Plant a Pot or Fill a Garden & Watch Our Children Grow

Plant a Pot or Fill a Garden & Watch Our Children Blossom:

Nationwide, restaurants have pulled tomatoes from their menus, but at our home we harvested our largest crop of (safe) tomatoes! We picked them along with one lone pepper and a few basil leaves; it was exciting to produce more than a garnish from our mini-garden.

If you are in the mood for a brief return to the past where most Americans worked with their hands and either worked on a farm or had relatives who did, how about visiting your local garden store for a bargain purchase of herbs or vegetables? You will probably pay less for a whole herb plant than you would if you were to buy fresh herbs in your grocery store’s produce section. And, whether you grow herbs, vegetables or even edible flowers, your children of all ages can enjoy planting and harvesting; you will have an opportunity to work side by side and watch your children blossom through a hands-on learning, bonding & fun activity. This can be as simple or extravagant as you choose.


Why might you want to plant something?

1) Have Fun
Isn’t is great that “having fun” together is enough of a reason in itself? Maybe today is a day to laugh & play with each other over a little bit of dirt and plant.

2) Save Money
Some of the herbs like basil and mint grow very quickly; if you use these items in your kitchen, you really could save a few dollars by planting them and growing them yourself … you wouldn’t even have to pay extra for “organic”! And, if gas prices are keeping you home this summer – family activities together can be memorable whether you are in an amusement park or the fun environment of your own home; gardening is a bargain and if it is unique for your family, it is likely to create lasting memories.

3) Values Lesson Opportunity
If your children are hooked on toys & trinkets during most trips to the store, say “no” at your usual stores and say “yes” to the garden store letting them choose a plant to care for; reduce buying “things” and increase buying “experiences”. Talk about how you spend your money demonstrates your family values.

4) Learning/Developmental Opportunity
Older kids can plan for what to buy based on season, climate and where you will be doing your growing (e.g. inside in a pot, outside with an Eastern exposure etc.), younger children can practice reading or letter recognition based on plant labels and infants can play in the dirt and practice their fine motor skills with pebbles they find (but don’t eat!).

If you want to design a lesson, you could share a family story about your farming relatives or teach children about how technology has changed our lifestyles. Based on your children’s ages, you can adapt planting & growing to any developmental stage. Be creative – what would you like for your children to learn today?

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Speaking of dirt … remember that Mighty Mud Mania in Scottsdale is coming up on Friday, July 18th. This event is great for all ages and will be pure, clean, muddy fun! See your Fun Place to Go with Kids in Metro Phoenix book or www.funmoms.biz for more information.

Go Love! Look for the Yellow Bug in your Neighborhood!

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Fun in the Grass

According to AmericanLawns.com there are a lot of different grasses that you might like to plant based on your geography and the season. Some of them include Buffalograss, Bahia, St. Augustine, Bermuda, Zoysiagrass and Fine-Leaf Fescue. I don’t know what kind my sister-in-law and brother-in-law are growing in Texas but, whatever it is, it has great color and the lawn provided a relaxing place to laugh and play with my daughter as we waited for a taxi to take us to the airport. Even waiting can be fun!

Three Grass Ideas for Today or This Weekend:

1) Find a lawn at your house or in the neighborhood park – lay down, smell it, feel it, close your eyes and take a few deeeeeeep breaths … you will feel more relaxed ... ahhhhhh.

2) Get a blanket and have a picnic on the grass nearest you. Gourmet, PB & J or your favorite fast food will do.

3) Visit a big stretch of lawn and take some fun family pictures. Dance, make a pyramid, make faces or lay down and create a circle with your heads before having the person with the longest arms take the picture from above! Be creative … what else could you do for a spontaneous family photo collage?

For more information about the best grass for your yard:
http://www.americanlawns.com/

For photography ideas:
www.exposeuresonline.com/ExposuresOnline/ExposureStyle/How_to_Photograph_Life_Events.aspx

If you need help making a PB & J J:
Visit PB Loco at Scottsdale’s Fashion Square or http://www.pbloco.com/

Go Love! Look for the Yellow Bug in Your Neighborhood!

Changing/Improving the World

Changing/Improving the World

After setting up this blog and writing a quick introductory post, you may have noticed my blog as being the “silent type”. While I write daily, I have not been able to come up with anything "perfect" to say that might "change the world". But, this week I have decided that instead of waiting for an elusive version of perfection, I will just do my best as I blog for Fun Moms.

When I was at the American Mothers, Inc. conference in Nebraska, Mary Pipher was a dinner speaker. Her most well-known book is the #1 New York Times Bestseller Reviving Ophelia and, after I heard her speech, I bought her book Writing to Change the World; the title caught my attention. Pipher shares lots of wisdom in her book and I continue to believe that if all of us keep speaking and writing words of encouragement & thoughtful pondering, the world is likely to improve peacefully - just as calm streams beautifully create rock scuptures as they meander through nature.

One common obstacle to positive social change, or improving the world, is “us-them” thinking. If we can increase “we” thinking and begin with what we have in common, we are more likely to enjoy the contributions of diversity to society and we are also more likely to influence the thinking of others. It is my opinion that reducing “us-them” thinking is often the right thing to do as well as the smart thing to do. For example, if a group of moms begins with “are you a working mom or a stay-at-home mom?”, they are likely to get into a better-worse, easy-hard or right-wrong debate (e.g. “us-them” thinking). If moms share their hopes, ideas and specific challenges they face, moms have the opportunity to realize we have a lot in common. As moms step away from the “mommy war” topics and “us-them” thinking, moms may realize that the woman standing next to us is a potential ally in motherhood ... maybe even a new friend and ally in improving the world.

Reflective Questions for Today:

1) How do you feel about and/or what do you think of the word/concept "perfection"?

2) Using the stream and rock metaphor made me think of hiking Oak Creek (picture above). The cooler temperatures and creek water of Sedona are an easy daytrip from the Valley of the Sun! Where would you like to take your family for an affordable & near-by summer escape? http://www.funmoms.biz/

3) Regardless of differences, moms have a lot in common with each other; moms around us may need our help or be able to help us (reduce “us-them” thinking because “we’re all in this together”). How can we improve our "we" thinking? Who can you reach out to as you broaden your definition of "we"?

4) Writing to Change the World was a great book. If you are a writer or aspiring writer of social change topics, I recommend it! Which social issues would you like to influence?

5) My mother highly recommends Reviving Ophelia to any moms of girls. Which books would you like to read for wisdom on parenting?

6) If we express encouragement & thoughtful pondering (e.g. critical thinking, better questions, reflection), I believe that we are making the world a better place. What words of encouragement or topics of reflection would help your family? How might you improve the world just through positive daily interactions with the people you see/meet in your daily life?

Changing/Improving the World - we do it everyday ... we're Moms !