As mums we all know that waiting for the next time we can get some time to do exactly what we want for once can feel like a lifetime away. For that reason it’s important that you make the most of 2016 and plan a few events to get the ladies together. A great idea of something you can look forward to in-between taking your children to all of those birthday parties and music lessons is to book a trip away to the Cheltenham Festival.

You might think that racing is a past time best enjoyed by old men gathering around a cold, muddy track. But Cheltenham Festival holds a Ladies Day every year where women gather to enjoy a more glamorous day full of good fashion and champagne. Ladies Day is the day of the year where what the women are wearing is often as important as the races. The track is often one of the best places to see the latest fashion, as last Spring the biggest trend on the day was the woollen tweed coats and vintage jewellery that have proven massively popular later on in the year. That’s why going to the races is a great excuse to treat yourself to a new posh frock and a pamper session.

Of course as well as enjoying all of the glitz and glamour of the big day, you’ll also want to get involved in the excitement and put on your Cheltenham Festival Bet. If you’re not a regular horse racing fan, it’s understandable that you might find this bit a little intimidating. But worry not, if you don’t feel confident that you can understand the confusing terminology spoken at the race track then you can bet on the Cheltenham Festival here on your mobile phone. By using the Coral website on your phone, you can see clearly exactly how much you’ll get in return if your horse wins. The website even has easy to understand explanations on how to put a bet on each way and other special ways of betting. The best thing is that if your Cheltenham Festival Bet does come in you don’t have to worry about losing your betting slip. Your winnings go straight into your account once the result is declared.

This year Ladies Day is being held on the 16th March during the annual Cheltenham Festival. Tickets for the most glamorous Club enclosure start at £75, but if you just want a more casual Cheltenham Festival bet then you can pick up a ticket in some enclosures for as little as £30. If the sound of dressing up in your finery sounds good then make sure you get a group of mates together and book some tickets now, as the early bird prices stop at the end of January.

There are more than a few choices to consider when weighing up how to finance your new set of wheels. Most people won’t have the cash outright so there’s plenty to think about when it comes to car finance, including your credit history, interest rates, and whether you should own the car outright or lease a vehicle. If you’re in the market for a new ride, here’s everything you need to know about finance options for your car.

Car Loans

Most people looking at purchasing a car will likely take out a loan. The options are either a secured or unsecured loans. If you were to default on a secured loan the asset (car) can be taken as security. A car loan that is unsecured may have a higher rate of interest to compensate for the lender having less security. Depending on the company you take the loan through, different criteria will apply, with different levels of flexibility. Many car loan companies like Zoom Car Loans , for example, offer loans with no deposit needed.

Personal Loans

Personal loans are taken out directly from a financial institution, and theoretically can be used for any number of big purchases, which may or may not include a car. Some of the benefits of a personal loan over a car loan include the flexibility to resell the vehicle before the loan has been paid in its entirety, since most personal loans are unsecured. Personal loans are usually available in varying amount of between $1000 to $10,000, depending on the lender, and can be taken out with either a fixed or variable interest rate.

There are benefits for each type of rate depending on the current interest rate, and whether or not it is expected to fall or rise. Because personal loans are generally unsecured, they are also beneficial for those wishing to buy a used car, without having to use the value of the car as collateral against the loan. The trade off for this flexibility is generally a higher interest rate.

Car Dealer Finance

For the sake of convenience, many people take out a loan directly with the dealership where they’ve purchased the new or second hand car. Often however, it may not be the best deal, and could include additional fees such as loan insurance for the dealer, as well as other fees and commissions. It’s always a good idea to explore your options.

Credit Card and Home Loan Redraw

While it might seem impulsive, buying a car on a credit card may not be as bad as it sounds. If you’ve got a credit card with a favourable interest rate, i.e. less than 13 per cent per annum, and plenty of available credit, buying a car with your credit card may be both convenient and practical. It can make sense especially if you only need to borrow a certain amount, which may be lower than a lender’s minimum.

Another way to finance a new car could be with your home loan’s redraw facility (usually only available on variable loans.) As long as there is enough equity in the home, the benefits of this option include a much lower interest rate than a personal loan.

Have you taken out finance for a new or used car? What option did you go with? Share your experiences below!

With ocean levels rising and weather patterns shifting all over the world, the environment has never been more important to the next generation. As a family, it can be helpful to discuss the issues and lead by example and you’ll find a handy guide to global warming for kids at Persil.

Another helpful tip is to use games and creative ideas to help explain this topic to youngsters. Here are some simple ideas you can try at home.

Start Local

When you’re trying to teach complex concepts like global warming for kids, it helps to start with your local environment or a smaller space that they can understand. Games like being blindfolded and guessing what a leaf or flower is by smell alone teach an awareness and appreciation of the environment. Kids will also love getting to stay up later than usual to go for a night walk around your local park. You’ll be amazed at the different animals you can see and hear!

Get Creative

A simple way to carry on learning about the environment while indoors is to collect items to draw, sculpt or make into a collage during a nature walk. Another creative idea is to raid the recycling box the day before collection and see what creations they can make with ‘junk’. As they’re creating, draw attention to where each item came from – was it originally food packaging, a newspaper or junk mail? At the end of the project, you might both find yourselves shocked by the amount of packaging used for every item, and be thinking of ways to reduce waste.

Play Games

This is an easy way to get kids discussing environmental issues with one another. A simple way to learn about resources with a group is to fill a bowl with sweets and pass it round, telling them to take as many as they like. The last to get to the bowl are likely to have far fewer sweets. Ask how they feel about this, leading to a discussion about the unequal distribution of resources. There are also plenty of online options available that can challenge older kids, teaching everything from climate change to all about the air quality index.

Let Them Discover

Once you’ve fostered an interest in the environment, kids can try self-directed play and pursue their own particular interests. You might want to suggest a project to complete, like a book identifying types of tree. Fun books like The Little Boy with His Head in the Clouds can also cover the topic of global warming for kids in an accessible way. After reading, ask them what they thought and whether they want to do some more research or come up with a creative response to what they’ve read. As well as learning about global warming, they’ll also be learning simple analysis skills.

Product Design

This is connected to kids’ own research and involves designing a product that solves a particular environmental issue they’re concerned with. They can sketch out their designs, making them as imaginative as possible, and even create miniature models of what their idea would look like. Kids might also enjoy creating an advert, video or article explaining their product. It’ll tech them to think of positive solutions to future problems and even equip them with some basic skills which will stand them in good stead at school.

People exist at every end of the spectrum. There are those of us who are forever laughing, giggling, and happy, and there are those of us who are terminally grumpy. But most people sit somewhere in between on the spectrum and that is the healthiest place to be. If you are normally a happy, go-lucky, sort of person or even just one who has the normal ups and downs but suddenly find yourself feeling irritable all the time there may be a few factors that are affecting you.

You’re not getting enough sleep

There are a few theories on sleep. The first one says that you need “X” amount of hours per night, usually between 6.5 and 8. Although there are opponents to this theory who think that less sleep is more energising, most do agree that your body does need quite a few hours to cycle through sleep patterns, download the day, and refresh your body. The actual number of hours are where there is disagreement, but we most often hear somewhere around 7.5 on average.

Another theory is that, once you’ve established how many hours your particular body needs to sleep it is the “quality” of those hours. And, to get quality, you need to sleep and wake at the same times each day. In this way your body gets a into a rhythm and it knows when to prepare for sleep and when to prepare for action. You’ll have to experiment with both of these theories to find out what is optimum for you, however, if you are only clocking 4-5 hours per night, you’ll definitely need to do some work. Try to improve your sleep by investing in some new pillows and a top quality mattress.

You’re not getting enough “me” time

It seems logical that going down to the pub with friends a few times per week should cheer you up. And who doesn’t like getting down to a club on Friday nights every now and then? But for an introvert, too much socialising can be debilitating. Many believe that an extrovert is outgoing and introvert is shy, but the truth is that it is less about socialising and more about how you recover. When an extrovert is tired, such as after a long week’s work, he or she gets revived by going out with mates. But, for an introvert in the same situation, it is staying in and having “me” time that is replenishing. It doesn’t mean the introvert stays in all the time. Introverts can be very social people! However, they do need to build that alone time into their week in order to feel rested and relaxed.

You’re bottling up your feelings

While there are many social rules about keeping certain emotions under wraps, especially in public, the fact of the matter is you need to have some sort of outlet for these bottled up emotions or you will end up feeling very irritable. In countries such as the the U.K., they tend to pride ourselves on keeping the public and private sphere separate. It is when you can not let your hair down in private that things can go awry. If you do not have a significant other or friend that you can show your true self to, you may be what’s known as “emotionally unavailable”. And it’s not just about crying, but about being able to be transparent in all your feelings. You need a psychologically safe environment in which to reveal your true self. So, for example, if you are in a relationship where you don’t feel you can tell your partner what is bothering you, think about the reasons for that. Often it stems from feeling criticised as a child or in a previous relationship. It is important to look into this in order to lead a more fulfilling life.

You’re not prioritising effectively

You’re feeling irritable and three things are happening; your toddler is having a meltdown, you’ve been working from home and have a deadline, and you haven’t exercised in weeks. How are you going to prioritise? Logic might tell us we need to push hard to get our deadline met or pick up the child first but this is where we need to stop and think. On an aeroplane, they always tell you to place the oxygen mask over your head before helping others and that’s great advice for life. If you are not healthy, you can not help others and you certainly can’t be productive in a work environment. Any parent will tell you that a meltdown can not be stopped until a toddler runs through it. While you are waiting, do some deep breathing and find your shoes. When all is calm, place the toddler in his pushchair or simply get his shoes on if he’s a walker and get yourselves out into the fresh air for half an hour. Thirty minutes are not going to make a difference to your deadline and your head will be clearer for work when you return. Plus, presto, calm and happy child who will sit and play while you work. If you are irritable, find some ways to prioritise yourself and you’ll feel better instantly.

You’re not going with the flow

Are you the proverbial “control freak”? Seriously, life is for fun. If you find it too difficult to enjoy yourself because you want everything to be perfect, maybe you need to learn to relax a little. Go for a run to push down and calm those nerves, let your friends choose the restaurant for once (and enjoy it once you get there), or even buy some work clothes that do not need ironing. Just do something each day to push yourself to let go of perfection a little.

So, if your friends seem to be suddenly keeping a distance and are always “just a bit busy this week” when you ask to meet up, perhaps it’s time to look into a few of these issues. Doing so will not only help your social life, but it will also contribute to the maintenance of your mental health so that you can enjoy life to the full.

Your washer and dryer are two of the most important appliances in your home. They’re what keep your sheets clean, your towels warm and fuzzy, and your clothes fragrant for the right reasons. You’ll want to do everything in your power to keep you laundry units running optimally. Here’s a guide on how to get the best out of your laundry machines.

Check the Labels

Image via Flickr by roundedbygravity

All the clothes you purchase come with inner tags that offer information about the material used. The manufacturers of these items suggest the best ways to launder the products they create. Foolishly, many people ignore those tags and instead fall into bad habits. Laundry is not a one-size-fits-all task. Pay careful attention to these instructions.

Take note of the labels for your most expensive items in particular. If something says delicate, it’s easy to separate the item into a separate load. The minimal cost of extra laundry detergent is an expense you get back in the end by increasing the lifespan of your washer and dryer. If something says dry-clean only, you can still hand-wash it, but such materials should never go in laundry appliances. They could liquefy, leaving permanent gunk in both machines.

Maximize Your Equipment

When you buy your appliances, do some research to discover which ones are the most energy-efficient. The government places such importance on this issue that they award the Energy Star to washers and dryers that consume the least amount of water and energy per cycle. You can save up to 64 percent less water and 75 percent less energy per cycle with Energy Star You’ll also save a modest amount on your utilities each month. Over the life of the machines, the amount of money you save might match your initial investment in the products.

One other way to lessen the amount of energy you use is to run multiple loads consecutively. Some people do the opposite, allowing the dryer to cool down between cycles. However, consecutive cycles allow your laundry to dry faster because the appliance maintains heat as long as it’s in operation. The second and subsequent loads will conserve energy since the dryer is already at the correct temperature. This strategy also reduces wear and tear on your dryer because it produces less heat.

Use the Right Products

Consumers have a tendency to choose a brand of laundry detergent and fabric softener and stick with them for a long time. Amusingly, there’s little difference between a brand name and a brand. In fact, analysts from Consumer Reports note that while Tide is a perennially strong detergent in their rankings, other brands with less consumer awareness provide much better bang for the buck. More effective products increase the lifespan of your clothing and linens.

You want to find a laundry detergent that works well but isn’t wildly overpriced like Tide. You should consider the wide variety of products from Amway as a viable alternative. These products are cost-effective, but they score well when compared against more expensive alternatives.

Smaller Loads Are Better

Human instinct drives you to try to wash as many clothes as possible in a single load. A person living alone can take care of all their laundry needs in as few as three loads: colors, whites, and towels. Don’t let the convenience of this tempt you, though. Your washing machine contains a lot of moving parts, and there’s a reason one of its settings is spin cycle. Once you shut the lid and start the machine, it spins the clothes in a way that mixes the water and laundry detergent to wash your clothes.

When you fill the loads too full, you make the laundry machine work harder. This situation is why your laundry occasionally gets twisted or stuck. Towels, blue jeans, and underwear, in particular, are susceptible to this. All you have to do to avoid it is run smaller loads of laundry. The machine will run safer and longer.

Keeping your washer and dryer running a long time isn’t that hard. Simply learn from the guide above and place a bit more thought into each laundry load.

When the holidays roll around each year, it can put some strain on families who don’t have a lot of extra money. Between shopping for gifts, buying expensive decorations, and trying to entertain friends and family members, the costs can really add up. Take away the stress and enjoy the holiday season with a few money-saving tips.

DIY Gifts

Image via Flickr by soapylovedeb

Make a deal with loved ones this year that you will only give handmade gifts. This can save a lot of money and allow you to showcase your creative skills. Even if you don’t consider yourself too crafty, there are fun gifts you can make that are simple and won’t require too many supplies. Some of the favorites are homemade bath products, such as sugar scrubs, bath salts, and lip balm, or tasty treats to enjoy. Younger kids can join in on the fun by drawing pictures for family members or designing personalized holiday cards.

Plan Ahead

Before you start shopping for gifts, be sure to set a budget and stick to it. One of the best ways to get deals on presents is to shop throughout the year instead of waiting for December. Stores offer better pricing on winter clothing and accessories during the off-season, so you can stock up on coats and other apparel to give when the cold weather hits. Just after Christmas, you can buy cards, wrapping paper, decorations, and other items for the next year at clearance prices. Find deals on lights for indoor and outdoor decorating at Christmas Lights Etc.

Take Advantage of Free Activities

Get in the holiday spirit by spending time together as a family and participating in local activities within your community. You could bundle up and walk through the neighborhood to look at Christmas lights and decorations, or host a cookie exchange with friends and family members. Check with local churches and community centers in your area to find out if they host any other holiday activities, since these are typically free to people who live within the community.

Visit the Library

If you and your kids love reading holiday stories during the season, you can check out books for free at your local library. Read them aloud together each night before bed to get excited for the big day.

Get Involved

During the holiday season, it’s easy to get caught up in the things you don’t have. One of the best ways to combat this is to volunteer in your community. Save up spare change and extra money throughout the year so you can give holiday gifts to a needy family in your area, or collect extra clothing items from neighbors and offer them to a local homeless shelter. Your kids can part with toys they don’t play with any more. You can also volunteer in person at shelters by helping to prepare and serve meals, organize donations, and do any other tasks needed.

Families can still make wonderful memories and have fun together during the holidays without dipping into the emergency savings account.

Girls and boys are wired differently. From even before birth, boys’ brains function differently than girls. They are flooded with more testosterone, which helps to shape the brain. It also makes boys more naturally curious and more prone to running, jumping and exploring. For this reason, boys make excellent candidates for homeschooling, as curriculum and teaching methods and ideals can be developed to uniquely meet the needs of each individual. This ultimately will help to keep your son interested, inspired and eager to learn. Using unconventional and “fun” practices can do wonders for opening your son’s mind up to the endless possibilities of learning.

When homeschooling boys it is important to let them be boys. Let them build, let them explore, let them move. Most importantly, you should always remember the KISS acronym – Keep It Short and Simple – as boys tend to have shorter attention spans than girls, generally speaking. Ultimately, keeping your son interested and excited about learning will lead to future success in his educational ventures.

Is Homeschooling Better for Girls or for Boys?

The answer to whether or not online homeschooling, nowadays known as online homeschooling or online education, is a better solution for girls or for boys is all dependent on the child. Every child is different and that is important to remember when considering whether or not to homeschool your child. Though boys and girls are wired differently, and thus boys may be more inherently likely to take to benefit more from homeschooling, that does not make girls any less likely to benefit. It all depends on the child, the family, the public and private school options for the child, and whether or not there are any learning disabilities to factor into the mix.

For more information about online education be sure to check out FutureSchool.com for all of our virtual education needs.

Getting motivated to work out can sometimes be challenging, especially when life is hectic or you don’t feel energized enough to get a thorough workout. However, regular exercise is the key to staying in shape; so even if you don’t feel like you have enough energy to endure a vigorous session at the gym, you owe it to yourself to explore ways to perk up your energy level. The following tips and tricks are designed to help you increase your endurance and take your body to the next level.

Get Started Early in the Day

It’s always easy to put off going to the gym until after you’ve had breakfast, but that can also lead to putting it off until after lunch, after work, and then, after dinner. This kind of procrastination can lead to many days of not exercising at all. Getting started on your workout as early as possible will give you the stamina you need to get through even the most hectic of days. Additionally, you will most likely have more energy for your workout the next day. If you make early exercise sessions a habit, you’ll start experiencing a boost of energy during these sessions.

Have Some Peppermint

Peppermint actually stimulates a part of your brain that affects how alert you feel. Feeling alert is often half the battle in terms of having a higher energy level overall. If you try chewing some peppermint gum or eating a mint before you exercise, you are apt to feel an instant lift – and that could be just what you need to endure your workout session.

Supplement Your Workout

Sometimes, no matter how much you change your diet and how much sleep you get, you still feel tired before you go to the gym. In order to boost your workout and sustain your energy level, try drinking a workout supplement before you start. If you choose a high quality supplement, you could get more out of one exercise session than you could ever imagine.

Drink Plenty of Water

Proper hydration is a key factor in staying energetic, and this is true whether you are a professional athlete or just someone who works out a couple of times per week. Water helps keep the temperature of your body regulated as well as ensure that your joints are working as they should. Be sure to drink enough water every day; six to eight glasses should be sufficient. Don’t forget to drink water before, during, and after your sessions – you’ll notice the difference in how you feel if you do.

Make Your Workout Fun

If the thought of getting yourself to the gym seems to drain you mentally and physically, maybe you need to change the nature of your workouts. Remember to have some fun when you exercise; doing this could change your perception of exercising in general. Try working out with friends a few times per week – you might even engage in some friendly competition to boost your spirits. Also, choose a form of exercise that appeals to you, whether it is swimming, golf, yoga, or walking around your neighborhood at least once per week. You don’t always need to do a traditional gym workout to stay in great shape, and you’ll likely have more energy when you’re doing something you truly enjoy.

Staying active is essential to staying in top shape. If you’re ready to take your body to the next level, you might only need to change a few details in your routine. Even the most serious of athletes sometimes lose focus and energy, and this can often be corrected simply by changing some habits.

When you are renovating your kitchen, the last thing you are probably worrying about is the flooring because your mind is on other things such as appliances, units and accessories.  However, the choice you make with regards to kitchen flooring could alter the finished look of your kitchen for better or worse.

There are various types of flooring suitable for kitchen available these days, from linoleum to cork and concrete to limestone and many more.  So many that it can feel a little intimidating trying to find the best home flooring for kitchens.  To give you advice, we have gathered some of the points we feel are most important when looking for kitchen flooring.

A Matter Of Taste

Like most things related to a decorating project in your own home, the flooring in your kitchen is a personal thing and one dictated by your own taste.  So it could be that you want to have a colour scheme where the units and cupboards match the flooring or one where they compliment rather than match.

Coordinating and Contrasting

If you are looking for everything to match you should plan on choosing materials with the same kind of finish, gloss or matt and find the colours that go well together the best too.  A good way to do this is to either use a material that can be used on floors and worktop, like a composite or rich brown stone worktop with a walnut floor.

Another great way you can decorate a kitchen is by contrasting colours and finished.  Either contrast the colours in the same finishes or different finishes in the same colour.

Regardless of the colours and finishes you choose, you need to consider the fact that kitchens not only take a long time to install but cost a lot of money and should be seen as a long term investment.  Therefore you need to make sure you choose finishes and a colour scheme from somewhere like GoHaus that you will not get tired of easily.