small business, Self improvement, working at home, mental health, cooking, hobbies, gardening, wellness, health, fitness, motherhood and raising families

If you have the special honor of hosting a baby shower for a friend or family member, you’re well aware that there are many important aspects and details that will need taking care of before the big day arrives. Making the baby shower centerpieces is one of those tasks that will definitely require a bit of creativity and some patience, but luckily, it isn’t one that has to cost a fortune either.

Edible Baby Shower Centerpieces

– Candy Topiaries: These can be made with styrofoam blocks and balls, with either plain or attractively decorated flower pots, cinnamon sticks, candy corn or other not too hard candies, and a glue gun.

– The Watermelon Buggy: If you’re feeling extra creative, carve a watermelon into the shape of a baby buggy or carriage, which actually isn’t as difficult as it first looks, and then fill with all sorts of delicious fruits such as grapes, melon balls, and cherries. Using a lettuce garnish as a base, you can add slices of orange plus cherries as a “hubcap” in the center.

Baby Shower Centerpieces – Non Edible

– Baskets: You should be able to find some nice baskets in your local dollar store, and select from these to use for your basket centerpiece. These can be gifts for the guests to take home, or more for the Mom-to-be herself. Remember to be creative when it comes to choosing a “basket,” as just about any type of container can be used as such.

Some fillers for the basket could include bottles, toys, socks, pacifiers, teethers, lotions, and bath toys, or if the centerpieces are for the guests, add candles, aromatherapy items, coupons for book stores, spas, and hair salons, as well as bubble bath, books, nail polish, chocolates, and useful items for the kitchen.

- Baby Sock Roses: Using simple vases, some artificial flowers, baby’s breath, floral wire, and several pairs of baby socks in the colors of your choice, you can easily make “roses” arranging them in the vases with the greenery. Each sock should be tightly rolled, with thinner socks working best, by starting from the toe, working towards the opening, and finished by fastening with double sided tape.

Experiment with rolling or folding the socks to achieve the desired look of petals, and then insert the floral wire and wrap the bottoms of the “flowers” in green floral tape before arranging in vases.

– Diaper Cakes and Wreaths: These old favorite baby shower centerpieces are still a good choice today. Just use your talents and imagination to be creative with the design. The idea could be used to make diaper cupcakes, also using either disposable or cloth diapers.

Other possibilities include stuffed animals with ribbons, balloons of varying colors, and flowers; all this can be mixed and matched. A cute plush toy can be transformed into a centerpiece with imaginative decoration, useing things like bibs, baby blankets, baby bottles and so on.

Painting and stenciling inexpensive flower pots can make great baby shower decorations. Just choose your own stencil designs and sayings for a unique decoration. Flowers from a florist can be costly, so on the day of the baby shower can could pick up a bouquet at the supermarket at a lower price. The bouquets can then be broken down and added to the painted pots, or placed singularly in clear glass vases.

Once you have made your decisions on a baby shower centerpiece then you can think about getting organized and sending out those baby invites.

Toddlers are interested in the world around them. They are inquisitive and always very eager to learn. Teaching a toddler something new is not always easy however because their  attention spans are short and not all of them are ready for a 'lesson' just yet. If you plan teach your toddler all about the different colors, here is the best way to start.

The first activity you do together should be just fun, simple and basic.Get out your crayons and a coloring book or some plain white paper. Start with the  primary colors: red, yellow and blue.

Show your toddler each colored crayon and say the color to him, then together. If he does not want to say it, that’s okay – he is still learning by looking at the color and listening to you.

Choose a picture to color together.  Little boys enjoy coloring pictures of cars and trucks while little girls usually enjoy coloring images from fairy tales and princesses  -  at sites like Barbie Coloring Pages you’ll find the best free Barbie printables

If you are using blank, white paper, let your toddler choose something that the two of you can draw and color together. Now it’s coloring time!

As he colors, tell him what color he is using. Then attempt to say the name of the color together. Do not force him or her to tell you the color. This should be a fun activity for your child not a drill! Make sure to compliment his coloring by saying things like, "What a pretty red flower!” or “I love the way you colored the yellow sun.”

After you have colored together, make sure to put his picture on display somewhere prominent where visitors to your home can comment on it.  This will give your child confidence and boost his/her self esteem – which is great for you because he will want to color and draw with you again – and you will have yet another opportunity to talk about colors together.

Once your toddler recognizes the basic colors of red, blue and yellow – you can move on to other colors – don’t overwhelm him/her with the rainbow just yet!

Remember that crayons pose a choking hazard - so always supervise your child while he draws and colors.

Parents as well as caregivers can promote drawing and coloring as a way to improve physical, social, emotional and cognitive development-and to have a lot of fun along the way too. Here are some suggestions:

The simple acts of drawing and coloring are  literally childs’ play, however, they both play an important role in a child’s physical, emotional and cognitive development. Like no other activity, drawing  and coloring allows young children to express emotions, experience autonomy and build their confidence. 

1. Provide children with nontoxic drawing materials, blank sheets of  paper and coloring pages.

2. Model drawing. Show children that you like to color and draw as well – make designs but do not show your children what they should draw.

3. Encourage all drawing and coloring in efforts by talking about the colors, lines and shapes the child has created.

4. Rather than ask ”What is it?,” say “Tell me all about your lovely drawing”.Asking “What is that?” suggests to the child that s/he has failed to depict what they intended.

5. Talk about concepts like  thin, thick, wide, narrow, dark, light, edge, shape, contour, etc.

6. Don’t just display their art in their bedroom – give it pride of place in your home in places where visitors to your home will see them. Point them out to visitors – the praise for the work will boost a child’s self esteeem and confidence. 

7.Let children choose the subject of their drawings and the types of coloring sheets they would like to color. For example little girls  may enjoy coloring images of  Barbie and at sites like Barbie Coloring Pages you’ll find the best free Barbie printables

Little boys on the other hand tend to prefer images of cars, trucks and machinery – however, favorite characters such as those from Disney movies  are also hits with little boys.

8. Crayons pose a choking hazard – so always supervise younger children while they draw and color.

To the casual observer a child who is drawing or coloring in,  is merely scribbling. The marks seem to be completely ramdom and meaningless. But there is much more happening in your young child’s mind as s/he engages in the physical act of drawing and coloring.

In fact, examining a child’s drawing gives us important insights into how drawing fits into the overall physical, emotional and cognitive development of the young child. From toddlerhood through primary school, children choose to draw and color, but the process starts much earlier – during toddlerhood.

At around the age of 18 months, toddlers become interested in scribbling. It seems to provide sensory enjoyment, but the child is also interested in the marks that are made. The act of scribbling can serve several useful purposes for the young child. Small muscle coordination (fine motor skills) and control improve with practice, cognitive abilities are exercised, opportunities for social interaction arise, and the physical movements provide emotional release.

Because a toddler’s small muscle control is not fully developed, he or she may approach the coloring sheet by grasping the marker with his or her fist and may well find it difficult to place the marks exactly where he or she wants them. Movements are typically large, involving the entire arm with very little finger or wrist control. This is because the pattern of physical development in children begins from the center of the trunk outward.

While full control will happen much later – in the short term the toddler will naturally improve his or her control. A few toddlers rest the forearm on the drawing surface to give them additional control. A rhythmic, repetitive, scrubbing motion is common among two-year-olds, providing sensory enjoyment and making drawing a very physical act.

By providing children with the materials and opportunities to scribble we can promote physical skills. Just as babbling is a natural way to gain language, scribbling is a natural gateway to muscle control and coordination.

From an intellectual viewpoint, toddlers are concerned with both the process and results of their art. They really do not intend to represent objects at first. Instead, they are concerned with color and line. However, they may look at the marks and scribbles they have made and, in surprise, recognize a shape and name it. While they may not have intended to draw a dog or tree, the scribbles suggest the shapes. Children interpret, rather than intend. This is called fortuitous realism and becomes common as a child approaches three years of age.

As a parent you can encourage your little one to draw and to color by offering him or her opportunities to do so.  Let them loose on blank sheets of paper or provide them with a coloring book or coloring sheets, many of which  are available online. Little boys may enjoy coloring images of  cars and trucks or of favorite characters such as Spiderman and at sites like Spiderman Coloring you’ll find Spiderman coloring as well as coloring pages, funny pics and more. For little girls search for coloring pages of princesses or fairies or anything else she may be interested in such as Disney characters or even trucks!

Remember to always supervise toddlers while they draw and color – due to the choking hazard that crayons pose.

Learn how to make candles.

Kids can enjoy making a variety of candle holders for gifts, too. These easy-to-make crafts make a perfect rainy day activity. Try helping your child make these candle holders one day. Give these homemade gifts to teachers or grandparents for a truly personalized gift.

Here are some easy to make candle holders that children can enjoy with a little help.

Supplies needed:

Small tea candle

Empty baby food jar Read the rest of this entry »

For newbie’s, raised flower beds can assist if you have difficult dirt, or if you have bad drainage troubles. They can also be designed to be fetching as well as functional, and when strategically placed, they can enhance the natural beauty of your yard, or point the eyes off from a less desired area.

They are an excellent site to establish your herbaceous plants and veggies as well. They are known as raised flower beds, simply because that is what the first ones were utilized as. The materials you prefer to build it out of might confine your mode and flexibility for design, and hence you need to hold that in mind as well as durability, functionality and cost. Read the rest of this entry »

If you are thinking of growing your herbs indoors, you will need a suitable pot or container. Window boxes or hanging baskets are also other places they will thrive. It is not really any more difficult than growing herbs outside in the garden. As you would expect indoor herbs need the same growing requirements that garden herbs need. Click here for more: grow herbs pots

All plants need three main things in order to grow successfully; sunlight, soil and water.  Herbs are no exception. Obviously sunlight is crucial to growing any kind of plant including herbs, indoors or outdoors. If growing your herbs in the kitchen make sure they are placed in a window which is west or south facing. Some herbs have slightly different light requirements but all need a bright and sunny location. Some home herb growers supplement the light source with “grow lamps” or fluorescent lamps.

When considering the soil, herbs need a soil that is well drained but not too rich. When growing herbs in pots, it is always good to add one part coarse sand and two parts potting soil into the mix. To ensure adequate Read the rest of this entry »

Crafts as in generally done, or crafts with kids has never been touted as an activity that is supposed to do more than keep kids busy, give them some fun and as some say add creativity to a child’s life. Read the rest of this entry »

Learn How To Make Candles Now For Your Homemade Candle Gifts . http://ideamarketers.com/?articleid=697562

15 Minute Meals Are The Dream Of The Busy Mom. http://ideamarketers.com/?articleid=810157