However, this loving day doesn’t only have to be about romantic love. I see it as a time to just celebrate love and beauty in general with friends and family. So this Valentine’s Day, why not broaden the definition by creating some Valentine’s cupcakes with the kids or cooking that special someone that is important to you a nice Valentine themed dinner. At the end of the day, you will have fun and feel the love whether you are part of a couple or not.

More Valentine’s Day Resources:
Valentine’s Day
Valentine Cards
How to Decorate for a Valentine’s Day Party
How to Make a Romantic Valentine’s Day Dinner
How to Make Valentine’s Day Cupcakes
Best Valentine’s Day Recipes
How to Choose Valentine’s Day Roses
How to Make Valentine’s Day Crafts
How to Make a Heart Friendship Bracelet for Valentine’s

All too often kids stick to the common gifts for Valentine’s Day such as the homemade holiday card or box of candy. However, an often over looked option is making a friendship bracelet. Almost every school girl has made one at some point in time. I spent countless hours making stripe, chevron and diamond designs in my youth. Yet, it never occurred to me to knot a heart friendship bracelet for a holiday gift.

It’s astoundingly simple to make a heart design using simple knotting techniques. Mainly, you just need to know how to make a basic chevron and have three strands of white along with three strands of red embroidery floss. On the How to Make a Heart Friendship Bracelet for Valentine’s page, you can learn how to create a bracelet with hearts in one color or alternating colors.

For those needing a refresher course on the basics, the How to Make a Friendship Bracelet site is very informative and concise.

Valuable Friendship Bracelet Design Resource:
http://www.friendship-bracelets.net/

In an age of hectic lives, some people have found the need to escape for a while through the Internet. One of the growing fascinations is MMORPGs which stands for “massively multiplayer online role playing game”. These games allow users from all over the world to interact with each other in real time.

There are two main types of MMORPGs. The first type is combat multiplayers. One of the most famous is World of Warcraft (WOW) that has over 11 million users. These types of MMORPGs center around various themes that pit players against monsters that they must fight to gain levels of experience and coin. Most of them allow users to chat with each other as well.

The other kind of MMORPG is the “virtual world”. Second Life is an example of this type. These worlds do not follow the typical video game structure. Frankly, many wouldn’t recognize them as a game. There is no winner, loser or test of skill. It is a completely free form virtual mimic of real life. Users can build real money making businesses, shop, date or join immersive roleplay communities. Some even have real educational opportunities.

Both styles have their advantages and disadvantages. In virtual worlds, you can find amazing friendships and learn from people all around the globe. However, just like in real life, it can have its own version of interpersonal drama. On the other hand, combat MMORPGs are pure escapism. For a moment, you can take a break and destroy some villians and save the universe. Of course, it lacks the deep relationships and learning available in virtual worlds.

Either way, MMORPGs are worth trying if you have some spare time and a need for a safe adventure.

Some Other MMORPGs:
Wizard 101
Blue Mars
IMVU
Free Realms

The image editor, Adobe Photoshop, has come a long way since its days of being known mostly as a program that edits and enhances photographs. Today, it is used by graphic designers, photographers, Web designers and hobbyists to make any graphic imaginable. One of the common uses for the application is to create textures.

Although many people are accustomed to making architectural and natural textures with it, they overlook the ability of Photoshop to make realistic cloth patterns and textures. You can make everything from worn leather to plaid wools.

The uses of these finished tiles is only limited by the imagination. I have used them on everything from professional design projects to personal scrapbooking crafts. The best part is that you can control everything about them from color to tiling.

To learn how to create fabric textures for your own projects, view the following tutorials:

Women face many beautiful and life changing moments in life. From the first prom to the wedding, we dream of making these important days magical. However, when they occur, the reality of finances shines a harsh light on the dream for some. Thankfully, the emergence of large craft and fabric retailers has given today’s teenage and adult women a brand new opportunity. They can look fabulous on a budget with the help of books, tutorials and stores like Joann Fabrics and Crafts and Michaels.

Once you have your wedding guest list decided, you can set about the adventure of getting organized and designing the theme of the big day. Most do-it-yourself craft stores provide organizational tools as well as invitation kits featuring a variety of motifs. Beyond that, you will find almost anything you need to cover your invites, wedding day and reception decoration needs. The only thing they are missing is the catered food.

As for high school prom nights, it’s often a night that people don’t prepare for in their normal budgets. So, it makes for a hectic time when scrambling for a dress and accessories. However, with a little planning, a girl can make her own jewelry set and corsage while adding pizazz to an inexpensive handbag and high heels without much expense.

For more detailed information on prom and wedding DIY, visit these How to Get Ready for Prom at Joann Fabric and How to Plan Your Wedding at Joann Fabric pages.

To say that Christmas can be hectic is an understatement. Between fighting the crowds at the latest sale and trying to find the perfect gift for all the friends and family, you can find yourself more than a little exhausted and stressed. However, it’s a great time to just decompress and take a break from the rat race by making a do-it-yourself decoration. Remember, that this is the season to enjoy the beautiful and fun memories created just be spending quality time with your loved ones.

Just two days ago, my 7 year old son and I decided to make some star decorations to hang around the house. Surprisingly, it gave me an opportunity to sneak in a little learning with a ton of fun and laughs. We discussed real life stars and the nativity story. I even had him counting out the stars without him thinking it was “boring” school work. All in all, it will be a lasting memory we both share when we pull out our homemade stars next Christmas.

Try out some of the following Christmas DIY pages:

How to Make Christmas Party Favors

How to Make Christmas Stencils

How to Make Christmas Tree Ornaments

How to Make a Pop Up Christmas Card

How to Put Your Face on a Christmas Tree Ornament

Maulana Karenga, the creator of Kwanzaa, said that each day of the 7 day celebration (held December 26th to January 1st) stands for a principle in the Nguzo Saba (The Seven Principles) philosophy. He stated the following definitions of it:

• Umoja (Unity): To strive for and maintain unity in the family, community, nation and race.
• Kujichagulia (Self-Determination): To define ourselves, name ourselves, create for ourselves and speak for ourselves.
• Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility): To build and maintain our community together and make our brother’s and sister’s problems our problems and to solve them together.
• Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics): To build and maintain our own stores, shops and other businesses and to profit from them together.
• Nia (Purpose): To make our collective vocation the building and developing of our community in order to restore our people to their traditional greatness.
• Kuumba (Creativity): To do always as much as we can, in the way we can, in order to leave our community more beautiful and beneficial than we inherited it.
• Imani (Faith): To believe with all our heart in our people, our parents, our teachers, our leaders and the righteousness and victory of our struggle.

This year I plan to take the extra time out of my hectic schedule to teach not only myself but my son about Kwanzaa’s philosophy, traditions, foods and symbols. By celebrating this holiday, he will learn more about his heritage, remember his ancestors that have passed on and develop an understanding of community. Beyond all else, the importance of community, cooperation and volunteerism is stressed instead of commercialism and materialism. In the end, I hope that our family not only has fun but grows for the better this holiday season.

Official Kwanzaa Site

Now that the year is coming to a close soon, I can’t help but think back to my New Year’s resolution at the beginning of this year. Like many people, I always promise myself to lead a healthier life. I swore to toss out the sugary soda pops, skip the delicious salty chips and totally end all cravings for anything sweet.

Needless to say, I didn’t quite stay true to that promise. But, I did make some progress on the road to a healthier lifestyle. I started to experiment with vegetarian dishes 3 or 4 times a week which cut down calories while still allowing me to eat my favorite dishes during the other part of the week. The side benefit is that I have been able to sustain the process without having too many cravings or feelings of being deprived. I still get to have my favorite chicken dish from time to time.

More importantly, I managed to add a moderate amount of exercise to my daily regimen. Although it was hard at first to make time and stick with the program, I must say that the hard work paid off in the end. Even if you can only set aside 30 minutes three times a week. You will still see a difference in your energy and stamina. Now that I have brought my BMI to a healthy range, I feel that I have made an accomplishment.

Maybe next year, I’ll finally get rid of those pops.

Since this will be the first year that I host Thanksgiving dinner at my home, it has come to my attention the incredible amount of anxiety but also excitement that comes with hosting for the holidays. Not only do you have to plan out a great meal, but you have to organize the guest list and plan the activities as well. I sit back now and wonder how my Grandmother juggled it all while still managing to make it seem effortless.

However, I know that I don’t want to get so caught up in the hustle and bustle that I forget what is truly important during Thanksgiving. What really matters is the memorable and fun times you spend with your loved ones. So, if you’re in the grand position of  host this year, take some time to enjoy yourself as well. Make your own Thanksgiving party favors and decorations with your kids so that you’ll have something to remember the occasion by for years to come.