Painting Birthday Party

My daughter recently celebrated her 9th birthday! She really loves art and painting so we decided to throw her a painting birthday party! We rented out a party room at a local pizza restaurant and hired a children's art teacher to teach the children how to paint this adorable tie die heart canvas portrait. 

The girls were really into it and had a lot of fun

Here's my daughter's tie die heart---it turned out so cute!

All of the girls did a great job and the tie die hearts look awesome!

Time for pizza and cupcakes!

The birthday girl

 Overall, I would highly recommend hosting a painting birthday party. We had a lot of fun and the children were able to take their tie die heart canvas portrait home. The teacher brought hair dryers and the girls dried the paintings. If you don't want to have to pay a party host, just purchase your own canvases at Michael's craft store and purchase paints. You could easily walk children through painting their own portrait or let them get creative and paint whatever they would like.

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I'm Visiting Kings Dominion Soon

I am super excited to visit Kings Dominion this weekend! My children had a blast there a few weeks ago at the Spring Bloom Festival. Planet Snoopy is my kids favorite area of the park, they could spend hours there! Planet Snoopy has 18 fun filled kid friendly rides including Joe Cool Driving School, the Great Pumpkin Coaster, the Woodstock Express (my kids favorite roller coaster!), Snoopy's Junction, Lucy's Tugboat and Boo Blasters on Boo Hill. My kids are still talking about how much fun they had on our last visit to Kings Dominion! They can't wait to return soon!

Kings Dominion has so many great attractions for the whole family including:

• Planet Snoopy – over 14 acres of Peanuts themed fun – from rides and shows, to meeting your favorite Peanuts character
• Soak City – recently expanded and renovated, including a children’s play area for kids of all ages
• The all-new Delirium – new in 2016, this thrill ride will allow thrill seekers of all ages to fly through the air as they experience gravity-defying hang time

To learn more about Kings Dominion visit their website at www.KingsDominion.com and be sure to follow them on social media at: 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kingsdominionva
Instagram: kingsdominionva
Twitter: @Kingsdominion


Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Cedar Fair Entertainment Company in conjunction with Blog Meets Brand, and I have been compensated for my participation. All opinions are my own.

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Aulani Or A Disney Cruise? Which Is A Better Value

There are many things to consider when planning a vacation. For my family of 5 the biggest factor for choosing a destination for our vacation is the cost. Did you know that the average family only takes one vacation per year? After doing some research I discovered that the average family spends 5 to 10% of their earned yearly income on their vacation. For example, if a family earns $40,000 in a year then their vacation budget should be between $2,000 to $4,000.

For our vacation next summer I am debating between Disney's Aulani Resort in Hawaii or a Disney Cruise for my family of 5. There are so many factors to consider when planning a vacation: cost, space of the room(s), food, activities, etc. Disney's Aulani Resort in Hawaii will require my family of 5 to purchase plane tickets which is an additional expense. Also, food is not included as it is on a Disney Cruise. These are all additional fee's that add up quickly.

I feel like the best value for your money is a Disney Cruise. However, some would argue that even though food is included on a cruise, the staterooms are lacking in space especially for a family of 5. This is something to take into consideration. Do you want to spend your vacation cramped in a 300 sq foot stateroom with your children sleeping just a few feet away? For me, the answer is NO! Haha.

I priced out a 7 night Caribbean Disney Cruise for a family of 5 in a family stateroom with verandah and the total price was just under $10,000! I also priced out Aulani Resort DVC one bedroom unit for a family of 5 for 7 nights and the cost is much less than Disney Cruise at just $3,626! But once you add in airfare for 5 people it makes the total vacation price $9,000. Plus you have to consider the cost of groceries (there will be a kitchen so you can save money by cooking meals) and you have to consider the cost of a rental vehicle. Basically, in my opinion, for a larger family such as mine a Disney Cruise is priced similarly to Aulani Resort (once you add airfare).

All in all it is about the same price to vacation at Disney's Aulani Resort or a Disney Cruise! Which would you choose?

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