Spinning

A "Family Day" event at the Washington County Museum today was a great opportunity to let the kids explore a museum. But when the kids got there, instead of seeing art, they focused on the kids' craft tables. They created a spinning toy by coloring a small wooden disc and then inserting a string through two holes in the disc. With each hand holding a part of the string with the disc in the middle, the kids then spun the disc by using both hands to twirl the string (to wind the disc) and then pulling occasionally on the string (to unwind).

I recall making this "spinner" toy as a child by finding a metal soda bottle cap and pounding it until it was a flat, round metal disc. I continued by punching out two holes in the metal disc for the string to go through. Then it was "spinning" time with friends who also made their "spinner." We were kids, but we felt pride in creating something worthwhile from something that would have been thrown away. Perhaps for us, this was the beginning in understanding what it meant to create something and to take pride in it.

A Bit of Art

The new thing for the kids today was not something I was able to give to them because I worked all day and then had an appointment at night so that the kids were in bed by the time I entered the house. But tomorrow, the kids will get a chance to express their artistic abilities by using a wooden stencil to create "stained glass" window pictures on Scratch Magic sheets. This should be a fun, creative exercise for them.

My goal is to provide the kids with more opportunities to express their creative abilities. Disciplined studying of standard subjects such as spelling and math is important, but so is artistic expression. A whole education is needed for the whole child.

All Thumbs

Just before it was time for bed, I showed my kids a simple trick called the "separating thumb" I learned and enjoyed as a kid. On my left hand, I inserted my thumb between the index and middle fingers. On my right hand, I covered my thumb with my fingers. Then I placed the covered thumb next to my left hand so that it appeared my right thumb (that was actually covered by my left fingers) was inserted between the index and middle fingers of the left hand. I showed this to my kids, and then separated my hands so that it seemed as though my right thumb was separated from my right hand and was caught between the index and middle fingers of my left hand.

My daughter exclaimed, "I already know that trick!" I said, "Who taught you this trick?" "The boys at school," she replied. My pre-school son regarded my trick with a slight sense of curiosity. I'm not sure if he caught the gist of the trick. Still, we all enjoyed the simple magic show with Mr. Thumb.

Special Soup

Not too long ago, someone mentioned making alphabet soup for kids. At the time, I thought it was a great idea for my kids because I have never made alphabet soup for them. For some reason, it just never crossed my mind. So tonight, I purchased some Earth's Best Organic Alphabet Pasta, mixed it in with chicken broth, stirred occasionally, and alphabet soup was made. It did take quite a while to cook the alphabet pasta until it was soft, but the wait was worth it for the kids. They loved the chicken soup because it was fun to eat the alphabet pasta. As mentioned earlier, it is so much easier to get kids to do something when they think it is fun. It is likely alphabet chicken soup will be on the menu in the upcoming days.

Letters

Our ability to communicate through language helps separate us from animals. Currently, the English language is the most common language in the world, and in the English language, the letters of the alphabet form the basic units. Thus, I got my kids lettering stencils that allow them to practice their letters while having fun. My kids already know the letters of the alphabet, but a little reinforcement every now and then is probably beneficial.

Having kids learn through fun activities is always desirable. But although desirable, it is not always achievable. At times, kids just have to study hard for an extended period to learn the subject matter being taught. Of course, for some kids, this type of disciplined studying is fun. For others, though, disciplined studying is something that must be learned just like the subject matter itself. But even though some students fail to see the fun in disciplined studying, I believe they can still understand the need at times for sustained concentration on a subject matter, and that this understanding provides them with a sufficient nudge to do the hard work of studying.

Books and Bookstores

For tonight's bedtime story, I read A Busy Day at the Farm, an enjoyable story for pre-schoolers written by Doreen Cronin that includes animal stickers within its pages. The kids laughed raucously at the part when Farmer Brown opens the refrigerator door to find only an eaten apple core because Duck ate everything else.

I purchased the book at Broadway Books (1714 NE Broadway) after receiving a $10 bookstore gift card from a friend who purchased a few gift cards to distribute to friends. My friend wanted to support the bookstore after it lost quite a bit of business due to the December snowstorms. I hope small, local bookstores like Broadway Books endure because I love books and because such bookstores help create a sense of local community that all too easily fades away when large chain bookstores move in. This does not mean I seek to do away with all large bookstores. If small bookstores fade away because buyers choose to buy at large bookstores, then the people have chosen through their buying habits. But I hope this does not occur, and that enough book lovers frequent local bookstores to help local communities flourish.

Create

A month after Christmas, my kids finally received their Christmas presents from their uncles and aunts. The delay was due to the December snowstorm that caused a cancellation of our Christmas family gathering. But as they say, it is the (caring) thought that counts.

One gift the kids received was a LEGO vehicle construction set. The kids started the morning and ended the night constructing all sorts of vehicles with their LEGO parts. Kids enjoy LEGO because it taps into the natural desire of kids to create something, whether creating a sandcastle from sand and water, a snowman from fresh snow, a drawing from crayon and paper, or vehicles from LEGO building parts. It is wonderful to see kids be expressive and creative.

A New Year

Our family celebrated the new year on January 1, and we celebrated the new year again today--this occasion was the Lunar New Year, also known as Chinese New Year (our celebration was two days early because the weekend was when we could all meet). My wife and I and the kids had dinner with grandma and cousins and aunts and uncles at China Wind Restaurant in Portland. The food was fine, but more important was the opportunity for the kids to see grandma, aunts, uncles and cousins, to exchange gifts with them, to laugh with them, and to share stories with them.

Family gatherings allow families to stay connected despite the hustle and bustle of modern life. I wish for my children to grow up with relationships developed within the extended family, to have a notion of "family" that extends beyond the nuclear family to include everyone on my side of the family and my wife's side of the family, and to be supported in their growing lives by that extended family.

Something Sweet

At a lunch with friends (who happen to also be colleagues at work), one friend gave all of us Tennessee T-Cakes. I shared them with my kids and they greatly enjoyed these yummy cakes. The box includes an insert with a story about the cakes, and the insert also states that these cakes have appeared on Oprah. Sales probably soared after the show. After all, a celebrity combined with mass media can affect the behavior of the masses. If power is defined as the ability to influence others, then Oprah has power. They say power corrupts, and this is true, but Oprah spreading the word about Tennessee T-Cakes is not something I worry about. I just know these are quite tasty treats that my kids like.

Supercali . . .

At times, we think in terms of whether something is the highest, tallest, fastest, or biggest. Regarding words, I have been thinking about which word might be the biggest word in the English language. It might be "supercalifragilisticexpialidocious." A Wikipedia entry provides some interesting historical tidbits about this word.

I told my kids that this was the biggest word in the English language. My daughter queried, "Is that even a word?" Then she laughed. My son said, "fragi . . . fragi . . . decious . . . decious," and then he also laughed. Is it a real word? I guess arguments could be made either way. I just know I picked up this term some time in the distant past when I was younger and heard it perhaps from childhood friends or the movie Mary Poppins. Words should be kept if they serve a purpose, and it is fun to say "supercalifragilisticexpialidocious," so this word should be kept.

Batman

Back in the good ol' days, when my brothers and I were young kids playing, we did not have Nintendo or Wii or computers to play with. Instead, our games were much simpler. We'd play tag, kick a ball, or play "paper-rock-scissor." Also, I recall we'd pretend that we were Batman by making a circle with the index finger and thumb, placing our finger circles to our eyes by turning our wrists outward, with the elbows out, and with the palms and other fingers against the cheeks. We didn't have expensive superhero costumes or masks. Imagination reigned.

This was the '70s--a simpler time and a simpler life. Not that life was easy. Life can be hard in any age. But life was less technologically complex; the pace of life was a bit less hurried. Teaching my kids today to make that simple Batman mask made me recall those earlier days--the days of my youth. The simple enjoyment I felt then, my kids felt today.

The Stars and Stripes

Driving home, I saw new flags at the entrance of our house. My wife had replaced the old worn-out flag. I thought of the two flags as symbolizing freedom and opportunity for my two children on this Inauguration Day for President Obama. I quizzed my children about the U.S. flag and what the 50 stars represented. My son said, "The United States." I said that's right--each star stands for one of the 50 states. I asked them what the 13 stripes symbolized, and after a few guesses, I said they symbolized the 13 original colonies of the United States.

The flag symbolizes the nation, and the nation is composed of people, so the flag is all about the people including the desires and dreams and hopes of the people.

MLK Celebration

My wife began a discussion yesterday with our kids about Martin Luther King, Jr. Today, I continued the discussion on this holiday that celebrates the life and legacy of Martin Luther King. Jr. I wrote down "Martin Luther King, Jr." on a piece of paper and asked my kids to read it. I asked them if they knew who he was. My daughter responded that he was a minister, and that he tried to help others. She said some white people did not like him, and he was killed. I said he did try to help others. He helped people see that we are all Americans whether we are African American, Asian American, Native American, white, or any other color, I explained. I added that he wanted everyone to be equal under the law. I concluded by saying that we are all Americans whatever our differences.

How fitting that as we celebrate Dr. King's vision, we will inaugurate a new president, Barack Obama, who is African American, who is, in fact, American. The historical fact of centuries of racial oppression in America has created a new fact--the fact that Americans elected an African American to be president, an American president for all Americans.

Editing

When my daughter asked me last night for additional time to review the poem she was writing for a student contest, I said no, there was not a lot of time because it was nighttime and we had to get ready for bed. But today, I realized she was asking me for time to do what all teachers tell their students to do--edit and proofread their own work. Editing is a good thing. It shows a writer pays attention to details, wants to improve, and cares about the written work.

After it dawned on me that my daughter was asking to edit her own work, I commended her today on her desire to perfect her own work. I then explained to both kids that editing one's own work is a good thing and something they should continue to do. After all, if anyone should care about the paper, it should be the one who wrote it.

Contest

Numerous contests exist for students. My wife told me about a contest sponsored by the Oregon State Poetry Association. I told my kids and they wanted to participate, especially my daughter. Her topic was bunnies, and her brother's was eggs.

I have heard some people assert that schools promote competition at the expense of cooperation. If so, then it seems that student contests are part of what promotes the "competition" ethos. I do not think, however, that the issue is "competition versus cooperation." Both are needed in society. Cooperation is linked to harmony and unity; healthy competition is linked to setting and attaining goals and striving for excellence. Student contests promote healthy competition, and healthy competition among poetry-writing students is a good thing.

'toon

The kids had a friend over today and they had a wonderful time running, playing, and laughing. But kids can get a bit too worked up when they play together. They need to slow down and have an opportunity to unwind. During these "slow-down" times, my wife and I allow our kids to watch a DVD. A new one they watched with their friend tonight was "Adventures in Odyssey," a family-friendly DVD about kids on an adventure.

The DVD case calls the show a "fully animated video." But I recall such shows as being called "cartoons" back when I grew up watching Saturday-morning cartoons on television. I suppose "animated video" or "animated movie" sounds more advanced and developed than mere "cartoon," and yet, there seems to be a simple innocence associated with the term "cartoon" that I am afraid will be lost with terms such as "animated movie" or "an animation experience."

Thrive

I noticed recently a HMO running ads expressing the HMO's desire for its patients to "thrive." This is a good word--a word that is uplifting, forceful, and purposeful. The HMO made the right choice in choosing this word to effectively convey its message.

I shared "thrive" with my children. My young son laughed and said, "Fried? Fried?" He was, as usual, being silly. My daughter asked, "What does it mean? Does it mean joy? Does it mean good?" I responded by saying it meant learning and growing, being the best you can be, and enjoying what you are doing. I said it is a good word. I said I wanted them to thrive.

A Song

I was hoping to teach my kids a new song they had not sung before. I sang to my daughter, "Kumbaya, my lord, kumbaya." But she said she had sung the song before in school or in church. I then sung it to my young son and he laughed and mangled some of the words when he tried to sing the song.

I recall learning "Kumbaya" as a child in grade school with other kids during assembly time. This was during the 1970's when folk songs were popular. I fondly recall that period's wonderful folk songs, lyrical and full of meaning.

Paper Product

To have the kids "create" something, I showed them how to fold a paper boat. My brothers and I during our younger days often folded paper to create all kinds of things including balls, hats, boats, and animals. This was an inexpensive, fun, and creative way for us to spend our time. I wanted my children to also experience this type of creative fun.

I tried today to fold the paper to create the boat as I did in my youth, but I realized I had forgotten how. But with a few clicks on the web, I found a site called Origami-Instructions.com that provided instructions with photos. The site allowed me to show the kids how to create a paper boat, and they greatly enjoyed the task. Then they placed the paper boats in the tub while taking a bath.

A fun time was had by all, until I realized the kids had shredded some of the boats in the tub and this resulted in paper bits everywhere in the tub water. I tried to pick out all the bits of paper and finally gave up hoping that the paper would eventually all drain away without clogging the pipes. We'll see. In the end, I am glad the kids learned about origami.

Poems

I listened to my daughter recite "To Any Reader" by Robert Louis Stevenson. It is, like any good poem, a thought-provoking poem. It makes one think about childhood and what is now versus what will be later. Stevenson's poem mentions a child "far, far away," and one cannot "call That child to hear you" for he "has grown up and gone away" to be busy with other things. The poem to me seems to softly lament the loss of childhood due to the inevitability of adulthood. It is a touching poem for me as a parent.

Hearing my daughter recite the poem caused me to hold an impromptu talk with my kids about poems. I asked them what a poem is. They answered, "A story." I replied, "Yes, a poem could be a story, but it could also be about the writer expressing the writer's thoughts and emotions. Or a poem could be a thing like a rainbow." But the main point I wanted them to realize was that they too could write poems. I told this to them directly--that they too could write poems. After all, nothing is impossible, not even writing poetry.

Dinner

For our Sunday dinner, I made a "shrimp noodle" dish. I had made noodle dinners before, but not a shrimp noodle. First, I cooked rice noodle ("Rice Sticks" from Thailand) in water until it was soft. I then stir fried a frozen package of "no-fat" shrimp and vegetables (from "Eating Right"). After pouring out the hot noodle water, I added the shrimp and vegetables (along with my home-made sauce) to the rice noodle. Dinner was served. I thought the kids would enjoy the shrimp, but it seemed they enjoyed the rice noodle more. I'm sure the kids could eat just rice noodle (or bread or other starchy food) all day. But there is a thing called "nutrition" and to ensure they get it, I have to always strongly urge them to eat other foods. I'm sure all parents understand what I am saying.

Arguments

My kids had an argument tonight and one made the other cry. Usually, I would just have the responsible party offer an apology and move on. But this time, I tried a more systematic approach:

1. I had the child who made the other cry say, "I am sorry for what I did."
2. The child followed with, "Do you accept my apology?"
3. The other child said, "Yes, I do."
4. Then I said that this type of behavior should not occur again.
5. To help ensure there would not be a repeat, I offered alternative actions such as counting to five when one got mad.

I am no Dr. Phil and the above method probably needs to change with the situation and the kid, but at least it attempts to be systematic and thorough.

A Word

Both society and individuals are sustained by certain values, certain concepts, certain ideas. One is hope. It is difficult to see how a society or individual without hope can long endure. I seem to recall an experiment where two groups of people were told to move bricks (or similar material) from one location to another. One group was told it involved an important purpose. The other group was not told it involved an important purpose. I think the "purpose" group subjects displayed healthy indicators such as being motivated and cheerful whereas the "no purpose" group subjects displayed unhealthy indicators such as depression and alienation. If my memory of this experiment is correct, and if "purposeful living" is related to "hopeful living," then one can say hope is vital to our well being.

Accordingly, I spoke with my kids today about hope. It began as a word game where they had to guess the word I was thinking and they could do so by guessing the letters of the word. Once they guessed the word "hope," we discussed its meaning. I tried to simply explain that hope meant having a positive outlook about the future--that it meant looking forward to what will occur. My hope is for my kids to be hopeful.

Parental counsel

I provided a new lesson to my children--the "it doesn't matter what people think" lesson. This was prompted by my child's perception of not doing well during violin practice and that others might notice. I am not musically inclined and thus could offer no assistance with the music practice. I did, however, counsel that what mattered was not what others thought of a person, but that the person did the best she or he could in every situation.

This talk probably did some good, although it is more likely that some time must pass before this talk is truly understood. Moreover, such lectures alone are not as effective as the combination of lecture and experience. Kids, like adults, will more likely understand a thing when they experience it. In the meantime, I will continue to offer whatever helpful counsel I can provide.

In-Door Sports

With winter weather making it rare when the kids can play outside, the kids need opportunities to be active inside. Thus, I created a simple in-door batting platform where the kids could practice batting a ball. I used duct tape to attach a shelf arm (also known as a shelf support bracket) to the back side of our in-door plastic basketball hoop where the hoop is supported by an adjustable beam attached to a base. With the shelf arm about six feet high and extending out, I tied one end of a thin rope to the shelf arm while the other end of the rope hung free with this end of the rope taped to a light plastic baseball. Now the kids could take their plastic bat and whack away at the plastic baseball attached to the rope.

I thought about just buying the kids some sort of in-door batting toy, but then decided not to, not only to save money, but to teach the kids that "buying things" is not always the choice to make. It is probably true that too many kids in today's culture have developed a "I want-I want" mentality, and that as a society, we have lost the ability for "delayed gratification." At the same time, it is too simplistic to declare "consumerism" the greatest evil in American society. After all, "consumers" who buy things are an integral part of the economy. Consumers who buy make it possible for business to stay in business. Profitable businesses pay taxes that are used to fund government services. Profitable businesses also employ workers. These workers then can pay their bills and feed their families. At the same time, these employed workers are not seeking unemployment assistance which takes away resources from the government. Instead, these employed workers pay taxes that, as mentioned, fund needed government services.

I guess moderation is key when it comes to being a consumer. Buying is an economic activity that can serve the greater economic good, but excessive buying is bad (e.g., real-estate bubbles in the economy and misguided "I want" values in the person) and no buying is also bad (e.g., an economic recession and a "money is so precious I must hoard it" mentality). I guess one needs to be a moderate consumer.

Back to in-door batting. The kids had fun for a while with this new thing. For that, I am grateful.

Healthy Diet

I cooked a new meal for the kids' dinner. Instead of regular beef patties for the hamburgers, I heated up "meatless and soy-free" patties consisting of mushroom ingredients. My objective is to provide the kids with a healthy diet through a variety of foods. Also, it is fun to try new foods. It breaks the monotony of eating the same thing over and over. What made tonight's dinner more fun for the kids was placing the ketchup, mustard, and mayonnaise in front of them and letting them have the freedom to embellish their mushroom burgers as they saw fit. My youngest child then proceeded to squirt out a huge amount of mustard on his burger buns. But, alas, as we all know, with freedom comes the potential for excess.

Night Time Story

The kids heard a new night time story. I read Flying Horse: The Story of Pegasus by Jane B. Mason (and illustrated by Susan Swan). The book presents the winged horse of Greek mythology to young readers. It is a relatively short book that can be read in one night. The book says it is for "Preschool-Grade 1" readers, but parents should note that the story does include a fight scene where the prince uses arrows and a spear to combat a beast. My kids (a preschooler and second grader), however, enjoyed the story.

I wanted to read a story about Greek mythology to the children because I still remember the fascinating Greek heroines, heroes, gods, and goddesses I studied in school--Jason, Hercules, Ulysses, Zeus, Athena, Apollo, and others. They were wonderful tales that stirred a young person's imagination. Thus, when my first child was born, I promised myself that I would read my children stories from Greek mythology.

Moreover, Greek history is important to learn, and Greek mythology is part of that history. As globalization increases, knowing the history (and mythology) of other cultures becomes more relevant. Accordingly, I will in the future read children's stories from Africa, China, Japan, Russia, and other countries.

Financial literacy

The kids had a chance to pay for part of their own lunch today, something they had never done before. After Sunday church service, we went to New Seasons Market for lunch. My daughter insisted on paying for a croissant, and I thought: Yes, this would be a good "new thing" for today. So my daughter paid $1.50 for a croissant and my son paid $0.99 for a cookie (while I paid for the rest of their lunch).

It is probably true, as one financial expert declared (perhaps it was Suze Orman), that parents teach kids everything but financial management. The result is a form of financial illiteracy whereby children lack knowledge about financial basics. They do not realize money does not grow on trees and work is required to obtain money. But it is important for children to learn about the value of work, about the need to curb the desire for things, and that one gets these things by working for them. Of course, it would be a mistake to teach kids that everything should be viewed through the lens of money. There is, after all, the notion of unconditional love, and the fact that some things should be done just because it is the right thing to do. Hopefully, today's lunch helped my kids learn a little bit about these financial basics.

New things #1, #2, and #3.

Today is the start of a year-long journey for me and my wife. As stated earlier, there would be three new things today to make up for the somewhat late start since the beginning of the year. The first new thing was my wife and I taking our kids to the Central Library in downtown Portland. Although the kids had been to the Central Library before with Grandma and Grandpa, this was the first time they went with us. Lest anyone thinks that the kids do not go to the library often, they actually do visit other surrounding libraries on a regular basis. It is important for children to love reading and to learn to read on their own, and going to the library makes both possible.

The second new thing involved the kids watching a performance of a Native American story at the Central Library titled Raven Steals the Sun by Emily Alexander of Tears of Joy Theatre. It was a simple show with minimal stage props, but hugely entertaining for both kids and adults. Watching Emily perform made me realize such performers are engaged in a craft that takes commitment and effort. It requires more than just waking up one day and saying, "I will be a children's story performer." Emily recounted how she made the props including the sun, the moon, and the stars. During the show, she got both the kids and the adults involved. At the end, we all learned something more about our past.

The third new thing was getting the kids to help me make sushi for dinner. I did most of the preparation for the kids to ensure things did not get out of hand, but the kids were able to spread brown rice over the seaweed (Yakinori roasted seaweed from the Beaverton Uwajimaya store), add bits of fish, and then roll up the seaweed sheet as Mom cut up the sushi roll. It was a great dinner because my wife and I love sushi, and because the kids learned to help prepare dinner. I expect the kids to learn more about cooking various foods, thus enabling them to be more and more independent.

So ends this first day of trying new things. My wife wonders if I can keep this up because she has often heard me make (and break) another promise--that I would write a family Christmas letter to send out to family and friends. I believe I have made this promise for the last eleven Christmas seasons. But I have faith I will keep this "Daily New Things" promise because providing new experiences to my kids is much more important than writing a family Christmas letter. (In fact, I'm sure some people regard family Christmas letters as impersonal missives that they skip over. But I like to read family Christmas letters from family and friends because I find them informative and interesting.)

The Goal For The Year

After reading about one person's goal of doing one new thing every day for a year, I resolved at the beginning of 2009 to do something new with my two kids every day for a year. This occurred to me on January 3, 2009, and thus is the reason why I missed the first two days of the new year, although I made up for it by doing three new things on January 3, 2009.

This blog will help ensure that I stay committed to my goal. It is too easy to make a promise and then back out of it if no one knows about it. In this way, this blog is my accountability blog because by publicizing my efforts, I will feel a greater commitment to keep my promise.

But regardless of the blog, I already feel a commitment to my promise because I believe children should be exposed to new things on a continual basis. Childhood is when a person is geared to learn, to receive information, to grow, to mature, and to thrive. All this is best accomplished, I believe, when a child is exposed to new people, new ideas, and new environments. So let the journey begin.