Art & Sensory Summer Camp - Reading & Rainbows

"Play energizes and enlivens us. It eases our burdens. It renews our natural sense of optimism and opens us up to new possibilities."

-Stuart Brown, MD, Contemporary American Psychiatrist

Our first day of camp this summer was themed around reading and rainbows. Because we know that children (and adults) learn best when they engage all the senses, we developed activities where the children had the opportunity to fully use all five of their senses in order to explore and learn about ways we use color in the world. 

Activities included; rainbow spaghetti exploration,

rainbow watercoloring with spray bottles, 

and rainbow manipulatives so we could discuss similarities and differences, problem solving (when building structures), and decision making. 

This particular table was good for cooperation and collaboration which the older kids loved teaching the younger ones about!

We also had a rainbow science station. The kids loved experimenting with mixing various colored dye, glitter and flour. We supplied a lot of different tools for investigation, many of which also exercised fine motor skills. 

The messier the activity, the more fun the kids had! I loved listening to observations the children made while exploring and how they taught each other what they had learned.

We took time to read lots and lots of books and sang some new songs (thank you Chelsea!).

One of the favorite activities of the day was the rainbow obstacle course. The object of the game was to climb through the maze without touching any of the streamers.

We finished off the day with rainbow painting using our feet first...

...and then the kids ventured on to painting with their hands, elbows and knees. 

Watching the kids reiterated what I love most about sensory play--the delight children show when they are learning to love learning! 

Looking forward to sharing more photos soon! 

In the meantime, you can check out other camp days by clicking on the following:

Art & Sensory Summer Camp - PJ Party & Yucky Fun

Art & Sensory Summer Camp - Part 1

Art & Sensory Summer Camp - Candyland

"I still get wildly enthusiastic about little things...

I play with leaves. I skip down the street and run against the wind."

-Leo F. Buscaglia

Pretty Pleased

Do you ever have those moments in life when you're questioning why you're where you are? Or, better yet, are you where you're supposed to be? Did you miss that turn on the road that you were supposed to take because you were so busy working, organizing, hurrying to be somewhere or doing something you'd really rather not be doing if it came right down to it?

Lately I've been a little stuck. Wondering why I'm where I am and what I'm doing here. (Please tell me someone else feels this way at least once a year?)

Times where I'm feeling a little disconnected from life and a center of gravity. This is when I have to hone in and focus. Why am I here and am I doing what I'm really meant to do?

The last couple of weeks I've been asking myself this question. What I've found is that if I dig in deep and look at all of the moving parts, there is a multitude of richness and joy. At some point on this annual journey I seem to take, I finally get to the turnaround point.

Today was that day. I had lunch with my good friend Deena and her new beautiful baby boy. As we ate our meal and caught up I began to feel my center of gravity coming back again. I was disappointed that so much time had passed since the last time we were able to get together but so grateful for a friendship that time or distance does not affect. Without even realizing it she made me aware of the goodness I have in my life. Its a rare gift to find friends with who you can totally be yourself and feel better when you leave them.

I was fortunate enough this week to grab coffee with another good friend, Marian, and spend a morning catching up on the phone with my longtime best friend, Jennifer, both of who keep things secure and grounded.

I left my lunch today full of joy and pleased. 

Really pleased with the little blessings in life that I have and centered on the reality that life's bumps are what make the ride exciting. So, what are some of the things that I'm really pleased about?

1) Seeing her in this dress.

Long story short: My mom offered me this dress shortly after Emerson was born. I declined saying it was "too country" so she sold it at a tag sale. Fast forward a few years and I began having deep regrets after seeing Emerson in some of my old clothes.

A few weeks ago I'm at Barnes & Noble on a date night and see my dress in a magazine. I reach out to the woman who owned the dress and found out she was indeed the one who purchased the dress from my mom. I offered her any amount of money to buy it back because it's the one dress from my childhood that I have many memories of wearing. She said no but agreed to loan it to me to take Emerson's photo so we currently have it on loan from California....I'm secretly hoping she'll change her mind when I put the ask out again. 

 2) Sibling harmony. 

For the many moments of sibling rivalry, it is the times they love--really love--that I'll always remember. 
The other stuff will just be something to laugh about later.

 (She wrestles with him and he loves it. She keeps him in fits of hysterical laughter.)

(Playing driveway hockey.)

(At church they are learning about Friendship. This was a project from the children's course our church uses called Orange. The task was to make one hand inaccessible by using the Friendship Fastener and discovering how you can build something great while having fun and working together.)

 3) The simple magic of bubbles.

4) The wagon.

It was the first baby gift I received from my brother Josh who took a survey from many parents as to the best gift to give new parents. 

 (Hunter and Millie, October 2009 and they're still friends today.)

Its been a hit ever since.

5) Dress up. 

6) This guy.

Twelve years ago Dave and I brought him home from a shelter in Harlem. The couple who gave him up gave the reason as "there will soon be a new baby in the home." 

This guy is the heart of our home. He has endured more tail pulling, tight squeezing, slobbery kisses and eyeball exploring than any animal or human should have to. But, its as if he knows its all done in love so he let's them do it. 

He is the first family member on our kids' mind when they come home from school and they love him with all they've got. That couple back in NYC didn't realize what they would miss out on but we're sure glad we reaped the benefits.

7) Her outfits...

 ....or lack of.

8) Forgetting to be sad about how quickly they're growing and focusing on the fact that their little feet still can't touch and they'll always need a at least a little lift from me.

9) Getting to explore the world through their eyes which see the seemingly small, minuscule things through a fresh lens.

 (I love that there is always at least one stray Cheerio stuck to him 

at all times.)

10) Recognizing that no matter what the circumstances, each day is a new opportunity for a fresh start.

As I type this I know that I could keep listing all of the goodness in my life because that's just what it is: really good. 

And, although I don't enjoy it, I thank God for keeping me grounded by taking me through life's bumps and allowing me to lose my center of gravity. Because those are the experiences that make it worth the ride. 

And for the good, good friends and family that are there for me along the way, I'm truly grateful.

"Well, there are two kinds of happiness, grounded and ungrounded. Ungrounded happiness is cheesy and not based on reality. Grounded happiness is informed happiness based on the knowledge that the world sometimes sucks, but even then you have to believe in yourself."

-Andy Grammer