About MikeAllanHeim

As the fall foliage lights up the gray autumn sky, take advantage of the cooler weather and get outside to try photography as your next hobby! Whether you are an iPhone, Android, or professional camera user, consider exploring new places in your hometown to capture the perfect fall photo. Or maybe, you are looking to get an early start to family Christmas photos? So, if you are like the 46% of people who report they typically pursue their hobbies with family, according to a survey of HughesNet users, photography may be great hobby for you and your loved ones to enjoy together! Whatever your desire, photography is a relaxing and creative activity for everyone! To help you on your photography journey, here are a couple online resources to enhance your experience. Follow CNET’s guide to how to take the best landscape photos, found here! Or, tie together photography and painting by uploading your photos to a computer, printing them out, and painting over the photo to create a unique piece of artwork or even a Christmas gift for a loved one. Follow some tips on how to make your photograph a unique piece on Improve Photography! Be sure to share you your landscape photos in the comments below! ... View more

Autumn is upon us, bringing a crispness in the air, a colorful change in foliage, and a collection of outdoor activities to do as a family. For many, it also marks the last few warm days to get out and enjoy the weather before the pre-winter chills and frost appear. But a cool fall breeze whistling through the leaves of a tree doesn’t need to mark the end of family fun. In fact, it is an opportunity to crack out the kites with the kids to take advantage of the strong winds. If your family doesn’t have kite, fear not. HughesNet and 4-H have teamed up to introduce Crazy Kites, a STEM education resource and activity teaches your kids how lift and air pressure work together to make things fly, with just a few household items! Using items found around the house, you can easily create a kite with your kids. All you need is: · 8.5” X 11” sheet of paper (1 sheet per child) · Tape · Scissors · Plastic straws · Sewing thread or string · Breezy day or a fan Your kids can take creative liberty and design their kites however they’d like! Create a kite shaped like a leaf, Jack-O-Lantern, ghost, or any other fall item! This activity allows your child to further expand their knowledge by testing their kite creations and making improvements to help their kites successfully soar in the sky. Adjust the length of the tail or the length of the bridle, or the overall size of the kite, it’s up to your children to determine what works best for their creation. The full activity can be found here. Be sure to share your child’s creations or improvements made to their kites in the comments below! ... View more

With Labor Day behind us and kids back to school, it can be hard to get back into learning mode, particularly after many long summer days. To help with this summer education slide, HughesNet and 4-H offer kids a series of exciting STEM activities they can do from home. For example, kids can explore electrical currents and their power with the HughesNet and 4-H “Science Bug” STEM Activity, which focuses on pairing electricity and biology into one fun activity to create their very own light-up Science Bug necklace. To try this activity with your kids and family, all you’ll need is: • 3 LED lights • 1 watch battery • String • Printer paper • Electrical tape • Colored markers • Scissors Visit this link for a step-by-step guide that your kids can follow to build their own light-up bug. Kids can personalize their bug however they’d like, using markers, stick on gems, string, stickers, and other objects around the house. Let their creativity run wild. Whether they are making a ladybug, a bumblebee, or their very own imaginary bug, “Science Bug” is sure to engage and teach kids about the power of electrical currents. Be sure to share your kids’ creations in the comments! ... View more