Confessions of the Playground Princess

Changes, introductions and holidays

2010-11-30T08:56:00.004-05:00

I have been taking some time "off" from my site here and trying to decide what to do with it, it was my vision to use the site to kind of "coach" people who want to build a dream... but then I love writing about fun things to do with children... and then I thought maybe I would also use it to write about inspirational families... so that's what I am doing, all of the above and with that in mind...

A few months ago I spent a wonderful weekend in Philly for Bloggy Boot Camp and I met a bunch of special women some of whose blogs I have been reading for some time. It was great to meet so many women with such diverse backgrounds who loved to share their stories. I particularly enjoyed meeting women whose lives were similar to mine, thus the introduction to Sunday..

This week marks the beginning of the holiday season. In the coming days many will celebrate Thanksgiving. In December families will come together for Hanukkah, Christmas, or Kwanzaa. Each holiday involves its own unique celebrations and customs influenced both by family and culture.

In our home the holidays are influenced most by Autism.

If you visit our home you will not find a large Christmas tree in the living room lovingly adorned with ornaments passed down from my mom's tree. There will be no lavish spread of food because the boys refuse to eat anything other than their normal day to day fare of grilled cheese sandwiches and homemade chocolate chip cookies. The fireplace is cold and still on Christmas Eve because setting one is too dangerous around the boys. Similarly, you will not find us loading up the car with presents and suitcases for a trek to share the joy of the holidays with our families.

Because it seems autism is not something they want their holiday to include.

Every year I go through the varopis stages of grief over the fact that my family chooses to not include my boys in their holiday plans.

Shock & Disbelief:
Why wouldn't grandparents want to spend the holidays with their grandchildren? Even if said grandchildren prefer playing with wrapping paper, long colorful ribbons, and loud obnoxious toys over sitting quietly in Grandma's lap while she reads them 'Twas the Night Before Christmas? Christmas is supposed to be about the children and celebrating with them the magic and beauty of the holidays. Why would grandparents and family choose to miss out on that?

Anger & Bargaining:
When the boys' grandparents choose to spend their holidays with their other grandchildren who do not have autism I am left feeling nothing but anger. In some ways I am comforted in knowing that the boys do not know nor care why their grandparents are not visiting with us. But I do, and it burns me up!

In previous years I would bend over backwards to invite family to celebrate with us. I would plan out elaborate menus and wake up at 4 am to start the turkey in hopes of getting a couple hours in the kitchen before the boys woke up. Family would come, eat, stay maybe an hour and then leave immediately following dessert. I stopped trying to cater to their needs of my extended family after that.

Depression, Reflection, & Loneliness:
This stage seems to be where I spend most of my time during the holiday season.

I mostly feel lonely and a bit sad for family and all they are missing out on when it comes to the boys and how quickly they are growing up.

I miss my mom something fierce too. She was was the best damn Nana this world ever saw. She was also an amazing mother and friend. Before her death in 2004 you would find her spending every weekend, every holiday, and all her vacation time visiting her grandchildren and having fun with them. I mourn the fact that she is not here now to enjoy her grandsons like I know she would have wanted.

Acceptance & Hope:
Eventually (typically somewhere around December 24th) I make peace with the choices my family has made in how and with whom they choose to celebrate the holidays.

I focus on making the most of Christmas with my amazing husband and the boys. Mike and I sip eggnog, play Christmas music much too loud (which the boys love!), turn on the outside Christmas lights, break out the Scrabble board, and later we turn on The Grinch Who Stole Christmas and A Charlie Brown Christmas Special and we enjoy our grilled cheese sandwiches and chocolate chip cookies together. Just the way a family should at the holidays.

***************

Autism may mean my boys are different than most and that may mean that our holiday celebrations are a bit out of the ordinary as well. But, ours is no less filled with love, a sense of togetherness and magic.

And if someone isn't up for celebrating the holidays with two boys who embrace those holidays full force and without abandon....then its nothing more than their loss.

Sunday is the frazzled mom raising two boys on the severe end of the Autism spectrum while living to laugh and blog about it at Adventures in Extreme Parenthood. You can also find Sunday tweeting her Banshee heart out on Twitter at @ExtremeParnthood and on Facebook by searching for her name: Sunday Stilwell.

It's back to school with ETSY!

2010-09-01T17:34:00.012-04:00

First I’d like to say I’m sorry I have been m.i.a for the most part this summer enjoying time with my family, but I’m back! It’s so hard to believe its back to school time!

I have enjoyed looking around at some wonderful Etsy shops and hope you enjoy them too!

I always thought it was cute to send a little note in my daughter’s lunch, and now you can send the cutest notes with sweet thoughts, and I guarantee you your children will love them!

photo credit: fancy shmancy notes

I just love these pencils and I am sure that if my daughter had pencils like this when she was in school she would never lose them! Lol

photo credit: maoiloisa

10 beautifully hand-wrapped #2 graphite pencils featuring bright pink and white plum blossoms, 5 on a pink background and 5 on a deep brown background. Each unique pencil is approximately 3.5 inches long (no eraser). Made with gorgeous, genuine Japanese washi paper.

The pencils come packaged in a gift box, and include a gift tag for easy giving. This set is perfect for teachers, students, writers, artists, party favors for guests, and more!

I used to hate mornings when I had to send a note to or money to school and I couldn’t find either paper or an envelope these notes solve that problem!

Whether your little one was sick, late, or leaving early...you'll be able to let their teacher know.

photo credit: Bushel and Peck Paper's

Custom notes measure approx. 5"x7" and come in sets of 18
Printed on 110 lb. card stock and packaged in cello sleeve for safe shipping

photo credit: i'm ink pressed

These school money envelopes are time saving must haves.
Premium size A2 envelope
Dimensions: 4.375x5.75
sold in packs of 25

Check out this adorable “Pack Pack” as named by designer/mom after her inspiring 3 year old Carter (Toddlers back pack) Perfect for the little one in your life to carry around their own things to daycare or to the store!

photo credit: hb collection

How about a super cute and eco-friendly solution to lunch time.
The Farfalla Gialla Lunch bag is made with cotton fabric, oilcloth and Velcro closure!

photo credit: farfalla gialla

And of course now gifts for the “mom” of the student:

This ornament would make a wonderful gift for your child's teacher, or is your mom a teacher, or dear friend, or are you a teacher and want to add this to your Christmas collection.

photo credit: the untraditionaltopiary

The Perfect Place for Your Favorite Photos, Special Notes and Important Memos! Handcrafted Magnetic Boards Featuring Interchangeable Magnets and Ribbons for Endless Design Possibilities... Perfect for that first day of school picture!

photo credit: lanes frames

I hope this gives you some great back to school ideas for your family!

Fourth of July Family Fun

2010-07-04T10:02:00.020-04:00

Fourth of July means, picnics, barbecues, pool or beach fun, enjoy the fireworks and just all around great family time. Here are some great ideas for things to do with your children to celebrate the fourth.

Children’s Crafts:

Every barbecue could use some great 4th of July napkin rings! This is a great project for a patriotic holiday picnic. Have kids sit at the table and make the napkin rings while you man the barbecue grill!

What you'll need:

• 24" elastic cord, cut into 3 even pieces
• 20 red pony beads
• 12 white pony beads
• 8 miniature white pony beads
• 4 red miniature pony beads
• 5 blue star pony beads
• White craft glue

How to make it:

1. Thread one white pony bead onto a piece of elastic cord. Run the other two pieces of elastic cord through the bead as well. With all three elastic cords lined up evenly, thread them around and back through the bead a second time.

2. Pull ends to tighten so the beads don't fall off. You will remove this knot later.

3. Thread five red pony beads onto one of the elastic cords. Thread four white pony beads onto the middle piece of elastic, and five red pony beads onto the last elastic cord.

4. Add two miniature white pony beads to the cord that has the red pony beads. Repeat for the other cord with red beads. Add two miniature red pony beads to the cord with the white beads.

5. Add a blue star bead to each of the three elastic cords.

6. Next, reverse the pattern. Thread two miniature white beads, then five red regular beads. On the center cord, thread on two miniature red beads and four white beads. Finally, add two miniature white beads and five red beads to the last cord.

7. To complete, thread all 3 elastic cords through two white beads.

8. Carefully undo the temporary knot you created in step one. Add one more white bead.

9. Gather both ends of the cords together and tie them into a knot.

10. Thread a blue star bead on each end of the knot and loop the ends back through each bead as you did in step one.

11. Add some white glue to the holes of the blue star beads and let dry.

12. When dry, trim the ends of the elastic.

Tips:

1. You can purchase specialty packs of "patriotic" colored beads that include everything needed here, including the miniature beads and the star beads.

2. Convert this project into a bracelet by simply using longer pieces of elastic and more beads.

3. Elastic cord is available in the sewing department.

Another great decoration for your table this Fourth of July are these adorable treat holders made to look like Uncle Sam’s hat. Fill with your favorite treats and give away as party favors at the end of the party!

What you'll need:

• Styrofoam cup
• Red and blue felt
• Red paint
• Paintbrush
• Silver chenille stem
• Scissors
• White craft glue
• Black marker

How to make it:

1. Place cup, open end down, on top of the red felt and trace with a marker.

2. Cut around the traced circle leaving a ¾” border around it.

3. Fold the circle and cut a slit in the center of the circle to allow your scissors to get in. Cut out the inside circle, leaving about a ¼” border around the inside of the trace line. Set felt circle aside.

4. Paint red stripes all the way around the outside of the cup, stripes should run up and down. Let dry completely.

5. Cut a strip of blue felt about 1.5” wide. It should be long enough to wrap around the brim of the cup.

6. Glue felt strip around the outside of the top of the cup.

7. Lay red felt circle on to work surface, black trace line should be facing up.

8. Line the lip of the cup with white glue and press down onto black trace line. Let dry.

9. Turn cup over and place on work surface.

10. Use silver chenille to bend into star shapes, trim where needed. Glue onto the blue hat band.

11. When everything is dry, fill with treats.

Tips:

• To make our treat cups sturdier, especially if using outside, glue a heavy washer to the bottom of the cup.
• You can add handles to your cup by twisting to chenille stems together and poking through the sides of the cup and running over the top. This step should be done before adding the blue brim.
• You may also use white paper or plastic cups for this project.

*the above activities and photos are from Kaboose

Fun Recipes:

Red, White and Blue Salad

Tossed in fresh lime juice and garnished with mint, this combination of juicy strawberries, diced apples, and fresh blueberries makes a refreshing treat on its own. Spoon it over vanilla ice cream, and you've got an instant and irresistible dessert.

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
• 3 cups fresh blueberries
• 1 quart fresh strawberries, hulled and halved
• 3 medium apples, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks

Instructions:

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the lime juice, honey, and mint. Add all of the fruit and toss to combine. Let the fruit salad set for 15 minutes to allow the flavors to blend. Serves about 8.

Flavored Ice:

One way to make a splash this Fourth of July is by treating your kids to tall glasses of Patriot's Punch. Simply fill an ice cube tray with a red or blue fruit-flavored beverage (such as Powerade, Gatorade, or Kool-Aid) and let the cubes freeze solid. Then drop three or four colored cubes into each glass, pour in flavored seltzer water or clear soda, and watch the special effects. As the cubes melt, colored bubbles will swirl through the seltzer.

Ingredients

• Red or blue fruit-flavored beverage

Summer Berry Triffle:
This is heaven in a a dish!

Serving this traditional English dessert in a glass pedestal bowl shows off its impressive layers of ladyfingers, pudding, and colorful fruits. If you don't have one, a regular glass bowl will also do the trick.

Ingredients

• 1 package (3.4-ounce) instant vanilla pudding
• 4 cups fresh berries (strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, or blackberries), washed and hulled, plus extra for garnish
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 cup whipping cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 24 to 36 ladyfingers

Instructions:

1. To make the fillings, prepare the pudding according to the package directions and chill it.

2. Slice the strawberries, if you're using them, then toss all of the berries with the lemon juice and the 1/4 cup of sugar. Set aside for 30 minutes to allow the berries to release their juices.

3. In a medium mixing bowl, whip the cream, vanilla extract, and remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar until soft peaks form. Set aside.

4. To make the layers, set a layer of ladyfingers (around 7 or 8) on the bottom of a large, clear serving bowl (ours was 4 quarts). Top with the berries with half of the pudding.

5. Add another layer of ladyfingers, another third of the berries and juice, and the rest of the pudding. Add a final layer of ladyfingers and berries. Top with the whipped cream and a berry garnish.

6. Refrigerate until you're ready to serve. Serves 8 to 10.

*the above recipes and photos are from Family Fun

Fruited Cheesecake Flag

Strategically placed berries make this rich, creamy, and indulgent dessert even more memorable. Cut into diminutive squares, the patriotic cake affords guests equal opportunity in their pursuit of the perfect summer sweet.

Ingredients
Makes 48 squares

• Vegetable-oil cooking spray
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• Coarse salt
• 12 ounces (3 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons light-brown sugar
• 32 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon pure almond extract
• 4 large eggs, room temperature
• 6 ounces (1 1/2 cups) blackberries
• 8 3/4 ounces (2 cups) blueberries
• 1 pound strawberries, hulled and sliced lengthwise into thirds (optional)
• Confectioners' sugar, for dusting
• 12 ounces (3 cups) raspberries

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Coat a 13-by-18-inch rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray. Line with parchment, leaving a 2-inch overhang on the long sides. Coat parchment with spray.

2. Sift flour and 1 3/4 teaspoons salt into a bowl. Cream butter with a mixer on medium-high speed, occasionally scraping bowl, until fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes. With the mixer running, slowly add light-brown sugar, beating until very pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add flour mixture all at once, and beat on low speed until just incorporated.

3. Transfer dough to sheet. Use a large piece of plastic wrap to press dough into an even layer that covers the bottom of the sheet. Cover and refrigerate until firm, about 20 minutes.

4. Bake dough until entire surface is golden brown, about 40 minutes. Let cool completely in sheet on a wire rack. Raise oven temperature to 350.

5. In a clean bowl, beat cream cheese with a mixer on medium speed, occasionally scraping bowl, until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low, and add granulated sugar in a slow, steady stream. Scrape bowl, then mix in lemon zest, vanilla and almond extracts, and a pinch of salt until well combined. Scrape bowl, then beat in eggs, 1 at a time, until incorporated. The mixture should be very smooth; scrape bowl as necessary. Pour over crust, and spread into an even layer.

6. Bake until filling is set, about 25 minutes. Let cool completely in sheet on rack. Refrigerate until firm and cold, about 4 hours (or overnight).

7. Run a sharp knife along short sides of sheet, and use parchment to lift out cheesecake. Run knife under hot water and dry well. Use it to cut cheesecake into 48 squares, wiping knife clean between cuts.

8. Transfer squares to a serving platter, reforming the rectangle. Decorate top left squares (3 down and 4 across), placing a blackberry in the center of each square and mounding blueberries around it. Using a long offset spatula, slide out 4 squares from bottom row. Top each square with 3 strawberry slices, dust with confectioners' sugar, and return to rectangle. Repeat with remaining 4 squares on bottom row and then squares on alternating rows. Alternatively, omit strawberries and dust alternating rows generously with confectioners' sugar. Place raspberries on every unadorned row, beginning with top row. Serve immediately (or refrigerate overnight).

*the above recipe and photo from martha stewart

Great Etsy finds:

Fourth of July Pinwheels

Fourth of July tutu

Fourth of July Wreath

And for those who were born on the 4th of July a great gift

So how did you and yours celebrate the holiday? Hope it was great! Now go out and PLAY!

Have kids online? Keep them safe!

2010-06-22T16:32:00.000-04:00

Teen angel panel

On May 27 Sarah and I attended the Wired Kids Summit in Washington DC. This was not the first meeting on Cybersafety that I attended, and with Sarah’s “run-in” with cyber bullying I knew she too would want to see what this was all about. The meeting was primarily a summit of Parry Aftab’s Teen angels to gather and talk to cyber companies and share their experiences i.e. facebook, Google, MySpace, Xbox, MTV, Disney, Nickelodeon etc.

Teen angels are a group of thirteen to eighteen year old volunteers that have been specially trained in all aspects of online safety, privacy and security. After completion of the required training, the Teen angels run unique programs in schools to spread the word about responsible and safe surfing to other teens and younger kids, parents, and teachers.

Parry and Teen Angel demonstrating the "Stop, Block and Tell"

Teen angels was founded in 1999 by leading cyberlawyer Parry Aftab, Executive Director of WiredSafety.org - the world's largest online safety and help organization and 501(c)(3) corporation. Parry personally trains most of the Teen angels!

Parry Aftab is an Internet privacy and security lawyer. She also writes books and articles and was one of the first experts to focus on Internet safety and kids online. The Teen angels were born as a result of a TV special Parry did in April 1999with ABC News, in New Jersey. The special was about teen girl safety and Parry was asked to be the Internet safety guru for the special. Part of the special involved Parry speaking to teenage girls at a school in New Jersey. When the computer connection predictably broke down, the girls just lined up at microphones and fired off questions and that was the birth of wiredsafety.*

At the summit there were several panel discussions with the teens, the companies, and with the audience. I had invited several mom bloggers to attend and other moms who are active in their schools so that they could learn from this and hopefully take back some ideas for starting a curriculum on the importance of internet safety and cyberbullying.

Parry and Cyber Company Panel

At my last meeting I was blown away by the corporations that were showing support for this important venue. Two companies stood out big time to me and they were Build a Bear which is a store for younger children and teens who has devoted an entire section of their website to cybersafety and MTV who began a thin line campaign aimed at stopping the spread of abuse in the form of sexting, cyberbullying and digital dating abuse.

psa courtesy of "A Thin Line"

I’m still not sure what facebook is doing to promote internet safety as well as gaming companies such as XBox. Facebook does have a place to report bullying but after my daughters experience I’m still a bit skeptical. A friend of mine who has 3 boys who came with me raised the question as to why should there be “chat” buttons on games such as scrabble where total strangers can hop on and start chatting with your child or you. She told me she finds this entirely too creepy and I have to agree.

But the bottom line is parents need to be aware of what your kids are doing, which in this day and age where 50% of the population is of divorced families and have two working parents is very hard to enforce. We really need to get back to basics of really speaking to our kids and keeping the lines of communications open so that “if” they encounter any type of “bullying” or “weirdness” on the computer they can follow along what they Teen/Twee angels preach which is “stop, block, and tell a parent.”

Keeping our kids safe has gone from our backyards into cyberspace and we really need to be wise.

Some tips from Parry*:
Keeping your kids safe on social media
Protect your privacy on facebook
What you need to know about youtube

*Information of teen angels and Perry Aftab from teenangels.org website and wiredsafety.org

It's time for a Cinco de Mayo fiesta!

2010-04-27T11:26:00.006-04:00

So it’s almost that festive time of the year: Cinco de Mayo is a Mexican victory festival observed by Mexican-American communities and primarily in Puebla, Mexico. This day celebrates patriotism, unity and Mexican heritage.

Why not have a little celebration with your kids, they will love it! Here are some of our family favorites!

Guacamole

Ingredients:

• 2 ripe Haas avocados
• 1/2 bunch fresh cilantro,leaves chopped
• 1/4 medium red onion, diced
• 2 jalapeño peppers, stemmed, seeded and finely diced (optional)
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime juice
• salt and pepper freshly ground, to taste

Instructions:

1. Cut the avocados into halves and remove the seeds. Peel the fruit and place in a mixing bowl.

2. Have kids mash avocados with a potato masher or fork until chunky. (Good luck stopping them from mashing into a thin paste!) They can add the remaining ingredients (after grown-ups have chopped the jalapeños) and mix with a fork

Photo credit above:american feast dot com

Celebrate Cinco de Mayo crudités

Celebrate Cinco de Mayo and get your kids to eat their veggies with healthy crudités in the colors of the Mexican bandera nacional, or national flag.

Ingredients

• Pea pods or green beans
• Jicama, cut into strips
• Red pepper
• Green pepper
• Orange pepper

Instructions

1. Arrange pea pods, jicama sticks, and red pepper strips on a platter as shown, then center a green pepper ring and the bottom of an orange pepper on top.

2. Set out your snack with dips in the same festive colors: green guacamole, white ranch dressing, and red salsa.

above photo credit from: Family fun

In Seattle WA there is a wonderful bakery called Trophy's and in the past they created a cupcake in honor of the holiday it's the Margarita Cupcake, a Lime Cupcake made with lime zest, fresh lime juice and lime oil topped with tequila and lime Buttercream and finished with candied lime zest and salt.Yum! I wonder if Trophy ships to DC...

above photo credit from: trophy cupcakes

For your Cinco de Mayo celebration, why not make your own pinata to add to your festive decor? Making a pinata is a great craft to do with the whole family. With just a few simple supplies and a little imagination, you’ll have a beautiful pinata in no time. Hang it up in the backyard or the park for your Cinco de Mayo celebration. The kids will love it! Here’s how to make it:

Materials:

2 cups flour
3 cups water
1 balloon
Newspaper, cut into long inch strips
Paint, crayons, or markers
Colored crepe paper
String

Directions:

1. Blow up a large balloon and tie the end

2. Mix the flour and water together until it makes a smooth paste

3. Dip the newspaper strips into the flour and water mixture

4. Carefully place the strips on the balloon until it is covered, leaving a hole at the top

5. Set aside and let the balloon dry

6. After the it feels pretty dry, place another layer of newspaper dipped in the mixture over the balloon and let dry again

7. Put one more layer of paper on the balloon – be sure you still leave the hole at the top

8. Now the fun part- when it’s completely dry, pop and remove the balloon

9. Get your creativity going and paint your pinata with different designs and colors

10. Traditional pinatas are made in a pointed star shape and have colored crepe paper from the sides and bottom so feel free to add some colored crepe paper to your pinata.

11. Punch 2 small holes in the top near the opening and string a large piece of string through the two holes

12. Fill your pinata (through the hole you left at the top) with candy, toys, or any other fun surprises. In order to keep the prizes/candy inside from pooling in one area, also fill the pinata with leftover newspaper strips or crepe paper.

13. Your done! Now you need a good place to tie pinata and a stick and and a blindfold.

If you are an advanced pinata creator, use your imagination to create a fun design like a flower or an animal shape. Try using thick colored paper filled with scrunched up newspaper and glue or tape to add any details to your basic pinata structure.

idea and photo from:Purple trail

Cactus ring toss

How To Play The Game:

1. Player stands behind the starting line and gets 3 large rings.

2. Player throws the rings at the cactus and needs to hook one of the arms to win.

3. If the player is not successful they go to the back of the line and lets someone else have a turn.

4. Take a picture of your guests with the big cactus

above photo credit: ultimate party shop dot com

How do you celebrate? Any ideas we'd love you to share them with us.

Spend Earth Day with your kids

2010-04-21T13:47:00.012-04:00

photo credit: blog dot music notes dot com

Tomorrow is Earth Day --and it's the 40th Anniversary of the holiday. It's a great time to learn about our planet and how to take care of it! Here are a few great ways to share this day with your children.

Egg Carton Buggy Mobile
photo credit and idea: Amanda Formaro

This cute little egg carton buggy mobile is a time consuming project, but the results are well worth the time invested! You can shorten the time of this craft by making it a group project. Let each child make one bug to hang on the mobile and it’ll come together in no time.

Materials:

• 18 place cardboard egg carton
• Scraps of colorful patterned papers (wallpaper samples, old greeting cards) or construction paper
• Acrylic paints: red, orange, brown, light blue, green, purple, yellow, white and pink
• Scissors
• 2 black skinny chenille stems
• 9 flat-backed heavy pebbles, marbles, or other object
• White yarn
• 2 heavy twigs or craft dowels
• 9 medium black pom poms
• 18 small wiggle eyes
• White craft glue
• Acrylic sealer spray
• Paintbrush
• Hot glue gun

Instructions:

1. Remove the lid of the cardboard egg carton and save for another project. Place bottom of egg carton upside down and paint two sections with each color noted above (i.e. 2 red, 2 orange, 2 brown, etc). Repeat for a second coat and let dry. Spray all painted cups with acrylic sealer spray.

2. Cut the egg carton sections apart. Trim around the sections so that all you have left are colored cups.

3. If using patterned paper, most likely the backside of the paper is blank. If this is the case, fold the patterned paper in half, pattern on the outside. Put a layer of glue in between and stick together. This will create a piece of patterned paper that is patterned on both sides. If using construction paper this step is not necessary.

4. Cut leaf-shaped wings from the paper.

5. Separate the colored egg cups so that you have two groups of nine cups, one of each color.

6. Turn one group of colored cups over, set the other group aside.

7. Squeeze some white glue into each of the cups that are turned upward. Place a flat-backed marble into each cup and allow time for the glue to dry. This will give each bug enough weight that they will hang nicely on your mobile and will cut down on the lines tangling together. It will also help the bugs to “look” downward so that they are seen from the ground.

8. Cut 9 pieces of yarn about 18” long each.

9. Onto each of the egg cup halves with the marble in them, glue a black pom pom to the closed (bottom) end. Now pair up your colored egg cups.

10. To assemble each bug body you will need a pair of the same colored egg cups, a set of paper wings, an 18” piece of yarn and your hot glue gun. Pipe a layer of hot glue onto the outer open edge of the egg cup with the marble in it, place the wings onto the glue, the yarn in the middle of the open cup at the top, and then the other egg cup goes on last. Repeat these steps for each bug.

11. Now that the bodies are assembled you can glue the wiggle eyes onto the black pom poms.

12. Cut the black chenille stems into 2” pieces. Bend the ends or twist them around a thin handled paintbrush. Put a dot of hot glue on the straight end and push into the top of the pom pom. Repeat for the other antenna.

13. Cut another piece of yarn about 12” in length. Crisscross the two dowels and wrap with yarn to secure, add a dot of glue to reinforce. Be sure there is enough yarn left over to tie a loop at the top to hang your mobile from.

14. Tie each bug onto the dowels, two on each ‘arm” and one in the middle. Stagger the lengths and tie in place. When you have them where you want them, trim the excess

Friendly Robots
Photo credit and idea: family fun

These friendly robots are more than just good-looking; magnets hold their features in place, making the 'bots the metallic equivalent of a Mr. Potato Head.

Materials
• Tin can
• Electrical tape (optional)
• Hardware, and various recyclables such as bottle caps, keys, etc.
• Hot-glue gun
• Strong disk magnets

Instructions

1. Open a tin can with a safety can opener so there are no sharp edges. (If you only have a regular opener, line the inside of the can's rim with electrical tape.)
2. Empty, wash, and dry the can.

3. For facial features, arms, propulsion devices, and communication arrays, look for items around the house and at the hardware store. We used bolts, brackets, hinges, keys, wing nuts, switches, bottle caps, washers, knobs, and more.

4. Hot-glue the items to strong disk magnets.

Magazine Holder
photo credit and idea: Amanda Formaro

Don't throw away your kids' old cereal boxes! Turn them into attractive magazine holders with this handy Earth Day craft.

Materials:
• Empty cereal box
• Scissors
• White acrylic paint or spray paint
• Light green and dark green acrylic paint
• Sponge or leaf shaped foam stamp
• Thin paint brush
• Sand paper or gesso/craft medium (we used Liquitex Basics Gesso)

Instructions:

1. Cut off top of cereal box. Halfway across top of box, cut at a 45 degree angle down to front of your magazine holder, cut straight across then back up other side at the same angle.

2. Lightly sandpaper outside of cereal box. (They are usually shiny, coated paper.) Alternatively you can paint a layer of gesso all over the box. Either one of these methods will help the paint adhere to the box.

3. Spray paint the box white, or paint on with inexpensive sponge brush. Let dry.

4. Cut out leaf shape from sponge or use a leaf shaped foam stamp.

5. Pour out small amount of green paints.

6. Use thin paint brush to add a swirled line all over the box, this is the vine.

7. Sponge paint (or use foam stamp) green leaves on front of box leading to sides of box. First the darker, for background leaves, then lighter for foreground leaves.

8. If painting more than one box, try to connect vines on each box so when set together they will match.

Mom’s Memo Board
Photo credit and idea: family fun

Get the message across with a repurposed cookie sheet.

Materials:
• Non-aluminum cookie sheet
• Ruler
• Scissors
• Self-adhesive shelf liner
• Scrap of wood
• Hammer
• Large nail
• Empty can
• Glue (we used Crafter's Pick The Ultimate)
• Supermagnets
• Bottle caps
• Card stock
• Markers

Instructions:

1. Measure the back of your cookie sheet and cut a piece of shelf liner that's an inch wider and an inch taller. Stick the shelf liner to the back of the cookie sheet by peeling off one corner of the liner and laying it down on a corner of the cookie sheet. Slowly pull the backing away as you smooth the liner onto the sheet. Cut off the excess shelf liner.

2. To make a hole for hanging, place the cookie sheet over a piece of scrap wood and use a hammer to punch a nail through the center of the rim.

3. For the pencil holder, cut a piece of shelf liner that's about an inch taller than the can. Wrap the liner around the can so that the ends overlap a bit, then cut off the excess liner. Glue two magnets to the side of the can.

4. For the bottle-cap magnets, glue a magnet inside of each cap. Cut a piece of card stock to fit the cap, write a name on it, and glue it on top of the magnet.

Cooking with kids for earthday:

Photo credit and recipe: family fun
Earth Day Snack Bars

Chocolate: Africa's Ivory Coast is the largest producer of cocoa beans, the ingredient that gives chocolate its unique, irresistible flavor.

Coconut: The Philippines and Indonesia are the world's leading producers of copra, or coconut meat.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups baking mix (we used Bisquick)
• 1 1/2 cups instant oats
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup softened butter
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• ADD-INS:
• Coconut flakes
• Chocolate chips
• Chopped dried pineapple
• Raisins
• Chopped Brazil nuts

Instructions:

1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, combine the baking mix, oats, brown sugar, butter, egg, and cinnamon.

2. Stir the mix with a wooden spoon until you have a crumbly dough. Next, customize your international treats by folding in 1 cup total of the add-ins of your choice.

3. Press the dough into an ungreased 9- by 13-inch pan and bake for 17 minutes or until the center is set and the bars are slightly brown. Allow them to cool for 10 minutes before cutting. Makes 1-1/2 dozen 2- by 3-inch bars

Remember getting kids into the garden is a great way to introduce them to green living!

A fun thing to do on Earth Day is to go see Disney’s new Movie “Oceans!”

Disney's Oceans - opening Earth Day 2010

How are you going to spend your Earth Day?

Spring into Passover and Easter with your children

2010-03-31T12:40:00.012-04:00

Spring has always been a fun time in our home. It's a time of celebrating the new and remembering the traditions of our families.

photo credit: martha stewart dot com

This adorable candy decoration is perfect for your families Easter holiday celebration.

Tools and Materials

• One 12-inch round Styrofoam wreath form
• Five 6-inch round Styrofoam wreath forms
• 28-inch dowel, 1/2-inch diameter
• Sharpened pencil
• 1/2-inch-wide green ribbon, seam binding and twill tape
• Glue
• Flathead pins
• Floral pins
• About 25 Marshmallow Peeps of one color for flower center
• About 60 Marshmallow Peeps of one color for flower petals
• Royal Icing
• Toothpicks
• Clear vessel filled with jelly beans or other candy

Directions

1. Using a sharpened pencil, bore a hole through one side of a 12-inch round Styrofoam wreath form.

2. Insert a 28-inch dowel, piercing through to the opposite side.

3. Wrap the Styrofoam wreath form and dowel in green ribbon, securing every few inches with a dab of glue.

4. Attach a 1/2-inch-wide piece of ribbon around the outer rim of a 6-inch Styrofoam "petal" form and secure with a flathead pin. Repeat to make five petal bases.

5. Secure petals to 12-inch Styrofoam base with 2 floral pins each, creating a flower shape.

6. Decorate petals with Marshmallow Peeps, using a combination of royal icing and toothpicks to secure.

7. "Plant" finished flower creation in a clear vessel filled with candy.

photo credit: Dylan's Candy Bar

Colorful Tower of Peeps

You can't have Easter without Peeps! This colorful tower of everyone's favorite marshmallow candy is perfect for sharing on Easter morning. You can make your own or hop over to Dylan's Candy Bar and order one for your favorite little bunny!

photo credit: family fun magazine

This bee won’t sting

Tools and Materials:

• eggs
• newsprint
• egg dye
• paper towels
• birthday candles or crayons
• red and black acrylic or tempera paint
• brushes
• white tissue
• glue

Instructions

1. Blow the Egg: Wash and dry the raw egg. Cover your table with newsprint and set out bowls, pushpins, and paper towels. Shake the egg to break the yolk. Next, pierce the top and bottom with a pushpin, making the hole on the wider end a bit larger. Position the egg over the bowl and blow through the small hole, allowing the inside of the egg to seep into the bowl. Set the empty egg, with the large hole down, in an egg carton to dry. Be sure children wash their hands after handling raw egg.

2. Degg-orate the Egg: Let the kids paint half of the egg, stand it atop a bottle cap to dry (use a hair dryer to speed things up), then paint the other half. Centering the face on either hole, paint on features with contrasting colors. Paint your bee bright yellow, then paint on a red smile, black eyes, and black stripes. Glue on white tissue paper wings.

3. Take Flight: Tape a long length of fishing line to the end of an unfolded paper clip. Starting at the small hole, thread the line through the decorated egg and out the large hole. To keep your flying critter upright, tape the fishing line just above the hole in the critter's back. Hang it from the ceiling or an egg tree.

photo credit: family fun

Jelly Bean Carrots: I used to make these every spring for my girls and our company, I know your children will love them!

Tools and Materials:

• Orange jelly beans
• Scissors
• Green tissue paper
• Twist ties

Instructions

1. Fill an icing bag with orange jelly beans, leaving at least 3 inches unfilled at the top.

2. Cut out two 8-inch squares of green tissue paper and lay one atop the other. Pick up the squares from the center and give them a little twist so you have a cone-shaped carrot top.

3. Place the tissue, twisted end down, into the bag. Gather the bag at the top of the jelly beans and secure with a twist tie.

photo credit: a taste of home

Italian Easter Bread

Ingredients

• 3 to 3-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 package (1/4 ounce) active dry yeast
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2/3 cup warm milk (120° to 130°)
• 2 tablespoons butter, softened
• 7 eggs
• 1/2 cup chopped mixed candied fruit
• 1/4 cup chopped blanched almonds
• 1/2 teaspoon aniseed
• Canola oil

Directions

1. In a bowl, combine 1 cup flour, sugar, yeast and salt. Add milk and butter; beat 2minutes on medium. Add 2 eggs and 1/2 cup flour; beat 2 minutes on high. Stir in fruit, nuts and aniseed; mix well. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough.

2. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl; turn once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.

3. If desired, dye remaining eggs (leave them uncooked); lightly rub with oil. Punch dough down. Divide in half; roll each piece into a 24-in. rope. Loosely twist ropes and tuck eggs into openings. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes. Bake at 350° for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pan; cool on a wire rack. Yield: 1 bread.

photo credit: Martha Stewart

The Tastiest Matzo House for your Seder table

Tools and Materials

• 6-by-6-by-6-inch cube cardboard box
• Scissors or utility knife
• Tape
• Matzo
• Melted chocolate
• Kosher foods for decoration

Directions

1. Begin by folding the cardboard box into the form of a house: trim 2 of the top flaps into triangles and tape the 2 uncut flaps onto it along the cut angles to create a support for the pitched roof.

2. Squeeze melted chocolate onto form. Tip: Keep melted chocolate liquefied by resting a container of it in warm water.

3. Attach pieces of matzo to chocolate-covered house form.

4. Decorate the matzo house with kosher food items of your choice, using the melted chocolate to attach the decorations to the house.

photo credit: kaboose dot com

Child Designed Passover Seder Place Mat

Tools and Materials:

• White poster board or craft foam, big enough for a place mat
• Construction paper: green, white, brown, red
• White paper
• Pencil
• Markers: yellow, orange, red and blue
• Black thin tipped marker
• Clear self-adhesive paper (recommended: Con-Tact paper)
• Scissors
• White craft glue

Directions:

1. You will need something round to trace to create the Seder plate. Trace it with a pencil in the center of the place mat.

2. Use a smaller cylindrical item (can, cup, etc) to trace circles for each place on the Seder plate. One in the center, and five going around the center circle.

3. Cut the Seder items from the construction paper. Use brown to cut out a chicken leg (shank bone), white and green for the horseradish (bitter herb), green for the romaine lettuce (bitter vegetable), green for the parsley (green vegetable), red and white for apple and nut salad (charoset) and use plain white paper for the egg(roasted egg).

4. Trace the penciled circles with black marker.

5. Glue the construction paper food items to the plate, horseradish in the center, chicken leg in the upper right, then clockwise from there the charoset, lettuce, parsley and egg.

6. Draw an outline around the plate. Decorate the inside of this outline with yellow and orange markers.

7. Decorate the other circles by dotting around their outlines with orange marker.

8. Use a red marker to write the word “Passover” on the left side of the placemat and the blue marker to write “Pesach” (the Jewish term for the Passover festival) on the right side.

9. Cover both sides of the place mat with clear adhesive paper.

The Seder Plate Background:

The Seder plate is a plate of specific foods that tell the story of the Israelites suffering and deliverance. On your plate, which is in the centre of the table you will need:

1. Haroseth – a mixture of chopped nuts, wine, cinnamon and apples to represent the mortar that the Israelites used to make bricks in slavery in Egypt.

2. Parsley (dipped in salt water) – Symbolizing spring but dipped in salt water to remember the tears shed in slavery.
3. Roasted egg – another symbol of spring

4. Shank Bone – The lamb was offered as a sacrifice and then eaten on the night of Passover before the Israelites left Egypt.

5. Bitter herbs – Horseradish to reflect the bitterness of slavery

At the table there are also 4 glasses of wine . 4 of the glasses are shared by all at different stages in the meal. Each cup also represents an aspect of the walk from Slavery to Freedom:

1st cup – Freedom
2nd cup – Deliverance
3rd cup – Redemption
4th cup – Release
5th cup – Elijah’s cup – set side for the prophet Elijah

photo credit: family fun

Matzo Haystacks

Instructions

1. Coconut-Almond Haystacks: Melt the chocolate chips according to the directions on the package, and stir until smooth.

2. Combine the crushed matzos, the coconut, and the almonds in a large mixing bowl. Pour the melted chocolate over the dry mixture and stir until all of the pieces are coated.

3. Use a teaspoon to dollop haystacks onto a sheet of parchment or waxed paper, or into paper muffin cups. Allow the treats to cool (about 10 minutes). Makes about 60 pieces.

4. Variations:

Dried Fruit Haystacks: Follow the recipe above but reduce the amount of chocolate chips to 2 cups and substitute 1 cup of dried fruit for the coconut and almonds. We used a mix of chopped apricots and sweetened cranberries.

Enjoy your families holidays! What kinds of crafts to you do with your children for Easter or Passover?

How does your garden grow?

2010-03-21T15:03:00.007-04:00

Over the years one thing I have come to enjoy is watching my children's love for gardening grow. No matter how small a space it was, my oldest loved to play in the dirt, sow her seeds nurture them and eat the “fruits and veggies” of her labor. It was always a wonderful experience season after season to watch her in awe as her little plants began to grow.

photo credit:Enviromom

To start each year I would gather up my seed catalogues and decide which plants and veggies I would like to try this year as well as gather up some old favorites and then we would order them. I would go to our local nursery and gather up some basic start up sets for the seeds. And then we would wait until the postman would bring that special package with our new seeds. My daughter was always so happy that day and wanted to get started “immediately!”

There are many things that my girls learned from gardening, from the most basic lesson of plant germination, the lesson of importance of sunshine and need to make sure that the plants have the correct amount of water and nutrients.

Gardening is a wonderful hobby to share with your children. You do not need to dedicate a huge amount of space and if you live in an apartment you can even use containers or window boxes.

Starting the Seeds Indoors

You don’t need to be like me and order from catalogues. You can go to your local nursery which is usually stocked up at this time of year with seeds and kits to get you started.

We usually pick out a Cherry tomato as they are so sweet and juicy and can be grown in a container if need be. After you decide which packets you want to get be sure read the back of the packages to find out when to plant,(this is important if you want to start sowing the seeds with your children)how deeply to plant, (if you are planning on doing this later in the spring directly into the dirt) and whether the seeds must be started indoors.

Directions:

• Purchase "starting soil", or make your own with equal parts potting soil, sand, and vermiculite.

• Place soil in egg cartons or plastic trays. For a "hot house" effect, you can purchase domed seed starter containers. Or you can be eco-friendly and reuse a container that you might have gotten rotisserie chicken in. (just make sure to give it a good wash before use)The black plastic tray is great for absorbing heat, and the clear plastic dome allows sunlight in, while retaining warmth and moisture.

photo credit: Wrapables dot com

Another child friendly way to start seeds is to use egg shells! Not only are they cute but again they are eco-friendly.

How to make an egg-pot:

• When cooking eggs, carefully crack and save lower two-thirds of shell intact.

• Wash them and let them air dry

• Fill shells with potting soil.

• Add one or two seeds.

• Water gently, put egg shells in egg carton and cover with lid. Keep soil moist but not soggy.

• It is fun to do this with grass and make it look like a little head, children get a kick out of “cutting” the hair, and drawing faces on the outside of the shells.

Here are a few other fun ideas to do with your children:

Recycled crafts Growing in Fun Containers

photo credit: recyled crafts

Take your child along to the nursery and let him or her pick out some small flower plants or seeds and plant them in a fun, funky container. Use your imagination! Anything that can hold dirt can be a planter.

Some ideas for planters:
• An old sneaker or a boot
• Small wagon or cart
• Barbie convertible car
• Wheelbarrow
• Toy dump truck
• A ball with the top cut off

For best results make holes in the bottom of whatever you’re using for drainage. If that’s not possible, put a layer of small stone in the bottom and then potting soil on top.

Grass Heads
Make a green-haired funny-face and watch his hair grow!
You will need:
• 2-liter soda bottle
• Paints, markers, googly eyes and supplies to decorate
• Potting soil
• Grass seed

Direction:
1. Cut the top off the soda bottle
2. decorate with eyes, nose, mouth and ears.
3. Place potting soil in bottle
4. sprinkle with grass seed
5. apply another layer of potting soil on top.
6. Water often and expose to sun.
7. For best results, poke holes in the bottom of the bottle and place on a drainage saucer.

But whatever you choose to do one thing I am sure of is your children will really enjoy it! Let me know how does your garden grow?

Do you know the "kitchen dance?"

2010-03-10T09:18:00.000-05:00

photo credit: gymkhana

In the last weeks I have had a few new things enter my life and a few things come back into my life, exercise being in the later of the two. By now you know I have a “love hate” relationship with exercise, I hate going but I love the feeling I get when I’m done. I don’t know if it’s that “ahhhh” I did it feeling, or those little endorphins we hear about and I just have a much better outlook for the day…

In any event last week I had a little “revelation” when I took off my armband to sync it up and check out my “calories burned” for the day. I noticed a few things:

1. When I’m sitting and typing as I am now I might as well be sleeping or not breathing because I would burn the same amount of calories… um that means flat line… none… nil… I was shocked! Now I understand just how easy it was for me to gain weight. Again, I knew if I sat around all day and did nothing other than work it really isn’t good for me but to actually see it with a graph… Wow! I’m a visual person so it really opened my eyes! So, I know I need to get up and move around every hour or so if it’s going to be a long day on the computer. Bring in the bosu ball (yes, I broke down and actually paid money and bought one of these torture apparatus’s for home.) and do some balance exercises every so often, move your blood around. I know you’re thinking well, what do I do if I’m at an office? I can’t very well say “ok bosu time!” Well then get up and take a little walk around your office, if it’s nice outside at lunch break up the day and go for a quick walk…

2. I was also surprised, actually, almost devastated lol to see that when I was weight training with Ryan my calories expended weren’t “huge.” As much as I huff and puff like an old woman I thought for sure I’d be burning huge amounts of calories. I asked Ryan about this and he told me that we are actually working on getting my muscles in “shape” and then he went on to explain how after we build up the muscle mass in my body that will work to my advantage to burn more fat and calories. So in the long run I guess that makes sense…

3. My little trusty arm band also told me an interesting fact. On Friday, we had a little girls’ “kitchen dance party” where we hit the CD player with Season 2 of Glee and we chopped and danced and danced and danced… Something that you can usually see if you look in my window around dinner time. lol I’m thinking of doing a video post on this in the future to scare all of America! Anyhow, when I synched my armband up a day or two later, I forgot about our little “dance party” and I saw my calories burned and was like…. “What was I doing Friday afternoon? My cardio numbers were huge!” Hmmm, o yes, it was my “kitchen dance party!” You can be sure we have implemented this little shinding into our dinner prep a few days a week… So come on…

I invite you to join in the “kitchen” dance party! Send us over your favorite tunes to jump and jiggle to! I promise no judging here! And for your “dancing pleasure” our choice song of the day was Jennifer Paige’s “Crush” Enjoy!

An 18th b-day calls for a Southwestern Fiesta!

2010-03-01T04:00:00.005-05:00

Well considering Mister Winter spoiled my daughters 18th birthday not only once but twice with the largest blizzards that the Washington Metropolitan Area has seen since the early 1900’s… I was determined to have a celebration with her and whoever could get over to our home to help celebrate.

Menu:
Taco’s with all the fixins
Mexican Lasagna
Southwestern Corn Bread
5 layer dip
Southwestern Salad
Orzo salad
Large Garden Salad

Birthday cupcakes
Fruit Salad with homemade whip cream (yummy!)
Birthday girl’s favorite dessert: Key Lime Tartlets

As usual I made enough food for an army! But the most popular items were the Mexican Lasagna and the Key Lime Tartlet’s so I’m going to share them with you!

Rachel Ray’s Mexican Lasagna

Ingredients
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 pounds ground chicken breast, available in the packaged meats case (I used 1 pound ground turkey and 1 package of Morningstar Crumbles)
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1/2 red onion, chopped
• 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained
• 1 cup medium heat taco sauce or 1 (14-oz) can stewed or fire roasted tomatoes
• 1 cup frozen corn kernels
• Salt
• 8 (8 inch) spinach flour tortillas, available on dairy aisle of market
• 2 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar or shredded pepper jack
• 2 scallions, finely chopped

Directions
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Preheat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil - twice around the pan. Add chicken and season with chili powder, cumin, and red onion. Brown the meat, 5 minutes. Add taco sauce or stewed or fire roasted tomatoes. Add black beans and corn. Heat the mixture through, 2 to 3 minutes then season with salt, to your taste.

Coat a shallow baking dish with remaining extra-virgin olive oil, about 1 tablespoon oil. Cut the tortillas in half or quarters to make them easy to layer with. Build lasagna in layers of meat and beans, then tortillas, then cheese. Repeat: meat, tortilla, cheese again. Bake lasagna 12 to 15 minutes until cheese is brown and bubbly. Top with the scallions and serve

Emeri’s Key Lime Tartlets

Ingredients
• 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 4 tablespoons (1/2 stick butter) melted
*I didn’t make this as a pie but rather individual servings by using premade tart shells that I got from the food store.
• 2 (14-ounce) cans condensed milk
• 1 cup key lime or regular lime juice
• 2 whole eggs

*Emril uses a sour cream/powder sugar topping and I chose to make homemade whip cream which my daughter loves.

• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 1 tablespoon sugar

Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
*To make the shell which I didn’t-In a bowl, mix the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and butter with your hands. Press the mixture firmly into a 9-inch pie pan, and bake until brown, about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool to room temperature before filling.

Lower the oven temperature to 325 degrees F.
In a separate bowl, combine the condensed milk, lime juice, and eggs. Whisk until well blended and place the filling in the tartlet shell. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes and allow to chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.

While that is chilling in the refrigerator take the heavy cream and beat it for about 5 minutes add the sugar and vanilla while beating.

Spoon a small dab onto each tartlet and garnish with a ¼ slice of lime and a raspberry.

These are so tasty you can just pop them in your mouth! Yum!! Let me know if you try either of these!

Today is the first day of the rest of my life!

2010-02-24T04:30:00.001-05:00

I’m dying, well not literally but my little muscles are all quivering I can just picture them like little animated cartoon characters skinny legs, big bodies, just shaking. Well hibernation is over! It’s time to exercise! Time to get this body back in shape. I mean “in” shape… Change the “shape” that I am now….

Going back to the gym was like going “home again.” Everything and everyone was familiar even though I haven’t been there in a long time… literally years… I saw people I haven’t spoken to since my oldest was in high school! (She’s now graduating college!) My daughters’ old trainer was there with friendly open arms! This man trained her to get her little body in tip top shape for a lot of her pageant career. I used to drive her to the gym and wait or jump on the treadmill from time to time. I even worked out with her old trainer for a short time too.

Ryan (my bodies new best friend and trainer) met me there after I did a few minutes, 10 to be exact of cardio on the ever so hateful elliptical. I really really hate cardio! But I remembered the “old days” when I worked out and knew before using your muscles you had to “warm them up.” Well as I hopped on the elliptical my little legs started to ache more and more, I did say I only did this for 10 minutes right? Uhhhh and I did mention how much I hate cardio, right? But I know that exercise is a must that goes along with good nutrition so here I am…

I’m sure Ryan didn’t know what to expect of me, this middle aged woman, who wants to ”get healthy.” He was ever so patient for our first training session. He explained that since I have high blood pressure which began with my first pregnancy which ended with toxemia/pre-eclampia almost 22 years ago we were going to work out using what he called “PHA.” And he explained that PHA is short for peripheral heart action. It is a type of circuit training that alternates upper and lower body exercises throughout the circuit. This type of training is perfect for burning a lot of calories and improving one’s endurance without over working each individual muscle.

After our workout Ryan told me that I should eat a protein and carbohydrate now. I asked “maybe an apple and peanut butter?” he said not too much fat perhaps a turkey sandwich, and I asked “With pieces of bread?” and he almost choked because he misunderstood me and thought I said “pizza!” Pieces… Pizza…. He said he was worried and thought he needed to run and call Rebecca (my bodies other new best friend and nutritionist)and tell her we have a “serious problem” here! I laughed, oh even I know no more pizza.

Well that’s workout number one… looking forward to just how sore I’m going to feel in the morning in time to work on some “cardio.” Did I tell you how much I hate cardio? Well, I am determined to take this all the way and continue on my healthy journey, next up my first meeting with Rebecca … stay tuned…

Please follow our journey weekly and join our facebook fan page with any questions for both Rebecca or Ryan!

Please Pledge to show Respect to Everyone!

2010-02-23T04:00:00.004-05:00

image courtesy of: best buddies organization

On March 3, 2010, Best Buddies, Special Olympics and supporters from across the world will unite in support of a grass roots movement challenging the use of the R-word, an outdated word that must be recognized for its hurtful impact on people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Spread the Word to End the Word awareness day will engage schools, organizations and communities by raising the consciousness of society about the dehumanizing and hurtful effects of the R-word and encouraging everyone to stop using this word by signing our pledge and encouraging their friends to do the same.

Please help us achieve our goal of 100,000 pledges by visiting www.r-word.org and taking the pledge today. You can also show your support by purchasing merchandise .

Our language frames how we think about others. Help eliminate the use of the R-word in everyday speech.

SPREAD THE WORD TO END THE WORD
03.03.10
www.r-word.org

I'm geting a "Wellness Makeover" on ABC with Rebecca Scritchfield!

2010-02-16T12:13:00.001-05:00

I’m so excited! For once in my life I’m going to be putting “myself” first. Well at least for “healthy living.” For the next month I will be working with Rebecca Scritchfield, MA, RD, ACSM Health Fitness Specialist to learn all the "dos and don’ts" of proper nutrition. I know you are all probably shaking your head thinking; “Proper nutrition, what’s so hard about that?” Well I know you shouldn’t sit down and eat a tub of ice cream or a bag of chips at one sitting, everyone knows that. We will be spending time going over; preparing for change and setting realistic goals, pantry makeover, healthy grocery shopping, healthy eating out and on the go, overcoming roadblocks and barriers and healthy exercise and stress management.

Being the fact that I love to cook, I am so excited about this whole program! Of course this means getting me back to the gym which in itself is a good thing. This month being Heart Healthy Month I am constantly thinking about my blood pressure which has never been “normal” since I had pre-eclampsia/toxemia (twice) with my pregnancies to the point where I was hospitalized and gave birth to two preemies.

I hope you will follow me here weekly and tune into ABC’s “Let’s Talk Live” to watch Rebecca and I embark on my journey. Please please feel free to leave comments here or join my “Shelley’s Wellness Makeover” fan page” on facebook, where you can also leave comments or questions for Rebecca. I know it’s not a sprint rather a marathon and I’m just excited about starting!

Wish me luck!
Shelley

The Sweetest Ideas for Valentine's Day

2010-02-08T04:00:00.003-05:00

photo credit: Tom Kat Studio

It's that time of year again, when we jump to remember those we love and care about. My daughters both love celebrating Valentine's Day, even to this day. I'm sharing some cute recipes and ideas for a "sweet" holiday.

photo credit: Family Fun

Sweet Heart Brownies

Ingredients

• 36 2-inch graham crackers
• 1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk (don't use evaporated milk)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 16-ounce package semisweet chocolate morsels
• 3/4 cup coarsely chopped pecans

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350º (325º for glassware). While you generously grease an 8-inch square baking pan, put your kids to work crushing the graham crackers into fine crumbs. It's especially easy and fun if you seal the crackers in a plastic bag and then use a rolling pin.

2. Stir together the sweetened condensed milk, vanilla extract, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Add the chocolate morsels, pecans, and graham cracker crumbs and mix with a wooden spoon until well blended.

3. Spoon the batter (it will be very stiff) into the greased pan. Use the back of a wooden spoon (or clean hands) to pat the batter into an even layer. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool completely in the pan.

4. Use a cookie cutter or a butter knife to cut out small (these brownies are rich!) heart shapes. Serve plain or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or raspberry sherbet. Makes about 8 to 12, depending on size.
* From our friends at Family Fun Magazine

photo credit: Martha Stewart

My oldest daughter used to love to come home and "empty" her Valentine's Day mailbox on our kitchen table. This is a cute idea we got from Martha Stewart for your children to make and share with their classmates.

To make, cut a heart from a strip of candy dots, and glue it to a piece of construction paper. With scalloping scissors, cut construction paper to create a border around the heart.

And in our home it wouldn't be Valentine's Day without some "loving" gifts. Here are a few that I found on Etsy that I think are adorable!

photo credit: LBG Studio

Crafty Kids Crayon Art Tote

This pretty little crayon organizer holds 12 crayons, a pad of paper (both included!), and has an extra pocket for stickers, drawings, and other crafty goodness. Perfect for older kids who want to have their own tote to carry. They can take it along with them in the car, doctor's appointments, restaurants, play dates. . . keep them busy and entertained!

photo credit: the belle and the beau

The perfect for Valentine's Day tie!

I love these ties! They are custom designed to be wider for a more modern style. The best part of these kid friendly ties is that they are washable because we all know that boys will be boys!

Belle and Beau's hand made ties are perfect for all occasions, Sunday best, or have some fun by putting them with a polo and jeans.

This red and white holiday paisley is fitting for any little man in your life!

photo credit: Oh Nelly

Since my I called both of my girls "tiny chef's" they would have loved this one!
Let's get cooking! This handmade apron and chef's hat is the perfect kitchen combo for any little chef.

Typically this apron and hat will fit ages 3-7. It has a velcro closure on the neck strap so the apron will not hang too low. The chefs hat is has a velcro closure and is adjustable to the size of the chefs head. Personalization is available for both the apron and the chef's hat.

photo credit: Tom Kat Studio

And if your children are anything like mine they would love to have a Valentine's Day party! Here are a few ideas from Kim at Tom Kat Studios which are so cute and would make any Valentine's Day party a success.

Hope you enjoy your day of "love." Let us know what you do to celebrate!

It's Breakfast Time!

2010-01-25T04:25:00.003-05:00

Photo credit: Pottery Barn Kids

The last time I wrote about children and cooking I had a wonderful response so I figured that once a month I would write a post “food related” for cooking with your children.

As a child I loved mixing things up when I got the chance in the kitchen, a lot of my love for cooking came from my grandmother, although a lot of her cooking was very heavy. I have grown over the years to love to cook with fresh veggies and mix unique things together which create a wonderful flavor. When my oldest was old enough to help out in the kitchen I encouraged her to jump in and help as I feel this helped create a basic understanding of cooking, skill and taught her a bit about creativity.

As we all know Breakfast is the most important way to kick off a healthy day so this month I have chosen to share with you some of our family favorites!

Photo credit: Family Fun Magazine

Yummy Crunchy Granola
Sweet and crunchy, this granola is great served with fruit and milk for breakfast, stirred into yogurt or sprinkled on ice cream. It's also a fun recipe for kids to help mix.

Ingredients:
• 4 cups rolled oats
• 1 cup wheat germ
• 1 cup chopped walnuts or slivered almonds
• 1/2 cup sesame seeds
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup honey
• 1/3 cup water
• 1 (6-ounce) package dried sweetened cranberries or other dried fruits such as cherries, raisins, pineapple, or papaya

Instructions

1. Heat the oven to 300º. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the oats, wheat germ, nuts, sesame seeds, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt.

2. Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the oil, honey, and water. Toss the mixture until the ingredients are well combined, then spread it evenly on a cookie sheet.

3. Bake the granola for 40 minutes or until lightly browned, stirring every 10 minutes to keep the mixture from sticking. Let it cool completely, and then stir in the cranberries or dried fruit. Makes about 7 cups.

Photo credit: terrific travel ideas

Banana Bread
One of our families favorite Breakfast recipes!

Ingredients:
• 1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 3 medium very ripe bananas, peeled
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Tip: Use very ripe bananas to make this easy banana bread.

Instructions:

1. Preheat an oven to 350°F. Grease an 8 1/2-by-4 1/2-inch metal loaf pan with butter.

2. In a bowl, using a wooden spoon, stir together the flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda.

3. In a large bowl, smash the bananas with a fork. Add the sugar, oil, eggs and vanilla and beat with the wooden spoon until well blended.

4. Add the flour mixture to the banana mixture and stir just until blended.

5. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan, spreading it evenly with the wooden spoon. Put the pan in the oven and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the bread comes out with just a few crumbs clinging to it, about 45 minutes.

6. Using oven mitts turn the pan on its side and slip the loaf out onto the wire rack. Let the loaf cool for 15 minutes before serving. Makes 1 loaf.

Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Kids Baking, by Abigail Johnson Dodge

Photo courtesy of Martha Stewart

Quiche even your kids will love
Makes one 10-inch quiche. Feel free to try adding mushrooms, spinach and red onions instead of bacon and zucchini. It is delicious!

Ingredients:
• 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface
• 1/2 recipe Flaky Tart Dough
• 10 large eggs
• 2 cups crème fraiche
• 2 cups whole milk
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh thyme
• 5 slices center-cut bacon, sliced crosswise into 1/4-inch pieces
• 1 medium or 2 small zucchini, peeled lengthwise into 1/8-inch-thick ribbons
• 1/2 cup gruyere

Instructions:

1. On a lightly floured work surface, roll dough into a 16-inch round. With a dry pastry brush, sweep off any excess flour; fit dough into a 2-inch deep-dish tart pan with a removable bottom, gently pressing it into the sides. Using a sharp knife, trim the dough evenly with the edge of the pan. Cover with plastic wrap; chill tart shell until firm, about 20 minutes.

2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

3. Line the tart dough with a sheet of parchment paper and fill with pie weights. Transfer to oven and bake until light brown, about 25 minutes. Remove weights and parchment paper and continue baking until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack; let cool completely. Or you can skip steps 1 and 3 and use a frozen pie crust.

4. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, mix together 1 egg and flour on high speed until smooth. Add the remaining 9 eggs and continue mixing until well blended.

5. Place crème fraiche in a medium bowl and whisk until smooth; add milk and continue whisking until well combined. Add to mixer along with salt, pepper, and thyme; mix until well combined. Strain mixture into a large bowl through a fine mesh sieve.

6. Place bacon, zucchini ribbons, and cheese in prepared tart shell. Pour over egg mixture until tart shell is full (you may not need to use all of the egg mixture). Bake 20 minutes; reduce temperature to 325 degrees, and continue baking until filling is slightly firm, rather than liquid, and crust is a deep golden brown, 40 to 50 minutes more. Transfer quiche to a wire rack to cool until set, about 20 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature. To reheat, cover quiche with aluminum foil and bake in an oven heated to 325 degrees for about 15 minutes.

This delicious bacon and zucchini quiche recipe is courtesy of Elisabeth Prueitt from Martha Stewart.

Photo credit: Williams-Sonoma

Fruity Shakes

Ingredients:
• 1 container (8 ounces) vanilla yogurt
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 6 strawberries, stems cut off, or 1 small ripe peach, pit removed and cut
into chunks, or 1 cup blueberries
• Ice cubes (optional)

Instructions:

1. Put the yogurt and sugar in the container of an electric blender. Add your choice of fruit.

2. Put the lid securely on the blender. Make sure it is on tight! Hold down the lid with your hand (so the lid is not forced off by the spinning liquid) and turn the blender on to high speed. Blend until the shake is thick and smooth.

3. Fill 1 or 2 glasses with ice cubes, if you want your shake frostier, and pour the shake into the glass(es). Serve immediately. Serves 1 or 2.

Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Kids Baking, by Abigail Johnson Dodge

I hope you enjoy some of these delicious recipes, let me know if you do make any of them with your children and how they turned out.

My 5 favorite blog posts of 2009

2010-01-07T11:08:00.004-05:00

As I start the new year off, it is my new year’s resolution, yes, I am trying something “new” and going to try and do one I really think I can do, not lose the extra 25 pounds I gained over the past few years, but I will “try” to shed a few of those, not take up something new like “sky diving” which I could possibly never do because I am afraid of heights so much that when I’m on a plane I really try and forget there is really “nothing” between my feet and the ground. But rather I am going to try and post on this blog at least once a week!

I started this blog as a spin off so to speak of my main blog but I don’t want it to turn out as some of the old TV shows spin off did; as a bust. I’m really going to try and keep this one cranking.

I began this blog with high hopes of continuing my path of helping others create fully inclusive playgrounds and building on whatever dreams you may have. But what I have found is I also have a passion for passing on fun things to do with children; adventures and recipes. So I’m going to be using this blog to write about all things children with a bit of nonprofit dreaming thrown in there. If you have a dream you’d like to get help beginning please feel free at anytime to drop me a line, or if you have an accessible playground your family uses in your area I’d love to highlight it. In any event, I’d love to hear from you via email the1playgroundprincess@gmail.com or twitter.

My favorites from 2009

1. Some kids Dream about flying while others just dream about playing in the park.

2. Why worry about accessibility?

3. Building of a dream

4. Playground Picnic

5. Ghoulish delights for your little monsters

• Just a little extra because it’s the beginning of the year and I think everyone should take a moment to make sure you have this one “covered.” What’s in your first aid kit?

Happy New Year to you all and here’s to a year of new dreams!

Holiday Gifts even the smallest of kids can make.

2009-12-20T04:00:00.002-05:00

photo credit: family fun

Each year I try and find gifts that come from the heart. Those that I know myself, my husband and family members will treasure for years, they are those that are made by my kids.

Here are a few idea's that perhaps you can use to share with your family members too! I promise they will cherish them more than anything you can buy!

1. Framed Museum pieces

a. first look for your children's most colorful artwork that they have done either at home or school and take it to Kinko's and have it reduced and color copied to either 4" x 6", 5" x 7" or 8" x 10".

photo credit: pottery barn

b. look at your local craft stores for matted frames or another great place to look is pottery barn.

c. open the frame, take your child's artwork center it and glue it to the back cardboard, place the glass on top and secure. This makes a wonderful gift for years to come!

photo credit: Martha Stewart Living

2. Button Wreaths

Being the avid scrapbooker that I am I have tons of stock in buttons and my daughter used to spend hours playing with the buttons and one year she came up with a button wreath.

These directions come from our friends at Martha Stewart:
Tools and Materials
Needle-nose pliers or wire cutters
16-gauge copper wire, or 22-gauge green floral wire, cut to 9-inch lengths
72 buttons for each wreath
Scissors
Satin ribbon, 1/8 inch wide and 6 inches long
Seam binding for decorative bow

Button Wreath Ornament How-To
a. Using pliers, make a small loop at one end of the wire.

b. Thread buttons onto the wire until you have enough to form the size of the wreath you want. Our wreaths are 2 1/2 inches in diameter.

c. Using pliers, bend the plain end of the wire around the looped end. This will form the wreath.

d. Use the satin ribbon to make a loop for hanging the wreath; tie the ribbon in a knot about 3 inches above the wreath.

e. Tie a bow of seam binding to decorate the wreath.

Sources
16-gauge copper wire
22-gauge silver-plate wire
Available at local craft and hardware-supply stores

22-gauge green floral wire
Available at local floral-supply stores

photo credit: the container store

3. The gifts for the tummy!

My kids always love "playing" around in the kitchen and a few years we came up with this delicious recipe they made up which makes up nice batches to share with loved ones.

Ingredients
4 bags of white chocolate
3 cups crispy rice cereal squares
3 cups crispy golden graham cereal
2 cups of craisins
2 cups thin pretzel sticks
2 cups cashews

a. place the white chocolate and heat it in a double boiler.
b. place all of the rest of the ingredients in a bowl
c. when the white chocolate has all melted mix it with the ingredients in the bowl
d. spread out on a cookie sheet with parchment and put in refrigerator.
e. break apart and put in a cool storage bag or sealed container.

No matter what you make this holiday season, I hope it is a happy and healthy one shared with your loved ones; even the smallest of children whose gifts can be the best and most cherished for years to come!

Thanks and Giving...

2009-12-08T04:00:00.002-05:00

photo credit: St. Jude's Thanks and Giving Campaign

Each year as I look at my two beautiful daughters grow and watch them blossom into fine young ladies, I reflect about just how lucky we are to have both of them happy and healthy.

My girls were both born prematurely at 34 weeks due to pre-eclampia/toxemia which I somehow managed to get twice.

Many of you know Sarah is now a senior in college and ready to graduate and jump into the world. My other daughter Hadley was not as fortunate; when she was six days old she suffered a bilateral grade 2 intracranial hemorrhage which left her with a seizure disorder and cerebral palsy. Her life is much different than Sarah’s however; we have learned and grown through understanding Hadley’s disability. I thank god everyday for Hadley and all that we have learned from her. I suppose around the holidays we tend to get a bit sentimental and think about all of our blessings and try and help those less fortunate then ourselves.

It is because of this that we have chosen to step up to the plate so to speak and help St Jude Children’s Hospital. I know many of you have heard of St Jude’s but this is a short paragraph or two from the St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital about their background…

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, founded by the late entertainer Danny Thomas, is one of the world's premier centers for the research and treatment of pediatric cancer and other catastrophic childhood diseases. Children from all 50 states and around the world have come through the doors of St. Jude for treatment, and thousands more have benefited from the research conducted at St. Jude—research that is shared freely with the global medical community.

Working together, St. Jude physicians and scientists have pioneered treatments that have helped push the overall survival rates for childhood cancers from less than 20 percent in 1962 to 80 percent today. The survival rate for the most common form of childhood cancer, acute lymphoblastic leukemia, has risen from just 4 percent in 1962to 94 percent today.

That was the vision of Danny Thomas when he founded St. Jude, thanks to an answered prayer to St. Jude Thaddeus, the patron saint of hopeless causes. "Show me my way in life," Danny prayed as he sought direction in his life, "and I will build you a shrine."

Danny's prayer was answered, and he soon became one of America's most beloved entertainers. Even after he achieved fame and fortune, Danny always remembered his pledge to St. Jude.

Today, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital stands as the embodiment of that pledge and has served as a symbol of hope for children stricken with catastrophic diseases since opening in 1962.”

Here are a few quick facts:

* It is amazing that all patients accepted for treatment at St. Jude are treated without regard to the family's ability to pay. This is what is so critical about this hospital; it services so many children from all across the country whose families cannot pay, or they do not have health insurance for one reason or another.

* St. Jude covers the cost of everything—food, travel and lodging for patients and a family member.

* In 2009, Parents magazine named St. Jude the No. 1 pediatric cancer care hospital in the country, based on the magazine's survey of more than 75 children's hospitals nationwide.

I am asking you to look at your own healthy children and give thanks that they are healthy by helping those who aren’t. Please take a moment to give $5.00 today instead of your daily latte, it will not only good for the hospital but it will be good for your heart!

What's in your first aid kit?

2009-11-18T14:04:00.002-05:00

Several years ago my husband and I were at an event for Children’s Hospital and as a token of thanks each patron received a first aid kit. Over the years we have used that kit many times, and have restocked several items.

Being that we are going into the winter months and what I call “hibernation” from a lot of playing at the playground. I usually take this time to go through my medicine cabinets and make sure the medications are all in date, over the counter medicines especially; we don’t go through Tylenol quite like we used to. But I also pull out the first aid kit and look at everything inside of it too, since it does get its fair share of use during the spring, summer and fall.

Everybody should have a first aid kit of one kind or another. You don’t need to go out and buy a prepackaged one. You can make one yourself. Just gather an old lunch box or spare big makeup bag. (We seem to have a lot of them around our house)

What you put in your families first aid kit can be as extensive as you like. I have put together a sample list of items which would be helpful.

Supplies
• disposable gloves (at least 2 pairs)
• disposable instant cold packs
• adhesive bandages, several sizes
• adhesive tape
• elastic bandage(s)
• sterile gauze pads
• alcohol wipes or other antiseptic wipes
• hand sanitizer

Medication
• acetaminophen and/or ibuprofen
• 1% hydrocortisone cream
• antibiotic ointment
• calamine lotion
• epinephrine auto-injector if a family member is at risk for anaphylaxis
• ipecac
• burn ointment

Equipment
• small scissors
• tweezers
• needle
• safety pins
• thermometer
• bulb syringe

Information
• first aid manual
• emergency phone numbers and contact information (which I also post on the inside of a kitchen cabinet)
• important medical information for all family members, including health problems and medications
• health card or health insurance information

I hope this helps you make up your own families first aid kit. Let me know if you add anything extra to yours!

“a tree of thanks…”

2009-11-08T08:10:00.002-05:00

Fall is a beautiful time to take a walk with your children. Playgrounds are often in some type of “park like” setting. After having a few hours of running and jumping it is sometimes fun to take a short stroll and look at the beautiful colored leaves. My girls loved picking up the most colorful and bringing them home to make some type of arrangement or an “indoor” tree, usually on our wall.

Over time, I thought I became a bit more creative and we preserved our “leaves” by pressing them between book pages, and then taking a piece of clear sticky sheets and sealing them so to speak and adhering them to the wall with a 3-m product that was easy to remove when the time came.

One day one of my friends came over and commented on our “annual tree” at how beautiful the leaves were and what a great seasonal display it was. She then shared an idea, “why not use the leaves, and write something on them about the year, what was the best memory of that year? Or perhaps there was a milestone and a date.” This was a great idea, now the beautiful leaves had a “purpose."

My oldest daughter loved the book “the giving tree” by Shel Silverstein. She loved the story of the tree who gave so much to his “friend” the boy. And she dubbed this “our giving tree.”

Now every year we add to our “giving tree” and look back as we assemble it at all the wonderful things we have to be “thankful” for…

A Pumpkin, a Pumpkin, so many things to do with a Pumpkin

2009-10-29T09:14:00.005-04:00

Our friends at Martha Stewart always have some wonderful ideas for pumpkins that you can do with your kids, so we thought we would take a few minutes and share a few with you.

image from our friends at Martha Stewart

Take two miniature pumpkins to become a hoot of an owl! Secure the two pumpkins together with a toothpick or kabob skewer. To give your little owl eyes to see take 2 toothpicks and attach pumpkin seeds thru, add a few more and fan them out; repeat several times so it makes a complete circle and top the end with a pearberry. To give your little guy feathers on top of his head take a chrysanthemum bloom and toothpick or hot glue it to the top. And to complete your little friend, hollow out his beak area and insert an almond. Isn’t he cute?

image from our friends at Martha Stewart

Every little girl loves creating jewelry. Why not make a pumpkin necklace? Take your seeds from inside your scooped out pumpkin and put them in a bowl of water. The seeds will separate and float to the top when they do take them and put them on a towel or pan to dry out for a few hours (at least 6). Then take a needle and thread it with silk beaded cord and pierce each seed and create a pattern, you can also add candy corn to make it a bit more colorful!

image from our friends at Martha Stewart

A pumpkin birdhouse has to be one of my favorite ideas! Take a small pumpkin, cut it in half, scoop it out leaving about ½” thick wall all of the way around. In the rim take a knife and slit a ½” rim around to make a “rim” for pumpkin seeds to sit on (really wedged in) To make cute perches, poke a hole with a twig branch and insert. Add some berries. To hang take 2 pieces of twine, knot the ends, secure (where the knot is) on the bottom of the pumpkin. And then fill with birdseed, I know the birds will love visiting here! And in my case, so will the pesty squirrels!

Do you have any cute ideas of pumpkins? Share them! Hope you have a wonderfully sweet and fun Halloween!

Ghoulish delights for your little monsters

2009-10-10T12:05:00.039-04:00

Halloween is a fun time for kids big and small, so I thought I would do a little research and put together a few ideas for you and your little monsters to have the best “spooktacular” holiday.

photo credit: Southern Living, Loved it since i'm all about playing and the outdoors!

I hosted several Halloween parties when my kids were small and I always loved getting everything ready for these parties, and to start the party with a spooky or fun feeling I think the invitations should start your party off with the right feeling. Paper and Cake has created a cute collection that is perfect for a night of Trick-or-Treating with friends, a Pumpkin Carving Party all you need to do is print and cut. How easy is that?

This Collection Includes:
* Invitations
* Front Door Welcome Sign
* Cupcake Picks (can also be used as stickers)
* Mini Treat Bags
* Mini Candy Bar labels
* Snack Cones
* Menus
* Placemats
* Finger Puppets with Play Background
* jpeg artwork for you to use on canvas trick-or-treat bags
* full sheet patterned paper (can also be used as napkin rings or candle wrappers)
* cup wrappers

Food is an important and can be fun, especially for Halloween. I think these recipes will work great for your party.

photo credit: Mrs. Prindables

Magic Wands
Ingredients:
• 48 pretzel rods
• 1/2 pound sweetened bakers dark or white chocolate
• Edible colored sprinkles

Instructions:
1. Melt chocolate in a double boiler or sauce pan. When melted, pour in a glass bowl.

2. Dip and coat each pretzel stick with melted chocolate; about half the length of each stick.

3. Roll chocolate coated pretzel sticks in colored sprinkles. Let "magic wands" stand and set before serving.

Mummy Dogs
Ingredients:
• 1 can (8 oz) Pillsbury® refrigerated crescent dinner rolls
• 2 1/2 slices American cheese, quartered (2.5 oz)
• 10 large hot dogs
• Cooking spray
• Mustard or ketchup, if desired

Instructions:
1. Heat oven to 375°F. Unroll dough; separate at perforations, creating 4 rectangles. Press perforations to seal.

2. Slice cheese slices into quarters (1/2 slice cheese, cut in half).

3. Wrap 4 pieces of dough around each hot dog and 1/4 slice of cheese to look like "bandages," stretching dough slightly to completely cover hot dog.

4. About 1/2 inch from one end of each hot dog, separate "bandages" so hot dog shows through for "face."

5. On ungreased large cookie sheet, place wrapped hot dogs (cheese side down); spray dough lightly with cooking spray.

6. Bake 13 to 17 minutes or until dough is light golden brown and hot dogs are hot. With mustard, draw features on "face."

photo credit: Woman's Day

Spider Web Pizza
Ingredients:
• 1 pkg (10 oz) prebaked mini 8-in pizza crusts (we used Boboli)
• 1/3 cup pizza sauce
• 2 (1 oz each) mozzarella string cheese
• 3 large pitted black olives

Instructions:
1. Heat oven to 450°F. Place crusts on a baking sheet; top with sauce. Pull cheese into thin strips; place on pizzas in the shape of a web.

2. Bake pizza for 8 to 10 minutes until cheese melts. Cool 3 minutes.

3. Cut off one end of 2 olives for spider heads. Halve remaining olives lengthwise. Use one half for body; cut remaining pieces into strips for legs. Assemble spider on each pizza.

photo credit: William Sonoma

Halloween Sugar Cookies
It’s easy to transform basic sugar cookie dough into delightful Halloween treats. Using cutters shaped like ghosts and black cats, you can create spooky sweets that will cast a magic spell over holiday gatherings.

Ingredients:
• 2 sticks of unsalted butter at room temperature
• ¾ cup sugar
• 3 egg yolks
• 1 piece of vanilla bean 2” long
• 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp salt
• Colored sugars and decorating pens

Instructions:
1. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the flat beater, beat together the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Beat in the egg yolks one at a time, beating well after each addition. Cut the vanilla bean in half lengthwise and, using a small, sharp knife, scrape the seeds into the butter mixture. Mix well.

2. In a sifter, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Sift the flour mixture directly onto the butter mixture. Reduce the speed to low and beat until well mixed.

3. Divide the dough into 4 equal portions. Shape each portion into a ball, and then flatten the balls into disks. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. (The dough can be prepared up to 3 days ahead.) Let it soften slightly at room temperature before continuing.

4. Position a rack in the upper third of an oven and preheat to 350°F. Butter 2 large baking sheets.

5. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out a dough disk 1/4 inch thick. Using cookie cutters, cut out desired shapes. Transfer the cutouts to the prepared baking sheets. Gather up and reroll the scraps and cut out more cookies. Repeat with the remaining dough disks.

6. Bake until the cookies are golden on the edges, about 8 minutes. Transfer the cookies to wire racks and let cool completely. Decorate the cookies as desired with colored sugars and decorating pens. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week. Makes 24 to 30 cookies, depending on cutter size.

Adapted from Williams-Sonoma Kitchen Library Series, Holiday Baking, by Jeanne Thiel Kelley (Time-Life Books, 1995).

Of course it wouldn’t be a Halloween party without costumes. These are a few of my favorites for the little one and even for your furry monsters!

Check out this adorable “western cowgirl.” The set comes with a red tutu, red bandana, white hat with star, and stick horse. It is available in size 12m, 18m, 24m, 2t, and 3t.

Mytouchofaloha has a Cupcake Cutie Costume that they created much like the Pottery Barn Kids Costume! Made of soft felt this one piece costume will make your little one the most delicious thing this Halloween! Comes with its own strawberry cream topper! Now available in a 12m - 5T.

These little bloomers were just so darn cute I had to include them, they come from Sugarlocks.

Petiecat makes some beautiful costumes and this little kitty is no exception! The costume is a 5 pc stretch velvet set. Top and pants, arm warmers trimmed with maribu, satin bow on headband and a pull on hand tied tutu over skirt. Available in all sizes 12 month up to size 10. They can also make this in long sleeves.

For your little treaters to collect all of their goodies in style you can have wonderful handmade bags made like these by Tedecco and plain jane and company created this cheery pumpkin Halloween trick or treat bags are darling for your child's Halloween!

Bags are sewn from a cheery mix of orange fabrics and are accented with green "leaves." They are quilted to a soft cotton batting. Patterned black bias and handle top the bag while a cheery blanket-stitched face complete the charm.

Bag dimensions are a perfect size for children. The bag body is approximately 6" tall and 9" wide. This chubby pumpkin would hold all the candy you'd like your child to have!

Let your little ones trick or treat in style this year with a fun appliquéd canvas bag created by plainjaneandcompany! The great thing about these bags is that they are reusable and personalized!

And to cherish your Halloween memories you can get this adorable frame and put in your favorite photo of your little ghoul. This frame was handmade. It holds a 5x5 photo. It has a Fall/Halloween/Thanksgiving theme with the brown hand painted paint and the red, orange and gold ribbon. Holes were drilled around the frame and the ribbon was looped through to create this look.

If you have a little furry critter let them join in the fun and check out these adorable little costumes which can be found at Center Pet Pharmacy. Just give them a call 888-260-0801. And our friends at Center Pet Pharmacy are hosting a costume contest where the winner will win $150.00, so send your photo over today to customerservice@centerpetpharmacy.com

Hope it’s a spooktacular holiday for you all!

go out and PLAY!

2009-09-26T11:55:00.004-04:00

Worldwide Day of Play is an annual event designed to encourage kids and parents to turn off the television and play, especially outdoors. The yearly event officially began on all US Nickelodeon channels: Nickelodeon, Noggin, The N, and Nicktoons Network on October 2, 2004. Some foreign versions of Nick also participated. In addition, Nick.com would also have special features for children to learn how to stay active and healthy. There are events going on all over the country in conjunction with schools and organizations, stop by Nickelodeon and see what’s going on in your neck of the woods, turn off the TV, grab you kids and go outside and PLAY!!

Last year on September 27, 2008, the following message was shown on Nick:
"Today is Nickelodeon's Worldwide Day of Play- an entire day devoted to play! And to celebrate, Nickelodeon has gone off the air from 12pm to 3pm to encourage you to get outside and play. There will be more Nick at 3pm, but until then, this message will keep repeating. So don't just sit there. Go play!"

In addition to the wonderful time you and your family will share. Your community could be selected for a grant of $10,000 by NFL PLAY 60, who is a partner to Nickelodeon’s Worldwide Day of Play, and KaBoom for hosting a Play Day program. Check out the site for details!

Let us know what kind of wonderful things you did with your family in honor of this great day of play!

Let the Children Play (Some More)

2009-09-08T19:02:00.005-04:00

Every once in a while I come across an article that “hits home.” Today in this day and age where I believe play is an important part of all children’s lives I feel this is well worth the reprint.

September 2, 2009 By: Stuart Brown New York Times Online

Here on the balmy central coast of California and all across the country, kids are heading back to school. The classes are larger, the No Child Left Behind mandates remain in place and, despite advice from the nation’s secretary of health and human services and others, recess and physical education (not to mention art and music instruction) have in many schools been cut back or eliminated. While most of our backpack-laden kids are eager to catch up with friends they haven’t seen over the summer, the general feeling is that “playtime is over.”

Even if summer does not bring children a complete release from their over-organized, cell-phone-computer-TV-and-video-game-saturated lives, it does offer most a bit of free “goof-off” time – the sort that leads to physical activity and elective, self-organized play, often in short supply during the school year. Still, it’s not enough. Goof-off time shouldn’t be limited to summer vacation: it’s important all year.

For most American children in the not-so-distant past, “going out to play” was the norm. Today, according to a University of Michigan study, children spend 50 percent less time outside than they did just 20 years ago — and the 6.5 hours a day they spend with electronic media means that sitting in front of a screen has replaced going out.

Through the lens of play research, we can see that there is a direct line between play deficiencies and some frightening public health and social trends: tragic statistics for obesity, 4.5 million children diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, an increase in childhood depression and classroom behavioral problems involving violence, and an inability to interact well with peers.

Just an hour a day of vigorous play — running, chasing, games like tag or dodge ball, and even dealing with or avoiding being excluded from these activities — can provide intense skill learning. Physical activity is known to lessen the symptoms of mild attention deficit disorder, and is associated with much lower incidences of childhood obesity. Active kids are also more facile intellectually and perform better academically in the long term.

Physically engaging play is actually more fun than the virtual sort, and the enlivenment one gets from it can transcend the allure of sedentary life in a two-dimensional, electronic world. But breaking away from the draw of a well-crafted, image-laden on-screen story line requires broad cultural reinforcement. It helps to be aware of how important play is to one’s development. To make that happen, we need a change in public consciousness about play — to show that it is not trivial or elective — as well as focused community and parental support.

Evidence from around the scientific compass — neuroscience, psychology, exercise physiology, sociology and developmental biology — has revealed the importance of play. Deprive a social mammal like a rat or monkey of its normal rough-and-tumble play and it enters adulthood emotionally fragile, unable to tell friend from foe, poor at handling stress and lacking the skills to mate properly.

My studies of young homicidal males and felony drunken drivers revealed that most had lacked normal, developmentally appropriate rough and tumble play as children and pre-adolescents, while a control population had experienced typical playground give and take during their elementary and middle school years.

The differences in playfulness when adulthood arrives (I have followed more than 6,000 detailed play histories) validates the importance of lifelong play. Play-deprived adults are often rigid, humorless, inflexible and closed to trying out new options. Playfulness enhances the capacity to innovate, adapt and master changing circumstances. It is not just an escape. It can help us integrate and reconcile difficult or contradictory circumstances. And, often, it can show us a way out of our problems. There are numerous examples of difficult, deadlocked negotiations that were broken open by a joke or humorous incident. Many people have had the experience of coming back from vacation brimming with new ideas for work. The benefits of play come not from “rest” for the brain, as if play is just a time-out from life. Play is an active process that reshapes our rigid views of the world.

True play may seem pointless — it is done for its own sake, because it’s fun — but ultimately it is also useful. From an evolutionary perspective, the smarter the animal, the more they play. For humans, play reinvigorates us not because it is down time, but because it gets us in touch with our core selves and the joy of life.

Even if I didn’t know all I do about the concrete benefits of play, I would feel sad about the kids (and their parents) who have given up on play for another nine months. Knowing what I do, I can see that their autumnal devaluation of play is a tragic loss for them and for our society.

Stuart Brown, is founder and president of the National Institute for Play, author of “Play, How it Shapes the Brain, Opens the Imagination, and Invigorates the Soul.”

Playground Picnic

2009-08-31T08:54:00.013-04:00

In the last days of summer why not get out and take your kids to the playground with a wonderful picnic lunch. Some of my favorite memories of visiting the playground is the “down time” we had relaxing and eating our lunch on the “big blanket.” In keeping with the “playful” feeling I tried to bring food that would appeal to my kids sense of fun too. I tried to think rather unconventionally not the traditional “sandwich and chips” of an everyday meal.

I thought I’d give you a few ideas, maybe you haven’t tried, which my kids loved for packing fun into their playground picnics or you can use these ideas for lunchboxes and keeping them happy and full at school:

1. Dip it.

Kids love to dip things, so pack little containers of hummus or spinach dip and pita bread. The Mediterranean-inspired dips are packed with protein and a good source of fiber. Celery sticks with a cottage-cheese salsa dip, baby carrots and yummy salad dressing dip, (honey mustard is a favorite of my kids) or apple slices and peanut butter can contribute to the fruits-and-veggies quota.

Yogurt dip: this recipe has a “fresh” taste which my kids love!

yummy yogurt dip

Ingredients
• 1 medium hot house cucumber
• 1 cup fat-free plain yogurt
• 1 cup fat-free sour cream
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons Greek seasoning, divided
• salt
• freshly ground black pepper

Cut cucumber in half lengthwise and grate into a medium mixing bowl. Add yogurt, sour cream, lemon juice, and 1 tablespoon Greek seasoning. Season with salt and pepper. Stir to combine. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

2. Skewer it.

children love veggies and cheese kabobs

Eating the same old sandwich over and over again is boring. So mix it up a bit! You can put all the essentials of a sandwich on wood skewers. Thread alternating small chunks of turkey, ham, cheese and bread (add cherry tomatoes for fun) on skewers for a new dimension. This trick also works well with fruit. The following fruit make wonderful kabobs: Fresh or canned Pineapple, Bananas, Star fruit, Peaches, Nectarines, Mango, Papaya, Kiwi fruit, Cantaloupe, and Melons Cherries, Pitted Grapes Apples and Pears.

fruit kabobs with raspberry sauce

Colorful fruit skewers
12 wooden skewers
1 large ripe mango, peeled
2 large oranges, peeled
2 large bananas, peeled
250 small strawberries, hulled

Soak skewers in cold water for 20-30 minutes. Cut mango and oranges into 3cm chunks. Cut bananas into 3cm slices. Thread fruit onto skewers, alternating the varieties. Serves 12

3. Wrap it.

Add some pizazz with colored tortillas. Smear red and green ones with a ranch dip or cream cheese and layer in cold cuts. They're tasty, colorful and easy. I have even made a wrap of the traditional peanut butter and jelly with bananas and boy did my kids love them!

turkey and cheese wrap filled with veggies

4. Cut it out.

Make your kids favorite sandwich and make it just a bit more jazzy but cutting it with a cookie cutter, something this simple makes it feel that much more special to your kids, and you will be surprised how fast they eat it!

kids love fun shapes!

5. Fun Desserts
There are so many wonderful brownies and baked bars that kids love but this is a favorite of my kids which I got from Parents Magazine.

Blueberry-Banana Stacks

Ingredients
6 mini chocolate, caramel, or berry-flavored popcorn cakes
1 to 2 Tbs. strawberry-flavored cream cheese
6 banana slices
6 fresh blueberries

Spread cakes with cream cheese and top with banana slices. If desired, dollop with additional cream cheese and top with a blueberry. Serves 2.

Now go on take some time and visit a playground with your kids, one day you will look back and smile on the memories! Do you have a playground story you would like to share with us?

What a "Special" Woman the world has lost.

2009-08-17T11:50:00.005-04:00

Last week we lost one of the greatest women I believe this country has ever known, Eunice Kennedy Shiver. I think it serendipitous that her mother Rose Kennedy was born on July 22 the same day as me and she on July 10th the same day as my daughter Sarah. I believe Eunice and Rose had a special mother-daughter relationship. Rose Kennedy instilled a belief in family, faith, tradition and community involvement in her children which was passed on to Eunice and her to her own children.

For those of you who do not know who Eunice Kennedy Shriver was she was the fifth of nine children born to Rose and Joseph Kennedy, sister to President John F Kennedy. In May of 1953 Eunice married Sargent Shriver and they had five children.

Eunice grew up like Sarah with a disabled sister, Rosemary, and was influenced to change the world due to Rosemary’s disability. In the 1960’s she co-founded Special Olympics, so that all children could play. A motto I have shared through my work.

I had the pleasure of meeting Mrs. Shriver several times, as her son Mark became a member of our Board of Director’s for Hadley’s Park, and invited her to several events. I can remember one event in particular which was for Mark, who was running for Congress at the time, when she shared the story with me; a story most people don’t know, I’m not even sure if Mark knew this. But Mrs. Shriver had told me that when she was thinking of starting Special Olympics, she was contemplating starting an organization to build fully inclusive playgrounds. I thought how serendipitous, that she thought to do this in the 1960’s and I had gone to seek help from her son in 1996 with the same dream. I am glad that I could share this vision with her and carry it out to help improve the lives of children.

God Bless you Eunice, God has a great angel among him now!

“You are the stars and the world is watching you,
By your presence you send a message to
Every village, every city, every nation
A message of hope, A message of victory.”
“The right to play on any playing field?
You have earned it.
The right to study at any school?
You have earned it.
The right to hold a job?
You have earned it
The right to be anyone’s neighbor?
You have earned it.”
Eunice Kennedy Shriver 1987 Special Olympics World Games, South Bend, Indiana

True colors of friendship are beautiful like a rainbow

2009-08-10T17:44:00.016-04:00

In the spirit of International Friendship day which I missed last week, I would like to thank each of you for becoming a friend of mine and for letting me share my colors of the rainbow with you!

You with the sad eyes
Don't be discouraged
Oh I realize
It's hard to take courage
In a world full of people
You can lose sight of it all
And the darkness inside you
Can make you feel so small

But I see your true colors
Shining through
I see your true colors
And that's why I love you
So don't be afraid to let them show
Your true colors
True colors are beautiful Like a rainbow

Show me a smile then
Don't be unhappy, can't remember
When I last saw you laughing
If this world makes you crazy
And you've taken all you can bear
You call me up
Because you know I'll be there

And I'll see your true colors
Shining through
I see your true colors
And that's why I love you
So don't be afraid to let them show
Your true colors
True colors are beautiful
Like a rainbow

In the spirit of friendship I would like to ask if you might help my friends at Shane's Inspiration with their annual 5/10K Walk and Roll Event. If you are in the LA area please join the cast of The Witches of Waverly Place Sunday, August 30th at 7:00am at Shane's Inspiration in Griffith Park. Even if you are not in LA if you would be so kind to donate to this wonderful organization what you can to support Shane's Inspiration's mission to create inclusive playgrounds and programs for children of ALL abilities! Thank you my friends!

Clemyjontri is more than initials, it's a wonderful playground for all

2009-08-05T05:00:00.001-04:00

After working with me as one of first benefactors for Hadley’s Park, Adele Lebowitz decided she wanted to do something more with her estate, she decided that the joy she understood that came from the children playing at Hadley’s Park would be a wonderful legacy to leave on her property. So she decided to donate her 10 acre estate to Fairfax County Park Department with the understanding that they would create a fully inclusive playground like Hadley’s Park. Thus the birth of "Clemyjontri." You might wonder where this odd name came from or what it stands for. Wanting to commemorate her family the name Clemyjontri is made up of the initials of Mrs. Lebowitz children. Fairfax County authorities worked hand in hand with Grace Fielder and Associates to create a joyous and fully inclusive playground complete with a merry go round! Grace and her staff used many similar elements that we used at Hadley’s Park after learning from us the importance each play piece or element had.

To the casual observer, the playground at Clemyjontri Park looks like an ordinary playground, with swings, slides and play equipment fun to climb on, under and around. A closer look will reveal that some of those swings have high backs for children who need extra support. Instead of standard transfer platforms there are ramps to the elevated play components. Pathways between equipment are wide and colorful, and the ground surfaces are non-slip and porous designed to provide a greater level of access for children.

There is something for everyone - children will be able to find something to climb on, touch, read, do or create. Children will enjoy the challenges of balance and depth perception on the playground's balance beams. A mini-track can be used to race, playhouses and cubbies offer pleasant spaces for social interaction while also allowing children seeking quiet or separate areas to play in smaller groups. Tent sails provide areas of shade in the playground and benches are located throughout the play area. The playground is open daily from 7 a.m. to dusk, year-round.The Two Acre Playground Consists of 4 Outdoor "Areas" Surrounding a Centerpiece Carousel.

The Rainbow Room - With rainbow archway, surface with colors of the rainbow and a variety of swings:
Accommodates all physical levels
Integrates sign, Braille, pictures and language
Teaches colors of the rainbow

The Schoolhouse & Maze - With learning panels forming a maze that may be reconfigured:
Focuses on educational learning games
Teaches where am I reading, maps and a globe
Teaches what time it is using time zones and clocks

The Movin and Groovin Transportation Area Designed with transportation themed equipment such as a race track, motorcycles, planes, and trains:
Stimulates imagination
Teaches balance and special skills
Mimics true roadway situations

Fitness & Fun - Includes the largest piece of play equipment along with various jungle gym components:
Stimulates imagination
Progressive challenges for physical strength
Energy burner
Builds confidence

If you are in the Northern Virginia area or want to make a little day trip while visiting the Metro DC area I would strongly recommend this your children will thank you for it!

*i'd like to thank everyone who posted these wonderful photo's on flickr!

What is the big deal about a name or logo anyhow?

2009-07-21T05:00:00.000-04:00

Coming up with a name for your playground or organization is usually the first “official” thing you will be doing. Remember the “name” will be how you are known for the life of your organization. Are you honoring a child? Memorializing someone who you loved? Come up with a name people will understand.

After you have decided on a name of your organization you will need to come up with a logo. But before you design a logo, you must understand what a logo is, what it represents and what it is supposed to do. A logo is not just a picture; it reflects a business’s commercial brand through the use of shape, fonts, color, and or images.

Coming from a design background I did understand that when it came time to sit down and come up with our logo that this was a very important meeting. A quality logo design combined with the branding of an organization or company can become one of the most powerful forces in today’s society. Take a look above at some of today’s most common logos and think about how each has become an icon in today’s world. You want to come up with a great logo design which inspires trust, recognition and admiration for your organization.

Ok so how do you come up with this great logo?

• Brainstorm; sit down around a table with your key people and write down:

1. Who are you?
2. How do you describe your organization?
3. What idea are you trying to get across?
4. What type of image/style are you trying to portray?
5. Write down “key words” which you think of when it comes to your organization

• Check out people who have worked in a similar field and see how they portray themselves through their logo design.

• After you have the above questions answered have everyone start to come up with a few sketches of their own thoughts and concepts. You should have paper, colored pencils and crayons around for this creative meeting. Understandably everyone is not an artist but when people draw their own ideas down some great collaborations come together.

• You want your creation/logo to be memorable.

• In general it is better to keep your logo design simple and clean. The main idea behind this is that you want the logo to be able to hold up well in all sizes. Remember you will be using your logo as your “calling card” on all of your PR materials, written as well as t-shirts, stationery and even in large scale on a sign.

• As important as the image of your logo is similarly it is important to have your text “go” with your image i.e. you don’t want to have a futuristic image and a calligraphy type.

• You should have a great tag line! A tag line is a three to seven word phrase that accompanies your logo. It expresses your company's most important benefits and or what you want your customers to remember about you. Think of it as the words you want to linger describing who you are.

• And last but definitely not least, everyone’s pocketbook will be different and you need to keep this in mind when creating your logo, can your logo look good in black and white as well as color? Do you only have the funds to create a one-color logo or can you afford two-color or more?

Just remember, keep it fun and simple and if you can understand what the image is telling you, you’ve done a great job!

So how did you come up with your logo?

The building of a dream!

2009-06-29T06:00:00.000-04:00

Stand up and Hold On To Your Dream
Maybe this is your moment
Stand up and Hold On To Your Dream
You know no one can take it
There is a path it's always been yours
And you have the right of passage
Signed in blood and sealed in tears
Sending you a message
Across the miles and thru the years
Stand up (and be there) and Hold On To Your Dream
With some faith and conviction

So you want to start a non profit 10 Things you will need to know.

2009-06-25T11:06:00.005-04:00

First let me say, “Congratulations for wanting to be the change in the world that makes it a better place.” Coming up with a dream is a wonderful thing but actually taking it to the next level and making that dream an organization is both exciting and a lot of work.

Today’s world is filled with paper work whether it be from your state, county, maybe even city and sometimes it feels like it takes weeks on end to go through all of it and at times it feels unnecessary but it is a task that must be completed. You need to make sure that you have covered your entire trail or something will come back to bite you in the end. So PLEASE, make sure you cover all of your bases. Ok, that is my little soap box lesson on “covering your bases” of paperwork. There is so much to starting a nonprofit so let’s just jump in and “go” there are dreams waiting…

1. You need to come up with a name for your organization and you will need to come up with a logo which describes to the world who you are.

2. You need to form a Board of Directors.

3. You will need to come up with a mission statement that explains in one clear sentence what it is you are trying to accomplish and why it is important.

4. You need to file all of you legal paperwork to form your organization.

5. You will need to file with the IRS to get a Tax Id number.

6. You will need to register with the Secretary of State of your organization as a business.

7. You need to start to open a bank account.

8. Join the professional organization which your organization will help. Start networking with people in that community.

9. You are going to have to come up with a budget for your project and find a way to “fund your dream.”

10. And last but definitely not least, you will need to find volunteers who believe in your mission because it takes a lot of man power to build a dream!

Each one of these is vital to starting and running a successful nonprofit organization. I will dedicate a weekly post to each one of these. I know this might sound like a lot but remember I did it and if I could do it you can do it! *Cheering* Although I am your biggest cheering section I would also like to say this information is based on my personal experience and it is my hope to be used to help you as a guide but not to be used in place of legal advice. If you have any questions at anytime feel free to drop me an email or leave it in the comment section.

Wonderful Playgrounds Wednesday; My Friends at Shane's Inspiration

2009-06-17T14:47:00.012-04:00

Back in early 1998 while I was in the “building phase” of Hadley’s Park I had heard of an organization in Los Angeles that was planning on creating a fully inclusive playground and I thought, “Wow! Someone else with the same vision, of a place for all children, someone who was doing the same thing that I was doing clear across the country, I would love to meet these people and learn about what they were planning on doing. So that is exactly what I did, I made a phone call introduced myself to one of their founders, Catherine, traded a few frequent flier miles, grabbed one of my board members and we were off to California to meet the new crew of what today is known as “Shane’s Inspiration.”

Shane’s Inspiration was created by Catherine Curry-Williams and Scott Williams in memory of their son Shane Alexander who had passed away the year before of Spinal Muscular Atrophy only a few weeks after his birth. Had Shane lived, he would have spent his life in a wheelchair. Because of a physical disability, Shane would have been denied one of the most fundamental rights of childhood: the right to play independently with friends and family at neighborhood and school playgrounds. This realization encouraged the Williams and family friend Tiffany Harris to turn a tragedy into a vision that resulted in Shane's Inspiration... a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the lives of children with disabilities.

I was so glad to take the trip out there and meet the entire group of fine folks and listen to their story; we laughed, we cried, we shared our visions but most of all we bonded over a common cause. I cannot believe that was 11 years ago! Shane’s Inspiration is very close to my family’s heart and I will write much more about them over the course of this blog. But right now I just wanted to introduce you to them and to their wonderful work!

Upon completion Shane's Inspiration gave a gift to thousands of Los Angeles children through the creation of an environment where all children can play together at the highest level of their ability. With the support of visionary community leaders, Shane's Inspiration created the first Universally Accessible Playground in the Western United States. Located in Griffith Park, “Shane’s Inspiration” provides two acres of fully accessible, sensory-rich and physically challenging equipment.

In June 2002 they started an inclusive play program called “Shane’s Club.” with a small group of committed families which has grown to almost 1,000 members today!

Run today by Tiffany Harris, I applaud this wonderful organization for all it does for all children! If you live in the Los Angeles area I invite you to go visit this wonderful playground. Should you want to get involved in helping them raise funds to build playgrounds, an exceptional woman named Marci Moran is head of their events, and I know she would be glad to have you stop by and say “hi!” But right now you can help them with a simple click of the mouse, by giving them your vote for the Best Playground in LA on the Nick’s Parents connect.com site. I know somewhere Shane is smiling!

She did it again!

2009-06-15T23:12:00.003-04:00

I know it is late 11:15pm est. but in the spirit of Magical Design Monday, I still have a few more minutes of this day. I just had to brag a bit about my new blog design that the gifted and talented Danielle at the Design Girl created for me. (Again!) For those of you who know me, you know that the Design Girl created the design of my other kingdom which I love so much too! I wanted to give this site a cheery, whimsical, fun and simply put “magical” feel and I think she did a wonderful job. What do you think?

To see this talented ladies blog check her out, and please make sure you tell her that your friend “the playground princess” sent you by!

Work-in-Progress

2009-06-10T08:12:00.006-04:00

Recently I began to think about how I wanted to organize this blog and how I think it would help others in various aspects of their lives; whether they want to create a playground or raise funds for whatever comes close to their hearts. I took an idea from my heart and brought it to fruition and you can too. That is what I hope to do here.

I decided to give each week day a different subject. I am so excited to share with all of you what I came up with:

Magical Design Monday; which will go into the theme’s of the different playgrounds that I designed or other elements of design which you might find interesting.

Tip Tuesday; everything you will want to know about creating a nonprofit organization. I did it so can you!

Wonderful Playgrounds Wednesday; this is where we will look around the country at other projects. I invite you to share your projects with me so we can feature them here.

Good Thing Thursday; this is “open call” to anything that I might find interesting, it might be a feature on a nonprofit organization, or something to introduce children to or maybe I will even have a “give a way” or two. My blog, my call! But you can be sure it will be enchanting.

“fun”raising Friday; this will go into various ideas that I have used to raise funds to create playgrounds, but you can use them for whatever you might be raising money for.

My hope in giving this blog “organization” is that it will further me a little and give me a chance to reflect and at the same time I hope to be able to pass along some of that magic onto you.

Wordless Wednesday, Welcomes you to Holland..

2009-06-03T10:51:00.003-04:00

I have often used this short story when speaking about the importance of play for all children, so for those of you who I have not had the honor of sharing it with for you “Welcome to Holland”.

I am often asked to describe the experience of raising a child with a disability - to try to help people who have not shared that unique experience to understand it, to imagine how it would feel. It's like this......

When you're going to have a baby, it's like planning a fabulous vacation trip - to Italy. You buy a bunch of guide books and make your wonderful plans. The Coliseum. The Michelangelo David. The gondolas in Venice. You may learn some handy phrases in Italian. It's all very exciting.

After months of eager anticipation, the day finally arrives. You pack your bags and off you go. Several hours later, the plane lands. The stewardess comes in and says, "Welcome to Holland."

"Holland?!?" you say. "What do you mean Holland?? I signed up for Italy! I'm supposed to be in Italy. All my life I've dreamed of going to Italy."

But there's been a change in the flight plan. They've landed in Holland and there you must stay.

The important thing is that they haven't taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place, full of pestilence, famine and disease. It's just a different place.

So you must go out and buy new guide books. And you must learn a whole new language. And you will meet a whole new group of people you would never have met.

It's just a different place. It's slower-paced than Italy, less flashy than Italy. But after you've been there for a while and you catch your breath, you look around.... and you begin to notice that Holland has windmills....and Holland has tulips. Holland even has Rembrandts.

But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy... and they're all bragging about what a wonderful time they had there. And for the rest of your life, you will say "Yes, that's where I was supposed to go. That's what I had planned."

And the pain of that will never, ever, ever, ever go away... because the loss of that dream is a very very significant loss.

But... if you spend your life mourning the fact that you didn't get to Italy, you may never be free to enjoy the very special, the very lovely things ... about Holland.

c1987 by Emily Perl Kingsley. All rights reserved

Why worry about accessibility?

2009-05-29T10:46:00.005-04:00

Five million children living in the United States have disabilities. For most of these children, the thrill of the playground is as foreign as a trip to the moon. To date most local playgrounds exclude these children.

I as the Playground Princess am dedicated to the “true spirit of children”. The park and recreation industry vendors work to make playgrounds compliant; worrying too much about how many components it takes to meet minimal ADA guidelines. Contrary to popular belief, meeting these minimum guidelines does not make a playground fully inclusive! What is a transfer station anyhow? And just how many children with physical disabilities can get out of their wheelchairs, or put down their walkers or canes, and climb up a staircase to play on a particular piece of equipment? The answer is: not many. A full 10% of children with disabilities have a physical disability. Out of five million special needs children, that number represents a lot of kids!

Now assume that some of these children can climb their way up into a structure for play. There isn’t much more they can do besides crawl around the structure. Isn’t that degrading? This is not a solution if it continues to deny children with special needs equal access for play.

It is my belief that the spirit of play should always be for children of all abilities! Let’s take a moment to remember what it was like to be a kid. Why would anyone want just the minimal play opportunities for children? Ten years ago in creating Hadley’s Park, the first fully inclusive playground in Maryland and one of the first in the country I raised the bar. I believe that in doing so we set new standards, and I hope to continue and help bring fun to every child. And remember, the thrill of a playground is for all!

Follow along if you would like to bring an inclusive playground to your area, or pass this blog information onto someone who you know would want to create a playground like this in your area. We will deal with everything from starting a nonprofit organization through what it takes to raise the funds to do so. And we will also give tips about playgrounds across the country. If you have a story about an inclusive playground please feel share it with us the1playgroundprincess@gmail.com.

Can you feel the Blog love?

2009-05-23T21:26:00.005-04:00

This week i was part of the "blog-link-a-thon" that was hosted by http://www.momdot.com now let's put up this big long blog love list and see how this goes...

1. http://www.notalwayscharming.com/

2. Fairy Blog Mother

3. Crazy Adventures in Parenting

4. Engineer a Debt Free Life

5. Sweet ‘n’ Sassy Girls

6. Good Golly Miss Blondie

7. SavvySuzie

8. For The Love of Baby!

9. http://lovemy2dogs.blogspot.com/

10. Blessings Abound

11. Coupons, Deals and More

12. Hairstyles For Girls

13. http://www.thedivinemissmommy.com/

14. A latte in the morning

15. KiddiesCorner Deals

16. 3 Kids and Us Mom Blog

17. The Ohana Mama

18. Coupon Queens of Laurel Run

19. Today’s Journey

20. http://confessionsofahousewife.com/

21. My Charmed Life

22. http://www.doublebugs.com/

23. http://3boys1girlandadog.blogspot.com/

24. New Sue Review

25. Suzanne Calling

26. Just For Me…and You

27. Time Slides By

28. Babes and Kids

29. Declutter a Little Each Day

30. Grocery Savings for Real Families

31. Life Starring Ellie and Eve

32. So Cute Crafts

33. Brea’s Mommy

34. Are Muffins Just Ugly Cupcakes

35. It’s A Beauty Filled Life

36. The crazy suburban mom

37. Donna’s World

38. Momma’s Gone Over the Wall

39. Mommy’s Quiet Time

40. Joyce (Saving My Cents)

41. My Trendy Tykes

42. The Not-So-Blog

43. Confessions From HouseholdSix

44. SiPPyCuPSand FiNGerPriNTS

45. http://www.couponmommie.com/

46. http://www.crackersandchaos.blogspot.com/

47. Giftfully Simple

48. Just For Fun

49. Digital Mommy

50. Me And Craig

51. Parenting Princesses

52. http://mylastshredsofsanity.blogspot.com/

53. Inside My Head

54. Petit

55. My Love Lucy

56. FreckleBox personalized gift

57. Baby Lulu Dress

58. Blog 4 Mom

59. 3 Garnets & 2 Sapphires

60. Jolly Mom

61. My Life My Journey

62. Maman And Gourmand

63. http://jessmalexander.blogspot.com/

64. The POSHpreneur

65. A Blog of Goodies

66. Christy aka The Write Gal

67. LookWhatMomFound

68. Peanut Butter & Smelly’s Dad

69. Lucy

70. Angry Julie Monday

71. The Mogul Mom Blog

72. Angela

73. Deal-ectible Mommies

74. Christy’s Creations

75. Lisa

76. http://www.booksnboys.blogspot.com/

77. Wannabe Supermom

78. Thre Craft Momma

79. Internet Toddler

80. http://lifeisasandcastle.blogspot/

81. Kristen of La Dolce Vita

82. Cranberry Fries

83. http://www.mud-bug.com/

84. The Mom Buzz

85. http://nightowlmama.blogspot.com/

86. Frugal Mommy of 2 Girls

87. Mommy Cracked

88. EclecticBird

89. Mama Mentor

90. Moomettesgram’s Musings

91. Moomette’s Magnificents Reviews

92. Moomettesgram’s Favorite Recipes

93. Diaries of a Domestic Goddess

94. Go Graham Go!

95. NerdFamily Things

96. NerdFamily Blog

97. Making Money Keeping Money

98. NerdFamily Food

99. Flying Giggles & Lollipops

100. http://themorrisbunchblog.com/

101. http://www.simplybeingmommy.com/

102. A Kindred Spirit’s Thoughts

103. Two Of A Kind, Working On A Full House

104. D-Lo’s Lounge

105. Free Sample Freak

106. What Mommies Need

107. Mom of 2 Boys, Wife of 1

108. icefairy’s Treasure Chest

109. Cheaper Than Therapy

110. Therapeutic Reviews & Giveaways

111. Lily Bean Designs

112. Dirty Diaper Laundry

113. Dance Momma

114. JamericanSpice

115. Mombalance

116. A Pocket Full Of Buttons

117. Ordinary and Awesome

118. Reviews and Giveaways

119. Subjective Beauty

120. Tales From A Shopaholic Mommy

121. Mommiemayhem

122. IE Mommy

123. http://blasianbabynotes.blogspot.com/

124. Amber Woodward

125. Grammy Janet’s Place

126. Outnumbered 3 to 1

127. ShimmerMeBlue

128. Dev’s Favorite Giveaways

129. Joyful Money Saving

130. 1stopmom

131. A Modern Mama

132. PourSomeSugarOnMe

133. Fancast

134. Lollipop Baby

135. Lola & Ben

136. idoby2celebrants

137. Sue Jackson

138. Cackleberry Kids

139. Gifts By The Stars

140. Jemma

141. Handmade Kids

142. Ollie Rose

143. Babasfarmlife

144. Banquet Manager

145. Monkey’s Momma

146. This Mom Can Shop

147. EcoLabel Fundraising

148. Divine Chaos

149. baby kakes ink alphabet onesie

150. tee from recycle me

151. http://lizzie-q-homemaker.blogspot.com/

152. marla mandell bread (5/17)

153. ozone socks 5/15

154. Belly Bumps to Baby Hugs

155. Hip T

156. ThenComes Baby

157. Homemade Gourmet

158. Fresh Pure and Simple

159. MomDot Mom Blogs

160. MomDot Mom Reviews

161. Bloggers Give Charity

162. Organic Baby Resource

163. Potamus Prefers

164. The Army Wife

165. Through Hazel Eyes

166. Frugal Rhode Island Mama

167. Just Jingle

168. And Twins make 5!

169. Frugal Plus

170. Christie

171. What Happened To My House?

172. Miracles on Mama Street

173. Heck Of A Bunch

174. Blog Designs by Susan

175. mommy23monkeys

176. Hanna

177. Got Kids Need Valium

178. Womb At The INNSANE

179. Katie & Kimble Blog

180. http://adventuresofastayathomemom.com/

181. The Frugalicious Mommy

182. Penny Pinching Diva

183. Another day. Another thought or two

184. Beauty4Moms

185. http://www.evilflu.com/

186. Little Miss Julia

187. Mrs Zeee

188. Cheryl

189. Frazzle Dazzle SuperMom

190. Florida Mealtime Savers

191. Inspiration Station

192. Mommy’s Kitchen

193. Saving with MamaNordy

194. Saving SAHM Sanity

195. A Little Piece Of Perfect

196. Nodin’s Nest

197. Lil Miss Eco

198. Laryn Strickland

199. HeatherMama

200. The Gerber Babies Blog

201. WhateverSuccess

202. Women Who Win

203. http://theburbblog.com/

204. Happy Healthy Families

205. Sweeps4Bloggers

206. dramaqueensmum

207. The Mom Trap

208. Multitasking Mama

209. Mama Michies Musings

210. Little People Wealth

211. Belly Beyond

212. Kim Kihega

213. Mom Fuse

214. Juanita

215. Adopt a Do

216. On the Refriderator Door

217. Christine

218. Little Diva

219. My Household Junk

220. I’m Here….Really

221. http://greer5intexas.blogspot.com/

222. mary

223. http://www.nicolesnickels.net/

224. Lori Newman

225. http://kris-jay-caity-izzie.blogspot.com/

226. Debb

227. Shawn Ann’s World

228. Peke Moe -NZ made baby sleep sacks

229. A Simple Kinda LIfe

230. Sweet Serendipity

231. Bouncing Off The Walls

232. Jane Loedding

233. Msbuildingupdabenjamins

234. Msbuildingupdabenjamins

235. Msbuildingupdabenjamins

236. Musings from Me

237. Veronnica

238. The Adventures of Miss V

239. Mudd Kids

240. Mom Most Traveled family travel

241. Relishing the Dirt

242. Good, True and Beautiful

243. http://frugallivingandhavingfun.blogspot.com/

244. The Last Blog on Earth

245. A Wrestling Addicted Mommy

246. Rae

247. http://www.thesidelinesoflife.blogspot.com/

248. Dore’s Diaries

249. Blog by Donna

250. Lisette

251. Pillaging With Buffie

252. Mom of Faith

253. GODSOWN

254. flutterbyechronicles

255. shelley

256. Life In A House Of Blue

257. kristen

258. Alex the Fey Thriller Series

259. MamaCheaps!

260. Donalacasa

261. A Jewish Journey

262. http://learningtogetherhandinhand.blogspot.com/

263. BethinNC

264. Stuttering Shell

265. Don’t Blink

266. Life is Sweet

267. Lisa

268. http://www.sahmsue.com/

269. m.e (cathie)

270. Run DMT

271. Princess Ratbag

272. Michelle G

273. http://www.nathansfight.com/

274. Moody Mama Says

275. Laurie Ann

276. Cooking During Stolen Moments

277. A Simple Walk

278. Vanessa

279. middleagedmom

280. Ramblings Of A Wannabe Writer

281. Oh My Baby

282. Fordcast Sunny

283. Lisa Miller

284. http://www.thedivinemissmommy.com/

285. Bibs & Cribs {very cute stuff}

286. My Lil’ Budget Book

287. Misadventures in Baby Raising

288. My Mommy Said

289. Milk & Honey Mommy

290. Milk and Honey Mommy

291. Amy O’Neal

292. Parenting Children

293. A Girl And Her Life

294. MarieLynn Boutique Blog

295. Born Fabulous Boutique Blog

296. The Pitter Patter Boutique

297. Stephanie Deese

298. Brea’s Baby Boutique Blog

299. digiscrapping.net - Heather Manning

300. Kids Activities Blog

301. Two Little Whales Cloth Diapers & More

302. 3 boys & a dog

303. Karen ~Georgia Angel

304. http://mynotsohurriedlife.blogspot.com/

305. Shannon Blogs Here

306. A Virtuous Woman

307. Secrets of a Southern Kitchen

308. Dreamer

309. Lollipop Book Club

310. Mommie Daze Virtual Baby Shower

311. Heck Of A Bunch

312. MomSaves4U

313. Barely Domestic Mama

314. http://www.babylovingmama.com/

315. Professional Family Manager

316. Kathleen

317. Coaching The Family

318. Frugal Creativity

319. Easy Being Green

320. Dandelion Bubbles

321. Shelly aka The Attic Girl

322. Foxtoybox-Discovery Toys

323. http://beauty4moms.blogspot.com/

324. Colleen - Mommy Always Wins

325. Playground for Parents

326. World of Discovery

327. http://andbabymakesfourperrine.blogspot.com/

329. A Little Bit Nutty

330. Mahayla’s Mommy

331. Mommy Goggles

332. The Shopping Mama

333. If I Could Escape . . .

Remember being a kid?

2009-05-17T17:32:00.004-04:00

Take a moment to sit back and close your eyes and remember what it was like to be a kid. You attended school; you probably walked there. You would come home and have a snack, and then you would run out and play. These are some of the best times and memories of childhood.

Chances are you have a little movie clip running through your mind -- hopping on your bike, riding to the local playground and waiting to see who else might show up. Your movie clip may include going to a friend’s house and playing in their home or backyard. You might play kick-the-can, softball and other games; some would be physical while others might include make-believe play. Maybe you were a princess awaiting your handsome prince, or a brave pirate looking for treasure.

Your imagination took you too many special places. Aside from going to school, this is what you did-- play! Play was your childhood work. And although you probably were not aware, this is where you built the foundation for your social, physical and cognitive skills. These are skills you use in everyday life.

All children learn from developmental learning and recreational hands-on-play. Hadley’s Park Projects encompass both parallel and cooperative play in a free and supervised environment. The ideas and visions of Hadley’s Park Projects have resulted in the development of theme-play playgrounds.

Often, a playground is considered as strictly physical. When the physical play is mastered, a structure’s limited appeal can lead to boredom. How can we add to the restrictions of physical play? Theme-play offers a creative challenge to the child’s imagination and encourages play for extended periods of time. Theme-play provides endless journeys of discovery and excitement.

When children are given an “equal” playing field, they learn from each other through physical and cognitive growth. A child with a disability gains so much by playing with a typical able-bodied peer. What people don’t stop to think about is how the reverse is also important – to give able-bodied children a chance to interact with children with disabilities. Through this cooperative play, children learn at an early age that a young person with a disability is a child first, then a child with a disability second. Children see that people with disabilities have feelings and like to play, just like them. They learn to feel comfortable with people who have disabilities. Children who play together at Hadley’s Park learn empathy while learning to accept people for who they are at an early age. Hadley’s Park helps young people learn not to discriminate or be fearful of the disabled. It becomes a win-win situation and a teachable moment for all the participants.

I invite you to help your community and bring a fully inclusive playground to your area, follow along and I will show you the how to’s, all you need to do is get up and “go.” I’m challenging you! Does your community have a playground such as this? If not come on, what are you waiting for?

Some kids dream about flying while other just kids dream of playing at the park

2009-05-11T07:53:00.004-04:00

Some say “necessity is the mother of all inventions,” well that became evident to me one spring day in early 1996 when I brought my then 4 year old and 7 year old daughters to play at a local park. We were very excited to finally get out of the house from the winter doldrums and get some fresh air at the playground. My older daughter was thrilled to have a place to run around and I was just thrilled to get outside after winter.

When we got to the playground it was the usual ritual of letting my older daughter out of the car and having her bolt like lightening to the playground area, and for me, not so fast. I had to lift the wheelchair out of the back of the station wagon and then put my 4 year old daughter into it. When that 5 minute ordeal was over, we were off but almost immediately we were stopped by a timber barricade which seemed to be placed there to keep in mulch but very obviously was a problem for us. So, as usual supermom that I am, picked up both the wheelchair and my daughter over the timbers and then thought we were off. But again, not so easy to push a wheelchair over mulch, think of trying to drive over sand; it’s not so easy, is it?

We then caught up with my older daughter who was running from each piece of equipment to the next. When I finally told her to “hold up.” She exclaimed she wanted us to “come up” on the equipment. Come up? Now how exactly was that supposed to happen? Oh, I know the wheelchair was supposed to sprout wings. Well, that is what it would have taken to get her up on the equipment. And let’s say that actually could have happened, then what? Sit up there and watch from the tower while her sister ran around and around. This was no fun!

So my younger daughter and I went over to a seating area where I sat and we both watched my older daughter run around. At one point my older daughter came over to us a little frustrated but then realized when she came over to us that my younger daughter had a tear dripping down her face. That was it! That was the moment I went from a stay at home mom to a mom on a mission! Why was there not anything my children could do together? Why was there not anything I could do with my younger daughter while my older daughter played? This was going to change, it had to!

I went home and started drawing (coming from a design background, drawing was second nature to me) and visualizing what a perfect playground would look like. When my husband came home I told him of the adventures of our day and how I was now out to change the world. I had a dream; a goal- “to build a unique park where all children could play together with or without disabilities.” A park where through playing, the concepts would help all children socially, and cognitively, as well as physically. Equally as important, a place for children with disabilities to play with their own siblings and peers.

The ideas and visions of this playground resulted in the development of a theme-play park. Often a playground is considered strictly physical. Although, when the physical play is mastered, the appeal of the playground can lead to boredom. Theme-play offers a challenge to the child’s imagination and encourages children to play for extended periods of time.

My dream playground encompassed a Transportation Area, Pirate Ship, Frontier Village, Castle, Dinosaurs, and Main Street themes. In the design, accessibility was ensured through the implementation of the ADA requirements, CPSC and ASTM guidelines; those are playground rules.

By combining all of these elements in the design and equipment, my dream would create the best playground for all children to play!

About the Playground Princess:

2009-05-10T23:22:00.008-04:00

Confessions of the Playground Princess is a how to and help blog. After creating and developing the first fully inclusive playground in the state of Maryland and helping countless communities around the country do the same, I thought I would take the opportunity and expand my horizons with a “how to” blog for what I will call “building a dream one playground at a time.” I blog about everything it will take to make this dream come true. The Park and Recreation Associations, playground manufactures, raising funds from private and public partnerships. I am a Washingtonian and live in the DC metro area with my husband and 2 wonderful daughters who inspired me to dream and create the first playground.

The Day Job: In addition to being the Playground Princess, and SAHM Shelley’s family owns Center Pet Pharmacy where she has been known to work from the “behind scenes.”

Hire Shelley: As an expert and social entrepreneur, in the playground industry Shelley’s work has led to several speaking engagements and therefore available for guest speaking to your group on such topics as:
· Taking Lemons and Making Lemonade
· Building a Dream- Her Journey of Creating Hadley’s Park, Inc.
· Creative and effective ways to Raise Funds

Praises of the Princesses:
· The Adelphian-1998 Cover story
· University of Maryland Alumni Magazine-Fall 1999
· Landscape Architecture and Specified News Magazine-March 2000
· Today’s Playground Magazine-March 2001
· Washingtonian Magazine- Washingtonian of the Year 2005
· Exceptional Parent Magazine- Maxwell J. Schiffer Award 2005
· American Society of Landscape Architect's, Maryland Chapter, Presidents Award, December, 1999
· Montgomery County Parks Foundation, Inc., Honor Award Hadley's Park, January 2000
· WETA- Hometown Heroes, 1999
· JFGH- S. Robert Cohen Award 2003
· Featured on NBC’s “The TODAY Show” June 2004

The other side of a Princess: I write a personal blog to give some insight into the lives of a special needs family. About our triumphs and fears and what we have gone through together in the past 21 years. http://iamstillstandingafterallthistime.blogspot.com I am a writer, social entrepreneur, special needs advocate, point-and-shoot photographer, web-surfer, gardener, cook, and book reader. I created my first website in 1995 as part of the creation of Hadley’s Park. Now I blog and am currently writing a book.

Need a guest speaker? Want to talk playgrounds and how you can bring an inclusive playground to your community. Drop me a line. the1playgroundprincess@gmail.com