Category: Holidays Page 5 of 13

Stories about the occasions that matter most.

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How To Make Your Fourth of July Party More Memorable

On July 1, 2019

The Fourth of July is the best time to showcase your love for the country and your appreciation for its history. But aside from barbecues, picnics, and fireworks, how else can you make your Independence Day celebration an extra memorable affair?

Well, you’ve come to the right place. Read on for some easy, fun ways to spice up your Fourth of July party!

Have An All -American Feast

Make sure your party’s food matches the theme perfectly. You can play with a red, white and blue color palette, only serving dishes in these colors. Make sure to have a lot of USA flag toothpicks on hand for extra patriotism!

Hold A Burger-Eating Contest

There’s nothing All-American quite like a juicy hamburger, so it’s only fitting to celebrate Independence Day with a burger-eating contest. The first to finish the whole burger wins!

Hold A Patriotic Paw-ty

Events are simply more fun when there are dogs involved. If you have a spacious yard, you might want to consider throwing a dogs-allowed Fourth of July party. Ask your guests to dress up their pooches in their best red, white, and blue, and give prizes to the best-dressed furry guests.

Help The Kids Create Fourth Of July Rockets

Can’t set off fireworks where you live? That’s totally fine. Join in the fun by creating rockets made of paper, decked out in patriotic hues. For busy moms and dads, this should keep the kids busy for quite a while! When they’re done, hold a contest to see which rocket can fly farthest.

Host A Historical Quiz Night

Rev up your guests’ competitive sides with a trivia game about American history! Have questions with different difficulty levels, and prepare themed prizes for the winners.

PS: Display your favorite Fourth of July memories on a Nixplay Frame! Get 15% off select smart frames, beginning July 4!

Mars Salazar

Marianne is Nixplay’s Web Content Editor. Her hobbies include exploring new places, playing table tennis, and cuddling puppies. Send her a message at marianne.salazar@nixplay.com.

How To Make Father’s Day Extra Special

By Nixplay Team

On May 30, 2019

In Holidays

The best dad in the world deserves nothing but the best things life can give. It’s just what he deserves, having given you the support you need to become a decent, independent adult. Father’s Day is the perfect time to spoil him. You don’t have to give him an expensive present, though we’ll sure he’ll appreciate whatever you give him. Let him know how much you can by making Father’s Day extra special through these simple ways.

Let dad sleep in.

If there’s one thing all dads need more of, it’s sleep. For Father’s Day, give him the luxury of a few more extra hours of precious shut-eye. A well-rested dad is a happy dad!

Make dad’s favorite meal.

Forgot to make a reservation at dad’s favorite restaurant for Father’s Day? That’s nothing a trip to the grocery can’t fix. You probably know your dad’s favorite dish—all you have to do is buy enough ingredients to serve it to the whole family for lunch or dinner. Make sure to get the recipe right!

Wash dad’s car for him.

Washing a car is necessary, but so, so tiring. Spare dad this arduous task on Father’s Day and present him with a squeaky clean car upon waking up. (Make sure you don’t get a scratch on his precious vehicle!) You can also take the car to an auto garage for a proper wash, vacuum, and detailing. Add a new car freshener to give his set of wheels a fresh feel.

Write him a sweet letter.

As we get older, we become more reluctant to tell our family how much we love and appreciate them. That’s natural and part of growing up. That’s why a lot of parents hold on to their kids’ handmade mementos—they’re concrete reminders of their children’s love. Take a page out of this by writing dad a heartfelt letter for Father’s Day. Take out your pen and paper, and write down everything you’ve always wanted to tell him, straight from your heart. This will make him teary-eyed, guaranteed.

Take out your favorite family photos.

A digital frame filled all of your loveliest moments as a family will definitely make your dad smile. Scan your old film photos and upload them on a Nixplay Frame along with digital images of your more recent family events and vacations. He’ll be absolutely delighted to have his favorite images at his fingertips–no need to wipe the dust off the photo albums in the attic!

Don’t miss Nixplay’s Father’s Day sale and get up to 25% off selected frames, only until June 16!

6 Superpowers All Moms Have

By Mars Salazar

On April 29, 2019

In Holidays

Mothers love with a fierceness that can overcome any obstacle. This love propels them to achieve amazing feats for the sake of their families, granting them superhuman abilities that make everyone love and respect them. Here are a few of their most notable superpowers.

Super Strength

To start, giving birth can be an excruciatingly painful process. It’s an ordeal that can drastically change a woman’s body, possibly resulting in torn parts, broken bones, and a host of surgical procedures. It’s a very impressive task that definitely warrants a hug (or two!).

Healing

When you’re feeling under the weather, who do you call first? Most likely your mom, that’s who. She just knows how to deal with any health mishap, be it a small scrape or a bad fever.

Magical Storage

Need a bandaid? Your mom probably has a few in her purse. Feeling peckish? There’s a granola bar with your name on it inside your mother’s tote. Looking for a pen? Your mom’s bound to have one or two, plus a notebook to boot. Whatever you need, you can expect to find it in your mother’s bag.

Super Searching

Your mom knows where everything in the house is. Your favorite socks? In the second drawer in your closet. A screwdriver? In the box on the shelf in the garage. Sheet music of your favorite Broadway songs? In a folder under your sister’s bed. It’s like her brain has a built-in GPS.

ESP

Moms just know when there’s something fishy happening at home. You’ve probably been caught red-handed doing things you weren’t supposed to do, like drawing on the wall or eating some chocolate after you’ve already brushed your teeth. Their spider senses are amazingly on point, and they’re always right.

Time-bending

Ever wondered how moms manage to wake up at the crack of dawn to prepare breakfast for the family and send off the kids to school before going to the office, then rushing after work to attend a PTA meeting, prepare dinner for the family, and help the kids with their homework? If that’s not a superpower, we don’t know what it is!

This upcoming Mother’s Day, honor your Supermom with a Nixplay frame! Get up to 25% off selected frames, only until May 13!

Mars Salazar

Marianne is Nixplay’s Web Content Editor. Her hobbies include exploring new places, playing table tennis, and cuddling puppies. Send her a message at marianne.salazar@nixplay.com.

Easy Easter Crafts Your Kids Can Do

By Nixplay Team

On April 17, 2019

In Holidays

Easter is one of the best times to try new arts and crafts projects, with all the colorful eggs, adorable chicks and bunnies, and vibrant springtime themes. Get your kids’ creative juices flowing by taking on these Easter-themed projects:

Pompom chicks

Not only are pompoms very easy to make, but they’re super adorable, too. Just get a ball of yellow yarn and wrap it around your fingers–the more times you wrap the yarn around your fingers, the fluffier your pompom will be. When there’s a thick enough loop of yarn around your fingers, remove it from your fingers and keep it in place by tying another piece of yarn in the middle. Cut through all the loops, and trim the ends until you have a nice ball of fluff. Glue on a pair of googly eyes, and cut out the chick’s feet and beak on orange felt paper, and you’ve got the most adorable fluffball on your hands.

Easter egg potato stamps

Keep young kids entertained at your Easter party by letting them get crafty! Cut a few potatoes in half and carve designs on them using a knife (make sure an adult is doing this part!). The kids can then dip the sliced potatoes into colorful paint, then stamp them on paper. Encourage them to get creative by preparing colored pens, ribbons, small twigs, and other materials they can add to their egg-inspired artwork.

Salt dough egg ornaments

Give your garden an Easter touch with some eggs-tra colorful decorations! Mix flour, salt, and water together to make the dough, knead it properly, and roll it out. Cut out egg-shaped ovals from the dough, add a hole in each egg, and bake it at 250F for two hours. Paint the eggs after they’re dried and cooled, and add a layer of paint sealer to make sure the eggs’ design will last for a long time. Thread some twine or ribbon through the eggs’ wholes, and hang them on the plants in your yard. If you’re hosting an Easter egg hunt at home, these will make for the perfect decoration.

Bunny ears hairpin

Can’t pull off actual-sized bunny ears? This cute little hairpin will be a great alternative. Trace and cut out two small circles and four bunny ear shapes on white felt paper, draw two smaller bunny ears on light pink felt paper. Sew together two white bunny ears, and glue on a pink bunny ear. Repeat the process to make the other ear, and make the bottom of the ears pointed so they won’t look bulky when attached together. Next, attach the bunny ears to a white felt circle by creating a slot in the middle of the circle and inserting the bottom of the ears. Then, slide a hairpin on to the other white felt circle and glue it under the felt circle with bunny ears.

Bunny napkin rings

Planning an Easter party? These napkin bunny rings will add an adorable touch to your table setting. Wrap some burlap around a cut-up toilet paper tube, seal it with hot glue, and glue on two burlap bunny ears. Repeat the process depending on the number of your guests. It’s a small addition that will make your guests more excited for the Easter festivities.

Don’t forget to document your Easter crafts with lots of photos! Display them on a Nixplay frame so the memories of the fun holiday will always be within reach. Don’t miss the chance to get up to 25% off selected frames, only until April 21!

Unique Easter Egg Hunt Ideas You Should Try This Year

By Mars Salazar

On April 11, 2019

In Holidays

No matter what your age is, you’ll never be too old for an Easter Egg Hunt. It’s one of those games that always brings out everyone’s competitive side, and the mad scramble that ensues can be infectious.

This year, make your Easter Egg Hunt more fun by adding an interesting twist or two. Read on for some ideas!

Easter Egg Scavenger Hunt

We’re pretty sure you know how scavenger hunts work, so doing one for Easter should get everyone excited. First, map out the route the participants will take–they can start in the living room, then the kitchen, then the backyard, then the neighborhood park. Write down a series of clues, each one leading the contestants to the next destination, and insert each clue in a plastic egg. The first contestant to figure out all the clues will get the grand prize.

Golden Ticket Easter Egg Hunt

Want to raffle off one big prize and maybe a few smaller prizes on Easter? Write them down on small pieces of paper and place the paper inside plastic eggs. Hide these eggs around the place, along with other eggs with candy inside. Ask the kids to collect the eggs, and get them to open their eggs at once at the end of the game.

Spell-Your-Name Easter Egg Hunt

This game works best if only a few people will join the Easter Egg Hunt. Write each letter of every participant’s nickname on an egg, and hide the eggs around the place. The first contestant that can spell his or her name with the eggs wins.

Decorate-Your-Own Egg Hunt

Prepare some paint, brushes, markers, and other decorating materials, and get the contestants to decorate one egg each at the start of your party. After a few hours, when the decorations have dried, ask the contestants to hide their eggs around the place. Then, prompt them to look for each other’s eggs, making sure they can’t get their own egg. The contestant with the most number of eggs gathered wins!

Needle-In-A-Haystack Egg Hunt

Get a small inflatable pool and a lot of plastic eggs. Pick a few eggs, and insert strips of paper indicating the prizes in them–these will be the lucky eggs. Fill the other eggs with candy, popcorn kernels, seeds, or just leave them empty. Then, place all the eggs inside the pool, and give each person a few seconds to find the lucky eggs. The contestants can be blindfolded if you want to make the game more challenging.

Take your Easter celebration to the next level with Nixplay! Get up to 25% off selected smart frames, only until April 21!

Mars Salazar

Marianne is Nixplay’s Web Content Editor. Her hobbies include exploring new places, playing table tennis, and cuddling puppies. Send her a message at marianne.salazar@nixplay.com.