By: Angie Taylor
Isn't that what we all want? To put our family first?
Does it ever seem like every time you try to put your family first something happens that takes you away from them? We seem to be pulled in every direction and it continues to get harder and harder to place our family first. We all know the importance of our family. We all understand the responsibility we have as parents to raise our children "right". We all know that no one else can love our children like we can. No one understands our children like we do.
Placing your life in the proper order can be difficult to say the least. It seems as though each time you make your priority list within minutes it's obsolete. Things change so quickly throughout the day and even within the hour which makes life more difficult than any of us would like for it to be.
You may be wondering what qualifies me to be writing this article about putting your family first. I do know a little about fitting everything in during a 24-hour period of time. I know because I am the mother of 8 children. I have been blessed to have given birth to 7 of those -- one came with my husband. Let me explain...
When my husband and I met we had both recently left "bad" marriages. I had three children from my first marriage and he had a daughter who lives with her mother about 2000 miles away. A lot of our friends believed that those four children were enough but Dan and I felt there were to be more and we agreed to welcome each one. We also agreed that no matter what came up our family would always come first. Here's what we do to ensure our family comes first.
* We have a weekly family night where we can reconnect with our children. This is especially important when there are teenagers in the house.
* We join together for dinner every night. This is not a buffet style meal. We actually sit down and eat dinner together and take the time to enjoy the meal and the company.
* Dan and I have weekly date night. This gives us the opportunity as a couple to reconnect. There are some weeks when we get to our date night only to realize that we've barely spoken all week long because of busy schedules with kids, church and work. We know that we are the foundation of our home and that foundation must be strong.
Here's what we know. We know that as long as we put our family first we have all our needs covered. We have happy kids and a solid financial foundation. Blessings given to us for keeping our priorities straight.
Is it easy to put our family first? Not always. Sometimes the other "things" on our list need to get done and on the scale of importance they rate pretty high but when placed on the life long impact scale those other "things" rate pretty low. Our children's lives can't hang in the balance just because we need to get other things done. We must find a way to work around the family schedule. Our family must know their importance in our lives so they will in turn understand the importance of their family.
Businesswoman, Friend, and Team player Angie Taylor assists Women to be success stories and inspiration to others. The fact that you are investigating the home-based business industry is a sign that you have dreams and trust in those dreams. Let me assist you: go to my website and register for the FR.EE newsletter and receive a copy of the FR.EE “Building Business Report”.Visit: Be a BraveHeart Woman
Article Source: http://www.ArticleBiz.com
9/14/2007
How to Balance Having a Family and a Career
By: Kristin Osberg
Are you a career-oriented woman who also happens to be a parent? If you are, you may be dealing with a number of different issues. Many women, just like yourself, find it somewhat difficult to balance having a career and a family. While it is more than possible to do both, it can be overwhelming at times.
One of the many issues surrounding working mothers is that they do not know how to balance their time. Mothers who need to work or finish an upcoming project often do so, but they occasionally feel guilty about missing out on quality time with their children or their romantic partner. It can also be the other way around, as well. Many working mothers are afraid to, essentially, put their family first in certain situations, in fear of losing their jobs. If these are issues that you have dealt with or if they are issues that you are currently dealing with now, you will want to continue reading on.
One of the many ways that you can go about balancing a family and a career is by setting aside time for both your family and your important career. For instance, if at all possible, you will want to try and establish hours just for work or work related tasks. If you have to work overtime, it is advised that you do so, especially if your job may be at risk. That is often what is difficult for many mothers, when relying on their income, it can be fearful to put work second. With that in mind, it is important that you leave work at work. This gives you the opportunity to put your family first, especially when you are at home with them.
As with having set hours for work, it is also advised that you create a schedule for your family time as well. When you are with your family, take your mind completly off of work. While your days do not have to be planned out hour by hour, it is nice to at least develop a little schedule. This schedule could include days of the week when you may want to take a trip to the zoo with you children or days that you may want to spend visiting family. By having your plans already made and in place, you are more likely to follow through with them. Your family, including your children and your partner, will likely be pleased with this follow through.
Although raising a family is often associated with spending time with your children, that is not all that motherhood is about. For that reason, you likely have a full plate. That plate may include grocery shopping, the preparation of family meals, as well as house cleaning. To reduce the stress associated with many of these tasks, as well as give you more quality time to spend with you family, you may want to consider hiring assistance. Whether you choose to hire a professional housekeeper or a landscaper to mow your yard for you, this extra time may come in handy.
The above mentioned points are just a few of the many ways that you can go about balancing a career and a family. Although it may seem impossible to do right now, especially if you just recently got a new job or had your first child, it is more than possible for you have a great career, as well as happy and healthy family life at home.
Businesswoman, and Team player Kristin Osberg assists Women to be success stories and inspiration to others. The fact that you are investigating the home-based business industry is a sign that you have dreams and trust in those dreams. Let me assist you: go to my website and register for the FR.EE newsletter and receive a copy of the FR.EE “Building Business Report”.Visit: Be a BraveHeart Woman
Article Source: http://www.ArticleBiz.com
Are you a career-oriented woman who also happens to be a parent? If you are, you may be dealing with a number of different issues. Many women, just like yourself, find it somewhat difficult to balance having a career and a family. While it is more than possible to do both, it can be overwhelming at times.
One of the many issues surrounding working mothers is that they do not know how to balance their time. Mothers who need to work or finish an upcoming project often do so, but they occasionally feel guilty about missing out on quality time with their children or their romantic partner. It can also be the other way around, as well. Many working mothers are afraid to, essentially, put their family first in certain situations, in fear of losing their jobs. If these are issues that you have dealt with or if they are issues that you are currently dealing with now, you will want to continue reading on.
One of the many ways that you can go about balancing a family and a career is by setting aside time for both your family and your important career. For instance, if at all possible, you will want to try and establish hours just for work or work related tasks. If you have to work overtime, it is advised that you do so, especially if your job may be at risk. That is often what is difficult for many mothers, when relying on their income, it can be fearful to put work second. With that in mind, it is important that you leave work at work. This gives you the opportunity to put your family first, especially when you are at home with them.
As with having set hours for work, it is also advised that you create a schedule for your family time as well. When you are with your family, take your mind completly off of work. While your days do not have to be planned out hour by hour, it is nice to at least develop a little schedule. This schedule could include days of the week when you may want to take a trip to the zoo with you children or days that you may want to spend visiting family. By having your plans already made and in place, you are more likely to follow through with them. Your family, including your children and your partner, will likely be pleased with this follow through.
Although raising a family is often associated with spending time with your children, that is not all that motherhood is about. For that reason, you likely have a full plate. That plate may include grocery shopping, the preparation of family meals, as well as house cleaning. To reduce the stress associated with many of these tasks, as well as give you more quality time to spend with you family, you may want to consider hiring assistance. Whether you choose to hire a professional housekeeper or a landscaper to mow your yard for you, this extra time may come in handy.
The above mentioned points are just a few of the many ways that you can go about balancing a career and a family. Although it may seem impossible to do right now, especially if you just recently got a new job or had your first child, it is more than possible for you have a great career, as well as happy and healthy family life at home.
Businesswoman, and Team player Kristin Osberg assists Women to be success stories and inspiration to others. The fact that you are investigating the home-based business industry is a sign that you have dreams and trust in those dreams. Let me assist you: go to my website and register for the FR.EE newsletter and receive a copy of the FR.EE “Building Business Report”.Visit: Be a BraveHeart Woman
Article Source: http://www.ArticleBiz.com
Holidaying in Leicester
By: Alistair White
Perched on the banks of the River Soar and edging the English National Forest, Leicester is a thriving, progressive city with a vibrant immigrant population.
Now the largest city in the East Midlands, Leicester is one of the oldest cities in England with a history going back to pre-Roman times. Once inhabited by Celtic tribes, Leicester became a settlement on the Roman road and the remains of Roman baths can be seen today. The city was later a major centre during the industrial revolution and was linked by the Grand Union Canal to London and Birmingham.
Modern Leicester is a very livable city graced with with Victorian architecture. Many of the inner city streets are pedestrianised and the area is well-served with shopping outlets including Leicester Market, Europe's largest covered market. The city's historic quarter lies to the west and is marked by the castle, cathedral and a bevy of medieval churches.
Leicester's rich cosmopolitan mix results in a wide range of ethnic foods and cultural events. Leicester is home to many fine Indian restaurants and the city resounds to festivals such as Diwali.
Transport: getting there and getting around
Leicester is conveniently located on the UK's main transport arteries. The city is close to the M1 motorway and lies on the Midland Main Line from London to Sheffield, Nottingham and Leeds. High-speed trains can reach London in just over an hour. Trains from Leicester arrive at London St Pancras from where Eurostar international services depart for Europe.
Leicester is convenient for East Midlands Airport which is served by low cost carriers with international flights to Paris, Amsterdam, Berlin and Frankfurt and domestic flights to Edinburgh and Belfast. Limited services connect with Barbados, Mexico and Florida.
An extensive bus network operates in and around Leicester.
Climate:
Mild and wet best describes the English weather and the further north you go, the colder it gets. However, inland temperatures don't get much below freezing in the winter months of December to February, or much above 30°C in summer.
However, the East Midlands tends to have higher rainfall in the summer and less sunshine in winter.
Accommodation:from cheap stays to luxury resorts
Check on the internet for the range, location and cost of hotels in Leicester
Check on the internet for the range, location and cost of Leicester hotels
Check on the internet for the range, location and cost of Leicester accommodation
Events:what's on and what's hot
*The Comedy Festival in February is a ten-day laugh fest. It's the UK's longest running comedy festival.
*The Leicester Early Music Festival is in May. As well as concerts, it features workshops, exhibitions, dance day, family day and wine and whisky tasting.
*The Caribbean Carnival in August is the most colourful festival in the city.
*The Riverside Festival is held on the first Saturday of every June.
*Theis Leicester International Music Festival held in September brings the best of classical, jazz and world music to the Midlands.
Alistair White has been in the travel industry for over 20 years and is the founder and CEO of Cheaper than Hotels. Cheaper Than Hotels offers Cheap hotels in Leicester
Article Source: http://www.ArticleBiz.com
Perched on the banks of the River Soar and edging the English National Forest, Leicester is a thriving, progressive city with a vibrant immigrant population.
Now the largest city in the East Midlands, Leicester is one of the oldest cities in England with a history going back to pre-Roman times. Once inhabited by Celtic tribes, Leicester became a settlement on the Roman road and the remains of Roman baths can be seen today. The city was later a major centre during the industrial revolution and was linked by the Grand Union Canal to London and Birmingham.
Modern Leicester is a very livable city graced with with Victorian architecture. Many of the inner city streets are pedestrianised and the area is well-served with shopping outlets including Leicester Market, Europe's largest covered market. The city's historic quarter lies to the west and is marked by the castle, cathedral and a bevy of medieval churches.
Leicester's rich cosmopolitan mix results in a wide range of ethnic foods and cultural events. Leicester is home to many fine Indian restaurants and the city resounds to festivals such as Diwali.
Transport: getting there and getting around
Leicester is conveniently located on the UK's main transport arteries. The city is close to the M1 motorway and lies on the Midland Main Line from London to Sheffield, Nottingham and Leeds. High-speed trains can reach London in just over an hour. Trains from Leicester arrive at London St Pancras from where Eurostar international services depart for Europe.
Leicester is convenient for East Midlands Airport which is served by low cost carriers with international flights to Paris, Amsterdam, Berlin and Frankfurt and domestic flights to Edinburgh and Belfast. Limited services connect with Barbados, Mexico and Florida.
An extensive bus network operates in and around Leicester.
Climate:
Mild and wet best describes the English weather and the further north you go, the colder it gets. However, inland temperatures don't get much below freezing in the winter months of December to February, or much above 30°C in summer.
However, the East Midlands tends to have higher rainfall in the summer and less sunshine in winter.
Accommodation:from cheap stays to luxury resorts
Check on the internet for the range, location and cost of hotels in Leicester
Check on the internet for the range, location and cost of Leicester hotels
Check on the internet for the range, location and cost of Leicester accommodation
Events:what's on and what's hot
*The Comedy Festival in February is a ten-day laugh fest. It's the UK's longest running comedy festival.
*The Leicester Early Music Festival is in May. As well as concerts, it features workshops, exhibitions, dance day, family day and wine and whisky tasting.
*The Caribbean Carnival in August is the most colourful festival in the city.
*The Riverside Festival is held on the first Saturday of every June.
*Theis Leicester International Music Festival held in September brings the best of classical, jazz and world music to the Midlands.
Alistair White has been in the travel industry for over 20 years and is the founder and CEO of Cheaper than Hotels. Cheaper Than Hotels offers Cheap hotels in Leicester
Article Source: http://www.ArticleBiz.com
9/08/2007
Tips To Refurbish Your Kitchen!
By : Abhishek Agarw
The kitchen you had designed with utmost dedication no longer attracts you,the very thought of going into the kitchen to prepare meal for the whole family gives you a jerk! If every now and then you plan to go out for your dinner just to avoid stepping into the kitchen, rest assured that its high time you should go for a renovation of your kitchen. It's time to bring back your lost interest.
The modern day range of cooking equipment can rekindle your lost desire to prepare a delicious and sumptuous meal for your family.There are a varied range of ovens, grillers, microwaves, dishwashers etc to choose from. Before attempting to restock your cooking equipment make sure you have done a sensible research on it so that you spend your hard earned money on something really worthwhile.
You may compromise on quantity but never compromise on the quality of the equipment or else you would end up spending your entire time not in renovating your kitchen but on repairing and replacing your cooking equipment.Although the main function of a kitchen is cooking, it can be the center of other activities as well, especially within homes, depending on its size, furnishing, and equipment.
The kitchen may also be the place where the family eats, provided it is large enough. Sometimes, it is the most comforting room in a house, where family and visitors tend to congregate.Hence minute attention is required before selecting every item of the kitchen because it will also portray your status as a host. So before you actually think of restocking your kitchen and cooking equipment make sure you have ample time with you because we have known for ages that haste makes waste.
So take time to step into more than one store who stocks cooking equipment,go through their catalogue or you can also try searching for kitchen appliances online so that by the time you step out of the house you are fully aware of the kind of thing your are looking for and its price so that there are no ground of making mistake.Once your search is complete and your budget is fixed, its time for you to step into the departmental store and select from their wide range of collection of:
1. Refrigerator : Frost free, Dual cool, computer controlled 'Intello Cooling' Green Catechin & Ion Coated Filter remove bacteria, odor and keeps food fresher longer.
2. Grillers : It looks like the microwave ovens are losing their edge in a price-sensitive market, as the phenomenal features of the oven-toaster-griller, better known as the OTG, get hot.Whether it's cakes or cookies, tandooris, pizzas or burgers, this OTG can do it all. Baking, grilling, toasting are effortlessly and efficiently done.The major features include less consumption of electricity, ensures that the food remains at the right temperature and retains the nutritional value.
OTGs are extremely useful for housewives and even for working women to provide hygienic, customized and less
expensive home made delicacies to family.
3. Dishwashers : A clean and hygienic kitchen can be quite a blessing, especially when one doesn't have to see mountains of dishes piling on the sink, waiting to be scrubbed and washed. A dishwasher can make this job so much simpler and less messier.
4. Water purifiers
5. Chimneys
6. Miscellaneous cooking equipment : Cabinets, Shelves,crockeries and culinary , etc.
All the right thing set at the right place would then make your experience of cooking much more comfortable and delightful than you ever had before.
Author Resource:- Download Abhishek's FREE Cooking Report - "Master Chef Secrets" and learn some amazing Cooking tips and tricks - And save a lot of your time, money and effort!
Click here to visit www.Cooking-Guru.com
Article From Article Tower
The kitchen you had designed with utmost dedication no longer attracts you,the very thought of going into the kitchen to prepare meal for the whole family gives you a jerk! If every now and then you plan to go out for your dinner just to avoid stepping into the kitchen, rest assured that its high time you should go for a renovation of your kitchen. It's time to bring back your lost interest.
The modern day range of cooking equipment can rekindle your lost desire to prepare a delicious and sumptuous meal for your family.There are a varied range of ovens, grillers, microwaves, dishwashers etc to choose from. Before attempting to restock your cooking equipment make sure you have done a sensible research on it so that you spend your hard earned money on something really worthwhile.
You may compromise on quantity but never compromise on the quality of the equipment or else you would end up spending your entire time not in renovating your kitchen but on repairing and replacing your cooking equipment.Although the main function of a kitchen is cooking, it can be the center of other activities as well, especially within homes, depending on its size, furnishing, and equipment.
The kitchen may also be the place where the family eats, provided it is large enough. Sometimes, it is the most comforting room in a house, where family and visitors tend to congregate.Hence minute attention is required before selecting every item of the kitchen because it will also portray your status as a host. So before you actually think of restocking your kitchen and cooking equipment make sure you have ample time with you because we have known for ages that haste makes waste.
So take time to step into more than one store who stocks cooking equipment,go through their catalogue or you can also try searching for kitchen appliances online so that by the time you step out of the house you are fully aware of the kind of thing your are looking for and its price so that there are no ground of making mistake.Once your search is complete and your budget is fixed, its time for you to step into the departmental store and select from their wide range of collection of:
1. Refrigerator : Frost free, Dual cool, computer controlled 'Intello Cooling' Green Catechin & Ion Coated Filter remove bacteria, odor and keeps food fresher longer.
2. Grillers : It looks like the microwave ovens are losing their edge in a price-sensitive market, as the phenomenal features of the oven-toaster-griller, better known as the OTG, get hot.Whether it's cakes or cookies, tandooris, pizzas or burgers, this OTG can do it all. Baking, grilling, toasting are effortlessly and efficiently done.The major features include less consumption of electricity, ensures that the food remains at the right temperature and retains the nutritional value.
OTGs are extremely useful for housewives and even for working women to provide hygienic, customized and less
expensive home made delicacies to family.
3. Dishwashers : A clean and hygienic kitchen can be quite a blessing, especially when one doesn't have to see mountains of dishes piling on the sink, waiting to be scrubbed and washed. A dishwasher can make this job so much simpler and less messier.
4. Water purifiers
5. Chimneys
6. Miscellaneous cooking equipment : Cabinets, Shelves,crockeries and culinary , etc.
All the right thing set at the right place would then make your experience of cooking much more comfortable and delightful than you ever had before.
Author Resource:- Download Abhishek's FREE Cooking Report - "Master Chef Secrets" and learn some amazing Cooking tips and tricks - And save a lot of your time, money and effort!
Click here to visit www.Cooking-Guru.com
Article From Article Tower
Where And How To Find The Right Birthday Cards For Your Family And Friends
By : Gregg Hall
Birthday cards come in all colors shapes and sizes. You can find just about any birthday card you can think of, children's, spouse, grandchildren, and so on. The best store to find these kinds of cards would be at your local grocery store or even try online. Although if it is a birthday card you're getting for someone in your family then you might consider Hallmark.
You can always find a birthday card on the internet. You can most likely order them in bulk or just a couple of different ones for cheaper than the stores. In a different manner you can send birthday cards in an email to those people. There are few websites that have these electronic birthday email cards you pick which one you want to use write in it I guess then send it. You can probably also send musical cards as a birthday email.
A thing that is becoming famous is a good old hand made birthday card. You can find all the materials you need at Wal-Mart or some place else with drawing supplies. Then just go home from there and start creating your home made birthday card. You don't have to go out and buy a home made birthday card because then that defeats the purpose of the whole "hand made" thing then. If you are going to get a hand made card you need to make it not fake it.
Today birthday cards come in shapes in sizes colors and sorts. You can find all kinds of cards for ages running from 1 to 18. You can also find those high two digit cards and I mean the oldies like 45, 65, and 80 and so on. I know my brother bought me a black balloon bouquet to go along with the card for my 40th birthday! Birthday cards with themes are famous too. There are all kinds of these cards, mainly all getting old jokes and what not. These cards are pretty funny and will make older people enjoy their birthday celebration happier.
There are more themed birthday cards as well for the younger people. Some birthday cards with themes as sexy women, perhaps nude, alcohol, and more. There are also the kiddy cards, with the Disney creature theme. Most of these cards themes are just a lot of the Disney characters from all the movies. A lot of types can be pop ups and some others may be musical. There are all sorts of cards for kids and up.
The best way to start learning about birthday cards is through just going to the stores themselves like Hallmark or Wal-Mart. Birthday cards can be important sometimes especially for your son, daughter, or wife. You can find these at any local discount stores around where you live.
Author Resource:- Gregg Hall is an author living with his beautiful wife and family in Navarre Beach, Florida. Find more about birthday cards as well as specialty gifts at http://www.specialtygiftsplusmore.com
Article From Article Tower
Birthday cards come in all colors shapes and sizes. You can find just about any birthday card you can think of, children's, spouse, grandchildren, and so on. The best store to find these kinds of cards would be at your local grocery store or even try online. Although if it is a birthday card you're getting for someone in your family then you might consider Hallmark.
You can always find a birthday card on the internet. You can most likely order them in bulk or just a couple of different ones for cheaper than the stores. In a different manner you can send birthday cards in an email to those people. There are few websites that have these electronic birthday email cards you pick which one you want to use write in it I guess then send it. You can probably also send musical cards as a birthday email.
A thing that is becoming famous is a good old hand made birthday card. You can find all the materials you need at Wal-Mart or some place else with drawing supplies. Then just go home from there and start creating your home made birthday card. You don't have to go out and buy a home made birthday card because then that defeats the purpose of the whole "hand made" thing then. If you are going to get a hand made card you need to make it not fake it.
Today birthday cards come in shapes in sizes colors and sorts. You can find all kinds of cards for ages running from 1 to 18. You can also find those high two digit cards and I mean the oldies like 45, 65, and 80 and so on. I know my brother bought me a black balloon bouquet to go along with the card for my 40th birthday! Birthday cards with themes are famous too. There are all kinds of these cards, mainly all getting old jokes and what not. These cards are pretty funny and will make older people enjoy their birthday celebration happier.
There are more themed birthday cards as well for the younger people. Some birthday cards with themes as sexy women, perhaps nude, alcohol, and more. There are also the kiddy cards, with the Disney creature theme. Most of these cards themes are just a lot of the Disney characters from all the movies. A lot of types can be pop ups and some others may be musical. There are all sorts of cards for kids and up.
The best way to start learning about birthday cards is through just going to the stores themselves like Hallmark or Wal-Mart. Birthday cards can be important sometimes especially for your son, daughter, or wife. You can find these at any local discount stores around where you live.
Author Resource:- Gregg Hall is an author living with his beautiful wife and family in Navarre Beach, Florida. Find more about birthday cards as well as specialty gifts at http://www.specialtygiftsplusmore.com
Article From Article Tower
Planning a birthday party with a budget
By : Joseph Then
Having worked as a full-time entertainer for over 6 years and performed at hundred's of children's birthday parties in people's homes, I have seen just about everything. From small intimate events of just the family to large extravagant affairs, birthday parties can be lots of fun for all attending.
This article will bring you some ideas on how you can plan a birthday party with budgets from $500 to $1,500.
Before we go into the budget, let us clear two major items that needs special attention: Venue and catering. The reason is that these items are very subjective in a party planning and their pricing varies a lot from companies to companies.
First, let us look at venue.
If you are living in a Condominium or a house, we highly recommend that you hold your party in the function or your house respectively. Having a party at or near your place would make logistic planning easier and of course, lower cost. You can save as much as $1,000 on venue alone if you host your party at your own premises.
Personally, I do not see the problem of hosting your party at your own premises. I have organized birthday party in a 3-room flat in few occasions!
If you are still uncomfortable with the idea, you can always book a room in venues like country clubs and hotels.
Booking of such venues are very tricky because different venues provide different prices. It is important to note that catering from their kitchen is a requirement for most venue bookings and most of them go by "cost per person" booking.
The average cost for hotel's function room bookings could range from $35 to $50 per person. The average cost for country clubs would range from $25 to $30 per person while other clubs like SAFRA clubs would range from $15 to $20 per person.
Thus, if you are looking at booking of venue (usually with catering), be sure to prepare budget of at least $600 for 20 children and 10 adults.
Next, let us look at catering.
If the party is scheduled during or close to dinner or lunch, serving food is essential. During a party, the children are usually having a so much fun, that serving a normal meal is not necessary or wanted. The children want to get back to party activities as soon as possible. Finger food like hotdogs, sandwiches, popcorns and chips are perfect. We also recommend packet drinks to minimize spilling. The cost would be on average $5-$8 per person, depending on the caterer of your choice.
Now that we have cleared budgeting for venue and catering, let us look at what we can get for various budgets:
$500 - Party Wizardz provides value-for-money package that includes games, prizes, treats, magic show, party bags and magic set for birthday child at the price of $399.
$800 - On top of the party package, Party Wizardz will be able to provide additional activities like face painting or removable tattoo. Party package from Party Wizardz with your own caterers and your own venue will cost about $800.
$1,000 - A budget of $1,000 will be able to get you a party package from Party Wizardz with decent venue with catering.
$1,500 - Budget of $1,500 will get you a party package from Party Wizardz hosted in hotel function room. If you are hosting the party at your home, this budget will allow you to get bouncy castle too.
I hope these suggestions will help in planning your next home birthday party.
Author Resource:- Joseph Then is a Singapore based professional children's entertainer. He has over 6 years of birthday party experience and kids usually call him, Mr. Magic Puppet Man. Please visit Singapore Birthday Party Entertainer for more information.
Article From Article Tower
Having worked as a full-time entertainer for over 6 years and performed at hundred's of children's birthday parties in people's homes, I have seen just about everything. From small intimate events of just the family to large extravagant affairs, birthday parties can be lots of fun for all attending.
This article will bring you some ideas on how you can plan a birthday party with budgets from $500 to $1,500.
Before we go into the budget, let us clear two major items that needs special attention: Venue and catering. The reason is that these items are very subjective in a party planning and their pricing varies a lot from companies to companies.
First, let us look at venue.
If you are living in a Condominium or a house, we highly recommend that you hold your party in the function or your house respectively. Having a party at or near your place would make logistic planning easier and of course, lower cost. You can save as much as $1,000 on venue alone if you host your party at your own premises.
Personally, I do not see the problem of hosting your party at your own premises. I have organized birthday party in a 3-room flat in few occasions!
If you are still uncomfortable with the idea, you can always book a room in venues like country clubs and hotels.
Booking of such venues are very tricky because different venues provide different prices. It is important to note that catering from their kitchen is a requirement for most venue bookings and most of them go by "cost per person" booking.
The average cost for hotel's function room bookings could range from $35 to $50 per person. The average cost for country clubs would range from $25 to $30 per person while other clubs like SAFRA clubs would range from $15 to $20 per person.
Thus, if you are looking at booking of venue (usually with catering), be sure to prepare budget of at least $600 for 20 children and 10 adults.
Next, let us look at catering.
If the party is scheduled during or close to dinner or lunch, serving food is essential. During a party, the children are usually having a so much fun, that serving a normal meal is not necessary or wanted. The children want to get back to party activities as soon as possible. Finger food like hotdogs, sandwiches, popcorns and chips are perfect. We also recommend packet drinks to minimize spilling. The cost would be on average $5-$8 per person, depending on the caterer of your choice.
Now that we have cleared budgeting for venue and catering, let us look at what we can get for various budgets:
$500 - Party Wizardz provides value-for-money package that includes games, prizes, treats, magic show, party bags and magic set for birthday child at the price of $399.
$800 - On top of the party package, Party Wizardz will be able to provide additional activities like face painting or removable tattoo. Party package from Party Wizardz with your own caterers and your own venue will cost about $800.
$1,000 - A budget of $1,000 will be able to get you a party package from Party Wizardz with decent venue with catering.
$1,500 - Budget of $1,500 will get you a party package from Party Wizardz hosted in hotel function room. If you are hosting the party at your home, this budget will allow you to get bouncy castle too.
I hope these suggestions will help in planning your next home birthday party.
Author Resource:- Joseph Then is a Singapore based professional children's entertainer. He has over 6 years of birthday party experience and kids usually call him, Mr. Magic Puppet Man. Please visit Singapore Birthday Party Entertainer for more information.
Article From Article Tower
9/07/2007
Tips For Kids Home Alone
By: Ralph Winn
About half of school-age kids stay at home by themselves for part of the day. Allowing your child to stay home alone can be great for her confidence and self-esteem, and it’s a good way to teach self-reliance. But, on the other hand, it’s important that your child is ready for the extra responsibility. To make sure she is ready to stay alone and fend for herself for a few hours, take some time to talk to your child about safety, house rules, and her feelings about being home alone.
Is your child ready?
As a general rule, kids under 10 shouldn’t be left home alone. But age isn’t the only factor that you should use to decide if your child should stay home alone. You may have a mature 11-year-old who feels perfectly capable of holding down the fort, but your 13-year-old may quake at the thought of being home alone for an afternoon.
You should make your decision based on a realistic assessment of your child’s maturity level. Ask your child how she feels about being in the house alone – she’ll probably answer honestly. And ask yourself some questions, too:
• Is your child responsible enough to be in charge when you’re gone? Will she follow the rules if there’s nobody around to enforce them?
• Would your child be able to handle a small emergency if you weren’t there?
• Would your child be looking after younger siblings? Staying home alone is a bit different than babysitting. Is she responsible enough to look after a little sister or brother?
If you feel that your child can handle being home alone, it’s time to go over some basic safety tips together. In addition to following your house rules, it’s important that she knows how to stay safe and handle the unexpected.
Preparing to be home alone
If your child has never stayed home alone before, start small. Take a “test run” and begin with leaving her home alone while you make a quick trip to the grocery store or the mall. Before you leave for any length of time, use this checklist and talk with your child about some basic safety precautions:
• Keep doors and windows locked at all times. This is always a good idea but it is especially important for kids home alone.
• Set some ground rules: Is she allowed to play outside or have friends over while you’re not home? Establish a rule and stick to it.
• Tell your child who to call for help. Make sure your child has at least one trusted neighbor that he can call in an emergency.
• Remind your child that she should never open the door to a stranger. Some kids think it’s okay to open the door to a delivery person or even someone claiming to be a police officer. Your child should know not to let anyone in, no matter what they say.
• Make a list of important numbers and post it close to the phone. Your child should know all the emergency phone numbers, including your local police and fire stations. She should also know to call 911 if there is a real emergency.
• Decide whether your child is capable of using the stove or oven unsupervised. An older teen can probably handle cooking, but you may want to leave some healthy prepared snacks for younger kids.
• Always childproof your home before you leave kids alone. You should already have a gun safe if you own any firearms, and make sure that kids don’t have access to the liquor cabinet.
Home alone – and in control
Today’s busy work schedules have left many parents facing the idea of leaving their children home alone. But with a little preparation, being home alone can be a worry-free experience for both you and your child.
About the Author:
Ralph Winn. 35 years in the Security System industry. Home Security and Alarm Monitoring tips.
Read more articles by: Ralph Winn
Article Source: www.iSnare.com
About half of school-age kids stay at home by themselves for part of the day. Allowing your child to stay home alone can be great for her confidence and self-esteem, and it’s a good way to teach self-reliance. But, on the other hand, it’s important that your child is ready for the extra responsibility. To make sure she is ready to stay alone and fend for herself for a few hours, take some time to talk to your child about safety, house rules, and her feelings about being home alone.
Is your child ready?
As a general rule, kids under 10 shouldn’t be left home alone. But age isn’t the only factor that you should use to decide if your child should stay home alone. You may have a mature 11-year-old who feels perfectly capable of holding down the fort, but your 13-year-old may quake at the thought of being home alone for an afternoon.
You should make your decision based on a realistic assessment of your child’s maturity level. Ask your child how she feels about being in the house alone – she’ll probably answer honestly. And ask yourself some questions, too:
• Is your child responsible enough to be in charge when you’re gone? Will she follow the rules if there’s nobody around to enforce them?
• Would your child be able to handle a small emergency if you weren’t there?
• Would your child be looking after younger siblings? Staying home alone is a bit different than babysitting. Is she responsible enough to look after a little sister or brother?
If you feel that your child can handle being home alone, it’s time to go over some basic safety tips together. In addition to following your house rules, it’s important that she knows how to stay safe and handle the unexpected.
Preparing to be home alone
If your child has never stayed home alone before, start small. Take a “test run” and begin with leaving her home alone while you make a quick trip to the grocery store or the mall. Before you leave for any length of time, use this checklist and talk with your child about some basic safety precautions:
• Keep doors and windows locked at all times. This is always a good idea but it is especially important for kids home alone.
• Set some ground rules: Is she allowed to play outside or have friends over while you’re not home? Establish a rule and stick to it.
• Tell your child who to call for help. Make sure your child has at least one trusted neighbor that he can call in an emergency.
• Remind your child that she should never open the door to a stranger. Some kids think it’s okay to open the door to a delivery person or even someone claiming to be a police officer. Your child should know not to let anyone in, no matter what they say.
• Make a list of important numbers and post it close to the phone. Your child should know all the emergency phone numbers, including your local police and fire stations. She should also know to call 911 if there is a real emergency.
• Decide whether your child is capable of using the stove or oven unsupervised. An older teen can probably handle cooking, but you may want to leave some healthy prepared snacks for younger kids.
• Always childproof your home before you leave kids alone. You should already have a gun safe if you own any firearms, and make sure that kids don’t have access to the liquor cabinet.
Home alone – and in control
Today’s busy work schedules have left many parents facing the idea of leaving their children home alone. But with a little preparation, being home alone can be a worry-free experience for both you and your child.
About the Author:
Ralph Winn. 35 years in the Security System industry. Home Security and Alarm Monitoring tips.
Read more articles by: Ralph Winn
Article Source: www.iSnare.com
Unique Baby Gift Ideas For Both Mom And Her Baby
By: Jeffery Martin
When giving a gift to expecting parents, it's important to give a gift that will be both useful and memorable. But how, and where do you begin to look for unique baby gifts? Of course, this may sound like it could be difficult to do, but it really is not as hard as you might think.
Unique Baby Gifts for the New Mom
There really are a large number of excellent, unique baby gifts that you can choose to buy for a new or expecting mother. Many of these items will make the new mother's life much easier, while other items will entertain the baby so that the mother can get her chores done around the house or just have a few minutes to herself to allow her some time to relax.
Baby Gym
One of the best and most unique baby gifts is a baby gym. This has a soft cloth mat and two soft, flexible poles that bend over the top of the mat to form an "X." On top of these poles are toys that you can hang so that the baby will have something interesting to look at. Here is a great tip if you plan to purchase this as one of your unique baby gifts. Infants begin seeing the colors that have a higher contrast first. For this reason, you should buy a baby gym consisting of a lot of red, white and black colors in it. Put this together with the little mirror and the squeaky and crinkly toys, and this mother's new baby will have something interesting to explore during "play time."
A Massage for Mom
One of the most unique baby gifts actually is not for the baby at all, but for the new mother or the mother-to-be. Give her a coupon or gift certificate for a relaxing massage at a really nice, local spa. There is not a pregnant woman in the world that would not be really appreciative of a massage. After all, the new, expecting mother has a lot of aches and pains from her pregnancy that she would like to see go away, at least temporarily.
As you can see, unique baby gifts do not have to be for the baby only. Most new mothers would love to have someone think of them as well. Of course, the new parents are going to need a lot of things for their new baby. But without feeling good about themselves and the new period in their lives that they are entering into, the baby is not going to be as well cared for. After all, a happy mom means a happy baby. So, don't feel that you have to purchase a gift specifically for the baby, think about mom too.
About the Author:
Brought to you as a courtesy from the Unique Baby Gifts Store, a member of the Baby Gifts network.
Read more articles by: Jeffery Martin
Article Source: www.iSnare.com
When giving a gift to expecting parents, it's important to give a gift that will be both useful and memorable. But how, and where do you begin to look for unique baby gifts? Of course, this may sound like it could be difficult to do, but it really is not as hard as you might think.
Unique Baby Gifts for the New Mom
There really are a large number of excellent, unique baby gifts that you can choose to buy for a new or expecting mother. Many of these items will make the new mother's life much easier, while other items will entertain the baby so that the mother can get her chores done around the house or just have a few minutes to herself to allow her some time to relax.
Baby Gym
One of the best and most unique baby gifts is a baby gym. This has a soft cloth mat and two soft, flexible poles that bend over the top of the mat to form an "X." On top of these poles are toys that you can hang so that the baby will have something interesting to look at. Here is a great tip if you plan to purchase this as one of your unique baby gifts. Infants begin seeing the colors that have a higher contrast first. For this reason, you should buy a baby gym consisting of a lot of red, white and black colors in it. Put this together with the little mirror and the squeaky and crinkly toys, and this mother's new baby will have something interesting to explore during "play time."
A Massage for Mom
One of the most unique baby gifts actually is not for the baby at all, but for the new mother or the mother-to-be. Give her a coupon or gift certificate for a relaxing massage at a really nice, local spa. There is not a pregnant woman in the world that would not be really appreciative of a massage. After all, the new, expecting mother has a lot of aches and pains from her pregnancy that she would like to see go away, at least temporarily.
As you can see, unique baby gifts do not have to be for the baby only. Most new mothers would love to have someone think of them as well. Of course, the new parents are going to need a lot of things for their new baby. But without feeling good about themselves and the new period in their lives that they are entering into, the baby is not going to be as well cared for. After all, a happy mom means a happy baby. So, don't feel that you have to purchase a gift specifically for the baby, think about mom too.
About the Author:
Brought to you as a courtesy from the Unique Baby Gifts Store, a member of the Baby Gifts network.
Read more articles by: Jeffery Martin
Article Source: www.iSnare.com
Building Healthy Homes: Want To Secure The Health And Life Of Your Family At Home?
By: Abhijit Das
And you thought your family and children were so safe inside the home environment cozily protected from potent health hazards! But did you know that the source of asthma, lead poisoning, and many such types of chronic health conditions could lie within your home environs?
According to recent survey it has been revealed that your family especially the kids are threatened with major health risks if the design/architecture, built and maintenance of your home is improper.
So while planning out a new home or a home remodeling/renovation make sure that your home planner or design architect makes use of healthier home building techniques and technology. This shall ensure that your family and kids residing in such healthy homes are much more healthier and safer!
You might incur higher expenses while constructing a healthy and environmental friendly home as compared to normal homes. But the health and life of your children and family is supposed to be of utmost importance above anything else!
So while you are busy with your home plans or home renovation ideas spare a thought on the following points to build a healthier and safer home.
Budget your home plans keeping in mind that you have to use non-toxic or less toxic building materials that are a bit more expensive than general building materials.
General building and construction materials (particularly glues, paints, varnishes, insulators, etc.) are usually loaded with toxic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) such as urea, formaldehyde, lead, asbestos, carbon monoxide, etc. derived from petroleum. If inhaled continuously these toxins accumulate in the body leading to serious health problems.
While constructing cabinets and countertops or for sheathing, sub-flooring and roof decking the ideal choice is solid wood but if it is too expensive go in for exterior grade plywood only instead of particleboard/fiberboard that contains toxic glue mixed with wood chips.
Avoid vinyl and wall-to-wall carpet flooring. Vinyl floors contain poly vinyl chloride (PVC) a harmful chemical while fully carpeted floors accumulates dust, dust mites, molds, etc. all of which are potent causative agents of allergy, asthma and other chronic respiratory problems. Instead use healthier floor alternatives as cork, solid wood, marmoleum, tiles, bamboo, and so on.
Always make use of strictly low-odor and non-toxic paints containing highly reduced amounts of VOCs such as paints comprising of just clay and pigments. Paints are usually loaded with high quantities of lead. Avoid using such paints completely.
Avoid using resins and glues that contain formaldehyde especially urea formaldehyde.
To build the foundation, walls and roof panels of a healthy home make use of thick, natural, hygroscopic and breathable plasters and stuccoes such as clay-treated wood chip placed over sand and fine gravel instead of using foam boards or poly vapor barriers. This renders efficient indoor humidity control thus preventing the formation of molds. In this way you can also avoid the accumulation of harmful radon gas inside your home.
Avoid building bedrooms/living rooms over the garage space of your house. Toxic gasoline fumes can outgas from the fuel tank of your car and infiltrate into the bedrooms.
Install carbon monoxide testers/detectors especially near furnaces, fireplaces, and garage areas of your home. Radon testers must be essentially placed in the basement areas of your home as this harmful radioactive gas occurring in soil can seep into your home through the foundation.
For construction of a healthy home only hire registered professional home planners and home builders/contractors who have the required knowledge of building and planning healthier homes based on strict building guidelines.
About the Author:
Article by: Regal Services Editorial. Regal Services offers Best Cad Conversion Services. For your Paper to Cad Conversion services, trust Regal for an error-free and affordable service.
Read more articles by: Abhijit Das
Article Source: www.iSnare.com
And you thought your family and children were so safe inside the home environment cozily protected from potent health hazards! But did you know that the source of asthma, lead poisoning, and many such types of chronic health conditions could lie within your home environs?
According to recent survey it has been revealed that your family especially the kids are threatened with major health risks if the design/architecture, built and maintenance of your home is improper.
So while planning out a new home or a home remodeling/renovation make sure that your home planner or design architect makes use of healthier home building techniques and technology. This shall ensure that your family and kids residing in such healthy homes are much more healthier and safer!
You might incur higher expenses while constructing a healthy and environmental friendly home as compared to normal homes. But the health and life of your children and family is supposed to be of utmost importance above anything else!
So while you are busy with your home plans or home renovation ideas spare a thought on the following points to build a healthier and safer home.
Budget your home plans keeping in mind that you have to use non-toxic or less toxic building materials that are a bit more expensive than general building materials.
General building and construction materials (particularly glues, paints, varnishes, insulators, etc.) are usually loaded with toxic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) such as urea, formaldehyde, lead, asbestos, carbon monoxide, etc. derived from petroleum. If inhaled continuously these toxins accumulate in the body leading to serious health problems.
While constructing cabinets and countertops or for sheathing, sub-flooring and roof decking the ideal choice is solid wood but if it is too expensive go in for exterior grade plywood only instead of particleboard/fiberboard that contains toxic glue mixed with wood chips.
Avoid vinyl and wall-to-wall carpet flooring. Vinyl floors contain poly vinyl chloride (PVC) a harmful chemical while fully carpeted floors accumulates dust, dust mites, molds, etc. all of which are potent causative agents of allergy, asthma and other chronic respiratory problems. Instead use healthier floor alternatives as cork, solid wood, marmoleum, tiles, bamboo, and so on.
Always make use of strictly low-odor and non-toxic paints containing highly reduced amounts of VOCs such as paints comprising of just clay and pigments. Paints are usually loaded with high quantities of lead. Avoid using such paints completely.
Avoid using resins and glues that contain formaldehyde especially urea formaldehyde.
To build the foundation, walls and roof panels of a healthy home make use of thick, natural, hygroscopic and breathable plasters and stuccoes such as clay-treated wood chip placed over sand and fine gravel instead of using foam boards or poly vapor barriers. This renders efficient indoor humidity control thus preventing the formation of molds. In this way you can also avoid the accumulation of harmful radon gas inside your home.
Avoid building bedrooms/living rooms over the garage space of your house. Toxic gasoline fumes can outgas from the fuel tank of your car and infiltrate into the bedrooms.
Install carbon monoxide testers/detectors especially near furnaces, fireplaces, and garage areas of your home. Radon testers must be essentially placed in the basement areas of your home as this harmful radioactive gas occurring in soil can seep into your home through the foundation.
For construction of a healthy home only hire registered professional home planners and home builders/contractors who have the required knowledge of building and planning healthier homes based on strict building guidelines.
About the Author:
Article by: Regal Services Editorial. Regal Services offers Best Cad Conversion Services. For your Paper to Cad Conversion services, trust Regal for an error-free and affordable service.
Read more articles by: Abhijit Das
Article Source: www.iSnare.com
9/05/2007
Every Family Should Have a Website
Author : Jeff Hoffman
Before the Internet the best ways to stay connected with your family and friends, was by telephone, family reunions, and the Christmas newsletter, which recapped the year. This isn’t necessarily how it needs to be these days.
Today in this world of instant everything, your family and friends shouldn’t have to wait to hear that Samantha went on her first date, and that Bobby caught his first fish in that annual newsletter. You can publish this information on your own family website.
I know what your thinking, I don’t need a website to tell Grandma that Bobby caught a fish, I can call her on the phone, or better yet I can send her an email, with a picture of Bobby and little Nemo. Everyone, even Grandma has email these days and I find it very convenient and thoughtless to send out an email to everyone.
Yes, I agree email is very convenient and anyone can get a free account these days. But lets think about that picture you attached in the message, what happens to that priceless picture of Bobby holding up his fishing pole with a big proud smile on his face and the look of shock in Nemo’s. That picture although very memorable at first glance, gets filed away in someone’s inbox and forgotten or worse deleted.
Now imagine storing that picture on your family website, your own personal online photo album (known as a gallery). You know after a while of uploading pictures to your family website, you now have a family history which you can go back to and enjoy forever. You don’t have to worry about losing all of your photos in a fire or if Fido decides to eat those pictures like he did with your homework in sixth grade.
Family website are not just about pictures but also about stories and communication. Adding a daily journal (known as a blog) will keep everyone up to date on the latest and greatest accomplishments of Samantha and Bobby which you did not happen to capture with your digital camera. What is great about Blogs are that after you tell everyone about how Samantha made you place that “Honor Student of the Week” sticker on your brand new mini-van, your friends can make fun of the fact that you actually bought a mini-van in the comments section for that post.
Communication is also a valuable asset of a family website. Along with the benefits of having giving Samantha and Bobby their own email address, which by the way you can manage, you can also give Grandma and Uncle Fred their own email addresses also. There really is no reason why the whole family cannot have an email address like bobby@yourlastname.com or similar.
Although email is a great way to communicate there are also other ways. You can set-up a secure or password protected calendar, which could be public or private. You can set-up everyone you want with their personal calendar and have them all sync into a main family calendar. Imagine your spouse keeping track of the kids’ appointments so you can just glance at today and know you have to pick up Bobby from his new anglers meeting at 5:30.
Now you may think that you could never possibly afford or have the technical skills to do all of this on your own, well you are wrong. If you find a website hosting provider who allows you to install open source software, all of these applications are available to you free of charge. You can get a free blog, gallery and calendar set up in no time. Here is a hint, when looking for a website hosting provider look for one that offers “Fantastico”. Fantastico is a very good auto-installer of open source software, and is very easy to use. If you would rather not bother doing the install ask your website hosting provider to install these applications for you. In most cases they will for a small set-up fee or they may even do it for free.
Having a family website can be a fun and rewarding experience which may end up being an indispensable part of your day to day activities. Not only will your family website encourage communication between your friends and family but it will also serve as a way to keep all of those precious moments alive for a very long time.
Jeff Hoffman is president of Doozy Website Hosting, a professional website hosting provider specializing in small business and family website hosting services. Jeff is also an award winning website designer and multi media specialist with over 9 years experience. You can contact Jeff by visiting his company’s website at http://www.doozyhosting.com for more details.
Before the Internet the best ways to stay connected with your family and friends, was by telephone, family reunions, and the Christmas newsletter, which recapped the year. This isn’t necessarily how it needs to be these days.
Today in this world of instant everything, your family and friends shouldn’t have to wait to hear that Samantha went on her first date, and that Bobby caught his first fish in that annual newsletter. You can publish this information on your own family website.
I know what your thinking, I don’t need a website to tell Grandma that Bobby caught a fish, I can call her on the phone, or better yet I can send her an email, with a picture of Bobby and little Nemo. Everyone, even Grandma has email these days and I find it very convenient and thoughtless to send out an email to everyone.
Yes, I agree email is very convenient and anyone can get a free account these days. But lets think about that picture you attached in the message, what happens to that priceless picture of Bobby holding up his fishing pole with a big proud smile on his face and the look of shock in Nemo’s. That picture although very memorable at first glance, gets filed away in someone’s inbox and forgotten or worse deleted.
Now imagine storing that picture on your family website, your own personal online photo album (known as a gallery). You know after a while of uploading pictures to your family website, you now have a family history which you can go back to and enjoy forever. You don’t have to worry about losing all of your photos in a fire or if Fido decides to eat those pictures like he did with your homework in sixth grade.
Family website are not just about pictures but also about stories and communication. Adding a daily journal (known as a blog) will keep everyone up to date on the latest and greatest accomplishments of Samantha and Bobby which you did not happen to capture with your digital camera. What is great about Blogs are that after you tell everyone about how Samantha made you place that “Honor Student of the Week” sticker on your brand new mini-van, your friends can make fun of the fact that you actually bought a mini-van in the comments section for that post.
Communication is also a valuable asset of a family website. Along with the benefits of having giving Samantha and Bobby their own email address, which by the way you can manage, you can also give Grandma and Uncle Fred their own email addresses also. There really is no reason why the whole family cannot have an email address like bobby@yourlastname.com or similar.
Although email is a great way to communicate there are also other ways. You can set-up a secure or password protected calendar, which could be public or private. You can set-up everyone you want with their personal calendar and have them all sync into a main family calendar. Imagine your spouse keeping track of the kids’ appointments so you can just glance at today and know you have to pick up Bobby from his new anglers meeting at 5:30.
Now you may think that you could never possibly afford or have the technical skills to do all of this on your own, well you are wrong. If you find a website hosting provider who allows you to install open source software, all of these applications are available to you free of charge. You can get a free blog, gallery and calendar set up in no time. Here is a hint, when looking for a website hosting provider look for one that offers “Fantastico”. Fantastico is a very good auto-installer of open source software, and is very easy to use. If you would rather not bother doing the install ask your website hosting provider to install these applications for you. In most cases they will for a small set-up fee or they may even do it for free.
Having a family website can be a fun and rewarding experience which may end up being an indispensable part of your day to day activities. Not only will your family website encourage communication between your friends and family but it will also serve as a way to keep all of those precious moments alive for a very long time.
Jeff Hoffman is president of Doozy Website Hosting, a professional website hosting provider specializing in small business and family website hosting services. Jeff is also an award winning website designer and multi media specialist with over 9 years experience. You can contact Jeff by visiting his company’s website at http://www.doozyhosting.com for more details.
Creating a Family Tree
Author : Dakota Caudilla
My mother is your grandmother and my sister is your aunt….is this how you teach your kids about your family? How each of us relates to each other and who is a mother to whom? Why not use a family tree to elaborate on how each of us is connected to each other? A family tree is not only exceptionally useful as a teaching tool for kids, but it gives us a whole new perspective in life too. Building a family tree can also be a fun lazy-Sunday-afternoon activity with the kids.
Building a family tree can be simple, depending on the kind of family tree you want to build. An elaborate one will take a much longer time, for example, if you want to cut out pieces of colored paper and pasting them with pictures and short write-ups on the family member. Some people will just draw a family tree and color portions of it into the family tree. Kids love it and even adults will enjoy this simple and calming activity.
Innovation and advancement in technology catches up with our needs too – because there are family tree creators in the form of softwares and computer programs that can help people create their family tree easily. Using these softwares to create a family tree takes only minutes and can be colored in and pasted over too. Using softwares to create a family tree is for people who are not keen on the paper, scissor, glue and goo concept of creating family trees. Don’t be surprised, there ARE people who are not too keen on getting down there with art papers sticking to their clothes! Kids can have fun creating family tree online too or with a software program. It depends on individual preferences, really.
A family tree is nothing more than a bunch of charts that links one person to another in a family. You can start from whichever ancestor you want. For those who are interested in genealogy, you can go as far back as you want. Creating a family tree that is as in-depth as that may require some investigation, interviewing of family members, and also research. If you can’t find your family members or are not in touch with them over some period of time, it may be a little bit more difficult to fill in the blanks in your family tree. However, with tools like www.familysearch.com, www.rootsweb.com, and www.usgenweb.vom, things are much easier than before.
So, go ahead and have some fun creating your family tree now!!
Dakota Caudilla, journalist, and website builder Dakota Caudilla lives in Texas. He is the owner and co-editor of http://www.your-family-church.info on which you will find a longer, more detailed version of this article.
My mother is your grandmother and my sister is your aunt….is this how you teach your kids about your family? How each of us relates to each other and who is a mother to whom? Why not use a family tree to elaborate on how each of us is connected to each other? A family tree is not only exceptionally useful as a teaching tool for kids, but it gives us a whole new perspective in life too. Building a family tree can also be a fun lazy-Sunday-afternoon activity with the kids.
Building a family tree can be simple, depending on the kind of family tree you want to build. An elaborate one will take a much longer time, for example, if you want to cut out pieces of colored paper and pasting them with pictures and short write-ups on the family member. Some people will just draw a family tree and color portions of it into the family tree. Kids love it and even adults will enjoy this simple and calming activity.
Innovation and advancement in technology catches up with our needs too – because there are family tree creators in the form of softwares and computer programs that can help people create their family tree easily. Using these softwares to create a family tree takes only minutes and can be colored in and pasted over too. Using softwares to create a family tree is for people who are not keen on the paper, scissor, glue and goo concept of creating family trees. Don’t be surprised, there ARE people who are not too keen on getting down there with art papers sticking to their clothes! Kids can have fun creating family tree online too or with a software program. It depends on individual preferences, really.
A family tree is nothing more than a bunch of charts that links one person to another in a family. You can start from whichever ancestor you want. For those who are interested in genealogy, you can go as far back as you want. Creating a family tree that is as in-depth as that may require some investigation, interviewing of family members, and also research. If you can’t find your family members or are not in touch with them over some period of time, it may be a little bit more difficult to fill in the blanks in your family tree. However, with tools like www.familysearch.com, www.rootsweb.com, and www.usgenweb.vom, things are much easier than before.
So, go ahead and have some fun creating your family tree now!!
Dakota Caudilla, journalist, and website builder Dakota Caudilla lives in Texas. He is the owner and co-editor of http://www.your-family-church.info on which you will find a longer, more detailed version of this article.
Cheap Family Fun Ideas
Author : Jay Coleby
Like most families, we are on a monthly budget and we live paycheck to paycheck. There are times we simply can’t budget in a trip to the movies or the skating rink. The prices for activities have gone through the roof and when you have a 6 person family it is that much more expensive!
We have gotten more creative in the last months to find things to do as a family while also keeping the budget inline. Here are a few ideas that we use here as cheap family fun:
Rent games online – you can now rent games and have them sent to your door for one flat fee per month. There are many that are family friendly so you can play together or you can allow your children to rent what they wish. I definitely like the flat fee, it’s a huge savings.
Play Board Games – Playing board games is a good old favorite with tons of options. If you go to Wal-Mart you can find tons of games available from new ones to oldies that we grew up with.
Baking – For fun the kids and I sometimes bake a cake, cupcakes or brownies! It’s a ton of fun – we use food coloring to make the frosting different colors and also an assortment of different toppings.
Rent Movies Online – Similar to renting games online you can now rent movies for a flat free and have them sent to your door. Going to the movies can be quite expensive these days. Renting them online and having family time is much less expensive and much more meaningful.
Jay Coleby is a writer that specializes in informational articles on various topics. His most recent projects include articles on cell phone batteries, rent games and noni juice. Jay can be contacted if you need an article written on a specific topic.
Like most families, we are on a monthly budget and we live paycheck to paycheck. There are times we simply can’t budget in a trip to the movies or the skating rink. The prices for activities have gone through the roof and when you have a 6 person family it is that much more expensive!
We have gotten more creative in the last months to find things to do as a family while also keeping the budget inline. Here are a few ideas that we use here as cheap family fun:
Rent games online – you can now rent games and have them sent to your door for one flat fee per month. There are many that are family friendly so you can play together or you can allow your children to rent what they wish. I definitely like the flat fee, it’s a huge savings.
Play Board Games – Playing board games is a good old favorite with tons of options. If you go to Wal-Mart you can find tons of games available from new ones to oldies that we grew up with.
Baking – For fun the kids and I sometimes bake a cake, cupcakes or brownies! It’s a ton of fun – we use food coloring to make the frosting different colors and also an assortment of different toppings.
Rent Movies Online – Similar to renting games online you can now rent movies for a flat free and have them sent to your door. Going to the movies can be quite expensive these days. Renting them online and having family time is much less expensive and much more meaningful.
Jay Coleby is a writer that specializes in informational articles on various topics. His most recent projects include articles on cell phone batteries, rent games and noni juice. Jay can be contacted if you need an article written on a specific topic.
9/04/2007
How to Find Fun at Home During the Holidays
All too often, the holidays are times when families don't spend enough time at home. This may sound ridiculous because holidays are supposed to be centered around the home and the family unit. Nevertheless, with shopping and everything else needing to be done at the holiday time, it can be difficult for families to find things to do at home.
The truth is that the average family must make an effort to stay home and find things that are fun to do at home. When you do stay in more, you will realize your family is happier and not nearly as stressed out! Use these tips to help spur your memory and figure out exactly what you can do this Christmas season.
Family Traditions
One of the easiest ways to have fun at home during the holidays is to participate in family traditions. Many families have certain activities they do each holiday season. Some will help decorate the house with holiday decor together. Others will choose to hunt for a live Christmas tree together. No matter what you do as a family, you can guarantee that spending time together and in your home will make you feel great this holiday season. If you don't have any specific family traditions yet, you can always make this season the one where you create some great ones. There are no rules on this front, so just be creative and have fun!
Music
Another way you can have fun at home during the holidays is by getting in the holiday mood. One of the best ways to get into the holiday mood is by playing music. Playing holiday music in your home may sound a little ridiculous to you. However, the sound of the holiday music can bring out the bonding in everyone. You can play board games with your family while listening to holiday music and eating holiday cookies. Your kids will love it!
Parties
If you love to entertain, having a party is also a great way to have fun at home. You can throw a big bash, or only have a few friends over for appetizers and eggnog. Having a holiday party is perfect because your home is likely already decorated. So, all you need to do is pick up a few food choices and make some phone calls. Of course, if you want, you can always just create a small holiday party for your children and your spouse. You can sip eggnog by the tree and sit on the floor reading stories all night. Anything you can do to help your family develop great holiday memories is a good thing.
So make an effort to stay home more this holiday season. Find things that make your family happy and try them. You just might find that you would rather stay home than go out!
Article Source: http://www.articlesnatch.com
About the Author:
Jaci Rae is a best-selling author and author of Shop for a Day with Jaci Rae You Can Get Something for Nothing and Collista's Search for the True Meaning of Christmas. www.shopforaday.com
Tags: jaci rae, music, fun at home, fun at home during the holidays, find fun, decorated, home, holiday
The truth is that the average family must make an effort to stay home and find things that are fun to do at home. When you do stay in more, you will realize your family is happier and not nearly as stressed out! Use these tips to help spur your memory and figure out exactly what you can do this Christmas season.
Family Traditions
One of the easiest ways to have fun at home during the holidays is to participate in family traditions. Many families have certain activities they do each holiday season. Some will help decorate the house with holiday decor together. Others will choose to hunt for a live Christmas tree together. No matter what you do as a family, you can guarantee that spending time together and in your home will make you feel great this holiday season. If you don't have any specific family traditions yet, you can always make this season the one where you create some great ones. There are no rules on this front, so just be creative and have fun!
Music
Another way you can have fun at home during the holidays is by getting in the holiday mood. One of the best ways to get into the holiday mood is by playing music. Playing holiday music in your home may sound a little ridiculous to you. However, the sound of the holiday music can bring out the bonding in everyone. You can play board games with your family while listening to holiday music and eating holiday cookies. Your kids will love it!
Parties
If you love to entertain, having a party is also a great way to have fun at home. You can throw a big bash, or only have a few friends over for appetizers and eggnog. Having a holiday party is perfect because your home is likely already decorated. So, all you need to do is pick up a few food choices and make some phone calls. Of course, if you want, you can always just create a small holiday party for your children and your spouse. You can sip eggnog by the tree and sit on the floor reading stories all night. Anything you can do to help your family develop great holiday memories is a good thing.
So make an effort to stay home more this holiday season. Find things that make your family happy and try them. You just might find that you would rather stay home than go out!
Article Source: http://www.articlesnatch.com
About the Author:
Jaci Rae is a best-selling author and author of Shop for a Day with Jaci Rae You Can Get Something for Nothing and Collista's Search for the True Meaning of Christmas. www.shopforaday.com
Tags: jaci rae, music, fun at home, fun at home during the holidays, find fun, decorated, home, holiday
Family Entertainment
By: Christian Tylor
Family entertainment can be very exciting and a great way to spend quality time together in an excellent environment. Children and adults alike need this time together to learn about each other and be close as a family. Entertainment can be fun and enjoyable and some forms of entertainment can even be educational.
Theme parks are a great form of family entertainment where you have thrilling rides and exciting shows that is suitable for the whole family. It doesn't matter how old or young members of your family are, these types of amusement parks always have something for every one in the family. Carnivals are another place where families can go for thrilling entertainment. They offer a variety of rides and games for the whole family.
Everyone loves a good circus where animals and their trainers put on a spectacular show. Clowns are a big hit and keep the children and many adults laughing. If excitement is something you are looking for then the acrobats presenting their balancing acts on the tight ropes keeps everyone on the edge of their seats.
Does your family enjoy seeing and learning about different types of animals and their habitats, if so then a Zoo is a wonderful place to visit. You can explore how these animals live and exist and learn what they eat and how they survive. You can see many exotic animals that you would not ever have the opportunity to see any other way.
If you like being one of these first to see the newest movies then a family trip to the theater would be a lot of fun. But if you are looking for family entertainment that is a little quieter and less expensive then having a family night at home watching movies and eating popcorn together can be a lot of fun. Also board games can be a very inexpensive way for the family to play together while providing an educational edge. Family entertainment is the way to bring any family closer together.
Article Source: http://www.articlesnatch.com
About the Author:
Christian Tylor is a freelance publisher based in Atlanta, Georgia. He publishes articles and reports in various ezines and provides family resources on www.freenetpublishing.com.
Tags: home-and-family, family entertainment
Family entertainment can be very exciting and a great way to spend quality time together in an excellent environment. Children and adults alike need this time together to learn about each other and be close as a family. Entertainment can be fun and enjoyable and some forms of entertainment can even be educational.
Theme parks are a great form of family entertainment where you have thrilling rides and exciting shows that is suitable for the whole family. It doesn't matter how old or young members of your family are, these types of amusement parks always have something for every one in the family. Carnivals are another place where families can go for thrilling entertainment. They offer a variety of rides and games for the whole family.
Everyone loves a good circus where animals and their trainers put on a spectacular show. Clowns are a big hit and keep the children and many adults laughing. If excitement is something you are looking for then the acrobats presenting their balancing acts on the tight ropes keeps everyone on the edge of their seats.
Does your family enjoy seeing and learning about different types of animals and their habitats, if so then a Zoo is a wonderful place to visit. You can explore how these animals live and exist and learn what they eat and how they survive. You can see many exotic animals that you would not ever have the opportunity to see any other way.
If you like being one of these first to see the newest movies then a family trip to the theater would be a lot of fun. But if you are looking for family entertainment that is a little quieter and less expensive then having a family night at home watching movies and eating popcorn together can be a lot of fun. Also board games can be a very inexpensive way for the family to play together while providing an educational edge. Family entertainment is the way to bring any family closer together.
Article Source: http://www.articlesnatch.com
About the Author:
Christian Tylor is a freelance publisher based in Atlanta, Georgia. He publishes articles and reports in various ezines and provides family resources on www.freenetpublishing.com.
Tags: home-and-family, family entertainment
5 Steps to Stress-Guard Your Family
by: Dr. Tony Fiore
Part 1: Recognize the importance of family stress management
Joe and Emily live in Southern California with their three young children. Both work and must commute 2 hours daily on busy freeways, often not getting home until 7:30 PM, exhausted and depleted.
Stressed, they have little patience for the antics of their young children. This results in frequent shouting matches, defiance on the part of the children, and escalating family tension.
As the above illustrates, stress is often an underlying cause of anger in family members. Sometimes the stress is caused by events outside of the family which family members bring into the home. In other cases, the behavior of family members creates stress and tension in the home. In either case, it becomes a problem when parents find themselves constantly yelling at their children or disagreeing with each other on parenting strategies.
In the meantime their children continue to do what they please—or continue bickering and fighting with each other. When not addressed, stress becomes a major factor in marital unhappiness and, ultimately, divorce.
Stress and family members Joe and Emily both suffered individual stress symptoms. These included fatigue, irritability, angry outbursts, headaches and a discontent with their lives. They began feeling increasingly distant from each other.
Their children were also stressed-out; tired, irritable, cranky, and demanding of attention. They often fought with each other and deliberately did things to get each other in trouble with their parents.
Symptoms of family stress
Just as individuals can become overloaded and stressed-out, so can families. To understand how this can happen, we must remember that families such as Joe and Emily’s are the basic building block of our society (like most societies).
Part 2: How empathy reduces family anger
Families consist of two or more people with shared goals and values and with a long term commitment to each other. Families are supposed to help children learn how to become responsible, successful, happy, and well-adjusted adults. When this no longer happens due to stress, the family unit becomes dysfunctional —as the family no longer serves its purpose fully, easily or consistently.
Individual isolation
We can recognize the dysfunctional family by noting that parents and children no longer turn to each other for support, encouragement, guidance, or even love. Such family members may continue to live in the same house—but not feel emotionally attached to each other. They fail to view their family as a warm place to retreat to from the stresses and demands of the outside world.
Stress-Guard your family
Tip #1- Teach your children “resiliency” —the ability to handle stress and respond more positively to difficult events. Help your children practice “bouncing back” by emphasizing the importance of having friends and being a friend; setting new goals and plans to reach them, and believing in themselves.
Tip #2– Commit to stable family rituals.
Have a way to leave each other in the morning, and to re-connect in the evening; have a Sunday morning ritual or a Friday night family pizza ritual. Rituals create a sense of security and predictability —both excellent stress buffers.
Tip #3- Model and teach your children conflict resolution skills.
Children learn how to handle conflict by watching their parents. All couples have conflicts; better parents model good conflict resolution skills for their children. These skills include compromise, calm discussion, and focus on problem-solving. Encourage your children to find a way to resolve their own conflicts rather than jumping in and punishing one or the other child whom you think (perhaps, wrongly) is the troublemaker.
Tip #4– Introduce a family “better health” plan.
This includes proper nutrition, exercise, and adequate sleep each night. The family may also want to look at time management—and explore how how better time management might reduce both personal and family stress.
Tip #5- Minimize criticism and take time to support each other each day.
Excessive criticism is extremely harmful to both children and parents. Emotional support by family members is an extremely important buffer to family stress.
About The Author
Dr. Tony Fiore is a So. California licensed psychologist, and anger management trainer. His company, The Anger Coach, provides anger and stress management programs, training and products to individuals, couples, and the workplace. Sign up for his free monthly newsletter "Taming The Anger Bee" at www.angercoach.com and receive two bonus reports.
Part 1: Recognize the importance of family stress management
Joe and Emily live in Southern California with their three young children. Both work and must commute 2 hours daily on busy freeways, often not getting home until 7:30 PM, exhausted and depleted.
Stressed, they have little patience for the antics of their young children. This results in frequent shouting matches, defiance on the part of the children, and escalating family tension.
As the above illustrates, stress is often an underlying cause of anger in family members. Sometimes the stress is caused by events outside of the family which family members bring into the home. In other cases, the behavior of family members creates stress and tension in the home. In either case, it becomes a problem when parents find themselves constantly yelling at their children or disagreeing with each other on parenting strategies.
In the meantime their children continue to do what they please—or continue bickering and fighting with each other. When not addressed, stress becomes a major factor in marital unhappiness and, ultimately, divorce.
Stress and family members Joe and Emily both suffered individual stress symptoms. These included fatigue, irritability, angry outbursts, headaches and a discontent with their lives. They began feeling increasingly distant from each other.
Their children were also stressed-out; tired, irritable, cranky, and demanding of attention. They often fought with each other and deliberately did things to get each other in trouble with their parents.
Symptoms of family stress
Just as individuals can become overloaded and stressed-out, so can families. To understand how this can happen, we must remember that families such as Joe and Emily’s are the basic building block of our society (like most societies).
Part 2: How empathy reduces family anger
Families consist of two or more people with shared goals and values and with a long term commitment to each other. Families are supposed to help children learn how to become responsible, successful, happy, and well-adjusted adults. When this no longer happens due to stress, the family unit becomes dysfunctional —as the family no longer serves its purpose fully, easily or consistently.
Individual isolation
We can recognize the dysfunctional family by noting that parents and children no longer turn to each other for support, encouragement, guidance, or even love. Such family members may continue to live in the same house—but not feel emotionally attached to each other. They fail to view their family as a warm place to retreat to from the stresses and demands of the outside world.
Stress-Guard your family
Tip #1- Teach your children “resiliency” —the ability to handle stress and respond more positively to difficult events. Help your children practice “bouncing back” by emphasizing the importance of having friends and being a friend; setting new goals and plans to reach them, and believing in themselves.
Tip #2– Commit to stable family rituals.
Have a way to leave each other in the morning, and to re-connect in the evening; have a Sunday morning ritual or a Friday night family pizza ritual. Rituals create a sense of security and predictability —both excellent stress buffers.
Tip #3- Model and teach your children conflict resolution skills.
Children learn how to handle conflict by watching their parents. All couples have conflicts; better parents model good conflict resolution skills for their children. These skills include compromise, calm discussion, and focus on problem-solving. Encourage your children to find a way to resolve their own conflicts rather than jumping in and punishing one or the other child whom you think (perhaps, wrongly) is the troublemaker.
Tip #4– Introduce a family “better health” plan.
This includes proper nutrition, exercise, and adequate sleep each night. The family may also want to look at time management—and explore how how better time management might reduce both personal and family stress.
Tip #5- Minimize criticism and take time to support each other each day.
Excessive criticism is extremely harmful to both children and parents. Emotional support by family members is an extremely important buffer to family stress.
About The Author
Dr. Tony Fiore is a So. California licensed psychologist, and anger management trainer. His company, The Anger Coach, provides anger and stress management programs, training and products to individuals, couples, and the workplace. Sign up for his free monthly newsletter "Taming The Anger Bee" at www.angercoach.com and receive two bonus reports.
9/02/2007
Changing Face Of Holidays In The UK
By: Peter Joyner
Mainstream holidays in the UK have changed enormously in the last ten years as companies and tourism businesses struggled to cope with the constantly changing customer requirements. This has presented the tourism industry with a series of new challenges that are currently sculpting a new type of travel business.
To understand how the industry has changed and grown it is necessary to look at the internal and external influences that have forced this shift in the UK market These factors can be attributed to a number of changes in society, changes in technology and infrastructural developments that have result in the world becoming a much smaller place. However, to look at the first big change we need to go back 25 years.
The UK holiday market was still in a relatively secure position, with a large percentage of its holidaymakers still taking UK breaks in cottages, holiday parks, B&B’s and hotels. Then in the 80’s cheap package holidays had an enormous effect on the UK mass-market holiday businesses as value for money, guaranteed sunshine and better quality accommodation and food resulted in an exodus. During this period holiday businesses saw a massive fall in guests. This resulted in drastic changes in the way UK holidays were marketed and was the first in a series of challenges – that became opportunities – for the industry.
But it wasn’t simply the advent of the overseas cheap package holidays that presented companies with challenges and opportunities. Arguably the last five years has seen the greatest level of change in the UK market.
Changes in society during the last 15 years have had a great impact on the way people choose to book and take their holidays. The family unit and its 2.5 children changed. More people got divorced and couples had children much later in life as their career took priority. The traditional UK family holiday had therefore changed as their customers social circumstances changed.
These weren’t the only social changes. Working adults increasingly earned more money, but more so than ever before they had less opportunity to spend that money, and were in need of time to relax and enjoy their holidays. Again UK holiday companies and business had to adjust to this trend to ensure that their products matched the changes in the customer requirements.
Another major factor in the changing in UK holidays was a shift in booking patterns. As long as anyone could remember holidays had been booked directly through the holiday outlet or via travel agents – often 6/12 months in advance of that break. In 2000 this pattern changed forever.
The advent of the internet, and the continued growth of home PC’s across all markets, has had a revolutionary impact on the holiday market. For the first time people could independently search for, and book, their perfect holiday anywhere in the world. The could also leave everything to the last minute and decide to take holidays based on the five day forecast – rather than hoping the weather would be nice next June!
The final, and possibly the most important, factor in the changes to the UK market was the arrival of the ‘low-cost operator’. So not only could you book late using the internet, you now had the freedom to go anywhere (roughly with a five hour flight time) at the drop of the hat. The short break market, which had become increasingly important to the UK holiday businesses as traditional one and two weeks holidays dwindled, was facing competition with any city destination in Europe. Now a B&B in Bath had to compete with a hotel in Budapest.
So all of these factors, coupled with changes in customer needs, resulted in a whole new series of challenges for the UK tourism industry.
Potters holiday resort is on the Norfolk/Suffolk coast in the East of England and their website can be found at www.pottersholidays.com However, the UK market hasn’t stood still and to both combat the negatives, and take advantage of the positives, operators, hoteliers and tourist boards have begun to rethink the ‘product’ to respond to the enormous upheaval.
More than ever before tourism businesses are thinking about who their market is and whether they are offering the right product to suit their customer profile. Examples of this change can be seen all over the UK as companies and business are quickly responding to new opportunities created by the shift in customer requirements. The UK has woken up to the diversity of scenery, is rich history, traditional food and new standards of accommodation that has increased the expectation of guests at home and abroad.
Boutique hotels brilliant demonstrate this new way of thinking – a style of UK holiday that was only very niche has responded to the potential of young couples and empty nesters to offer a stylish and unique hotel experience. But it isn’t just ultra trendy niche businesses that have been successful. A great example of this is Potters Leisure Resort on the Norfolk coast. A traditional holiday park, they have adapted their holidays to cater for a new breed of holidaymakers. They now offer short breaks, good food, entertainment and top quality accommodation in an area of the UK holiday market many people considered dead – and they are thriving.
It is also worth noting that in the last few years another more serious series of factors have also provided the UK market with an additional boost. For example, the advent of terrorism, not just the threat of being caught up in the conflict, but the preventative measures that have been put in place, combined with seemingly erratic changes in global weather patterns, have never made the UK a more viable holiday destination for its residents.
So despite all of the challenges and changes the industry has seen over the last few years the picture isn’t all doom and gloom. Far from it. Like any market those business that can, and will, adapt to the give the customer what they want will reap the rewards.
Article Source: http://articleaddict.com
About Author: The UK’s only 5 stars Holiday Park is Potters (www.pottersholidays.com/)
Mainstream holidays in the UK have changed enormously in the last ten years as companies and tourism businesses struggled to cope with the constantly changing customer requirements. This has presented the tourism industry with a series of new challenges that are currently sculpting a new type of travel business.
To understand how the industry has changed and grown it is necessary to look at the internal and external influences that have forced this shift in the UK market These factors can be attributed to a number of changes in society, changes in technology and infrastructural developments that have result in the world becoming a much smaller place. However, to look at the first big change we need to go back 25 years.
The UK holiday market was still in a relatively secure position, with a large percentage of its holidaymakers still taking UK breaks in cottages, holiday parks, B&B’s and hotels. Then in the 80’s cheap package holidays had an enormous effect on the UK mass-market holiday businesses as value for money, guaranteed sunshine and better quality accommodation and food resulted in an exodus. During this period holiday businesses saw a massive fall in guests. This resulted in drastic changes in the way UK holidays were marketed and was the first in a series of challenges – that became opportunities – for the industry.
But it wasn’t simply the advent of the overseas cheap package holidays that presented companies with challenges and opportunities. Arguably the last five years has seen the greatest level of change in the UK market.
Changes in society during the last 15 years have had a great impact on the way people choose to book and take their holidays. The family unit and its 2.5 children changed. More people got divorced and couples had children much later in life as their career took priority. The traditional UK family holiday had therefore changed as their customers social circumstances changed.
These weren’t the only social changes. Working adults increasingly earned more money, but more so than ever before they had less opportunity to spend that money, and were in need of time to relax and enjoy their holidays. Again UK holiday companies and business had to adjust to this trend to ensure that their products matched the changes in the customer requirements.
Another major factor in the changing in UK holidays was a shift in booking patterns. As long as anyone could remember holidays had been booked directly through the holiday outlet or via travel agents – often 6/12 months in advance of that break. In 2000 this pattern changed forever.
The advent of the internet, and the continued growth of home PC’s across all markets, has had a revolutionary impact on the holiday market. For the first time people could independently search for, and book, their perfect holiday anywhere in the world. The could also leave everything to the last minute and decide to take holidays based on the five day forecast – rather than hoping the weather would be nice next June!
The final, and possibly the most important, factor in the changes to the UK market was the arrival of the ‘low-cost operator’. So not only could you book late using the internet, you now had the freedom to go anywhere (roughly with a five hour flight time) at the drop of the hat. The short break market, which had become increasingly important to the UK holiday businesses as traditional one and two weeks holidays dwindled, was facing competition with any city destination in Europe. Now a B&B in Bath had to compete with a hotel in Budapest.
So all of these factors, coupled with changes in customer needs, resulted in a whole new series of challenges for the UK tourism industry.
Potters holiday resort is on the Norfolk/Suffolk coast in the East of England and their website can be found at www.pottersholidays.com However, the UK market hasn’t stood still and to both combat the negatives, and take advantage of the positives, operators, hoteliers and tourist boards have begun to rethink the ‘product’ to respond to the enormous upheaval.
More than ever before tourism businesses are thinking about who their market is and whether they are offering the right product to suit their customer profile. Examples of this change can be seen all over the UK as companies and business are quickly responding to new opportunities created by the shift in customer requirements. The UK has woken up to the diversity of scenery, is rich history, traditional food and new standards of accommodation that has increased the expectation of guests at home and abroad.
Boutique hotels brilliant demonstrate this new way of thinking – a style of UK holiday that was only very niche has responded to the potential of young couples and empty nesters to offer a stylish and unique hotel experience. But it isn’t just ultra trendy niche businesses that have been successful. A great example of this is Potters Leisure Resort on the Norfolk coast. A traditional holiday park, they have adapted their holidays to cater for a new breed of holidaymakers. They now offer short breaks, good food, entertainment and top quality accommodation in an area of the UK holiday market many people considered dead – and they are thriving.
It is also worth noting that in the last few years another more serious series of factors have also provided the UK market with an additional boost. For example, the advent of terrorism, not just the threat of being caught up in the conflict, but the preventative measures that have been put in place, combined with seemingly erratic changes in global weather patterns, have never made the UK a more viable holiday destination for its residents.
So despite all of the challenges and changes the industry has seen over the last few years the picture isn’t all doom and gloom. Far from it. Like any market those business that can, and will, adapt to the give the customer what they want will reap the rewards.
Article Source: http://articleaddict.com
About Author: The UK’s only 5 stars Holiday Park is Potters (www.pottersholidays.com/)
Plasma TVs And Your Home Entertainment Center
by: John Rivers
It seems as if everyone these days is showing off their expensive flashy new home entertainment centers. They’re linked wirelessly to computers, have more speakers than a Rolling Stone’s concert, and cost more than a midsize luxury sedan. They feature DVD players, DVR or Tivo, CD players, MP3 players, and anything else you can imagine. The centerpiece, though, still remains the same: the television.
Plasma TVs have recently been introduced to the market. They are extremely flat television panels which make them very easy to mount on either a wall, in a cabinet or on other specially designed furniture. Plasma TVs are known for their wonderful quality and almost all plasma TVs come already equipped with an HDTV (high definition television) tuner which will allow you to watch all the HDTV channels that have been so widely discussed lately. The quality is amazingly realistic.
As mentioned before, the plasma TV is completely flat. It much more easily manipulated than conventional CRT TVs and won’t burn out like rear projection TVs and LCD TVs. Mounting the plasma TV on the wall and adding rows of seats to a home theater will surly add a commercial theater feel to any room. Along with some of the high end sound systems available on the market today, the difference between a well equipped home theater with a quality plasma TV and a commercial theater is hard to distinguish.
If mounting the plasma TV on the wall isn’t an option, try commissioning a carpenter to create a custom made cabinet. This may be a better option as it would allow for built in compartments for cords, DVDs, VHS tapes, DVD player storage, and more. Inside the cabinet, a custom mount could be created for the plasma TV. Add to this some remote control doors on the cabinet and one could have oneself a pretty Godfather-esque setup.
In conclusion, if you wish to become the talk of the neighborhood with your brand new home theater or home entertainment center, be sure to have the finest centerpiece available with a large, high quality plasma television.
About The Author
John Rivers is the owner of TV Home Center. His website offers LCD TV Reviews and Flat Screen TV Buying Advice. http://www.tvhomecenter.com.
It seems as if everyone these days is showing off their expensive flashy new home entertainment centers. They’re linked wirelessly to computers, have more speakers than a Rolling Stone’s concert, and cost more than a midsize luxury sedan. They feature DVD players, DVR or Tivo, CD players, MP3 players, and anything else you can imagine. The centerpiece, though, still remains the same: the television.
Plasma TVs have recently been introduced to the market. They are extremely flat television panels which make them very easy to mount on either a wall, in a cabinet or on other specially designed furniture. Plasma TVs are known for their wonderful quality and almost all plasma TVs come already equipped with an HDTV (high definition television) tuner which will allow you to watch all the HDTV channels that have been so widely discussed lately. The quality is amazingly realistic.
As mentioned before, the plasma TV is completely flat. It much more easily manipulated than conventional CRT TVs and won’t burn out like rear projection TVs and LCD TVs. Mounting the plasma TV on the wall and adding rows of seats to a home theater will surly add a commercial theater feel to any room. Along with some of the high end sound systems available on the market today, the difference between a well equipped home theater with a quality plasma TV and a commercial theater is hard to distinguish.
If mounting the plasma TV on the wall isn’t an option, try commissioning a carpenter to create a custom made cabinet. This may be a better option as it would allow for built in compartments for cords, DVDs, VHS tapes, DVD player storage, and more. Inside the cabinet, a custom mount could be created for the plasma TV. Add to this some remote control doors on the cabinet and one could have oneself a pretty Godfather-esque setup.
In conclusion, if you wish to become the talk of the neighborhood with your brand new home theater or home entertainment center, be sure to have the finest centerpiece available with a large, high quality plasma television.
About The Author
John Rivers is the owner of TV Home Center. His website offers LCD TV Reviews and Flat Screen TV Buying Advice. http://www.tvhomecenter.com.
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