YOGA FOR KIDS

When I had my son, there were several Mommy and Me yoga classes around for new moms and infants.  But, as he got older - it became impossible to find a yoga class for 3 year olds.  Until, one day, I happened upon Next Generation Yoga and its owner/founder, Jodi Komitor.  Founded in 1998, Jodi, a pioneer in the kids’ yoga movement, created the first yoga studio (in the world) just for kids!  Jodi's take on yoga for kids:  "The mission of Next Generation Yoga: joyful, playful self-expression for children."  Her classes are incredible!  She has family classes, which are a wonderful bonding experience to do with your kids.  She sometimes even does classes on the beach.  After my boy's first class, he said, in the car ride home, "I felt such peace while I was there."  He was 3!  So, if you are in the San Diego area, I would consider this a MUST!  

http://nextgenerationyoga.com/

CURIOSITY

It is our job as parents to not only protect and guide our children, but to inspire their senses of curiosity, adventure, and creativity.  So, as parents, we ourselves must be curious, adventurous, and creative.  

What are ways in which you are curious, adventurous, and creative?

SO, YOUR KIDS ARE OUT OF SCHOOL - NOW, WHAT?

Summer rolls around and many parents are left to wonder - "What can I do to entertain my kids?" Well, no worries, parents - your options are endless! Here are 50 low-cost or no-cost things to do during the summer:

1. Get dirty - make mud pies!

2. Make an outdoor obstacle course in your backyard.

3. Put on a family magic show, puppet show, comedy show, or talent show.

4. Play dress up.

5. Moms, let your kids style your hair. Give them all sorts of ribbons and do-dads! If you dare, you can wear your new "do" out!

6. Make bird feeders. Spread peanut butter on a pine cone and roll it in bird seeds. Hang on a tree and watch the birds gobble it up!

7. Hang a hummingbird feeder in the yard so you can watch the hummingbirds from a window.

8. Create a potted vegetable and herb garden. This is easy to do organically, since it is easier to control pests in a potted garden.

9. Plant a fruit tree.

10. Build a tree house or fort outside.

11. Build a temporary fort inside out of sofa cushions, blankets, and pillows.

12. Camp outside.

13. Make s'mores.

14. Make homemade ice cream.

15. Buy a solar shower (about $25 at a camping store) and shower outside.

16. Blow bubbles! Make bubble wands out of string, coat hangers, etc. See how creative you can get!

17. Play ball.

18. Play tag.

19. Color, paint, and draw.

20. Make clay pots.

21. Cut flowers from the garden and make flower arrangements. Deliver the arrangements to loved ones.

22. Make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches (individually packed) for your local homeless shelter.

23. Go bike riding. (Wear helmets!)

24. Go on a nature walk or hike.

25. If you live near the ocean, go tidepooling!

26. Go fishing.

27. Get out on the water in a canoe, kayak, or rowboat. (Wear life vests!)

28. Visit a local farm.

29. Go to the local farmer's market.

30. Make homemade pizza.

31. Volunteer at the local animal shelter.

32. Eat breakfast for dinner.

33. Wear p.j.s all day.

34. Write a bedtime story with your kids. Take your creation to the local copy store, and have the book bound. (Should cost around $5 for spiral binding.)

35. Go to the beach and build sandcastles.

36. Collect twigs, stones, and other natural findings and make a "fairy house" in your backyard.

37. Give the car a break. If your market is not too far away, take your wagon and walk to the market.

38. Go swimming at a nearby pool, beach, or lake.

39. Invite friends over (young and not-so-young) and have a summertime potluck!

40. Join a reading club at the library.

41. Cook a meal from another culture.

42. Go to Home Depot or Lowe's for a children's woodworking day. (Normally on Saturdays - check their schedule.)

43. Research local backyard wildlife. Learn about the creatures that call your backyard "home."

44. Line your patio with newspaper. Lay an old sheet on top. Get out the paint and dip your hands and feet in the colors and paint away!

45. Research constellations and go outside at night to discover the wonders in the sky.

46. Have a dance party. Crank up the music and dance, dance, dance!

47. Take a picnic to one of your local symphony's Summer Pops Concerts.

48. Go wild at the zoo!

49. Find a festival! Check out the newspaper for Greek festivals, Scottish festivals, Japanese festivals, etc...

50. Spend a day at a Children's Museum.

SUMMERTIME MOVIES

Summertime means spending more time outdoors.  It also is a big season for movies.  Why not bring the movies outdoors?  We hang a white sheet on our laundry line and use a projector and computer to watch all sorts of things.  Our son's friends come over and they eat pizza, as they watch anything from animated movies to Discovery Channel programs.  When the kids go to bed, my husband and I hang out in the hammock and get caught up on t.v. shows on Hulu.  Lots of fun.  With tiki torches lit, the garden in full bloom, and the moon out - it doesn't get better than this!

The Green Parent - Great Magazine!

I love magazines!  I am a sucker for anything related to gardening (esp. organic gardening), travel (esp. adventure travel), and parenting.  But, the selection of "green" parenting magazines is rather slim.  Until, one day, my mother-in-law brought over this amazing find from the UK.  The Green Parent is a wonderful resource for us sorta-crunchy mamas out there!  Here is a recent feature from their online site:

24 MAY 2010

Make recycled boats

In this project from the latest edition of The Green Parent you can learn how to make these great boats that are fun for all ages and encourage resourcefulness. Boats can be made out of anything that floats, from a simple piece of bark or twigs, to bits and pieces from the recycling bin.

Take your creation to the water

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*SUPPLIES *
For wooden rafts and boats: small straight branches or twigs, raffia (or string or twine), fabric scraps, needle and thread
For recycled boats: juice or milk carton washing up bottle (any item that floats) discarded paper, twigs, modeling clay

1 The simplest wooden vessel to make is a raft; add a sail and it not only looks more like a boat but the sail will push it across the water. Collect an assortment of small, fallen branches and twigs and look out for straighter wood. Decide how large you want your boat to be, trim the branches to that length and line them up to check the overall size. When you have the size you like, take a long piece of raffia and tie the centre of the length of raffia around the end of one of the trimmed branches. Note: Do not pull the raffia too tight or it might break, it’s okay if the branches are a little loose. Take the ends of the raffia and tie another branch the same way around the end right next to the other one. Keep adding branches and tying them until you’ve tied all of the branches together. Then tie the opposite ends of the branches together with raffia in the same way.

2 Make the boat more stable by tying a support branch across each end of the branches where you tied the raffia. Secure these branches by tying one end with raffia, then thread the raffia around the top branch and down around the lower branches. Continue threading until you reach the end and tie it off. Repeat on the other side of the raft. Make a sail for your boat by cutting a scrap of cloth into a triangle with a 90-degree angle. You may want to cut the triangle out of a piece of paper first and hold it up to the boat to determine the size sail you want; then use the paper sail for a pattern to cut out the cloth. At this stage >
> you may want to decorate the sailcloth with embroidery or patches.

3 Lay a straight twig over the cloth edge opposite the 90-degree angle and fold the cloth over the twig. Using a needle and thread, stitch the twig to the cloth. Add a twig to the bottom of the sail to create a “boom” and attach it with a needle and thread in a few places. Next take a long twig for a mast. Measure it against the boat to determine the height you’d like it to be and add about 5cm to its base (extra length is needed when you attach the sail to the boat). Stitch the remaining edge of the sail to the mast in a few places and leave a little room at the top for a flag. Stitch a small flag to the top of the mast if you wish. Wedge the sail between two of the twigs of the boat. If the mast is loose, tighten it at the base by tieing raffia tightly around the mast base and the twigs of the boat or wedge in a little modelling clay to tighten it. Set it to sail on a pond, stream, a bowl or the bath.

4 Make boats from recycled materials.
Position a juice carton flat on its side so the triangular part of its top points up and cut off one side. The triangle will form the bow of the boat. Take a piece of paper and cut out two pirate ship style sails, one slightly smaller than the other.

5 Trim a stick to the right length to form a mast and thread the sails on to the twig, the largest first. A flag can be attached to the top of the mast.

6 Roll a ball of modelling clay in your hands and centre it in the bottom of the carton and stick it down; then push the mast into the ball of clay.

Note: Boat making is a great summertime activity for a group of children, just provide a pile of parts and see what they build. After the building, hold a regatta. In addition to the boats, small sailors and pirates can be made using materials that float, like clothes pegs or empty thread spools with wooden beads for heads.
Download a template for the sails here

Joan Gorman is a full-time mum, part-time art teacher and contributes the fantastic crafts pages inside every edition of The Green Parent magazine. Visit her lovely blog for inspiration.

WORKING MAMA

So, I don't have a "conventional" career.  But, these days, what is "conventional?"  I am a working actor, director, and teacher.  It can be a crazy life, in some ways...auditions popping up at the last minute, late nights at the theatre...but it's my life.  And, I am so glad to be able to share what I do with my little boy.

Several years ago, while performing in the musical, "Wicked," my son would hang out backstage with me in the dressing room.  He loved meeting all my wacky theatre pals.  Seeing the costumes and sets backstage was really "cool!"  He loved knowing how all the "tricks" worked in the show, like how the broom flies, or how the lift, that makes the witch fly, works.  He even was able to "help" the scarecrow put on his scarecrow makeup.

My husband also has a wonderful profession.  He is a music director for a high school, as well as a percussionist.  One of my boy's favorite things to do is to go to school with daddy, after hours (when he has to get some extra work done).  He has the band room to himself and can bang on the timpani, the marimbas, the snares, and more!  

Being that hubby and I are both in the arts, we have had some press in the local newspapers, for various events and projects we work on.  Now, my son thinks that is the coolest thing ever.  He thinks his mommy and daddy are "famous" - because he says"if you are in the paper, you are famous!"  So, what a treat for him the other day when an article came out in the local paper about a show I am currently working on, and the reporter mentioned my son at the top of the article.  His face lit up, because now he is "famous!"  His teacher even put the article on the bulletin board at school not because of me, but because of him.  

Now, I could care less about this whole "famous" thing, although I do think it is very cute.  But what does touch my heart is that even though I have to go out there and earn my money - which means I sometimes have to be away from my boy while at rehearsals or performances, I can share this thing I do with him.  And, he feels important and loved.

Classics For Kids

Hey, everybody!  A friend of mine (who is a home school mom) sent me this link.  It is a weekly on-line radio program (only 6 minutes long) for kids that exposes them to different classical composers.  There are activity pages that accompany each program, as well as music games and an online music dictionary.  

http://www.classicsforkids.com/