses. The fun comes with customization, so don’t forget the colored icing, gumdrops, peppermints and any small confectionary items that are easy to “glue” onto the masterpiece.

Round out the evening with festive drinks — some champagne for you, some warm spiced milk with honey for them.

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family fun Guide Dinner and a Movie Night It’s not the holiday season without gobs of holiday movies available for streaming. Take advantage of the mood and add a fun dinner. We particularly love finger foods that can be eaten in front of the television (with your permission, of course). Try small sandwiches with baby vegetables and healthy dips for a quick meal that little hands can grab. Don’t forget the popcorn and holiday cookies.

As for the flick choice, we highly recommend a classic for maximum bonding — think “Miracle on 34th Street” or “A Christmas Story.”

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Start a holiday tradition  Food is an important element in most gatherings with family and friends. Make this the year you discover Capirotada, an Abuelo’s holiday tradition. The silky smooth Mexican bread pudding is only available the week of Thanksgiving through December 31st each year. Try it once, and it may be the start of a family tradition in your home.

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Whether you are finalizi or searching for the make your holiday ga these suggestions fr

Abuelo’s; abuelos.com

 Get a taste of Broadway Surprise your loved ones with tickets to a musical. Celebrity Attractions presents “THE BOOK OF MORMON,” winner of nine Tony Awards including Best Musical.

Tickets are on sale now for eight performances January 8-13 at the Tulsa Performing Arts Center.

Celebrity Attractions; 918-596-7111 CelebrityAttractions.com Courtesy photo/Julieta Cervantes

Revel in the extravagant beauty of Waterford’s stunning LIsmore Diamond Cobalt Bowl. Chic and modern, it features Lismore’s intricate diamond and wedge cuts in brilliant crystal. Find this and other pieces at Nielsens Gifts.

Nielsens Gifts; 918-298-9700 nielsensgifts.com

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Make a statement! 

Show your support

Extend the thrill of the game for an Oklahoma City Thunder fan with a comfortable hoodie. This women’s New Era hoodie is available in navy and gray. Sizes range from small to 2XL. OKC Thunder; nbathundershop.com

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ing plans for entertaining last gifts on your list, atherings perfect with rom local businesses.

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Outfit a truck or SUV  Weathertech floor liners are the perfect gift for someone you know who treasures their vehicle. This truck accessory protects the front, back and even up the sides of the footwell. Digital laser measurements of interior surfaces offer an ideal fit.

Performance Truck Outfitters 918-836-3500; teampto.com

 Add beauty underfoot There is still time to update your flooring in time for Christmas gatherings if you act this week, and waterproof core flooring is changing the game in luxury vinyl flooring. It’s durable, versatile and 100 percent waterproof.

Grigsby’s Carpet, Tile and Hardwood 918-627-6996; grigsbys.com

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Serve your guests with style  Entertain with delicious flair

Don’t forget to order your Strawberry Cream Cake at Queenie’s in Utica Square. It’s a holiday favorite year after year and just one of many treats in their dessert case.

Queenie’s Cafe and Bakery; 918-749-3481 queeniesoftulsa.com

Pampa Bay serveware is perfect for any season and occasion. Each design is elegant and unique. The high-fired porcelain serving pieces are available in silver and gold finishes that are dishwasher safe, stain resistant and tarnish free.

Mecca Coffee Co.; 918-749-3509 meccacoffeeco.com

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Top New Board Games

Qwirkle Board Game: this mix and match game is an all-around good choice for a family game night with young players.

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BOARD GAME GUIDE Family-friendly board games suitable for young children Technology has tried its best over the years to replace the board game as humanity’s go-to pastime for fun. But despite the proliferation of electronic gaming devices and gadgets, board games remain a tried-and-true mechanism for bringing families together and interacting with friends. While classics such as Scrabble and Monopoly are still popular, board games continue to flood the toy and gaming industry every year with fun and clever options ready to capture new fans.

We have scoured the industry for the top new trends just in time for the holidays.

By Robin Gibson, CTW Features

Age appropriateness is critical when it comes to choosing board games for families with young children. You want to make sure that all the players can take part and engage in a manner they comprehend and understand, and that is suitable for their age group. Here are our picks for a new small-child, family-friendly option.

Richard Scarry’s Busytown Eye Found It!: a literary game by maker Wonder Forge.

This is perfect for families with children as young as three, and it encourages teamwork and observation.

Children can also play the game with each other.

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BOARD GAME GUIDE

Board games perfect for tweens and young adults Just because your children are getting older doesn’t mean you can’t lure them to the table by the call of competition. Enlist these new board games in your quest to maintain family bonding.

Dude is a game only available at Target where players repeatedly say dude. No, really.

While there’s no actual board, just playing cards, this still gets our vote for its sheer entertainment value and ability to draw folks to the table.

Monopoly Stranger Things Edition has been popularized by the mega-hit show on Netflix. Chances are the tweens and teens in your household are fans, and you have the opportunity to dazzle them with your wealth of eighties knowledge — a new twist on a popular classic sure to please everyone.

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Shine the light on childrens’ creative holiday projects

Kids’ creations add a sense of whimsy to holiday decor.

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Decorating for the holidays is a special activity for many families, and excitement mounts as box after box appears from storage.

But with an array of schoolaged artists in the mix, things can get tricky.

“I love to transform the house, but I usually feel a bit overwhelmed trying to find room for all of our decorations,” confesses mother of three Tina Jacobs, an artist and illustrator who operates Tina Jacobs Designs in St. Louis. “While our collection of standard holiday/party décor rarely expands, the children’s collections of art and crafts grow each year.”

But this is a challenge worth tackling, say Jacobs, who is echoed by other art pros and moms. Not only do kids’ creations add whimsy to holiday decor, displaying them sends an important message to budding artists.

“I absolutely love children’s art and think it is important to display it in a beautiful way your home,” says Lauren

Hufnagl, a Pennsylvaniabased mom of two who blogs about children’s design ALovelyLark.com.

Mix ‘n’ match on the tree “Around the holidays, I use the decorations my kids made just like decorations I’ve purchased at the store,” says Cathy MacArthur, a mom for 30 years and nine-year veteran art teacher in public and private New Jersey schools.

Over the years she’s kept a box of each child’s handmade crafts, and although she sent the boxes with her older kids when they left home, she kept the Christmas ornaments, marked carefully with their names, the date of creation and the teacher who helped.

“My tree is a hodgepodge of handmade and purchased ornaments,”

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she says. “And I wouldn’t have it any other way!”

Put the spotlight on their artwork However, items other than ornaments require further imagination.

Jacobs reserves mantle space in her home for holiday canvases her children have painted, “and they look brilliant with candles or Christmas lights illuminating them.”

She also likes to display ceramics and handmade trinkets on her buffet and sofa table, because this puts them right at kids’ eye level.

“Their art comes to life when surrounded by the rest of our standard decorations,” she says. “We all have memories associated with each piece too, so many sentimental conversations come up

during these times.”

Jacobs has framed some of her kids’ favorite holiday creations over the years, and she swaps some of her home’s usual wall hangings for these pieces during the season.

“In our house we have framed children’s art hanging right next to old Italian oil paintings.”

Get creative

You also might consider hanging arty offerings from a wire or curtain rod, clipped onto a sheet of chicken wire with clothespins or tacked up around a doorway as you do with holiday cards. Hufnagl has compiled an assortment of options for displaying children’s art — holiday and otherwise — on her blog, ALovelyLark.com (search “children’s art”).

By Jessica Royer Ocken, CTW Features

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