FAMILY-FRIENDLY ACTIVITIES

The hustle and bustle of the holidays will soon be upon us and there won’t be any time to relax with the family.  So, before the holidays take over your life, plan a few family activities.  These activities are important for forming children’s identities, creating structure for children and shaping social behaviors, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.  Take advantage of these next several weeks of mellow aura to relax with fun activities.

Weekend Trips

Try an activity out of your family's comfort zone or revisit a beloved place. Most pools are closed by November, so consider an indoor aquatic resort. Make posters for your family's favorite sports team and take in a basketball or football game. Visit an art gallery or museum. Stay at a bed and breakfast, attend an auto show or see a play. Plan an early Christmas shopping trip out of town for those special holiday gifts or decorations. Designate the location and ask extended family members to meet there.

Volunteer Work

Make November and December the months your family completes volunteer work together. Come up with ideas as a family about what you all care about. Perhaps your family has lost a family member to cancer, or your town has a high homeless population. While the weather is still nice, devote time raising money and getting in condition for a nonprofit race or walk. Soup kitchens, pet shelters and hospitals need volunteers. Schools always need volunteers.  

Embrace the Outdoors at Home – Even when it is Chilly

While the weather is still nice plan a few family activities outdoors. Have a picnic at a park, or sleep in tents in the backyard. Go on a bike ride or hike. Yard cleaning is necessary and will create memories by raking leaves, covering perennials and winterizing gutters. Grill an expensive dinner as a reward for hard work. Invite the extended family for a pre-holiday gathering before everyone’s schedule is filled with holiday commitments.

Indoors at Home

Celebrate winter by keeping warm at home. Gather the family for a game night, complete with pizza and snacks. Host a card or board game tournament. Start the fireplace and organize pictures from the previous summer, research your family genealogy or read a book aloud. Write a short story together with some members writing and others illustrating. Creating food is a bonding process. Find new recipes that require an adventurous spirit through new spices or exotic ingredients.

Pitch a blanket and have a picnic.  Freezing temperatures can ruin a picnic aster than an army of ants, but you can have a picnic on a blanket indoors.  S’mores can be great in the microwave.  Sitting on a blanket instead of at the table is a fun change.

Have a camp-out inside.  Unless your family likes winter camping, pitching a tent inside and having a winter camp-out in the living room is warmer and safer.  Don’t forget those microwave s’mores and, if possible, sit around the fireplace and tell campfire stories.

If the weather does become frightful, below are some activities we have come up with that will allow you and your family to still have a blast this winter.

•Reread a favorite book from your childhood

•Have a grilled cheese sandwich with tomato soup

•Bake cookies and share them with friends

•Make a big batch of chili

•Drink plenty of eggnog for the holidays

•Go ice-skating

•Hit the slopes

•Kick back in your family hot tub

•Cozy up in front of a roaring fire and watch the flames

•Complete a jigsaw puzzle

•Donate food/toys/clothing to a local charity

•Listen to the wind howl on a chilly night

•Don’t forget the holidays and decorate your home with festive lights

•Decorate a gingerbread house

•Take a drive to admire your neighbors’ holiday lights

•Visit a holiday craft fair

•Throw a Super Bowl party

•When all else fails and cabin fever sets in, clear the decks of breakables and have a pillow fight.  Just don’t use your good pillows.

•Lastly, if you are thinking about purchasing new flooring for your home for the holidays, be sure to visit Cinderella Carpet One.  Bring the kids so they can help choose the perfect flooring for your home.  We are conveniently located at 6 Rossi Circle in Salinas.  Or contact us for a Free In-Home Consultation.

We’d like to hear from you:  What are your family’s favorite winter fun-and-fit activities?

The Spillabration is back!

 

Find out how Relax, its…Lees can turn your spill face into a happy face.  

During our Spillabration savings event at Cinderella Carpet One in Salinas, we're helping people experience the incredible beauty and stain-resistance of Relax, it's ... Lees® carpet — and save up to

50% on select styles through April 28th!

Only Lees® is made with Evertex, the revolutionary fiber that inherently blocks stains before they have a chance to settle in. In fact, Lees® has stain protection SO strong, it's backed with their exclusive stain warranty.

Grease…..Mustard…..Wine…..Coffee…..Cola…..Mud…..Pet Stains…..Bleach…..YIKES!

No Exclusions" Ultra 25 Stain Warranty includes:

• Pet Stains
• Grease
• Coffee
• Cola
• and More

Relax...it's Lees® has a ...

• 25 Year Stain Proof Warranty. No exclusions, No exceptions, No kidding!
• 25-Year Texture Retention Warranty. Crushing and matting is a thing of the past, even in hallways & on stairs!
• Only Lees® has a LIFETIME Installation Guarantee, the longest installation guarantee in the business!

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ymEprh8aNBc

With so many stain resistance warranties on the market...and so many different opinions about what is best...how do you know that one is any different than the rest?

One trick is to look and see what the manufacture excludes from its warranty. Almost all carpet manufacturers exclude certain items such as pet stains, grease, bleach, etc... But not with Lees!! Lees has a no exclusions warranty for life!!!

Contact us for a complimentary pre-measure today. Or come by our showroom at 6 Rossi Circle in Salinas to speak with one of our experts.

MAXIMIZE YOUR SPACE BY TAKING ADVANTAGE OF YOUR “FIFTH WALL"

If you are like most people, you wish you had more room in your home. You wish you had more space for storage, an extra chair, or cute knick-knacks sitting around the house.  But have you ever thought “out of the box”—the box of seeing only 4 walls?  It’s often called the "fifth wall" and how you decorate it will have a remarkable effect on what you do with the rest of the room.  I’m talking about the Floor!

All floor space takes on specific shapes, patterns and sizes and can be utilized in many other ways than just for walking.  Check out the following advice from Cinderella Carpet One in Salinas for making the most of your floor space.

Choose the right furniture:  Tables, specifically dining room tables, do not have to be huge, stealing valuable space from your floor space, especially if you don’t use it on a regular basis. Purchase compact dining sets that tuck into themselves, saving you flooring space. The same goes for furniture. Select pieces that fit the contours of the room and seat a reasonable number of people. Multi-use furniture, such as a sleep couch, is also a good idea.

Make use of corner space:  People have a tendency to not use the corners of their home. They figure nothing can fit there, right? Think again. When wall space is at a premium, making use of the space where a wall and carpet meet is important. Corner cabinets that match your flooring are ideal for storage as are desks to use for a workspace.

Underneath Storage:  The space between the floor and the bottom of your bed is typically large and only gathering dust. Use this flooring space for storage. You can place things in boxes or purchase small storage units.

Fashionable Storage: Remember that although it’s nice to have floor space, certain rooms don’t need as much. Purchasing baskets or moving storage carts can be placed in various areas around the home for additional storage.

As you are considering your floor space, you should also think about the quality of your floorcovering.  I’m talking about your floor and what you choose to use as your flooring is important, in looks, affordability and wear.  This will give your room more depth and will enhance the total design appeal of your space.

An amazing area rug can entirely change the design of a room.  It can serve as a great foundation for the colors and textures of the furniture.

Changing up the colors and patterns of your tile floor can make the floor an interesting part of the room.  And, like tile, hardwood can be laid out in a way that creates a more appealing design than merely laying down wood in a straight line.  A great wooden pattern can bring depth and character to the floor.

A stone floor is really a cool choice for your floor. It can bring elements of nature into your home, which you can build around, for a great look.

A marble floor is another great option to surprise the eye.  You can really make the entryway of a home truly stand out and use the floor as art space!

Cinderella Carpet One has been serving the Tri-County area since 1947.  We specialize in tile, carpet, hardwood, vinyl and laminate flooring, with the best array of products to choose from and a history you can count on.  Contact Cinderella Carpet One to help you maximize your “Fifth Wall”.