All Things Pin

Guest Post: Surviving Your Camping Trip With The Kids

Author's Bio (Dave McDonald): Growing up in a rural area, Dave has always had an appreciation for the outdoors. After years of city living, having children has reminded him of what is really important in life. Find him online sharing his passion for the great outdoors!

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Going on a camping trip with the family is a great time for family bonding. But most of the children today are difficult to pry from their electronic devices. Okay, you were able to convince them to join you. Your next challenge is to survive the camping trip where children can become cranky for missing their favorite games and videos.

For first-timers, start with a short trip. Let the kids have a feel for camping with a weekend trip that is not too far from home. Do not bore them with a long road trip.

Remember that each family member is an individual. Your kids will enjoy going out of their comfort zone if you consider the amenities. If they are active, look for a campsite where you can go swimming and hiking. Find a campsite with running water, toilets and other amenities for the family member who is not willing to give up some conveniences.
Ensure that everyone will have a good night's sleep with the right type of gear. Invest in durable tents. Practice tent assembly weeks before your trip so you wouldn't be fumbling once you reach the campsite.

Planning ahead is important. You do not want your kids to find fault in your planning skills. Reserve a campsite, organize meals and pay the required permits ahead of time. Being organized allows you to focus on having an enjoyable time. Make it fun by adding games and contests.

Teach your kids to enjoy the outdoors. Go with them to discover insects, birds and plants. Allow them to stay awake beyond their regular bedtime to gaze at stars. Find out more tips to make camping an enjoyable trip for you and your kids with this infographic and make them look forward to the next one.

Surviving A Camping Trip...With The Kids!!

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, by Jessica Fairweather

Party Plans

Shabby Chic Party Ideas and Tips

First you must know what is Shabby Chic before you even consider doing this party theme. What is Shabby Chic you ask? Well it is basically antique items or materials that are distressed but have a opulent, soft and a cottage style decor feel. So when planning your shabby chic party make sure that you give your guest an air of vintage French with a lot of pastel colors and white and distressed decor pieces.

TIP:

WHEN USING PASTEL COLORS MAKE SURE THAT YOU USE ONE BOLD COLOR. IF NOT YOUR DECOR WILL LOOK WASHED OUT. SO REMEMBER A POP OF BOLD COLOR WILL MAKE YOUR DECOR LOOK HOT!

Color Scheme Ideals

Pastel colors with a bold olive green

Pastel colors with a bold purple

Pastel color with a bold purple

Food Tips and Ideas

When doing a shabby chic party one of the things you must remember is that the food must have color and life. Cute, neat and simple can make your party food table BURST alive with chicness! It's like a Caterpillar transforming into a beautiful butterfly, the food says it all! Not only the food must be cute but all so the cups, plates and utensils. Give your guest a vintage experience they won't remember!

Shirley Temple Punch

Cute fruity ice straws

Melon Ball Punch

Tip:

Don't forget to have a table for tea and / or coffee after the party. To add an extra fancy English flare.

Décor Ideas

Photo Booth Ideas

Party Checklist

1 month

Chose your theme and color scheme
Prepare your guest list
Set date and time for the party
Reverse a venue and book entertainment
Prepare invitations
Prepare a schedule for activities and meal serving.

3 Weeks

Mail or Email invitations
Plan the meal and make grocery list or book a carter

1 week

Purchase additional party supply
Call all guest how didn't reply

1 to 2 days before

pre-prepare food
decorate venue

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, by Jessica Fairweather

Health

Guest Post: Ultimate Toothpaste Guide: All You Need to Know to Maintain a Healthy Smile

Author's Bio: Although it's been years since Jessica was high school cheer captain, she still enjoys cheering people up. Somehow her work as a PR consultant in the dental health industry seems very apropos.

Don’t worry if you can’t choose from the toothpaste brands available in stores. Instead of buying one, why don’t you create your own toothpaste?

With the right ingredients and consistency, creating homemade toothpaste is possible. Not only can you achieve healthy and white teeth, you can also save a lot of money.

To make toothpaste, you only need baking soda, sea salt and peppermint. Mix these ingredients observing the right proportions, using hot water to blend all of them. Gradually stir the mixed ingredients in a bowl to get the right consistency. You may also add a different flavor if you don’t like peppermint.

Once you are done, place it in a tube so you can save them for future use. If you don’t have one, use a large bottle. Just scoop the toothpaste each time you use it.

The good thing about using homemade toothpaste is that it doesn’t contain all the unhealthy chemicals used in commercial brands. Take note that some of them have been proven to be detrimental. For instance, the microbeads that were present in various toothpastes in the past were already banned.

They were deemed bad for the environment. Others also contain Triclosan. They might be effective in whitening the teeth, but they could damage the enamel and weaken the teeth in the long run.
Now that you understand the importance of making homemade toothpaste, it is time to give it a try. Other tips on maintaining sparkling white teeth can be found on the infographic below.

Ultimate Toothpaste Guide: All You Need to Know to Maintain a Healthy Smile

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, by Jessica Fairweather

DIY

DIY Coconut Lip Scrub

The change in seasons can make our lips super dry, especially when it is coming close to the summer or winter periods. It is important to keep your lips plumped and smooth, whether you are a guy or girl. This simple recipe is one of my favorite and super effective and totally natural and healthy.

Benefits of each ingredients on the lips:

Brown Sugar: can draw moisture out of the environment and can impart it into the lips. This means that it can act as a natural moisturizer. It exfoliates to help break down the dead skin cells and remove them. Lastly, brown sugar is so cheap and you will save so much money by making your own homemade brown sugar scrub.

Coconut Oil: has moisturizing power; it absorbs into the skin fast and treat chapping lips. It can treat cold sores because it has antiviral properties.

Raw Honey: contains some natural agents, like antioxidants, enzymes, and nutrients. They hydrate, cleanse, and nourish your lips perfectly. Use honey every day on the lips before going to bed and notice in the morning that your lips have turned into suppler and bigger. It also moisturizes your lips too.

Ingredients:

3tbsp Brown Sugar

2 tsp Coconut Oil

1 tsp Raw Honey

2 gel capsule Vitamin E

5 drops Essential Oil (optional)

Method:

- Pop the capsules and squeeze out the vitamin e oil in a bowl.

- Combine all ingredients and mix.

- Store in an airtight container.

NB/ Make sure your scrub does not come in contact with any water or it will promote mold growth.

Disclaimer: Try recipe on a small area of your lips to see if your skin will get irritated. I am in no way responsible for any allergic reaction. Use at your own risk.

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, by Jessica Fairweather

Hair and Beauty

Favorite Natural Hair Products

So February was my two year nappiversary and to celebrate this with you guys, I'm going to share some of my favorite hair products since I went back natural. Keep in mind that when works for me, might not work for you, so just try them out to see if it does.

Favorite Shampoo:

Leaves my hair feeling moist and soft and also have my curls popping. I can use this without any conditioner and my hair doesn't feel stripped.

This product contains:

No Parabens No Phthalates No Paraffin No Mineral Oil No DEA No Petroleum No Formaldehyde No Propylene

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Buy: click here

This isn't drying to my hair but isn't moisturizing either without a conditioner. But it gets the job done.

This product contains no sulfate.

Rate: 3 out 5

Buy: click here

Favorite Conditioner:

This is the so moisturizing, it's not a joke. Who needs a detangler again? Who needs a leave in conditioner again? Not this girl.

This product contains:

No Parabens No Phthalates No Paraffin No Mineral Oil No DEA No Petroleum No Formaldehyde No Propylene

Rating: 4 out of 5

Buy: click here

This is the holy grail of conditioners, in my opinion. This is my go-to conditioner and detangler. Plus it last longer and it's affordable. It smells great too. On lazy days, I use it as my deep conditioner. I hate the shampoo, too drying for my hair.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Buy: click here

Favorite Oils:

To know the benefits of these oils and others, on your natural hair, click here.

Extra Virgin Olive Oil

This is light weight for my hair, especially for cold seasons and it helps me with my dandruff problem.

Rating: 3 out 5

Buy: click here

Argan Oil

This is a dry oil that I like to use during the week because it doesn't leave my hair feeling greasy.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5
Buy: click here

Favorite Leave-In Products:

This locks in moisture, moisturizes and makes my hair soft. It's also light weight, so it doesn't weight my hair down and best believe a little goes along way.

This product contains:

NO MINERAL OIL, SULFATES, PARABENS, SILICONES, PHTHALATES, GLUTEN, PARAFFIN or PROPYLENE

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Buy: click here

Neem Water

For more information on the benefits of neem in natural hair, click here. Before, when my hair was processed and was damaged (I'm talking breakage, hair loss, fizziness, dryness, etc.), I discovered neem. This literally strengthen and restore my hair to it's former glory. Now that I'm natural again, I can't live without this.

Power: 1 TBSP neem powder to 1/3 cup warm water. Shake well before using.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Buy: powder or oil

Favorite Styling Product:

I do absolutely nothing much to my hair but when I do I tend to go for a ponytail or pigtails. Now I have tried so much gels that claim to slay my edges and lets just say this is the best results I have found. I, however, am not a fan of it because it leaves a lot of build-up in my hair and it is drying. To combat the drying, after my hair is dried with the gel, I add a bit of argan oil over it and for the build-up I co-wash my hair every two to three days with ACV wash.

Rating: 3 out of 5

Buy: click here

Favorite Co-Wash Products:

This helps me with my dandruff problem, removes build-up from my scalp, balances the pH levels on my scalp and leaves my hair soft, shiny and healthy.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5

Buying: click here

Disclaimer: This is a non-sponsored post and all the opinions are strictly based off of the author's experiences.

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