Excursion Tip: An Afternoon at the Sonnenhof

After weeks of gray, cold and rainy weather, warm and sunny days are finally here again. And what better to spend it than outdoors. If you have kids, spending the day or even afternoon outdoors with your kids will do a lot of good - you get fresh air, are able to move and the kids have hours of fun and lesser screen time.

If you are living in or near Stuttgart, one good place to visit is the Sonnenhof. It offers different activities for children of all ages. Aside from the farm animals that children can observe and learn a lot from, they have play areas, pony and donkey rides, tractor ride tours around the farm, trampoline, quad rides and a ropes course. The area is big, so you can just take a picnic blanket with you and laze under the shade of the numerous trees while the children are having their dose of fun. They also have a market where they sell fresh produce and a self-service restaurant that offers cakes, warm food and hot and cold beverages for when you get hungry. You can also book the place for wedding reception, birthday party or family gathering. 

More information about Sonnenhof here.   

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Top 3 Ways To Keep Your Kids Entertained This Summer

The summer's almost here, and that means warmer weather, time outdoors and, for many families, kids on school vacation. Luckily, there are plenty of fun ways to keep your little ones from getting bored over the break. Take a look at the top three ways you can keep your kids entertained at home this summer.

Learn a New Hobby Together
Experts have shown that summer activities are key to staving off boredom and mischief. With many families spending more time together than ever, this is the perfect chance to pick up a new hobby. Kids will love the hands-on messiness of putting together a scrapbook, the sugar rush of baking cookies and the rewards of growing their own vegetables in a backyard garden.

Throw an At-Home Pool Party
If you have a pool, an amazing staycation is right in your backyard. After a long winter, it's easy to get your pool prepped for fun in the sun. For example, if you're looking for pool filter maintenance Myrtle Beach SC, trained experts can help make your pool ready for the ultimate party. Your kids will be thrilled by touches of summer décor like pool floats, beach balls and neon towels. To set the mood, be sure to load a playlist of your favorite hits and keep some healthy snacks on hand, like watermelon or pretzels.

Have a Family Game Night
Summer rain keeping you inside? Try having a family game night! Board games are great for your kids' cognitive and linguistic development and also help teach focus and teamwork. When the kids are full of energy, games such as Charades are a fun way for the whole family to bond and blow off some steam.

It's important to help your kids stay stimulated over the summer. Whether it's baking sweet treats, hanging out by the pool or playing board games, these ideas are sure to keep your kids entertained without ever leaving home!

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My Little Girl's Frozen-Themed Birthday Party Part 2

A birthday party will not be complete without the games. Kids and kids at heart always look forward to an activity-filled party so it is important that you prepared some activities that the kids will enjoy. At the end of the day, our objective will be to let the kids go home happy and say that there never was a dull moment. 

We just had some typical birthday party activities and modified some of them to fit the theme.

"It's Snowing Candies" Pinyata:

This is just hand-crafted since there are no Frozen-themed pinyatas available at the local suppliers. What my sister did was paste together cardboard paper to form the body of Olaf and then she covered it with white cartolina. They then cut out Olaf's hands, hair, buttons, carrot nose, mouth, eyes and eyebrows using the rest of the rubber sheets and colored cartolinas. At the bottom, she made a flap and tied white plastic ribbons that the kids can pull. We filled it with sweets and other goodies for everyone to enjoy!

Pin the Carrot on Olaf:

For this game, I just had Olaf printed on a tarpaulin, minus the nose of course, and mounted it on a flat surface. Then I cut out carrot figures proportional to the size of Olaf on the tarpaulin and pasted double-sided tape on each carrot. We then asked the kids to line up and had each take their turns "pinning" the carrot on Olaf blindfolded. It was really a fun game that the kids enjoyed they wanted to "pin" again. So just make sure you have enough carrot noses at hand.

The Frozen Dance:

This is just your traditional stop dance game where each kid should "freeze" when the music stops. We modified it a bit when the number of kids went down to 3 so we can determine the best "frozen" dancer. Instead of freezing when the music stops, they should dance instead and freeze when the music plays again. Who do you think won this game?  

You can add more games if you still have more time... and prizes too. :D

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Gone Camping

With the new girlfriends from the neighborhood.

Look who's gone camping with her friends?

Well, it looks like the little girl is out camping with her friends but nah... this photo's just taken at home. 

Just where did she get the tent? My daughter was out window shopping with her doting Lola and saw this pretty pink Barbie bundle and insisted that they buy it. When they got home, I asked what it was she bought and she said, "Ein Zelt". It wasn't even assembled but she knows what's inside. I guess she just figured out from the image she saw in the packaging. True enough, it was indeed a tent. She placed the couch pillows inside to "furnish" it and made it into a small home. 

Bonding with cousin Miggy....

Parang nasa bahay lang.... Eh, nasa bahay lang naman talaga! :D

She enjoys playing inside but it could get very warm especially if she and her playmates would take down the flap. It would have been perfect in the garden, where it is cool and airy. 

Oh yes, my little girl has an eye for pretty things. She knows what she wants and gets away with it, especially if she is with her grandma. :)

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She Is Growing Up So Fast!

I am referring to my godchild Sati, who is turning TWO in Novemebr. Sigh! How quickly time flies, especially if you are busy!

A friend and fellow blogger posted a recent photo of my godchild, playing under a monobloc table. I guess she was trying to be resourceful and imaginative and pretended it was her playhouse. She looked so adorable under it! I guess that is one of the good things if you don't give everything to your child... it leaves them room to be creative and imaginative.

But that does not stop me from wishing I were a millionaire so that I can buy Sati some playground equipment. She can play with her brothers in their little backyard and they will have lots of fun! They can even share it with other children in their neighborhood too!

I haven't met Sati personally yet. I only get glimpses of her in photos and videos. She is my little model as she dons different styles of dresses. Each time Marce Peh posts a photo, Sati is garbed in a new dress that a ninang gave her. I always smile each time I see her bright smile... it surely never failed to cheer me up. She is sunshine, that little girl. And I hope that one day she and my little will be able to meet and play together. It should be so much fun!

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