Made to Play

Photo from MadebyJoel.com




I had the unique opportunity to preview a copy of Joel Henriques' new book Made to Play  (release date Oct. 11, 2011).  I do so enjoy children's crafts, as you well know...or if not go here.  Or maybe see here...
ROAR!!
Or if you happen to be a neighbor of mine you were already on the receiving end of my manic Kool-aide-Glitter-play-dough-making festivities this week.

Good times. Good Times.

I am a crafting nut.  So this book was right up my alley.  I am in no way an expert at the fine art of children's crafting.  I know this much though, a novice I am not.  I recently graduated from the Tacky Glue Group to the Glue Gun Crew last month.  Proud day. 

OH NOES!  "I can't craft!"  you say.
"No worries!" I say!
That is what makes Made to Play by Joel Henriques so great, there are crafts for every skill level.

Glue Stick Brigade?  How about some animal finger puppets?  If you can trace and cut and glue you are set!

Don't even know what the heck glue is?  How about some portable zoo animals, trace and cut and you are set.

These are just not crafts, these are toys that are to be played with and treasured.

The beauty of Joel's book is that everything in it is simple, clean and free from all the noise that plagues modern day toys.  Truthfully our children crave simplicity.  On Christmas morning, among all the bells and whistles of today's toys, our children gravitate to the boxes those noise-making toys come in.  It is in their nature.  Isn't our job to nurture that?

Toys are to be played with and enjoyed, and the toys I make bring my children great joy.  The toys we create together makes memories. What's better then a toy made with love by you?  A toy you made and played with together.

Check out and pre-order Made to Play today!  And check out the author's blog here!

Comments

  1. This looks so great. I need to get a copy. Charlotte absolutely adores crafts, but I have so little imagination when it comes to them. I'm just not all that crafty. Yet, I do enjoy making things, like Halloween costumes. I'll have to look for this on Amazon.

    PS I love that monster!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Thanks for your comments- they are like pennies from heaven.

Popular posts from this blog

I use to be able to sit down and write endlessly.  I could type daily and feel good.   Now I can barely get the words out.  I know I have complained about this before.  It's an endless torture.  I of course have only myself to blame.  I ultimately am the one that fills my time.  I work.  I play.  I don't write.
I tell myself I will try daily.  And daily fails.  Then weekly.  Fail.  Not monthly.  More than yearly.  I find that the words come then vanish just as quickly.  I feel frustrated.  Angry.  I give up.
The giving up is easy.

Keep reading

Arthur, What a Wonderful Kind of Day

Image
I am a product of a divorced family.  Try explaining why you have two moms and two dads to a seven year old, it goes something like this:
Son: "Mom, why does your mom live in Wisconsin and your dad in Tennessee?"
Me: "Well mommy's mommy and daddy are divorced and my mommy and daddy don't love together."
Son: "You and daddy are divorced?"

It's a hard thing to explain and harder since there are few relatable characters for him to refrence , it is always easier to explain with characters that he sees on T.V. or in a book.   Nolan is getting more curious about the world around him, he is starting to see differences and question them.


One of our favorite shows to watch is Arthur.  Arthur has tackled some really cool issues that kids today face.  Last year I was happy to see that Arthur brought on a character with Aspergers, Binky Barnes has a peanut allergies and Buster Bunny's parents are divorced.  Using Buster's family has helped my kids…
Keep reading

Day 5: Forgotten

Poor day 4, she got NOTHING!   I was busy, like sometimes I will be.  I did find my me-time yesterday.  Mostly I found that space in the house where noise seem to cease to exist.  It is glorious.  And even thought I forgot/was to busy to write, I had a moment.
A moment is better than nothing.
Keep reading