TRAY 6 Umbrellas and More

Do rainy days get you down? Make you feel like you have cabin fever because the rain is keeping you locked inside? Do your little ones think it’s a free pass to park themselves in front of the TV? Well have no fear, we have the answer to your rainy day blues! Below are some fun activities that actually require a rainy day!

1. Host a splash contest. Now, you’ll need a fairly big rain for this – but grab your raincoats, rain boots and an umbrella and head outdoors. You’ll need to pick some judges for the contest who will judge the splash. Then let each competitor perform their best splash! You can even create categories of splashes; big, dainty, messy, etc. Have some cool prizes picked out for the winners (water guns, pool toys, beach balls, fun umbrellas).

2. Create a Wet N’ Wild obstacle course! Use things you have around the house to create a series of fun activities for team members to challenge themselves with. Examples include; hula hooping 5 times, kicking a beach ball through plastic cones, spinning around with an umbrella, or tossing water balloons back and forth between team members! The wetter the activity the better! The goal is to have your whole team cross the finish line soaking wet! Remember, rain is the theme of the day!

3. Try out some crazy hair colors! Now, you’ll definitely want a rainy day for this, but this one is often fun for the kiddos. Stop by your local Party City or costume store and get some color hair spray (the kind that washes out in 1 wash) in crazy colors like blue, pink or lime green! Then have your own at home beauty salon. Allow the kiddos to pick out some crazy hair colors or mix and match multiple colors and then take some fun crazy photos before running outside into the rain and allowing the rain to start the process of washing out the color!

With all these fun rainy day activities, you’ll be counting down the days until the storm clouds start gathering! Have fun!

You know the holidays are approaching when you’ve just begun unpacking from one holiday trip and you’re already packing for another. We often spend the majority of November through January in airports across the globe jetting off to see friends and family and when you’re seasoned travelers like us, you know a few tricks of traveling – like the 10 MUST HAVE’s in your carry on bag. We never leave home (or the airplane) without them!

TRAY6′s Top 10 Travel Tips:

1. A Hard Copy Of Your Travel Plans – smart phones are great, but when the battery dies or you can’t find a place to charge it or, heaven forbid, you’ve lost it, it’s reassuring to reach in your carry on and find a hard copy of flight numbers, departure times, etc.

2. A Stylish and Reliable Travel Sized Umbrella – You never know how much you’ll miss it until you find yourself having to change terminals in a downpour and there are no shuttles…

3. A Sweater (or Sweatshirt) – airplanes & airports can get chilly, and there’s no reason to suffer in chilly air… along with the person next to you who doesn’t understand how to share an armrest.

4. Cash – there will be times when you find yourself in a situation that plastic cannot solve, so we make it a rule of thumb to carry enough cash to catch a cab if the need ever arises.

5. A Book – whether it’s on your iPad or the good ole fashion hard copy a book can help you get through those 4 hour flights, or worse, layovers when all the stores in the airport have already closed.

6. A Toothbrush – you may be on the red-eye or you may just want to freshen up before you greet family and friends in baggage claim, but a toothbrush comes in handy more often than you’d think (just remember if you’re bringing toothpaste or mouthwash, it must be less than 3oz if it’s in your carry-on). It can also be your best friend when you arrive in a foreign city (or get stuck in one) and your checked bag doesn’t make it.

7. A fresh pair of …uhh…. unmentionables. Why? See Tip 6. You’ll thank us one day.

8. A Neck Roll Pillow – hey…you’ll laugh at the people that have them, but when you’re trying to get some shut eye in the middle seat, you’ll be able to snooze without fear of waking up to find you’ve drooled on your neighbors shoulder. And plus, most airlines no longer hand out pillows due to sanitary concerns.

9. Chargers – Everything electronic will die. Whether it’s that beloved laptop or that iPod or even your cell phone…batteries can only last so long. And why is that you always have to make the most important calls when you have 0 battery left?!

10. Snacks – although you can’t bring your own water bottles on the plane, you can bring your own snacks. With more and more airlines charging for food and those packets of peanuts getting smaller and smaller, it’s so easy to just reach in your bag and pull out your very own bag of almonds or crackers. It can be super helpful when you’re looking at a 4+ hour flight.

So when we find ourselves knee deep in the travel season, we’re always carrying these things in our carry-on. Whether it’s an umbrella or a book, we never leave home without them!

Safe travels!