Crafts and Activities Related to Childrens Books

Title:Great Books to Read and Fun Things to do with Them
Author: Mary Beth Lagerborg
Ages: Parents of children aged 2 and up

All the other books I have reviewed so far are for children to read but I ran across this book and thought it looked like fun. The editors picked a children's book for each month of the year and then collected a bunch of ideas for crafts, snacks and activities related to that book as well as ideas of things to teach your child about using the book. The ideas look like lots of fun and seem like a great help for those long summer days when your little one is on preschool break.

Books include classics like The Very Hungry Caterpillar and Where the Wild Things Are as well as a bunch of books I have not heard of and am looking forward to trying out.

*this post originally written 5/30/2006

Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why?

Title:Why is soap so slippery?
Author:Catherine Ripley
Ages: 3 and up

I am sure I am not the only mother of a 3-year old hearing Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? ALL DAY LONG! Check this book out! It has answers to some common questions kids might ask - these are all about bathtime. But I noticed when I looked on Amazon, this author has several other books of a similar nature - answers to questions on other topics. My son will be thrilled!

*this post originally written 5/28/2006

Puerto Rican Folktale

Title:There's a Billy Goat in the Garden
Author:Laurel Dee Gugler

This story is a retelling of a Puerto Rican folk tale. The story flows smoothly and the illustrations are unusual and enjoyable to examine.

Here is a quote from the publishers website(Barefoot Books):
Another soon-to-be classic collage picture book from Clare Beaton! This heartwarming version of an old Puerto Rican folktale reminds us that the smallest creature can make a huge difference. Join a group of farmyard animals as they stomp, bark and whinny in their hilarious attempts to chase a misbehaving billy goat from the garden. The animals' confidence soon turns to dismay as the billy goat remains stubborn, and the solution to the problem lies not with the biggest, but with the littlest of them all.

*this post originally written 5/21/2006

Soap Nuts Giveaway!

Ok, these are the coolest sounding things ever. I really want to try this.

Soap Nuts!

Isn't that crazy sounding? An inexpensive and natural laundry soap.

Go check out the giveaway Lindsay is doing and read her really interesting article about homemade laundry detergent options.

I have been planning to try making my own for quite a while now but have not gotten to it. This seems even easier and more natural for sure!

Richard Scarry's Best First Book Ever

Title:Best First Book Ever
Author:Richard Scarry
Ages: 3-5 years

I have fond memories of Richard Scarry books from when I was growing up. A few years ago, I pulled out an old one to share with my son and was pretty disappointed with the busy pages and strange characters intermingled into the story. So I really think the choice of the title is a bit odd. This is not a great first book.

But now that my son is 3 and a half, we are really enjoying this book. He likes to look at it on his own and read it with me. It is chock full of all sorts of things to learn about like colors, numbers and months of the year. I'm sure we'll be enjoying this one for a long time to come. So even though it is not a great first book - it is a great book for the preschool set.

*this post originally written 5/17/2006

I Love You Because You're You

Title:I Love You Because You're You
Author:Liza Baker
Age: 1-4 years

I took the advice of PJ Librarian at The Magic of Books and got the book I Love You Because You're You. I was so excited that I wanted to read it right away to my 3-year old. I should have waited until he was in the mood for a cuddly-lovey book-reading-snuggle instead of eager to go outside to play. I, on the other hand, was almost crying as I enjoyed holding my quickly-growing-up little boy while reading such a sweet book. PJ Librarian hit the nail on the head for me when she said

Plus, as a parent it is a reassuring read to sooth a soul on a crazy and hectic day.

Another thing I like a lot about this story -- It goes through a bunch of situations where the little fox's mother still loves him like when he is sad or angry or loud but fortunately it does not do what some other similar books I have seen do. It does not suggest bad behavior to my little one that he may not yet have thought of, like

I love you even when you paint the walls and your brother too!
I love you even when you disobey and run into the street.

Sure we still love them but lets not put any ideas in their heads.

*this post originally written 5/9/2006

All Aboard Overnight (A book about a train ride)

Title: All Aboard Overnight:A book of compound words
Author: Betsy and Giulio Maestro

We got this book right around the time we were taking a train trip ourselves. After reading this, our kids were quite disappointed that we did not go on a much longer ride including a sleeping berth.

I have liked most the books we have read by Betsy and Giulio Maestro. They have lots of educational books many of which are about various modes of transportation. This story follows a family as they go on an overnight train ride to visit grandparents and has a focus on compound words.

My kids both really enjoy this one

Truck and Loader by Helen R. Haddad

Title: Truck and Loader
Author: Helen R. Haddad
Age: 3 years – 5 years

This is a nice, short chapter book for little ones who can sit for a little longer book. This one is especially interesting because it tells 3 different stories of situations where the dump truck and loader can work together to get a job done. This is a great addition to your library of books about trucks. Especially if you are getting tired of the simple books where trucks and truck parts are just labeled. My son asks me to read this one over and over again.

*this post originally written 5/5/2006

Terrific Trains by Tony Mitton

Title: Terrific Trains
Author: Tony Mitton
Age: 2 years – 4 years
This book is one in another series of books about Things that Go. They feature a set of animal friends that work, ride, and drive around. There are lots of great illustrations that provoke my 3-year old to ask lots of questions. It is also easy to use this book to ask my son questions like “What is the rabbit doing?” and “Why is the bird there?” The text is simple and rhyming but does a nice job explaining about how things work.

*this post originally written 5/3/2006

There's a Wocket in My Pocket by Dr. Seuss

Title: There's a Wocket in My Pocket
Author: Dr. Seuss
Age: Birth – 3 years
I am all for educational books. In fact, we make a beeline for the non-fiction children’s books each visit to the library. Our whole family is learning an amazing amount from the books we read with my 3-year old including books like the Fire Truck Factory.

But some books are just fun! I love reading this Dr. Seuss book with my kids. It just rolls off your tongue and the pictures are funny to look at. Maybe I should not have said JUST fun either. They say that listening to rhymes helps kids develop their language skills and maybe even math ones too. And everyone knows that laughter is the best medicine. Keep rhyming!

*this post originally written 5/2/2006

Too Many Mittens by Florence and Louis Slobodkin

Title: Too Many Mittens
Author: Florence and Louis Slobodkin
Age: 3 years and up
I’m really starting to like some of the older children’s books I run across. This one was written in 1958 and my family really enjoys reading it. It is a simple story of some boys who lose their mittens and then end up collecting a bunch of lost mittens and returning them to their rightful owners. It’s a fun story. Perhaps we are easily amused but I enjoy seeing all those mittens showing up everywhere they go. And how sweet the way they help a bunch of mittens get back to their rightful owners. A nice lesson for all kids! I’m sure I sound old fashioned but a lot of the newer children’s books just seem plain weird.

*this post originally written 5/1/2006

Unplugged Project - Yellow

This weeks theme is yellow!

I had what I thought was a really good idea but it did not turn out that well. I recently purchased a whole set of tempera paint and thought it would be fun to do a painting project. My idea was to have beautiful paintings with a variety of shades of yellow only. We would mix yellow with each of the other colors and talk about what the new color was.

My kids did like painting but the paints I bought (from Oriental Trading) were pretty poor quality and they just frustrated me. But the kids made 2-3 paintings each and we did have some nice conversations about mixing colors so I guess I will lighten up.

Hopefully I will have something with photos next week.

TV Turnoff Week Results

Well, my kids did great! I think they watched 3 videos this week total and stuck to the 30 minutes per day rule for the computer with minimal protesting. They are pretty good at finding something else to do. I did well at being consistent on enforcing that.

The rest of it went pretty poorly. I did well on Monday with keeping my computer usage under control and I really liked it. I only used it at the set times and it really felt good. I felt different - less spastic and rushed and I definitely got more done. I have no good explanation for why I did not continue for the rest of the week since it was really nice. Old habits die hard, I guess.

I am also embarrassed to say I did not do the one activity per day I had planned to do with my kids. My excuse is that they were finding things to do so nicely that I did not have to come up with anything but really I am sure there were times I could have done this. I was a bit thrown off by some things that happened this week and just wasn't able to get it together. We did do some extra reading this week after getting a big new pile of library books!

Now I need to think about what I want to do with my computer habits moving forward....

Mouse Goes Out - Easy Reader

Title: Mouse Goes Out
Author:Phyllis Root

My little one is almost 4 and he absolutely loves this book. It is in the "Brand New Readers" series and contains 4 short, simple stories about a mouse. My son calls it "My I can read book" and is always looking for it to read it over and over again.

After reading it to him a couple of times, he was able to "read" it to himself or to his family members with great pride and joy. I believe it has really helped him with his letter and word recognition, and with his love of books and reading. The story is even simpler than a lot of easy readers so he could grasp it at his young age, but the story is actually quite cute and funny.

I am also looking into some of the other books in the series as a result of the fun we have had with this one.

Portland with Kids: OMSI

I wish I would have re-read this post from Debbie at DeliciousBaby the night before we went. We had a little trouble getting started at OMSI. Not getting there, we asked the front desk staff and our hotel and got good walking directions, but once we got there.

When we paid our $40 (!!!!) admission (not including any of the additional items like the submarine), they did not give us a map. So we just headed up the escalator and ended up in the Life Sciences room. We spent about 15 minutes there but clearly everything was targeted at an older crowd than we had (our boys are 6 and almost 4). I knew I had heard there were hands on activities for little ones and left the family in there to scope it out.

Sure enough, right next door was the Science Playground which is geared towards 6 year olds and younger. It was pretty crowded but our kids did not care at all. They loved it. There were so many activities they enjoyed. They spent almost 1 hour solely in the sand area and eventually we decided to move them along to something else. Is it possible they could have played there all day? They spent about 30 minutes at the amazing water table and got totally soaked, even in the smocks provided. Definitely wear the smock and the boots and BRING A CHANGE OF CLOTHES. I knew it had been suggested to do that, but my kids don't usually get wet in water tables. Bring the change of clothes - they were DRENCHED!

There are also art projects, a grocere store, buckets that go up and down on a pulley and so many other fun things for younger kids to do. After several hours in the Science Playground, we moved downstairs to the Turbine Hall. This is the most amazing part of the museum. If we would have understood the layout of the place, we would have headed straight here when we arrived.

The hands-on activities here are suited for bigger kids or younger kids with their parents assistance. There were so many interesting things here that my kids really loved. Our favorites were probably the ball room (I don't even know how to explain it - it was just totally cool. Go and see it!) or the bottle rockets. We also did actual chemistry labs together and built buildings to withstand earthquakes.

We spent the entire day there. We got there a few minutes after they opened at 9:30 and left right at 5pm as they were closing. We went on a Friday and there were lot of people there but it wasn't so bad we could not do everything we wanted. I imagine it might be harder on the weekends. It was a great day that we all enjoyed even if it totally wore us all out.

*Note: I have written a bunch of posts about Portland so if you want to read more, click on the Portland Label at the end of the post, and you will see all the Portland entries.

Turnoff Week Blog Challenge

It is time again for the Turnoff Week Blog Challenge. This will be our second year participating. I can't believe it is time again already, I feel like I just did this. I think this is a great chance to evaluate how we are doing and set some goals and priorities for our family.

Our current status:

• My kids are allowed to watch 1 video (30 mins-1 hour) each day. Most days they do not even ask for one.
• I don’t watch any television at all.
• Both my kids love playing games and typing on the computer and I have been waffling on the time limits and they have been spending a lot of time doing that.
• I spend way too much time checking email and reading blogs.

I am happy with the limited amount of time my kids watch TV, I am not going to do a TV-free week. I will outline our goals below.


Our goals for the week:

• Limit my kids to 30 minutes each on the computer per day using a free timer program I found online.
• Limit my computer usage by only using it during set periods of time during the day. I think those times will be 7-7:30am, 1-1:30pm, and 7:00-7:30pm. I keep my task list on my computer so I will have to print that in the mornings so I won't go to check it and get "trapped" by the lure of my email.
• Participate in one craft or activity each day with my kids (using that time I would have been reading random blogs!)
  

So I guess the summary is that we are not actually turning everything off, but using this week to try out some new limits and maybe break some bad habits. We’ll see how it goes!

Portland with Kids : Chinese Garden

We had a beautiful sunny (but somewhat cool) afternoon to spend in Portland so after hitting the Portland Saturday Market (by the Skidmore Fountain) we walked a few blocks over to the Classical Chinese Garden.

In addition to a self-guided tour guide, the volunteer staff was nice enough to give us a children's scavenger hunt packet which was a laminated booklet of pictures of things to search for in the garden. This was a great addition as it gave the kids something to do while we walked around. The gardens and buildings are beautiful and the area is so serene and restful. (Would have been more so had we not had kids with us that I was worried would fall right into the easily accessible water)

The admission charge was about $24 and we were probably there about 1-1.5 hours.

*Note: I have written a bunch of posts about Portland so if you want to read more, click on the Portland Label at the end of the post, and you will see all the Portland entries.

Portland with Kids : Pearl District

The Jameson Square fountain is so neat and fun. The weather wasn't even all that good when we were there so we weren't able to get wet but it was still lots of fun. There are rocks to stand on and stay dry while the area fills up all around you, and you can always run from the filling fountain like you would the tides at the beach. We had a really fun time playing around and watching the water cycles.

We did not have a lot of time in the Pearl District as we needed to catch our train, but we also checked out Powell's Bookstore and the Pearl Bakery (yummy croissants!) We will definitely check it out again next time we are in Portland. We also went to the Whole Foods right near Powell's to pick up some lunch for the train and use the restroom facilities.

To get there, we took the streetcar and got off at the last stop before leaving fareless square (10th and Glisan)

*Note: I have written a bunch of posts about Portland so if you want to read more, click on the Portland Label at the end of the post, and you will see all the Portland entries.

Portland with Kids : World Forestry Center

The World Forestry Center is located right by the Portland Zoo. It is very easily accessible via the light rail line heading west out of downtown.

We spent about 1.5 hours working our way through the exhibits. They had some really neat hands on exhibits which appealed to our young kids. It is not a huge place but it seems very nice and new. It was almost deserted which was a big plus for us as we were able to enjoy everything at our own speed. For example, our kids spent quite a while at the pretend tree planting station.

Since this is an indoor activity, one idea would be to spend some time here before heading to the zoo right next door once the day warms up. Instead, we headed over to the Chinese Garden for the afternoon.

Our family of two adults and two children paid $26 admission. As I said, we enjoyed our 1.5 hours there and are glad we got a chance to check it out.

*Note: I have written a bunch of posts about Portland so if you want to read more, click on the Portland Label at the end of the post, and you will see all the Portland entries.

Portland with Kids: Dining Choices

Well, we did not have that great a food experience on this trip. Meaning - it was fine but we did not get to try any of the interesting places I had researched before we went.

We were all tired by dinner time and did not feel like sitting in a restaurant. Frequently when we travel, I bring a lot of food, which would have worked on this trip since our hotel room had a kitchen. But since we took the train and were traveling lightly, I did not bring much, just some snack food and lunch for the train.

Our hotel provided an extensive breakfast each morning. One day we ate at OMSI for lunch. The cafe there was actually quite good and had some healthy options. One day we ate at the Portland Saturday Market. For our dinners, we ended up ordering delivery two nights - once Hot Lips Pizza and once Chinese food. The other night we stopped off and picked up some sandwiches and sushi and a little place we happened to pass on the way back to our hotel.

Near the end of our visit, I noticed there is a Safeway right on the streetcar line (1030 SW Jefferson). If we would have realized sooner, we could have used it instead of some of the dinner deliveries.

One fun place we got to check out was the Pearl Bakery. The croissants we had were really good. We also stopped at the Whole Food right by Powells Books to get some food for the train ride home.

Maybe next time we will get to try some more of the cool sounding places Portland has to offer....

*Note: I have written a bunch of posts about Portland so if you want to read more, click on the Portland Label at the end of the post, and you will see all the Portland entries.