This week on air with The Family Show on 96five I spoke about birthday parties, and shared my top tips for hassle-free parties.  If you missed it, here’s a summary for you:

• Invitation etiquette usually becomes an issue at school age. Either limit the party to 2 or 3 “special friends”, or invite all of the girls/boys in the class, or invite everyone!
• As well as stating a start time, include a finish time.  Two hours is usually long enough for a kids’ party.  Let parents know whether you would like them to stay for the duration of the party, and if siblings are invited.
• Go for activities rather than games, especially for younger children. Three year olds will be engaged for much longer with playdough than with a pinata.
• Try not to leave yourself with too much to DO during the party. You want to celebrate with your child.
• Keep party bags simple!

Of course, the reason I was talking about parties was because my big girl turned FIVE!  She has been planning her rainbow birthday party for a looong time and it was so delightful to see her share the occasion with all of the girls from her prep class.  Here are a few colourful shots of the party:

The Rainbow Girl

And all the yumminess

The Rainbow Food!

Do you have a top party tip to share?

I didn’t choose The Wiggles, even though Dorothy rather considers herself a dino-ballerina.

I didn’t choose Justine Clarke, even though she’s hands down my favourite children’s entertainer.

I didn’t choose a Playschool album, or a Jimmy Giggle album, or any other children’s album.

So what DID I choose?

Haydn, Rimsky-Korsakov, Schubert, Tchaikovsky and Grieg.  Yes, classical orchestral music by some of the world’s best composers.  Despite my love for good qualitychildren’s music, I fear that at times we do our kids a disservice by not exposing them to music beyond this.  It is valuable for little ears to hear different sounds from different places and different times.  Rock music, classical music, folk music, jazz music, choral music and more.  (Of course there is much adult music that is inappropriate for children so you may need to check any lyrics before you push play!)

I spent many hours rehearsing and playing in orchestras myself as a child and as a teenager, and I still enjoy cranking up the volume of a great piece every now and then.  I can’t expect my kids to enjoy classical, or jazz (which I also love) with me if I never give them the opportunity to listen to it.  Or dance to it.

Which genres of music do you enjoy,

and do your kids listen, sing or dance along too?

Blob.

Swirl.

Squelch.

Slide.

Blend.

Marvel.

Explore.

Create.

Delight!

What is it?

ART not Craft is a downloadable, 53 page ebook in a pdf format.  Instead of buying a paper-and-cover book, you purchase an ebook and either print it out, or read it on the screen.  It is in full colour and contains lots of great photos of young children in action with a variety of mediums.

How much is it?

Using an e-format keeps overheads low, so you can purchase it for $15.95 (and you get a bonus gift).  If you could book an early childhood consultant to sit down over coffee while you pick her brain about all-things-art, it would cost a fortune!  This book is kind of like that.  Oh, except Christie is totally a tea drinker…

What’s in it?

Loads of information on why we approach art in the early years the way we do, and great ideas for you to try.  ART not Craft is broken into sections on drawing, painting, printmaking, collage and sculpture.  Christie gives suggestions throughout for learning, doing, seeing, and talking with your child as you go.  It is a resource you will go back to many times.

Who should buy it?

If you have ever given your child a blob of playdough, or put a paintbrush into their hand and thought, “Now what…?!” – this is a book for you!  Many parents want to be creative with their kids, and want to provide creative learning opportunities, but just don’t know where to start.  It’s also a great resource for anyone working with under fives.

When asked to comment on the book, here’s what I had to say:

“Children are inherently creative, and are capable of doing so much more than merely copying simple crafts. In this ebook Christie opens up a world of possibilities for you to explore with your child, or with a whole class of young children. I highly recommend Art Not Craft to parents and educators who are looking to provide rich, creative and artistic opportunities for the children in their care.”

BONUS!  Purchase Art Not Craft: The Process of Learning Creatively and you will receive ‘A Wish For All Children’ poster as a downloadable, easy to print A4 PDF. Hang it in your home to inspire and remind you of the importance of children making art.

______________________________________

*Yes, she lives in Perth and I’m in Brisbane. We share virtual cuppas. And yes we squealed like teenage girls when we got to meet in Sydney and be roomies for the Australian Blogging Conference…

My son surprises me constantly because he thinks so differently to me. When I asked him to sweep up the cornflakes he spilled on the floor recently, he ran off to his toybox to find a truck.  Just as I was about to rouse on him for going to play instead of cleaning the mess – I realised what he was doing.  He swept the cornflakes into the dustpan, tipped the dustpan into the dump truck, drove the truck over to the bin, and emptied out the contents!

Instead of being cross at him, we all laughed and I took a quick photo.  For me it was a moment of learning.

Sometimes in my impatience I step in too early.  And if I’m honest, perhaps I also assume my children will do things my way.  I say that I want to raise the kids to be independent, to be good problem solvers and to be creative.  But I wonder if my actions speak louder than my words.  Am I actually communicating completely the opposite?  I have to give my children the time, space and opportunity to do things their way.

Even if it means cleaning the floor with a dump truck.

]]> http://squigglemum.com/kids/boys/doing-it-their-way/feed/ 13 http://squigglemum.com/kids/simple-pleasures/ http://squigglemum.com/kids/simple-pleasures/#comments Tue, 22 Mar 2011 20:53:41 +0000 SquiggleMum http://squigglemum.com/?p=4955

Childhood is full of simple pleasures:

Tossing autumns leaves

Jumping in puddles

Blowing bubbles

Catching rain on your tongue

Collecting shells

Chasing butterflies

Spinning until you fall down.

*   *   *

It’s a shame we have to grow up.

Or do we?

This week I did something I thought I would never do: I sent my young daughter to school with makeup on!  It was class photo day, and she had an absolute shiner of a black eye.  It was every shade of green and yellow and black and blue you can imagine! The bruising (as a result of playing around in the loungeroom and bumping into a cupboard corner) was still visible.  I just took the edge off with a bit of pressed powder.

I don’t mind really that she had a black eye for the photo. She’s a kid. She plays and laughs and lives and bruises like a kid. It’s all part of the package.  That said, I still felt the need to cover it – just a little.

I shared on facebook, and asked whether other mums would cover a black eye, or leave it.  The response was mixed, but lots of mums jumped in to give their thoughts..

One reader shared that some school photographers are now offering to photoshop “blemishes” from your child for a fee.  This is where it crosses the line for me.  Even if I had the option to photoshop my daughter’s bruise out, I wouldn’t.  I’m ok with covering it with a little foundation, but I don’t want to pretend things aren’t there.  And more than that, I am really, really concerned about the message this might send to my kids.   My children are not blemished. Not in any way. Not even with bruises!  I don’t think anyone’s children are blemished. I don’t think anyone is blemished. We are who we are, and we are all beautiful.

What do you think? Would you have covered the bruise a little, like I did?  Would you have left it in all its colourful glory? Or would you go so far as to select the “photoshop blemishes” option if offered?

-

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Whoa. Check out this big branch that fell down!

I’m going to move it up there to build a cubby with it.

All. By. Myself.

Hmph. I can’t do it.

(sigh) Please can you help? We could do it together?

I’ll hold this end. You hold that end. We’ll pull it up there, ok?

HEY! That’s not helping…!

Come up here and we’ll drag it together.

HOORAY! We’re moving it!

Now we can take it wherever we want to…

*   *   *

I loved watching my kids as they solved this problem together. I’m so very glad I didn’t jump in and just move the branch for them. All kinds of good stuff was going on:  investigating, formulating a plan, admitting the need for help, trial and error, working cooperatively and more. Child’s play is serious business!

And why have I not included a photo of the finished cubby? Because like most things in early childhood, the process was so much more important than the end product.

Would you have let your kids play with such a big branch?

]]> http://squigglemum.com/kids/the-big-branch/feed/ 4 http://squigglemum.com/activities/play-tray/ http://squigglemum.com/activities/play-tray/#comments Tue, 08 Mar 2011 06:29:10 +0000 SquiggleMum http://squigglemum.com/?p=4872 Step 1.  Hammer the wood.

SquiggleDad helped, of course.

Step 2.  Make your purchases.

Green rocks. Small plant. Mini trolley. Happy boy.

Step 3.  Arrange the tray.

We used wooden offcuts, smooth pebbles, sticks and banksias.

Step 4. Invite the locals.

Dinosaurs were the first residents of our play tray.

Step 5. Innovate.

Long pieces of bark make great roads. Dinosaurs out. Trucks in.

Step 6. Enjoy!

So. Much. Fun.

Do you have a play tray?

Do you allow your child to make purchasing decisions?

Would you let your two year old use a hammer?!

Do you think this looks like fun?

]]> http://squigglemum.com/activities/play-tray/feed/ 14 http://squigglemum.com/kids/10-things-to-do-on-sick-days/ http://squigglemum.com/kids/10-things-to-do-on-sick-days/#comments Mon, 28 Feb 2011 03:26:49 +0000 SquiggleMum http://squigglemum.com/?p=4845

I have both kids home sick today.  One is quite cheery, despite being very unwell. The other is quite miserable, despite not being all that sick!  Typical.

Here are 10 things to do with kids on sick days. (Thanks to my facebook readers for some of these suggestions).  A word of caution though – if you make the day too much fun they won’t want to go to school tomorrow!!

1. Make them rest. If they are sick enough to be home, rest is mandatory. In our house that means being on your bed for an hour after lunch (not in front of the tv…)
2. Get outside. Fresh air can work wonders. Just make sure you choose a sensible time of day, and dress your child appropriately for the weather.  (40 degree days aren’t ideal, nor is snow!)
3. Watch a movie.
4. Box construction.  Kids of all ages enjoy making things with boxes. Pull boxes out of the recyling bin, hunt for some toilet rolls, dig a few shoeboxes out of the cupboard and let them go for it.
5. Make jelly.
6. Read stories.  You know that story on the shelf that your child asks for at bedtime, and you look at your watch and say, “Maybe another night. Pick again“…?! Yep, this is the day for those stories.
7. Tackle a tidying job together.  Sort out that messy plastics draw, or the linen cupboard.
8. Colour in.  I’m not usually a fan of mindless colouring, but it can be an excellent sick day activity. Lots of free printable pages are available online. Find something that is of interest to your child.
9. Playdough. Make it from scratch (it only takes a few minutes), and let your child choose the colour. Older kids love adding straws, googly eyes, bamboo skewers, feathers etc to the playdough.
10. Write a letter, postcard or email to someone. It’s a good way of sneaking some writing into the day

Of course, if you are also sick, you should only attempt 1, 3 and 8.  And possibly 5.  Of course there’s always option 11. which is call for backup…

Do you have any other suggestions to add? If so please leave a comment and we might try it this afternoon!