Simple Felt Crafts To Do

Felt is one of my daughter's favorite craft material to work on. She loves stitching chibi dolls and keychains. So, there are plenty of felt materials in our craft stash that can be made to more beautiful crafty projects.

Here are some photos I got from BHG.com which are great felt projects you can make. They are simple and yet colorful and easy to make. You can hand stitch them or sew by machine. It does not matter how you tackle the project because the result will be fabulous!

pin cushion

framed felt leaves

owl pen holder

felt coasters

tablet case

(all photos from bhg.com)

Find Local Activities In Your City Through Vimbly.com

Is your city beaming with activities and yet you don't even know? How about visiting a place in the US and you have no clue on what to do when you get there? It is frustrating to plan all the things you want to do but you don't even know where to start. Here is where Vimbly.com comes into the picture to help you maximize your day in a local city and enjoy what that city has to offer.

I didn't know about Vimbly.com until recently. It would have been a fulfilling experience to enjoy Las Vegas last 2009 to the max if we had known where to go aside from the usual walk around The Strip or at least engaged in some local activities there. We were toured by our relatives who reside in San Diego but they were clueless just like us.

Well, it is never too late to enjoy the city you want to visit if you will consult Vimbly.com for great things that you can possibly do, see and experience in that city.

The site offers comprehensive list of attractions, fun activities, entertainment, food scene, water sports, family-friendly activities and attractions, excursions, airborne tours, water tours, cultural tours and special occasion like experience gifts.

The Vimbly.com site is easy to navigate and offers dates of activities, shows and tours you can take and participate in. You can also change the setting of how you want to view the site such as tile view that shows the price and date of availability, preview if you want the description included or calendar view if you want bird's eye view of the week's offers and availability and rates.

This is the calendar view.   Photo credit: vimbly.com

So, why guess when you can plan ahead, prepare your budget and book yourself and your family to the local activities in that area? Vimbly.com offers plenty of information on the things you can do and see while in New York, Chicago, Seattle, Maui, Las Vegas, Orlando and Los Angeles.

I hope they add more US cities and even international cities in the list so we don't have to search around because everything you want to find out in a particular city tours and activities-wise will be in one place  -  only at Vimbly.com.

Top Fun Ways To Keep Teens Entertained Over The Summer Holidays

Photo credit: irishexaminer.com

Many teenagers seem to spend most of their free time either playing video games or complaining about being bored, so how can you keep them occupied and engaged this summer?

E-readers
If you’re heading off on a long road trip this summer, then backseat boredom will hit your teens pretty fast. With an e-reader, they can take all of their favourite books with them without having to worry about heavy bags. Although it might look like yet another gadget, remember that they could just as easily be reading Shakespeare in preparation for their A-levels instead of Twilight again - in theory, at least!

Volunteering
If your child has a hobby or favourite sport they're losing interest in, try persuading them to help out as a teacher or coach for younger children. Not only is it valuable for university applications and future CVs, it's also a great way to re-engage with something they used to love. They could volunteer in a library, help out as a football coach or even work with animals. Most clubs will be more than happy to let them help out, just remember to invest in some new Kickers shoes and boots if they're going to be on their feet for a long time!

National Citizen Service
Organised by the government, this scheme lets teenagers take part in things like horse-riding and dry-slope skiing as well as learning the importance of teamwork. Programmes are usually 3 weeks long and are for 16 and 17 year olds only. They usually include some residential time away from home and around 30 hours of volunteering at community projects: perfect for building independence and confidence.

Let them plan a trip

Hand over some of the responsibility for your holiday to the children to give them a sense of ownership, as well as an idea of the organisation involved! Whether it's a day trip or your choice of hotel, chances are your teen will complain less if they've had an input into the decision making process. Let them help with everything from booking travel to stocking up on holiday essentials. Just keep an eye on the shopping cart to make sure they stick to the budget!

Bucket List

I think I was 5 years old when I started my bucket list. I remember writing them down but somewhere along the way, I lost the list but have them in my memory. One of that is to see the beautiful cherry blossoms up close. And I did!

I made an itinerary before traveling to New York with my husband few days ago. I told him that I have to see the cherry blossoms in Central Park and it was a must. Although this is the second time we have been in the beautiful city of New York, the last time was November so there was no cherry blossoms blooming. It was autumn and the leaves were wilting.

I am glad we had this short trip back to NYC to see the beautiful flowers. I even saw plenty of tulips so it was actually hitting two birds with one stone and I am very happy to see that most of the things I have written in my bucket list are actually getting ticked. Blessings! I am very thankful for the opportunity.