by Shel SilversteinWhile a song like “Daddy, What If”, about the love between a father and son can easily bring me to tears in this heightened emotional (pregnant) state, a song with a squeaky “child” voice is unlikely to make any sort of favorable impression on me.
But such is the magic of Shel Silverstein. Tears were falling before I knew it.
Enjoy this clip from the Johnny Cash show.
“Adorable Shoes for Adorable Feet”Van needed sandals. I asked my moms’ group for suggestions and read online reviews. In the end, I am almost ashamed to admit, I was swayed by cuteness.
Rocket ships! And such an adorable design!
Lucky for us, the maker Livie and Luca is also globally conscious and the shoes are completely comfortable and fit perfectly.
Hooray for form and function!
Kent Ave. between N. 7th and N. 10thNot everyone will agree with me because it’s over grown, is adjacent to construction, and frankly, rather odd, but I find the playground at the East River State Park charming and strangely dreamy.
It’s like a faraway, mixed up childhood memory: abandoned tracks lead to a wooden child sized train, ancient looking ruins from jut up beside pint sized hidden bridges.
It’s especially special on overcast mornings when no one else is around and as for the construction, well, nothing could make a playground visit cooler to Van than the view of a real live digger.
As it’s nestled among a larger park, I didn’t even know about it until fairly recently. It’s a neighborhood gem and, selfishly, one I hope stays a bit hidden.
by Taro GomiThere’s a lot of junky stuff made for kids but for every poorly written and illustrated book, there’s one as charming as the work of Taro Gomi.
I found this adorable box set browsing the children’s section at Word and fell in love. Van and I adore the simple, quirky, colorful watercolors and short stories.
His personal favorite of the three, which includes Spring is Here and My Friends, is Bus Stops.
This is a most fabulous gift to new parents and likely one they won’t already have.
Gomi is a prolific Japanese children’s book illustrator best known in the states for his classic Everybody Poops, which I will be getting once potty training begins.
Us Route 9 Lake George, NYI’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Magic Forest is a magical place. Now that we have a baby to take – even more so.
A creepy awesome place that’s a must on any Lake George visit.
Music, Puppets, and Sidewalk ChalkAs is in evidence in the above photo, the seeds of Van’s rock and roll dreams made have been planted thanks to one Mike Messer of The Dirty Sock Funtime Band.
Today’s Free Concert for Kids at McGolrick Park featured the singer as well as puppets and chalk drawing.
The park and the Open Space Alliance are making great efforts to make the lovely park more involved in the community and especially the local kids and hope to have more events like this in the future.
A similar show is scheduled at Cooper Park June 15th.
at The School Settlement AssociationWell, Van loves the “play” element and the wide safe open space for him to run around in is worth the price of this class alone.
Kick? That he hasn’t quite gotten the concept of yet and doesn’t seem terribly interested in figuring it out.
There’s too much fun to be had running, giggling and throwing the balls. Guess he gets his athletic prowess from me.
Seriously though, once your little one is up and running, this is a great active class for them with patient teachers and even a couple singing puppets.
RIPSad, sad news. Like so many, I grew up on Maurice Sendak. His illustrations weren’t just cute, they spoke to our fears and wildest imagination.
While Where the Wild Things Are is timeless and undoubtedly his most lasting and beloved book, I was personally most effected by the creepy Outside Over There, a haunting story of goblins kidnapping a little sister.
If you’re unfamiliar with it, I highly recommend you seek it out. It fueled whispering fantasies between my sister and I about what might lurk in the woods behind our house.
I guess that’s what I loved about Sendak’s work the most, like The Grimm brothers before him, his work wasn’t scared of children’s imagined sensitivities and frailties, it let us feel elated, frightened, hurt, thrilled, excited..
He was a true original and I will share his magical work with my kids who will no doubt share it with theirs.
On NickWell. This was a surprise. Jim and I are a bit smitten with Spongebob Squarepants.
We’re far more into it than Van actually.
I had no idea it was so strangely charming.
Perfect Toddler KitchenA couple months ago I started to notice that Van wasn’t as interested in his old toys. As he makes his way into toddlerhood, things that rattle just aren’t as cool as grown up gadgets. So, I started to look for some play grown up toys.
I found this adorable wooden kitchen from Educo that is as lovely to look at as it is enthraling for Van.
Great for small spaces and small kids, it’s not as elaborate as some I’ve seen but perfect for our needs.
Van hasn’t been as involved in playtime as is with this for a while.
It comes with toy utensils, dishes, and food and is relatively easy to assemble.