Amid all the hustle and bustle of planning for Thanksgiving, don’t forget to plan your Black Friday shopping, too! Here’s a helpful list of websites that will make it easier for you to plan your day, save time and find some great deals along the way:

• Find coupons for more than 20,000 retail stores, including Borders, Victoria’s Secret and Macy’s coupons at Retail Me Not.
• BradsDeals.com offers a wealth of holiday shopping information, including shopping tips, price predictions and pre-released ads to help you plan your busy shopping day and stay within your budget!
• If you want to hear what fellow shoppers are planning, check out the community at Fat Wallet. Not only does Fat Wallet offer great tips on sales and coupons, but you can follow interesting discussions about other shoppers’ Black Friday plans.
• Concerned about buying gift certificates this holiday season with so many store closing rumors circulating around? Get the facts before you shop by reading the Store Closing section at Snopes.com.
• Don’t forget that you can save big at the grocery store during Thanksgiving as well! Check out Coupons.com for a great selection of free coupons for all your favorite products.

I absolutely adore Thanksgiving! Although I do appreciate the gorgeous fall colors and lack of stressful gift giving that many people claim as the reasons they cherish this autumn holiday, my real motivation for loving Thanksgiving is simple—all that food! I start planning my menu weeks in advance, so I thought I would share the wealth and list all of my favorite foodie websites to help you get your Thanksgiving feast on the table in style.

• What better place to start devouring Thanksgiving recipes, tips and tricks than at the Food Network website? Check out their special Thanksgiving section for delicious dishes to fill your day with fun, food, family and friends.
• Once you find some intriguing recipes, don’t succumb to kitchen phobia! Read up on the USDA’s advice for preparing a turkey in a safe and savory way.
• Looking for a fun way to get the kids into the kitchen with you? Family Fun offers a wealth of family-friendly recipes, and even some charming food crafts to get your little ones into the spirit of the season.
• A Thanksgiving feast doesn’t have to throw your healthy eating plan out of whack—browse through Eating Well’s collection of healthy Thanksgiving recipes to find great ways to make sure your family gets some nutrition out of all that noshing.
• If you have a few vegetarians attending your Thanksgiving dinner this year, don’t panic! There are a wealth of different dishes that make a great vegetarian Thanksgiving and have nothing to do with tofurkey! Read all about it on the Gaiam website.

In the aftermath of yesterday’s groundbreaking election, parents across the web are searching for reliable information about important propositions, the 2008 popular vote and the next President of the United States. Check out some of these sites for the latest news on the Election Day results.

• U.S. News & World Report’s Political Bulletin features a synopsis of headlines from around the country, including the New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, Fox news, CBS and NBC. Scan through the site to find a breakdown of the popular vote for the 2008 election and to see what analysts are predicting for the new term of the president elect.
• Looking for tickets to inauguration day 2009? According to this Google News article, the only way to get  inauguration day 2009 tickets is to ask your senators, representatives and/or friends in high ranking military positions to snag you a seat.
• Find a breakdown of your state’s U.S. Senate election results using the great resources on CNN.com. You can even select your state from the map’s drop down menu to see more in-depth info about the U.S. Senate election results that impact you most.
• Read all of today’s headlines at Newseum! The interactive, online museum displays hundreds of newspaper’s front pages. Newseum also features historical inaugural speeches and information about presidential races from the past.
• For a quick synopsis of state propositions, read through this article from CBS.com. The beginning of the article features California’s Proposition 8’s poll results, and then goes on to describe proposition highlights from around the nation.

Before you and your family set out trick-or-treating this Friday night, you might want to read up on some Halloween safety tips from these great sites. It’s a fantastic way to make sure your little ghouls and boys have a frighteningly fun time this Halloween!

• Before you slather white makeup on your son’s face to turn him into the Joker, check out these tips on makeup, candy and more from the FDA.
• Make sure your munchkins have a safe and stress-free night with a little advice from the Los Angeles’ Fire Department.
• The American Academy of Pediatrics has an exceptional list of Halloween safety tips for the kids of all ages in your family.
• Worried that your pets might get spooked or sick from all the Halloween festivities? The ASPCA Blog offers a variety of tips for keeping Fido and your felines healthy and happy throughout the holiday weekend.
• aPARENTly Speaking offers some great tips that we wouldn’t have thought of, including using a glow stick instead of a candle to light your jack-o-lantern.

Parents are super Internet savvy these days–a happy fact that means they are logging on to Yahoo! and Google in record numbers to do some research into everything from politics to fast food hoaxes and new, high tech ways to keep their kids safe. We’ve compiled this week’s top search topics into today’s Link Love so you can have all the latest news and reviews all in one place! Check it out to see what parents are buzzing about this week:

• Tired of vacuuming all day? Check out iRobot’s Roomba, the vacuuming robot! Parents are raving about the iRobot Roomba, claiming it’s the sweet time-saver of the future.

• A new software called Text Guard gives parents access to every text message that is sent or received from your child’s phone. You can even use Text Guard to block certain friends from contacting your child, and you can still see incoming texts that the blocked number attempts to send to your child’s phone. Many parents have been wondering if Text Guard takes things too far. Read this article about the new software on MyFox Los Angeles and let us know what you think.

• Heard that it’s Wendy’s 60th Anniversary today? Turns out the myth of 25 cent hamburgers is just another fast food hoax like the recent In-n-Out debacle in California. About.com is reporting that the fast food chain has NO celebration planned (especially since the Wendy’s restaurant chain is much younger than 60 years–it was started in November of 1969!).

• We think it’s a shame that the public focus on politics, policy and plans for the future seems to have been distracted by Sarah Palin’s wardrobe, but the issue over the reported $150,000 the GOP spent on Palin’s clothing is all over the press. Read about her plans for the pricey suits and blazers in this article from the LA Times.

• It’s nearing the one year anniversary of the date that all-natural lip balm, lotion and shampoo-maker Burt’s Bees was acquired by Clorox in an attempt for the multi-billion dollar company to learn a thing or two about environmental sustainability. Do you think Burt’s Bees can help Clorox go green? Read this fantastic article from The New York Times before you decide.

As the weather turns colder and the days become dramatically shorter, your kids are more likely to want to cuddle up indoors than to run around outside. If you’re afraid you may end up with a couple of cold-weather couch potatoes on your hands, check out these great links for some fun fall games to play both indoors and out:

• Take a break from channel surfing to channel your children’s energy into charming fall crafts! Kaboose offers a wealth of Halloween, Thanksgiving and general fall craft ideas that are sure to entertain your brood for hours.
• Beat cabin fever with Family Fun’s list of fun indoor games for the whole family.
• Looking to stock up on board games for the long winter ahead? Family Education has a list of the Top 10 Board Games for Kids to help you plan your shopping spree.
• Family Education also offers a wealth of indoor and outdoor ideas for entertaining the family all season long.
• Longing to let your kids play in the gorgeous fall foliage like you did as a child? Read up on 15 Fun Fall and Harvest Outdoor Party Games for Kids for some great ideas, including a harvest dig and an autumn relay race.

The holiday season is a great time to get creative with your culinary delights. Especially if you have kids in the house (or even just kids at heart!), creating cute little treats for parties, family dinners or just as afternoon snacks can be a great way to get everyone in the spirit of the holdiay. If you are looking for easy ways to add fun to your finger foods, check out these great food craft sites for some ideas and inspiration:

• Disney’s FamilyFun.com has some of the best ideas on the web for cute crafts and fun food creations. I love their Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas ideas, but they even have some great everyday tips for creating an extra fun family meal.
• The ever-stylish Martha Stewart also offers excellent food craft ideas, including some charming adult ideas better suited for cocktail parties than some of the more cutesy recipes found elsewhere online.
• The Crafty Crow is a great craft site for kids that offers a wealth of ideas for parents looking to spend some quality time with their children in a creative setting. This ingenious site is responsible for the super creepy shrunken apple heads below! Yikes!
• If your family loves M&Ms, Snickers and Milky Way bars, then Red and Yellow’s Bright Ideas is the site for you! Run by the Mars corporation, this site has adorable edible crafts for you and your family to create out of common candy items.
• Another great creative resource for parents is FreeKidsCrafts.com. Not all of these crafts are edible, but they all have to do with food, fun and spending time together as a family!

Pregnant mothers and their partners are typically voracious readers who devour everything from What to Expect When You’re Expecting to Baby Bargains in order to prepare for the arrival of their new babies. In addition to books and magazines, the internet offers a wealth of extra information for savvy parents-to-be. Check out these fantastic sites for extra tips on pregnancy, the health of your newborn and the products you need to stay on top of your parental duties:

• If you love all the great money-saving tips in Baby Bargains, check out the book’s online blog, aptly named the Baby Bargains Book Blog, for even more updates on recalls, product reviews and important industry news.
• The classic pregnancy guide What to Expect When You’re Expecting has also migrated to the web with a fantastic site that offers a week-by-week pregnancy calendar, opportunities to participate in community forums and fun contests for future parents.
• Ever-popular and always on top of the latest trends in all things baby-related, BabyCenter offers a wealth of articles on a variety of pregnancy topics. You can also sign up for their newsletter to get weekly email updates about the growth of your baby in the womb!
• Parents.com also features great info for future parents. Currently, the site’s slide show features common pregnancy fears, great ideas for a beautiful nursery and fun holiday tips!
• If you want to stay current on the health topics affecting your new baby for the first five years of his or her life, bookmark the American Academy of Pediatrics. This renowned medical site offers great info on all the most important health topics for infants and their parents.

Since yesterday was my birthday, I just can’t seem to get birthday parties off my mind! So for those of you who are planning your kids’ birthday festivities in the near future, here’s a collection of helpful links for a few tips and tricks, and a little inspiration!

• Stumped for fun theme ideas? Check out AmazingMoms.com for a list of adorable themes like “A Pink Poodle in Paris Party” and “An Elvis Presley Birthday Party.”
• If you want to leave the cleanup duties to someone else this year, consider hosting your child’s big birthday bash at one of these delightful locations suggested by Birthday Party Locations. Just type in your zip code to find out the hottest party places in your city!
• Once you have a theme and a location, create some ambiance with these cool scene setters from Party America! You could turn your living room into a cowgirl’s dream barn, a fancy casino or an enchanted ballroom.
• No kids’ party would be complete without wacky games for everyone to play. Check out these charming party games from Family Fun and get ready to giggle, party and play!
• Last but not least, don’t forget to feed those rapacious party-goers! The Food Network offers some scrumptious recipes along with tips for making this year’s celebration the tastiest yet.

Also, don’t forget to check out Tiny Prints adorable themed birthday party invitations and other party invites!

Bringing home your newborn baby for the first time is an exciting and challenging time for all parents, whether it’s your first or fifth child! Luckily, the Internet is bursting with tips to help the parents of newborns to cope with their new responsibilities and challenges. Here are a few of our favorite sites and articles to help you make the most of this magical time in your family!

• You could literally spend hours watching all of the informative videos on NewBaby.com. If you have questions about your baby’s toys, food, health or just about anything else, this is a great place to start finding the answers you need.
• Curious about the benefits of breastfeeding? Read this amazingly informative article from Keep Kids Healthy, and you will be thoroughly convinced that breastfeeding is the best choice for you AND your baby.
• You’ve read the books, attended the classes and diligently listened to lectures from your mother-in-law, but are you still feeling uncertain about how to care for your newborn? Reassure yourself that you are doing everything right with this handy Guide for First-Time Parents from KidsHealth.org.
• Find ways to incorporate a big brother or sister into your new baby’s life with some great tips, tricks and advice from BabyCenter.
• Don’t give in to the guilt! MayoClinic.com has great advice for maintaining your role as a super parent once you return to work from your maternity or paternity leave.