It started snowing here on my way to pick up Amie from her daycare, around one. On the way back she found it so peaceful she fell asleep in the stroller (it’s a ten minute walk). It really is rather magical and eerily calm when those flakes start coming down. While she naps I stole …
Category Archives: arts/crafts (grown-ups’)
Doll House Construction Site
The day after Anja commented on the dollhouse in the background of a recent picture, Amie took a sudden interest in it. It had been sitting on that ottoman for months… The first thing she asked for was steps. The Manushes couldn’t get into the house! So I made steps, which the Manushes now use …
American Elf
It’s like an early Christmas present! Just when I was going to subscribe to American Elf to catch up, James Kochalka launched the brandnew American Elf Supersite and the archives are free! I laughed so hard at some of the strips I got cramps in my side! (That Bonus Elf seems interesting, though, so I am still …
The Drawing Book for and with Amie
Watching this video of Sir Ken Robinson’s talk on education and creativity at TED – hilarious, insightful, engaging and (ringing) so true – and reacquainting myself with Danny Gregory’s website and books on drawing, I realized there was a gap in my approach to art and creativity with Amie. When she draws or paints and asks …
Happy Halloween
Happy Halloween! Depending on whether we make it to the party at Amie’s daycare tonight, there will be more pictures tomorrow. In the meantime, a bonus:
Amie’s Map Book
The second project I started right after Amie was born fared better than her now defunct Baby Journal, in that it is still up and running. It is a Map Book, or Place Book. I love maps: topographical ones, city, architectural, personal, subjective, objective, three-dimensional, temporal…Â you name it. From the beginning of Amie’s life I …
Amie’s Baby Journal
From the moment Amie was born, I started a daily baby journal. I have been keeping a journal since I was 14: sometimes it’s a habit, sometimes a refuge. So it made sense that I would make a separate journal for my daughter, addressed to her and relating the events of her young life before she could …
An All-Round Toy for an All-Round Child
David Holmgren, at the beginning of his book Permaculture, Principles and Pathways Beyond Sustainability (p.7), gives some examples of non-material well-being: When we enjoy a sunset rather than watching a movie, when we look after our health by walking rather than consuming medicine, when we spend time playing with a child rather than buying them …
Drawing as it Develops: Two more articles
I’ve added two more articles on the development of Amie’s drawings, the last one (no. 4 in the series) finally relating the “Breakthrough” I posted on earlier. Here are all the installments so far: First Drawings of a Very Young Child: Amie at 16 months Circles, and Coloring Books (a Mistake?): Amie at 18 months …
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New Article Series: Drawing with Very Young Children
Amie, 28 April 2007 Breakthrough! I think Amie has made (or is in the midst of making) a breakthrough in her drawing. I happened to catch it on video, and may try to find a way to share that clip with you (at present that is beyond my technical skills). It has prompted me to start writing a …
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