How Getting a Pet for Your Kids Teaches Responsibility

As a parent, you will have thought about whether or not to buy a pet for your family. There are upsides and downsides, it’s true. The question is, whether or not the advantages ultimately outweigh the disadvantages. This post focuses on how pets can teach responsibility to children of all ages, and why that makes them a great addition to any home.  

Pets Ownership Has Valuable Admin Lessons 

There is some admin attached to pet ownership that is great to get the kids involved with. As a parent, it’s great to be able to teach about financial management and responsibilities in a positive, memorable way, and getting a pet is the perfect arena to do so. What are the key admin areas to explore together? 

Insurance 

All responsible pet owners take out insurance, especially for bigger animals like cats and dogs. Sitting down together and looking at pet insurance comparison options is a great channel for showing the various ins and outs of ownership and the type of things they will need to do when they are adults too. Use a pet insurance comparison site and let them fill in the details as you go along.  

Vets 

Getting your pet set up at the vet and scheduling the first appointment is a milestone moment. Let your kids take the lead in researching and choosing the best establishment for their treasured companion, and they can even learn phone skills here too.  

Budgeting 

There will be a lot to budget for with a new pet. Food has to be bought, insurance must be paid and there are ongoing costs like flea and worm subscriptions too. Show your kids the budget and how to work it, and they can be actively involved in managing this aspect of your financial life. There are always benefits to teaching kids about money from an early age.  

Positive Grooming Habits 

Looking after pets with coats, like rabbits or dogs, means there will be grooming involved. Your children will come to understand the need for gentleness and how to look after something by being involved in the hygiene routine of the family animal. It may even inspire them to create their own welfare schedule too! 

Empathy Lessons 

There is no better way to teach empathy than through the love of an animal. The children will see the world through a different pair of eyes as they create a long-lasting bond with their pets. This teaches amazing empathy skills across a wide scope that they will take with them all through life.  

Feeding  

Just like regular grooming is a necessity, so is a good feeding schedule. With help and guidance, children can establish a fantastic sense of responsibility by being in charge of filling, washing, and stock monitoring the animal food. Their job could involve letting you know when new food needs to be bought and adjusting the amounts as the pet grows up alongside them! 

Responsibility is a big task for a child. As they grow, they will need real-life lessons that guide them into being able to look after themselves when they become independent. Pets are the perfect channel to do just that.  

5 Steps to Taking the Best Care of Your Skin

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Having healthy skin is essential for looking and feeling your best, so it’s important to take good care of your skin. But what does taking care of your skin really look like? Do you need expensive products? Is it time-consuming? Don’t worry—it doesn’t have to be. In this blog post, we’re going to take a look at five easy steps for taking the best care of your skin.

Step 1: Cleanse Properly

Cleansing should be a daily part of your skincare routine. Start by investing in a gentle cleanser that suits your skin type—you can find cleansers that are specifically formulated for oily, combination, dry, and sensitive skin. Use lukewarm water (not hot!) and massage the cleanser into your face using up-and-out circular motions. Rinse with cold water to remove any residue and close the pores on your face.

Step 2: Exfoliate Regularly

Exfoliating is an important part of any skincare routine because it helps slough away dead skin cells and unclog pores, leaving you with a brighter complexion. Use an exfoliating scrub or mask once or twice a week to reveal more youthful-looking skin underneath all the dirt and debris. Take caution when exfoliating though; don’t scrub too hard as this can irritate the delicate facial tissue.

Step 3: Moisturize Daily

Moisturizing keeps the outer layer of skin hydrated and prevents it from becoming too dry or flaky. It also helps lock in moisture to keep your skin looking smooth and supple throughout the day. Depending on your needs, there are many different types of moisturizers that can be used including oil-based lotions, gel moisturizers, creams, and even serums! Be mindful when selecting a moisturizer; make sure it’s suitable for your specific skin type (e.g., oily vs dry).

Step 4: Wear SPF Daily

Sun protection is one of the most important steps in taking care of your skin! Even if you don’t plan on spending a lot of time outdoors, sunscreen is still necessary because UV rays can still penetrate through windows or cloudy days! Look for creams, like the SPF 25 day cream, that contain broad-spectrum—the higher the number, the better protection you have against UVA/UVB rays! Plus, wearing sunscreen every day will help prevent premature aging caused by sun damage such as wrinkles or age spots.

Step 5: Visit Your Dermatologist Regularly

It’s always beneficial to get a professional opinion about how best to take care of your unique complexion; everyone’s needs are different so visiting a dermatologist allows them to customize treatment plans based on individual requirements! Plus they may suggest treatments such as chemical peels which can help reduce fine lines or dark spots caused by sun damage over time!

Taking the Best Care of Your Skin

Taking care of your skin doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive; just follow these five simple steps for healthier looking skin today! Invest in good quality skincare products suited for your specific needs; cleanse regularly; exfoliate once or twice weekly; wear broad spectrum SPF daily; and visit a dermatologist regularly for customized advice and treatments tailored to you. With these steps in place, you’ll be well on your way towards having soft, glowing skin all year round!

 

What Skills Do Teachers Need?

Teachers have the power to influence their students for the better, fostering in them not only the desire to learn but also the character traits that will make them valuable members of society. As if the job’s benefits weren’t enough, teachers also get to enjoy generous vacation time, which is certainly a bonus and often needed after all the hard work they have to put in. 

Teachers are in high demand, but it takes more than just classroom experience to make a difference in the lives of your students. With that in mind, here is a list of the most important skills that any elementary or secondary school teacher should possess to help their students more and to ensure they get the most out of their careers. 


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Passion

One of the most important skills or perhaps traits a teacher needs is passion. The work is hard, it is challenging, and although it is hugely rewarding, it’s not something that someone who has no passion for teaching and helping young minds grow will be able to succeed in. This is why teaching is not the right job for everyone. 

If you consider the teachers you had during your own time at school, you may even be able to remember the ones who were most passionate. They will have enthused their students, taught well, and been excited to impart their knowledge. Those without much passion would have come across as miserable and as though they just wanted to get the lesson over and done with. That’s not a good way to inspire others, and, as a teacher, that’s exactly what you’ll want to do every day. 

Leadership 

Another important skill a teacher has to have is that of leadership. This doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll have to go on to lead a team of adults, perhaps becoming the principal of a school, for example (although if you have ambitions in that area, you should certainly pursue them), but of course, you do need to lead your students. 

An unruly classroom where no one is listening to the teacher is not a good learning environment. Even if it’s just one or two disruptive children, the effect is the same – no one can learn. Being a good leader means you can get through to those children who seem to be problematic and help them find a better way to learn, helping them and helping the rest of your class as well. 

As a teacher, you need to be confident in your knowledge and your abilities. That confidence will shine through, and the children in your class will feel it. This will ensure they listen to you as they will instinctively know you have a lot of information they need to learn. 

Leadership is also about leading by example. You can go into a classroom and show that you’re in charge by being loud and strict, but will that really help anyone, or will that just make the children scared? The best way to do things as a teacher is to lead by example. Show the children how you want them to behave by behaving in that way, and everything will become easier. 

Multitasking 

Generally, multitasking is not a good thing. It usually means that you’re not focusing well on one thing because you’re stretched across a number of different tasks, meaning that although you might get them all done, they won’t be done to as high a standard as if you concentrated on them one at a time. 

However, when it comes to being a good teacher, one of the skills you have to have is the ability to multitask. You’ll have to write lesson plans, give those lessons, mark classwork and homework (separately or together), speak to parents, and help out around the school. As well as all of this, you’ll also need to have as much of a personal life as you can, otherwise, without a good work-life balance, you’ll quickly burn out and not be able to teach at all. 

This might all seem like too much for one person to do, but thanks to multitasking, it is possible. Teachers up and down the country – and around the world – will be doing all of this and more on a daily basis. It might be hard when you first start, but being organized and ensuring you factor everything into your own to-do list is a great way to stay on top of things. 

If you are not a good multitasker, you can learn this skill. However, you must also be organized and willing to work hard, so you need to consider all of this before you start the process of becoming a teacher; it takes many years of study, and you must be sure it’s the right thing for you. 

Communication 

The best teachers are those who talk to their students often and well and can communicate in the most effective ways. This means that teachers must have good communication skills. These include being able to talk and write well, using body language in a professional but friendly way, and listening carefully. You have to be able to explain things in a way that students can understand and that makes sense to them.

You also have to be able to change the way you talk to different students based on their age, culture, skills, and how they learn. It is important to be clear, accurate, and professional with parents, coworkers, and administrators.

As you get to know your students, you’ll also get to know the best ways to communicate with them. For some, this might be telling knock knock jokes for students to get them to open up and enjoy the class. For others, it might be helping them to understand what’s expected of them by using specific sign language. There are dozens of ways you can communicate with your students, and knowing as many as possible – and using them where appropriate – is certainly a skill. So too is knowing which methods won’t work and bypassing them so you don’t take any backward steps. 

Critical Thinking 

Teachers have to solve a wide range of problems, and they often have to do so quickly. They answer hard questions from students right away, settle fights between students, change lesson plans, and deal with problems between colleagues.

To be a good teacher, you need to be able to put together all the information you have at any given time and make quick, good decisions based on your critical thinking skills. There is often no time to sit and think about things for a while before coming up with an answer; you need to be quick, and you need to be right. This is certainly a skill, and it’s not one that’s easy to achieve. It takes a lot of practice and experience for some people to get to this point, although for others, it seems to be something they are born with. In either case, by the time you are a qualified teacher and you have your own class, you must be able to think critically in order to be as effective as possible. 

Adaptability 

Unexpected things will happen, and teachers will need to act quickly. Throughout their career, teachers will have to adapt to many different situations. For example, they may be asked to cover for an absent teacher in a subject they don’t know, or they may not have the materials they need for a lesson. Plus, every student is also different, so a teacher needs to be able to change how they teach to help every student.

Teaching will offer up new challenges every day, and if you don’t like change or can’t adapt quickly, this role may not be the right one for you.

How To Decide On The Best Wide-Fit Footwear For You?

 

Wide-fit footwear is a trend that has been around for quite some time now. While these may not be the most popular shoes, they’re still a great choice if you want to look stylish and comfortable simultaneously. If you’re looking for suggestions on what kind of wide-fit footwear would suit your needs best, keep reading!

● Know your foot size.

Measuring your feet to find a perfect fit for you is essential. You can do this at home using a ruler and a tape measure.

The first thing to do is determine whether you have wide or narrow feet by measuring the width of your shoe (in millimetres). Then use this measurement as a guide for finding shoes that are right for you!

● Go for a bigger size.

When trying mens comfort shoes, feel free to go up a size. The shoe should be loose enough to allow your foot to move comfortably so it fits comfortably without being too tight. If you have space between the end of your toes and front of your shoe (or they can wiggle around in there), that means you have room for some cushioning inside—and that means better comfort!

● Check the width of the shoe.

A wider shoe will fit better and more comfortably than a narrow one. To check if your shoe is large enough, measure around both feet at their widest point with a tape measure.

● Look for comfort features.

The best wide-fit footwear will have a cushion, arch, and heel support. So first, check to ensure the shoe you’re looking at has enough cushioning in the sole of your foot (the part where you stand). It is crucial for comfort because if you don’t have enough padding on your feet, it can cause pain and inflammation.

Check how well your foot fits into different shoes by putting something between their toes—like an empty tissue box or two bookends! You want a snug fit that doesn’t feel too tight or loose; otherwise, they’ll start hurting after a while since they’re not supporting themselves properly. If there’s no room between your toes when standing flatfooted (no heel lift), go with something more comfortable all around: think sneakers instead of heels!

● Consider the weather conditions and choose accordingly.

Consider the weather conditions and choose accordingly. If you live in a cold climate, choose warm and waterproof shoes. Choose the right size. If you have wide feet, it’s best to wear shoes that are a half-size more significant than your usual size. It will give you more room for your toes and prevent your feet from sliding forward when walking.

Conclusion

If you have been looking for the proper wide-fit footwear, now is the time to find them. However, with so many options available in stores and online, it can be overwhelming to know which shoes will work best for your feet! We hope this article has helped narrow your choices so they feel custom-made just for you when purchasing new shoes.

How to Find Time for Yourself as a Busy Mother

As a busy mother, it can be difficult to find time for yourself. However, it is important to make time for yourself in order to stay sane and avoid burnout. In this post, we will discuss three tips for how to find time for yourself as a busy mother. So read on and find out more.

Make Time for Yourself

Get Up Early

One of the best ways to find time for yourself as a busy mother is to get up early. Even if you only have 30 minutes to spare, getting up early and starting your day on your own can make a big difference. Use that time to do something you enjoy, such as reading, writing, or working out. You’ll feel more refreshed and less stressed during the day if you take some time for yourself in the morning.

Use Your Free Time Wisely

If you find yourself with some free time during the day, use it wisely! Don’t just sit and scroll through social media or watch TV. Instead, use that time to accomplish something, even if it’s just a small task. Maybe you can write a blog post, work on a project around the house, or catch up on some laundry. Whatever it is, use your free time wisely so you don’t feel like it’s wasted.

Don’t Be Afraid to Ask for Help

If you’re really struggling to find time for yourself, don’t be afraid to ask for help from your friends or family. They can watch your kids while you take a break or run errands. Just remember to return the favor when they need help! Asking for help is nothing to be ashamed of, and it can make all the difference when you’re feeling overwhelmed.

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Find Activities You Enjoy

Take it Easy

One of the best ways to find time for yourself as a busy mother is to take it easy. This doesn’t mean that you have to do nothing all day, but it does mean that you should give yourself permission to relax and not feel guilty about it. One way to do this is to schedule some “me time” into your day, even if it’s just for 30 minutes. You can also head to a spa or salon like The Beauty House if those activities help you take it easy.

Spend Time With Friends

Another great way to find time for yourself is to spend time with friends. This can be done in person or online, and it doesn’t have to be a big production. Just hanging out with friends and chatting can be a great way to relax and unwind. If you don’t have much time for socializing, try scheduling a weekly coffee date or happy hour with friends.

Exercise

Exercise is another great way to find time for yourself as a busy mother. It may seem counterintuitive, but spending some time working out can actually give you more energy and make you feel less stressed. Even if you only have 30 minutes, there are plenty of quick workouts that you can do at home with no equipment necessary. 

How To Plan The Perfect Birthday Celebration For Your Daughter

Planning the perfect birthday celebration for your daughter will make her special day even more memorable, and fortunately it doesn’t have to be as difficult as you might initially imagine to arrange the most amazing party or event. This guide contains some of the most brilliant ideas that you can make the most of to plan out the perfect birthday for your darling daughter, so what are you waiting for? Read on to discover more!

Image Source – Pexels 

Choose An Event 

First and foremost, you’ll likely need to begin your project by choosing a specific event or gathering that you know your daughter is going to appreciate. This event or gathering should be a party in its own right, but not every child enjoys discos and dancing! Perhaps your daughter would prefer to have a sleepover at home with a bunch of her friends, or she may even prefer to head out on a day trip to something like the zoo instead. Take some time to think about what your daughter would enjoy the most, and then begin making arrangements so that you can ensure all of their most favorite people are in attendance!

Buying Presents 

Buying your daughter some great presents should be another step that you follow if you want to provide her with the most special experience on her birthday, but figuring out what to purchase can often seem like a near impossible task. All girls are unique and individual so there’s no one-size-fits-all gift that you can buy, however you should have a good idea of what your own daughters’ likes and passions are. If your daughter is a fan of horse riding, then you can purchase a whole new riding kit or even get a pony if you have the space for one! If your daughter enjoys artwork and getting creative, then you can invest in a huge supply of easels, paints, pencils and more. If you’re totally stuck on what your daughter likes, then don’t be afraid to search for inspiration online – you might find a mom and daughter necklace that shows your daughter how much you love and care for them! 

Center Of Attention 

Your daughter should be the center of attention on her special day, as it only comes by once every year. This doesn’t mean that you need to drop all responsibilities simply to follow your daughter around and grant her every wish – it just means that you can give your daughter a little more leeway and control over the day! For example, you can allow her to pick what you eat for breakfast, and cook up whatever it is that she wants to dine on (within reason, of course). 

Learning how to plan out the perfect birthday for your daughter has never been such an easy task when you can utilize some of these brilliant tips and ideas. You’ll feel so proud when your daughter can’t take the smile from her face thanks to your hard work, so follow these steps today!

Lands End Jeans – great stretch & perfect for everyday comfort

Lands’ End are a long standing clothing brand with comfortable everyday clothes and have something for all the family.  What I never realised before was their extensive range of jeans in a wide range of styles, colours and sizes – you’d be hard pushed to not find something suitable for yourself!

 

I had a good look through the pages of jeans and settled on the Women’s High Waisted Lift & Sculpt Skinny Jeans in Curvy Fit to try out.  I also had a choice of colours and opted for the black.

They arrived swiftly and beautifully presented and I could see immediately that they were a true black and could feel that although they were a lovely thick denim they also had a really nice stretch to them.

lady wearing lands end black jeans

They were super easy to pull on and the stretch in them really allows them to mould to your body without feeling tight.  They are in fact so comfortable due to the stretch that they feel more like jeggings around my body as opposed to a tight pair of jeans.  Although being thicker and having more structure as jeans do it means they will really last – in fact I can honestly say one of the best pairs of jeans I’ve had for a few years!

I’d highly recommend checking out Lands’ End for all your warm and comfortable clothes for Winter as the site is full of them and there are some great deals to be had.  Everything looks so cosy and easy to wear which is just what I want as I’m getting older, but still lookig for stylish pieces and the jeans above certainly fit that criteria!

All reviews are my own and my family’s opinions. We are not paid for reviews. Although we do receive the product to try out and enable us to write the review.

5 Handy Tips For Better Skin

There are plenty of things that’ll influence your overall look. The clothes you wear, for example, and the way that you style your hair. Some things are obviously influential. Other things are more subtly influential. In that category, we can place ‘skin.’ You’ll be very much on your way towards looking your best if your skin looks as healthy as it can be. 

The good news is that your skin is something that’s within your control. Some people have naturally flawless skin. Most people need a bit of help. In this blog, we’ll take a look at some tried and tested tips that’ll put your skin on the path towards looking its best.

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Limit Toxins

If you want your skin to be as healthy as it can, then it’ll help if you’re not pumping it full of unhealthy items. Things like alcohol and tobacco products can have a hugely negative impact on the skin, especially since those activities tend to reduce the frequency of skin-boosting activities, such as drinking plenty of water. If you’re looking to give your skin a hard reset, then consider giving up alcohol (and tobacco) for a month. You’ll likely be surprised at how much better your skin looks!

The Right Products

There are plenty of skincare products out there. But not all of them will be right for you. Indeed, you could buy an expensive skincare product only to find that it doesn’t work for you. So what’s the trick here? It’s all about finding the right products. Everyone’s skin is different and thus requires different treatments. It can take a bit of time to find the skincare ritual that’s right for you, but once you have, you’ll notice the difference. Be sure to have a consultation with an expert if you’re not sure how to find the right products for you.

Get Additional Help

Of course, while there are some fantastic skincare products out there, you can’t always rely on over the counter products to do all the work. Sometimes, you need a little extra help. But happily, in this day and age, there is plenty of help available! If you have skin pigmentation, for example, then you could take a look at getting laser skin treatment. There are also fillers and other treatments available for people that want to achieve a more youthful look.  

Eating Well

You really are what you eat. Avoid processed food (including fast food meals), and make sure you’re getting plenty of fruits and vegetables. Your skin will thank you. 

Exercise and Cold Showers 

No one likes the idea of exercising and then taking a cold shower. But most everyone agrees that it’s worth the pain and effort. When you put those two things together, you’ll be giving your skin a healthy jolt to get its act together. The benefit of the short run plus cold shower combo is that it works instantly. If your skin is looking a little tired, then this is the hack you need to give yourself some colour. 

 

What You Need to Start a Beauty Business

If you’re one of those people that loves beauty products, then you’ve probably got a marketable bank of knowledge that you can use to start a business. And in this day and age, that couldn’t be easier — it has never been more straightforward to get a business up and running. Indeed, depending on the type of business that you’re starting, you could be underway in a matter of days. 

Of course, while starting a business can be easy, building a successful venture is more difficult. People won’t buy from you just because you’re there. In this blog, we’ll run through some useful tips that’ll put you on the right path towards success. 

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An Angle

First thing first: what is that you’ll be doing with your business? We say ‘beauty’ business, but the truth is, that’s a pretty broad term. There are a million and one different types of beauty businesses. And if you’re going to form part of the industry, then you’ll need to find your place in it. So what will your angle be? You could sell beauty products, open your own salon, offer a trendy new service, or become a makeup technician. And that’s just the beginning — there are many more. It’s best to think about your typical area of expertise and then see what businesses are available in that area. 

Do you want to run your own beauty business while bypassing the startup stage?

If you dream of running your own beauty business but are nervous that you might not have what it takes to go through the tedious startup stage. In that case, consider purchasing an already existing beauty business for sale.

An Understanding

There’s the idea that if you’re good enough, you’ll be successful. While that’s broadly true, it’s also important to remember that your success will depend on the wider beauty industry. As such, it’s important that you position your business in line with the rest of the industry. This is something that can sound difficult, but it’s actually more straightforward than you might think — you can read reports about the cosmetics industry, salon businesses, consumer expectations, and more. With that information, you’ll be able to position your business in a way that makes success possible. 

A Bit of Time

You’ll find plenty of people talking about how you can set up a cosmetics business in a matter of days. Yet, while that’s true, it’s also important to remember that there is no fast track towards success. Unless you get extremely lucky, you’ll need to put the time and effort into making your business successful. A lot of hard work and patience can go a long way towards pushing you in the right direction.

A Team

You won’t build a beauty business empire all on your own. You’ll need to have talented, dedicated people around you. Depending on the type of business you’ve set up, this will be either employees or outsourced companies. Regardless of which one you choose, make sure you put yourself in the best possible chance for success by ensuring that they’re able to improve your business. Just bringing on an employee won’t be enough — in fact, if they’re low quality, then it could have the opposite effect. 

And there we go! With these tips, you should be able to get your beauty business up and running. 

Getting your child into a routine when starting secondary school

Long gone are the days when my son was a little boy holding my hand on the walk to primary school.   This month he was back to school in the next stage of his school years as he headed to secondary school looking super smart in his blazer and tie.

school bag, chromebook, pencil case

It has meant a bit of a shake up to our daily routine though with slightly earlier mornings, although fortunately his Echo Dot wakes him up and then I hear him shouting “Alexa, be quiet!”.   He comes downstairs for breakfast before getting dressed and then we head out of the door to travel to school.

With timetables to follow, multiple teachers to get used to and and a new school to learn his way around, the days can be more stressful as he strives to be in the right place at the right time.  I’m so pleased to hear that he’s chatted to the majority of his new classmates in a bid to get to know them and make some new friends.

After school has been a bit tougher on him too.  Instead of getting home and chilling out, he now finds himself more tired after the challenging day of lessons but also has to consider finding time for some homework during the evenings.  I’ve tried to assist him without doing the work, just by guiding him on where to look for things, how to set things out and printing out things to help him, such as his language vocabulary and verbs that he has to learn.

Overall I am super proud of him – he has adapted to his new routine fantastically and certainly taken the challenge of a new school with high standards in his stride.  Everyday brings new little challenges, but with that other things become easier – he’s still mastering the art of getting his tie to the perfect length and remembering to pack his books the night before and not leaving them until the morning but he’ll get there.