I love the idea behind Petite Picasso Books — a great way to preserve some of your children’s best art work. You can make books for yourself, grandparents, dad or as a surprise for your child. Check out the fun t-shirts with art and the original art of your child’s “knuffle bunny” or other favorite stuffed animal!
Posted under Books, Dad Gifts, Kid Gifts, Mom Gifts
This post was written by Lena on May 19, 2009
On Tuesdays, we will write about “play” and how adults and children alike can have this in their lives.
I came across this and other pictures of Christopher Niemann’s New York-inspired lego creations today and just love them (click on the link to see more). I will show these to my son when he gets home from school and see if we can play.
Christopher Niemann also has a new children’s book that looks great — The Pet Dragon — A Story about Adventure, Friendship and a Chinese Characters ! What a fun gift book this would be.
Posted under Books, Happiness Project, Kid Gifts, Play
This post was written by Lena on February 3, 2009
On Mondays, we will write about the importance of “connection” in our lives and how we can establish and keep connections.
One of my favorite ways to connect with my son is through reading. The physical act of sitting together or lying in bed to read automatically brings us closer. In addition, the books and stories themselves will often bring you closer through their message or the shared experience of following the characters. One of the best books I would read over and over again to my son from 6 mos to about 4 years was “No Matter What” by Debi Gliori.
It is a book about the love between parent and child (or “Small and Large”) and is told in a simple, fun and peaceful way. The reassurance that a child will be loved even when he acts inappropriately is a wonderful message and this author tells it in a way that made it great fun for us over and over again. I still ask my son if he is feeling “grim and grumpy” and even if he is, he knows I still love him — no matter what.
Posted under Connecting, Happiness Project, Kid Gifts
This post was written by Lena on January 26, 2009
Every Monday, we will write about the importance of “connection” in our lives and how we can establish and keep connections.
One of the most valuable ways to connect with your child is to read with your child. We have started Lena’s Lovely Bookstore as a way to share our favorite books with you. We are always adding new books and always reading, so check it out. We would love to hear your thoughts and favorites.
Also, we are attempting to divide the books by our categories of: connections, play, giving to others, purpose and learning. These are the categories we are working on for the happiness project.
But, no matter the subject matter of the book, the act of reading is most important. It’s a great gift to give any child.
Posted under Books, Connecting, Kid Gifts
This post was written by Lena on December 1, 2008
Every Tuesday, we will write about “play” and how adults and children alike can have this in their lives.
A favorite game of ours is The Storybook Game by Fundex. I believe that the ability to tell stories is a very important skill for children and adults to have in today’s creative world. ”Narrative imagining — story — is the fundamental instrument of thought.” Mark Turner, Literary Mind.
This is a great game to practice your own “narrative imaginings.”
It is a game in which funny characters, such as a monster or an alien, and everyday items, such as a bus or a carrot, are depicted on cards with the word below the picture. The rules included with the game are that each person takes a turn drawing a card and adding to a “once upon a time” story without looking at the previous cards. If you forget part of the story, you are out. We bought this when my son was three and he had difficulty doing it this way, so we adapted it.
The way we play is that each person gets 5 cards and has to turn them face down. The player begins by saying ”once upon a time. . . ” and turning over the first card to begin the story. The player then turns over each card one by one and tries to add it to the story. It is a non-competitive version which creates many laughs and silly stories. It allows kids to practice talking in front of others, practice their story-telling skills, and is a great way to play one-on-one with Mom or Dad. And, it’s fun! We have played this game many times with kids ages 4, 6, 8, 10 and 17, and they all had a blast.
It also comes in a great lunch box style tin which makes it so easy to take on trips. This would make a great gift for kids or for a whole family — the gift of stories, what could be better?
Posted under Happiness Project, Kid Gifts, Play, Storytelling
This post was written by admin on November 25, 2008
I have always found the Little MissMatched items so fun and so cute! I just came across this new argyle-like design for their knee highs and love them even more! I think they make a great gift for young girls, but also would be so fun to wear under tall boots this season ! Use code OCTSOX20 for 20% off socks in October!
I also love the idea of the Election Day change purse to get children in the spirit — it is all about “Change” right?
Posted under Kid Gifts, Kids Clothes, Polyvores
This post was written by Lena on October 24, 2008
One of my son’s favorite books right now — and mine as well - is Batman, The Story of the Dark Knight by Ralph Cosentino. Although there are many superhero books to choose from (believe me, I know), this is a new one that is gift-worthy for sure! It has a comic book feel to it, but with truly great pictures and a simple yet complete telling of how Batman became Batman.
This post was written by Lena on October 9, 2008
Tiny Sprouts has always been one of my favorite on-line sites for adorable, so soft, personalized baby gifts. I have featured them in the past, but had to write about them again and show off the Tiny Sprouts blanket we recently gave to our adorable new best friend!
Welcome to the world, Hagen!
P.s. I also LOVE these pillows!
This post was written by Lena on October 7, 2008
A friend of mine recently had a baby girl and she included some wonderful kidmodern art by Gale Kaseguma, including this jellybean tree, in the nursery. I just love it! So happy, so fresh and so lovely!
Posted under Home, Kid Gifts, Uncategorized
This post was written by Lena on September 26, 2008
