Category Archives: To Play

Detox your Makeup and More

November 27, 2011 By in To Decorate, To Detox, To Go Green, To Play, To Review Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 5 Comments

As I continue to clean up my act and my makeup too, here are some tips and books and fun things to ponder and play with.  (And, as we approach the holidays, any of these products mentioned would be great stocking stuffers for the sweet women in your life).

This is an interesting video about all the toxic stuff we slather on our faces and bodies:

These are some good books on the topic of safe cosmetics:

No More Dirty Looks by Siobhan O’Connor and Alexandra Spunt — These two lovely women explore the cosmetic industry.  Lots of good information and tips.

Not Just Another Pretty Face by Stacy Malkan — Information about specific toxic ingredients, and a look at the cosmetic and beauty industry as a whole.  Informative tidbits and more about specific companies.  Interesting fact:  Weleda is the largest consumer of Organic Rose Oil.  An interesting piece on the history of Dr. Bronner’s Soap — even though it purported to be all natural (and currently is), that wasn’t always the case.

The Truth About Beauty By Kat James (a long time favorite) — lots of ideas for living in a healthy and holistic way.

Continue reading →

Lake Como: Interiors

November 7, 2011 By in To Explore, To Nest, To Observe, To Play, To Travel Tags: , , , , , , , , , 2 Comments

The colors and luxurious interiors of the Villa d’Este are varied and rich.  And the history of the villa is as interesting as the beautiful rooms and the stunning lake which sparkles outside.  My children loved to hear of the noble woman who once lived there and married a general.  In order to keep him busy during times of peace, she had a fortress built on the side of a cliff (the ruins of the fortress are still there today).  He and his soldier friends would stage pretend battles there.  Pretend battles.

My own son was telling me tonight how his skill at making bows and arrows has greatly improved in recent months.  Now his arrows will shoot straight through a pear, or will stick in the ground.  Whereas formerly the arrow just flew through the air with little force.  Yes, he loved the story of the general and his pretend battles on the cliff.  Other weaponry my children enjoy:  they all love to play knights with swords and shields.  If you are looking for some special wooden swords, check out Bella Luna Toys.


One of the reasons that Italy has captured my children’s imagination has to do in part because of this rich history here –knowing that once knights and kings and queens rode through these hills, marched through these cobblestone streets, rested their weary heads at the Villa d’Este.

Stuff for fairy tales.

Lake Como even had a dragon once.  For a time, there was reportedly a monster that lived in it’s deep waters.  Sometimes it was sighted by those who lived around the lake.  However years have gone by now, with no sighting of the dragon in the lake.  I didn’t see it either.

Pretty Stuff: Fun with Organic Makeup

October 20, 2011 By in To Go Green, To Play, To Review Tags: , , , , 3 Comments

Playing with makeup is fun.   And I try and stay organic with what I put on my face and my skin.  It’s healthier for me and for the earth, and also my skin is sensitive to chemicals in regular skin products.

These days, there are lots of great organic makeup lines to choose from.  Old staples like Dr. Hauschka have wonderful products and colors, and new lines such as Kjaer Weis, are leading the way with beautiful tints and stunning refillable packaging.  Right now those two are my to go to brands for natural makeup.  I love the Kjaer Weis lip and cheek tints.  Her eye shadows are lovely too.  Dr. Haushka eye liner and mascara and concealer are long time favorites; and they also have really nice eye shadow pallets and powder blushes.

There are some good beauty blogs that focus on natural makeup,  such as Scent Hive, and Fig & Sage,  and some nice websites that sell only natural products  – including Saffron Rouge, Spirit Beauty Lounge, and Slow Fashion House (the latter one if you are in Europe).

And if you are looking for tips on how to put on makeup, check out Lisa Eldridge.  This is her tutorial using organic makeup.

Summer Time

May 24, 2010 By in To Play Tags: , Leave a comment

It’s the last week of school for my children.  The days of summer are almost upon us.

Summer is about good old fashioned fun, and about Connection, Confidence, Creativity, Cooperation.

Summer is a time to be free of our school schedules, and even free of time itself, in a sense.  Summer can be a moment when time stands still.

But what to do during those long summer days?  How to while away the hours with your children?

Summertime is a great time to explore and discover nature by spending time outside in the backyard or at the park, or hiking and playing by the river.  Playing in nature not only creates a connection with the natural world, also the imagination can come alive and soar: a tree is a castle or a lookout tower, a fallen limb is a boat or bridge.

Children can explore different roles in their imaginations and in their play — the king, princess, builder, architect, sailor.  This exploration opens up opportunities for their futures.

If a person has a connection to nature as a child — it’s something that they have their whole lives.

The hours children spend exploring the world, inside and out, creating and imagining, will help them to become creative adults.

Children who have had the experience as a child of being an explorer (even if it’s in the backyard and the neighborhood) and adventurer,  will always be explorers and adventurers.

After being scrunched behind a desk during the school year, summer is a great time to be free to move! Through movement our children become agile and confident.  Engaging physically in the world strengthens out relationship to the world.

And playing with friends teaches our children about patience and cooperation.

Some activities to incorporate into your children’s summer:

  • Jumping
  • Running
  • Biking
  • swimming
  • horseback-riding
  • skating
  • balancing
  • scooting
  • dancing
  • pogo stick jumping
  • stilts walking
  • jumping rope
  • hop scotch
  • climbing trees and jungle gyms
  • blowing bubbles
  • making mud pies
  • hammering
  • hiking
  • fishing
  • swinging
  • and more!

Travel Toys and Activities, Good for Rainy Days Too

April 5, 2010 By in To Play, To Read, To Travel

Traveling is always a challenge with little ones (and sometimes with big ones too).

However with spring break here, and summer around the corner, traveling maybe in the future for many of us.

And spring also brings extra rain showers.  A day of rain, inside with the children, can be a challenge.  It’s fun to play in the rain, but sometimes you have to stay inside if the storm gets too rough.

So how to keep children entertained for hours of rain or on a plane?

Here are a few suggestions (in no particular order):

Tissue Art

Etch a Sketch (A classic from way back, still does the trick).

pot holder loom (Also a classic, and my favorite potholders are those made by my children with this simple loom, though you do have to be extra careful not to burn your fingers when using them)!

Mandela Art

Maze Books can also be fun.

Colorku (not so good for the airplane, but nice for rainy days)!

Knitting, crocheting and sewing and weaving are also all fun!

Felting and making tissue stars are great activities for rainy days.

And books too — books the children can read, or that you can read to them.  My children are ages 4, 6 and 8 and the two older ones are really enjoying chapter books now.

A few of our recent favorites include:

Isabel Wyatt books, Arthur Ransome books, The Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder, as well as The Wishing Chair by Enid Blyton and The Princess and the Goblin by George Macdonald.

Please send me an email or leave a comment with your suggestions of books for children and rainy day/traveling toys and activities.  Have a good trip and enjoy the rain!

Challenges for Parents

January 5, 2010 By in To Parent, To Play Leave a comment

Don’t think of parenting and homemaking in terms of success, in terms of producing an end product (the perfect child, the most beautiful home).  Think of it as a journey and a process, of which love is the core.  And this is a journey where there is no right way and no wrong way.

Parents and our children face some interesting challenges these days, a couple that come to mind:

  1. Technology plays a huge role for our generation and for our children — especially screens:  TV, iPhone, Wii, computer.  Be conscious of how screen time effects your children.  (You might find this NPR piece interesting: In this Decade, Every Room is a Screening Room).
  2. Playtime:  make sure your children get enough time to play (freely and roughly) and to play outside!  (Here is a very interesting article from Scientific American The Serious need for Play)
  3. Everything is fast and immediate: information is fast.  Cars are fast.  Food is fast.  Slow Down.  A slower pace is healthier for children and for family life.

What are your thoughts about some of the parenting challenges that you face?

Flow

December 29, 2009 By in To Breathe, To Play Tags: , , Leave a comment

Mihály Csíkszentmihályi (born 1934) coined the term “flow” to describe the concept of being completely engaged in an activity –  whether it be playing, painting, singing, chopping wood, playing basketball, and so on.  But the concept isn’t new.  Check out the ancient chinese text Tao Te Ching.

During ‘flow’ experiences, one is completely engaged and concentrated, nothing distracts from the pure enjoyment of the activity and the moment.

Children at play often embody this type of experience — completely in the moment, unselfconscious, intent.  Athletes know how to do it: they get ‘in the zone’ when they compete or play a game.  Geniuses do it too — completely intent on the task at hand.

We all need moments like these, outside of time, in the zone,  concentrated.

For much of the time during our busy lives, we multi-task our way through the days, constantly distracted, glancing at our watches, running around, racing against time, falling behind.  Most of the time we are not masters of our own time and time seems to be running us.  We are racing to catch up and keep up.

Parents are often playing so many different roles and juggling so many responsibilities that being in control of our own time can be a challenge.

But it is important to slow down and discover these moments outside of time.  They are different for each of us.  One person paints, another person gardens, another knits.

Another thing we can do to step out of time for a moment is to play with a child.  It’s that simple.  Take the time to play with a child.  Children have a different sense of time.  Childhood itself has a timeless quality.

Flow is fun — effervescent, bubbly, playful, unpredictable.

Flow, as the word implies, is like water — moving, replenishing, easy, effortless.

Flow is when eternity — being completely in the moment, and at the same time, being outside of time — influences you.  In-flow-ence.

For the New Year, get in the flow, go with the flow, get in the zone, be in the groove, and play with a child.

Toys, Toys, Toys

November 30, 2009 By in To Give, To Play Tags: , , , , , , , Leave a comment

My children are excellent receivers of gifts (and it’s very nice to give to them).  Of course, they prefer a year round schedule of toy giving, but they also eagerly anticipate the holiday season and the rush of gifts and celebrations.  I always hope for an exuberant Christmas morning, while guarding against an excessive, consumer focused experience.  As with many things, in the choice of toys and gifts, simplicity is often the key.

Gold Star of David

christmas star

On a personal note, we are blended family with Christian and Jewish traditions that meld with each other nicely to create some wonderful and meaningful holiday traditions, the best of which is gathering our family and friends together to celebrate our love for each other.

A couple of thoughts about toys, gifts and creating an holiday experience for children:

Continue reading →

No More Baby Einstein

October 24, 2009 By in To Play Tags: , , , , , , , Leave a comment

einst_la24Threatened with a class action suit, the Walt Disney company is offering refunds for all the “Baby Einstein” videos bought between June 5th 2004 and Sept. 5th 2009. First, acknowledging that the videos did not make any child into a baby Einstein, the company removed the term “educational” from the packaging. However, under threat of a lawsuit siting studies about the harmful effects of television viewing on very young children, the company has decided to offer a refund. Read the article in the NY Times here.

According to studies at the University of Michigan, children under 6 spend an average of two hours a day watching TV, instead of playing, running around, looking at a book, coloring.  When I have my first child, I got into the habit of letting him watch a little TV everyday — I wanted to keep him safe and ‘busy’ while I took a shower.  I realized my mistake after becoming more conscious of what was going on when he watched TV and afterwards too.

While watching, he was essentially catatonic, just staring, glazed-eyed, looking like he was drugged (which approximates how I look when I am watching TV).  And then after I turned it off (to kicking and screaming on his part), I found that he was trapped in replaying whatever it was he had witnessed on the TV, whatever character he had seen.  And that play purgatory, where he could only picture himself as that one character or in that one situation, would last for a long time.  He would also be moody and whiny, and obsessed with the TV, hoping and waiting for his next fix.

I finally decided to go cold turkey and not let TV be a part of his life anymore.  What a relief.  No more negotiating, no more strange play patterns, no more obsessive behaviors.  Initially I missed the electronic babysitter, but I got over it.  And I found other ways to keep him happy so that I could take a shower.  Or I just skipped the shower.

Another issue about children watching TV is that it takes them away from all the wonderful types of play that are so vital for childhood development. The Alliance for Childhood is a great resource for articles about the importance of play in childhood.

What to do with children instead of watching TV:P1020513

Color or paint;

Play outside;

Play dress up;

Bake cookies;

Read a book;

Work Play — hammer nails, make things, clean house;

Take a Walk;

Cut paper into snowflakes or butterflies;

Climb a tree.

And one more thing, a little strange, related to children’s television programming:  In May 2009, PBS filed a complaint against an eighteen-year old in San Diego fellow who announced that he was the successor to Mr. Rogers.  I’m not sure what to make of that, but here’s the article.