Ting and Things

7 Ways Friends And Family Can Lend New Parents A Hand

Guest Post January 13, 2021

While there are many things that new parents must do to get through the first few weeks of parenting, the important piece of advice is to not be afraid to ask for help. When you embrace parenthood for the first time, you shouldn’t have to go through it on your own. And, you especially shouldn’t have to handle coming up to things to do on your own.

So, check out this list of 7 things that you can ask your friends and family to do for you, as you continue to get settled in with your newborn!

Mealtimes

“If you’re too tired to fix meals during your first few weeks home with a baby, then that’s normal,” says Makayla Farncomb, a psychology writer at OX Essays and Liahelp. “But you still have to eat. You may want to contact friends and family, and see if they can help you with the cooking, or send you something to eat whenever you need it. Plus, it’s important to have ready-made meals and snacks accessible in your kitchen and cabinets for those days that you can’t prepare a full meal.”

Grocery Shopping

Shopping for groceries might be easier thanks to pick-up and delivery services. But still, it’s important to have a friend or family member do some of the shopping for you. Create a list of groceries that you need, and then hand the list and money to a trusted friend or relative. Now, when creating your list, consider stocking up on these items:

Fresh fruit and nuts
Yogurt
Other ready-to-eat healthy snack
Coffee (and creamer)
Tea
Easy-prep meals
Protein shakes
Tylenol and ibuprofen

Light Chores

There are so many things that need to be done in the home. However, if you’re too tired to do much around the house, then enlist your friends and family to do the following for the first few weeks as you heal and recover from delivery:

Load/unload dishwasher; or wash dishes

Vacuum
Change/take out the trash
Dust and wipe down surfaces
Light yard work (i.e. mow lawn or shovel a driveway)

Nursery – Organizing And Assembly

Sometimes, you may need a second opinion on how to organize and assemble your nursery for your newborn. Don’t be afraid to ask a friend or a family member to put help you put together furniture, a crib, and a play area for the baby to enjoy.

Run Errands

Once you deliver your baby, your life will be hectic, that you can’t run as much errands as you used to. Therefore, ask someone to help you with small errands, like:

Picking up basic essentials from the store
Picking up or dropping off mail from the post office
Picking up take-outs (as mentioned earlier)
Taking your car to get an oil change, etc.

Pet-Sitting

“If you have a dog, or any other furry friend for that matter, then be sure to talk to friends and family about dog-sitting or pet-sitting, as you care for your baby,” says Madeleine Soares, a lifestyle blogger at Paper Fellows and State of writing. “Preferably for the first week or two postpartum, ask someone you trust—AND who your pet trusts— to help out with walking, feeding, grooming, or visits to the vet.”

Babysitting

Finally, you may want to consider who would be the best babysitter, in case you need on. There’s nothing wrong with constantly getting offers from friends and family members to babysit. So, be sure to create a list of people, their emails, their texts, etc. whenever you’re in need of a babysitter. In this way, someone will only volunteer if it’s really convenient for them, and they won’t get burned out from too much babysitting.

Conclusion

Ultimately, there’s nothing wrong with asking people for favours, as you care for your newborn child. In fact, the best part about taking up people on their offers to help when a baby arrives is that it gives you plenty of time to check in with yourself, get some rest, and settle into your new life with ease.

By keeping in mind this list of 7 things that friends and family can help out on, your loved ones will understand your situation; and you will all grow closer and closer together, as you welcome a new addition to your family. Remember: Don’t be afraid to ask!

This post is contributed by: Kristin Herman
Kristin Herman is a writer and editor at UK Writings and Academized. She is also a contributing writer for online magazines and blogs, such as Boom essays. As a marketing writer, she blogs about the latest trends in digital advertising and social media marketing.

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How Can Yoga Keep Us Healthy During The Pandemic

Fitness January 11, 2021

The past year has been a difficult one for the entire world. With the world in a very delicate state, it can be overwhelming at times thinking about what could happen. However, this is a very important time to take care of yourself and stay healthy. Not only should you keep your body healthy to avoid coming down with the virus, but you need to keep your mind healthy as well.

It is imperative that you keep your mind and body active during this time because if not, you may just go crazy. Or at least succumb to some anxiety or depression related to the pandemic. So how can you ensure that your body and mind stay healthy? Well, yoga is one way to do this.

Yoga has been around for centuries and has been used as a healing practice for a long time. It is so much more than exercise and can truly be an amazing practice to incorporate into your daily or weekly routine. So how can yoga keep us healthy during the pandemic? This article will look at some of the many ways that yoga can keep us healthy during this trying time.

How Can Yoga Keep Us Healthy During A Pandemic?

There are several reasons why yoga is an excellent practice to incorporate into your routine, not the least of which have to do with the global pandemic going on currently. Let’s take a look at how it can keep us healthy right now:

Yoga can help you get better sleep.

While many more of us are working from home these days, the sedentary lifestyle has become a reality. Believe it or not, remaining inactive all day long can lead to poor sleep patterns. Yoga and meditation can help you get a great night’s sleep by relaxing your mind and body. Yoga is especially helpful because it gets your body moving as it relaxes your mind, making sleep come more naturally and helping you to wind down. If you practice in the morning, your body gets up and moving and is ready for the rest of the day, and by bedtime, it is ready to get some rest. If you practice in the evening, your body is relaxed and ready to go to bed. It is important to remember that if you are practicing later in the day or at night, then try to end the session with some relaxing poses that will wind your body and mind down and prepare them for rest. If you are looking for more meditative practice, then you can take only a few poses to prepare yourself for bed. Yoga does not always have to be a lot of movement. Finding mediation in stillness is still a beautiful way to practice yoga, especially to prepare your body and mind for sleep.

Yoga helps you relax.

With so much uncertainty in the world right now, anxiety is running high. However, yoga has long been known to combat stress and anxiety. The physical practice of postures releases endorphins, boosting your mood, and relieving stress. It has also been shown to reduce cortisol which is your body’s main stress hormone. Simply by practicing yoga, your body and mind can relax, meaning that your anxiety levels will go way down. In the midst of a pandemic, relaxation is key to maintaining calmness and sanity.

Yoga can increase your heart health.

In a typical yoga practice, you will be practicing sun salutations. These, along with other postures and movements, will increase your heart rate which builds strength. Yoga is a great way to keep your heart healthy and strong. With so many people leading sedentary lifestyles these days (i.e. working on a computer all day long), heart health is increasingly important. Be sure to get up and moving. Yoga is an excellent way to do that. Practicing just once or twice a week can help your heart stay healthy.

Yoga can help you maintain a positive mindset.

Again, exercise increases endorphins which boost your mood. Yoga is no exception. The regular practice of yoga is shown to create a more positive mindset by increasing the endorphins released into your brain, as well as increasing relaxation and decreasing anxiety and stress. People who regularly practice yoga tend to have a more positive outlook on life, which is incredibly important during the pandemic. Maintaining a positive mindset can really help you deal with everything that is going on at the moment.

Final thoughts

These are only a few of the several ways that yoga can help keep us healthy during a pandemic. Yoga is an amazing practice to incorporate into your life for many reasons, and not only during a pandemic but always. So, roll out your cork yoga mat and start practicing! Namaste, yogis!

This post is contributed by: Lori Wade
Lori Wade is a journalist from Louisville. She is a content writer who has experience in small editions, Lori is now engaged in news and conceptual articles on the topic of DIY and yoga. When she gets tired, she takes a cork yoga mat and meditates, which she recommends to you. If you are interested in sport or lifestyle, you can find her on LinkedIn.

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7 Ways to Decorate Your Home for Winter

home January 04, 2021

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Peace Out 2020! (A Year in Review)

happy new year December 31, 2020

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Baby It's Cold Outside: Glowy Skin Tips & Tricks

beauty December 23, 2020

Your skin is the first thing to feel the coldness and sheer winter time. Not every lady can accomplish a meticulously glowing skin that easily. Besides the cold and dryness, many other effects like lack of sleep, stress, and age can lead to skin losing its tenderness and glow. However, there is no need to dwell much about it or start panicking, as there are some practical and effective things you can implement to restore and keep the glow during cold weather. Here are some tips and tricks you should apply on a daily basis.

1. Drink plenty of water

First to start with the crucial basics – water. It's no wonder that water is the essence of life, because not only can water restore the dead and dry skin cells, but it also helps regenerate and re-freshen the skin after being exposed to extreme cold weather. Drink plenty of fluids, but during winter months try to drink a minimum of eight glasses of water per day. You won't have such rough skin, plus it will maintain its natural feel.

2. Upscale the moisturizing products

Not just any facial crème can maximally moisturize your skin, especially if it got exposed to chill winter air. Proper moisturizing and hydration is another key element to having and keeping healthy and glowing skin, but you must choose the products wisely. If you are searching for perfect hydration and moisturize products, take a look at Herbal Dynamics skin care products as they contain natural botanical ingredients and many nourishing vitamins that will keep the skin smooth and healthy.

3. Humidify the air

Besides swapping your standard moisturizing creams for more quality and richer products, you still need to implement a few other hacks to have glowy skin. And one of them is dealing with humidity. Cold winter months pull moisture out from the skin leaving it itchy and dry, and once you get inside it gets worse. The high indoor temperature which lacks proper humidity will leave your skin even drier. Hence, get a humidifier that will put moisture back into the air in every room, especially in the bedroom making your skin soft and glowing in the morning.

4. Experiment with an overnight mask

You must have heard about facial masks and their extraordinary benefits, however, not many women tend to try out the overnight beauty masks. As in cold months, the freezing weather impedes the skin to stay moist and smooth throughout the day, then you might want to switch the daily routine for a night one. Using an overnight hydration mask instead of just 10 minutes like with basic masks will utterly transform the overlook of your skin in just a couple of weeks.

5. Eat food rich in antioxidants

The food you intake can have a huge effect on your skin's glow. There is no need to go on excessive diets, but you should certainly load your organism with foods rich in antioxidants. Throughout the winter try to eat more berries, grapes, leafy greens, and nuts like pecans, cashews, and walnuts. Those food items contain loads of polyphenols like ellagic and resveratrol which help protect skin from harmful UV rays and keep skin soft and hydrated. Don't skip meals and even include a Sunday brunch.

6. Keep the skin protected and fight off dryness once you go out

Another way to avoid skin irritation during sub-zero temperatures is to take lukewarm showers instead of long hot baths. This is yet another trick to keep the skin protected as long hot baths can open up the pores and strip the skin of its natural moisture. Next, in combination with regular skincare, it's equally vital to fight off dryness once you exit the house, and the best tip is to cover yourself up. Simply as that. If the wind is strong, wear a warm scarf, and avoid any materials and fabrics that might irritate the skin or make it dry.

Nourishing your skin with natural oils, hydration products, and moisturizing lotion is one step to having glowy skin, but to keep it glowy and healthy aim to eat mindfully, dress smart, and have enough restful beauty sleep.

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Gold Foiling on Season’s Greeting Cards

Christmas December 16, 2020

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A Brief Guide for Preparing for a Baby

lifestyle December 15, 2020

For a lot of people having children is something that they have always wanted, but it’s no secret that becoming a parent is one of the biggest challenges you’ll face in life. You're responsible for another human being, and even when they’re adults, they will still turn to you for guidance and comfort. Your job is to help them feel safe, secure, and teach them about the highs and lows of life but while also giving them space to become independent adults. Yet, for all the challenges parenthood throws at you, it is also one of the most rewarding experiences in life. If you are planning on getting pregnant or have just found out you’re expecting (congratulations!), below is a rough guide for the things you will need to do in preparation for your new arrival.

Budgets

Managing your finances sensibly is something everyone needs to do, regardless of whether they’re parents or not, but if you’re expecting, this is a good time to sit down and crunch the numbers. Kids can be expensive; they are an extra mouth to feed; they need clothes, toys, medical expenses, school supplies and fees, college tuition, the list goes on. Although you might not be able to prepare for every eventuality, setting up a separate savings account to start filling with your baby fund is a good idea.

Clothes, Toys, Cribs, etc.

As mentioned above, you will need to have all the right stuff at home when you welcome your new baby. If you’re trying to save money, search for discounts and sales like a buy buy baby coupon or ask other friends or relatives that have kids if they want to offload any old baby stuff. If you don’t know anyone in your circle who already have kids, a lot of people also sell their second-hand strollers, cribs, etc., online, and most of these things are still in great condition.

Childcare Options

You might be planning to be a stay-at-home parent, but this isn’t something everyone is in the position to do. If you’re choosing to continue with your career out of either choice or necessity, you will need to think about childcare options after your maternity leave is up. Again, friends or relatives might be able to help you out with this for free or at a low expense, but generally, childcare can be expensive. You could either hire a private nanny to work from your home or look into day-care centers, but for the latter, you will need to think about how their opening hours work around your work schedule.

Creating the Nursery

In the first few months, you might prefer to have your baby sleep in your bedroom with you, but as they get older, they will need a room of their own. If you do have a spare room in your house, it’s better to turn it into a nursery before the baby comes as you won’t have a lot of time to decorate once they do arrive. If you don’t have space in your house for this, you may want to consider moving to a bigger home either before the baby comes or not too long afterward as they grow up a lot faster than you think! You can find some inspiration for your nursery décor here.

Birthing Classes

Labour can be different for everyone, some people have a smoother time with it, and others might face complications and have to divert from their original birth plan. Nonetheless, anyone who has given birth will tell you it’s tough! This is why it’s smart to attend some birthing classes during your pregnancy so you can get more advice on what to expect and some coaching on how to get through it. From breathing techniques to relaxation practices, comfortable positions, and some yoga exercises to help your body prepare for birth, there is a wealth of information to be gained from taking these classes. You should also invest in some baby and parenting books for further tips and tricks.

Write a Birth Plan

Speaking of labor, there are different ways you can approach your childbirth experience. For example, giving birth at home or choosing a water bath which might be more soothing and relaxing. You may also want to have an elective c-section or give birth without having an epidural. Explore the various options and decide what birthing plan you are most comfortable with. Again, if there are any complications when you’re in labor, you might have to go down another route, but knowing what kind of birth you want to have will help you better prepare for it.

Baby Proof Your Home

Before your baby comes home with you, first you must make sure the living environment is safe for them. Although they might not get around much at first, you’d be surprised what those tiny tots can get into, especially when they start crawling and walking! Babies are very curious, so they will grab things off the floor or on top of shelves, often putting things in their mouths. To stop them from getting to harmful substances or falling down the stairs, make sure all cabinets with chemicals and things unsuitable for children are locked up. By a child-gate for your staircase if you have one, and try to keep the house free from clutter as much as possible

Talk to Other Moms

If you’re new to motherhood, as much as you’re feeling excited, you might also be feeling overwhelmed by all the changes to your life. This will continue to be the case once the baby arrives, so talking to other moms will help you to get some tips and advice or simply vent your frustrations. If you don’t have close friends who are parents or your mother is no longer in the picture, you can find online forums for this kind of thing. You’ll also meet other moms at day-care and schools when your kid gets old enough to go.

There are many other things you will need to do to prepare for a new baby, but above are just some of the highlights to help get you started. The best thing to do is make sure you’re feeling happy, staying healthy, and getting all the love and support you need as you get ready to become a mother and transition to this new phase of your life.

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Sleigh This Holiday Season with these 7 DIY gift ideas

Christmas December 01, 2020

We've made it to December! What a fun ride 2020 has been. Now we all just need to do our part this holiday season so we can have a normal 2021 to enjoy. But what if you're thinking of venturing out to buy those Christmas gifts for your loved ones? I'd like to convince you to think twice. A perfect gift doesn't need to be expensive or store-bought. It's the thought that counts. Here is a round-up of 7 of my favourite DIY gift ideas to help you this holiday season while staying home. Any of them can definitely put a smile on someone's face.

Christmas Cupcakes Bouquet

Desserts always win people's heart, especially if they have a sweet tooth! These edible poinsettias are actually cupcakes decorated with homemade fondant! Check out how I decorated these cupcakes and assembled them into a bouquet in my tutorial!

Holly Jolly Christmas Holiday Cake Pops

Holly Jolly Christmas Cake Pops - DIY holiday gift ideas

These festive-looking cake pops are so easy to make and you won't believe it! Simply roll out homemade marshmallow fondant and cut them out using small cookie cutters. To gift them, just wrap them up in cellophane bags and attach with a gift card. Follow my tutorial to see how I made them.

Fererro Rocher Chocolate Bouquet

Like I said, desserts for the win! Chocolates can easily win on my book. To make things a little bit fancier, you can dress up chocolates into a flower bouquet to gift someone this holiday. Here, I used one of my favourite chocolates of all time: Ferrero Rocher.

Decorated Gingerbread Cookies

7 DIY gift ideas - Snowman gingerbread cookies

7 DIY gift ideas - Christmas tree Noel gingerbread cookies

It's not a magical holiday without Santa Claus and gingerbread cookies! Bring this traditional gingerbread recipe to life and gift your loved ones these treats to enjoy! Follow along in this tutorial to see how I made these with Martha Stewart's gingerbread recipe.

Personalized Gold Handlettering Ornaments

Personalized Gold Handlettering Christmas Ornaments - DIY holiday gift ideas

This is one of the most popular DIY tutorials on my blog! These fancy ornaments were made from globe ornaments, ribbons, mixed beads and an oil-based sharpie marker! Personalize these with your loved ones' names or greetings this holiday with my step by step!

Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer Cake Pops

Ruldoph the Red Nosed Reindeer Cake Pops - DIY holiday gift ideas

Even if we don't have a Christmas party to go to this year, it's fun to make these cute looking cake pops with your kiddos! These are great to make ahead of time and both kids and adults would love them too!

Check out my tutorial to see how I made these Rudolph the reindeer cake pops!

Handmade Paper Cutout Holiday Cards

It might be an especially long winter this year...But even if you’re unable to see your family and friends this holiday season, a thoughtful handmade card can help you remind them that you care. Make these gorgeous but easy paper cutout cards with my template!

I hope you enjoy these DIY gift ideas! Which one is your favourite?

If you give this a try, be sure to share your pictures with me on Instagram and tag @tingandthings_ or use hashtag #diywithting. I'd love to see your take on it!

Have a safe and wonderful holiday! Happy gifting~

Check out all the Christmas DIY ideas!

Make Your Own Christmas Cutout Card
Rudolph the Reindeer Christmas Cake Pops
DIY Gold Hand Lettering Christmas Ornament
Sweetest Present to Give: Christmas Cupcakes Bouquet

Holly Jolly Chocolate Cake Pops

'Tis the Season to Make Gingerbread Cookies

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DIY Christmas Letter Garland For You Tree (Free Template)

Christmas November 19, 2020

It's that time of the year again! One of my greatest joys for the holidays is that I can get creative and crafty to decorate my home. I like to deck out my home and get as festive as I can starting from the Christmas tree. But, nice, sparkly decorations can be expensive. So I often go for the DIY route. I believe that you don't need to spend a lot of money to make your tree or your home pretty. And this tutorial will show you how.

Since moving into this home, I've been adding something new to the tree every year. And this year is no different. Some of my DIY decorations made it to this blog like these gold hand-lettering ornaments were a huge hit. With some time (and perhaps some crafty hands), you can also turn inexpensive items into impressive holiday decorations. This Christmas letter garland is definitely one of them!

How to Make Christmas Letter Garland for Your Tree

Supplies

Glitter Fabric or Glitter Paper - I got my glitter fabric in a roll from Dollarama for $2! I love the champagne gold colour.
Illustration Board -got mine from Curry's
Fish String/Twine or Cotton Rope - I used fish string for invisibility
Glue Gun and Glue Stick
Cricut or any cutting machine (optional)
Cricut's Knife Blade
Scissors or Exact-o-knife
A Template - or you can use mine

Instructions:

For those with a cutting machine -
Download my template and load onto your cutting machine. Cut it out onto the illustration board and the glitter material. I used an illustration board because the thickness is what makes the garland look fancy and expensive. The material is durable and hard. I wanted my garland to withstand the test of time and be able to handle wear and tear.

For those without a cutting machine -

First, you'll need to create a template using a bold sans serif font. System fonts such as Arial Bold also works well for garland. To create a template, type out the words in the size that you want your garland to be. For my garland, each letter is 4.25" in height. Print it out in outline and cut each letter out. Trace these letters onto the illustration board and cut the letters out using scissors.

Once you've cut out both glitter paper and illustration board, glue them together using a glue stick or scrapbooking adhesive.

Attach a piece of fish string to the back of the letters using a glue gun. To determine the length, I first measured the distance I want the letters to be on my tree before I glue them to the fish string. This is the beauty of DIYs, you can customize it however you want to your liking.

Finish up by tying both ends with a loop for easier hanging on the tree.

Check out my Gold Handlettering Ornaments DIY here

That's it! I love how this turned out! The champagne glitters make the garland that much more magical. I even made a smaller version for my studio space.

Download my Falalala Template here.

I hope you like this DIY tutorial! If you give this a try, be sure to share your pictures with me on Instagram and tag @tingandthings_ or use hashtag #diywithting. I'd love to see your take on it!

Check out my other Christmas DIY ideas!

DIY Paper Cutout Christmas Holiday Cards

Make Your Own Christmas Cutout Cards

Rudolph the Reindeer Christmas Cake Pops

DIY Gold Hand Lettering Christmas Ornament

Sweetest Present to Give: Christmas Cupcakes Bouquet

Tis' the Season to Make Gingerbread Cookies

Holly Jolly Chocolate Cake Pops

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DIY Paper Cutout Christmas Holiday Cards

Christmas November 13, 2020

Hope y'all are enjoying this warm weather in November! I know it's still a little early but I've already put up and decked out my Christmas tree. Yep! And you can expect lots of DIYs. For example, check out these DIY Christmas ornaments I did for my tree.

With all the pandemic restrictions and safety measures, holidays this year will definitely be very different. But just because we might not be able to see our families and friends for the holidays, it doesn't mean we can't tell them that we're thinking of them, right? Today, I want to show you how I made these beautiful paper cutout holiday cards that I plan to send out to those who I don't get to see this upcoming Christmas season.

How to Make these Paper Cutout Christmas Holiday Cards

Supplies I used to make these cards:

I first created the holiday cutout designs using Illustrator. I was inspired by the whimsical winter theme so I wanted to make 3 designs that would work together as a set and also on its own.

The holiday scene was incorporated into a Christmas ornament in which I used to create the cutout effect. Once I loaded the design file onto Cricut's Design Space, all I had to do is send it to cut on a piece of white cardstock. Then for the insert, I trimmed a piece of coloured cardstock of the same size and folded it in half. I taped the coloured cardstock with scrapbooking adhesive along the fold line onto the inside of the white cardstock for a cleaner look.

I loved how it turned out! It was so simple to make yet the end result looked absolutely stunning!

DIY Paper Cutout Christmas Holiday Cards

What do you guys think of these holiday cards? If you don’t have a cutting machine to use my digital file, I have some good news for you. I’m now offering these cards in my shop! They will be made to order and all come with their own white envelope and cellophane bag for protection. You can get them individually or as a set. Simply choose a design that you like. You also have an option to print a personal message inside the cards. I can even send them on your behalf so that there's one item off your to-do list ;)

Get These Paper Cutout Holiday Cards Here

Hope you all have a safe holiday!