Party Ideas For the Non Party Coordinator

For those who are not professional party coordinators party ideas may be difficult to come up with. There is help available from many sources.

Party ideas can be gleaned from magazines, the internet or just from friends. Party ideas can also come from the guest of honor who may have some desires of his or her own.

Party ideas for those who are celebrating a hall mark birthday at the 21st or 100th year will have a decidedly different focus. The sentiment will be the same but the dancing will be dissimilar. It is very important to take the individual wishes of the guest of honor into consideration in both cases though. A clam bake on the beach may be perfect for the 21-year-old but whether that takes a retro sixties theme or just the use of contemporary favorites is to be discussed beforehand.

The 100-year-old might like the beach party decorations but indoors at the retirement center might be a better location and a short afternoon party will allow for everyone’s nap. The occasion might be more important to the guests but the guest of honor will probably benefit from brevity.

The tone and complexity of the party ideas is determined not just by the age of the participants but also from the nature of the occasion. A children’s Easter party is given the greatest of importance by the child but may be overshadowed by other adult demands of the season. It may be necessary to simplify the party ideas that the child has for his occasion so that more attention is given to cooking Easter dinner. Common sense is required here.

Party ideas may need to be more elaborate than the guest of honor originally requests. It may be proper to nudge the couple toward a more involved wedding.

Mrs. Party… Gail Leino is the internet’s leading authority on selecting the best possible party supplies (http://partysupplieshut.com), using proper etiquette, and living a healthy life while also teaching organizational skills and fun facts. The Party Supplies Hut has lots of party ideas with hundreds of free coloring sheets, printable games, and free birthday party activities. Over 100 adorable Party Themes (PartyThemeShop.com) to fit your birthday celebration, holiday event, or “just because” parties is at the Party Theme Shop. Party themes include cartoon characters, sports, movie, TV shows, luau, western, holidays, and unique crazy fun theme ideas.

Computer Safety for Kids

Start With the Basics - Protect Your PC

Guarding Access to Your PC - Get a Firewall

Beginning in the Zhou Dynasty, which was in the 11th century BC, construction was begun on what was to become the Great Wall of China. For 2,700 years, culminating in the mid-1600s, construction continued on the wall until it stretched 4,163 miles from east to west China. The wall was constructed to prevent invasion by other states of China and outer tribes.

When you connect your PC to the Internet either through cable, dial-up, or DSL, it is like China prior to the Great Wall. Anyone can invade your PC, and plunder, pillage, and destroy content on your PC. A firewall acts just like the Great Wall of China. When installed, it acts as a barrier between your PC and the outside world. It prevents unwanted and unauthorized access to your PC over your Internet connection.

Firewalls come in two basic forms:

• Hardware firewalls - hardware firewalls are a piece of hardware, like a PC, that gets installed between your PC and your Internet connection. Literally, a cable from your cable or DSL modem gets connected to the hardware firewall. Another cable is connected from the hardware firewall to your PC. When done, the hardware firewall acts as a barrier between your PC and the Internet. It lets you get out to the Internet, but it does not allow unauthorized access from the Internet to your PC. Many cable, DSL, and wireless routers/switches have firewalls built into them.
• Software firewalls - A software firewall serves the same purpose as a hardware firewall. It, however, is software that gets installed directly onto your PC. The software monitors all inbound and outbound Internet traffic, and creates a software barrier between the Internet port into your PC and everything else on your PC. Once installed, it lets you get out to the Internet, but it does not allow unauthorized access from the Internet to your PC. Software firewalls have an advantage in that they can implement rigid controls over what software installed on your PC will be allowed to access the Internet.

Many people use both a hardware firewall and a software firewall. It is similar to having a fence to protect access to your yard, and then a front door to protect access to your house. Everyone should use at least one firewall, hardware or software. If you have a laptop, you should use a software firewall. That way the firewall goes with you, wherever you go, protecting your PC.

• Find more information on software firewalls here.
• Find more information on free software firewalls here.

Plug the Holes - Make Sure to Download Operating System Updates and Patches

By now, the security holes and flaws in Windows have become legendary. To their credit, Microsoft publishes a steady stream of fixes, patches, and update releases to plug all known security holes, flaws, and problems. In order for your PC to benefit from these patches and updates, you must, at a minimum, download and install the critical security updates that Microsoft makes available. You can do this one of two ways:

• You may download and install them manually by visiting the “Microsoft Update” link on the Microsoft web site.
• For newer versions of Windows, such as Windows XP, you can turn on the “Automatic Updates” feature of the operating system and allow the updates to be downloaded and installed automatically.

Either method works well. The “Automatic Updates” route takes the thought and work out of the process. Regardless of which method you choose, the important thing is to keep Windows up to date. Out of date versions of Windows can leave your PC open to hackers and viruses.

If you are using Mac OS or LINUX, then none of this applies. You are already using inherently more secure operating systems. It is still, however, important to install updates and patches to these operating systems as well to be up to date and to provide the best protection against unwanted intrusion.

Take Your Medicine - Install Antivirus Software

A computer virus is an unwanted software program that:

• Gets loaded onto your PC
• Replicates itself, meaning that it copies itself and distributes itself to other computers

A virus can get onto your computer from any of several sources, including:

• From a removable disk
• From an attachment to an e-mail message
• From a download while surfing the web
• From a worm through a known hole or flaw in your operating system

Once on your PC, the impact of a virus can range from relatively benign to rendering your PC unusable.

Antivirus software is software that you use to protect yourself from computer viruses. It can detect and remove known computer viruses. There are many excellent antivirus packages available that are relatively inexpensive. There are also several excellent antivirus packages available for free for home, non-commercial use.

• Find more information on antivirus packages here
• Find more information on free antivirus packages here

To prevent viruses form being able to harm your PC, you need to select one of the antivirus packages and install it on your PC.

TIPS: Make sure that your antivirus software is setup to:

• Automatically check for updates so that its’ virus definitions database is up to date and you are protected from the latest threats. Most updates are provided on an annual subscription basis. Make sure that you renew your subscription when it expires. Free products, such as AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition, provide the updates at no cost.
• Automatically perform a virus scan at least once a week. If the PC is used to surf the web extensively then you may wish to perform virus scans more frequently, even once a day.

Stop the Spies - Install Anti-Spyware Software

Adware is any software that displays advertisements on your computer screen, either through banner advertisements within an application, or through pop-up windows. Spyware, which may also be known as a spybot, or tracking software, is computer technology installed on an individual’s PC that gathers information about them and their computer use. Adware and spyware removal software, or anti-spyware software, is software that is installed on your computer to combat the threats of adware and spyware. It will search your computer’s memory, file system, system registry, and browser caches for the existence of adware and spyware. It will then remove or quarantine any items that it finds. Adware and spyware removal software may also monitor for, and actively block, the downloading of spyware applications.

There are two excellent anti-spyware programs available for free, Ad-Aware SE Personal from Lavasoft, and Spybot Search & Destroy from Safer Networking Ltd. There are also many excellent anti-spyware packages that range in price from $19.95 to $39.95. Select and install one of these packages and run it on a regular basis.

• Find more information on anti-spyware packages here
• Find more information on free anti-spyware packages here

To prevent adware and spyware from being able to gather information about you, you need to select one of the anti-spyware packages and install it on your PC.

TIPS: Similar to antivirus software, make sure that your anti-spyware software is setup to:

• Automatically check for updates so that its’ adware/spyware definitions database is up to date and you are protected from the latest threats. The two free packages, Ad-Aware and Spybot do not have automatic update features, so you will need to perform this task manually. Ad-Aware at least tells you that your definitions database is getting old and asks you if you want to update it.
• Automatically perform an adware/spyware scan at least once a week. If the PC is used to surf the web extensively then you may wish to perform scans more frequently, even once a day. Ad-Aware SE Personal will only run automatically at system startup time. If you leave your computer on all of the time then you will have to remember to manually run the scans. Spybot can be scheduled to run automatically as one of its “Advanced Mode” features.

Spring Cleaning - Think About Privacy Software

As you use your computer, and surf the web, traces of your activity get left behind, stored on your computer in lists, temporary files, and caches. The best case is that these “leftovers” can clutter up your PC, and, with time, degrade its performance. The worst case is that someone who gains unauthorized access to your PC can read these files and learn a fair amount about you, potentially helping them to steal your identity.

Privacy software removes all traces of your PC and Internet activity, helping to protect your privacy.

As with antivirus software and anti-spyware software, privacy software should be run on a regular basis. It, too, can be setup to run automatically on a regular basis so that an end-user does not have to do anything to protect their privacy. The first time the privacy software is run it is not at all uncommon for it to recover in excess of 500MB of disk space by deleting the “leftover stuff” on your PC.

To prevent unauthorized intruders from being able to gather information about you, select one of the privacy packages and install it on your PC.

Think Before You Click - Use Some Common Sense

A little common sense can go a long way when trying to protect your PC. Most of what can compromise your security will come through e-mail, or when you are surfing the web. Because of this, you definitely need to think before you click. If you have not realized it already, most unsolicited e-mail is garbage. No matter how good the offer may sound, the common sense rule of “if it sounds too good to be true, it is…” applies. Most of what you receive unsolicited is designed to scam you out of money, to trick you into divulging private information, to install spyware and adware on your computer, or to install viruses on your computer.

Identifying Suspect E-Mails

So how do you identify the bad “stuff”? It actually is fairly easy to identify “suspect” e-mails. Common bad or suspect e-mails include:

• E-mails from people or companies with whom you have never corresponded or conducted business. You may receive e-mails that you need to verify your account information from a company that you do not do business with. You may receive a message that looks like it is from eBay that says they are going to shut off your account and you have never done business with eBay. Individuals and groups trying to perpetrate fraud will go to great lengths to try to look like a legitimate business. You need to use common sense. If it does not “feel” right, it probably is not.
• E-mails with gibberish in the title or in the body of the message.
• E-mails from friends, relatives, or business associates that do not make any sense.
• E-mails from yourself that you never sent or e-mails that are “returned” to you from someone that you have never corresponded with.

This list can go on forever with the many subtle variations. The bottom line is that if it does not feel right then consider it to be a bad e-mail.

Suspect e-mails should be deleted. Never click on links in suspect e-mails. Never open file attachments to suspect e-mails. Never reply or forward suspect e-mails. Simply delete them and move on.

Safe Surfing

Installing firewall software and antivirus software, and running anti-spyware software and privacy software should go a long way to protecting you when your are surfing. Here, again, some common sense applies. Avoid sites that do not “feel” right. Sites that are constantly trying to get you to fill out forms before you have much of a chance to learn anything about the site and the organization who owns the site are highly suspect. Pornography sites are famous for downloading spyware and viruses onto people’s computers. Stick to sites you know, the sites of reputable companies, and sites that come recommended by people you trust and you should be okay.

Protecting Your Kids

Now that you have taken care of the basics and protected you PC, it is time to specifically worry about keeping your kids safe. When trying to protect your children, it is important to:

• Set expectations
• Monitor and control what your children do online
• Use some common sense

Setting Online Expectations

It is important for you as a parent to be clear with your children what you expect of them when they are using the PC. You need to be clear about what you consider to be appropriate online behavior, as well as what is and is not appropriate to be accessing online. Children should be taught:

• That they should never give out personal information such as their name, address, e-mail address, phone number, or age to anyone over the Internet without your express permission.
• That they should never fill out forms without your permission.
• That they should tell you if they come across anything or anyone online that they feel is not appropriate or that makes them uncomfortable.
• That they should ask before downloading or installing software on a PC.
• That they should never, under any circumstances, arrange to meet alone with someone who they have met online. This can be especially important for your teenage children who may feel that they have met the boy or girl of their dreams online. If they feel that they absolutely must meet this individual, then they should arrange to do it with a responsible adult present. You should remind them that it is very easy for someone to masquerade as someone else online.

Monitor and Control What Your Children Do Online

The PC that your children use should be setup in a public location where it is easy for you to monitor what your children are doing. It is very difficult for a child to engage in questionable online activities when everyone in the family can easily look over their shoulder. If you have children who participate in chat rooms or use instant messaging software you should regularly ask them who they are communicating with. If they are evasive or do not tell you, take away their computer privileges. Having a safe mad child is better than having an unsafe happy one.

There is also software that can help parents protect their children. Software to help keep children safe comes in two forms: monitoring software, and parental control software.

Monitoring software allows parents to monitor activity on the family PC. Many packages will allow you to monitor computer activity including web surfing activity, e-mail messages, chat, and instant messaging. Some software will even allow screen shots to be taken at predetermined increments of time. Many of these packages will operate in stealth mode, meaning that no one will know that the software is even installed and running. Of course telling your children that you have software that is monitoring their activity may also act a a deterrent. Monitoring software typically does not filter out any bad content. It simply lets you know if someone is accessing things that are inappropriate.

Parental control software, or Internet filtering software, allows parents to control content that is displayed and block specific web sites. Some filtering software will filter e-mails and chat rooms, block pop ups, and even monitor chat rooms. This software is, by its very nature, more intrusive than monitoring software. It will filter out a lot of bad stuff. It may also miss some bad stuff. It may also filter out some good things.

The choice of which software to use will come down to personal preference. Some parents use both. If you choose to use no software than having the family PC in a public place and asking questions about what your children are doing online becomes much more important.

Use Some Common Sense

You should be aware if your child becomes secretive about what they are doing online. Averting a computer monitor, or quickly turning it off whenever someone walks into the room is not normal computer behavior. It is, however, the behavior of an individual who is trying to hide something. If your child is exhibiting “odd” computer behavior question them. If you get no answers or you do not like the answers, take away their computer privileges and/or get software that monitors their activity. As has already been stated, a mad safe child is better than a happy unsafe one.

Rob Pirozzi is a freelance writer who provides timely, quality professional writing of all types. He is also the publisher of the web site NuttyAboutSports.com, a web site dedicated to fans of popular North American Sports, including baseball, basketball, football, hockey, lacrosse, motor sports, softball, soccer, and tennis!

Dora the Explorer A Fun Companion for Kids

Dora the Explorer is a cartoon show that airs on the Nickelodeon channel, featuring stories about Dora Marquez, a young Hispanic girl who ventures forth on adventurous quests. The Dora the Explorer show is aimed for a younger audience, from six to ten years old, although children that are four or five years old also seem to enjoy the show. Dora speaks both English and Spanish, and helps viewers learn the use of simple words in Spanish, so it’s not uncommon to see young viewers of the Dora the Explorer show who are able to understand basic Spanish words and some of them are even able to use full simple sentences correctly!

Of course Dora is not alone during her adventures. The show features many other characters, the most important of them being a talking monkey named Boots. His name comes from the red boots he likes to wear, and being Dora’s best friend he joins her on every single adventure she gets into.

In every episode of Dora the Explorer, a sneaky masked fox named Swiper tries to steal an item from Dora or her friend Boots, usually jeopardizing the successful completion of the day’s quest, so Dora and her friends end up having to recover the stolen item in order to finish the quest. Sometimes, the recovery of the stolen item is the quest in itself.

The only way Dora and Boots can prevent Swiper from stealing something is repeating the phrase “Swiper, No Swipping!!!” three times. If they don’t repeat this phrase three times, then the evil fox will steal the item and say “you were late” to Dora and her best friend, throwing the item far away.

Other characters of the Dora the Explorer Show are Dora’s parents, “Papi” (Spanish for “daddy?) and “Mami” (Spanish for “mommy”), and also her “abuela” (”grandma”). They speak both Spanish and English, of course. Another cool character is Diego, who is Dora’s cousin. Diego is a boy who rescues animals that are in danger and often accompanies Dora on her adventures. The Diego character became so popular that he even got his own show, called “Go, Diego. Go.”

A bunch of bilingual animals, like “Se

You Can’t Kid a Kidder - Why You Shouldn’t Try to Trick the Search Engines

Search engines are becoming cleverer.

That is to say they are becoming more intuitive, more accurate with their ranking and listing algorythms, and dare I say it, more human.
The key to any real success in seo is in approaching the task in the mindset that the search engine is at least as good as a human at reviewing, appraising and listing your site.

Let’s think about this logically for a moment. We all know that the search engines like google and yahoo just can’t review each site on a physical, human basis. But let’s imagine they did.
When submitting your next site to them would you…

stuff it with indecipherable keywords phrases?
stuff paragraphs to increase keyword density?
have a title with 30 keywords in it?

No, I don’t think you would - a search engine will catch you eventually and will penalise you - but if a human being were reviewing your site you’d be out of those listings and into the internet ether indefinately.

But we know search engines don’t check sites in a human way, so why not keep tricking them?

It’s simple really. When you’re looking for the most well positioned sites, take a look at the content on them, their keywords, their backlinks. In short, take a look at their on-site seo.
The sites at the top of the natural search listings on all the leading engines always have several things in common.

Their content - it’s usually comprehensive and relevant to visitors

Their service - the site acts as a knowledge disseminating authority on their subject, providing a valuable resource to the visitor base

They are seen as ‘Authority’ sites by their Internet peers. The developers and owners of these sites don’t go round grabbing as many links as is humanly possible from other sites, they provide content that is so captivating, so useful, and so relevant to their audience that their peers WANT to provide a link to them. When the content’s that good, you don’t need a reciprocal link.

I know we can’t all be expected to build authority sites. I know we can’t expect to blow the global corporate websites out of the water with our smaller business sites, but by providing a great resource for your users, you are providing a great incentive for the search engines to list you - if you give no value to your visitors the search engines will catch up with you sooner or later, then it’s ‘click here for obscurity’.

Harry Hardisty is a UK SEO expert providing expertise, consultancy and seo services to government, corporates, small business and individuals across europe and globally.
Harry is recognised as a leading seo and has achieved phenomenal success listing sites in competitive industries for the most competitive keywords. He recently completed an experiment to achieve a number 1 listing on google.com for 100 keyword phrases with over 200 million competing sites - in 5 days.
Harry runs harryhardisty.co.uk offering seo services worldwide. He also provides on-site face to face consultancy to clients and free seo audit based on your existing site and position.
You can contact Harry by email here, or visit the site and sign up for the award-winning seo monthly newsletter.

Copyright (c) harryhardisty.co.uk

Fabulous Fitness Secrets for Busy Moms - 3 Ways to Exercise and Save Time

The great thing about Moms is that we are magnificent at multi-tasking. Here are some great ways to stay fit while spending time with the kids. In this article we will provide plans that will ensure great exercise for Mom, great activity for the kids, and a wonderful opportunity for bonding.

One of the biggest challenges for Busy Moms is figuring out how to fit exercise into their daily regime. Children, Chores, and Commitments are the 3 C’s that are often hurdles on the way to health & fitness. Creativity, Compromise, and Control are the 3 C’s you need to get you back on track to feeling vibrant and fit.

There are going to be days when you just can’t seem to find time to get out of the house and go to the gym. These are the days in which your Creativity needs to kick in full force. What do kids like? Kids enjoy activities where they usually burn their energy and yours. What more can you ask for? You have your own personal trainers at home! So, the next time your children feel restless, open the back door and participate in an exhilarating game of freeze tag to get your cardio in for the day. This will be fun, fast, and you are sure to work up a sweat and burn a few calories.

You may enjoy jogging daily, but bringing it up to kids is sure to be met with moans and groans. Here’s a great way to Compromise. Tell your young children to load their bicycles and scooters into the back of the truck and take the whole crew up to the nearest track or trail. Your kids will have the chance to do something they enjoy, and you will get to exercise and still spend time with the family. Another trick that’s sure to win in your favor is to tell your adolescents that instead of doing their chores, they are welcome to join you for a game of tennis. Toddlers and babies usually love outdoor activities, so compromise with them by taking them for a ride in their stroller. Just make sure in any outdoor situation to pack on the sunscreen.

Remember, although it may often appear otherwise, you are in Control of your daily schedule. Swimming is an invigorating activity that will give you that extra burst of energy to start your day off right. Your local YMCA or health club has swimming classes available for adults and children. Dive right in!

Copyright 2006 Pat Brill

Pat Brill is co-founder of http://www.SilkBow.com which supports Busy Moms with free gift ideas and helpful tips to meet the challenges of motherhood. SilkBow is the perfect place for the perfect gift.

Piano Lessons for Kids - Is My Child Ready for Piano Lessons

Because of the many benefits of piano lessons for young children, parents don’t want to wait too long before enrolling their kids in piano. They do want to be sure, however, that their young child is old enough to benefit from formal musical training. Fortunately, making this decision is a straightforward process.

Because playing piano is an inter-play of left and right brain activity some basic language and math skills are very helpful. Your child will need to know all of these to succeed in school as well as to begin piano. And in turn learning to play the piano will improve your child’s overall educational achievement in school. Below are five things kids need to know to begin piano lessons and some resources parents can use at home to prepare young children for lessons.

1. Knows the alphabet (music alphabet is the first seven letters.)

Knowing the alphabet is important because it is foundational to music theory. Notes, sounds, and the piano keys are identified by their letter names.

2. Identifies and counts numbers 1 to 10.

Knowing their numbers is necessary to learn note values as well as for fingering. For example, “Play this note with finger number 2.”

3. Knows opposites - up and down; right and left; high sounds and low sounds.

Opposites give necessary perspective to important musical concepts.

4. Likes to play one key on the piano at a time, and listens to the sound each makes.

If your child is attracted to the piano, and out of curiosity enjoys playing the keys one at a time to hear their sounds, and likes to experiment a little, they are ready for piano. If your child, however, simply runs to the piano and starts banging on the keys with their fists, they are probably not quite ready to be a thoughtful piano student.

5. Is beginning to read.

Music always tells a story, so being able to read and sing the fun stories that often go along with beginning piano music is very helpful for young children. This develops the ear and gives context and meaning to each piece of music. This is what makes piano fun for kids.

For great home piano activities parents can use to help children ages 5 to 11 develop their musical talent, visit Piano Adventure Bears Music Education Resources You’ll find a treasure box filled with piano resources to create an exciting musical adventure for your child - right in your own home! Visit their website and subscribe to their f’ree internet newsletter so you can download f’ree piano sheet music and mp3s of original piano compositions.

These exciting stories, games, piano lessons, and inspirational gifts feature the Piano Adventure Bears, Mrs. Treble Beary and her new piano student, Albeart Littlebud. Young students follow along with Albeart to learn what piano lessons are all about in a fun way that kids readily understand appreciate. Click here to visit PianoAdventureBears.com For a wealth of information about piano lessons, visit tallypiano.com

Easy and Inexpensive Halloween Costume Ideas for Kids and Adults

Everywhere you look Halloween is in the air, and stores! Here are several easy and inexpensive Halloween costume ideas that you can make at the last minute. Kids and adults will love getting into the spirit of the holiday with dressing up as a pirate, gypsy, wizard, and a racecar driver.

These costume ideas are not expensive if you hunt for costume items at your local second hand store. And you are helping your local charity at the same time! Besides finding great clothing for your costume, you can get great accessories such as old boots, beads and costume jewelry, scarves, belts, etc. also.

A Pirate costume can be made easily with dark colored pants that are torn up to just below the knee. Commercial pirate costumes show black & white striped shirts, but pirates more commonly wore clothing they could obtain from their victims. So any solid colored shirt with long sleeves and a collar will work. If the weather is cold, add an overcoat to the effect. Black or brown boots or shoes, red bandanas or scarves, and lots of costume jewelry finish off the costume.

A gypsy costume is one of the quickest ones to put together. Obtain peasant-like clothing you can find such as full skirts, blouses or shirts with billowing sleeves, lots of scarves and costume jewelry. Layer large scarves over the skirt and shirt, and tie a scarf around the head. If you have a tambourine, carry it or hang it from a belt add to the gypsy costume.

A wizard costume is another easy Halloween costume idea! A high school or college graduation robe in black or blue works great for the wizard’s robe. Glue on silver or white stars cut from felt or foam and any trim or braid you may have lying around. Make a wizard hat from a 15″ cone made from black or blue poster board and cover with more stars. Attach to the head with bobby pins. Make a wizard’s staff from a 4-5 foot dowel (length depends on the height of the wizard) found at the local hardware store. Secure on top of the pole a plastic ball decorated with ribbons and bells.

A Racecar Driver will be a popular costume idea this year due to the popular movies Cars and Talladega Nights. Begin with one-piece overalls that painters or construction workers wear. If you cannot find patches to glue on the suit, make them from felt. A good supplier for patches is an Army-Navy Surplus Store. A motorcycle helmet from the second-hand will finish off the look of this costume idea.

The Halloween costume ideas listed above can be finished off with a little Halloween makeup. Using white, black, blue, brown and green colors will enhance the costumes and add to the dramatic effect of the character you’ve chosen to become. Ordinary everyday makeup will work just as well as the packaged Halloween makeup. Or you can make your own smooth, thin makeup by blending one part cornstarch and two parts shortening with enough drops of food coloring to produce the appropriate shade. Use a green tint for the wizard or a brown for the pirate to give him or her the look of being out to sea too long.

Have fun with these Halloween costume ideas and let your imagination run wild!

As a mother, grandmother, and child development professional, Nancy Johnson, shares over 20 years experience working with children and planning activities on her website, Creative-Child-Activity-Notebook.com. Check it out for more school age child activity ideas including fall, holiday, learning, nature, and child party activity ideas.

Generator on High Pressure Hot Water Skid Units

Your generator gives electricity off of 110 volts at a power of 30 amps. Thirty amps is a lot of power and should be ample for all your needs while doing pressure washing. About the same power as a motor home generator or an 11 hp Honda or Onan generator. That’s plenty for you to run a vacuum, reclaim device, lights and the burner motor at the same time.

Make sure your belt on your generator is always tight. If it breaks, take in the old one to match the size at any auto parts store, since the. Check the terminals on the generator every once in a while. Remove the ground wires and sand down the connection points. Working around water can cause the metal to rust and you won’t get a good ground. Eventually this will cause premature failure of the generator.

Other stuff that you should know:

Do not adjust belts or try to change them when the engine is running

Do not touch the generator when the machine is in use

Disconnect the battery when doing any routine maintenance on the generator

Do not spray the pressure washers directly on to the generator while it is running

Keep the generator dry, at all times

If your burner stops working it could from the generator not producing electricity, in this case check and make sure the belt is tight, not slipping from being wet and that the burner cord is plugged in. Then check the relay switch or the fuse, often the circuit breaker fuse will pop from being over loaded or the belt slipping from rain water or a leaky unloader.

If your generator smells it could be toast, you can keep working with cold water but your results will not be so good. Generators are expensive about $600 for a new one. If you replace it make sure the new one has two main bearings not only one, the life expectancy is five times longer and they are worth the extra money. If you are out on a remote jobs site such as cleaning oil field equipment have a spare, you will be glad one day you had an extra on truck.

Stay up on the preventative maintenance of your generator as it is an integral part of your hot water pressure washer. Without it, you cannot make as much money. Think about it.

Lance Winslow - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs/

Boy Fun Parties

In the fast paced world of childhood, little boys deserve to have parties that are a little like them - fun and energetic. A NASCAR party is at the top of the list for any little boy who loves race cars. To fit this theme, decorate with racing flags and parts of cars, like a tire here or there. Buy small race cars for partygoers to decorate. Use spray paint to create a race track on the grass in the yard.

A fun boy’s party might also be a construction theme; boys love large machines and a construction party is the perfect way for boys to live out this dream. Fill a sand box with construction toys: an excavator, a dump truck and a bulldozer. Boys will get a kick out of digging and creating roadways on their very own. Supply the boys with their very own yellow construction hats. Decorate using orange cones, road barriers or items that you can find at www.character-party-supplies.com.

If your child is into the television show, he might enjoy a Yu-Gi-Oh party; have a Yu-Gi-Oh trading card party. Write on the invitations for the guests to bring their Yu-Gi-Oh cards. They can have duels and trade extra cards for the ones they need.

On the other hand, your little boy might be into sports. You can have a baseball, football, basketball or soccer party. Children can decorate their own jerseys for a football or basketball party. Set up goal posts for your soccer party. A great idea is to get a ball that pertains to the kind of sports party you are throwing. Have all the children who come to the party sign the ball for the birthday boy as a keepsake. Whatever party you are planning to throw, you can find all of the items you’ll need at www.character-party-supplies.com.

Mrs. Party… Gail Leino is the internet’s leading authority on selecting the best possible party supplies, using proper etiquette and manners while also teaching organizational skills and fun facts. Free Party Games to help complete your birthday celebration.

Make a Fairy Garden For Your Kids Party

A fairy garden is a great kids party activity, especially if your theme is a fairy party, garden party, or tea party. A dinosaur den or construction site garden is a fun alternative
for little boys too. Here’s how to make a magical miniature garden kids will love.

This project is a truly unique kids party activity, combining fun, fantasy, and learning. Kids love getting their hands dirty and learning how things grow. They will also love the idea of making a magical garden place for a fairy to live.

A miniature garden takes little space and can rest on a tabletop. Maintenance requires only a light misting from time to time and watching for fairies to come to call. Just kidding about that last part, but you never know…

Start by collecting various containers such as woven baskets, large shallow bowls or deep dish clay saucers (like a birdbath), or even discarded bureau drawers. Check yard sales for innovative ideas and inexpensive materials.

Next, supply potting soil and a selection of small plants that will reach under a foot when fully grown. Dwarf zinnias, marigolds, violets, ivy, baby’s tears and sprigs of vinca are all good choices.

There are many types of mosses that will work nicely too, fitting into corners and small areas easily to add texture and interest. A variety of low-growing herbs such as thyme and rosemary lend aroma to the mix as well.

Start by lining your garden container with heavy duty plastic, fill to within an inch of the top with potting soil then kids are ready to landscape the top. Let them choose their favorite diminutive plants, interspersing them with various materials to add charm and character to the fairy garden.

For example, turn a colorful plant pot on its side and submerge it halfway in the soil to serve as a proper fairy dwelling. Add dollhouse sized furniture to set in the garden, popsicle sticks to construct a fairy fence, or small flat rocks to make a wonderful stepping stone path.

A small mirror symbolizing water making a faux gazing pool. The round flat glass beads used in vases make nice accent pieces too. Tiny garden accessories like terra cotta pots and shovels give your garden a “lived-in” look.

Fairy gardens needn’t be for little girls only. Boys can make a miniature dinosaur den using many of the same materials. Herbs, moss and other green plants can make a forest or wooded area in which small plastic dinosaurs return from extinction to live another day. Soil mounded to one side forms a volcano, spilling red aquarium stone lava.

A construction site garden is another option for boys. Tiny rocks, stick logs, and craft stick lumber can be stacked up waiting for the big rigs to move them. Small toy bulldozers and cranes can be scattered about, among the plantings.

These whimsical gardens can go wherever your child’s imagination takes them. You provide the materials, they supply the ideas and creativity. Planting and maintaining a miniature
garden teaches kids about plants, caring for living things, and most all the fun of gardening.

Copyright 2005 Kids Party Paradise All Rights Reserved

Patricia B. Jensen is a mother of three and kids party enthusiast. She is the webmaster and owner of Kids-Party-Paradise.com - a complete resource for kids party ideas including invitations, cakes, decorations, games, costumes, favors, and food.

For all the latest party news, read her
Kids Party Blog.