Strollerderby : kid activities

Thunder Burp and Executive Function Aren't Superheroes

Adrienne Martini — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 19:30:00 GMT

This recent story about play from NPR is exactly the sort of report that gives me hives. As it turns out, all of those hours kids used to spend pretending to be princesses or pirates were more helpful in their development than it appeared.

Imaginative play -- rather than structured, lesson-based play or brand-name-toy-based play -- develops a kid's "executive function." And that executive function is exactly what a kid needs to control his or her impulses and focus long enough to learn.

Which is a long way to say that kids' games that require no equipment like Simon Says are better in the long term than buying anything at the store. Playing pretend (without themed costumes or props) might just be the best activity of all.

Image credit: www.boxcarcomics.com

Crafty: Here Fishy, Fishy, Fishy

Adrienne Martini — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 19:30:00 GMT

Quick -- before you get snowed in! Angarad at Whip Up tells you how to make your own fish soap. Not only will it keep hands occupied in the making of it, the fish soap will also keep those hands clean. It's a win for everyone.

Plus, it's also easy-peasy and requires little investment. Or, for the uber-lazy, you can also just order a few. But, really, for $6.75, you could make half-a-dozen.

And this way you can also add anything else your little heart dreams up. How about boobies in soap for a bachelor party? Or babies in soap for a shower? The possibilities are limited only by your imagination and your access to plastic toys.

Photo credit: Angarad

Crafty: Spring Flowers

Adrienne Martini — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 15:00:00 GMT

One can never go wrong with a bag of pipe cleaners. Simply bending the flexible, fuzzy boogers into a variety of shapes can keep a kid occupied for a hefty chunk of time.

You can get fancier than just making pipe cleaner cats and jamming them up your brother's nose. If you also have an egg carton and some paint (or markers or glitter), you can play Mother Nature and make a garden bloom.

Mrs. Chicken (of the perennially entertaining blog Chicken and Cheese) has a tutorial up so that you can amuse your own children with making a bowl full of pretty poesies. Just keep in mind that the goal is to occupy little hands, not to impress Martha because she's probably not going to drop in for tea.

Unless, of course, she is. In which case -- ignore everything I just said and tell her hi for me.

Photo Credit: Mrs. Chicken a.k.a. A.L. Hatch

Fighting A Giant Rat

Cole Gamble — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 13:00:00 GMT

Quick Note: Hi, I’m Cole and I’m the new guy on the blog. My handle is The Good, The Dad and The Ugly (my wife’s choice out of many far more ridiculous names). Enough about me, on to the booze and rodents.

Borderline alcoholic parents worth their salt know that Chuck E. Cheese serves beer. There is nothing that helps you get through your kid’s birthday party extravaganza like a little hair of the dog. Of course, the collision of alcohol with family friendly fun does create some awkwardness, such as the following inappropriate exchanges:

“Hey why don’t we skip the pitcher of beer and just set me up with an IV, eh Chuck? Just kidding, but seriously, keep those pitchers coming. Dad’s in some pain and he needs his medicine.”

“Hey kid, go ask that breastfeeding lady if she’s single.”

(Before playing head-to-head pop-a-shot against a seven year old) “I’m gonna take you down to Chinatown!”

(After tying with the seven year old and heading into sudden death tiebreaker mode) “Ooo, this shit just got real.”

(After beating said seven year old in sudden death) “Grow a pair.”

“No sir, I didn’t come here with a child. Is that some kinda rule?”

Also not acceptable, walking around with a string of prize tickets hanging from the zipper of your pants.

Here is bad news for all you who like to get your drink on at the House of Chuck: Chuck E. Cheese has suspended alcohol sales due to a brawl that broke out* at a Chuck E. Cheese in Michael Moore’s favorite dead-horse-to-kick, Flint, Michigan. Officials estimate the fracas included up to 80 combatants. In addition to cutting off the booze, Cheese execs are calling a moratorium on profanity and gang symbols (all apologies Crips; you as well, Bloods).

Sorry hung over moms and dads, looks like you’ll have to sneak a little Crème De Menthe into your Shamrock Shake at the McD’s Playland from now on.

Photo: www.beans-around-the-world.com

*Note: This post originally mentioned the ban affecting all Chuck E. Chese locations. The ban only applied to this location.

Greenhouse: Carpool Duty Made Easier

Amy Kuras — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 14:53:00 GMT

With gas prices pretty firmly stuck around the $3 mark in many places, and families facing tighter schedules and tougher commutes all the time, carpooling is an attractive — and green – option. The more people you carry, the more efficient that gas you burn becomes. And if you're driving a big status-symbol vehicle anyway, why not put all that space to good use?

A new website offers parents the chance to coordinate carpools with each other based on each driver's individual needs and create a driving schedule based on that. It works somewhat similarly to a social networking site in that you enter your kid's activities and school schedules, and then invite families you know to join you and set up a carpool schedule. Dividetheride.com then emails the schedule to the entire group and sends reminders via text message and email. Let's just say this would have come in handy during my carpooling days, when one dad stranded us repeatedly because he forgot.

The Divide The Ride homepage allows drivers to see an approximate estimate of miles saved, rides shared and gallons of gasoline saved in a year, as well.

When I was a kid, we carpooled everywhere, mostly to save our parents some sanity instead of saving gas or cutting pollution. There were several kids from our neighborhood heading to the schools we attended, and it just made sense. Most of the time it worked well, except for the Bitch Patrol I got stuck with in high school.

It teaches the importance of being on time and responsible to other people, and reinforces organizational skills.
And little did we know at the time, we were all earth-friendly too.

Crafty: Cherished Kid Art

Adrienne Martini — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 19:00:00 GMT

Like every other parent in the flippin' universe, I have a drawer full of kid art that I just can't part with. Problem is - it does me no good in a drawer where I can't see it but I don't know what else to do with it. I've framed bits of it as holiday gifts. I have a rotating gallery on the fridge and on a magnetic wall. Still, there are pieces I can't put in the trash with all of the kitty litter and coffee grounds because they are just too special.

I've heard rumors of crafty chicas who duplicate the art on quilts or t-shirts. While I think it's a fine idea, the process of copying of art to fabric eludes me. But Fiona at hop skip jump hit on a solution even I can do. Give fabric markers directly to the kids and cut out the middle man -- or, in this case, middle medium.

Since I don't own a fancy-schmancy sewing machine, I'll be embroidering by hand over the lines that my kids draw. And I'm thinking that some supervision with the markers will be required, lest we have a reprise of the "let's draw on the cat" incident. My oldest is almost to the age where she can do her own sewing, too, so I might be able to set up a little kid art sweat shop in my dining room. Despite those pesky child labor laws, I think I know what I may be doing when we're snowed in this weekend.

What to Do With One Glove

Adrienne Martini — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 18:00:00 GMT

Those of us in northern climates have reached that special stage of winter where your kid has managed to lose one glove. I've heard tales about kids who lose their gloves by the pair, which simplifies things, but I don't believe these children exist.

Which is a long way to say I have a stack of lonely gloves, none of which match each other but that are still too useful to throw out. What will I use them for? Ah, that's where Marie LeBaron comes in.

If you're in a crafty mood, find some felt and some fabric glue. If you live someplace where gloves aren't required, then buy some. If you want the full experience, lose one of them. If not, just make two puppets.

LeBaron, in her tutorial at Whip-Up, suggests using a nursery rhyme as inspiration. We're not that structured at my house. As long as gets stabbed, any design is good with me.

Cut out your shapes, glue 'em on and wait for it to dry. Now, instead of one sad solo glove, you've got a toy and an afternoon's entertainment. How's that for recycling?

Kidventor Part II: No-Wedgie Underwear

Madeline Holler — Sun, 04 Nov 2007 22:02:00 GMT

In our continuing coverage of kidventors, we bring you 8-year-old twins from Ohio who have invented wedgie-free underwear.

Like the Iowa kid who devised a way to end fights about raised toilet seats, these twins and their invention were also featured on a recent Ellen Degeneres show.

The “Rip Away 1000” are rigged shorts that have been reengineered in a way that prevents them from going up your crack when the bullies start grabbing and yanking. Instead, Velcro seams come apart and “they just rip away,” one of the Underwear Thomas Edisons explained.

Hey, I don’t wanna pick on little kids or anything, but I have to ask how in the hell easily removable underwear will be anything but trouble. Haven't they just turned underwear into a trophy? Plus, depending on the strength of the wedgie aggressor, “Rip Away 1000” could burn!

Photo: Palm Beach Post

Kidventor Part I: Boy Designs Auto-Lid For the Toilet

Madeline Holler — Sun, 04 Nov 2007 21:03:00 GMT

An Iowa 9-year-old has invented a handy little tool for guys who just can’t remember to put the toilet seat down. He and his “Privy Prop” won an inventors competition at school and went on to be showcased at the Iowa State Fair this summer.

Producers of the Ellen Degeneres show found out and featured him and several other kidventors on a recent show. Our 15 seconds of fame come in so many different ways.

The Privy Prop works like the lid of trashcans that lift when a pedal is stepped on. Sidle up to a toilet, step on the pedal, unzip and go. When you step away from the toilet, the seat automatically falls back in place. No more nagging from the females in the house.

The kidventor’s family hopes some company will buy the idea from the boy. They are reluctant to patent it themselves, due to cost. And mom has put her foot down and won’t let the family get into the Privy Prop production business.

In my house of girls and one very considerate man, we don’t need a Privy Prop. But would some little genius please come up with an automatic clothes folder?

Photo: Associated Press

Kids Collect Art. Don’t Yours?

Madeline Holler — Mon, 17 Sep 2007 18:40:00 GMT

This Wall Street Journal article about children who collect art gets on my nerves. I’ve got nothing against art, nothing against collecting and nothing against kids. But I hate how a gallery owner gushes about a young girl’s “great eye” after the nine-year-old handed over more than $5,000 for a porcelain basket covered with tiny platinum elephants. Basket? Elephants? Sounds like something four out of five nine-year-old girls might pick out if given such a substantial knick-knack budget. The rest of the girl’s 40-piece collection – which the young collector says focuses on animals, “happy colors” such as pink and yellow, and includes a Warhol panda – is equally as unsurprising if you ignore the cost, value and artist’s signatures.

Parents of these young collectors are nonetheless impressed. One teen art collector’s mother praises her son’s aesthetic. He collects art made of candy. Wow! Kids and candy. Like oil and water. What an old soul this woman is raising! Among his favorites, a Spanish cathedral made from chocolate syrup, a wall-hanging made entirely of candy bars, and pictures of lollipops and candied cherries. Of his candy portrait that is also a puzzle he says: “I love it because it just makes me want candy.” Somebody get this kid to a 7Eleven!

There’s also the 11-year-old who raised his paddle for the winning bid on a Jeff Koons gnome sculpture. More than $350,000.

Don’t get me wrong. Enthusiastic art appreciation is great – you’re never too young to be exposed to good art. But these kids are taken seriously for being attracted to objects and pictures that appeal to just about every kid – a panda! a gnome! a Ritter Sport chocolate bar!

The fact that they are choosing works of art from the likes of Basquiat and Warhol and (seriously?) Rembrandt is hardly the sign of a young genius. (Said Rembrandt purchaser called the high-priced sketch he acquired “awesome.”) The galleries, auction houses and art shows where these parents take their kids to shop don’t exactly display works from the middle school art club. To come away from one of those places with a valuable piece is like shooting fish in a barrel. They can’t miss.

On a side note, I’m putting in for a tooth-fairy transfer One of the young collector’s parents said his kids shop and bid with, among other cash sources, money for leaving baby teeth under their pillow. Our tooth fairy barely leaves enough for a tube of glitter glue.

Idiotic Idea of the Day: School Bans Tag

Kelly Mills — Thu, 30 Aug 2007 15:30:00 GMT

A Colorado Springs school has banned tag. In fact, they banned any game involving chasing. How come? "'It causes a lot of conflict on the playground,' said Assistant Principal Cindy Fesgen. In the first days of school, before tag was banned, she said students would complain to her about being chased or harassed." And it's stories like this that make me wonder if I'm becoming some crotchety libertarian crackpot, poised to start scrawling letters to the editor. Because I think this is ri-stupid-iculous. Here's how my rant will start: "We are raising a nation of namby-pamby kids, unable to resolve conflicts or function in the world because there's a damn ban on everything remotely controversial."

Seriously, I'm irritated for starters because we've already sheltered our kids from physical activities like bike riding and walking to school because supposedly there's a kidnapper or pedophile lurking on every corner. Now in an effort to purge the schoolyard of conflict, there's bans on every dang activity (even ones like tag that are good for fitness) and just loads of focus on a safe, positive, orderly school climate. That isn't a totally bad thing, but outlawing crap is really a lame solution. How about working with kids on conflict resolution? Having kids take part in the discussion of what's appropriate and what's hurtful, and give them a say in determining the rules? Or not worrying so damn much about our children being scarred by tag?

Yup, I'm a total crank.

Travels With Kids: Abroad Is Better Older

Kelly Mills — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 22:33:00 GMT

Not that I'm bitter that the extent of my summer traveling was a seven-hour van ride to Disneyland: here's a nice piece on the pros and cons of traveling with kids. Most of the folks agreed that for any kind of big-deal, sightseeing vacation, you are better off waiting until the children are old enough to appreciate the adventure. I like these tips from Lonely Planet co-founder Maureen Wheeler. She advises "waiting until kids are 3, 'when they're out of diapers, when they can eat food, when they can talk.' If you're planning once-in-a-lifetime trips, 'then maybe you don't start traveling with your children until the age of 7 to 10.'" Because do you really wanna deal with changing a poopy diaper at the Sistine Chapel?

On the pro side of venturing forth with kids, travel author Pauline Frommer says, "'So what are parents with wanderlust to do? Just stick with the tried and true theme park and cruise vacations, squelching their own desires to see the world? For many, leaving the kids at home over vacation just isn't doable, financially or emotionally.'" I know a few families that have traveled extensively with tiny babies and toddlers, and I will tell you they posses an easy-going, adventurous attitude I will never have. They also do things like eat food from stands on the side of the road and meet locals who invite them to stay in their homes. If you are one of those people, you could probably roam the streets of Nepal with two children under the age of three and be fine. Me, I'm just glad I survived the van ride.

Video Games Maybe Not Good For Book-Learnin'

Kelly Mills — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 16:21:00 GMT

So you've got the high score on Dance Dance Revolution, but can you read a book, Junior? Yeah, a study came out reporting kids who spent more time playing video games were behind on reading. Well, they spent less time on reading and homework. They did spend time with family and friends, so it didn't affect social skills, but that's not nearly hysterical and scare-tactic-y enough, is it?

We could do all kinds of speculation about why this is the case, but since I like a win-win, maybe they ought to come up with a video game that incorporates reading in a good game. So many educational video games are totally lame, with annoying characters and cheesy graphics circa 1987. I guess once they get the educational experts involved, the fun goes right out the window. If you know of a good one, do tell. Or perhaps the next edition of Grand Theft Auto could just have a part where you have to read yourself your rights or something.

Weekly Check Up: Diet Ain't the Answer For Childhood Obesity

Kelly Mills — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 12:26:00 GMT

Ah, the childhood obesity studies. Feels like not a day goes by without someone reporting that owning an Easy Bake oven plus having a single parent raises the risk for childhood obesity by half a percent or something. And here's another one, although this one at least says two good things:

Diets are really not effective for treating childhood obesity. Imagine. You mean kids can't stick to a regime despite the fact that they often don't cook or do grocery shopping, are frequently surrounded by adults making less-healthy food choices, and the straight up fact that diets suck raw eggs? (Ooooh, maybe the kids should go on the raw egg diet.) In this study, diets couldn't even be evaluated, because 83 percent of the kids in the diet group dropped out of the study right away. And I don't blame them.

Exercise, however, did show some benefits. Here's what the researchers did: "For the first six months, children and caregivers in the Bright Bodies program attended 50-minute exercise classes twice a week -- including games and sports -- along with a 40-minute session of nutrition information and behavior modification. They were also encouraged to exercise on three other days at home." Sounds like the classes offered a weekly commitment, involved family members, and even included some (wow) fun. Now how could that be more effective than a rigid eating program?

I'm with the kids on this one.

Bugaboo Tells You Where To Go, and It's Soooo Pretty

Kelly Mills — Thu, 28 Jun 2007 15:33:00 GMT

Bugaboo makes one purty-ass stroller, and they'll tell you what to do with it in a New! Modern! Different! Artsy! way. Enter Bugaboo Daytrips, a site that gives you culture-lovin' walking tours of some of the world's nicest places. Of course each tour is illustrated by a contemporary artist, because this isn't your everyday boring old map. You can click on the numbers on the map to see photos and a compelling description of each location along the way, then download a map to take with you on your journey. It's all so lush and modern and fabulous, I feel like I oughta wear nicer shoes just to browse the site. So far my only complaint is that the clean look makes this puppy a little tricky to navigate at times. And we'll hope the walking tours don't have the same problem.

I strolled around Portland for a while--online, of course (it's not like I get to go on vacation or anything, she says bitterly) and it was nice. Then I decided to check out San Francisco, since I'm familiar with what we arrogantly refer to as, "the City." Golden Gate Park without lots of homeless people? How did they manage that? But I will confess, even as a longtime local, I did not know we had gnomes. Next time I'm doing the tour in UK English, so I can read about all the pretty colours.

Weekly Check Up: Maybe One Million Kids Have Personal Trainers

Kelly Mills — Thu, 28 Jun 2007 12:13:00 GMT

You know how McDonald's had that sign about more than a billion served? I guess your Gold's Gym and your YMCA are launching the counter-attack. Almost a million kids between the ages of 6 and 17 are now using personal trainers, according to the International Health, Racquet and Sportsclub Association. One possible reason: P.E. classes have been cut from schools, so parents who can afford trainer fees want to make sure their kids get some exercise. Hmmm, could this be one of many reasons childhood obesity is rising so fast among low-income families? In addition to weight worries, some parents want their kids to have better coordination or do sport-specific training. But as one expert cautions, the trainer should know how to work with kids' developing bodies to avoid overuse injuries. And kids can get exercise in ways that don't cost money, like biking swimming, and playing tag.

In my non-blogging life I work as a personal trainer, so you might think I read this and see dollar signs. But really, I can think of some other problems with kids in training. For example, I'd caution parents against signing up really young kids, unless there is a compelling reason they would benefit from one-on-one attention. The last thing you want to do is to pressure your child into sessions and watch them develop a serious rebellious aversion to exercise. And I'll be honest: there's a ton of unqualified people in this business, so you really have to make sure the person has skills and knowledge. Look for trainer certification from a reputable organization, and make sure the person understands kid needs and will make the sessions fun. Fun exercise? That's crazy talk! Now try telling that one to adults.

Family Surfing: A Site We Like

Kelly Mills — Wed, 27 Jun 2007 15:05:00 GMT

There's debate over the benefits of family video game playing and T.V. watching, but around our house, we surf together. The internets. You know, we use the Google to find stuff we like, and then gather around the monitor as a snuggly family, screen light reflecting off our pasty faces, and we laugh. I think I've seen almost every wacky kitten video ever posted on Youtube.

The current favorite is Cute Overload. Lots of baby animals, pets wearing clothes, strange interspecies co-mingling, and so on. We wuv the widdle animals, oh yes we do. In fact, every time I try to sneak off to fold laundry or make dinner, I hear, "Mom! C'mere!" or "Sweetie, you've got to see this kitten and turtle. Awwwwww." Someday I may actually get my laptop back to do actual work. And since many of these things have no audio, there's real human interactions happening too. How 1900's! I doubt this is messing with our child's social skills, unless people actually expect her to make eye contact.

Smile! You're On Doll Camera

Kelly Mills — Mon, 18 Jun 2007 19:03:00 GMT

New art film: “My life as a dolly's belly button”. These odd little action figures live a double life as fully functional webcams. Perhaps “action figure” is a misnomer, since it looks like the only action they could take would be taking their freaky hair for a stroll and eating doughnuts, but the secret weapon on these babies is they can capture resolutions up to 1280x960 at 30fps. Be very what you say of do kids, cuz the dolly is always watching you.

Even though this has shades of surveillance and reality television, I kind of like the idea of filming the kid through a toy for a day. Right now I'm reduced to tiptoeing up to her door and holding my breath if I want to hear the cute games she plays with her stuffed animals and dolls, and with these little space invaders I could capture the whole thing for posterity while simultaneously ~~wasting time reading trashy gossip sites~~ working. Though most likely my plan would be foiled he minute she dropped this thing in the bathtub, dressed it up in a camera-covering Groovy Girls tanktop (they don't all wear half shirts), or traded it to her friend for a poop-scooping Barbie.

Gymnastics Good For Girls' Bone Density

Kelly Mills — Sun, 10 Jun 2007 18:02:00 GMT

Watch my cartwheel, now. Researchers found that girls who participate in high-impact sports like gymnastics before puberty had greater bone density than girls who primarily engaged in low-impact activities. The gymnasts also had lower body fat, and girls in artistic gymnastics had more muscle mass than their peers. Apparently engaging in activities that put stress on bones helped them become more dense. Dense bones are good for preventing osteoporosis later in life.

Okay, before we all run out and sign on the little ones for back-flip camp, check this out from the study author: "This doesn't mean, however, that the tumbling of artistic gymnastics is necessarily 'healthier' for girls, according to Vicente-Rodriguez. Instead, he said, children should take up a variety of activities, with both low and high impact." Jessica already told you about the problems with year-round training in one sport. And I'm gonna tell you another thing about gymnastics: the coaching style and culture of a portion of those folks is seriously effed up. Not all, of course, but there's some sports and activities (ballet also springs to mind) where temperamental and abusive trainers are more often given a pass, where eating disorders are encouraged, and where the well-being of injured girls takes a backseat to the drive to succeed. In my fitness forays I've encountered former kid-gymnasts, and some have been truly wrecked both physically and emotionally by the sport. So if you are interested in enrolling your girls in gymnastics, just make sure you vet the program carefully, and should things go the competitive route, help your daughters keep things in perspective. They might want intact knees when they are thirty.

Old Children's Games Being Revived

Kelly Mills — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 21:22:00 GMT

Here's where I lapse into my old-person voice: when I was a kid, if the weather was nice and the homework was done, we played outside until it was too dark to see. Lots of tag and hopscotch and stuff like that. In case you need a timeline, this was some time between the invention of the automobile and the rise of the CD player. Now some parents and advocacy groups are trying to bring back ye olde timey games, like marbles, stick ball, and four square. The idea is to move kids away from the video game consoles and computer monitors and into some good old outdoor, unstructured play.

The benefits are kinda obvious, like increased physical activity for stress relief and healthy weight maintenance. Whether or not the kids will ditch the video games for the outdoor games is another question. I'm not at all anti-technology, but I think it is good to have a balance. I wouldn't want to force my own games on my kid out of nostalgia, but I think a little fresh air and low-tech time is crucial. One fact that barely gets mentioned here: I agree with some researchers that the rise in media reporting of crime and problems with urban and suburban planning have meant many parents are scared to let the children roam freely outdoors. And that's a problem we'll have to address, whether or not freeze tag is a hit with this generation.

Strollerderby Playdate: No Ordinary Laughs

Kelly Mills — Fri, 25 May 2007 11:01:00 GMT

Hey, being a parent isn't all fighting off 'razzi at red carpet premieres and bungee jumping out of a hot air balloon over the Grand Canyon in the middle of the night. Sometimes we write about the little things in day-to-day life that irk us or excite us or just feel bloggable. Here's some examples of how to funny-up the mundane.

The Institutional Mouthpiece of Kjell is all prepped to get himself into double trouble with coldness.

I am doing the best I can discovers what happened to all that mail.

The Hygiene Chronicles gets it on with Verizon. Bloggers relate.

Mothergoosemouse teaches some basic phone etiquette.

I don't know if A Little Chaos and Tied Down With Battleship Chains have kids on the same t-ball team, but boy, they both are making me real excited for the beginning of the season. And the latter is my new favorite angry person.