How To Improve Your Health And Feel Younger Using Steam

One of my favorite ways to care for my health is using steam. It’s simple and inexpensive, and the health benefits of steam have been known for many years.

Steam is a versatile element. You can use it for anything from steam bathing in a sauna or steam shower, to cleaning your home and preparing your food.

Steam Bathing

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Columbus Day Craft Activities for the Whole Family

Celebrating Columbus Day with crafts can be a lot of fun. Below are some craft ideas for various ages.

1. Boats

Boats (or, more accurately, ships) are a natural – both for Columbus Day and craft projects. There are quite a few ways you can make a model sailing ship of the type Columbus sailed; here are ideas for a few.

* Egg cartons are the basis for all kinds of crafts, including mini ships! For several small ships (remember the fleet of three ships, the Nina, Pinta, and Santa Maria), you can cut the egg carton’s segments into individual cups. Put floral foam into each cup. You could also use regular Styrofoam, or anything light that will hold up a toothpick.

Then, use toothpicks and paper to create sails – glue toothpicks to squares of white paper. Stick the toothpick sails into the foam inside the cups. If you are using foam egg cartons, you can float your little ships on water. If you use cardboard cartons, you can still float your ships but they will soften after a while.

Try having a boat race using your homemade sailing ships, a wading pool, and a fan!

* Egg cartons have a lid, too, and that can also be made into a ship. Simply turn it open-side-up and fill it with floral foam (or equivalent). Use popsicle sticks or shish kabob skewers to hold the sails rather than toothpicks. You can race these larger ships, too, and you can add as little or as much detail as you like. If you use cardboard, you can paint them.

You could combine these craft ideas and make the larger ship to be the Santa Maria, and the smaller ones that you made from the carton cups could be the Nina and Pinta. It’s known that the Santa Maria was the biggest of the three actual ships.

2. Maps

Making maps can be fun. Use the brown paper from used paper shopping bags, or some other antique-looking paper. Then create a map showing Columbus’s route from Europe to South America. These can be illustrated elaborately or simply.

Check your local library or the internet for a detailed description of Columbus’s route. Once your maps are finished, you can put them up on the walls or laminate them with clear contact paper and use them for display or as placemats (placemaps?).

3. Queen for a Day

Kids enjoy dressing up, so why not dress up as Queen Isabella? Research the fashions of the era, and find out how the Queen dressed. Use cardboard, glitter, and sequins to make a crown such as 16th-century Queens might have worn. Dowels can be coated with glitter and wound with ribbon to create scepters.

Celebrating Columbus Day with Your Family

Columbus Day is not a holiday that needs to languish in obscurity. You can celebrate this historic event with your family. After all, don’t we all love an excuse for a party? Here are some ideas for celebrating the traditional “discovery” of America in 1492.

Eat Italian and Spanish Foods

Columbus was a native of Genoa, Italy; his famous voyage was funded by Queen Isabella of Spain. Some of the most wonderful cuisine in the world originates from this part of the world. And much of it is enjoyed by children and adults alike. Try Spanish rice and chicken, or a traditional paella dish. Lasagna, spaghetti, and other pasta dishes are versatile and widely enjoyed.

Crafts

Why not make miniature versions of Columbus’s ships, the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria? You don’t have to build a delicate ship model with all kinds of intricate parts (but of course, you can if you like!); depending on the age ranges in your family, you can make simple ship models from paper cups, egg carton segments, or the smooth tops of egg cartons. If you use the foam ones, your boats will be waterproof.

Paper, cloth, craft foam, or thin cardboard can be used to make simple sails for the ships, held up by toothpicks. Fill a bowl with water and float your ships; or set down a mirror, blue or clear plate, or blue paper and use your creations on the table as a centerpiece.

If you make waterproof ships using craft foam or foam egg cartons, you can “launch” them across a child’s pool. You could even race them! If your kids like science, you can talk about and demonstrate how wind moves the ships by pushing against the sails. Use a compass, and discuss how Columbus had to navigate his ships using the stars, sun, moon, and wind direction.

Community Events

See if there are any community events taking place in your area. Parades are traditional Columbus Day celebrations; see if your family can attend one, or watch one on TV. There might be a play or re-enactment being put on, too, perhaps presented at your local theater or as an outdoor drama.

Explore and Discover

Since it’s celebrated on the second Monday in October, the weather is often beautiful on Columbus Day. Depending on what part of the country you live in, there may be spectacular fall colors in your area. Or you can take a fall foliage trip with the family. You could take a special hike to look for new and interesting natural formations, locations, or views.

Visit somewhere you’ve never been. Just make sure you have the spirit of exploration and discovery, and your Columbus Day celebration will be right on target!

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