Gifts for Parents
I developed this page because I have spent the last twenty years searching the internet amd stores for positive things for my kids to do and learn. I wanted like so many parents do the very best I could find for my kids. I wished to do as well as my parents if not better. I hope you find all kinds of gifts you didn’t know you were looking for. I love going shopping and finding all kinds of fun things I didn’t even know existed.
ART
I love art, but as a child for me it was one of the most frustrating things in my life. I was one of those kids who could not even see the lines half of the time say nothing about stay inside of them while coloring. I have an light sensitivity. I grew up in the sixties and seventies and nobody had any idea what was wrong with me. So I did a lot of struggling with learning how to read and how to write. I had very persistent teachers my mother being the most determined. When my teacher said I would need to repeat 3rd grade because I could not read my mom told her “she will read by the end of the summer.” I did but it made a very deep impression on me that I never wished to go through that again.
Art for therapy “helping your child through tough times” or “just making them happy”
Drawing on blank pictures is great for kids.
I really love taking pictures and editing. This is a form of art that is great fun for me.
Art for older kids
string art, painting, drawing. Just a few examples for now.
The Gift of Baking
I have so many fond memories of sharing moments with my mom in the kitchen. I loved playing with bread dough. My mom made bread every week. I still love the smell of fresh baked bread and remember the feel of holding dough in my hands, rolling it out, eating warm cinnamon rolls. I have cheated some in bringing home mixes and working with bread from the store. My children know what it is to have dough in their hands. They both understand the basics of making bread and making memories.
Gifts of Cats
I grew up with many cats. We had a beautiful big orange tom cat when I was little. We found a very sad little kitten who we were allowed to take home with us. I don’t remember where she came from but I will never forget the old yellow tom adopting that little white and grey tabby cat. She seemed so small and he just lay there and let her try to nurse his fur. It was such a wonderful picture for me and a great memory.
The Gift of Communication
I love TED talks because they have so many people that inspire me. Recently I have become really interested in body language. In teaching I love using my hands and I looked at teaching English as a second language lately. The teachers all use their hands extensively. I went and looked up some TED talks on it and this is what I found.
Ann Washburn The key to your subconscience
Richard Gill The value of music https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HeRus3NVbwE
Kanan Tandi Art of body language https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7B7jGu5_Pk
The Gift of Creation Resources
Wonders of Creation
Answers in Genesis
Flight
Walter Vieth For older kids
The Gift of Dogs
I have had a few really wonderful dogs in my life. Tinker was my all time favorite dog. He was a Sheltie. He looked like a small black collie with brown and white markings as well. I have no pictures of him but the greatest memories of my times with him. He used to go with my when I was riding my horse. The horse Kemosabi was really fond of the Tinker. When we were riding past peoples houses that had dogs Tinker would wonder off to make friends. If he happened to make an enemy instead he would come back to the horse and I and park between the hind legs of the horse. Most other dogs stayed a respectful distance.
At times when I have not lived where I could own a dog I have volunteered to dog walk at the local shelter. This can become a great time for kids and parents to enjoy time together helping out an animal or several.
I love great stories and Your Story Hour audio stories are some of my all time favorites. They have a number of great dog stories as well. http://www.yourstoryhour.org/store/
The Adventist Book Center has a number of Dog story books and compilations. https://products.adventistbookcenter.com/search?w=dog%20stories
Christian book has a number of Dog books to choose from. Christianbooks.com
The Gifts of Exploration and Experimentation
I have a great love for going new places and exploring new things. It is one of the reasons I like doing research so much. We had a creek on each side of our place when I was young and we played for hours in and around those creeks. They were not very big but one had a 12 foot tree bridge over it. This was a myrtle tree that had fallen over and then new trees had grown up on it’s trunk or it’s branches had grown to tree size. We had a great time climbing around on it.
I suggest you find the best parks in your neighborhood to enjoy if you don’t have enough land to explore of your own. I still love to visit new parks and hike new trails. Most states seem to have web sites that allow you to search by area, name, or general for parks.
You can look up the parks by state on this site https://stateparks.com/usa.html
My home state of WA offers its own web site http://parks.state.wa.us/281/Find-a-park
The Gift of Food
I love food and we have more choices today then ever in history because it is so easy to move food from one place to another. We also have the advantage of thousands of gardeners that have developed so many different varieties of things to eat. One of my favorite places when I graduated from College was called Krugers Pepper gardens. I had no idea there were dozens of types of peppers, squash, tomatoes, and melons. I didn’t think I was really a fan of peppers because I though only of bell peppers or hot peppers. Then I tried Christies and banana peppers at the farm. I lived about a mile form the farm and it was one of my favorite places. Kimberly who was about ten when I moved there helped me find all kinds of wonderful things to try and told me which melons were going to be the best. These are still some of my favorite farmers in the world.
If you go through Yakima you should look them up and make the little detour over to Wapato. Krueger Pepper Gardens
This time right out of college I was also given the opportunity to find out how to run an organic farm. I didn’t know anything about farming. I knew a little about gardening so my year at The Campbell Farm in Wapato Washington was an amazing learning experience. This was not just a farm and orchard but also a summer camp. Summer camp on it’s own tends to be really busy but add organic gardens, chickens, goats, sheep, ducks, horses and you have a tremendous amount of work to do. I loved it and was blessed by so many wonderful people that worked there. It was the start of organic gardening for me.
I love seeds and you might too if you tried a few. Seeds
Food
Food in the media a list of some of the best and some of the most scary food media.
http://www.organicauthority.com/foodie-buzz/17-must-see-food-documentaries.html
Favorites list for Farms and Organic Places
Gifts for Learning
My kids had amazing toys, lego’s were some of my favorites, there were all kinds of other toys but my boys could play with lego’s for hours. They have really talented imaginations so they made those lego’s into all kinds of lands and army’s, castles and kingdoms. Toys that encourage building and dreaming are some of my favorite.
Things they can do with their hands like garden, build a bird or bat house, color, paint, rake leaves, pick flowers, dig potatoes all of these are healthy learning activities.
Web Resources
Audio Programs
Johnathan Park Adventures
Sugar Creek Gang
The Bible in Living Sound
Your Story Hour http://www.yourstoryhour.org/store/
History
http://www.whiteestate.org/pathways/pioneers.asp
Radio program for Homeschooling
Home School program weekdays
Sabbath Activities
http://www.sabbathideas.org/p/home.html
Created by Judy Woodworth 2018 All Rights Reserved