A Smooth Return to School

It’s hard to believe that summer is coming to an end. September is just around the corner and with that means the start up of school. Some children will be excited to return or start school and others may be a little apprehensive or afraid of the new routine.  You’ll want to make the adjustment of your child’s return to school as smooth as possible. Or if you’re an older student  in high school or college you’ll want to organize your self for an easy return to school. It doesn’t take much to be organized by collecting and preparing supplies in advance. This can help ease anxiousness and make the transition from a relaxed summer to the entry of a new school year go smoothly.

Here are a few tips to help you out:

1) Start setting the clock a few minutes earlier the week before school to get yourself and or your children used to the early rise. Going to bed a few minutes earlier can help prepare kids too.

2) Eating breakfast regularly is a big deal. Just as cars run on fuel, your body needs energy and calories to function optimally. Be sure to have healthy choices for the kids in the morning and allow sufficient time for them to eat.

3) Set out backpacks and clothes the night before so you’re not rushing around looking for socks or clean pants in the morning.

4) Prepare lunches or a portion of them the night before as well. Remember fruit, vegetables and protein for a healthy meal.

5) Ease anxiousness by allowing your child to help pick out a new back to school outfit to wear on the first day and maybe help choose some of those cool school supplies too. This can help kids get excited about the return to school.

Well hope you enjoyed these tips. As usual I’ve been working on new designs and creations for my store. Here are some cute samples from my store Designs by Shell. Come by for a browse…

Why is it Necessary to Market Your Business

If you have an online business you are probably aware that without marketing it’s pretty much impossible to attract customers and have your business seen by the masses. With so many people using the internet  daily there is great potential to increase traffic, interest and sales for your business. Marketing your business online is, I believe the most effective method available to us. Small and large companies all over the world are taking advantage of this.

Why You Should Market Online

1) Cost Effective – Online marketing can be done with little monetary investment. There are endless sites to strategically market your business which means the potential to earn from these sites can be quite high.  Of course a small investment may be beneficial on some sites but it’s still your choice how much you want to invest.

2) Global Reach -  With millions of people accessing the internet daily from all corners of the world the potential for new customers is remarkable. You can have ‘eyes’ on your business at all times. Your shop never closes. I love waking up to sales that have come in during the night!

3) Building Trust – Sharing, networking, connecting allows people to see that you’re ‘human’ just like them. All of these things help to build trust in your company and allows your customers to feel secure in buying and sharing your business.

I hope you take advantage of the many online marketing tools and sites available to you.

I’ve been working harder on promoting my store Designs by Shell this week. Sales have been good! Online promotion works! Here are some more samples from my store.  Feel free to leave me a comment or a marketing tip that has worked well for you!

Elegant Purple Hydrangeas Tiles	Cartoon Hedgehogs Coffee Mug	Teddybear Pirate Postage Stamps
Purple Hippo Baby Shower Postage	Sea Lion Pool Party Invitation	Pink Hydrangeas Post Cards

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Who’s Who at the Zoo

The Greater Vancouver Zoo, Aldergrove is the place to see some amazing animals in unique habitats and critters of all shapes and sizes. The perfect place to take the kids and the grandparents for a fun daytrip. The Zoo features a new picnic area where you can take a break and enjoy a snack from the concession stand or a home packed lunch. There is a miniature train that you can purchase a ticket for a relaxing ride around the park.  There are bird shows that feature rare birds of prey.

One can watch the feeding of the lions and tigers as well as the hippopotamus too.

Some of the other animals you’ll see in the zoo include bears, monkeys, giraffes, hippos, wolves, zebras, camels and many varieties of reptiles and birds.

Recently on a trip to the zoo I was able to enjoy and get some great pictures of a wide range of animals. I love being able to use these pictures on products for my store. Creating fun sayings to match some of the expressions and postures of the animals is something I love to do as well. Here is a sampling of some of my great shots! Come by Designs by Shell to see more.

Kayaking an Enjoyable Workout

Have you ever been kayaking before? Today was my 4th time kayaking with my husband. The first time I experienced this fun sport was in Kauai, Hawaii on the Wailua River. It was a blast and a good workout too. Today my husband Brian and I spent two hours paddling at Deep Cove, Vancouver, B. C., a  beautiful scenic setting with beautiful mountains all around the harbour. We rent a double kayak.

The ocean is fairly calm unless you go out to far, then the winds can pick up. Today the weather was warm and sunny and the wind was barely a breeze for most of the kayak trip.

As we were on the return trip back to the shore we were talking about what a great upper body workout kayaking is. Using those arm and shoulder muscles repeatedly, you could really feel it by the time we were finished. If you love the outdoors, water and like an enjoyable workout you should give kayaking a try. Perhaps you already do this sport regularly in the summer. Share a little with me here, if you like! Do you have a favourite spot you love to kayak?

In keeping up with new designs for my store I’ll soon be adding some kayaking pictures to items as time permits. We’ve been busy doing lots of day trips with my husband on summer holidays right now. My designs are still coming but just not quite as quickly as before. Here are a few recent creations for you to view. Visit my store Designs by Shell to see more!

Day Trippin’ for Summer Fun

Perhaps you think you have to take a big holiday or go far from your neck of the woods to get that summer break. You feel like basking in the sunshine and visiting some different places but don’t have the time or maybe the means to take a big trip right now.  There is always the option of taking a day trip. If you live in a big city or near one there are always exciting things going on. Check your local papers, websites etc.to find some great ideas near your area.

For instance my husband and I live less than an hour from Vancouver, B.C. and a couple of days ago we decided to do a day trip to a small Fishing Village that is a known tourist attraction. The little town is called Steveston, once a busy seaport along the Fraser River but is now a working fishing village. There is quite a bit of history in this town which is over 100 years old. Restaurants of all kinds to tempt you  along the fisherman’s wharf. Especially known for their great fish and chips, which we experienced of course! Several souvenir shops to browse through as well.

Steveston is also the place where the television series called ‘Once Upon a Time’ is filmed. The store fronts boasting the name ‘Storybrooke’ This show happens to be the favorite of my husband and myself. We’ve watched all of the episodes and are looking forward to the opening season this September. Anyways,the cool thing was when we got to Steveston, there was a film shoot going on of Once Upon a Time, and all of the cast members were there as they were shooting the scene for the premiere in September. We got to watch them work! How cool is that! Pictures of the cast where not allowed so unfortunately we couldn’t take any but it was fun to see them in action.  

After that we carried on to a small place called Westham Island and visited the Reifel Bird Sanctuary. We had a nice walk there and took pictures of numerous ducks and birds.   On our way back we stopped at a beekeeper’s farm and bought some ‘natural honey’ to bring home. A fabulous day trip!  So see you don’t always have to do the big trip far from home all the time! What exciting day trips have you done lately or may be planning to do this summer? Feel free to share!

Here are a few designs from my store, Designs by Shell. Always working on new themes and creations!

 

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