Easter activities and song for kids

Hi folks! Sorry I dropped off the face of the earth/blog! Baby prep plus work deadlines have been overwhelming, and I've kind of been ignoring the computer during my downtime (or else I've been napping). I need to find time to write and schedule a few posts so that this blog won't be entirely dormant when the baby arrives and I'm too tired to do anything!

Anyways, the reason for my post is Easter!

We took C to the Stations of the Cross for children at our church today, and although she was a bit wiggly and chatty, she did pretty good! She was one of the youngest kids there, and she even got to hold the cross for a while (which she was thrilled about).

We've been playing a new Easter-themed board game, which she LOVES. It's a memory-type game called The First Easter. You put egg-shaped cards with the Easter story on them face down, then take turns flipping them over to find a match (just like Memory). When you make a match, one card goes into your Easter basket, and one goes on the game board. Once the Board is filled up, you can read the Easter story together. C got the hang of the game really quickly, and asked to play it five times in a row! I bought it for a fantastic price on sale too!

Two printable games I found online have been keeping us busy as well. The first is Easter egg number matching from Confessions of a Homeschooler. It's pretty simple - count the number of dots on half of an egg, and match it with the correct written number.

The other game is the chicks in eggs game from Tired, Need Sleep. You fill up plastic Easter eggs with cards showing either a chick or another animal. Roll a coloured dice (included in the PDF), then open the egg. If you have a chick, roll again; if you have another animal, it's the next person's turn. I may print out a few extra non-chicks - we keep getting beaten badly by C!

As for music... I read about the musician Yancy on the blog Impress Your Kids (now called Oh Amanda) a few weeks ago. I couldn't find her music in my local book and bible store, and tonight I thought to look on eMusic.com - success! She has a fantastic CD of Christian music for preschoolers, and I downloaded Little Praise Party for my daughter, and then clicked over to her website. On her blog, I noticed that she is offering a 5 song download of new preschool songs for $5 - but only for a limited time - until Easter (edited: this has expired now). "The Springtime Song" is definitely worth a listen at this time of year. It's about a child's view of Easter, reminding them about Jesus. Plus, it's very cute and catchy! We don't have much religious kid's music that we listen to regularly, so I thought this might be a way to introduce some to C.

The weather has been VERY unseasonable and beautiful, and we may have our Easter egg hunt outside for the first time I can remember in my life (usually we still have some snow at this time)! We also plan to make hot cross buns again this year - yum!

New music for our collection

Last month I was lucky enough to win a contest on Because Babies Grow Up - for a CD! Rock and Roll Garden by the Bari Koral Family Rock Band is a great addition to our children's music collection. Although it's about child-friendly topics, the songs have a good beat, which makes Mummy & Daddy very happy! I think the song "Hey Ducky" is super cute, and C loves "The Backpack Song". Whenever she hears it, she goes running to get her own backpack. There are a couple of fun action songs on the CD too, and for urban dwellers, "Subway" is really cute. You can listen to some song clips on BariKoral.com, and the CD is available on Amazon.com (but not Amazon.ca yet!).

Another CD that I just discovered is A Family Album by The Verve Pipe (Remember "The Freshmen" on top 40 radio in the 90s?). I haven't played it for C yet, but I've been enjoying it! So far my favourite songs are "Complimentary Love", "When One Became Two" (about having twins), and "Be Part of the Band" (about different instruments). I downloaded the album from emusic.com (my favourite digital music site), but you can download a digital version the CD from Amazon.com or order a hard copy from The Verve Pipe website. You can also preview the entire album on their website - check it out!

Vacation & guitar breaking

We've been on a family vacation this week in lovely Nova Scotia. I'll write some "real" posts soon, but for now, here's someone else's vacation story for you! It seems that everyone has airline stories about less-than stellar service, delays, mechanical problems, and lost luggage. My boss loses a suitcase literally every time she flies.

I heard an interesting story about a Halifax-based band called the Sons of Maxwell who have been getting a lot of news coverage this week. They flew with United Airlines, and while waiting on the tarmac in Chicago, they heard a woman sitting behind them say "My God, they're throwing guitars down there!" It turned out to be their equipment that the baggage handlers were tossing, and an expensive guitar was broken. After much runaround by the airline, (and being a pretty good sport about it) one of the band members decided to write a lighthearted song about the incident, United Breaks Guitars. It's apparently the most watched music clip ever on YouTube, and the band has gotten worldwide exposure from so many news outlets covering the story (CNN, CBC, the New York Times, and even Rolling Stone!).

Watch it on YouTube!

What would you say?

I've been having one of those days where I just love life. Seeing my little girl, talking with her, playing with her, snuggling and reading books... I can't seem to stop hugging and kissing her today. I'm just filled with so much amazement that we created her, and I'm so happy that I get to be a part of her life and watch her learn and grow every day!

I heard a song, Say What You Will by Justin Hines today, and I looked on YouTube for a video. It's so touching that I just had to share it. It makes me think of so many people in my life.



Tell them you love them every day.

I smile whenever I think of you.

Hugs are better than bandaids.

Cherish the memories.

Fantastic site for printables!

Last week, Katydid and Kid posted about her fabulous boredom bags, filled with activities to keep kids busy on trips, in restaurants, waiting rooms, etc. While clicking on the links in her post, I found the most fantastic website and I just had to share!



I initially got excited about Hugo l'Escargot because it has thousands of colouring pages on almost every subject imaginable! Click through the coloured tabs to find subjects like cartoon characters, famous paintings, animals & nature, countries of the world, children of the world, Egypt, pirates, and so many more! The faces section is pretty neat too - kids can draw their own faces on the people on the colouring pages. The website is in French, bit it's pretty easy to navigate; there are icons for every section.

Well, after exploring the site another day, I found some more gems! The songs section (chansons) has music files, lyrics and colouring pages related to each traditional children's song. Of course, the songs are all in French, but it's a perfect site for anyone trying to teach their child French! We live in New Brunswick, Canada, an officially bilingual province, so this will be helpful for us.

On Hugo l'Escargot, you can also print stationary, birthday invitations, play online games (some of which are in English), view crafts & recipes, and other printables and cut-outs (including fantastic paper dolls of boys and girls. Print them on cardstick, paper, or give them a magnetic backing).

A helpful hint: visit an online translator whenever you need a web page (or just a few words) translated. You can enter website addresses and it will translate a whole page at the click of a button. The grammar certainly isn't perfect, but it will give you the gist of what is on the page!

So there you go, I hope you enjoy the site as much as I do! I was so excited when I saw all of the great activities that I think my husband thought I was a little bit nuts!

Adult music for children

Because we shouldn't have to listen to "Baa Baa Black Sheep" all the time!

A week and a half ago C and I went on a mother-daughter road trip, and I made a bunch of new CDs for the trip. Amber from Because Babies Grow Up went on a road trip last week as well, and in Monday's post she asked her readers what their child's favourite CDs are. So I thought I'd share our strategy for mixed CDs, and some song suggestions.

My side of the family has been involved in the music business for years, and my Dad and I have very extensive music collections. C loves music too, and her favourite artists are children's musicians like Raffi, Fred Penner, Sharon Lois & Bram, and Sesame Street. Early on we branched out to new-style children's musicians like Justin Roberts, The Terrible Twos, Dan Zanes, Lisa Loeb and Elizabeth Mitchell. We always have music on in the house (well, that or CBC radio), and always in the car. We've probably played children's music a bit too much - C monopolizes the CD player. She prefers "her" CDs to ours, so I've been adding more and more kid-friendly adult music to her CDs, to give us variety and to expose her to different styles of music. So far she prefers upbeat music and songs that have a short musical intro. Here are a few songs that have gone over well with her:

• Jackson 5 - ABC
• Bill Haley & The Comets - Rock Around The Clock
• John Denver - Thank God I'm a Country Boy
• Bing Crosby - Swinging on a Star
• Aselin Debison - The Dance You Choose
• Bobby Darin - Splish Splash
• Kenny Loggins - Return to Pooh Corner (typing his name makes me think that she'd probably like Footloose too!)
• Simon & Garfunkle - Feeling Groovy
• Frank Sinatra & Gene Kelly - Take Me Out to the Ball Game
• Great Big Sea - Excursion Around the Bay
  (This is one of C's favourites! A note to all Moms & Dads - kids will hear and repeat the words to the music you play for them, so be forewarned! Not that this is terrible, don't get me wrong, but it's not really a song you want your 2 year old to sing. Last weekend when I was humming it, C started singing along - to my shock! It's a toe tapping traditional Newfoundland tune about a wife who dies on a sea voyage - sounds morbid, but it's actually a great dancing song! I'm glad she likes Great Big Sea though, they're my favourite band!)

Some other kid-friendly artists to try are: The Beatles, The Irish Rovers, Elvis Presley, and just about anything from an upbeat 50s or early 60s album. Of course, there are tons of options - these are just a few suggestions. What kind of kid-friendly adult music do your children like?

The Itsy Bitsy Spider

Yesterday C played Susie Tallman's version of The Itsy Bitsy Spider over and over and over on her radio. It's a great version of the song, but like anything, it can get old, so in keeping with the theme (and to stop the song), I suggested that we make a spider craft, which C was thrilled about!

The craft was super simple. I cut out a black oval, 8 short black strips, 2 white ovals for eyes, and got 2 blue circle stickers. C was very adamant that the blue stickers should not first go on the white ovals, and that was fine, so her spider just had blue eyes.

Here is her finished spider. You can see where I helped with the legs!

Movin' and Groovin' to Raffi

C loves Raffi, and I'll confess, I do too! I had his records when I was a child, and we have most of them now; there is almost always one in the CD player in the living room and in the car. C wasn't a great traveler when she was little, and Raffi was the only thing that would calm her down in the car. I love his soothing voice, his mix of meaningful, traditional and classic songs, and the fact that he doesn't use gimmicks or talk down to children; he treats them with respect. I read his autobiography recently, which was very interesting (you can also download it for free on his website).

Claire has never shown much interest in TV, but she recently discovered a Raffi DVD, and she's in heaven! She loves to move and groove around the basement, dancing and playing with her music box of instruments. After every song, she claps and says "Thank you Raffi! Thank you for the song!" We limit her viewing time, but it's great to see her enjoying it so much! This weekend she asked to watch the DVD, and said "Just wanna dance!" So in honour of my footloose and fancy free gal, here is her current favourite song from Raffi in Concert with the Rise and Shine Band: Shake My Sillies Out. Enjoy!



Click here for a PDF of the words and musical arrangement, and visit Raffi's website for the lyrics and arrangements for many of his other songs - perfect for use in schools and at home!

The Terrible Twos

No, I'm not talking about my daughter's behaviour, although some days I could be!

I'm so excited! I just found out that The Terrible Twos have a new album! I'm a bit behind the times, as Jerzy the Giant was released in 2008, but it was recently added to emusic (my favourite music downloading spot). Apparently it's on iTunes too, for those of you who download your music that way.

We are big fans of The Terrible Twos' album If You Ever See An Owl. They're a new breed of children's entertainers, in the same vein as Dan Zanes and Justin Roberts. The lyrics are smart, the tunes are catchy, and even though I've listened to it dozens of times, it doesn't get tiring! The only song on the album I don't like is "Pizza and chocolate milk". The sound effects in "A Rake, A Broom, A Mop, A Shovel" used to make C roar with laughter when she was a year old, and until recently she couldn't say the words "excuse me" without immediately following them with "Smickey!" and giggling. I highly recommend the album, and I'm downloading the new one as we speak!

Head on over to Amazon or The Terrible Twos' MySpace Music page to hear some samples!

Audio nostalgia

Those of you planning long car trips in the summer (or who have children who love audio stories anytime) should head on over to Kiddie Records Weekly. I'm a big kid, and I'll admit I've been visiting this site since 2005 or 2006 - before I my daughter was born!

The idea of the site is to provide free audio downloads of forgotten treasures from the golden age of children's records. The site has fantastic titles, and many of the records include narration or music from silver screen stars of the 40s and 50s. Many book and movie adaptations are available.

We've been listening to Madeline in the car lately.


I've never actually read The Carrot Seed, but now that spring is here, I've seen a few blog postings about it, so you folks might enjoy it!


C is really enjoying her Little Red Riding Hood book these days, so I think I'll put this version on the next Car CD I make for her.


Thanks to Sarah Jane Studios for posting about the site recently. I thought KRW ended the project in 2007, but after a year's hiatus, they're back for a final year in 2009! There is a story for every week in 2005-2007, plus for each week so far in 2009. Enjoy!

Music box

C has a "music box" that we keep adding small instruments to. We store it under a coffee table in our living room, and she pulls it out to play a few times a week. I've been meaning to collage the box for months, and we finally started this weekend.

While I was cutting out pictures from catalogs and clip art that we printed, C drew on the box.
Then she spread glue on the lid of the box, and stuck the pictures on, with some help - she tends to put everything in the same spot, so I rotated the box and pointed out empty spots.
C lost interest after about 15 minutes, so it will be an ongoing project to finish the box, and eventually mod podge the surface for durability (and so the pictures stick better!). It's much better than the boring Spalding box!

Children's music recommendations from a discerning Mama

Welcome!
I'm looking forward to sharing a bit about our lives with you - most importantly, sharing ideas for toddler activities, crafts, music and books. With that in mind, I'll get us started with a recycled post about children's music, from my other blog. I'd love to hear about your favourites!

***

You gaze down upon your newborn, sweetly snuggling in your arms as you rock her to sleep, while a soft lullaby plays in the background. As you hum along to Braham's Lullaby, it suddenly occurs to you that your child's musical tastes won't always be so innocuous.

The Wiggles! Elmo!! Barney!!!

It's enough to fill any parent with terror.

I'm a bit of an oddity, never having lost my love of kid's music. I have quite a Disney collection, and probably know as many children's songs as most kindergarten teachers. But while I can sing "The Eensy Weensy Spider" with the best of 'em, I like to think that I have some standards.

I'm a fan of Sesame Street, and I'll confess that I actually like Elmo in small doses, but you won't find The Wiggles, The Doodlebops or Barney in my house (okay, that's a lie. There is a Barney book shoved way back in our storage room).

I've always thought that kids can appreciate all kinds of music. 50s and 60s pop were staples of my music collection as a child, and growing up in Alberta even gave me an appreciation for country music. But while we play many different types of music for our two year old daughter, she still seems to prefer children's artists right now. CDs have to pass our test before they get played more than once, though!

Our daughter hasn't been a great car traveler, and if you drove with us very often, you'd realize that the phrase I say most often in the car is "Thank God for Raffi!". I loved Raffi's music when I was little, and his music is one of the few things that can calm C down when she's really worked up in the car. Thank goodness his voice is pretty soothing for us too!

He's best known for "Baby Beluga", but he has about a dozen albums - all great! He doesn't have any music videos, but here are two YouTube creations:

Raffi - "Baby Beluga"



Raffi - "All I Really Need"



A new addition to our children's music collection is Justin Roberts, and I can't say enough about him! He has catchy songs that kids love, and which parents find pretty funny too. My husband even likes him! Here's a video from his new album: "Pop Fly".



...and a simple little tune from his first album: "You Got One".



Ahhh... children's music for a new generation. Because no one should have to listen to Barney.