Easter Decorating

The boy has been very keen to decorate the house for Easter, my version of Easter decorating is normally some fresh flowers or plants on the table, but that wasn't enough for him!  So we've hung some the crafts he's made at school, and we've gotten the Easter baskets out, but he wants more .

I remembered how much fun he had making the wreath at Christmas and thought that I could use plastic eggs instead of balls to modify Lindsey's Amaze-Balls wreath. I figured that I could buy a couple of packs of eggs from the dollar store and if it didn't work, it wouldn't be a big deal.

So just like at Christmas, I used the glue gun and the boy was the artistic director and guided the layout. And I have to say, it looks really cute. I'm quite pleased with how well it turned out. It's bright and cheery - a perfect spring pick me up, and it was a fun afternoon crafting with the boy. A definite win all around!

And now we're decorated for Easter!

It's a girl colour

The boy and I were having fun after school drawing yesterday. He was using his purple marker when he looked up at me and said 'purple is really a girl colour isn't it?'

I asked him, rather incredulously, where he had heard that. He was a little vague and couldn't really tell me. But I know that it came home from school (sometimes I really dislike the fact he's in JK now).

I said that there was no such thing as a girl (or boy) colour and the next time he heard someone say that he should look them straight in the eye and say 'that's ridiculous, there's no such thing.' We practiced a few times and he thought it was hilarious but is fully prepared to tell his friends off the next time it comes up.

We also talked about how boys and girls can like the same things, and it doesn't matter what they play with. We talked about how it doesn't matter if someone is a boy or a girl, because we're all just people and we have our own likes and dislikes.

With it being International Women's Day, I think it's even more important that my boy knows about equality, fairness, and social justice. While teaching the boy that labelling colours as boys or girls is wrong may seem a minor point, it's a starting point, and if at 4 years old he can stand up and say everything should be equal, then I'm off to a good start.

A social media win or why the boy is also going to be an astronaut

The boy has decided that besides being a teacher, who gives lots of hard homework, he might also like to be an astronaut. The reason? Chris Hadfield. I've been following Chris Hadfield on Twitter (@Cmdr_Hadfield) (and Facebook and Tumblr) and sharing his pictures and videos with the boy. The boy loves finding out cool space facts, seeing pictures of the earth, and he was glued to the TV on the weekend watching the EVA (or spacewalk, for those of us not in the know). 

Thankfully, Chris Hadfield says he's got lots of pictures still to share, so even when his mission ends, he'll still be tweeting. 

With Chris Hadfield coming home from the ISS today, I would like to thank him for getting social media 100% right. He entertained, informed and inspired us all. 

The boy's picture of the ISS with Chris Hadfield inside it

Ground control to Major Boy. . . 

(If you haven't seen Chris Hadfield's cover of David Bowie's Space Oddity, you should go check it out now. It's yet another reason to love social media http://youtu.be/KaOC9danxNo )

. 

Valentine's Cake!

The boy was so excited for Valentine's day this year. We made little bags of goodies for his friends, he made cards for them all and cards for his dad and I.

But the real highlight for him was making and decorating a heart shaped cake for dessert tonight. We made it together and then with a little bit of guidance he decorated it on his own.

So tada, the boy's cake! Happy Valentine's day.

I can do it on my own

"I am not sitting here, 15 whole feet away from my kids, because I am too lazy to get up. I am sitting here because I didn't bring them to the park so they could learn how to manipulate others into doing the hard work for them. I brought them here so they could learn to do it themselves." From Please Don't Help My Kids by Kate Bassford Baker

A few people have been sharing this great post about letting kids do things on their own as a way of learning, rather than coddling them. I love it. It's something I struggle with, but I know that it's best for everyone if the boy falls every once in a while. Now I just need to keep reminding myself of that.