Month: September 2019

Betting on Horse Racing for Dummies

The world has been betting on horses since the time that it was discovered that they could, well, run! While formal horse racing and betting were once set aside for the aristocrats only, it’s now a sport that’s enjoyed and appreciated by people from all walks of life.

If you have an inkling to indulge in horse betting with the hope to beat the odds, then you have arrived at the right place. Here we will help you to better your odds and give advice on what to pay attention to (and when). There are also various online sports tipping services for various sports other than horse betting – like rugby, soccer, football, etc that could help you improve your chances of winning a bet placed. However, in this guide for dummies, we will provide you with tools that you can use to track the mechanics of placing researched bets, once you have read this article, you can go ahead and place a bet on one of the trusted betting sites, such as Timeform.

How to Place a Wager on a Horse Race

Horse racing and betting somehow continue to be a source of making money and entertainment for many. Though betting on horse racing might seem complicated at first but once you have a firm grasp of the reigns (no pun intended), then it truly isn’t that complex. Moreover, after you learn about the odds, it would be worthwhile giving a shot at it on websites like the fun88 link. This list sets out the betting procedure step for step:

On your betting form you need to:

  1. Add the name of your selected racetrack
  2. Mention what number race you’re betting on
  3. State the stake (amount) of your bet
  4. Indicate the type of wager you are making
  5. Mention your horse’s number/s
  6. Revise your ticket before leaving the window

Betting Tools You Need at the Horse Races

The betting essentials include:

  • A racetrack program: This program includes all of the information on the horses who are racing at the event. It also mentions the jockeys and trainers. Studying this program can be helpful in determining a winning bet.
  • The Daily Racing Form (DRF): This form offers information on the past performances of all the horses running on the day’s itinerary.
  • Horse racing sportsbook software: It’s crucial that you communicate with your PPH bookie directly to go over each of the individual horse wagers, and determine the maximum odds and rewards for each sort of horse wager. Hence, it might be a good idea to go through reviews of the best pay per head sportsbook sites and select the one according to your betting budget. This is important since it will drastically reduce your risk and ensure that no one hits any horse bets that exceed your monetary limit.
  • Handicapping tip sheets: These are daily choices published by *handicappers at the racetrack.

* A handicapper is someone who is a professional at betting. Handicappers look for advantages that give them the best chance at winning their wager.

Types of Horse Racing Wagers

There are many types of wagers that can be placed in horse racing but in an effort to keep things basic, we’ll look at the 3 most popular options:

  • A trifecta: A trifecta bet is an exotic wager type that requires you to select the first three horses in the correct finishing order. Though trifectas are far more difficult to win, the payoffs are also far greater.
  • A win: To win, your horse must come in at first place (the pay-outs with a win are larger than with other bets)
    1. A place: With a place bet, your horse must finish 1st or 2nd
  • A show: With a show, your horse must finish 1st, 2nd, or 3rd

Play and show bets have more modest payoffs but your chances of beating the odds increase.

Understanding the Odds

When you are betting on a horse, you want to know how much your potential winning be will give you. Basically, to compute a $2-win price, you need to take the odds of your horse and then multiply the first number by 2. Next, you will divide that by the 2nd number, and then add $2 – easy-peasy!

To master the art of horse betting, practice is what helps to lead to perfection. So, our ultimate piece of advice is to make modest bets at first while gambling responsibly.

Source: Bitcoin System

On The Front Line: Sprucing Up The Exterior of Your Home

Pixabay – CC0 Licence

If you’re looking to transform your home from the inside out, always think about the exterior first. Whether you’re looking to add curb appeal, or you want to give your home a different feel, changing the exterior of the home is a great way to improve the property in every single way. With this in mind, what are the best ways to do this, that doesn’t cost too much money, is simple, and doesn’t require that much effort?

Fix The Shrubbery

Companies like Proactive Landscaping that can help with this. But if you want to take on the challenge yourself, fixing the exterior of your home can be done by altering the garden. You want to add swathes of color. And if you want to improve that sense of curb appeal, adding color, by implementing container gardens, or even just trimming the bushes helps to create that sense of symmetry. Remember, symmetrical arrangements work best.

Retile The Roof

This can be the priciest of the exterior jobs but ignoring it will do you no good. A roof with cracked and missing tiles will only continue to fall apart and then water will come to damage the inside of your home, even in a light shower. Worst case scenario it will fall down and damage the house. So call upon a Burlington Roofing Company to patch it up or even retile the whole roof in a vibrant new color. You’ll love the results, trust us on this.

Revamp The Exterior

Think of this from the perspective of a passerby. The front of the home is always the focal point of attraction. Make sure the siding of the house is in tact, and if not, then hire companies like Stateline Exteriors to replace it with a new one. Once the exterior is perfect, add some style and elegance to the home with a new front door or give the existing door a new paint job to add more style to it. Use doors that tend to have etched or stained glass to enhance your curb appeal. It’s important to remember that your front door needs to reflect what is inside the home too. You can easily do this by installing a wreath that reflects your own individual style, or you can just give the door a good clean.

Install Lighting

Not only does it help to illuminate the home during the dark, helps provide extra security and safety. They don’t have to be expensive, you can purchase low voltage landscape lighting. But if you don’t have the opportunity to plug lights in, you can still find solar fixtures, but remember that the light levels aren’t so reliable.

Installing Outdoor Art

If you have time, you can reflect the interior of your property by adding some weather-resistant artwork. Remember, you need to choose items that complement the general feel of the home. They don’t have to be expensive; there are items like wind chimes that work wonders. If you want to go a bit more adventurous, you can make a bid for birdbaths or water sculptures.

Fixing The Pathway

The pathway is the way to make a grand entrance to the property. Think about it from the perspective of someone making that journey from the sidewalk to the front door. Get rid of all the cracks, clean up any paving, and remove all of the mess – you could even hire someone like this Cape Coral Pressure Washing service to come and give it a good clean so that it looks as clean as possible. This is especially true if you want to sell up. Because somebody needs to picture themselves making that journey home, you have to do your best to remove as much of the irrelevant clutter as possible.

The exterior of your home is pretty easy to spruce up and doesn’t have to take a long time. If you have a few days to spare, you can replace the guttering, give the whole house a new lick of paint, as well as add fences, stone veneers, and other little touchstones. The exterior home is crucial to the entire feel of the property, inside and out.

The 5 Secrets To Achieving A Vibrant Garden

https://pixabay.com/photos/wild-flowers-flowers-plant-macro-571940/

Achieving a beautiful, vibrant-looking garden is probably the most important goal of any keen gardener, and it’s not nearly as difficult as many people think. All it takes is a little bit of forethought, and some care and attention, and you will soon have the garden of your dreams. However, sometimes people may want results fast and will look at a synthetic grass install service in their area or something similar, meaning that they won’t have to worry too much about the grass all the while keeping the garden looking vibrant all year round, but that is for those who want a quick fix or a perfectly placed lawn (who could blame them). I digress, here are the five secrets to keeping a vibrant garden.

1. Work on Your Lawn

While colorful flowerbeds look stunning, what most people notice first is the lawn, so ensuring that it’s in tip-top condition will add greatly to the overall look of your garden. During the summer, take care not to cut the grass too short and adjust the height of your mower’s blades when cutting shaded grass. Take time to work on any patches at the end of the summer so your lawn will look great the following year. If you want to take it a little further, perhaps because you live for the flair, you can also consider incorporating an artificial green wall somewhere in your garden. It can make the entire space look greener and more vibrant, which is always pleasing to the eye.

2. Use Mulch on Your Flowerbeds

Mulch can be anything from a loose covering of tree bark or compost to pebbles or stone chippings. Which one you use, depends very much on you. While mulch that is biodegradable will help add nutrients back to the soil, non-biodegradable materials can make a garden look more decorative. Mulch not only keeps soil moist for longer but also stops weeds growing, meaning less work for you!

3. Start Composting

Home composting is the basis for any vibrant garden and it is remarkably easy to do. All you need is a composting bin and lots of raw material. You can use grass cuttings, leaves, kitchen waste, and anything else that can decompose. You’ll also need to add something to create air pockets so your compost can breathe. Twigs work well and empty cereal boxes scrunched up are pretty good too. However, do understand that air pockets can lead to the growth of maggots. They are beneficial considering the nutritional value, but you ought to handle the unpleasant odor. You can avoid the growth of Maggots in compost by covering the bin and also by being selective of what you put in it. Leaves, herbs, and vegetable scraps don’t attract worms. But animal waste and protein scraps can attract various kinds of flies and so you might want to avoid such items.

4. Watering Your Garden

Of course, you can’t have a vibrant garden without watering your lawn and plants, so try to get gardening help with your local tree expert in Seattle. One of the best ways to give your garden a uniform amount of water is with a great sprinkler system. You will also need to keep your sprinklers in good working order so don’t forget to arrange for an annual service and arrange sprinkler repair if it’s needed.

5. You Have to Put in the Work

The number one secret to keeping a vibrant garden is… that there isn’t really a secret! It’s all down to good old-fashioned hard work and planning. While you’re enjoying your garden in the summer, you should be thinking about what you’re going to do in the fall and then, the hard bit is remembering you have to do it.
However, an easy way of keeping your garden green during the fall would be – covering it with sods. It will give you that coveted greenery, minus the hard work. If you choose to do so and are based in the US, you might benefit from contacting a firm like Green Valley Turf Co.

https://pixabay.com/photos/flower-meadow-wildflowers-meadow-1510602/

Wrapping It All Up

Achieving a garden with the wow factor isn’t a result of any secret formulas. And you don’t need to be born with green fingers to turn a scrap of rough ground into a piece of paradise. It’s simply good planning and a little bit of work. You only get from a garden what you put into it and, as any keen gardener knows, that’s no secret at all.

Are You Ready To Transition To The 3rd Trimester?

Many months separate the first joy and excitement of the pregnancy with the moment you finally get to meet your baby. In many ways, moms-to-be find the third trimester the most difficult to handle. Indeed, between week 29 and week 40 – aka the seventh, eighth, and ninth months of your pregnancy – the feeling of tiredness is omnipresent. By that point, fetal development is almost complete. In other words, now the baby’s primary focus is to gain weight and grow until there’s no more room in the amniotic sac. To put it in clear terms, for the future mommy, it’s an uncomfortable period during which you struggle with exhaustion, and unease of movements. If it is your first pregnancy, you might also be unsure as to when your baby will arrive. Indeed, your body is not a clock, and it is highly unlikely that you give birth on your due date – only 5% of babies are born on the due date. The transition to the 3rd trimester is physically and emotionally challenging.

Pixabay – CC0 License

 

Staying cool when nothing feels comfortable

The last trimester is always the most demanding for mothers. But for anybody who’s going through their third trimester now, smart summer pregnancy tips can dramatically help to improve your comfort. In a way, you are in luck because now is the best season for cozy maternity wear such as maxi dresses. You’ll find it easier to put together a cute outfit in summer when there’s an abundance of breezy linen dresses and skirts to survive the hot temperatures!
Your body needs help to cool down, so you need to stay hydrated, either by drinking a lot of water or also by going swimming, which can alleviate the pressure on your belly. Additionally, don’t be tempted by unhealthy snacks to stay cool. Now just during the postpartum recovery period, eating nutritious and seasonal food is the best way to fuel your body with energy.

Maternity clothes are a must

If you’ve managed to go through the first two trimesters of your pregnancy with oversized clothes, now’s the time to finally buy maternity outfits that can help you to hold your tummy. Indeed, the last trimester is all about growth, so you need to select outfits that offer support. You should also be on the lookout for breastfeeding bras as your breasts are close to their postpartum size and shape at that point. Be aware that your body doesn’t bounce back in shape immediately after the birth. You will be wearing your maternity clothes for a little while.

Sleeping is tricky but not impossible

The last few months of your pregnancy will be the most testing in terms of comfort. A lot of moms-to-be experience sleep deprivation during the third trimester already, as a result of extreme exhaustion, frequency of urination, and the difficulty to get comfortable. Unfortunately, there is no miracle solution. Back pain and muscle aches can cause significant sleep disturbances as well as the weight of your tummy. A pregnancy pillow can decrease your discomfort and help you to sleep. Or you might consider investing in a more comfortable mattress to suit your needs, you may want to click here to potentially read a review on a mattress that may be suitable. Or you could do your own research into which mattresses and other pregnancy sleep-related items are good for helping with sleep. Additionally, you need to get used to falling asleep quickly, as it will be a life-saving skill to catch some zzz’s when your baby is born!

In many ways, the third trimester offers an overview of what you need to expect during the postpartum period. From your outfit to keeping your body healthy and catching up on some sleep, a lot of the tips you develop now will be useful for many months to come!

Quick Home Transformations That Will Seriously Improve Your Life

Summer’s still here and the sun’s shining but, let’s be honest…does your home look a little bit tired? The bright light really magnifies every imperfection – but don’t panic! You can create the right ‘feel quickly.- with a bit of creativity.

After all,  when your home looks and functions better, you do too – so it’s well worth giving it a quick overhaul.

 

Create the right ‘feel’ without breaking the bank

Your first priority is to get everything fresh, bright and clean by making the space right and, yes, losing the clutter!   

 

Rearrange your furniture 

It’s amazing what a quick change around of your furniture can achieve – and there’s a lot to be said for a little Feng Shui.  Try to think about how the light works in your rooms in different seasons and find ways to maximize it, wherever you can. 

It’s not time, just yet, to ‘think ‘cozy’ – so create clear paths through your rooms to allow views of the outside.  Open the windows to get some fresh air – and give them a clean inside and out so they let in every ray of sunshine.

 

Invest in a great rug

Is your floor covering looking a bit worn – and does it drain the light from your room when the weather’s better? In that case, it’s important to think about how to choose a rug that resolves that.

 

If you invest in something bold and colorful, it can really change the space – with a minimum of effort. Because it’s just one key piece, it shouldn’t break the bank – and you’ll definitely get a lot of brightness for your buck!  

 

Spruce up your tiling

Yes, really.  It’s amazing how transformation a little bit of new grouting can be.  It can give your bathroom a completely fresh look – for a really small outlay. And if you contact an expert, like Groutsmith Tulsa they’ll make sure you get a really professional finish.

 

Paint your walls

If you give your walls a quick repaint it can really lift and change the feeling of your space for the season.  

 

Choose a lovely sunny color like yellow or orange or something fresh and crisp like pale blue or green. Or you could hang some beautiful wallpaper on one wall – maybe even a hanging – it will freshen the room and give it some focus..  

Pexels – CCO Licence

 

Dye your curtains

Have you got an old pair of curtains in a neutral shade or ones you stopped using because they got faded? Why not dye them a lovely fresh color to give your whole room an instant lift and glow? 

 

It’s easy, quick and effective and dyes are readily available in any DIY store or supermarket nowadays.  And you just pop the mix straight into your washing machine, along with the curtains; it’s so easy to do – why not give it a go?

 

We hope this has given you a few good ideas for freshening up your home this summer – and improving your life.  With a little bit of know how and a lot of imagination you really can make your home shine – just like the season.

 

Unlimited Fun for the Whole Family

With two boys and a husband, we play with blocks, legos, and cars A LOT. According to my husband we can never have too many of each. 

Honestly, I kind of agree with him. 

I love toys that spark creativity and imagination; each of which those toys do. We’re able to play, learn, create, and grow with our children as we help them and watch them build and imagine. 

One of our recent favorites has been magnetic tiles. These block-like magnets are buildable and offer endless imagination. Building in 2D or 3D, there are really a ton of opportunities for everyone in our family to build and create something unique of their own. 

Not only are these tiles great for building and imagining, but they are great for other learning opportunities. We use them with our youngest to practice shape recognition and color sorting. 

We have recently discovered the Magformers tiles and love this brand. Keep reading to see why I like them more than some of the other magnetic tiles we have. 

 

Magformers offers many types and varieties of sets on their website. The set we received is the Amazing Rescue Set. 

Included in the set is:

  • 8 triangle
  • 14 squares
  • 1 rectangle
  • 1 super square
  • 2 characters
  • 24 accessories. Including wheels
  • step-by-step idea booklet

This set comes with 50 building pieces and is good for kids ages 3 and up. 



The Amazing Rescue Set allows you to create and build your own fire adventure. Options include, but are not limited to, a fire station, fire truck, rescue vehicles, and many more. The booklet that is included is super helpful and gives 50+ ideas and models to build. There are options for at least 20 rescue-concept models, 20 basic models (that you can make with basic pieces), and 10 planar figures (2D transformed into 3D). 



The step-by-step booklet is great for my learning three year old. I love that he can look at the pictures and figure out which shapes he needs to collect and then how he needs to put them together to get the end result. Great cause and effect play, but also great following directions practice. 



The Magformers are all compatible with each other, no matter the shape or accessory. Each of their geometric shapes contain magnets that will never reject. You will always hear the “click” of the Magformers tiles when connections them together. 

The plastic is BPA free too - safe for kiddos. 



One of my favorite aspects of the Magformers are the idea booklets that are included in each box. There are so many options to choose from and I love that they have so many laid out for you. The non-creative parents really appreciate it! 



This may go without saying, but I’m going to disclose this information anyways because I have made this mistake with a different magnet set.. 

DO NOT submerge your tiles in water. Don’t place them in a sink full of water OR the dishwasher to clean them. If they need to be cleaned, simply wipe each tile off individually. Sounds tedious, but you will be thankful that you did it. Submerging the tiles allows water to get in between the plastic and magnets which, in turn, can cause rust to form. 

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