Expressing Your Family Identity in a Whole New Way

Families with purpose are families who dream together and work together to make their dreams and goals a reality.

New starts, renewed energy, and fresh enthusiasm are all signs and feelings of the start of a new school year.  This time of year is often a time where families take time to reflect on their lives and try to make changes and improvements for the better.  So before the renewed energy and enthusiasm fades under the stress of daily life, take some time to reconnect as a family and reaffirm your family identity with this project.  It is a simple low cost way for families to remind themselves of their family goals and a fun way of expressing their family values, identity, and mission.

Purpose of this Project

The purpose of this activity is to build family closeness and unity by discussing and creatively expressing your family values, identity, goals, and mission.

Supplies You’ll Need

Paper Mache letter of the first letter of your last name (you can find these at your local craft or fabric store - we used a 23.5″ letter)

Mod Podge (you can find these at your local craft or fabric store)

Paint Brushes (one for each family member)

Scissors (one for each family member)

Paper plates or paint cups (one for each family member)

Old magazines and photos

Newspaper to cover the table

Optional: Copies of your family goals, vision statement, and mission statement

Things to Keep in Mind

The younger the children the smaller the letter - Smaller letters will take less time to cover and will be more suitable for younger children with smaller attention spans

The more children you have the bigger the letter - If you have a lot of kids, you might want to opt for a bigger letter, so there is less crowding and less arguments.

Short last names - if you have a short last name you may want to go with smaller letters and spell out your entire last name rather than just the first letter.

If your children are younger consider breaking this activity up into smaller segments.  Use this first segment to discuss your family characteristics, goals, mission, and values and then use the remaining time to cut out the pictures.  Save the gluing of the pictures and words for a different time.

Turn the TV off prior to starting this activity.  TV will only distract the kids and take away from any meaningful conversation.

The Activity

Set aside some time on your regular family night or on your family calendar for this activity.  Depending on the size of your family and the size of letter you chose, you will need about 60 - 90 minutes for this activity.

As a family begin discussing the things important to you as a family and what qualities and characteristics make your family unique.  If available use your family goals and mission statement to help you get started.  For example for some families this may be things like doing well in school, having regular family nights, taking fun vacations, or being open and honest.  Be sure to include any hobbies or special interests.

After you are finished discussing the things important to your family and your family characteristics, begin cutting out pictures and words from magazines that express all of these qualities.  If old enough, give each family member a pair of scissors and a magazine and let them go through each one cutting out different pictures and words.  While cutting out pictures, take the time to talk about things going on your lives.  This busy time is often a good time to check in with the kids on how school is going, remember old memories, or plan family outings.

Once all of your pictures and words are cut out, it is now time to begin attaching them to your letter.  Cover your work space with newspaper to protect it from the Mod Podge and give each family member a paint brush and small paper plate or paint cup with Mod Podge in it.  Using the pictures and words you cut out, use the Mod Podge to glue them to the letter.  This part can be messy and a little tricky on some of the angles, so parents may want to let the kids do the attaching while they help and assist.

After your letter is completely covered, let it dry overnight.  Once completely dry, display the letter in a prominent spot where everyone can easily see it and enjoy it.

Good luck!

I want to give a shout out of thanks to my dear friend Louise for this idea.  You will be forever in my heart. - Polly

These Are the Days We’ll Remember

Parents never know which gesture, tradition or spur-of-the-moment childhood adventure will become a treasured memory.   However, chances are more treasured moments will occur during the summer months when most parents have more time to spend with their children.  Embracing the moments of life is one thing, but capturing those moments and turning them into treasured memories is something altogether different.

Here are some ideas (reminders) to help extend the celebration of summer’s meaningful moments, all of which are opportunities to grow your relationships, learn more about each other, laugh out loud, discover new things together, and have TONS of fun.

THINGS YOU CAN DO WITH PHOTOS

Whether your summer memories included a trip to the Disneyland or a dude ranch, wearing costumes to a friend’s birthday party or selling homegrown produce at your local farmer’s market, use these methods to relive the moments.

Scrapbook and Shadow Boxes

Before you begin your project, decide whether you like traditional or digital scrapbooking. Either you’re computer savvy, or you’re not.   Either way, you’ll end up at a craft store or on the internet and you must choose a theme.   Talk about your favorite summer memories.   What was the most fun?   What still makes you laugh?   What surprised you? Then tailor the project to your child’s interests.   If he wants to gather objects that won’t tuck into a book, consider alternate ways to preserve the collection, such as a shadow box he can display on a wall.

Here are a few theme ideas:

All About Me (Us)

Exploring the Great Outdoors

Roadtrips R Us

Somewhere Out There is…

Summer Buddies

A Camper’s Life

Video

Videography has come a long way in the past few decades.   Before digital camcorders, home movie buffs had to use VHS camcorders, and before that, 8mm film.   Fortunately, smaller cameras are capable of producing clearer images and the whole process of capturing, preserving and enjoying memories is much easier.

SUGGESTION: Schedule and then devote time to putting finishing touches on your videos.   At the very least, add labels and some front and back end graphics if you have the software.   Don’t make the mistake of putting one person in charge of the project.   The fun part is working together.

If you don’t have a video camera, you can create dynamic videos by uploading digital photos onto websites such as animoto.com.   Users of Animoto pay a $25 yearly membership fee allowing them to create an unlimited number of videos for one low price.   Animoto adds the fancy special effects, graphics and music; however, a project can be remixed if you don’t like their choice.   A high-resolution version will cost $5 extra.   Animoto is one of many websites offering this service.

Lastly, for a quick and easy way to make a time capsule of your summer vacation, find a large, clean, wide mouth jar such as a mayonnaise jar.   Gather ticket stubs, shells, maps, souvenirs, subway tokens, pressed flowers or anything with sentimental value.   Be sure to check local regulations if you want to gather natural items, such as fossils, feathers, or plants.   If you include photos, write names and dates on the back of images.   Place all of your items inside the jar.   On brightly colored paper, write a few notes about each event after interviewing family members.

IMPORTANT: Don’t put your scrapbook, photobook, shadow box, DVD or souvenir jar in a drawer. Instead, place it in a prominent place of honor so children can revive their cherished summer memories for many years to come.

By Jodie Randisi, author of 201 Things to Do When Children Say I’M BORED! The Checklist and Journal for Busy Families.  www.201thingstodo.com

8 Free or Low Cost Family Activities for the Summer

A few weeks ago we were discussing on our forum ideas for free and low cost family activities, so I thought it might be helpful to offer a few up here.

Letterboxing - Letterboxing is a treasure hunt hike that families take in search of hidden letterboxes.  Using clues found on the internet (most letterboxes are hidden in a park or central community location), families set out on a hiking adventure in search of the hidden letterbox.  .  Once the letterbox has been found, families then use the pen to leave a message in the logbook along with an image from their personal stamp.

Bike Riding - Take advantage of your local parks and trails by taking a family bike ride.

Berry Picking - Help your local economy and eat healthy too by spending a day picking berries from a local farm.

Backyard Campout - Pitch or make a tent and spend the evening making s’ mores, telling ghost stories, sleeping under the stars.

Treasure Hunt - Keep your kids guessing and moving all summer long with a summer long treasure hunt.

Make a Family Journal - Family journals are a simple way of expressing and recording your family’s life, dreams, and memories without a lot of fuss and most importantly without a lot of anxiety and time.

Homemade Rockets - Add a little science education to your summer by making rocket launchers.  Just do them for fun or add them to your July 4^th celebrations.

Nature Scavenger Hunt - Enjoy the outdoors and the thrill of a scavenger hunt with a nature scavenger hunt.  Use this nature hunt list to get you started or make your own.

For additional ideas for free or low cost family activities see our page with boredom buster ideas and family fun ideas.

Cider Mills, Corn Mazes, and Haunted Houses

Here are some great sites to help you find cider mills, corn mazes, and haunted houses in your community.  Also be sure to visit our local area family activity page for links to family activities near you.

Apple Orchards and Cider Mills - All About Apples has a great listing of apple orchards and cider mills in each state as well as apple guides and recipes.

Corn Mazes - If you are up to trying a corn maze this year, visit The Maize to find one in your local community as well as tips and suggestions.

Haunted Houses - If scary things are more your style then visit HauntedHouses.com to find something spooky near you.

 

Build a Fort

Welcome to Week 6 of our 8 Week Summer Boredom Buster Series. 

This week’s boredom buster idea is a great way to get your kids using their imaginations and learning to work in teams. 

Dig through your basement or garage and even possibly visit your local appliance store for old cardboard boxes.  Give them to the kids along with some old blankets, markers, and paint and let them build and decorate a fort.  If you have enough boxes and enough kids, let the kids split into teams and have a contest to see who can build the biggest and best fort.  After their fort is built they can use it to play in or hold secret club meetings.  This oldie but goody boredom buster idea will keep them busy for hours. 

Star Gazing

Welcome to Week 5 of our 8 Week Summer Boredom Buster Series. 

Take some time during the cool summer nights to star gaze with your kids.  It is a great way to wind down your day and you can keep the kids busy during the day researching and getting ready for the star gazing event.

How to Get Started

Check your family calendar or planner for a date that works best for everyone.  To make the most of your star gazing event, you will need to wait until after the sun sets and the sky is very dark, so be sure to pick a night when the kids and you don’t have to get up early the next day. 

Get your kids started on researching the constellations in the sky.  You can do this in a variety of ways and here are some ideas and resources to help get them started.

Create an Interactive Sky Chart - This online sky chart will show you where the stars and planets are in relation to your horizons and zenith.  It is a free application, but does require a parent registration.

Make a Star Finder - Kids can download this neat star finder project to help learn about the constellations.

Constellation Crosswords - Use these constellation word searches and crossword puzzles to help reinforce what your kids have learned.

Book It - Visit your local library to find some books on star gazing and constellations

Astronomy 101 - Use this online guide to help orient you and more easily find the stars and constellations.

Things You Will Need

Here is a quick list of things you will need to make the most of your star gazing adventure.

The star chart or finder

A big blanket or reclining lawn chairs

A red flashlight or a regular flashlight with red cellophane over the lens.  A red flashlight makes for easier night vision.

Snacks

Bug Spray

A dark location free of artificial light

Optional: Binoculars

Good Luck!

Kids Off The Couch

Welcome to Week 4 of our 8 Week Summer Boredom Buster Series. 

Keep kids from getting bored this summer with Kids Off the Couch.  A perfect blend of culture, family time, and film, Kids Off the Couch is a great way to help kids make connections, explore their local community, and learn through film.  Each week, the smart people at Kids Off the Couch, put together a Popcorn Adventure that includes a film and a related family activity designed to get kids and parents off the couch and exploring and enjoying their local communities.  Nestled in between the film and family activity are thoughtful conversation starters for each film to stimulate conversation and get kids and parents talking.  Families can choose to subscribe to this free service either via the Kids Off the Couch weekly newsletter or visit the multitude of Popcorn Adventures in the site’s archives. 

Some Things to Think About

Unless you have the movie in your DVD collection you will have to do some pre-work in terms of finding the movie either from places like your local library, your local DVD rental store, online swapping websites like SwapaDVD, or purchasing it directly from the Kids Off the Couch shop. 

Because the Popcorn Adventures get families off the couch and into their communities, you will need to make time on your family calendar or planner for the adventure.

Currently Kids Off the Couch offers detailed information and tips for adventures in New York, Houston, Boston, Chicago, and San Francisco, and Washington D.C., so if you don’t live in or near one of these cities you will have to do your own research to find the family activities nearby.  Kids Off the Couch will help you do this by showing you how to Google similar activities in your local town.  If you live in a small town or rural area, be prepared to travel a bit to find some of the activities in a nearby community.

Before you try your first adventure, be sure to read through the Kids Off the Couch tips to make the first adventure go smoothly.

Good Luck!

Owl Pellets

Welcome to Week 3 of our 8 Week Summer Boredom Buster Series. 

This week’s summer boredom buster is dissecting owl pellets.  Owl pellets are the regurgitated indigestible parts of an owl’s prey.  Owls like many birds swallow much of their small prey whole leaving behind in their digestive systems the indigestible parts like the bones, fur, and teeth of their prey.  The owl’s two part digestive system breaks down the soft parts of the owl’s prey, but is unable to process and break down the larger harder pieces such as the prey’s bones.  The softer pieces are digested and passed through the owl’s system while the larger indigestible pieces are formed into a pellet and regurgitated through the owl’s beak.   When pulled apart, the remnants of the owl’s prey can often be found in the pellet making it a fun science activity for kids.  Kids can dissect the owl pellet and compare the remnants they find in the pellet to a bone chart.  Combined with interesting owl books from your library or owl puzzles and activities, this is a great educational and fun activity that will keep kids busy and learning during the long summer days.

Good luck!

Make Your Own Household Cleaners

Welcome to week 2 of our 8 Week Summer Boredom Buster series.  You can find week 1 here.

This week’s summer boredom buster idea is making homemade household cleaners with your kids.  A little like cooking, kids and parents can have a lot of fun mixing ingredients together and seeing what new colors, consistencies, and textures the mixed ingredients turn into. 

In addition to fun, making your own household cleaners is also a great way to sneak in some summer learning.  Use the opportunity to talk about the environment and how cleaning molecules breakdown dirt.  And once your cleaners are made, you can use them as well as any commercially made cleaners you may have to do some effectiveness tests or to see which ones can break down Jell-O.  Parents can also sneak in some math by working with the kids to compare costs and time of their homemade cleaners to the ones purchased in the store.

Start by taking on only one cleaner at first to save a little money on supplies and to ease initial confusion.  You can make more than one batch of the same cleaner (for example one for the bathroom and one for the kitchen) so that all of the kids have a chance to mix.  If you and your kids enjoyed it, you can always do more later. 

To find recipes, you can use online homemade house cleaner recipes or borrow the book, Clean House Clean Planet by Karen Logan from your local library.  This book is filled with a lot of great information on how to make many different types of cleaners, where to buy the supplies, and how cleaners work.  Another great option is to make your own laundry detergent.  Trent over at SimpleDollar.com has done a lot of research on how to make your own laundry detergent and can walk you through the entire process. 

Once you decide which cleaner to make,  work a time into your family calendar or mom planner to buy the supplies and sit down together to mix your cleaners.  Once your household cleaner is made, work with the kids to design a creative label for your bottle.  Be sure to come up with a jazzy name for your cleaner and include the recipe on the label so that you can easily re-make the cleaner in the future.  If you have a child who enjoys computers this may be a good opportunity for them to get creative and use their computer skills.

And last but not least, once your cleaners are made put them to the test by letting the kids use them to clean stains, fingerprints, or even better the bathroom!

Good luck!

 

Alternatives to the DVD Player While Traveling

Worried your kids spend too much time watching the DVD player on long car trips and vacations?  Here are four ways you can unplug them from the DVD player and into something new.

Audio Books - Audio books are a great alternative to the DVD and a great option for anyone in the family who gets carsick from reading.  AudibleKids.com offers a lot of great options for kids and there is Audible.com for parents.  You can either download the books to your iPod or CD.

Learn Something New - Use the opportunity during long car rides to learn something new about the places you are visiting.  You can print out maps and state quizzes , use a map game, or download a book from AudibleKids.com on the particular state, country, or region you are visiting.  Another option is to highlight on a map your journey, laminate it, and then let the kids follow along during the ride.   Still another option is to check books out of your local library before you leave on the places you are visiting.

Oldies But Goodies - Before the creation of kids’ travel games and DVD players, families kept occupied in the car with good old fashioned road trip games that require nothing other than an imagination, creativity, sense of humor, and your family.

Sing - Let all of the pent up energy and excitement out of the kids by singing some classic songs together as a family.   Not sure you remember the words?  Then be sure to print off the song lyrics before you leave making sure you have enough copies for every family member.

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