10 Easy Ways To Improve Your Family Photographs- Do you always seem to end up with one child with a goofy smile and another with their eyes closed? Here are some great tips on getting great family photographs every single time.
10 Frugal Ways to Show Them You Care- Who says love has to be expensive? With a little creativity, you can show your love in ways that don't break the bank and create special memories together.
A Celebration of Family- International Parenting Commitment Day, March 20th is fast approaching. What do you have planned to celebrate this special day? Are you ready to commit or recommit to the sacred and important role of parenting so you can uplift, encourage, and inspire your children to become responsible, caring, confident people?
A Visit to the Little League Baseball Museum- There's always excitement in the air when a field of dreams is filled with sounds of baseball. The crisp crack of the bat sends a crowd into excited ecstasy, and the cheering crowd stands in anticipation of runners reaching home base. There's nothing quite like a Little League game to stir the emotions.
Achieving Balance in Your Family- In today's world, there are many demands placed on our time. As parents, it can be overwhelming to try to juggle work, school, social, and civic obligations. Add to this the desire to offer extra-curricular activities to our children, and soon the fabric of our lives is stretched too thin. Often, the effects are insidious, slowly sapping our quality of life and our sense of success. There are ways to avoid such a drain on our families' sense of well-being, and they require much less sacrifice than you might think.
Balancing Youth Sports and Family Life- Raising sports active kids is difficult, perhaps more today than ever before. Parents feel pressure to help their kids succeed. They want to keep up with other parents in an increasingly winner-take-all society. Too often, parents just like you feel that if they don't do everything for their child, they are bad parents.
Children's Museums: A Hands on Learning Adventure- Once you've plucked an apple
from its tree, there's no putting it
back on. Or is there? Like
hundreds of other youngsters that
will pass through children's
museums daily, 2-year-old
Dominic discovered that almost
anything is possible. From Velcro
trees, to make shift recycling
centers, complete with magnetic
cranes for separating aluminum
from tin, there are learning
opportunities around every corner.
Creating a Family Album- A Family Album is an important keepsake for future generations to learn about their ancestors. It is also a wonderful gift to create and give to another family member.
Enjoying the Movies Without Breaking the Bank- Is one of your favorite forms of entertainment the movies? We love them, too, but what a drain on your pocketbook! Try some of these great ideas to save some money and still see your favorites.
Extra Photos? Here's What To Do!- Can you easily take one or more rolls of film per week? Do you find your self taking several rolls of film at just one special occasion? If this is you, then you quite possibly have many snapshots that you may never use.
Families That Dine Together Grow Wise Together- We've all experienced the hectic holiday rush that comes upon us this time of the year. During the holidays, there is shopping, visiting, decorating and merrymaking to do along with the responsibly of running a household and caring for our families. Today, mom, dad and kids spend more time away from home, at work, play, or shopping at the malls and the first thing to get sacrificed is dinner at home. Cooking at home and sharing dinner with the family, somehow just doens't make it on our to-do list.
Family Banquet Night- This is a new one for us, but our first night went well. It started because my mom had given my girls some fancy dress-up clothes to play in. They wanted to wear them "out", but it really wasn't appropriate.
Family Book Clubs: Creating Good Reading Habits with Our Kids- The economic downturn has us staying at home more often, creating a great opportunity to get reacquainted with reading. With our busy lifestyles, it may seem hard to find the time, but there is no better way than reading to enrich our lives and open our minds. It is also another great excuse to get together with girlfriends and other moms.
Family Fun Night- Can dedicating special family time bring families closer together? Playing games, making crafts, watching movies or doing anything else together could result in a closer knit family. Whether it's once a week, once a month, or whenever the time is right, enjoying special time together can be beneficial to all family members.
Family Night: How to Play Doubt It- Here's a fun game to play during your next family night. Everyone is sure to enjoy this entertaining game of calling your bluff!
Family Night: How to Play Snap- Here's a great game to play during your next family night. A great, and gentler, alternative to Slapjack, everyone is sure to enjoy it!
Finding Family Time- When you pick up any magazine, it's easy to find an abundance of articles to help you organize your life. Most offer tips for cleaning out the closets, shuffling the papers on the desk, finding ways to organize the kid's toys. But, here's a different twist. We'd like to help you organize your time to find some precious, extra moments to spend with your family.
Frugal Entertainment for the Whole Family- There are plenty of ways to entertain your family without the high price tag. You don't have to visit amusement parks, pay an arm and a leg at the movies, or buy expensive video games. Here are several tips for some frugal family fun.
Fun Card Games: Pig, Animals & Barnyard- Looking for some fun games to play on family night? Tired of the same old games week after week? Teach your family these fun animal themed games and you'll all be laughing and smiling in no time!
Guest Of Honor Night- Our favorite family activity is one that we started about 4 months ago. It was intended to be a one-cycle activity, but turned into an ongoing ritual around the Fisher home.
How to Take Great Halloween Pictures- "It's easy to turn this night of fantasy into permanent picture memories," says Chuck DeLaney, Dean of the New York Institute of Photography, "but you have to follow two simple guidelines or, excuse the pun, you won't have a ghost of a chance."
Keeping Family Journals- Keeping a journal or diary is not only beneficial to you as an individual, but also to your family. Do you remember the family vacation to Disneyland when you were 12? What about your parent's 20-year anniversary? Or your birthday party when you turned 15? The new house you moved into in 8th grade? High school graduation?
Life After Television: Teaching Our Children to Play Again- Studies have made the news again regarding television and our children. What are they saying? Too much television is not good for our kids. The very presence of a television in your child's room can be a determining factor in how well your kids do academically. Kids today are continuing to be "plugged in".
Make a Splash in the Dells!- Who says you have to wait for hot summer days to enjoy the thrill of soaring down an exciting water slide! Well, that's certainly not the case in Wisconsin Dells, located in the southern end of America's dairy state.
Making a Family Museum Visit Fun for Toddlers, Teens, and In-Betweens- Today, many museums are interactive learning centers that give families an opportunity to explore, learn, create their own art, and, yes, even touch some exhibits. With all of this variety and activity, how can parents ensure that their children won't become overwhelmed, tired, or too distracted to enjoy the experience? The key is in the planning.
Making the Most of Dinnertime: Start When Children are Young- Picture Norman Rockwell, the classic American painter, alive today and commissioned to paint a scene of our generation's family dinner. Would it be of paper-wrapped peanut butter-and-jelly sandwiches strewn on an SUV's backseat? Or of your young son or daughter trying to swallow a sandwich whole while running on to the soccer field for practice? Would it be of you standing in front of the freezer choosing from an overwhelming assortment of TV dinners? Or would it be of your husband, tired from a long day at work, eating leftovers or take-out alone under a single kitchen light?
Managing Your Family- You've probably heard all the names: Domestic Engineer,
Household Technician, Housewife, and SAHM (Stay At Home
Mom.) Personally, I prefer to be called a Family Manager.
I first read this phrase in the book The Family Manager (Word
Publishing) by Kathy Peel.
Memory Collage- We all want to teach our children that it's not the material things in life that are important, but it's not always an easy lesson. One way we can begin to teach this is to focus on family memories in the making of a collage.
Pizza Party- No matter how you slice it, pizza is practically everyone's favorite
meal and eating it is only half the fun. Most kids love to help put it
together, which can often be an interesting endeavor in and of itself.
Teaching Kids to Make A Difference In The World- It is important to teach your children to care about others more than themselves. When children are made aware of the importance of helping others, they become better rounded and emotionally aware. They become more productive leaders.
Not too far from now, Cupid will be shooting his arrow at love birds all over! Visit our Valentine's Day section for fun crafts, great recipes, or gift ideas, you'll find it all here. Here are a few examples to get you started...
Raising sports active kids is difficult, perhaps more today than ever before. Parents feel pressure to help their kids succeed. They want to keep up with other parents in an increasingly winner-take-all society. Too often, parents just like you feel that if they don't do everything for their child, they are bad parents.
The economic downturn has us staying at home more often, creating a great opportunity to get reacquainted with reading. With our busy lifestyles, it may seem hard to find the time, but there is no better way than reading to enrich our lives and open our minds. It is also another great excuse to get together with girlfriends and other moms.
Looking for some fun games to play on family night? Tired of the same old games week after week? Teach your family these fun animal themed games and you'll all be laughing and smiling in no time!
Today, many museums are interactive learning centers that give families an opportunity to explore, learn, create their own art, and, yes, even touch some exhibits. With all of this variety and activity, how can parents ensure that their children won't become overwhelmed, tired, or too distracted to enjoy the experience? The key is in the planning.
It is important to teach your children to care about others more than themselves. When children are made aware of the importance of helping others, they become better rounded and emotionally aware. They become more productive leaders.
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Missed the last couple of newsletters? Haven't visited for a while? This section highlights articles and crafts that have recently been added to FC...
