"Wine and food pairings don't have to be complicated," says Riana Mondavi, a member of the fourth generation of the Mondavi wine family from Napa and an ambassador for her family's CK Mondavi and Family wines. "It's really about what you taste and smell in the wine and how you feel the wine brings out and compliments the food you are eating."

If done correctly, a proper pairing can enhance the flavors of both the food and your chosen bottle of wine. The intensity of a specific food or wine depends on a lot of things such as sugar, acid, salt and spice. The food should not overpower the wine (and vice versa). By matching a light wine with light fare or a heavy dish with a heavier wine, the food and wine balance each other out and their intensities line up for a perfect pairing.

For example, if you have a dish that has a lot of citrus in it, it's great to pair with a Chardonnay, as it also has hints of citrus in it. The two enhance each other and balance out the flavors. A lighter white wine, such as a Sauvignon Blanc or Pinot Grigio, pairs well with summer vegetables, as it brings out the crisp, light flavor profiles. Red wines typically pair best with richer food such as steak and sweets, but there's no set rule. Many people pair a Merlot with seafood.

CK Mondavi and Family has made wine pairing easy for everyone, and this summer they invite you to play around with pairings. They've created a downloadable "Wine pairing made simple" guide on their website: https://www.ckmondavi.com/ckm-pairings. They also added flavor descriptors to each bottle of CK Mondavi and Family. With descriptors such as "Rich & Velvety" for Cabernet Sauvignon and "Bright & Fresh" for Chardonnay, anyone can quickly decide on a wine.

Riana Mondavi also recommends impromptu wine pairings with friends. "It's fun to get together with a group to see what everyone tastes or smells in the wine," she adds. "Everyone has a different opinion and it's fun to see what we all come up with."

So, this summer, have some fun pairing wines with your favorite foods. And while doing it, enter CK Mondavi and Family's monthly #pairNpost drawing, where you can enter to win a prize. Just snap a photo of your favorite pairing and tag it with #pairNpost on Twitter or Instagram.

It's all part of a new, fun approach to wine. After all, summer is about enjoying yourself and what better way to enjoy life than at the table with friends and family?

See full-sized image here.

It's a catchphrase that's been described as perhaps the first "I do" for newlyweds, and it's especially relevant as we head into wedding season. Because as much as you may think no two people have ever been more in love than you are - hey, look at the size of that engagement ring! - the truth is that it could be less than smooth sailing ahead if you're not on the same page when it comes to financial matters.

"Couples have a very hard time talking about money," Joan Atwood, a Hofstra University professor of marriage and family therapy bemoaned on an NPR "Money Coach" segment on the issue. "I would say it's the last taboo."

Ready to break it? Read on.

* Set common goals. You probably discussed this in a dreamy sort of way while dating. You know, a large house with a swimming pool ... yearly vacations. But turning those reveries into reality requires habitually saving to pay for them and finance your later retirement years - not to mention deciding whether both partners contribute equally or based on salaries.

"The median ages for brides and grooms are 29 and 31, respectively, these days," said Andrew Peterson, a vice president at Fidelity Investments (fidelity.com). "So while people may come into a marriage with their own assets, they need to take some time after the wedding to sit down and start getting organized as a couple."

* Be transparent. There's no law that says you have to put all your cash into a joint savings account - some couples do, some don't - but at the very least you'd be "less than truthful" by not divulging any outstanding debts. And then figuring out, together, how to pay them down.

* Safely store your information. Quick: What's your new spouse's Social Security number? And what other vital information don't you know if a sudden need arises?

Exactly.

To truly mark your financial coupling, you might consider using an online service like FidSafe.com that lets you store, access and share all your new family's important records and documents anywhere via a web browser or iOS app.

Not only is it free and simple to use with handy checklists, but even before it was officially introduced two years ago by Fidelity - Get it? "Fid Safe" - Barron's magazine gave the service five stars for being what it called "the first cloud-based safe deposit box we've seen that's secure enough to organize everything from financial statements, insurance policies, and real estate records to a will, IRA benefits, and even passwords."

"With all the other things on their to-do lists, newlyweds typically don't focus on all the important financial and other documents they need to begin married life on a solid footing," said Peterson. "This makes things easier for them from the start, as well as through the years as they have even more joint documents to retain - including those related to perhaps buying a house and having children."

You get up to 5GB of storage, which leaves plenty of space left over once you download your new marriage license and the receipt for that engagement ring.

* Investigate this option. Do you both get health insurance through your employer? Congrats. You may have just saved yourselves some money if it works out it's less expensive for one of you to be on the other's plan rather than pay for both.

As the summer of 2018 kicks off, consider this: 68 percent of Americans are likely to go on vacation, and 85 percent of them will travel by car, based on data from a recent online survey of approximately 1,500 adults.

While aspects of a road trip may be daunting, a majority of these travelers acknowledge that getting there is half the fun: 24 percent strongly agree, and 45 percent somewhat agree that getting to a vacation spot is often as enjoyable as being there.

If you've ever wondered what goes on inside the car during a road trip, read on.

A survey conducted by NACS, a trade association representing the convenience-store industry, reveals that most passengers want to be social: just over 60 percent report that they enjoy talking with fellow passengers and almost 80 percent cite listening together to music, podcasts, or audio books as favorite activities.

However, when it's time to take a break, disagreements can arise, especially when it comes to meals and snacks. A convenience-store stop can be a simple solution.

Today's convenience stores offer more than just gas and restrooms. Many serve a range of hot-meal options such as pizza and burgers, as well as customizable sandwiches, coffee, drinks, and smoothies, so passengers and drivers of every age and taste can find something to satisfy them.

The NACS survey results show that the top three reasons for breaks during summer road trips are to:

* Use the bathroom (96 percent).

* Get gas (95 percent).

* Buy food or drinks (91 percent).

"There's only one place that can satisfy all three of the top reasons for stopping during a road trip: a convenience store," says Jeff Lenard, NACS vice president of strategic industry initiatives.

"From restrooms and fuel pumps to indulgent snacks and healthy options, you can stop once and make everyone happy. And that can certainly make a road trip more fun."

However, regular breaks are an important part of road trips for safety as well as for practical reasons.

Drivers need a quick and easy place to stand up and stretch, or to allow someone else to take the wheel. Kids get antsy and need to stretch, too - according to the NACS survey, approximately 45 percent of the in-car disagreements during road trips center on children fidgeting or arguing.

Convenience stores provide all the services needed for long or short road-trip breaks in a safe, predictable environment.

Many convenience stores offer easy access from major roads, so there's no struggle or lost time navigating to an unknown spot without any sense of the services available. Convenience stores offer clean, well-lit rest stops for single drivers, groups of friends, older adults, and families with children.

Visit convenience.org/more for additional information about what convenience stores offer and how they can help make summer road trips smooth, safe, and enjoyable.

In fact, driving is a significant source of exposure to UV rays, according to the International Window Film Association (IWFA), a nonprofit organization.

Automotive window films can provide an important layer of protection against harmful UVA rays, which do pass through unprotected window glass.

Medical research has shown that drivers in the United States have an increased risk of developing skin cancer on the left side of their faces and on their left arms as a result of exposure to UVA rays through car windows.

All quality window films block 99 percent of UVA rays and can help to reduce the risk of being exposed to the sun's harmful UVA rays. But the dark glass that is popular in many vehicles today may not provide sufficient UVA protection unless it has also been treated with a window film, according to the IWFA.

Some key benefits of automotive window films:

• Protecting yourself. Window films not only reduce your skin and eye exposure to UVA rays, they may also enhance visibility and reduce eye fatigue while driving, and many films reject more than 50 percent of the sun's heat to help you stay cool on hot summer drives.
• Protecting your car. The sun's rays that penetrate car windows can have a similar impact on your car's interior as on your skin. Window films help reduce the fading and cracking of upholstery. In addition, window films can enhance the ability of the side and rear window glasses to hold together in the event of an impact or accident, as well as frustrate a smash-and-grab burglar.

Protective automotive window films can be installed quickly and easily, usually in a few hours by a professional window film installer. To further assist consumers and professionals, the IWFA has developed a guideline to explain the visual quality that should be expected after installation of an automotive window film tint.

Visit www.iwfa.com for more information and to find a window film business in your area.

National School Choice Week 2018 begins on January 21, shining a positive spotlight on traditional public schools, public charter schools, public magnet schools, private schools, online academies, and homeschooling.

The goal is simple: to let parents know that they have choices when it comes to their children's education, and to celebrate the many different and effective education options available for students.

For almost every parent in America, there are ways to get involved in this positive, inspirational week.

If you are looking to find a new school for your child and want to know how to start the process, use the Week as a time to research your options. Download a free school choice guide for your state at  schoolchoiceweek.com/mystate.

If you want to learn more about the different schools and education environments in your area, consider using the week to attend a special event. More than 32,000 are being planned during National School Choice Week - everything from information sessions, school fairs, and open houses, to rallies. Find an event in your community by visiting  schoolchoiceweek.com/map.

If you are happy with the choices you have made for your child's education, take time during National School Choice Week to thank a teacher or school leader, or to brag about your child's school in a letter to the editor of your local newspaper. You can also share your story with us at schoolchoiceweek.com/share.

If you think that your community or state needs more educational choices for children, use National School Choice Week to speak up and make your opinion known.

Making a difference is easier than it sounds. All it takes is starting one conversation.

You can start that conversation on social media (using #schoolchoice in your posts), or by talking with a friend, coworker, or member of your family.

"Did you know that this is National School Choice Week?" is a good question to get the discussion going.

When more Americans talk about opportunity in education, more parents will discover the options available for their children's education. That means that more children will have the chance of being matched with schools that meet their unique talents, challenges, needs, and interests.

This National School Choice Week, all that it takes is one conversation to brighten the future of a family. Will you start one?