OC Family - Moms. Kids. Life. - (Play Mom)

4 Play Movies for Grown-Ups

Sun, 05 Sep 2010 10:16:00 GMT

"Life moves pretty fast . . . " Can you finish the quote? Do you know who said it? I don't normally recommend sitting indoors to watch a movie, but these 4 Play Movies for Grown-Ups will make you want to race your kids to the swings.

"Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."
-Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)

This movie reminds me that it's okay to get crazy and buck the routine every once in a while. Jump out of the norm and take some friends with you on your adventure!

"It's a glow-in-the-dark compass ring. So you don't get lost."
-Big (1988)

The gifts of childhood are many. We don't have to let the feeling disappear just because the candles on our birthday cake say so. Playing brings it all back, no matter your age.

"Because it's magic. Magic has to be believed. It's the only way it's real."
and
"I am a princess. All girls are. Even if they live in tiny old attics. Even if they dress in rags, even if they aren't pretty, or smart, or young. They're still princesses. All of us. Didn't your father ever tell you that? Didn't he?"
-A Little Princess (1995)

The pace of this movie is slow and poetic. Sara Crewe reminds me that no one can ever take away my imagination - and even though I'm a tomboy - I'll always be a princess!

"Children cannot do all the things they are supposed to do, if they have to worry about spoiling their precious clothes!"
-The Sound of Music (1965)

The ultimate play outdoors movie! Children need to sing and dance and play and get their clothes dirty.

So watch these movies and then get yourself outside acting like a kid again!

If you want more play inspiration or just need to find yourself some swings, visit Michele's Fun Orange County Parks blog.

A Play Challenge

Wed, 25 Aug 2010 07:14:00 GMT

My friend and fellow writer, Dara, is the kind of mom who wakes up at 3am with a great idea for the blog. She called saying, "I came up an idea, but I'll have to deliver it in person." How much fun is that? The suspense killed me! A play surprise. For me?

Turns out it was a surprise Play Challenge. It came in a brown paper bag. Here are the rules:

All items must be used. (2 cones, 4 bean bags, 1 piece of chalk, 1 ball, 1 small hourglass timer)
Game must be played outdoors.
You need to create a name for your game.
Have fun family time!

These are the items:

We came up with 4 games. Each family member ended up running a game. I'm not going to tell you how we designed our games - so we don't influence your creativity. However, I will tell you the names of our games so you may get a taste of the fun we had:

Le Obstacle Course (8 year old)
The Bean Sprout (5 year old)
Le Challenge (Dad)
Bullseye Bowling (Mom)

Do It Yourself

Anyone can do this challenge. Allow for creativity and resist putting an adult stamp on the kids ideas.

Put ANY items in a bag and see what your kids will do with it!
Have them create play challenges for each other.
Make bags for your friend's families and pass the challenge on.
Use it at a birthday party and follow the theme.
Issue the challenge at a picnic or camping using nature items for nature play.

Take advantage of items you already have. Play needn't be complicated or expensive.

Summer Isn't Over

Tue, 10 Aug 2010 09:27:00 GMT

I see it as a wave.

It starts calm and peaceful out in the center of the Pacific.
School is out.
We have no schedule.
Life is good.
We miss our kids and connect again in the lull.

A small swell builds.
We get in the summer groove.
Families adventure on vacations.
We plan activities.
Kids explore new worlds and meet new friends at camp.

The crest reaches new heights and we wait for the crash.
Where are you taking me today?
What’s next?
What else do we get to do?
I’m booorrrrreeeeeeddddd!
He did it!
What are we doing today?

G-O P-L-A-Y.
Can we watch TV?

Why don’t you go play?
Can I play Wii, DS, _________(fill in the blank)?

I bet you can find something to play.
There’s nothing to do.

Can we play together? Want me to watch?
Hmmmm . . .

TSCHUSSTSCHUSSSSSS (my best impression of a wave crashing).
Silence.

The wave fizzes out on its rumble towards shore.
Hear it?
The rustling of LEGOS.
The bouncing of a ball.
The click of a jump rope on pavement.
Shovels digging in the dirt.
Giggles when the hose turns on.
A big wheel skidding in the driveway.
Rollerblades clacking on the pavement.
Squeaky dirt bike brakes..
Tent stakes hammered in the backyard grass.
Pages of a book, turning.
The clink of a bat hitting a ball.
Frisbees whooshing through the air.
Kites flapping in the wind.
Waves crashing at the beach on a perfect summer day.

We miss our kids and connect again in the lull.

Michele reminds people of all ages to play every day on her FunOrangeCountyParks blog where she suggests playground locations and shares simple play ideas.

Color Walks

Tue, 27 Jul 2010 09:48:00 GMT

Color walks are soooooo easy. They are perfect for any age. When my children were younger, finding colors provided a great opportunity for learning identification. Now they are pointing out different shades and patterns in the colors!

Color walks are not a new idea. I first read it in Fun Outdoor Activities from back in June 2009. We even did our own version of a rainbow walk after a marathon painting session in the backyard (see the end of the slideshow for pix). Then Debi from Go Explore Nature joined in, except she had her little explorer make a color chart with crayons before heading out.

We didn't have time for any planning. We were running between appointments and errands - but the day was too beautiful not to get outside. We hopped out of the car at a local park and botanical preserve. The playground was packed with day campers. I had my little camera and my son and daughter had their eyes on the trails behind the playground.

Off we went! Look at all the pretty colors:

A little searching reveals a few other ideas using colors from The Artful Parent and Jojoebi (pointed out on this Montessori website). Both involve collecting items with colors, but I prefer collecting only the photos. Maybe I can put it in a rainbow photo book someday to remind the kids of our adventures?

We talked about the textures of furry leaves and the smells of jasmine and honeysuckle. We talked about a patch of cattails and wondered what it was telling us? (Water nearby.) We saw water collecting on aloe and fallen leaves.

So much beauty all around! These rambles make me happy. Choosing trails and making discoveries makes the kids happy! And so does rolling down the hill a few times:

Michele promotes play and encourages family outdoor time on her Fun Orange County Parks blog.

Wildlife Spotting Tips

Wed, 14 Jul 2010 13:18:00 GMT

Wildlife spotting and identification comes naturally to me. While roaming around a park yesterday, I realized 95% of the visitors were missing the "nature" part of the lake. There were birds we see quite often like the Canada Goose and mallards. A few people were feeding the ducks despite warnings that it's bad for the birds.

We were looking beyond the obvious. Ever see those white birds flying between wetlands and lakes in our area?

Meet the Great Egret. I usually see this bird in the air or quietly standing by the shore looking for fish. This bird is rather tall. Notice the coloration: yellow beak and black feet. We've been discussing the differences in birds and their names a lot lately in our family.

Check out this guy:

Another white bird which could easily be mistaken for the first. Let's look for the differences. This bird is shorter than the GREAT Egret. The neck isn't as long. The colors are also reversed: black beak and yellow feet instead of the other way around. This is the Snowy Egret. Check for subtle differences and you can look up the details when you get home.

To a casual observer, the lake looked pretty lifeless. People were fishing, but I never saw anyone catch anything. The water looked like this:

What's that I see floating on the water? Is it a stick?

Pretty sure that's a turtle! In fact, there are lots of little heads poking up out of the water at this end of the lake. Hmm, I know turtles like to sun themselves on rocks. So we take a closer look at the shore:

Are those turtles or rocks?

Look at that! And there was another big grouping nearby. Next time you are out at the park, go on a nature walk. See what you can spot. What looks different? Is there anything there that you've never seen before? Remember, there's more to parks than playgrounds if you just take the time to look.

Michele promotes play and encourages family outdoor time on her Fun Orange County Parks blog.

Start a Nature Play Club

Sun, 04 Jul 2010 08:30:00 GMT

Our Nature Play Club officially launched in April. I think every family should participate in a Family Nature Club. It's easy. It's fun. You should start your own to connect your family to nature!

Here's the story of how I started ours:

Inpired by my first online visit to the Children and Nature Network website a year ago in April 2009, I wanted to spread the word. I wrote a post called Family Nature Clubs: How to Start a Wild Play Group.

The funny thing? I'd already been talking to Kari Svenneby of Active Kids Club up in Toronto on Twitter since fall of 2008. I didn't know she was involved with the Children and Nature Network! I only recently figured this out. Kari and I never talked about Richard Louv and nature deficit disorder. We just became online friends because we both like to jump in puddles. We bonded because we are parents who actually encourage our kids to get dirty and go barefoot.

So . . . I knew about the clubs.

I was already encouraging my blog readers to play outdoors, probably to the point of annoyance. I already pointed out what families could expect upon arrival at their playground or park. My family was spending increasingly more time outdoors in places beyond the playgrounds. It took Manny from the Inside the Outdoors Foundation (Get Outdoors! OC) to say "YOU should start your own Family Nature Club," for the lightbulb to go on.

I should start my own club! Why haven't I started my own club? Answer: I hate group activities. I hate crowds. I can't stand being on someone else's schedule. So what! Why should that stop me? I can make the club whatever I want it to be. I can keep it small if I want. I sent out invitations to 3 other families of varying outdoor experience levels and they all sent back a resounding "YES!" Our club ended up with 16 members (half kids, half adults).

If you want to join an established club, there's the already existing Family Nature Club of OC. I didn't want to step on any toes so I shot an e-mail over to the organizer there, Leeta Latham. She very prophetically said, "I think it is great to have different nature clubs in the county. We will all have different activities and ideas, but all with one common goal."

Once I decided my path, it literally took me 10 minutes to register on C&NN and download my Nature Clubs for Families toolkit. All you have to do is think of a club name. Nature Rocks has a similar program called Nature Rocks Flocks.

I started an online journal at www.NaturePlayClub.com to record our experiences and share organizational tools. If you click over, you'll see reports from our monthly activities, in addition to templates of our first invitation and annual calendar. Feel free to use them as a templates for your own invite and calendar!

Pack Your Mom Backpack for Outdoor Adventure

Mon, 28 Jun 2010 09:42:00 GMT

I take my mom backpack on all our outdoor adventures.

I call it THE Backpack because it accompanies us everywhere we go. I've been known to shout "Do we have THE backpack?" or "Where's THE backpack?" or "Did we forget THE backpack?" I panic if I open the trunk and it's not in the car. It has all the things I normally forget like: Band-Aids, snacks, and hats. It take it to the park. I take it to the beach. When I go to the mall once a year (since I hate shopping) -- ??it's in the car -- but I still have it with me 'cause you never know when you're gonna need a baby wipe.

From 8 years of outdoor adventures with kids, I've figured out exactly what I need to bring with me. No more, no less. Ditch the diaper bag and the stylish tote! Get practical and put all those goodies on your back, so you can run around and join the fun. I also made a PRINTABLE PDF CHECKLIST of the info below!

Picking THE Backpack:

I didn't set out to pick the perfect backpack. But the one we use is designed for everything we need.

You must be able to wear it on your back so you have both hands free!
It's BLACK (which strategically means Mr. PlayParks will carry it).
It has a padded back and padded straps.
It has 2 pockets for water bottles on the sides.
It has 3 compartments (BIG, MIDDLE, SMALL).

What's in the BIG pocket?

The big pocket is not always full, since I leave a ton of room for snacks or even a full-on picnic for trips to theme parks.

Change of clothes, including undergarments. These don't have to be fancy, just enough to get you to the car or home when you've let them get dirty and messy on your adventure. You know it's okay for kids to get dirty and messy, right? (Especially if you have a change of clothes.)
Hats for everyone, adults included. I like the floppy, fisherman-type hats because they cover our ears. We don't look so cool, but it's better than a huge scar from skin cancer (I've got one of those already).
Snacks that can stay in the bag even if I leave it in the car. Pretzels are a good one. Granola bars. Anything that can't melt. Again, you don't need a lot. Just enough to tide them over until you can properly feed your youngster before they beg snacks from everyone at the park. (Almonds are a good one to tide mom over, if you're not allergic.)
Babies: The diaper changing kit, bottles, or breastfeeding blanket can go here.

What's in the MIDDLE pocket?

Baby wipes AND antibacterial gel (I have both - the wipes for muddy, gooey messes - the gel for washing hands before we eat).
A pen and small notepad (never know when you'll need it for entertaining the kids or jotting your phone number).
Band-Aid/First Aid kit (they have some cool ones with all sorts of extras for kids).
Spare change (for throwing in a fountain or feeding a parking meter)
Extra rubber band for my daughter's hair.
Gatorade or Crystal Light single-serving powder packets. You can mix it in your water bottle for especially hot days or extra hard hikes.
BEST TIP: I also transfer my wallet and camera from my purse to this pocket, so I don't have to carry my purse separately. My phone and keys go in here, too, when I go on theme park trips.

What's in the SMALL pocket?

Sunglasses (for kids). I'm usually wearing mine.
Sunscreen.
Chapstick.
Gum for mom and good breath:)

It's a small pocket, nothing else fits.

Water Bottle pockets on the side

This has probably saved us the most $$$ over the years. You can refill your water bottles at drinking fountains throughout the day. We've even been at some amusement parks where the soda vendors will refill our bottles with water AND ice! For free.

Our water bottle pockets hold two 16 oz. stainless steel water bottles. I think we got ours at Kohl's for a pretty reasonable price. You can pack small cups inside the backpack if your kids can't manage the big water bottle.

What else is there?

I used to put a thermometer in here for those "Does he have a fever?" moments. But now we've outgrown those. I also used to put Tylenol in there. Just be careful, because this bag is pretty much accessible to the kids.
Picnics for lunchtime trips go in the big pocket. This is where I squeeze a small cooler with sandwiches and fruit.

Use the PRINTABLE PDF CHECKLIST of this checklist for easy packing. Later this week, I'll tell you how I pack for easy beach trips.

More Ideas:

Tiny Oranges on "Packing the Perfect Beach Tote"
Go Explore Nature on "What's In Your Adventure Bag?"
Grass Stain Guru on "Pack a Nature Knapsack"

Wondering where to adventure? Visit Michele's blog, Fun Orange County Parks, with over 130 playground and park locations.

Nothing Is Better

Wed, 23 Jun 2010 22:12:00 GMT

Play doesn't happen without boredom.

Think back to your own childhood. When did the really fun stuff happen? I bet it was when you were bored.

I remember one particularly painful afternoon when my parents dallied at the restaurant. I don't know if the service was bad, if we were waiting to meet someone, or if they were just taking the meal slow. My sister and I were miserable. We were done talking. We'd read the menu over and over. We had already eaten. We probably even got dessert. We'd made numerous trips to the restroom (why do kids like to do that??). Anyways, we were D-O-N-E, done! But we still had to wait.

There was no DS.

My parents plied us with an extra soda, "Just a minute more." We knew it was a lie! We peeled back our paper straw wrappers and made worms like mom taught us. You know? Scrunch it all up into an accordion and then drop a little liquid on it. It squiggles and wiggles like a worm. Okay, that took all of 30 seconds. I don't know how I remember this day, but I do. Clearly. The tablecloth was burgundy. I squished my wet straw wrapper into a ball. Hmmm . . . a ball.

No iPhone app.

I took that salt and pepper shaker and created a goal. My sister got the idea and used the sugar packet holder and her soda glass. Let the game begin! I blew the wrapper with my straw. We were quiet. We were discreet. We were giggling like crazy. We learned there was a certain finesse to it. It took a little practice to get it to move right. We hyperventilated after a while. We laughed so hard we cried. The soda spilled. Game over.

But it was fun. And then we got to leave!

I don't want my kids to miss these little moments. I do not always entertain them. They are not always happy that I do not entertain them. Yet, I enjoy seeing the whole process of turning boredom into something better. It happens in a matter of minutes with them, less and less as they get older. I don't do it to torture my kids! I'm not talking about purposely stretching out time at the table so they play.

Not at all.

I'm just talking about not filling up all their time with something. Sometimes, it's okay to start with nothing and let them make something happen on their own.

I contemplated this very topic with my friend, Bethe Almeras (@balmeras), over at The Grass Stain Guru. Bethe came up with "Boredom is NOT a 4-Letter Word" -- one of my all-time favorite posts. If you want some simple play ideas, head over to my Fun Orange County Parks blog.

I Have Issues

Sun, 06 Jun 2010 15:13:00 GMT

When I started blogging playgrounds, I didn't realize play was such an issue. I happily recorded all the parks we visited hoping moms would use it as a resource for new play opportunities. I hated being in a "play rut" more than anything. I yearned to discover new and different playgrounds and parks. The only way to find out about the good ones was from other moms. There's this whole secret shorthand about the importance of restrooms and gaining insider knowledge of the play surface. I was a seasoned veteran having survived park visits with a kid who liked to eat bark.

Why the need to promote something as simple as "play." C'mon, don't all kids know how to do that?

The statistics are mind-numbing. And since we've already got mommy brain, I won't bore you with the details. Except, here's the one that is most often quoted and sticks in my head:

The Kaiser Family Foundation reports: 8-18 year olds devote an average of 7 hours and 38 minutes to using entertainment media [TV, movies, computers, video games, music/audio, and print] across a typical day (more than 53 hours a week).

Almost 8 hours a day? How is that possible? Read deeper into the study and it says this is not so for parents who set limits. Doesn't matter what the limits are, ". . . those with any media rules consume nearly 3 hours less media per day than those with no rules."

But wait. Oh, I'm horrible at math! Doesn't that mean the average 8-18 year old is still using entertainment media almost FIVE hours per day?

Like I said, I'm not going to belabor the point. The only thing I can think to do is share. Share what I've learned over the past two years about why playing outdoors is good and why you should give your kids more time to do it. Heck, you may even figure out it's good for you to be out there with them!

Here are some top resources worth visiting:

KaBOOM! National Campaign for Play
The Children and Nature Network (C&NN)
NWF Green Hour
Let's Move Outside! Initiative

The coolest thing about these sites is they are promoting play -- so the material is playful.

Need to get out of your park rut or get more play ideas? Check out Michele's very unofficial Fun Orange County Parks blog.

Nature Scene Investigators Get OC Families Outdoors

Sun, 30 May 2010 20:34:00 GMT

School furlough days, holiday weekends, and the upcoming summer vacation have you scrambling for play ideas? I know the perfect summer activity created just for OC families . . . by local high school students!

At an Inside the Outdoors event in March, I learned about the launch of Nature Scene Investigators. The Operations Guide offers families eleven nature-themed missions at outdoor locations all over Orange County. How cool is that?

The best part? Except for paying parking fees at some of the parks, it's FREE and usually not crowded. It meets all the needs of an extended outing full of fun, education, and adventure.

Your Mission Starts Now - Are You Ready?

STEP ONE: Go to the Get Outdoors! OC website and register
You only need one book per family or group. You must register your family to win prizes. You can register and print your guidebook online from Get Outdoors! OC. If you really want the hard copy (which is SUPER cool, by the way) you can find a list of where to pick up the guidebooks on the "Before You Go" tab under NSI.

STEP TWO: Choose A Top Secret Operation
Each Operation has a Top Secret folder with details about your missions at each of the eleven locations.

STEP THREE: Complete Your Mission and Submit Your Code Online
Go to the outdoor location and complete your mission. You must 1) Read the clue, 2) Find the post with the rubbing plate and code, 3) Use your crayon and paper to make a rubbing, and 4) Record the secret code to submit online after you get home.

Nature Scene Investigators (NSI) Story

I am absolutely blown away by the 5 high-schoolers (Abby, Alex, Jenna, John, and Lily) who took a lead role creating the FREE Nature Science Investigator Operations Guide as their Service-Learning project for Sage Hill School. I'm bursting with pride for these clever students.

The Get Outdoors! OC initiative is designed to get kids and families outside recreating in, learning from, and becoming healthier together in nature. It was started by Inside the Outdoors, OC Parks, and the Orange County Health Care Agency. REI and the State Farm Youth Advisory Board also came forward with grant funding. There are many more behind-the-scenes heroes who made this dream a reality. I salute each and every one of them for all their hard work and effort.

Kim Casey from the Inside the Outdoors, a self-supporting environmental education program administered by the Orange County Department of Education, and Cedric Odom from the Orange County Health Care Agency worked with the students for the past two years (WOW!) to get this project off the ground. Cedric pitched in all the health activities and health facts for each of the parks.

Kim says, "I worked with the students every service learning day to get the text written and all the additional activities planned out. I also helped by visiting the parks and facilitating meetings with park rangers to get them on board and get the rubbing plates installed."

Now all that's left to do is help get families outdoors completing the missions. What better time than summer vacation?

Read more about this activity on my Fun Orange County Parks blog. We've covered 5 NSI locations on our site. No hints, though. Nature Scene Investigators make discoveries on their own!

Top Ten Childhood Play Memories

Thu, 20 May 2010 22:36:00 GMT

Growing up I played to the point of exhaustion on a daily basis, usually with my sister and cousin in tow. Summer always meant a bonus hour or two of outdoor play. I rarely wore shoes and constantly skinned my knees. Here’s just a sampling of my best play memories, in no particular order:

Sliding down a grassy hill on homemade cardboard sleds or playing at the school playground on the weekends when we didn’t have to wait for our turn on the rings.
Decorating a refrigerator box with crayons and spending the whole day playing house in it with our Golden Retriever.
Climbing an oak tree to belt out a solo rendition of Oh Shenandoah. (The neighbors can thank my inspirational public school music teacher.)
Playing grocery checker with the toy cash register while helping Mom put the groceries away.
Spending every holiday producing “shows” for the grown-ups. Most of our performances consisted of lip-syncing and free-form dance, but we managed to do a magic show once dressed as elves (why?).
Taking cover in our mysterious willow tree which served as the prime location for the spooky game of the moment. We could see out, but imagined no one could see us hiding behind its thick curtain of branches.
Making mud pies in real pie tins – and garnishing them with weeds. Then washing up to pick a colander full of blackberries for Mom to make real pie.
Racing down our steep driveway on Big Wheels. We wore holes in our socks, using our feet as brakes. Our high-speed journey sent us crashing through the avocado grove across the street until we stopped by ramming into the chain-link fence.
Making a batch of Sourgrass Soup (weeds, water, and ice cubes) in the back of Dad’s pickup. He would back it halfway out of the garage so we could drape a sheet off the garage door to make the truck bed a two-room fort.
Blaring Emotion by Samantha Sang and the Bee Gees from our kid-sized cassette player, skating in our makeshift roller rink.

I share more play memories, play ideas and over 120 playgrounds on Fun Orange County Parks. I also just started a Nature Play Club which I love to spout on about and encourage everyone to start their own. It's waaaayyy better than book club!

A simple stroll

Fri, 14 May 2010 12:04:00 GMT

It started out innocently enough.

Get up. Get out. Walk.

I never expected to fall in love.

The crisp morning air. The crackle of leaves underfoot. Clouds blown out by high winds stretching across the sky.

There’s skipping and laughing and pointing from both my children: the 8 year old school kid and the 4 year old hang-out-with-mom kid. They stand on tree stumps and shuffle through the grass. A crow caws at us from his perch on a eucalyptus branch. We skirt by the playground and head down the hill.

We greet the crossing guards: “Good morning!” Race up the next hill. The magic starts when I see a mom in front of us touch a rose. It’s quick. I almost missed it. Instead of walking by the beautiful red beauty hanging over the fence, she lovingly cups it in one hand. And lets it go, moving on to the rest of her day and all the busy-ness awaiting her.

For that one moment, it’s like time stopped. I know that feeling. I love that feeling! The peace in acknowledging the simple beauty around us everyday. I bet it made her day better.

After my big guy is at school, my little girl somehow knows we’re not on a schedule anymore. She takes my hand, we sing songs, and she turns into Nature Girl. We cross the street again without the crossing guards. She spots a sow bug and plays with it for a while making it roll up and willing it to open and walk in her hand.

When we get back to the park she makes a wish on a dandelion that “Only girls can hear.” I can’t repeat it, but it’s a beautiful wish. She giggles on the tire swing and makes a run on the rest of the playground. We play hopscotch together.

It’s when she says “Mommy, I love you” with the wistfulness of a delicate princess that I fall in love all over again. I know it’s her thank you for all the fun we had outdoors. On a simple stroll to school and back.

The best part? It’s a dream date I’m lucky enough to repeat day after day after day.