by Whitney
Rosie, who is the owner of the Etsy store “RosieGoa“, and the mother of the little boy pictured below, tells us how they make gift wrapping special in their house. Before we look at that, however, let’s appreciate Rosie’s cloth creations: well-crafted and Indian-inspired, her pieces will make your baby look bohemian-chic. I just love the colors and the details in the tunic tops and drawstring pants.
This scary pirate spent the morning before his friend Zaal’s birthday party collaging a personalised gift wrap. A glue stick and a pair of scissors is a huge part of the gift-giving ritual at our house. We grab all those gorgeous deco magazines and snip, snip, snip. The images are glossy, colourful and feel great. The gorgeous items may not make it into our house in physical form, but we feel like we’re having it all.
We hoard any kind of box (cereal, chocolate….), thick shopping bags, padded postage envelopes, ribbons, beads, flyers, labels…. the list is endless…. that can be upcycled and used for gift boxes and bags. It can be as simple or as complicated as you like, and take time as little or as long as you have. Go simple with a few pages of great images stuck together, then the friends name spelt out in letters of different size, colour and font (thank you Sex Pistols). Or go wild with macaroni, lentils, glitter, beads, sequined and embroidered embellishments.
Friends on the receiving end have sometimes loved their box, wrapping, or bag, more than the gift itself. We love the time spent together and the conversations inspired by what we see, and how that looks when cut-up and made into something new. It gives great joy to pass on so much cut and paste love. I will never, ever, buy gift wrap again, unless of course it’s to turn into something else.
by Whitney
Dude, is it hella hot today. (I’m in California, and this is how we talk.) I let baby Scarlett engage in about three different types of water play within a four-hour span of time. She was out in the backyard, sitting in a highchair with bowls of water and spoons to splash with, and finally the bathtub.
Julian (three and three-quarters and a half years old, he’ll tell you) also loves him some water play. We had a spontaneous invention a couple of weeks ago of a car wash in our backyard. It really kept him busy, and our ride-on toys have never been cleaner.
The key to making it an official car wash seemed to be placing the car in a special place. In our case, it was on two outdoor Ikea chairs. Probably making a fort for this specific purpose would be the most satisfying. Make it extra fun with a spray bottle, sponge, and a bucket to dunk sponge in.
While Julian washed the “cars”, I paged through catalog after catalog that had come in the mail. A mutually beneficial water play session, I’d say.
by Heather
photo by Sarah Gilbert
Years ago, I went to a silly “roll your own” sushi and head-shaving party hosted by some people I barely knew. I dragged my sister, Meggan, along to keep me company and we enjoyed the general mayhem of the theme.
Rolling your own sushi is quite easy if you have all the ingredients. So, that’s the big trick, assemble the right stuff before you drag your preschooler along to play with you.
1. nori (seaweed) wrapping “paper” (available at grocery stores with an ethnic foods aisle)
2. room temp white sticky rice (less than a cup) — plain is good because the nori is salty
3. filling like strips of cucumber or avocado, and cream cheese if your kid likes that
I am blessed to have leftover rice in the fridge most of the time. If you have a rice cooker — I do not — set it and forget it and then go shave each other’s heads (I’m kidding!) while you wait. Or make it the old fashioned way. In any case, make sure it has time to cool well.
Once you’ve assembled the ingredients, let your kiddo scoop out one or two spoonfuls of rice onto the nori sheets and lay out any desired filling before rolling a genuine hand roll.
For more detailed instructions and inspiration on kid sushi, check out Being Savvy: Honolulu. Thanks Julie!
