When we finally got around to transitioning Laurel out of her crib a few months ago, it was a joyful (for her) and emotional (for me) moment. Despite being decidedly short on leisure time, I decided to commemorate the occasion with a quilt, and found excellent inspiration in Last-Minute Patchwork + Quilted Gifts. The project took longer than the estimated 8-12 hours - largely because I adjusted the pattern, added an extra detail, and obsessed over getting the measurements right - but the results were marvelous. Click here for details and project photos. I wish the book offered a few more diagrams (although it probably doesn't hurt to exercise the spatial orientation neurons a bit...), but I otherwise highly recommend this book for beginning or experienced crafters.When we finally got around to transitioning Laurel out of her crib a few months ago, it was a joyful (for her) and emotional (for me) moment. Despite being decidedly short on leisure time, I decided to commemorate the occasion with a quilt, and found excellent inspiration in Last-Minute Patchwork + Quilted Gifts. The project took longer than the estimated 8-12 hours - largely because I adjusted the pattern, added an extra detail, and obsessed over getting the measurements right - but the results were marvelous. Click here for details and project photos. I wish the book offered a few more diagrams (although it probably doesn't hurt to exercise the spatial orientation neurons a bit...), but I otherwise highly recommend this book for beginning or experienced crafters.
Today, Kate shares a puzzle pick:
“Our 2-year-old daughter is beginning to understand and enjoy puzzles, but I've had a hard time finding ones that are appropriate to her age and interests. Many have pieces that are too small and chokeable, others are too sophisticated for tiny fingers, and still others have strange and flashy features or sounds. For these reasons, we appreciate the Crocodile Creek Natural World ABC floor puzzle; this puzzle is made with large pieces that are easy for small hands to manipulate (even though the puzzle is labeled for ages 3-6), the illustrations are colorful and charming, and the images - of animals, fruit, and the earth - are child-friendly and easily recognizable. A hit with both adults and kids, this puzzle is lovely for anyone who enjoys puzzles and wants to share them with a little one.”
If you’re looking for a fun project to do with older kids, consider finger knitting. My ultra crafty sister-in-law (as in, she spins and dyes her own yarn) showed me this technique recently; the process is perfect for mamas and kids because it’s needle-free and fast, particularly if you use a bulky yarn (this bolero yarn is similar in bulk to what I used). I made some fab coordinating mama & daughter scarves in under an hour, and I can’t wait until Laurel’s paws are big enough so she can try making one on her own. For excellent instructions and photos, see Knitty.com.
We've recently received some useful leads for toy and safety guides, good for the holidays and all year round. Locally organized Teachers Resisting Unhealthy Children’s Entertainment (TRUCE) has a printable toy guide featuring recommendations for toys that promote positive play (and those to avoid), as well as great ideas for themed creative play gifts made of household items. ToyTips.com features unbiased reviews generated by a team of psychologists, educators, child-care, and health professionals. And the Toy Industry Association has launched ToyInfo.org, a site dedicated to toy safety information.
These have been tough toy times, and whether Laurel is aware of this on some psychic level, or whether she’s simply narrowly obsessed with art and puzzles these days, her response to The Discovery Channel’s Ready Set Learn! Paz's Lift-Off Rocket
unfortunately was lukewarm, despite my thinking it’s actually a pretty cool toy. I’m reviewing this product today in conjunction with The Parent Bloggers Network.
If you’re fed up with the recent toy recalls and want to do something about it, the Consumers Union is running a Twelve Days of Safe Shopping campaign to engage and educate shoppers. Ground efforts will take place in Boston, New York, Chicago, and Minneapolis this Friday (the biggest shopping day of the year). To become part of the local effort, meet up at 9:45am this Friday at the Park Street T station. CU also has an easy online means to send a message to lawmakers urging for improved toy safety legislation.
I almost thought the toy recalls couldn’t get worse; now there’s the Aqua Dots recall. Aqua Dots allow kids to create multicolor, multidimensional designs with small beads that fuse together when sprayed with water. The CPSC reports: “The coating on the beads that causes the beads to stick to each other when water is added contains a chemical that can turn toxic when many are ingested. Children who swallow the beads can become comatose, develop respiratory depression, or have seizures.” The CPSC has received two reports of children who fell into a coma following ingestion. Aqua Dots are known as Bindeez in Australia, where it’s been reported that the chemical in the beads metabolizes into gamma-hydroxybutyric acid (GHB; also known as Liquid Ecstasy) when swallowed.
PLEASE share this information with all the parents you know!
This may sound odd, but this weekend our Scrabble set
– dusty from years of dormancy – served not only to connect letters into words, but also to reconnect Jon and me.
Over the last six weeks, the stress of negotiating several transitions (Jon and my new work commitments and Laurel’s preschool room) was taking its toll. Initial school separation anxiety aside, Laurel seemed happy, but Jon and I were distracted, edgy, and not well connected. And conversations with several mama friends made it clear that I was not alone in feeling depressed that our lives seemed mired in logistics management.
One of the joys of kids growing more dexterous is that it enables them to engage in countless hours of imaginative play via toy sets such as Playmobil, beloved by Tracy’s family:
“The recent spate of toy recalls has left me sort of amazed that we have not had to return a single toy. This is partially due to our families and friends understanding our desire for toys made of wood or other natural materials. Another reason though, is that we have encouraged Gabriel’s interest in Playmobil.
Pursuant to my recent post on the Goobi magnetic construction toy, I’ve had some inquiries re: recalls such as that of Magnetix (shown; Magnetix pieces with loose parts, also see CPSC notice and NYT article). After hunting around online, I didn’t find recall information related to Goobi products and also was happy to see a report that, following the problems at Magnetix, Goobi underwent testing sessions to try to dislodge their magnet rods from the plastic casings to no avail. I also checked the plastic casings on our set and the inner magnets are firmly set.
Like many kids, Laurel gravitated towards fridge magnets as a toddler, and now - with agile hands and imagination - she is crazy about construction magnets. We first learned about magnet stick and ball sets from our neighbor (a former preschool teacher), and were thrilled to receive the Goobi 61 Piece Beginner Magnet Construction Set
(in rainbow, of course) for Laurel’s birthday. A terrific open ended creative play toy, it’s impossible for kids and adults alike to resist clicking together cool structures; we need to add one of the bigger sets (104
or 202
pieces) to our collection soon.
Before the weather turns frigid, I wanted to write a post about tie dyeing, the central activity of Laurel’s recent Color Party. I obsessed about this topic more than I’d care to admit because I wanted the activity to be fun, safe, and hopefully minimal in the mess department for both kids and parents. I’m thrilled that the activity worked out favorably on each of these counts; here are the tips to get your own groovy color party going.
We love products that give parents great bang for their buck, and our latest favorite is the versatile Fortamajig, a new piece of play gear that can inspire countless hours of creative play in a variety of settings.
The Fortamajig basically is an 8’ x 8’ water resistant, machine washable ripstop nylon tarp, but with seams, openings, and Velcro loop attachments smartly crafted to make fort building a breeze (just attach the loops to chairs, doorknobs, trees, etc.). It’s available in a cheery selection of colors, either as a lightweight single color layer, or as a two color reversible model, and folds up compactly to fit inside a matching travel tote.
What with the proliferation of summer sweat, dirt, and sand, you're likely hanging around the tub a lot these days. This morning Tracy reports on a super cool tub toy that Nana gifted to her younger son:
“Whenever Nana visits, she typically comes equipped with the requisite “long-distance-grandmothering” presents for the boys; however, this time she hadn’t had a chance to shop so we all set off for one of the local toy stores.
For your budding artist, Kate has praise for this welcome upgrade of classic grade school desks:
“Our 17-month old daughter has become increasingly interested in arts and crafts over the past few months - encouraged by her wonderful daycare teachers - so we started stocking fun art supplies and decided that it would be a good idea to have a designated art space in the apartment, both to foster her creativity and independence and to try to preserve our floors and furniture from stray marks. Many companies sell desks and chairs for toddlers, but they often are large and require more space than we have to spare in a city apartment. Fortunately, the Offi Doodle Desk provides the perfect solution: an all-in-one seat, desk, and storage drawer, the Doodle Desk is a good size and shape for little artists, while being stylish and space-efficient enough to suit most parents. Available in sky blue
and orange
, the Doodle Desk features a pine veneer which is remarkably easy to clean: most child-friendly markers and paints wash right off."
Laurel recently has shown an interest in healing, both via Western (doctor kits) and alterative (shamanic maraca shaking) practices. After hunting around online, I was really happy to find the basic (i.e., not a million tiny parts), inexpensive Fisher Price Medical Kit
. The set includes interactive pieces (thermometer, syringe, blood pressure cuff, and a stethoscope that actually works against the skin), as well as an otoscope and bracelet style bandage. Also included is a soft tote, which is nice so you can add other tools - such as a shamanic maraca - easily (a common complaint of kits with hard cases is that it's tough fitting all the pieces back in), and the set is compact for travel.
We generally favor wooden over plastic toys and also considered the Haba Doctor’s Suitcase, but it’s missing the all important stethoscope, which Laurel really digs.
In anticipation of summer travel, I’ve started sussing out cool, compact travel toys, and was reminded of one of our favorites: Lauri’s fabulous manipulatives. Lauri's Primer Pack
is an expanded version of a small tote we own (no longer available), and offers great bang for your buck. Made of textured, easy to handle rubber, the set includes a 25-piece "locktagon" construction set, lacing and tracing cards and shapes, an alphabet puzzle, and four little shape puzzles.
Another great Lauri item for home and travel is the Stacker Pegs & Pegboard
set. As homage to her love of all things covered in frosting, Laurel has taken to serving her finished pegboard creations as cake.
During a recent toy rotation (we’re big fans of “what’s old is new again”), we rediscovered Laurel’s nifty Animal Lotto
game. We have yet to play with the game in intended bingo style (the chipboard set includes four playing boards showing 9 baby animals each, and 36 individual animal tiles to match to the boards), but little animal enthusiasts will dig the game pieces regardless. As a toddler, Laurel loved looking at the animal pictures, and then one day blew our doors off by matching all the tiles to the boards. We do more of the same now, but accompanied by rounds of “Old MacDonald.”