Thanksgiving is a very special time of the year. For some, it's the only time they get to spend with distant relatives and extended family. That can get pretty stressful if you're the one hosting Thanksgiving.

Here are some easy ways to help relieve that stress:

In one of my previous posts, Take Me Out To The Bar Game, I wrote about how you can save money by going to a bar instead of watching a live sports game. Turns out people all over the country are taking that advice a step further and just watching the games from home.

Recently the Washington Post reported that NFL TV ratings have been rising due to the recent economic downturn. They're claiming that more people are watching games from home either because they want to get their money's worth out of the HDTV they bought or because watching games from home is free. Both theories make sense.

As much as I would love to write about how Andre Agassi should be praised for admitting he used crystal meth instead of being chastised, I'm gonna pass. That won't save you money because we don't have any crystal meth deals (weird, I know...). Instead I'll provide you with some deals (and hopefully some entertainment) on some very strange fitness products.

Traveling is one of the best experiences in the world. You get to experience a new city, new people, new food, pretty much new everything. The only hard part about it is staying in shape. Since you're probably not going to have a kitchen, you'll be eating out a lot more (and most likely eating less healthy). However, just because you're on vacation doesn't mean you need to toss out your entire workout routine.

Here are some great ways to stay in shape without taking anything away from your experience:

I'm a firm believer in the idea that just about every parent strives to be the best parent they can--even the terrible ones. One of the most important things you can do to be a good parent is spend time with your children. Disneyland, Chuckie Cheese or the arcade may be a great way to keep kids entertained while spending time with them--but while these activities are kid-friendly, they are definitely not wallet-friendly.

A better way to spend time with your kids is by playing sports with them. Here are some sports you can play with your kids that will make for a great bonding experience--and they don't cost much more than just your time:

Fall is here and that means the weather is changing. Leaves are changing colors, skies are getting darker, and the weather is getting colder. Unless you're a fair weather fan that is. Now that MLB Playoffs have started, fair weather fans are appearing everywhere. If you don't know what I'm talking about, check out Twitter and Facebook. People everywhere are all of a sudden hardcore (insert whichever team is winning) fans.

This strange phenomenon has been occurring since the beginning of professional sports. I have done an extensive study on fair weather fans and discovered the following:

• Out of every five fans of a team that wins a championship, four are fair weather fans.

• Fair weather fans are the most hated fans in all of sports and yet the most prevalent fans in sports. This means many of them are hypocrites.

• Fair weather fans, as it turns out, started the fire (listen to Billy Joel's "We Didn't Start The Fire" if you don't know what I'm talking about).

A while ago I posted about how you could celebrate Halloween year-round thanks to some scary video games. As the holiday quickly approaches, I thought of a couple more to get into a more macabre state of mind.

Here are three games that will be sure to give you nightmares when you turn the lights off and play alone late into the night.

Do you ever walk by a park and feel nostalgic? Watching little kids going down sliding, swinging, and playing in the sandbox can make anyone wish they were young again. I wish I was here to tell you there was a way to turn back time but I'm still trying to figure that out myself. Just because you can't turn back the clock, who says you can't play the same games you did as a kid?

Many of the games we played as kids are great ways of getting in shape (unless you were like me and were lighting tennis balls covered in gasoline and playing catch with them). Here are a couple of games that are safer than playing Fireball and will get you in better shape.

It's football season and women across America not only have to contend with their significant others turning into slack-jawed zombies in front of the TV, but they have to deal with them being glued to the computer as well as the Bill Belichick wannabes pore over their "rosters," making trades and benching players.

Fantasy football has become one of the biggest crazes in football over the last decade, extending the pigskin obsession well beyond Sundays and Monday nights. WalletPop's Aaron Crowe recently posted about how to play without leaving a fantasy football widow.

For those of you unfamiliar with how fantasy football works, you draft whichever players you want and depending on how they perform during the actual game, your fantasy team accumulates points. If you score more points than your opponent(s) that week, you win. If you've never tried playing, you're probably wondering how people become so caught up given some leagues cost as much as $10,000 to join.

Here are some of the top reasons why fantasy football is such a huge craze:

Last week we posted about how we are already loading up with Halloween deals. It's not surprising that Halloween is now celebrated year-round given our current fascination with all things vampire (Twilight, True Blood, The Vampire Diaries). Even zombies have risen from the undead with recent flicks like 28 Weeks Later, Quarantine and Planet Terror swarming the multiplexes.

MainStreet recently posted about the vampire and zombie craze saying:

"In case you've been too busy playing with troll dolls and collecting angels to notice, vampires and zombies have been locked in a pop culture death match lately -- with corporations and Hollywood studios struggling to catch up. It's not just your brains and blood they want, but every dollar and waking minute you have left."

With all of the Halloween movies and TV shows coming up in the next two months, you're bound to get into the Halloween spirit. Movies like Zombieland, Halloween 2, and Jennifer's Body will definitely send chills down your spine and, in some cases, make you laugh.

But enough about movies, let's talk video games. Why watch Will Smith battle zombie mutants when you can experience the vicarious thrill of annihilating the undead via a video game?

Here are my picks for three of the best zombie/vampire games series out there.

There's an ongoing debate over whether college sports or pro sports are better. Some people argue that pro players don't try nearly as hard as college players because they aren't playing to get signed to pro team (obviously because they're already on one). Others argue that the reason it seems they don't try as hard is that they're playing at a higher level of competition.

I personally agree with the former assertion and think this problem could be solved by lowering pro athlete salaries. According to Blake Oestriecher of Tigerweekly.com, the economy is impacting the pro sports world. I think this is a good thing.

Here's why:

Two weeks from today the NFL regular season begins. But you already knew that, right? You've been getting ready by watching your favorite team's bench pretend to play during the preseason, reading up on how your team is expected to do, and getting your fantasy picks ready. You've just forgotten one thing: pimping your crib with everything you need for watching the real games. Well, it's not too late.

Here are some of the essentials you're going to need for when the season finally starts:

If you're like me, you love being outdoors. The air is fresher, the sun enhances your mood, and it's great for sports. Belonging to a gym is a great way to get in shape, but they aren't as exciting or refreshing as working out outdoors. Many different activities you can do in the gym are significantly enhanced outdoors. The mountains and the ocean provide the best setting for taking advantage of these activities.

Another bonus provided by outdoor activities: they usually cost far less than a gym membership!

Playing sports is a great way to get some exercise, have fun, and bond with friends. Whether you're playing a pick-up game or on an organized team, there are tons of different sports to choose from. However, sometimes we get bored of playing the same sports over and over. Here are sports that are fun but a bit--uh, unusual...

Working out can be almost as boring and painful as going to the dentist depending on what you're doing. If you're into lifting weights, you might not enjoy running as much and vice versa. Nintendo came up with a solution that made things a little better for you called Wii Fit. It basically is a video game but you're working out while playing it.

As computers continue to dominate our lives more and more, it makes sense that the next step in the evolution of fitness moves from barbell to joystick.

Attending a professional sports game is a one of a kind experience. Almost every aspect of it is better than watching a game on TV except one: it's expensive. However, I'm here to tell you there is a close alternative that is much cheaper. I'm talking about sports bars.

Here are some advantages of going to a sports bar instead of the actual game:

Thinking about getting in shape, but you don't want to shell out the $30-$60 a month to join a gym? I've got good news for you: you don't have to. There are tons of ways to get in shape without spending all that money on a gym membership that you probably won't be using for more than a couple of weeks.

Here are some of my favorites: