» Special Days

A Unexpected Christmas Gift – Our Blue Parakeet

Laura — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 17:17:04 +0000

This Christmas day we had a little surprise.

We had a beautiful blue parakeet that around three months ago disappeared from the cage where it was living with a yellow parakeet. He escaped from the cage through a small space it had.

The day it disappeared was quite sad for my kids because it was a parakeet that was born and raised in our house. Usually this type of bird do not return home and some even die because they are not capable to survive in the wild.

On Christmas day my husband was preparing to leave the house to buy some fresh bread when he noticed a parakeet on the parking lot. It was our parakeet that had disappeared three months ago. After running after it for several minutes he was able to grab it on his hands and brought it home. It really was our parakeet.

We were all super excited with this finding. The parakeet was starving. He has some wounds on the paws, was a little shaken but overall he was fine.

He is now back to his cage, in fact, to a new cage because we offered out parakeets a new cage for Christmas. We have now four parakeets in a big cage with a nest attached. We are hoping to increase the parakeet family with new members.

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Macmillan Cancer Support and the Biggest Thank You Project

Laura — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 17:40:37 +0000

Cancer cases are increasing everyday but fortunately the number of cured cases is also increasing.

There are many successful cases of people that survived cancer. They usually receive a lot of support from family, friends, doctors, and nurses. Sometimes even from strangers that were in the same situation somewhere in their life.

Thanking those that somehow helped cancer patients throughout the whole process of treatments and recovery can be a tough journey since there are usually so many people to thank.

Macmillan Cancer Support launched a project called Biggest Thank You microsite in which people can leave their thank you’s to those that were supportive during the disease phase.

To celebrate the centenary of the Macmillan Cancer Support, they launched a 1min 41secs film where six people that suffered from cancer hear to the thanks from other people.

If you were or are a cancer patient head to the Biggest Thank You microsite and thank those that are being supportive to you or were in the past. You can touch the heart of those that also touched yours.

This post is sponsored by Macmillan.

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First Visit Ever to The Snow and a Stay in a Hotel

Laura — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 11:34:10 +0000

For the first time we (the family) decided to spend two days away from home and stay in a hotel. I know this is common for most people but, the truth is, we never stayed in a hotel in long years. The only time we spent a few nights in a hotel my son was three therefore my daughter was not even born.

Starting from the beginning
My kids never saw real snow. We live in a zone of the country where it never snows. We have visited in the past villages that were built with artificial snow just for the purpose of Christmas holidays but that’s not the same thing as it is to see real snow.

For a long time my kids have been asking to visit Serra da Estrela, which is a mountain where, during winter, we can find snow. This holiday we decided to grant them the wish and we decided to go to the snow.

Where is the snow
The weather has been quite enjoyable but I believed we could find some snow in the mountain. I phoned a local Tourism center and what I heard was not what I expected. There was no snow in the mountain, and no snow in the surrounding areas. However we could find artificial snow in there.

I must confess that I was quite disappointed and wanted to quit the trip. We would be spending money on a trip when out main goal would not be meet.

Managing kids
We were into deep with this trip. My kids were too excited, too anxious and they wanted to go. In fact they weren’t worried about not seeing snow, they wanted to go because it was a family trip to a distance place and, they would be staying in a hotel. They were too thrilled with the hotel idea. I couldn’t convince them to postpone the trip.

Let’s go
We prepared clothes for two days. We prepared heavy clothes for the cold. We prepared gloves and knit hats. We were ready for the snow even a small piece of snow.

Arriving
After three hours driving we arrived at a beautiful, shinny place. The mountain. Serra da Estrela. We could find melting ice on the way and my kids were thrilled with it. Every piece of ice was like a treasure they were finding.

When we arrived at the top of the mountain we were able to play with artificial snow. This artificial snow is made with canons and it is very similar to real snow. My kids were thrilled with it. They made snowmen, we threw balls at each other. It was quite amazing.

Arriving at the hotel
In the afternoon we arrived at the hotel and that was a terrific moment for them. Being in a hotel for the first time.

The hotel is a resort one, with four stars. We found a huge family room. We found a hot water swimming pool. Jacuzzi. Sauna. Turk bath.We found an amazing place where we would stay one night. Of course we took advantage of those facilities for the rest of the afternoon and until dinner time.

Next day
The next day my kids decided they wanted to stay in the hotel. Going to the mountain was not a priority. They wanted to take advantage of the hotel luxury. And…we let them. Until it was time to leave. And we were back to reality again.

Christmas gift
I can realize now that, what we are missing because of lack of money is huge. People that are financially well and can travel whenever they want have at their disposal resources we can’t have.

My kids are so happy with this Christmas gift. Yes, it was like a Christmas gift. Now they can’t say they never stayed in a hotel. Snow will have to wait for another trip.

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Christmas Zone from Tesco Real Christmas

Laura — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 14:16:08 +0000

From time to time I consider myself a disaster in the kitchen. Not a disaster from unsuccessful meals but a disaster for lack of cooking ideas.

Christmas holidays is the time of the year when my kids are on holidays, therefore full time at home. I have to cook two main meals a day and they like to eat what they hear that it’s common for this holiday. Special meals, special desserts, special snacks, all according to the traditional dishes for the season.

This is the time to search cookbooks, cook blogs and other cooking sources. However it is wonderful when we can gather as many information as possible on the same spot. And that is what Tesco Real Christmas have set up…a Christmas Zone.

Christmas Zone is the right place for us to go to find all the information regarding how to make a Christmas dinner without too much thinking. Here you search for recipes, cocktails and can even search for a turkey timer. All the things you need to make your Christmas dinner go smoothly and untroubled can be found in the Christmas Zone.

In the Christmas Zone you can also find videos that help you out make some recipes. Here is an example:

Making Christmas diner or other meals during the holiday season was never so easy. Take advantage of the Tesco Real Christmas recently set up Christmas Zone and enjoy your Christmas to the fullest.

This post is sponsored by Tesco. All opinions are 100% mine.

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Taking the Stress Out of Kids’ Birthday Parties

Laura — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 11:06:24 +0000

This is a Guest Post

I have three young children, and each of their birthdays is in January. This means that I have to plan three individual birthday parties for each of them in one month. And I have to do this the month after the holidays, no less. Needless to say, January can be a pretty stressful month for me. However, I’ve had quite a few years of experience planning kids parties, and I consider myself an expert now at keeping my cool during the planning process and during the actual parties, even when I have to throw an elaborate Mario birthday party or Sponge Bob party. Here are some things I do to make sure I enjoy my kids’ birthday parties as much as they enjoy them:

1. I establish a budget for each of the parties. For instance, I might decide that I want to spend $150 total on each party. Sticking to a budget allows me to stop worrying about the money aspect of planning parties for my kids.

2. I always host the parties at my house. This saves me a good amount of money I can use to buy party supplies. If I paid for the parties to be hosted at an ice skating rink, for instance, it would cost me a lot more money. In which case, I might have to skimp on party favors or ice cream to stick to my budget.

3. I make sure I have things for the kids to do at the party. I might rent a new popular kids movie that recently came out to show at the party. And I will often usually plan arts and crafts activities for my daughter’s parties. For my sons’ parties, I will plan outdoor activities like capture the flag. If the kids have enough to do at the party, there’s less chance for potential naughtiness.

4. If I run into any behavior issues at the party, I offer the children incentives to behave. I’ll usually buy a big pack of stickers or silly bands before the party. For example, last year one of my son’s friends kept on trying to climb the fence in our backyard. The fence is high, and I was concerned he would get hurt. So, I told the children that they would each get a sticker if none of them tried to climb the fence during the party. And it worked. None of them even went near the fence after that. (Keep incentives age appropriate. Stickers work well for 6 year olds. They don’t work as well for older kids).

5. Make sure you have contact information from all of the parents of the kids attending the party. This is crucial. If one of the kids gets sick or hurt, you’re going to need a way to contact their parents. I’ve had to call parents quite a few times because their kids were feeling sick after eating too much sugar.

If you’re new to planning parties for kids, don’t worry! You’ll get the hang of it!

photo credit: RedCraig

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Tips to Entertain Your Children During Summer Vacation

Laura — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 17:41:06 +0000

Having our children at home during summer vacation can be kind of boring. Boring…for them. If we don’t keep them occupied and doing interesting things. Here are a few tips I personally use to help them enjoy summer.

Watch a movie: Once in a while a movie can make the kids sit still in the sofa while they enjoy a good movie. Snacks or popcorns can join them too.

Play video games: Playing video games for short periods of time can help children get rid of their energy and sometimes their frustrations.

Play a board game: A board game can mean quiet moments and lots of fun. Ageless games continue to keep people entertained.

Image via Wikipedia

Drawing and coloring: Some children, my daughter included, are great fans of making drawings. My daughter can spend a couple of hours quietly sit in the kitchen table drawing and coloring.

Swimming pool: If you happen to have a small inflated pool or other type of pool at home then your kids will be busy for long periods of time. Of course, surveillance is needed.

Walk in the neighborhood: Going for a walk in the neighborhood can be very relaxing and enjoyable. Make sure you wear sun protector and a cap on sunny days.

Play Park: If it’s not too hot and sunny why not take your kids to the local play park. They will be in a safe space, and you can enjoy a book or a chat with a neighbor.

Beach: If you leave near the beach and don’t have a pool at home take the kids and enjoy the beach, and the ocean.

Water Park: Water parks can be a fun and interesting way of spending a summer day.

Theme Park: Spend a day in a theme park. Kidzania, Disney World, or other existing one.

Read a book: Keep your kids interested in reading books. Buy proper books for their age and encourage them to spend some time reading during summer vacation.

Summer activities center: If you have a nearby summer activity center, encourage your children to go there a couple of times a week. They usually have a lot of fun there because they end up playing and enjoying the company of children of the same age.

Invite a friend or neighbor to spend the day in your house with your kids. They will for sure find interesting things to do together.

Tent: In case you have a backyard or garden mount a tent there. It encourages your kids to spend some time outdoors with the parents, friends, or neighbors.

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Decorating the House for the Holidays

Laura — Wed, 03 Nov 2010 23:35:01 +0000

Image via Wikipedia

Decorating your house for the holidays can be a difficult task, especially finding ornaments, organizing your family to not eat the tree decorations, and other worries. In this article we’ll talk about the best way to decorate your tree and where to find good decorations.

What you’ll need

First, you’ll need to decide how tasteful, fun, or both you want your holiday to be. Some might want to buy premade decorations; you can find tasteful decorations from Grand Illusions online. They have things like hanging wire directions, candle rings, wire Christmas trees, place card holders, and some hanging tree decorations.

Making your Own Ornaments

If you would like to make decorations with your family, there’s a wide variety of options available! You can make a paper-star wreath, which is handmade 3d paper stars glued or attached to a wire wreath, makes an awesome pop effect in a window or on a door. You can find a template for 3d stars here, just make 22 stars of a few different sizes and attach them to a wire wreath frame.

For tree decorations you can make popcorn strings, which are pretty easy to make. You need a long line of string, popcorn, and a threaded needle, just string them through and in no time you’ll have trim for your tree. Another popular idea is the light bulb penguin; gather a light bulb, newspaper, Papier-mâché paste, foam, tacky glue, and acrylic paint. This technique can also be used to make a light bulb Santa. Papier-mâché the light bulb, paint it once it’s dry, attach googly eyes if you have them, and then attach a foam beak and feet. Once dry, attach a ribbon and you have an ornament!

Selecting decorations

If you’re going to buy decorations, think about how you want to present your home for the holidays, fun and festive, or more crisp and austere. Also keep in mind children and pets, would these be appropriate? Are they hanging low enough that they might get sick if they get them in their mouths? Once you’ve picked your decorations, decorate!

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I am Already Thinking about Christmas Gifts

Laura — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 16:59:56 +0000

Image via Wikipedia

Christmas is less than three months away and I’m already thinking about Christmas Gifts. No, I don’t have money to spend on gifts that’s why I’m thinking about them.

This year I would like to make something different. Handmade gifts and decorations are valid options. I’m trying to get as much information as I can on handmade techniques like decoupage, cloth painting, wood painting, crafts, etc.. in order to prepare a list of what I’ll be making.

For personalized Christmas crackers and party bombs we have Designer Crackers with excellent ideas for the Christmas party. Usually Santa comes to my mother in law living room (can’t tell you who he is…!) and I guess he will be happy if he has a reception with a cracker or a confetti launcher.

For Christmas dinner and to enjoy the time before Santa arrives I’m thinking about personalized napkin holders, confetti and Christmas related customized board games.

Regarding the gifts, I’m thinking about some alternatives or complementary gifts. For instance instead of offering two books, offering one book with a personalized handmade cover is an option. Personalized socks, t-shirts and slippers are also a good opportunity to show up my craft talent. Decorated carton boxes will be very appreciated by grown-ups and children if they are filled with cookies, sweets and gummy bears.

For the girls, hair accessories decorated with little flowers or other fancy items, necklaces and bracelets made with buttons, they will love them as well as hand made woolen scarfs of several colors.

For the boys it’s a little bit more difficult so I would like to receive some suggestions from my readers.

Am I too ahead or are you already thinking about Christmas gifts already?

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Our Visit to Kidzania, Where Children are Grown-ups

Laura — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 15:30:00 +0000

Thursday we went to Kidzania. I believe United States doesn’t have this park. It is a city for children aged 3 to 15 where they are treated as adults. It has everything a normal city has: supermarket, post office, hospital, school, travel agency, nightclub, etc.. When the children enter the park they receive Kiddos (Kidzania Money) and than they are on their own. They can spend the money but they also have to work to earn more money. To have fun they have to work, otherwise they don’t have money to spend.

The security system they have is amazing. Both children and parents have an electronic bracelet, several computers are spread all over the city and with the electronic system we can check on the computers where our kids are. No one leaves the park without being checked in the computer. The exit is through a narrow tunnel with a lot of security. Kids over 7 can stay in the “city” without the parents who can spend their time outside shopping in one of the biggest malls in Europe.

My kids and niece had a lot of fun and they can’t wait to get there again. It’s a bit expensive though.

My son worked for Sony.

My daughter's Driving License

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Shopping for Clothes

Laura — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 22:37:24 +0000

Shopping for clothes is a sentence I usually don’t say. I can’t remember the last time I got out to buy clothes. Why am I buying clothes? Because we are attending a wedding on September 5th. We haven’t had a wedding for three years now and we have no formal clothes to dress. I have jeans and t-shirts, my kids have casual clothes, my husband jeans and t-shirts too.

Yesterday night we started looking for clothes and shoes but we only managed to buy one pair of shoes for my son as well as a shirt. Today we continued our journey and after several stores I managed to buy a dress for me. It was on sale so half the price and I confess, it is the first dress I’m going to wear in about ten years. We also bought a dress and shoes for my daughter.

Despite the fact that we were shopping under 104F, overall we progressed with our shopping.

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Kids are Camping…In My Room

Laura — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 21:13:59 +0000

Today my kids decided to go camping…in my dressing room.

Blankets, sleeping bags, pillows…everything on the floor. No tent but they have video games to play. It’s going to be an interesting night.

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Alternatives to Educational Kids Toys

Laura — Sun, 13 Jun 2010 22:59:29 +0000

Image via Wikipedia

Having my father in hospital changed our weekend plans. On Friday we had a birthday party but as I was on the ER waiting for news about my father, my husband attended the birthday and I only arrived late in the night.

Birthday parties have been a constant these last weeks and this week alone we are having three. My son had two and both my kids have one today. The good part of these birthday parties is that we always get a free meal, because when we show up to take the kids home we are always invited to eat something.

The worst part is to choose the birthday gifts. Educational kids toys are very expensive and so are the electronic games. I usually opt for a piece of clothing or a book. When we give a t-shirt or sweat we get comment: “clothes again?” If it is a book we get a: “a book? I don’t like to read.” Oh boy, these kids are difficult to please.

All these birthday parties happen in a real bad time line, when we are having a home financial crisis. I always look for a cheap gift although I always want a quality one. For instance a T-Shirt can cost less than $10 and still be of good quality and fashionable. Books can also be very expensive (at least for my pocket) but there are some books for children that are quite affordable. Board games as well as other toys are really away from my budget.

I find it more difficult to buy gifts for boys then girls. Most boys don’t read, they are very picky when it comes to clothes, therefore sometimes a certificate gift from a certain store is the best option. With the certificate gift they can buy what they want.

What do you usually buy to offer to your kid’s friends? Do you ask first what they want to receive or you choose by yourself?