The Quality of Grandparent-Grandchild Relationships

Raising a child is obviously no simple or easy task, but it’s so rewarding that it’s entirely worth it. If you’re a parent, you’re pretty obviously a big force in your child’s life, and one of the chief role models. That said, there is of course something to be said about role models and mentors in the extended family. Grandparents in particular often spend a fair amount of time with the children, in many families, and they have a substantial impact alongside parents. Many children have very fond memories indeed of their grandparents as the ones who would always come and take them to do fun things like get ice cream or go to the zoo while the parents get a much needed and deserved break, gather them around to tell a story, bake a cake with them, etc, etc. Vine Vera knows you take raising your children seriously, and undoubtedly want them to have strong relationships with extended family. As such, we decided to take today to examine the grandchild-grandparent relationship, how it’s changed over the years, and how you can help ensure your child has a good one.

The Increasing Timespan of Grandparents Being in Children’s Lives
The trend lately regarding grandparent-grandchild relationships is that, because modern medicine keeps pushing the average life expectancy up higher and higher, grandparents are able to maintain solid, loving relationships with their grandchildren through childhood, into adolescence, and all the way through to adulthood. This means that, more than before, many young adults don’t just have fond memories of their grandparents, their grandparents are actually still alive and doing well. It often happens that the nature of the activities done together changes with the grandchild’s age; exciting trips to Chuk E. Cheese’s become relaxed outings to a local favorite restaurant, trips to the zoo become trips to the fine art museum, and so forth. The point is, though, that, thanks to modern medicine, grandparents now enjoy a much longer-lived relationship with their grandchildren.

The Quality of a Grandparent-Grandchild Relationship
Many people do indeed have fond memories of their grandparents, and probably still go out to lunch with them occasionally if they’re still alive and well. That said, this experience isn’t unilateral, and there are a number of things that seem to affect a grandchild’s relationship with their grandparents.

There are a number of factors, in fact, and we don’t have time to go into them all now, but one big influence is the level of connectedness and reciprocity of the family as a whole. In essence, if you maintain good relationships with your parents, your siblings, your aunts and uncles, etc., this will ultimately be likely to lead your child to have a very positive, warm family experience, including a happy relationship with their grandparents.

After all, put yourself in their shoes. If you saw your parents and grandparents fighting all the time and getting upset at each other, would you want to go out to ice cream with them? Well, you might, because you’d be a kid, and as such, ice cream might be enough to entice you, but that’s not the point. You’d undoubtedly have a very awkward and uncomfortable time with your grandparents in this scenario, and they wouldn’t leave a very good impression.

With that in mind, do your best to maintain good relationships with your family, and your children are likely to end up doing the same.

Parenting Tips From Around the World

Parenting is not a trivial task. In fact, if you’re a parent and reading this, you’re probably shaking your head right now and thinking, “that’s an understatement.” Vine Vera knows that for as rewarding it is, and for as much as it’s totally worth it, parenting does come with a unique set of challenges that can really try your patience sometimes.

As usual, Vine Vera’s here to help, but this time, to help make your life as a parent easier, we decided to turn to parents of all different nationalities around the world to get you a diverse list of tips you can call on when you’re about ready to pull your hair out in frustration.

Vietnamese Kids Are out of Diapers by Nine Months
Yes, you read that right; Vietnamese parents somehow manage to potty train their kids far faster than you might have thought possible. How do they do it? Believe it or not, they train them by whistling to get them to go to the bathroom. Specifically, they pay attention to when their baby is peeing, and whistle when they are. After doing this enough times, they can whistle to get them to pee on command, which obviously has incredible potential for potty training, and studies have shown that Vietnamese babies are generally potty trained by nine months old.

Bedtimes for Spanish Kids Are Extremely Late
Believe it or not, most parents in Spain (as well as Argentina) give their kids a bedtime around 10 PM to allow them to participate in family activities in the evenings. They do this because they feel it’s better for the child’s interpersonal and social development, reasoning that letting be awake and interacting with family well into the night will help in that capacity. Seems weird to western parents, maybe, but their kids don’t seem to be any worse off for it!

Aka Pygmy Parents in Central Africa Share Roles
The Aka people have a very egalitarian norm for parenting roles. In essence, they share them completely. While the men are out hunting, the women take care of the children, but the same applies in reverse, too. Men and women take turns hunting and caring for children, in fact, so when one’s gone, the other stays to look after the little ones. Interestingly enough, the men even breastfeed the kids. Yes, you read that right, and yes, that is possible. Little known fun fact: men have mammary glands too and are actually 100% capable of producing breast milk for infants, though the volume they produce will generally be lower since they don’t have as big of glands.

French Kids Eat What Their Parents Eat
France holds mealtimes in high esteem, and they have certain rules for meals that are almost always upheld. Meals happen at set times, snacks between them are all but unheard of, and—most interestingly—there’s a firm belief that if you keep trying something enough times, eventually you’ll acquire a taste for it. As such, small children in France who try something and don’t like it are given it several more times to see if they eventually enjoy it. The jury’s out on how often this actually works, but it’s certainly an interesting idea.

Make Being a Parent Easier

Parenting—as you surely know if you have kids of your own—is no easy or simple task. It’s totally worth it, don’t get us wrong, but at times it can be so trying on your patience you just don’t know what to do. If this sounds like you all the time, you’re not alone either. Vine Vera knows how stressful it can be, and how much that stress can impact your well-being, not to mention the rest of your family. On that note, we’ve taken it upon ourselves to provide you with a bunch of useful tips that can make being a parent seem effortless, so read on if you want to make parenting easier and more fun for all involved.

Lint Rollers are Magic
You probably know of lint rollers as those weird little things you roll across your clothes when they’re covered with crap that doesn’t come off in the wash. Little known fact: they can be used for a whole lot more than that, and can pick up all kinds of debris from furniture and other household objects. In fact, having one as part of your cleanup kit for arts and crafts is probably a good idea; roll it along any surface and it picks up glitter like nothing else.

Keep a Spray Bottle in the Car
What for? Why, burning-hot seat belt buckles, of course. Those things can be the bane of any family’s safety when kids are afraid to touch them; it’s kind of hard to buckle up without touching the seatbelt buckle. We know what you’re thinking, won’t the water be just as hot if you leave it in the car all the time? Well, yes, but it turns out that doesn’t matter. The evaporation actually cools them off enough to touch. Just make sure it’s the kind of stray bottle with a head that makes a fine mist; the sort you see on non-aerosol hairspray bottles.

Trampoline Safety Worries? Pool Noodles to the Rescue
If you have a trampoline in the backyard (which, by the way, is a great idea; it’s fun for the whole family and gives the kids away to burn off excess energy), get a bunch of pool noodles to cover the springs. Just cut them into sections as long as the trampoline springs and make a vertical slit through one side of the piece from top to bottom, then just pull it open and pop it on! No more pinched and bruised hands or feet after trampoline time.

Minor Burns? Use Vinegar
This one sounds counter-intuitive, but it’s right up there with aloe vera when it comes to burn relief. Soak a washcloth or paper towel with vinegar and hold it over the burn until it feels cool. Once that’s dried, you can apply Aloe Vera too if you like. You’re unlikely to ever get a blister when you use vinegar.

Painless Splinter-Removal
Or reduced pain, at the very least. Make a baking soda and water mix and apply it to the area with the splinter. Leave it on for a few minutes, and watch as the splinter is pushed outwards for easier, less painful removal.

Avoid Shoe Trouble With Stickers
Is your kid always putting the right shoe on the left foot and vice-versa? Make it easier to tell the difference by cutting a sticker in half and putting one-half inside each shoe, aligned with the inside edge. This way, the sticker halves will only match up if the shoes are ordered in the right way.

Natural Wines to Try

It’s not hard to see that Vine Vera is pretty enthusiastic about wine and its various benefits (not to mention the variety of delectable tastes!). So much so, many Vine Vera collections are themed after various wine varietals, and our star ingredient, found in virtually all our products, is the wine-derived antioxidant resveratrol.

It’s also no secret that drinking wine—red wine, in particular—can be beneficial to your health, and can improve the quality and appearance of your skin. But is just any red wine good for this task? Well, the answer, as it turns out, it “yes, but some are even better than others.” In other words, no matter what your favored brand and varietal of red wine might be, sipping the pungent red liquid will probably help. That said, there are a few ways you can maximize the benefit of drinking red wine for health and skin care. One of those ways is to drink natural or organic red wine, made from grapes grown without the use of pesticides! This allows more of the anti-aging and generally beneficial compounds found in red wine to be more plentiful and work more efficiently. Not only that, they’re really tasty, too! Today, Vine Vera is going to be listing a few delightful natural wines you simply must try.

Ribolla Gialla by Radikon in Friuli, Oslavje, Italy, 2007
You’re in for a unique treat if you decide to sample this complex Italian wine. It’s a bold “orange” (a white wine that’s rather deep in color) wine with a deep flavor and color resultant from letting grape skins be a part of the fermentation process for longer than usual. You’re unlikely to be disappointed with this wine; at the very, very least, it will be a unique experience, and probably a very good one.

Priscus by AmByth Estate in Paso Robles, CA, United States, 2011
This white wine with strong herbal overtones is entirely grown and produced in AmByths own orchards and wineries (meaning that if they’re making wine from it, they grew it themselves, which isn’t always the case with many wine makers). It’s delightfully botanical and drinkable with a unique character you’re unlikely to find elsewhere.

Cuvee Sans Soufre by Henri Milan in Provence, France, 2010
Popular and very easy to drink, this pleasant red wine contains to sulfites and has a pure, fragrant character.

Rkatsiteli by Our Wine in Kakheti, Georia, 2012
This wine is made by a very unique and ancient (several thousands of years old) recipe that involves actually leaving pips, skins, and stems of the vine left buried underground in a clay jar for six months as part of the winemaking process. This produces a very floral, tannic wine that’s sure to delight.

Mourvedre Nouveau by Shobbrook Wines in Adelaide Hills, South Australia, Australia, 2011
This delightful and drinkable red is mellow and fresh, and includes a bit of natural, residual CO2 as part of the bottling process, making it slightly and pleasantly bubbly to boot.

Nature 2012 by Domaine Julien Meyer in Alsace, France, 2012
A very dry yet light and fragrant natural white wine, this one is priced more reasonably than others, making it as accessible as it is delicious.

Untended Chardonnay by Donkey and Goat in Anderson Valley, California, United States, 2012
This Chardonnay blend comes from grapes all over California and is unfiltered, giving it a marvelous—if not easy to drink (have it with food)—character.

Our Favorite Zinfandel Wines

Zinfandel is a robust and complex red wine that’s as tasty as it is easy to serve. Just chill it for 15 to 20 minutes and pair with red meat, pasta, burgers, or even pizza. Zinfandel is also the inspiration for our luxurious Zinfandel collection, and in honor of this uniquely American wine, Vine Vera thought we might share some of our favorite Zinfandel Wine picks.

Dry Creek Heritage Zinfandel, Sonoma County 2009
A tasty and smooth Zinfandel with a bouquet of ginger and cherry, and tasting of warm spice, with strong notes of dark fruit, and very smooth tannins that make it easily drinkable even on its own. This Zinfandel selection is ideal if you’re looking for a wine that’s easy to drink and needs no accompaniment (although it does pair well with any of the usual Zinfandel pairings if you so desire).

Ancient Peaks Zinfandel, Paso Robles 2009
This Zinfandel is sweet and fruity, with a powerful slightly-tart strawberry smell. Tasting of ripe cherry and rather strong tannins and a higher alcohol content at about 15%, this wine should be paired with strong-tasting foods like hard cheddar, or served with dinner.

Ravenswood Winery Zinfandel, Dry Creek Valley 2011
Smelling of blackberry and smoky spices, and tasting of sweet dark fruit flavors with a tolerable level of acidity, this is another Zinfandel that’s pretty easy to drink, and could serve equally well on its own, with snacks, or a full meal. Relatively inexpensive and easy to obtain, this is a good wine to grab if you want to experience the gist of what Zinfandel has to offer.

St. Francis “Old Vines” Zinfandel, Sonoma 2008
Old Vine Zinfandel is highly sought after, because older vines tend to impart a more intense spice flavor to the resulting wines, and this little gem is a pretty good example of that. You’ll note a somewhat meaty scent with strong overtones of cherry, and it tastes a bit smoky with bright acidity and spice. Especially great when served with any dinner that features red meat as the main course.

Michael David Vineyards Seven Deadly Zins, Lodi, California 2014
This Zinfandel blend may have a humorous and punny name, but the contents of the bottle are nothing humorous. This is another excellent old vine Zinfandel that’s actually a blend of old vine grapes from several different vineyards in the area. It’s another stellar example of the richness and spice found in old vine; it’s got dark jam notes and is highly concentrated, probably making it best paired with a full meal. If you’ve never tried an old vine Zinfandel and want to see why its so highly sought after, this blend is a great starting point.

Upgrade Your Picnic

Picnics are a popular idea for romantic dates, and probably conjure up images of loving couples sitting on a blanket in a park, sipping wine and gazing lovingly into each others’ eyes as they converse, smile, and laugh together. It may be a bit of a cliché, but it’s popular for a reason, and remains an excellent choice for such occasions.

That said, while the conventional picnic is all well and good, it could certainly be improved upon, and there are a lot of ideas and details most people don’t really think about when planning one, which is why Vine Vera decided you might like to learn about a few ways to upgrade your picnic. Read on, and take your next picnic excursion to the next level.

Good for More than Just Romance
Not that romance isn’t great, because it definitely is, but one unfortunate truth when it comes to picnics is that romance is almost all that people think about when picnics come to mind. Whatever happened to the idea of a fun family picnic? If a park with fun play equipment is selected for such an excursion, it gives the parents a chance to relax and enjoy some time together as they munch on picnic favorites like sandwiches, chips, and other assorted delights. Meanwhile, the kids—after they’ve finished their lunch—have a blast on their own. Picnics can also be a great way for you to hang out with your best friends in a way you probably haven’t considered before. Bring a deck of cards or a board game, and enjoy some fun bonding time with friends.

Consider Grabbing Takeout
Cooking at home and bringing it to a picnic might seem fun and special, but it can be a logistical nightmare. Consider saving the home cooked meal for a romantic dinner at home. Instead, and grab some takeout from a mutual favorite restaurant on the way to the picnic spot, and dig in.

Bottles Not Required
For romantic picnic dates, a bottle or three of wine is pretty common, but while nice in theory, they can be a pain. If the point is to relax on the ground, who wants to awkwardly fiddle with a corkscrew and then try pouring into wine glasses without a table to simplify things? While boxed wine may not have the best of reputations, it’s actually gotten a lot better over the years, and it’s so much more convenient. Besides that, who says you even need wine at all? If you and your S.O. both love wine, great! But if not, why are you bringing it to an occasion that’s supposed to be special and personal to you and your relationship? Sure, wine is fancy, but bring whatever both of you enjoy, even if that just means a few bottles of beer and, say, hard lemonade, or even no alcohol at all, if you’d rather not.

Get a Basket that Works
You want something that looks nice and suits the mood, but do make sure it doesn’t have any holes and is easy to carry. Besides that, go for something insulated if the food’s going to be in there for very long; you don’t want to set up the picnic spot only to find all your food spoiled.

Future Skin Care Trends

Skin care in an evolving science; we discover more every day about how it works, what works best, and get closer and closer to the ideal of effortlessly flawless skin. Vine Vera is always on the cutting edge of skin care, offering you a host of products informed by the latest and best in the realm of skin care, but today we’re going to be talking about the future of skin care, and what you might expect to see happening in the days, months, and years to come. Read on for some fun and informative discussion of where we think skin care is going.

Advanced Skin Monitoring
We already have a lot of products in skin care that are tailored to different skin types, different types of problem areas, and just different needs in general. This is great, but it can sometimes be a pain to figure out exactly what your skin needs and then go find a product that specifically meets that need. If the ability to monitor and analyze the state of your skin progresses, we might see technology that can quickly and easily tell us what we should be using on our skin that day. Imagine using some kind of skin sensor or scanner to examine your skin, then getting an instant readout that tells you things like your skin’s moisture content, elasticity, cleanliness, etc. It could then recommend a routine for the day and even direct your attention to the products that would best suit your current needs. Even better, it could combine this scanning tech with the evolving science of 3D printing, and synthesize your day’s skin care regimen right there on the spot!

Sunscreen Pills
Protection from the sun is important, and you risk more than just a burn by using anything less than broad-spectrum SPF 30 or higher every day; exposure can add up over time even if you don’t get burnt and increase your odds of nasty things like skin cancer and early wrinkles. This is all well and good, and we certainly have effective ways to protect ourselves, but how fun is rubbing on oily goop every day just to avoid this? As we discover and understand more and more about how the skin responds to sunlight, and how its natural defenses could be bolstered internally to really simplify things.

Marriage of Skin Care and Makeup
We already see a fair amount of this already: foundations with SPF, tinted moisturizers that even out your tone while they hydrate, and much more. This is a trend that will probably only get more ubiquitous in time. Eventually, skin care/makeup hybrids may be good enough at what they do that most of your daily needs (save for detail work like eye makeup and lipstick) could be accomplished with a single layer of just one product, that pulled quadruple duty as a moisturizer, sunblock, anti-ager, and foundation!

Next Level Makeup Tips

Makeup is a part of many women’s lives (and, for that matter, some men’s as well!), and as such, skill at applying makeup is a desirable attribute to many of us. Practice makes perfect holds mostly true in this regard, but it’s not everything. If you want to really take your makeup to the next level and look the best that you possibly can, there are a few little-known yet incredibly helpful makeup tricks and hacks you should probably be using, but probably aren’t, because you’ve probably never heard of them before. Well, Vine Vera is here today to fix that, so read on as we give you some ideas to bring your makeup routine to the next level.

Mix Foundation and Moisturizer
Applying moisturizer and other skincare products and then applying pure foundation on top to start the makeup process is all well and good, but there’s a way to nourish your skin even more and get a glowing, dewy, natural look, and it’s glaringly simple: just mix up a little of your favorite moisturizer or skin cream with your foundation when it comes time to apply it. You can forgo separate application altogether to simplify the whole process (great when you’re in a rush), or you can go ahead and apply your moisturizer, and then, once it’s dried and absorbed, apply your foundation mixed with a bit more moisturizer, meaning your skin will get an extra boost of nourishment it wouldn’t have otherwise.

The Beginning and End are Critical
A house built with no foundation is on pretty shaky ground, right? It’s probably not going to last very long. Likewise, a house without a roof or walls is equally questionable. Just as with building a house, your makeup routine should start AND end properly for the best results. Further, contrary to what the name of the stuff implies, foundation isn’t necessarily the ideal first step. Before you apply any makeup, dab or smear on some makeup primer to give the makeup something to adhere to so it goes on evenly and stays on. As the very last step, dust on a translucent fixing powder to hold it all firmly in place. With the combination of these two at start and finish, your makeup’s durability should be rock-solid.

Use a Q-tip with Makeup Remover for Flawless Eyeliner
Trying a new style of eyeliner, like wings or extra bold, and can’t get it to cooperate with you? There are quick and easy solutions to eyeliner like felt-tipped eyeliner pens, but there are some effects you can really only accomplish with the liquid, and they can be really hard to accomplish. To make them work for you, try your best to get it right, but if you don’t, instead of wiping it all away to start over, dab a q-tip in your favorite makeup remover and carefully erase only the sloppy bits and rough edges, leaving behind a flawless eyeliner design.

Vacation Beauty Do’s

When you go on a vacation the last thing you want to do is to be overly fussy about your beauty routine. This is especially true if you are going somewhere warm, tropical, and relaxed. This is the time to kick back your hair and makeup a bit so that you can enjoy just being on vacation. Here are some of the top vacation beauty do’s for you to try on your trip. Granted if you are going on a trip to Paris or Milan during peak fashion season then all bets are off. You’ll have to do it up to the nine’s, but for a truly downtime trip to the beach these tips will have you paired down to the basics in no time flat. Oh, and leave your flat iron at home. That’s an order!

Do Let Your Hair Rest
If you are one of those people who gets bi-weekly blowouts, or utilizes a flat iron most days then give your hair a much-needed break. Styling tools like blow dryers, and hot irons cause so much stress to the delicate hair structure. Let your hair air dry in the warm sun on vacation to give it a chance to recuperate.

Do Use Less Product
Other than a little bit of leave in conditioner, in combination with a frizz defying gel. what more do you need on vacation? Enjoy the natural texture of your hair for once. Men love a little natural wave in a girl’s hair. So your partner might enjoy seeing you “au natural” for once. IF you are going to the beach for a few hours, you might also want to slick a deep conditioner through your hair to give it a hydration boost.

Do Go Without Foundation
Lighten up on your makeup, especially if you were a full face of foundation every day. Give your skin a chance to breathe on vacation. Take a lighter BB Cream with you instead. It will even out your skin tone just as well, but allow your skin to show through. Fresh, natural skin looks way more vacation appropriate than your normal full coverage meant for the office foundation.

Do Wear Sunscreen
Of course, you are diligently wearing your sunscreen year round right? Will, amp up the coverage on vacation. Sun exposure is the number one cause of aging in the skin. It is responsible for around 80 percent of it, so protect your skin as your investment in your skin health for the future.

Do An All Over Color Stick
A few makeup companies make these, but a two of the favorites are Nars Cosmetics “The Multiple Stick” and Charlotte Tilbury “Beach Stick.” Both are creamy to blend easily over eyes, lips, and cheeks to give you that all over flush of healthy color. “Ibiza” Beach stick is the perfect bronzy tone to give you that warm glow you desire while on vacation. It will look great with all your bright sundresses, and strappy espadrilles.

Do Use Waterproof Mascara
No one likes to see someone get out of the pool with raccoon eyes. That means ringed by non-waterproof mascara that has smudged all over the eye area. Prevent this by investing in a great waterproof mascara. Lancome Definicils Waterproof Mascara ($31) is a staple for any vacation destination that has water activities. It’s not too thick so it will look more natural. Get it in dark brown for an even softer look while swimming.

Surviving a Family Vacation

For most people, family is pretty important, and the bonds you have with your children, parents, siblings, or favorite aunts, uncles, cousins or grandparents, etc. can be very strong and loving, and some of the most important in your life. That said, they can also be rather hard to deal with much of the time. It’s said that “familiarity breeds contempt,” and while familiarity can also breed love and acceptance, it’s very much true that a shared history has as much of a dark side as it does good. This ultimately translates to family infighting, getting tired of each others’ presence, and general frustration.

And if that’s true in general, it’s extremely true for family vacations. Typically, vacations are a nice way to relax, have fun, and experience new things, either enjoying the pleasant company of a person or people close to you, or going solo and pampering yourself. With family vacations, particularly large ones where you get many immediate and extended family members coming along, you certainly might be around people close to you, but there can also be a lot of drama, and if you have children, there are a whole host of other issues and trying circumstances. For this reason, Vine Vera has compiled a list of helpful tips to keep you sane on you next family vacation.

Make Time for You
With family vacations—and group vacations in general, for that matter—the focus is often on what will be the most fun for everyone involved. This is great, and gives you a chance to have fun and bond with people you love, but it can grow tiring, particularly if you’re at all introverted, and you might feel drained and like you wish you could do something just for yourself. As such, you should do something for yourself! It’s important to be kind to yourself and allow yourself to do the things you like to do, all on your own, in the downtime between fun family stuff. What exactly this means depends on you and your interests, but reading a good book or taking a relaxing bath (many nice resorts and hotels have very, very luxurious giant baths with bubble jets and all) are great places to start. Also, if you have a favorite hobby, bring the supplies with you!

Take Pictures
The main point of a family vacation is fun and bonding for everyone in the family, so make sure to document it! Are your kids having an absolute blast building a sandcastle? Take a picture! Is there a picturesque view perfect for a photo op? Gather everyone together for a selfie! Don’t forget to record all the happy memories and fun times you all had; you’ll probably cherish these kinds of pictures for ages, and if you’re into scrapbooking, vacation photos are just perfect for it.

Exercise
As we’ve mentioned, family vacations can be as stressful as they are fun, and exercise is one of the best ways to relieve stress. Not only that, but it’s important for your overall health, as well as important details of your health like skin quality. Most hotels and resorts have a free to use (for guests) exercise room with cardio and weight machines, and sometimes free weights too. Besides that, you can always go for a brisk morning jog; it’s a great way to get a feel for the new environment of whatever place you’re staying at.