we are making a lot of tails lately. miles is doing some detailing on this marine iguana tail. and i've laid out a few of the tails from the collection--see if you can identify the animal.only a year ago or so there was a lot of desperate need around here for more toys. mostly characters. THOMAS AND FRIENDS (if only we had known exactly how brain-damaging these annoying little trains with faces were). cars from the bleeping car movie representing various stereotypes. each type of construction truck known to boy.
and i won't deny we are still enabling miles by buying way too many stuffed animals. the kid is a serious collector. but recently he began asking for us to buy animals tails/costumes and i suggested we make some. i thought he would scoff at this but no. we rolled up a rag, applied some duct tape, used some sharpies and there you go-- a snow leopard tail to tuck in your pants or underwear. miles wears these tails to school, which is a whole other subject, but they have led to some new ideas on how he can get stuff he wants. mommy and daddy don't want to buy stuff. but they kind of like to make stuff. maybe not always. but it is a very satisfying way to make your kid happy, not spend money, and re-use. tonight as i pennied my son he asked me if we could make a structure out of cardboard boxes, by gluing them together. i thought this was a great idea. then he mentioned going to the hardware store to get some wood to build with and i realized he meant a life-size play structure, so i said it was too late to talk about it. but we are getting there.
beware, friends with kids, you may be getting some homeade tails for the holidays.
love,
jamie
3 comments:
Any mermaid tails being made? Way to save $$ and be creative! We're still using your placemats from last x-mas - we love handmade gifts! Maybe if I can get my act together your tots will be getting Soofi originals.
Love you and hope we can talk this weekend,
Cassie
That's so cool. My mom used to make us homemade playdough which we always liked more than the original. AND when we were older she used to let us carve things out of ivory soap bars. She used our soap shavings instead of detergent in the washer.
Hi Jamie,
Believe it or not I have been reading your recent blogs about life and the future for all of you. Actually, I had written a page or so and somehow managed to delete it just a minute ago. The arthritic hands do not handle the keyboard well.
I know it is terribly tough for you, but I am reAlly impressed by your ongoing struggle with Miles future school choice and everything that involves. As you know, there are no obvious answers to all of your questions -- all you can do is to attempt to sort out the many variables involved, try to attach weights to each of them, cluster them and make a choice. It is simply an impossible task. But, you are a long way own that road. It is obvious from the work you hav put into researching the schools and their environments, and, more important I think, the experiences and exposure you and Rich have given Miles. I think he is going to be fine wherever he goes. You and I have never really talked ab out it, but my upbringing was a lot like what he is experiencing -- marginal neighborhood, great diversity, public transportation, public schools that were "vocationally oriented" because that was best for "us".
What got me through all of that (and Grace as well I guess) was a home environment that was rich and incredibly supportive, and you are providing exactly that for your kids.
Soo, these are important decisions, but don't stress too much. You have provided the background already.
See you soon.
Love,
David
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