Puppets are loved by kids all over the world. Much before the modern toy industry found its feet, puppets were delighting children across ages. If you think puppets are more suitable for younger kids between 3-8 years, you are yet to experience the fascinating charms of a puppet. From child care workers to child psychologists, anyone who has worked with children would tell you about the huge benefits of introducing puppets to your child. Puppets not only spur your child's creativity, they go a long way in developing their motor skills. Encouraging kids to put together a puppet show helps them to learn to face an audience with confidence while bolstering their power of expression. Where can you buy a puppet? You can easily find some very interesting puppets at craft fairs or on mail order catalog. Nowadays, most toy stores showcase a variety of theme-based puppets. Also, almost all online stores sell new, as well as, used puppets at affordable prices. You can refer to customer reviews to get answers for any of your queries regarding the product. What are the things to consider when buying a puppet? Size: When you are selecting a puppet that your child can handle himself or herself, consider smaller sizes that fit his or her hands and are easy to manoeuvre. If you are planning to entertain you child with a puppet story, you should look for larger sizes. Ensure that the puppet fits snugly on your hands and allows you to move your hand freely without sliding off. Larger sizes have the added advantage of being visible from a distance, making them ideal for stage shows or group storytelling sessions. Character: Select a happy and lovable character. You can introduce puppets of characters from the books you have been reading to your child. Children find it easier to relate to these characters and can be easily inspired to role-plays. Features: Large expressive eyes, a conspicuous nose or an adorable mouth are some of the things that attract young children. It would be better to select a puppet without a mouth for very young children as they may find it difficult to work the mouth along with the dialogue. Even for an older kid, ensure that hands or mouths or any other movable parts can be worked around comfortably. Puppet activities for kids You can plan several puppet-based activities for your kids. Creative story telling: Use puppets to jazz up the story-telling hour. Puppets can be used effectively to develop an interest in reading. Building imagination: Encourage your child to weave stories with his puppet friends. Working on communication: Puppets can be a fun way to teach your child to express feelings. You can motivate them to speak about their feelings to their puppet friends. Another way would be to introduce a puppet as a guiding angel with whom the child can discuss any issues. A know-all guiding angel is all that children need to make them feel secure.

Foods are classified based on their different aspects like the quantity needed, the functions they serve etc. Based on the quantity and the large functions they are categorized into macro or energy foods and micro foods. The energy foods are further divided into carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. Carbohydrates form the bulk of food and contributor of energy. Proteins, on the other hand, are more for repairs and reconstruction of the body tissues. Fat plays slightly more complicated role. It has the highest energy density. They act as a solvent for many oil soluble micronutrients. It also plays a part in making many chemicals in the body.

Carbohydrates: Carbohydrates are compounds formed by carbon, hydrogen and oxygen molecules. The simplest is monosaccharides. They are very easily digested and assimilated into the bloodstream raising the glucose levels very quickly. They are burned up also fast providing a quick spurt of energy. The second is disaccharides, normally, an intermediary during the digestion of trisaccharides or complex starches. Trisaccharides or polysaccharides are difficult to digest. These are complex molecules and the body takes the time to break them. Hence, they do not raise but maintains a steady blood sugar level and it takes longer to feel hungry.

Proteins: are compounds of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen. Simple proteins are called monomers and used to make heavier polymers. Proteins are normally used to repair the body. The body rarely breaks down proteins for energy purposes.

Fats: Fats are esters or products of neutralization of fatty acids with glycol. Their structures are quite complex. The simplest is a monomer growing into bigger polymers. Another important factor in fats is the amount of hydrogen in them. The amount of hydrogen in a molecule of fat is measured by its saturation. If one starts to knock of hydrogen atoms from fats they become unsaturated. A saturated fat is solid at ordinary room temperatures and is more difficult to digest and not considered good for our body. However, all fats that are solid at ordinary temperatures are not bad for the body, the example is coconut oil which is considered good. What matters is the straight length of their molecules. Longer ones are not good for the body.

Micronutrients: Micronutrients are mostly mineral salts. In the body, they exist as ions. They are sodium, potassium, calcium, iron, iodine manganese, magnesium, zinc, selenium. Molybdenum and chloride. All these are obtained if one eats a well-balanced diet on a regular basis.

A death in the family not only causes emotional turmoil, but the task of planning a cremation adds to the anxiety. Knowing what you will face upfront regarding cremation costs will prevent you from spending too much in such a stressful time. In general, cremation costs are much less than burial costs. Basically, three types of cremation service are known. They are traditional service with visitation, cremation with a memorial service and direct cremation with no service. The cremation costs will certainly depend on which type of cremation you do. If you are conducting a traditional cremation, you are bound to have visitors. To perform it at an affordable price you can rent a casket and avoid buying one. This would reduce the cost. The visiting ceremony can be held in a church or even a funeral home chapel. After the visitation, the cremation is performed. A cremation with a memorial service only slightly differs from the traditional cremation. In this, the cremation is performed before, and later a memorial service is held at a particular place, and the urn with the remains can be present at the memorial service, but the body is not available as it is cremated before. On the other hand, a direct cremation costs the least, as there is no service of any kind and after the cremation of the body, the ashes are returned to the family. Now let's see in a nutshell what are the cremation costs, that you will have to bear The basic service fees which will include a fee for the funeral home and their staffs. Transporting your body to the funeral home which might cost you around $285. A cremation container will be needed that generally starts at $100. You can rent a casket for the cremation service which will cost around $1000. The cremation fee will start around $300. After the cremation, the ashes are returned to the family in an urn which will cost around $250. Some additional costs that you have to bear are the municipal registration cost and the Coroner's certificate. Benefits of choosing cremation over burial The first advantage of choosing cremation over burial is that the cremation costs are much more affordable. If you choose burial process, then the headstone, the metal casket and the grave plot itself will cost you $1500, $2395 and $1000 respectively. You could scatter the last remains in the deceased's favorite places if those were the last wishes. You will not have that option with burial process. The ashes can be shared among the family members, if they wish to. Family members in many cases want to keep the remains but they may live in separate places, in that case, they can share the remains. No land is disturbed in case of cremation, unlike burial. The burial costs have considerably increased over the years than the cremation costs. Cremation has always been a cheaper option, and people do opt for it. Back in the 1980s, the national cremation rate was accounted as 9.7 per cent, but today it has increased four times.

Hair dryers are simple and compact electronic devices convenient for styling and blowing your hair dry. The working of a hairdryer is simple; the fan present in the hair dryer pushes the cool air toward the heating coil. The heated hair is then blown outside from the concentrator nozzle of the hair dryer. The following article mentions the different types of hair dryers based on the materials used and the heating methods. There are many brands across the country that manufacture hair dryers with the combination of these technologies for effective drying and styling of hair without damaging them. Read on to find out more: Ionic hair dryer These types of hair dryers use negatively charged ions that are generated when air passes through the current-conducted metallic coil (nichrome wire). The negatively charged ions break down the positively-charged water molecules present in the hair without removing moisture, making them smooth and silky. However, ionic hair dryers are not suitable for styling as they do not volumize or make hair bouncy. They work well with thin and short hair types. Tourmaline hair dryer Tourmaline is a multicolored mineral known for its pyroelectric and piezoelectric properties that work on the basis of electric charge generated when force is applied. So, the minerals in the hair dryer generate negatively charged ions and infrared heat when electricity is passed through them. Tourmaline dryers are more efficient than ionic hair dryers due to their heat-dissipation properties. They are suitable for frizzy and thick hair. Ceramic hair dryer These types of hair dryers are different from both the hair dryers mentioned above. Here, the heating material is made of porcelain or ceramic clay. It provides even heating through infrared heat, which does not damage your hair. The infrared heat penetrates your hair shaft, locking the moisture within the hair. Ceramic hair dryers are suitable for both drying and styling of hair, making it look silky, smooth, and shiny. Titanium hair dryer The heating coil of the hairdryer, in this case, is made of titanium, which makes it quicker in heat dissipation as compared to ionic, tourmaline, and ceramic hair dryers. Titanium hair dryers are not safe for small or thin hair as the temperature generated from these hair dryers might harm your hair. They are lightweight as compared to all the other types of hair dryers.

Nurse practitioners are medical professionals who mainly provide primary and specialty care for patients. The biggest benefit of being a registered nurse practitioner includes working in complete autonomy without the need for any supervision of a general physician or a senior medical practitioner. Not many people can afford to attend medical schools to enroll into nurse practitioner programs due to financial problems or lack of time. People now have the option to study and qualify online through a number of academic nurse practitioner programs offered by some of the best campuses at an affordable price. Here you can find the benefits of online nurse practitioner programs: Convenient program: Nurse practitioner programs offered online are convenient to manage with a curriculum from anywhere across a number of devices. A good internet connection will allow you to access any and all material necessary for you to study with online references from outside sources. A flexible schedule will allow you to plan your other activities stopping you from attending medical school. Affordable medical programs: Nurse practitioner programs online are more affordable and easier to finance as compared to attending a full-time program on campus. Research shows that you can save a sizable chunk of money by studying online, without much change in the curriculum and course requirements. Mainly, your expenses for any online course will include tuition and material fees with the duration of the course being divided among credits to be achieved every year. General nurse practitioner programs duration will be at least 20 months, but this will again depend on the course and campus which is offering the online course. A variety of programs: Campus-based programs will normally have you relocating or traveling if you do not stay near the campus. Online schools will allow you to pursue nurse practitioner programs from whichever university or campus you desire, from the comfort of your home.

Traveling can get boring, especially if you travel a lot. With no entertainment on the go, and staring blankly at the scenery whizzing past you, it's easy to get bored. If you want something to spice up your life, or to bring some fun into it at least, getting a portable DVD player can keep you occupied. When you buy a portable DVD player, you get more than just a device that plays DVDs. They are easy to handle, maintain, have long battery life. They support different DVD formats, both regional and non-regional DVDs. Plus, the long battery life ensures you don't have to sit next to a power point. The screen sizes of typical portable DVD players hover around 5 to 6 inches making them ideal to fit easily into any kind of space. If you've always wondered if you should get yourself a portable DVD player, here are the top four benefits of buying portable DVD players: Portability The size of a portable DVD player is very small. You can easily fit in into your backpack and it doesn't take up much space. Easy to carry and perfect for travel. Rechargeable Batteries The batteries are rechargeable. There's a charging port for devices available in every mode of transport, so you don't have to worry about running out of power anytime soon. Some portable DVD players even come with removable batteries. This means if you forget to bring along your charger, you can simply plug in a couple new batteries and you'll be fine. Longer Run Time For Media Content Since portable DVD players are specifically designed for entertainment, you won't be running out of fun soon. Unlike other media devices which are designed for all round use, portable DVD players can run much longer. They don't overheat when playing movies for long hours. You don't have to worry about switching it off early or giving it a break since it's designed for continuous use. It's the perfect companion for binge watching your favorite shows. They Are Affordable You can get portable DVD players for rock bottom prices as low as $20! Premium portable DVD players may cost a little extra with prices starting at $70 and above. But for the most part, these little media genies are geared towards budget friendly users. There's something available for every kind of budget. Wide Media File Support Some portable DVD players can play all kinds of media file formats. This is convenient since you don't have to worry about using a video converter or transferring your files to your DVD player. Additionally, they can be connected to your television system so you can stream content onto wide screen displays whenever you get the chance.