My New Year’s Predictions for 2012

iStock_000017115651XSmall.jpgWhile I’m not a psychic, I do know a little bit about entertainment, trends, moms, politics (well not really) and tweens. So here’s my top 10 predictions for 2012 – see if you agree.
1. Ryan Seacrest will be named co-host of Live with Kelly. It’s inevitable – he just has to sell his mansion and figure out how he’s going to host “American Idol” from L.A. but Ryan Seacrest is totally Big Apple bound. Besides, “Live with Ryan and Kelly” has a way better ring to it than “Live with Kelly and Andy.”
2. Pinterest is poised to become the hottest new site in 2012. Forget Foursquare and Stumble Upon. Now that you can create a bulletin board with videos, links, photos and more, Pinterest has the ability to attract all ages and drive traffic to websites and blogs in an organic way.
3. Goodbye Nate and Oprah, hello Katie and Ricki. Looking forward to seeing the daytime talk shows that will be hitting the airwaves next Fall. My money is on Ricki since new moms, tween moms and moms to be can relate to her realism. And I love that she nearly grabbed the mirror ball trophy this year on “Dancing with the Stars.” Go Ricki and welcome back to talk!
4. The Road to the Presidency – my gut tells me that Mitt Romney will get the nod and his running mate could be Chris Christie. Either way, I don’t think that’ll be a strong enough match for the Obama camp. While the economy has yet to rebound, the health care situation is still a bit of a mess and he doesn’t have the support of Congress, he did find Osama Bin Laden and finally get rid of him; he captured Moammar Khadafi and got rid of him too and finally started bringing troops home. Rome wasn’t built in a day, but at least we’re headed in the right direction.
5. The Rise of the Ezine – Sure, I have a personal interest in this one, but trust me when I tell you, people like to read publications online. I happen to live for my New York Post and People Magazine apps so here’s hoping that Project You Magazine becomes an app in the New Year and reaches millions of parents worldwide! Incidentally, I’m also loving the brand new Editions App from AOL where you select the sections you want to read and a magazine miraculous is created just for you.
6. Another Trash TV Reality Star will Emerge – While I don’t know who it is just yet, I’m sure that 2012 will launch the career of another talentless person who doesn’t deserve the spotlight but will get it due to their awful behavior. Will they come from MTV, Bravo or TLC? That is the question
7. Meryl Streep will win another Oscar. Put Meryl Streep in a movie about Margaret Thatcher and trust me when I tell you, she will win the Academy Award for best actress this year. Here’s hoping that Octavia Spencer nabs the supporting actress category for “The Help,” but my money on the top prize is Streep. And best movie…I say “The Help” but something tells me it’ll be something I haven’t actually seen in theaters.
8. Young Adult Books will surpass traditional best sellers First there was “Harry Potter,” then there was “Twilight” and then came the “Hunger Games.” And now, I’ve seen a commercial for a new book geared towards tweens and teens written by James Patterson. Who needs the boomers or GenXers when you’ve got socially savvy kids who are actually reading a lot! Thank goodness for little things.
9. Mediterranean Cuisine is the New It Food – Now that we know that fish, olive oil, hummus and other delicacies from the mediterranean are good for us, look for plenty more Greek restaurants to pop up in your area. We went to one restaurant that actually delivers! So long Chinese, you’ve been replaced by Greek food!
10. Apple will come out with a new iPad, a bigger MacBook Air and yet another iPhone: The year would not be complete without me buying the previous year’s model of an Apple product only to find out the latest version is available in the New Year.

The Thursday Fave Five

Today’s Fave Five centers on my favorite topic…entertainment. This week, we got the chance to speak with two stars in one day, so we figured we’d give a little link love to some of our favorite Role Mommies and Role Daddy celebrities!
1. Today, we got the chance to meet Roscoe Orman, also known as SesameStreetDad on Twitter or to your kids…Gordon from Sesame Street! Gordon is the chief storyteller for AudibleKids.com and we took part in a private lunch with some of our favorite mom bloggers at Mommasaid.net, Melissa Chapman at Time Out NY Kids and NYC Moms Blog, Vanessa at Chef Druck Musings and New Jersey Moms Blog, Suzanne at Green Baby, Esti at Primetime Parenting and Lori at Bored in the Burbs, Wendy at Babies Gotta Have It and Phillipa at JuiceBoxJungle. Plus, some of the moms brought their kids and they were mesmerized by Roscoe and his special impression of Elmo. More news to come soon on the great offerings by AudibleKids.
2. We also got to interview one of our favorite reality TV hosts, Phil Keoghan, the host of the Emmy award-winning series “The Amazing Race” on CBS. Phil is about to embark on a 30 city bike tour to raise money for MS and he hopes to cover 100 miles each day until he makes it to New York in time for the finale of “Race” in May. Visit www.philridesacrossamerica.com and to listen in to our interview, click on the link below:

3. 04_06_09.jpgBest magazine cover of the week…Valerie Bertinelli on the cover of People Magazine sporting a bikini. I have always loved her and was so impressed last year by her Jenny Craig weight loss success that I joined too and lost weight. Of course, I gained it back and am continuing to diet yet again, but either way, Valerie – you’re an inspiration to yo yo dieters everywhere!
4. I know there are lots of movies coming out over the next few weeks, but top on my list is Monsters vs. Aliens (gotta love Reese Witherspoon and Seth Rogen) and 17 Again (gotta love Matthew Perry and Zac Ephron). I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait to fill up on some popcorn and diet coke and laugh right along with my kids.
5. Since I’ve been hitting the gym a few days each week, I’ve been tuning into one of my favorite morning talk shows…“Live with Regis & Kelly.” I don’t know about you, but no matter what new show or morning talk duo hits the airwaves, nobody can beat Regis and Kelly – they are hilarious, great storytellers and make my 20 minutes on the elliptical fly by. Oh, and am totally loving bad hair week. I’m a sucker for makeovers.
Have an item you want to submit for Fave Five? Then what are you waiting for? Email us at beth@rolemommy.com.