A little variation on an old classic:

‘Twas the night before Christmas and all through the condo
Not a creature was sleeping…so get to bed pronto!
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care
Ok, so it’s a gas fireplace, but the Whole Foods cookies were there.

The children were nestled in their Ikea bunk beds
While visions of iPhones danced in their heads
And Mamma in her La Perla and Pa in his Jockeys
Were “discussing” (again) appropriate times to watch hockey

When out on the sidewalk there arose such a clatter
I sprang from my Eames rocker to see what was the matter
Away to the window I flew like a flash
No shutters to open because we don’t have the cash

The moon on the breast of the new fallen snow
Gave the luster of midday to the objects below
When what to my wondering eyes should appear
But a Fiat 500 and 8 guys chugging beer.

Merry Christmas from everyone at Vitamin Daily!

As we squeeze one more glass of champers out of 2010, here are a few things you can do before the clock strikes midnight to make 2011 the best yet. Cheers to another great year.

Animal Crackers
We’re usually in the Swiss Alps, where local tradition is to stroke a pig’s snout for good luck on New Year’s Eve. This year we’re in Toronto so maybe I’ll dress up in a ball gown and take my family out for bacon sandwiches. Ha, ha, Happy New Year.
Athena Tsavliris, Toronto editor

Mirror, mirror on the wall, who's the sparkliest of them all?
They say that you should always take a look in the mirror before you leave the house and remove one accessory. Since my New Year’s resolution for this year is to accessorize more (I tend to stay simple with my diamond studs), I’m going to add one. Maybe two. Watch out!
Jennifer Nachshen, Montreal editor (English edition)

Return to Sender
The Babylonians were the first to make a New Year’s resolution and this is what it was: return anything borrowed from a friend in the previous year.
Tonya Albulet, Western Sales Manager

Go With the Flow
As one of my yoga instructors often says: “You’ll never be as young as you are this very second.” So instead of resolutions that are restricting, this year is about celebrating life and all its frivolity. And if this means, shopping more, drinking more wine or eating another cookie, try to enjoy every moment, every bite and every sip because it will never be exactly like it is in that moment.
Malwina Gudowska, Calgary editor

The Three P's: Pajamas, Postcards, Positivity
Tradition: "Party Top Pajama Bottoms" party. The photos taken from the waist up make it appear everyone dressed up, but from the waist down it’s all comfort. Makes stumbling into bed that much easier at the end of the night.
Resolution: Send more postcards, for no particular reason, to the people I love.
Superstition:  The surest way to ensure a happy new year is to fix my thoughts on something positive the moment the clock strikes 12.
Joy Pecknold, Vancouver editor

Between thank you cards, birth announcements, and the holidays, you might as well be running a small publishing business from your dining room.

And the golden rule of small business? Outsource!

The gals at Vancouver's Haute Note offer new photo cards for Christmas (we love this subtly retro Collage design) with your precious family snaps ($55/25 cards).  

Because Facebook can't be propped on the mantle. 

View styles and place orders at www.hautenote.ca

There’s no shame in admitting you’ve already been rocking the Christmas tunes for the past month. But now, it’s time to go public.

Until the end of December, enjoy live festive music weekly at Holiday Saturdays at Art Central. 
We can’t promise Jingle Bells or Joy to the World but there will be performances from a variety of artists including the Andrew Noakes Trio, Foon Yap and Kenna Burima (the latter two are members of Woodpigeon).

And while you’re there, get a head start on your Christmas shopping, or, for those keeners out there, should we say finish it up.

Art Central, 100 Seventh Ave. SW, Calgary, 403-543-9600, www.artcentral.ca

Unless your fairy godmother is in town, your rags won’t turn into a ball gown overnight. But that doesn’t mean you’re stuck wearing the same old thing to every holiday party this year.

A Badgley Mischka (pictured), Diane von Furstenberg, Catherine Malandrino or Pucci are only a click away at Cakewalk Designer Dress Rentals. Make an appointment for a fitting with a stylist, or simply choose the dress you want shipped to your house online, wear it and return it the next day. Rentals start from $50 depending on the retail price of the dress, and a variety of sizes are available in each style. The Calgary company also offers hair and make-up styling for a head-to-toe transformation.

Head to Hotel Arts this Monday for a three-day open house where you can see the current selection of dresses, try them on and meet the stylists.

Glass slippers and handsome princes not included.

Cakewalk Designer Dress Rentals open house, November 8-11, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily at Hotel Arts, 119 12th Ave. SW, Calgary, www.beautyuncovered.ca

Decorating the house for Halloween needn’t be a headache. Just put your heads together.

A couple of Crystal Heads that is. The premium vodka brand owned by Dan Aykroyd and made in Newfoundland multitasks. The super smooth spirit within spikes the punch and the skull-shaped glass bottle you’re left with displays your candy corn in a goth way.

It’s a graveyard smash.

$54.99, find retailers here.

Tired of pulling straws with your siblings to decide who will baste the bird this year?

Let someone else cook and clean up while you kick back at one of the Canadian Rocky Mountain Resorts.

All three locations (Buffalo Mountain Lodge, Deer Lodge and Emerald Lake Lodge) are featuring weekend packages (from $285) that include accommodation, Thanksgiving dinner and breakfast. There's enough room for your steps, your fresh-out-of-rehab cousin and your on-and-off BF.

Family counseling not included.

Buffalo Mountain Lodge, 1-800-661-1367, Deer Lodge, 1-800-661-1595 and Emerald Lake Lodge, 1-800-663-633, info and reservations here.

Hot Cross Buns ordered?

Baskets assembled?

Husband’s bunny costume picked up from the cleaners? (Don’t laugh, Ben Affleck has one.)

Now how about dinner decor?

Cotton yarn, glue and balloons are all you need to make these jaunty decorative eggs, and, alas, there will be no need to hide them.

Okay hubby, hop to it!

For step-by-step instructions, click here.

With Santa’s extreme travel schedule, it’s no surprise his carbon footprint is out of this world. To help jolly old St. Nick offset that print, go green with Amenity Home’s new holiday collection.

Put the final touches on your Christmas décor with the eco-friendly and modern stockings ($55), table runners ($105) and ornaments ($9), made from softly textured hemp and organic cotton in a print inspired by pine needles scattered on the forest floor.

Because Santa’s got to do what he’s got to do.

At Riva’s, The Eco Store, 1534 17th Ave. SW, Calgary, 403-452-1001, www.rivasecostore.com

Herewith, Vitamin Daily Calgary’s top 5 gifts (from save to splurge) for all the men in your life.

A new take on the ubiquitous stocking stuffer, Happy Socks ($12) are perfect for the man who likes to show his true colours. At Leo Boutique, 810 16th Ave. SW, Calgary, 403-410-9236, www.leoboutique.com

Tired of your hockey fan wearing that eyesore of a jersey every game day? With the NHL cufflinks (from $50) he can be subtle while still showing his devotion. www.cufflinks.com/hockey

He’ll stand out in a crowd with an original T-shirt by Calgary’s Kaadiki ($80). At Worth Clothing, 119-1013 17th Ave. SW, Calgary, 403-228-1003, www.astorecalledworth.com

He’ll brush up on his geography skills with this sleek, black ocean Starlight globe ($98) and come across many faraway lands the two of you must one day explore. At Map World, 101 Sixth Ave. SW, Calgary, 403-294-0303, www.mapworld.ca

The newest edition of the Canon G series, the PowerShot G11 ($548.87) has a high sensitivity system with 10 megapixels, 5x digital zoom and a flip screen that makes this hefty point-and-shoot the ultimate accessory. At the Camera Store, 802 11th Ave. SW, Calgary, 403-234-9935, www.thecamerastore.com