Everything is More Fun in the Moonlight!

Strathroy has been quite abuzz lately with new local businesses... Now here's a new speciality store you would only expect to find in the big city!  Here Under the Moon tells us the secrets of what makes them so unique...

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Hello All!

We gals at Under the Moon are very excited to have opened our shop at 76 Frank Street, we think everything is more fun in the moonlight! Under the Moon is the place to be for eco-friendly, imaginative, mom-inspired items. It feels wonderful to supply women with the products they need, all the while helping MotherEarth stay green and well. 75% of our items are from women created companies, usually moms who couldn't find what they needed, so they made it themselves! We strive to purchase Canadian whenever we can and as locally as possible. Currently about 50% of our products are Canadian made, many from Ontario, and the quality is fantastic.

We are proud to say you won't find a battery operated toy in our shop! We stock a variety of fabulous German made toys, many made of wood, to tantalize little imaginations, and last through generations. From bras, to books, to bottles, to blocks, we have it all.

Under the Moon was an idea conceived by mothers who searched high and low to find the ideal products for ourselves and our babes. We know from experience there is nothing more frustrating than purchasing something and finding it poor quality, useless, or worst of all dangerous! This is why we have great faith in the products created BY mothers, FOR mothers. Part of our vision is to inspire everyone to express their creative ideas and to put them into action! We all need to have confidence that our contributions CAN make a difference in the world, each in our own unique way.

Our Christmas open house is this Saturday, December 5th! Coupons for $10 off in-store purchases of $50 or more. Santa will be there for pictures with little ones from 10:30am - 1pm with local photographer, Anita Windsor, no appointment necessary. December's Stocking Stuffer Special is 2 pairs of Babylegs for $20.00. There are tons of adorable patterns to choose from and keep little legs warm.

Hope to see you soon!

Under the Moon
76 Frank Street,
Strathroy, ON  N7G 2R6

TEL: (519) 205-2229
WEB: www.UTMCatalogue.ca

STORE HOURS:
Tues - Thurs: 10am - 4pm
Saturday:       10am - 2pm

2nd Annual Operation Red Campaign

There is a revolution going on in Strathroy!  2009 marks the second year of the Operation Red campaign.
It started when the recession hit in 2008.  While other businesses conceded to the effects of the economic store, businesses in Strathroy took a different direction.  They knew something a lot of people seemed to have forgotten... The BEST businesses and stores around are RIGHT HERE in Strathroy-Caradoc!

Not only can the best kept treasures can be found when we just do a little digging right in our own back yards, but the benefits of shopping local come back to us several-fold.  When you spend a dollar at a local business it can circulate up to ten times -- spend it out of town and it disappears forever.

Not only that but local businesses support and give to numerous local causes and public services, which we all benefit from and enjoy!

• VISIT OperationRed.ca today for:
• To learn about local businesses in Strathroy & how they benefit you!
• Find valuable offers to save you money!

New Clothing Store Opens in Strathroy!

Topping the wish-list for Strathroy, is clothing! Now there's a fresh new option for clothing, called what else but... Fresh Clothing!

Here, Katie spills the beans on what's behind Fresh Clothing and how it all landed right here in Strathroy!

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Hi All! I'm Katie,

From my very first visits to Strathroy over 13 years ago, I knew that this was an awesome community! It is a beautiful town with tons of hometown pride! My husband, Jay, and I had always talked about owning our own clothing store and we made it a reality in October, when we opened Fresh Clothing at 81 Front Street West in Strathroy.

Since we’ve been open, we’ve heard so many positive words about the store which is so awesome! We were just featured in the SDCI Fashion Show which was incredible! Some of the featured brands were definitely some of the biggest hits at the store including Fox, Roxy, Quiksilver, Converse, Esprit and Oakley. The students did an amazing job blending the fashion with their great picks in music. The colours of the season – including grey, purple, teal & fuchsia - were highlighted through all of the gorgeous clothing, footwear and accessories.

So, if you haven’t been in, check us out soon for a great supply of unique Christmas gifts without having to leave Strathroy! We’ve got adorable sleep sets from Life is good, tons of accessories like Fluff, even the classic Chuck Taylors! And, if you have been in, keep checking in for new deliveries of great stuff every week!

I hope you all enjoy every minute of the Holiday Season!

Katie Rutherford
Fresh Clothing
81 Front St. W,
Ph: (519) 205-2225
Fx: (519) 205-2339
www.freshclothing.ca

Sleep your way through the H1N1 virus.

The CDC recommends sleep in order for your body to keep a healthy immune system.  Of course in our hurried lives it's hard to get enough sleep.  So what can you do?

In one study people were given the "rhinovirus", A.K.A., the common cold. The results show a clear link to the health of one's immune system to the quality of sleep.  This is now far from the first study to show such a link.

The participants who had less than seven hours of sleep per night got the cold 3x more often!


In our busy lives not everyone can get the recommended 7-9 hours of sleep per night.  Does that mean you're doomed to get the bug?

As important as the number of hours of sleep is the quality of sleep.  The two most important factors in a restful sleep is support and softness/firmness.  Firmness does not mean more support.  A mattress that has good support is good for your bones and skeleton because it lifts and holds your body correctly.  Comfort on the other hand is good for your blood circulation.  A quality mattress offers both, and both contribute to better sleep for you.

Other practices to ward of any flu bug is frequent and thorough hand washing, using hand sanitizers, coughing into your elbow, maintaining 6 feet between you and a sick person (staying home if you are sick), not touching your nose, eyes or mouth, and of course, getting the flu shot.

Colour and the Human Response

Colour certainly brightens our daily lives.  Not only that, but as humans colour has the power to create a very emotional and influential response.  That response helps shape our past, present and future.  That influence  not only effects how we respond to the world around us, but also how the world responds to us.  Colour introduces our personality to our guests, friends and family alike.

The knowledge of the past, influence of the present, and our personal preferences, all blend together to create a colour palette that’s unique to you, surrounding you with emotional responses that give you a positive reaction to your environment. With our day to day lifestyles becoming increasingly busy I have found people turning toward simpler styles, furniture lines and colour choices. We desire to be individuals without compromising our lifestyles. Many of us live in a have-it-all ideology and are not willing to give up our multi-tasking dream, making it a challenge to be simple.

By simple, I mean the way we have high-style and appeal without the overwhelming maintenance factor. Our love for colour is a part of a deeper desire to get back to the basics.  Many of us are re-evaluating our lives in order to simplify our ever-changing complex lives. We are now seeing the need to simplify our lives without losing our individualism, using simplified ways to reach the end goal -- And still have a great space!

Sometimes simplifying our surroundings means enduring a modification to our living environment or paring down on the amount of items in our space. This allows for space to come to the forefront. With space, there is more emphasizes on wall colour. Colour can be used as the back drop, or colour can be the fore-runner for the entire space. Paring down on items for a space often invokes memories and emotions.  Of course we need to be realistic about our belongings and treasures. To some this may mean looking back to a hand-crafted treasure. While others are savouring the simple yet vibrate joys of the natural world around them.

Whatever simplicity means to you embrace change and your individualism!

Tena Wait ASID, IIDA

Total Home Design

Tel: (519)438-8598

www.TotalHomedesign.ca

Helping you create spaces that enhance the way we live today!

Drive-thru speed bumps

Have you ever placed a fast-food order in an empty drive-thru lane, and then be asked to pull up to the front where they will walk the food out to you?  Doesn't make much sense does it.  If the drive-thru lane is empty, why do they ask you to pull up to the front of the restaurant when no one is behind you.  This is totally bizarre!

Well, a clue to these bizarre requests can be found in the form of a time-clock mounted near the drive-thru window.  This time-clock is the score-keeper for corporate head office.  It tracks how long every car sits in the drive-thru lane after the food order is taken.  The shorter the time, the faster the food service... or is it??!!

By asking you to pull up to the front of the restaurant, what they are doing is trying to trick that score-keeping time-clock into thinking faster service is being provided than is actually happening.  The problem is that ALL the fast food restaurants are onto this trick... and they ALL do it!  So what is the sense of having these time-keeping clocks if everyone is cheating them?  Surely the brass in corporate fast-food head offices have caught on to this time-cheating trick.  Or have they? (I hate to think they could possibly be that out of touch).

So for all the brass in those fast-food ivory towers...  if you're reading this, please take a tip and get those utterly useless pain-in-the-caboose time-clocks out of the fast food windows!!