Summer is months away—but that shouldn’t stop you from booking your family’s vacation. If you’re dreaming of warmer weather and a getaway for the whole gang, you need to know about Vrbo’s latest travel-related data for the 2021 vaycay season.
What’s in store for summer vacation travelers this year? While many families didn’t get to go on their dream getaway in 2020, in 2021 it looks like things are changing. According to Vrbo’s stats, travelers are booking some of the company’s top properties earlier this year.
Currently, under half of Vrbo’s vacation homes in some of the top travel destinations are available for July. This represents an increase of more than 25 percent (compared to other years).
Not only are families booking their summer trips earlier this year, they’re also choosing longer stays and planning double-cations. Vrbo’s data shows 44 percent of travelers in the United States will take more trips this year.
Jeff Hurst, Vrbo president, said in a press release, “In years past, we’ve recommended that families book their summer vacations on Vrbo by late April to stay ahead of the curve, but this year, there are several reasons why families are eager and ready to book.” Hurst continued, “These signs are telling us that families should start looking for the perfect vacation home now before the selection and available dates become more limited.”
How can you get in on the summer vaycay rush? Even though your kiddos may still have a few months left of school (or home/cyber school), go ahead and turn your daydreams into reality with an early booking. Along with planning your trip in advance, the travel experts at Vrbo also suggest reviewing your vacation property’s cancellation policy. This adds extra flexibility into your summer-time plans if needed.
Mars Wrigley and the company’s beloved M&M’S brand just brought the sweet taste of candy-coated chocolate to Walt Disney World Resort’s Disney Springs.
The new 10,000 square foot experiential M&M’S store features a “Wall of Chocolate,” M&M’S character moments and the chance to mix up your own batch of custom candies. Along with all the candy your kiddos (and the rest of the family) can eat, you can also snag M&M’S-themed merch, such as apparel and mugs at the Disney Springs store.
photo courtesy of PRNewsfoto/Mars, Incorporated
Patrick McIntyre, Director of Global Retail at Mars Retail Group said in a press release, “The biggest brands create the best moments in some of the world’s best places.” McIntyre added, “M&M’S brings more smiles across generations and connects people around the world. Choosing culturally vibrant locations for our new stores is key to Mars Wrigley’s retail expansion strategy to delight our valued consumers, and Disney Springs is the perfect backdrop for the most popular confectionery in the world.”
Don’t worry if you won’t get a chance to browse the store’a aisles IRL right now. If a trip to Walt Disney World isn’t in your near-future, check out the store’s virtual tour experience. Visit MMS.com to “walk” through and shop the candy-covered retailer.
If you haven’t yet heard about the fiver birthday party trend, it could change the way you plan parties from now on—and we bet your guests will love it, too.
The “fiver party” is a simple solution for both attendees and hosts when it comes to the big birthday gift dilemma. Instead of gifts, guests are simply asked to bring five dollars for the birthday kid. With a dozen or more kids in attendance, those “fivers” will quickly add up to a decent sum that can be used toward one big gift.
It’s a win-win for parents and guests, as you’ll eliminate that stack of presents that will barely fit in your overflowing playroom. Plus, guests can save money and skip the hassle of having to shop. The only downside is that young kids might miss the fun and excitement of unwrapping gifts or choosing a special present for their friend. At the end of the day, though, the birthday boy or girl will be able to use the money for something they will truly want and cherish.
If you’d like to throw your own fiver party, make sure you discuss the plan in advance with your kid so they can get excited about what they plan to spend their special birthday money on. And remember, it doesn’t have to be a toy. It can go toward an experience or become a donation to an important charity of the kid’s choosing. Make it clear in the invitation what a “fiver party” means—while it is a growing trend, some parents might not be in the loop.
“We’re trying to help [NAME] focus on the joy of celebrating this special occasion with his cherished friends rather than on receiving gifts.
To that end, we hope you’ll consider NO GIFTS. For those who feel uncomfortable with that, we ask you consider NO MORE THAN a $5 gift card or cash that he can put towards something special he’s saving for. Thanks for understanding and celebrating with us.”
Hopefully, we’ll see this birthday trend take off even more in 2023.
You know how it goes: Dinner was a fiasco, bathtime was a struggle, and the littles refused to put on PJs and brush their teeth. You finally got them ready, but now it’s past their bedtime, and it’s pretty much your bedtime, too.
As you’re tucking your child into bed, your eyes are drooping, your body is half-wilted. You are mentally snuggling into your own bed and letting the sweet, sweet wave of sleep wash over you.
And then comes the request: “Book! Read! Please!”
Now, I’m a full-time librarian and a mom, and storytime and reading before bed has pretty much always been my favorite time of day with my kid. Time stands still when I get to cozy up with my munchkin and talk about words, illustrations, and meanings. And I get to break out all of my character voices and listen to her try to repeat them.
But there have been several times in the past year where I have fallen asleep while reading in a (terrible) British accent, only to wake up to a small, worried voice saying, ‘Mom. Mom. Mom?’
Mummy is tired. Oh, so tired. So tired that she was reading with her eyes closed.
But, as they say in the children’s librarian business, the (storytime) show must go on. Especially since educators and scientists tell us how important it is to read to kids every day. It’s impossible not to feel guilty saying no to a read-aloud.
So how can you break through the guilt and exhaustion and go on with the storytime show? Keep reading for some tried-and-true shortcuts for bedtime read-alouds on the days when you can barely keep your eyes open.
1. Insist on choosing the book.
That’s right–the grownup gets to choose! Now, choose the shortest one you can find. Maybe you already do the choosing, but it’s a tip worth repeating: Kids will pretty much agree to anything in order to be read to and snuggled with.
2. Edit the story.
If your kiddo insists on choosing the book, you can save some energy by just reading the important stuff on the page. And sometimes it’s easier to ask your child a question about the illustration or photo. You can do this with just about any book—find a great photo or illustration and discuss, flip, repeat.
3. Ask them to read it.
Unfortunately, even the littlest kids will call you out if you try to ‘edit’ a favorite book that you’ve read a bazillion times. If they do, ask them to tell the story, or take turns telling the story and flipping the pages.
4. Choose readers or board books.
Instead of a long picturebook, try another format, like beginning readers or board books—you know, the books with great illustrations and (most importantly) one line of text per page? There are even abbreviated versions of longer picture books that are published as board books and readers. Even if your child isn’t quite at the learning-to-read stage, you can’t miss with these formats.
Go for some superhero beginning readers with really simple text, or try the quick and easy science and nonfiction readers. I had a really good run with an abbreviated board book (the books with cardboard pages) version of Go, Dog, Go!.
5. Giggle over a book with sensory elements.
They’ll become so engrossed with lifting flaps, poking at textures, pressing buttons, and turning chunky cardboard pages that you can save your energy for staying awake. Just the act of flipping pages in itself is an important part of early learning.
6. Skip the book and ‘talk’ or sing.
When my daughter was a toddler, she really loved to ‘chat’ right before falling asleep. The chatter would go on and on and on. I used to tell her to be quiet and go to sleep, but then I realized that she was putting herself to sleep by babbling. So I started babbling along with her.
Now that she’s older, she’s interested in a real conversation or a song. So, instead of reading, sometimes we sing Beatles songs, Hamilton songs or just talk about the day’s events.
7. Snuggle on the couch.
If you’re like me, then you’re prone to falling asleep in your kiddo’s bed while reading and then stumbling back to your own bed at 2 am. Try a storytime on the couch or in a comfy chair instead of in the bed. If you aren’t in bed, it’s possible your body won’t think it’s time to go to sleep.
Take it from a librarian: It’s okay to break the storytime rules. Even if you’re wiped out, there are so many different ways to enjoy words and pictures with your little one. If you’re feeling guilty about not reading every day for an hour, just remember that any amount of time you spend talking, singing, playing or reading together will have a positive effect on your child.
Erica J. Thatcher, MLIS, is a library professional and a mom. She also runs a side hustle from her website, writing and editing content for print and for the Web. When she’s not wearing those hats, she’s a watercolor enthusiast, guitar player, gardener, reader, foodie and sewer.
If you’re looking to give back and make a measurable difference in a family’s life this holiday season, but don’t know where to start, turn to The National Diaper Bank Network (NDBN). They recently launched a GoFundMe to help struggling families provide diapers for their children. With one in three families experiencing diaper need, it’s time to read on to find out more about this campaign and how a donation of only $18 can provide diapers for one baby for one week.
It’s no secret that families are struggling—both emotionally and financially—because of the global pandemic, In fact, the NDBN estimates that they are giving out 50% more diapers now than before COVID-19.
Their solution to help increase donations and awareness? NDBN partnered with GoFundMe to launch a centralized hub with verified fundraisers to #EndDiaperNeed. All donations to this GoFundMe will go directly to the National Diaper Bank Network of more than 240 diaper banks across the country.
It only takes a modest $18 to provide diapers for one bay for one week. A donation of any amount means that babies will stay dry and less exposed to health risks and families won’t have to worry about choosing between diapers for their children versus paying for rent, food or utilities.
As of time of publication, the GoFundMe has raised close to $57,000 of the $100,000 goal. To donate and learn more visit the campaign here.
Safety is one of the most important factors families look at when choosing a city or town in which to live. The personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on 2020’s Safest Cities in America. Read on to see where your state falls on the list.
To determine where Americans can feel most protected against life’s hazards, including nonphysical forms of danger, WalletHub compared more than 180 U.S. cities across 42 key metrics. The data set ranges from COVID-19 cases in the past seven days per 100,000 residents and assaults per capita to the unemployment rate and road quality.
Safest Cities in America
Columbia, MD
South Burlington, VT
Plano, TX
Nashua, NH
Lewiston, ME
Burlington, VT
Salem, OR
Virginia Beach, VA
Raleigh, NC
Gilbert, AZ
Least Safe Cities in America
173. Chattanooga, TN 174. Oklahoma City, OK 175. Memphis, TN 176. Baton Rouge, LA 177. Jackson, MS 178. Detroit, MI 179. Birmingham, AL 180. San Bernardino, CA 181. St. Louis, MO 182. Fort Lauderdale, FL
Safest vs. Least Safe
Irvine, California, has the fewest aggravated assault incidents (per 100,000 residents), 23.58, which is 60.5 times fewer than in Detroit, the city with the most at 1,426.82.
Port St. Lucie, Florida, has the fewest thefts (per 1,000 residents), 8.74, which is 9.1 times fewer than in Springfield, Missouri, the city with the most at 79.81.
Washington has the most law-enforcement employees (per 100,000 residents), 641, which is 5.8 times more than in Irvine, California, the city with the fewest at 111.
St. Paul, Minnesota, has among the fewest pedestrian fatalities (per 100,000 residents), 0.32, which is 24 times fewer than in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, the city with the most at 7.67.
‘Tis the season and all-natural eco-friendly brand for skin and body products, Green Goo, is sharing the joy. The company has announced its Season of Goodness, which involves $100,000 worth of giveaways!
For the next eight weeks until Jan. 6 2021, Green Goo will give one winner a $500 gift basket of products. The randomly selected winner will then pay it forward by choosing an organization such as a hospital, school, restaurant, fire station, shelter or other group to receive a large allotment of Green Goo’s FDA-compliant hand sanitizer.
photo: Green Goo
In addition, Green Goo will also select its own hand sanitizer recipients to meet their 100 gallon donation of hand sanitize per week commitment. So, do you want to win one of those $500 baskets?
You can visit the entry form page on the Green Goo website. You’ll also be able to nominate a worthy organization for donation consideration without entering the giveaway by completing the alternate submission form. It’s time to pay it forward!
Have you ever wanted to design your own colorful OREO cookie? Now you can!
Milk’s favorite cookie is now customizable through the new OREOiD process. According to OREO, all you have to do is “STUF it, DIP it, DESIGN it, and PACK it!” Check out the fun video to see how it’s done!
Using OREOiD, you can design your own OREOs, including eight creme colors, eight sprinkle colors and milk or white fudge dip. You can also customize with an image or text and choose your own packaging.
The new option also makes for the perfect holiday gift, especially when you choose festive colors and a fun image.
Olympia Portale, OREO Brand Manager states, “The OREOiD platform provides the opportunity to combine the playfulness of our cookie and the imagination of our fans. We’re so excited to unveil this new customized experience for our fans to engage with OREO on a whole new level, just in time for the gift-giving season!”
Customize your OREO cookies by heading to OREO.com/OREOiD. You can grab a 24-count box of the creme color of your choosing for $19.95, 12-count of fully customized cookies for $29.95 or shop the tons of other options on OREOiD.
Eight months into a global pandemic, everyone is finding themselves with new habits. A new survey from CVS Pharmacy and The Harris Poll has dug deep and found a not-so-surprising fact: Americans are snacking more at home!
The online survey conducted in July 2020 has found that 66 percent of American adults report an increase in at-home snacking, with 50 percent choosing “better-for-you snacks” more often than they did before the pandemic. So what else did the survey find?
Fifty-three percent of Americans choose pre-made meal solutions to make things easier, 56 percent of those buying healthy snacks lean towards nuts and trail mixes and almost the same percent pick up snack bars.
Other findings include an ranking affordability, variety of flavors and nutritional benefits as being of top importance.
Last week Princess Eugenie announced her first pregnancy and people are excited for the arrival of a new royal baby. Such announcements tend to inspire future parents when it comes to name selections. While some like to show their love for the royal family by choosing names like Elizabeth and Charles, some take it another step further.
With that in mind, Gigacalculator.com sought to find out which are the most and least popular royal inspired baby names of 2020. They gathered a list of baby names with regal connotations, which were then looked up on the baby name website Nameberry.com, to see how the popularity of each name has increased or decreased in 2020.
While Meghan and Kate are great choices when looking for a royally-themed moniker, the number of people searching for “unusual names” has spiked by 64% in the last year according to Google trends. Based on this, it is not surprising that Contessa is the most sought after royal inspired name for girls, with a spike in numbers of 125%. In second place is the name Queenie with an increase of 34% in the last year.
If you are expecting a little prince, the most sought after royal inspired baby name for boys is Marquis, which spiked 117% from last year. The name Pharaoh saw a 67% spike in the number of parents choosing this name for their sons.
