Memorial Day Party-- Organize your own

Are you hosting a Memorial Day party this year or will you just be sitting back and enjoying it with family and friends? I have a few ideas to share with you about how to have a safe yet fun Memorial Day party this year with everyone you love.

I have a huge family and we do have holiday parties for all of us, and let me tell you we are a huge family. Four generations of the Timm family will be gathering at my parents' home in Athens, Pennsylvania to celebrate and have a Memorial Day party. Let me tell you organizing something for this huge family at times is a monumental task, but with everyone doing their part it all seems to work out somehow.

Sister Carmon is organizing the food for the Memorial Day party this year; she keeps a list of who is coming and what they are bringing. Family will supply the main food, and friends of the family will bring in the condiments, paper plates, cups, and silverware.

Sisters Lori and Diane are organizing the games for the younger children as they tend to have the most grandchildren of all of us at this Memorial Day party. There are prizes won in these games, my sisters will purchase the stuffed animal prizes, and we will all chip in for the prizes. Games will include tossing a ball, running and a variation of an Easter egg hunt for the toddlers to 6 year olds.

Sister Kim and her boyfriend Bob are organizing the Memorial Day party games for the kids from 6 year old and up. These games include volleyball, redneck horseshoes, and an obstacle course. An older person helps the younger ones, so it is a team effort and the kids tend to have a ball.

There will no doubt be a live band at our Memorial Day party, as brother Trace, and brother in law Willy have a band and will use this as a practice session. After dark, we will gather around a bonfire, if the burning ban has lifted and sing around the bonfire.

I will be creating the Memorial Day party invitations on my computer and Ray will help me hand them out 3 weeks before the party to may family. I will give each family member a few extra invitations so that they can invite a few friends. This years invitations include a mention of the new family members we have gotten since the last summer, which is four little boys.

I also include updates to the family tree during this time, as it is important to remember where we all came from at this Memorial Day party. As our family grows rapidly, each year it is harder to keep everyone in touch and by adding this family tree update, it is easier. Mom and dad help me to organize this family tree and they include little stories about our ancestors, which are fun to read.

This year marks the first time that all the family will be at a Memorial Day party, as my youngest brother and his rather large family of nine just moved back to Athens. The family has decided to let these people sit back and enjoy the Memorial Day party, but next year they too will be in the planning of this fun family celebration.

There will be no alcohol at this Memorial Day party as it is a family day, where we all gather to have fun the old-fashioned way. There will however be plenty of laughter, water balloon races, food and music with family and friends and that is what a Memorial Day party should be.

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Remembering Those who Died Memorial Day

Remembering loved ones who have passed on is a great thing to do on Memorial Day, yet some people find them selves doing the same things year after year. There are alternatives to placing flowers on gravestones, yet many people do this simply because it is tradition.

This year as you are remembering loved ones who have passed start a new tradition in that person's memory. On Memorial Day instead of adding flowers to the gravestone, plant a flower garden on your property in memory of that person. Plant that person's favorite flowers and this way as you take care of the flower garden you will be reminded of that person.

Memorial Day is the perfect time to plant a tree or shrub as you are remembering loved ones who have passed, as the frost is out of the ground in 99 percent of the United States. What a better way to show you love someone then by planting a tree in their name, you can look at the tree and always remember why you planted it.

If you are remembering loved ones who have passed and were members of a volunteer fire company or quilting club why not make Memorial Day donation in their name. This not only helps an organization that that person enjoyed, it also helps your community and lasts a lot longer then cut flowers.

If you are remembering loved ones who have passed and enjoyed books, donate one that you know they would enjoy to the local library in their name, or better yet sit down and share a children's book at story hour that reminds you of that person on Memorial Day.

At your Memorial Day party start by remembering loved ones who have passed, share funny stories about them. Tell the younger generation about interesting things. There is no better way to keep the memories alive then by passing those memories onto the younger generation.

You could also share a time of special remembering loved ones who have passed with the traditional foods you serve at your Memorial Day party. There is always a pot of Uncle Bill's beans on the table, and a cake from scratch as my Grandma Wright would have made. There are always barbecue ribs, as my Grandpa Timm loved; we even use his special family recipe.

I hope that I have given you the inspiration to begin a new Memorial Day tradition of remembering loved ones who have passed on.

Memorial Day Weekend FREE Graphics

Are you looking for free Memorial Day weekend graphics to dress up your MySpace page or personal web pages? I have plenty of web sites, which may have just the perfect images you are looking for.

The best site to find free Memorial Day weekend graphics without a doubt is wonder cliparts web site, which are perfect for your MySpace profile. This site is very popular simply because it is where the best images are. There is a great collection of all types of images here.

The Holiday Graphics web site is all about holidays, and this makes it a great site for those people who wish to decorate their web pages. You will find a decent size section free Memorial Day weekend graphics here. Not only will you find all types of images here you will also find wallpapers to dress up your computers desktop.

Hellas Multimedia has some of the best patriot clipart found on the internet and these images make the perfect free Memorial Day weekend graphics for any of your needs. If you are creating a MySpace or general web page in memory of a solider these are the perfect images. There are all sorts of web site clipart here from buttons to lines and everything in between.

J S Magic is a unique web site dedicated to the heroes who have given their lives so that we may live in freedom. You will find inspiring free Memorial Day weekend graphics within the server of this web site.

WTV-Zone is not just another web site, which has free Memorial Day weekend graphics. All four branches of the United States Military are represented within the pages of this site, in full color. You will also find 911 clipart along with other holiday images.

Anne's Place is a very well designed web site where you can get tons of free Memorial Day weekend graphics as well as other graphics and backgrounds for your web pages. The fantasy and angel images are outstanding and unique!

Zingerbug has a great selection of free Memorial Day weekend graphics, which are perfect for your myspace profiles, or personal web pages. This web site also includes plenty of messages for the holidays as well as the glitter images, which are so popular on the internet these days.

Plenty of web sites on the internet offer free Memorial Day weekend graphics to anyone who wish to use them. Remember to save the images onto your own computer, so you are not a bandwidth hog and your web pages will load quicker.

Free Memorial Day weekend graphics sources include:

www.wondercliparts.com/

www.holidaygraphics.com/memorial

www.hellasmultimedia.com/webimages/memorial/default.htm

www.jsmagic.net/memorial/

www.wtv-zone.com/AnniesTreasures/patriotic.html

www.d21c.com/AnnesPlace/MemorialDay.html

www.zingerbug.com/holidays/MemorialDay/

Memorial Day Coloring Pages Free

Free Memorial Day coloring pages are great to keep children entertained as you prepare for the picnic and cook outs this year.

Apples 4 the teacher is a wonderful site where you can download all sorts of things to keep the children entertained and there is a great selection of free Memorial Day coloring pages. One will also find word searches, puzzles and many more things that can be printed off and use to enrich a child's mind.

Kid Printables also has a huge collection of free Memorial Day coloring pages, puzzles, and paper based games that anyone can print off and enjoy. There are also word scrambles on this site so there is something for everyone here.

The home schooling section on about.com has plenty of activities for the home schooled child to enjoy and a nice selection of free Memorial Day coloring pages as well as games and a few lessons on the holiday itself.

First School is a lot more then just free Memorial Day coloring pages; it is a history of the United States for preschoolers and kindergarteners. This web site has a patriotic theme and is a great way to introduce the history of this great nation to the littlest Americans.

Activitycoloringpages is a great site, which includes dot-to-dot activities, and word based puzzles galore. There is a great selection of free Memorial Day coloring pages for your child to enjoy.

Annie's Home Page is full of fun activities for your children with plenty of free Memorial Day coloring pages, puzzles and much more. There is also a nice selection of related screensavers, wallpapers to decorate your computer for the holiday as well.

Enchanted Learning web site has plenty of free Memorial Day coloring pages, which are perfect for preschoolers to elementary school aged children. You will also find a nice selection of crafts to help your child learn about this important holiday.

Free Memorial Day coloring pages are an outstanding way to educate your child about the holiday, and all you need to supply is the crayons, markers, or pencils. Let the fun begin soon in your home.

Free Memorial Day coloring pages are also a great way to have drawing contests during the holiday celebrations and this keeps the children busy as the adults play horseshoes or sit. You can offer prizes for and category as long as every child gets a surprise.

Free Memorial Day coloring pages sources include:

www.apples4theteacher.com/coloring-pages/memorial-day/index.html

www.kidprintables.com/coloring/memorialday/index.shtml

www.homeschooling.about.com/od/holidays/ss/memorialprint_8.htm

www.first-school.ws/theme/cp_h_usapatriotic.htm

www.activitycoloringpages.com/2007/05/24/memorial-day-coloring-page/

www.annieshomepage.com/memorialdaykids.html

www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/memorialday/

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Birthday E-card Sites

Top eight Web Sites free Birthday eCards to send to the special person in your life this year. If you are looking for serious, whimsical, inspirational, or heartfelt cards, you are sure to find the perfect card to show your person just how much you care on this Birthday.

123 greetings web site offers over 150 free Birthday eCards for you to send to any person, siblings, parents, friends, or anyone else. There are latterly thousands of cards here for every occasion under the sun and moon.

Blue Mountain has plenty of free Birthday eCards for the special person in your life this year. This web site offers many cards for all occasions and the holiday sections include serious, funny, and even whimsical selections.

Greet 2k has plenty of flash technology based free Birthday Cards to send to the special person in your life. This site is quick loading and has many unique all occasion cards and greetings.

Hallmark is a trusted name in greeting cards and has been for years. Did you know that one their web site they offer tons of free Birthday eCards?

Egreetings is a quick loading web site that offers a nice sized collection of free Birthday Cards so send to your person or a person in your life.

Care 2 is a web site has free Birthday Cards, these are nice cards and greeting perfect for the persons in your life.

Deepest Feelings web site has a nice collection of free Birthday eCards, loads quickly, and is perfect to express the love you have for your person.

American Greetings is a great web site that has tons of all occasion cards and has plenty of free Birthday eCards. You are sure to find the perfect card for your person here.

Most of these card sites also have a nice collection of all occasional cards and greetings to send to everyone in your life. Choose among hundreds of special birthday cared from any of these web sites and you cannot go wrong.

Did you know that some of these web sites allow you to schedule when a card can be delivered? Therefore, you can go in, choose seven cards, and have them delivered on different days of the week to make the person you care about realize how much you care?

For the ultimate birthday surprise visit, each web site here, and send the birthday person a free ecard, and with ten cards they will know they are very special to you.

Sources for web sites for free Birthday eCards

http://www.123greetings.com

www.bluemountain.com

www.greet2k.com

www.hallmark.com

www.egreetings.com

www.care2.com

www.deepestfeelings.com

www.americangreetings.com

Dora the Explorer Theme Party

Dora the explorer is a great show for your child to watch, as it teaches cultural awareness at a young age. Perhaps if all young children learned this while they were younger the world would be a better 

place!

Dora the explorer along with her friends Boots and cousin Diego not only teach cultural awareness, they also teach about animals, basic bi-lingual, but it also teaches about being kind towards others.

On rhapsody, your child can listen to all the full length Dora the explorer songs they hear on the show plus many more. This is kid approved and very kids friendly, so there is no need to worry here.

For rainy days where your child needs something to keep, them busy why not print off some coloring pages, just add the crayons, and let your child's imagination shine through those dark dreary days. There is also plenty of Dora the explorer activities for your child to have fun with and they include puzzles and other activities to help develop hand and eye coordination as well as thinking skills.

Why not throw a Dora the explorer themed party for your child with this site, and at the party, you can play these games, which are all Dora the explorer themed. Over at this site you will find free printable games or perhaps you are looking for a word search game featuring everyone's favorite bilingual little girl.

Games as well as more family based crafts are a great way to celebrate the day with your favorite Dora the explorer. Online you will find so many fun things to do with your child you will never get bored.

If you would like to send a free birthday card to Dora the explorer's favorite little friend send one from thissite. If you insert sticker paper into your printer, you can use the clipart and other graphics from this site to give as little presents to inspire, praise or reward your child.

Sometimes potty training concepts are hard to get for some younger children, and their trusted friend Dora the explorer can help to make it easier. A Parent can print of potty training charts; gather ideas on how to make this task much easier and a whole lot more enjoyable to everyone.

Sources for this article about Dora the explorer include:

www.rhapsody.c www.pottytrainingconcepts.c

www.coloringbookfun.c

www.bostoncentral.c

www.amazingmoms.c

www.hypegames.c

www.disnoy-kingdom.c

www.planetozkids.c

www.thecrazybay.wordpress.c

www.familycrafts.about.c

www.bluemountain.c

www.disneyclips.cm

www.disneyclips.com

Open House Birthday Party

Organizing a birthday party when you have a large family can be difficult at best. With differing schedules, it can be a nightmare but here is a great idea that will work for almost any family. Our large family found the solution and we are sharing it in hope that it will help others.

With our family, which includes seven adult children, twenty-four grand children, and thirty great grandchildren, we found it difficult to plan any type of celebration. However when it came time to plan a birthday party for the matriarch of the family, we hit about a brilliant solution which will accommodate any schedules or size of family and help our mom with anything she needs to have done.

Having a birthday open house party eliminated all the scheduling conflicts. Those who worked during the day could come spend some time with mom during the evening while those who worked nights could spend the morning hours with her.

We chose the day before her mid week birthday as she works every weekend. As a self-employed person, she cannot simply take the day off. We choose the whole day to celebrate her day, this way the day can be as special as she is. She will not have two or three hours of a party, her birthday party will last most of the day.

We will be skipping the usual birthday cake and decorations. We will be including the desserts and foods we know the birthday girl enjoys. Some family members will bring a crock-pot, while others will bring salads, snacks, drinks or something to grill. Food will be served during the day, so no one will be hungry. Between the breaks in guests, those of us who will be staying all day can help with tasks as needed. Since mom lives alone, there are certain household chores she needs help with, we will tackle those projects while we are there.

Our mom will have a special day, with plenty of visits from loved ones and she will get help with those household chores she needs to have completed. This type of celebration is more meaningful than other types of birthday parties.