A Happy Family

How to Host an Old-Fashioned Christmas Gathering

>> Dec 9, 2017

Although Christmas should be a joyous time of year, it often causes a lot of stress and anxiety. From splurging on extravagant gifts to faithfully attending every holiday event, the entire season can easily become overwhelming. This year, why not host an old-fashioned Christmas party that focuses on simple traditions with family and friends? Here are four fun activities to create a relaxing and memorable holiday for guests.

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Bake Classic-Style Cookies

Does your family have a favorite cookie recipe that you cherished as a child? Now is the time to share it with your kids or other young family members. Baking creates a warm, cozy atmosphere in the kitchen that is inviting to everyone. Whip up a batch of classic sugar cookies, Russian tea cakes or some delicious gingersnaps. For smaller gatherings, you can let each child select a different cookie recipe to prepare.

Play Board Games

For one night, forget about the PlayStation and Xbox games and enjoy a little vintage fun. Unlike electronic games, board games can be challenging while still allowing you to relax and bond with others. Whether you like Monopoly, backgammon or Chinese checkers, these activities sharpen your mind and provide a healthy dose of entertainment. Best of all, board games can be played by family members of all ages.

Give Small Gifts to Commemorate the Event

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As the host, it's nice to give a small Christmas present to attendees. Whether you prefer to make or purchase your gifts, try to choose an item that is unique to the individual. This will result in a more thoughtful gift that is likely to be remembered. One simple idea for family or friends is personalized Christmas ornaments. For those who aren't too creative, Ornament Express is one company that offers personalized holiday decorations without the long wait.

Spend Time Together Outdoors

Regardless of where you live, spend a little time enjoying the natural beauty of the season. Some festive outdoor activities include Christmas caroling, sledding or selecting the perfect holiday tree for your home. Moving around outdoors is also a great way to burn off those calories after a hearty meal.

With a little planning, you can host a traditional holiday event filled with the simple pleasures of the Christmas season. Focusing on family and friends allows you to create fun memories for everyone without all the hassle and stress.

Tips for Staying Warm This Holiday Season

If you and your family are planning to stay home for the holidays, you might be wondering if there are any tips out there to make your home feel a little more relaxing. As it happens, there are actually quite a few tricks out there to help bring a little bit more warmth into your home. In fact, this guide will highlight some of the best tips out there, so you can spend less time huddled together, and more time enjoying each other's company.

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Rearrange Your Furniture

Rearranging you furniture is one of the most effective ways of staying warm during the winter. Aside from obviously being incredibly cheap, rearranging your furniture allows you to take advantage of simple principles to keep your home warm on a nearly constant basis. To begin with, you'll want to make sure all of your furniture is packed together rather tightly, so that people can stay close together and radiate heat in a natural manner. Then, it's as simple as figuring out which areas of your house are hit by the most sunlight throughout the day, and positioning your seats to be in those areas. It might take a little bit of research ahead of time, but the payoff can potentially be tremendous.

Invest in the Right Tools

If rearranging your furniture doesn't give enough of an impact, then it might be time to start investing in some actual tools. While there's obviously an entire industry built around using technology to heat homes, there are also some more natural heating methods. For instance, a fireplace can be a great tool for boosting heat into a place, while also making it more festive for friends and family. Of course, even if you already have a fireplace, it can be difficult to keep up with the demands of feeding it logs. If you're someone who likes to do things by hand though, there are some options. For instance, an electric wood splitter Canada can help make the entire process go much smoother, and with less of a physical investment as well.

If you want to enjoy the holidays in style, then you'll want to make sure you do everything you can to make your house as comfortable as possible. Hopefully, by following along with this guide, you'll plenty of opportunities to heat up your home and enjoy the company of your guests.

Can't Afford to Travel? 5 Simple Tricks for Fixing Your Family's Finances

>> Dec 8, 2017

Travel is essential for giving your children a well-rounded upbringing. However, when money is tight, it’s hard to carve out the funds needed to afford trips. Fortunately, there are several ways you can cut travel costs and scrape together the money needed for a family vacation. Here are a few of them.

Create a Budget

When you first calculate how much a trip to your preferred destination will cost you, it may seem impossible to prepare your finances for travel. However, you can make the expenses much more manageable by setting up a sinking fund. This is basically a specific amount of money that you set aside in a savings account each month or each time you get paid. When you spread the expenses across several months, they become much more manageable.

Cut Expenses from Your Life

Do you really need to spend so much on your phone? Can you go with a simpler phone and plan and save money? If so, do it! Also, some families might be able to get rid of a car to cut costs. Look at where your money is going, and see where you can make changes to save money.

Sell Items You Don’t Need

One of the best ways to raise the money needed to go on a trip is to sell stuff that is just sitting around your house that you don’t need anymore. For example, you can usually collect significant cash from selling sports equipment you no longer use, clothing, or kitchen appliances. Turn to the internet to sell your items if you want to attract greater interest. Gumtree is an excellent website for posting for sale ads.

Sign Up for Newsletters

Many travel companies and airlines send out email newsletters. This is a terrific source for special deals and last-minute sales. For example, you can often get more than 50% off on round-trip airfare to exotic destinations around the world.

Get Credit Cards

You can get free flights, free rooms, and free money when you use a travel credit card. You can redeem rewards points and miles for free travel on your vacation after you accrue enough of them on everyday purchases. When traveling on a budget, travel credit cards are going to be your best tool. And, when you get a new card, you earn huge sign-up bonuses. These cards essentially generate free money when used properly.

With these tips, you will be well on your way to giving your family the vacation of a lifetime. Happy travels.

How Direct Vision Could Ban HGVs From London Roads

The way HGVs operate in London is about to undergo a substantial change. After several years of debate and research, the implementation of the Direct Vision Standard regulations has come into force. This radical change could see many HGV's being banned from the London roads.

What Is The Direct Vision Standard Used For?

Direct Vision is a recently devised standard incorporated by the Transport for London authority with full support from mayor Sadiq Khan. It is one of the few motoring regulations focused directly on the use of HGVs within a specific geographical area and its sole objective is to increase the safety of the roads. The premise behind the Direct Vision standard arose from statistics indicating that 70% of cyclist fatalities and 20% of pedestrian fatalities within London involved HGVs. When researchers examined these statistics, they found that the reason for the fatalities was mainly a lack of direct visibility - a mixture of poor visibility within the HGV cab and the view from London roads. Many HGV companies welcome this new standard and Tom McGhie from HGV jobs provider Easy as HGV, believes that by helping everyone ensure they are using, contracting or buying lorries with high levels of driver direct vision, we will increase the demand and supply of such vehicles to the point where these safer trucks are the main lorry of choice in the Capital, other cities and around the world." The Direct Vision standard approaches this issue by assessing how much of the road and 'risk points' are visible to a driver from the windows of the HGV cab without looking in mirrors or cameras. The system is rated using a star design with zero stars being the lowest and five stars being the highest. An HGV with a score of one or below will be banned from driving within London.

How Is an HGV Rated?

1. Assessment of the average visibility when sitting inside the HGV cab.
2. Specific assessment of average visibility from the HGV cab in four key risk areas which, via a detailed analysis of research data, will present with the greatest risk to driving.
3. A measurement of the collision data distance. This measurement is based on how much visibility is required for a driver to notice a pedestrian or cyclist in order to take action for collision avoiding tactics.
4. Defined technical measurements are reported and used to identify the overall volume of the area of greatest risk as seen by the HGV driver.

When all the above tests have been conducted, the vehicle will be awarded a specific star rating. The higher the star rating, the greater the level of visibility for the driver when sitting in the HGV cab including the areas of risk. Five stars is the highest and best rating to be achieved. The majority of five star HGVs tend to have remodelled cabs that are designed to increase the amount of driver visibility.

What Is The Implementation Date?

As with all regulations, the implementation date of the standard is not immediate. An implementation period is in place and this provides manufacturers and haulage companies time to update plans and purchase new HGV fleets with increased visibility cabs. As of 2024, any HGV with a three-star rating or under will be disallowed from driving in the London area. An exception to this rule would be vehicles with significant and comprehensive safety systems. The concept behind the Direct Vision standard is to reduce the number of fatalities within the London area, thereby creating a safer place for pedestrians and motorists. According to these regulations, haulage firms have been placed under pressure to achieve high ratings for their HGV fleets. If they do not, they will risk losing business to rivals who are investing in vehicles eligible to travel through London. Of course, there are elements still being discussed and consultations may present an interim star rating system to help with the overall implementation of the full rating system.

What To Give At A Baptism: Proper Etiquette For Guests

If you have been invited to a baptism, the first thought that crosses your mind is likely, "What should I bring?" For many years, a silver spoon has been one of the most common gifts to give. However, there are other choices available to you. For example, porridge bowls, silver cups and even silver jewellery boxes are all appropriate. It is also customary to engrave the child's name on the gift, as well as the giver's name, whenever possible.

Presenting The Gift

The church that the ceremony is held at dictates much of what will occur during the baptism. In most cases, family and friends are allowed to be present at the ceremony. However, there are times that only close family is allowed, along with the regular congregation. Talk to the parents ahead of time so that you understand what is expected of you. Typically, there is a reception following the baptism. If you have purchased a gift for the baby at another time, like for a shower or when visiting the child in the hospital, you do not have to bring another present for the reception. It is a nice touch to give a card and let the new parents know you are thinking of them and the baby on this special day.

Godparents

Have you been asked to be a Godparent? If so, you have special responsibilities to the child and the family. Tradition dictates that you give the little one a gift but also that you receive one yourself. The parents usually give you a little something to let you know that they are grateful for your presence in their child's life. Your gift should be something silver that the child can have for many years to come. If you engrave the item, make sure it has the baby's name on it. Part of the baptism ceremony involves a focus on the child's name. It is also appropriate to engrave a little quote or an expression of good wishes.

Selecting A Present

You may be more familiar with baby showers than christenings; baby showers are typically more informal and are usually not religious. A baptism, on the other hand, is one way of recognising a baby within a church community. Therefore, it is common to give a gift that has some religious significance. This can be difficult, particularly if the family's faith is not one that you are familiar with. If you are not sure what to do, find a gift that is inspirational instead. For example, you could pick up a nice book, a picture frame, or even a bible. Clothing, blankets and money are all great ideas as well. Similar to a silver wedding cup, there are also silver cups for babies. If you are crafty, making something for the baby is a wonderful idea. For example, crotchet a blanket, present a lace gown or give the little one a bonnet. Your gift may be handed down through the years, making it something very sentimental and special to the family. A gift of money is always welcome, as is a savings bond or investment certificate. Baptisms are a way of celebrating a child's future, and this type of gift recognises that.

Giving A Gift

When you are giving a baptism gift, it is customary to present the baby with something that has religious undertones. This is easy enough to do; there are online stores that offer a variety of items that are perfect for a baptism or christening. You can do one of two things; you can either navigate to the site with a gift in mind, and do a search for that item, or you can look for a list of popular gift ideas. Sometimes it helps to see what others have purchased, particularly if you are struggling with what to get the new baby.