Travel

Family Pictures

sofijaburton, , Leave a comment

Hello,

while it is still summer and you are off on adventures it is not too soon to think about family photos for your Christmas cards. This is a good time to get your picture taken because everyone looks sun tanned and relaxed. Above are some ideas I found  for different settings. Very few of us can actually make it to the beach. Reality is, most of us are likely to stay in the city or in our back yards. But as you see, even there you can get fun shots.

Here are some pointers to make a picture look fun and well put together:

  • Pick 2-4 colors for your clothing and stick with those. Patterns are trickier to match, but it can be done (third picture).
  • Pick a fun prop.
  • Not everyone has to look at the camera. It looks more natural if one person is the center of attention.
  • Movement is fun.
  • You can add interest by limiting how much of a person you can see (top picture).

How about you, what are your pointers for family pictures? Do you like planning or do you do it on the fly?

Sofija

Picture sources top to bottom:

preppystateofmind.tumblr.com

bglhonline.com

loveliesinmylife.com

digital-photography-school.com

Family Pictures

Frankfurt Flea Market

sofijaburton, Leave a comment

Hi there,

I grew up in Frankfurt, and one of my favorite things to do was going to the flea market on Saturday mornings. Guess, what I did during my recent trip to Frankfurt? Right, one Saturday I took my toddler in her stroller and re-lived old memories. It’s a claustrophobic experience, not for people who need a lot of personal space. But let me assure you, it does not even compare to the best garage sale experience you ever had. The market stretches out over a mile along the river Main. And it is packed full with everything: people sell their junk, toys, books, clothes, and furniture. But on top of that you find dealers from different countries selling knick knacks, comics, vintage dishes, vintage clothes, and jewelry. What makes it fun is that people in Europe still  have really old stuff. Stuff you would never see around here outside of an antique store.

Here are some of the pictures I took.

I was really exited about finding this Russian stand. My girls love Russian dolls. I was able to buy each one.

Here are some pictures of the skyline of Frankfurt.

If money and suitcase space would have not been an issue I would still be there shopping. But I found what I came for: my Russian dolls and some German Asterix comics for the kids. Score.

If you like a mix of old and vintage and modern check out Bloomingville from Denmark. You can’t buy from them online but you can enjoy their online catalog and get inspired.

Have a great day,

Sofija

Frankfurt Flea Market

Playmobil Park

sofijaburton, , Leave a comment

Hello,

How is your week going? I’m still settling back into normal life after my  trip to Germany. I wanted to share another fun outing we did. My sister and I rented a German version of an SUV (the smallest one I had ever seen, half the size of ours), and we drove to Bavaria for the day to visit Playmobil Park. This park was so well laid out. Benches for the parents everywhere. A coffee bar conveniently located where parents were sitting and watching their kids play.

 

The water here was only knee deep, and the rafts did not tip. This was the funnest station for my 8 year old(to the left) and his cousin.

 

If you are ever in the area, I highly recommend going there. Especially if your kids are between 5 and 11 years old. Do bring a swim suit, a towel, and a change of clothes, since they have water play stations right next to sand boxes.

See you back here tomorrow with another book series suggestion from my 14 year old.

Sofija

Playmobil Park

Castle Ronneburg

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Friends,

I’m back from my vacation to Germany. I went to visit my family; but for my 8 year old, who learned about medieval history last year, I called it  “end of the year class trip”.  I wanted him to see a real castle, built in 1213. So my sister took us outside of Frankfurt to castle Roneburg. I grew up with these castles all around me, but it was a whole new experience seeing it as an adult.

Here is my son Shane (to the right) with his German cousin sitting on a cannon. They had so much fun running around; we came early enough to have the place to ourselves.

Here he is being publicly shamed.

One of the great halls used for feasts.

As a wanna be writer this writing desk is so appealing. It might just compel you to put your laptop aside and write a hand written letter once again…

Had we come a few days later there would have been reenactments, bow and arrow shootings, medieval music, and much much more.

So, if you find yourself in the neighborhood, you must go and see it. I surely will schedule my next visit around their festivals, and I would bring my 14 old son who could identify all the weapons displayed there.

 

 

Castle Ronneburg

What to do with Vacation Mementos

sofijaburton, , 1 Comment

As I mentioned yesterday I am in serious vacation mode. I’m a sucker for foreign train ticket stubs, park entrance tickets, etc. Really anything they hand to me, I have a hard time letting go of. Maybe some of you are like that, too. In that case  the ideas above might be useful to you. I used to be an avid scrapbook-er, so the first  ones appeal to me. However over time, as I got more and more behind, I switched to going all digital . Now, if I want to remember special visits with my kids and their cousins I use Shutterfly to lay out my book, and get it printed. The last one is a book I made for my nephew after he visited us 5 years ago.

Who knows, when I come back from Germany with a gazillion train tickets I might ask my crafty 11 year old to make me cute book like the one pictured on the very top.

How about you, what do you with your vacation memories? Do you fill a jar with sand to remember a certain beach? Or do you fill shadow boxes with European pub coasters? I’d love to hear.

What to do with Vacation Mementos

Ready For a Vacation?

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Friends,

my mind is seriously occupied with vacation. I am  getting ready to go to Europe on Friday. I will be doing a lot of laundry this week. Still need to buy presents for my friends and relatives. As if that wasn’t busy enough, my oldest is heading to camp today. However he will not be relaxing in a hammock. He and his youth group will serve all week among the poor, homeless, widows, and the elderly. They will be working with inner city ministries and Franciscan monks. At the end of the week they will be doing a 30 hour fast to raise money for World Vision. How cool is that?! My husband and I are praying that this week will shape our son for the rest of his life. He and I were part of an inner city ministry in Chicago for 10 years. Our two oldest where born there but they were too young to remember much.

How about you, are you getting ready for vacation? If so where are you headed? Visiting family like me, or exploring new places?

Ready For a Vacation?