"To Do With Kids Before They Grow Up" Album

[JoyCrazy]

Sony had a comericail on tv last night featuring a Dad and his two kids Recording a Dusk visit to a field of fireflies on their new DVD camcorder. What I found inspiring was near the end of the commercial the Dad gets up and goes into another room and marks Catch Fireflies off his list of "Things to do with the Kids before they grow up"
I was like what a great idea to make a list like that. Then I thought what a cool album that would make. Some of the things on my list would be "go berry picking", "take in a local play", "take in a theatre play", "teach them to dance", "take a camping trip in the mountains","take them to the zoo again"!

What would be on your list?

[Emma]

oh, really nice idea, I particularly suffer from 'not enough time' guilt!

okay, when my kids are bigger
go on a big road trip
go camping
go on an overnight hike
catch fireflies (we didn't have them where I grew up, love them down here!)
go berry picking! some of my best memories with my own family
go to Sea World and San Antonio Zoo
teach them to sew
teach them to play to piano
teach them to speak another language
teach them a sport they can be really good at
go rock climbing
go kayaking
hot air ballon ride


when they're little I'm just trying to make it through the day. We do tons of little activities and field trips, but what things MUST I do with little kids?

[minni]

What a great idea.
Would you believe that last night we took Miss Three to McDonald's for the very first time to eat in and play in the playground - and I forgot my camera!
She just had the best time and kept thanking us all the way home.

Now, what else can we do with her?

[Stacey Jewell Stahl]

This is my first summer off since I was 16, and I'm 37 and a mom to a 3 year old. We've done picnics, weekly trips to the library (books, music and movies), St Louis Zoo, Grant's Farm, Purina Farms, bike rides, the pool, walks to parks. I'm hoping that by the time summer ends I'll not have any items on my "to see" list. We haven't made it to the City Museum yet or the Science Center again. We want to get to Hannibal, MO, again too. We went to Mansfield, MO, where Laura Ingalls Wilder lived. We are moving in August, so we want to see all the Missouri sites before we go.

I think Alannah just likes being with me more than anything. Yes, special places make special days, but so do sandwiches eaten outide instead of in the house.

[JoyCrazy]

Wow what great ideas. Especially the Museums! (If you every come to Canada the Tyrell Museum in Drumheller is a must!) and the Hot Air Balloon. I think for younger kids some cool things would be
petting zoo's,
fingerpainting,
first sleepover,
camping trips,
there's this really cool guy who has a wildlife preserve outside Edmonton, I think he takes in exotic animals that have been abandoned or seized and he trains them for TV and Movies, who comes around to schools with the big cats .. I'd like to take the kids there one day,
clown ballons,
and magic shows.
First trip to a water park
learning to ride a bike
learning to dance
when they get older first book they read by themselves
and First non picture book they read.
. I'd like to get another look at the list in that commercial ;}

minni maybe you could cheat and take pictures next time and include your memories of the first time. After all it's the memories you're trying to share. The pictures are just tools.

[Starling]

If your kids are really little, the list should include a picnic at the park and other things really little kids can do NOW like feeding the ducks and going fishing with dad or grandpa.

And if you've got more than one kid, and if the oldest one is a bit older than the others, you might want to do some one on one things with that kid NOW because by the time the youngest is old enough for some activities, the oldest will be too old for them, or will have reached the point where they have a life of their own separate from the family's. If there are big gaps, that might go for the middle one(s) too.

[JoyCrazy]

That's a very good point Starling. We're very lucky (translated from my sister's the bravest woman I know) that my niece and nephew are 11 months apart. Because they are close enough in age they enjoy alot of the same activities. My sister and I are 3 yrs apart. Once I hit my teenage years those 3 yrs seemed like ten. Thankfully we've grown closer as we grew up. But even when we were younger we enjoyed different things (fish?1? no thank you I'd rather sit in the shade and read my book)

[Tina]

Ohhhhhhh what a great idea!

We have lightening bugs here- so we've been catching them since Tate was little......

I nabbed Emma's list and here is what we've already done:

go on a big road trip
go camping
go on an overnight hike
catch fireflies (um, lightening bugs. lol)
go berry picking (my dad has his own patch)
go to Sea World (Ohio) and the (Cincinnati Zoo)
go kayaking

We've also-

gone to the mountains
gone to the ocean
Rode a Roller Coaster
Met strange fish (we've been to several different aquariums)
Got to pet a Kangaroo (a place in Ky called Kentucky Down Under- awesome place)
Gone to museums
riden a train
Saw dolphin in the ocean



Not sure what I'd put on my list. I think take Tate to Maine. We love Maine, but its such a long trip, he's never gotten to go yet- tho its only about 2 hrs longer than the trip we take to the Outer Banks often...

Also:

Go back to a Great Lake (we took him to Erie when he was 3, but he doesnt remember. We do have plans to go this Sept!)

Go out West

Since Tate is already 8, I could go through old photos and make the album, eh?

[txmusicmom]

when they're little I'm just trying to make it through the day. We do tons of little activities and field trips, but what things MUST I do with little kids?[/QUOTE]

You MUST read to them
You MUST not hurry them
You MUST explore nature with them
You MUST teach them to honor ,obey , and respect
You MUST let them paint and play with playdough
You MUST take lots of pictures of them asleep
You MUST listen to them
You MUST spend time with them and lots of it!
You MUST praise them every day-- especially for the little efforts that show they are trying to help, etc
You MUST do the simple things.............

Emma-- I see you doing these things...............You are giving them the best part-- you are giving them YOU!

Blessings,
Donna

[Karen Bowers]

i'll need to work on a list like this.

[kim]

I'm inspired, too!! I will think about it and come back with a list!!!

[linda_wm]

My oldest is 8 so we've done lots already.

How about:
take them to the beach/ocean
ride a rollercoaster /go to an amusement park
let them paint your driveway (we do it on balcony and our courtyard)
Take them to an aquarium
Skating (my ds started when he was 2y6m)
Skiing
horsebackriding
go to a circus
Disney
go an a train/airplane/subway
go on a big boat/ferry
take them to a play (kids oriented one)
plant their own seeds and see them grow and them eat them (lettuce, etc.)

What we haven't done:
seen/held a newborn puppy or kitten (or 10 days old)
swim in a lake
sleep under the stars (not in a tent)

I'm still thinking about what to do with them as they are getting older but it's getting harder. (oh teach them to sail or kayak, have a sleepover party).

[Starling]

When they get older that is when you do the big things. Even teenagers need to be taken to some things by parents.

See the Grand Canyon (or equivalent attraction in your part of the world).
Go to the Big Art Museum.

Depending on the child's interests, do the grown up activity for that interest.

See a Broadway play, if you are near New York City. Go to a live theater with professional actors if you are not.

Middle sized kits like historical attractions where they recreate history. Teens like that too, so you have a place where kids from 8 through 18 can have a good time. We went to one with my sister and her family when I was pregnant with my daughter. My nephews are 13 and 15 years older than her. They had a great time.

[Meg]

Don't forget that the little ones sometimes need just simple little things. My dd used to talk on and on about how she'd get to ride on a bus when she turns 5 and goes to kindergarden.

Finally, I clued in on the whole bus fascination and got my dh to babysit our baby so I could take dd on a city bus to the library. She thought that was the coolest thing ever and we ended up riding for over an hour while she waved to people out the windows, chatted with the driver, and told everyone who boarded how they needed to sit down and wait for the bus to stop before they got back up! :p It was a great day for the memory books.

Did I remember to bring the camera, yes. Did I remember to check the battery, no :mad:

Next time, we'll get a layout out of it!

[linda_wm]

Place where they recreate history. What is that? Like those Mideavil (how the heck do you spell that word?) times dinners? or more like Civil War Battlefield re-enactments? Or one of those living museums?

[Starling]

I was thinking living history, although all of the others are interesting too. Some of those other things are open to the general public. In others, like a lot of Creative Anacronism events, you need memberships. And every locality and country has different things available.

In the US some of the old colonial and pioneer forts do special presentations from time to time, and there are places like Williamsburg and Mystic Seaport that are very well known. But there are much smaller places. Historical houses exist almost everywhere. There was a tiny historical park close to where I lived in California. The oldest structure there was built in 1880, but it was a fascinating piece of history. On the East Coast I've come across structures that go back to 1640. In Europe things like that will be older. In Australia and New Zealand they will be a bit younger.

[Tara]

I'm not a mom...but here are a few things I remember my parents doing with me...I'm 28 so they must be memorable! :)

*Build forts (my mom used to string up a sheet in the corner of our backyard using the fence and a chair. My sister and I would play all day in there!)
*Give them a giant refrigerator box...and help them cut doors and windows to make a cool clubhouse. Can't beat that!
*Make popsicles (my mom just poured OJ or Grape Juice into ice cube trays, stuck them in the freezer and then added sticks when they firmed up a bit...simple, but at the time, I thought she was brilliant!!! I mean, come on...we made our own popsicles!!!)
*Take them out to a b-day breakfast on their b-day. Make them a paper crown and let them wear it to the restaurant. That was a tradition my dad started.
*Have the whole family eat breakfast for dinner! I still remember eating Cheerios at 6pm while watching TV with my parents in their big bed!
*Eat dinner for lunch and dessert for dinner! (This was our 4th of July tradition...what kid doesn't want to eat an enormous Strawberry Shortcake dessert instead of peas at dinner time?!)
*Color with them. I used to think my mom was the best artist ever...I guess cause she could color in the lines!
*Laugh so hard together that you almost pee your pants. We laughed hard...and I was always hoping my mom would have an accident!
*Let them make concoctions in your kitchen. Get out flour, sprinkles...anything from the cupboards and let them create.

Those probably won't be found on many other people's lists...but hey - it just goes to show you that the little things count!

[Kanoa]

Oh I love this idea. My kids are older so we have done a lot already but now I can go through my pictures and make a mini (or not so mini...lol) album of all the special things we've done together! I regret to say I went through a few years of depression and not once did I take any photos. I have major gaps in their lives....so I think by making these types of scrapbooks, the girls can reflect on the positive and not dwell on the negative!

[missguided.rose]

I think this list thing is a really good idea.. i've read most of them, lol some don't like the fishing idea, but I guess if it was me and my kids, I'd be doing stuff *I* dont like, because it wouldnt be about me, it would be about them, what if my kid really loved fishing? I dont think i'd have a problem taking them fishing, it means spending more time with them.

One thing I think I'd put on my list, is if i have a daughter one day, I'm going to let them watch alot of Disney movies.. Not all at once obviously, but I didnt watch many at all, I'm only now going through the entire disney collection and watching them one by one, and theyre just great movies. I know alot of kids who LOVE disney movies.

Also, I guess a point i'd like to make is, it's hard to know when a good time is to do all the "once in a lifetime" things because half of the once in a lifetime things i did when i was young, i was TOO young and i don't even remember LOL so i think in those circustances, a camera on hand is always great. I'm addicted to my digital camera, i take it EVERYWHERE because you never know when the perfect moment will arise for a perfect photo.

[curth]

funny I thought the same thing with that commercial!
This type of album kind of sounds like what I have done for my girls since they were born. I call them their yearbooks, and they are only 4x6 albums, so the kids can look at them anytime they want.

my list includes (some we've done before baby #3 arrived so we have to do them again)

climb sand dunes
visit the submarine
do some cloud watching
and some star gazing
watch the meteor (sp) showers (11th of august)
go for a walk at dusk
go to a drive in movie
make mud pudding/serve it from a sand pail
put on a family play in the backyard
have a carwash for the bikes
open a lemonade stand
climb a tree
play in the mud puddles/rain
paint our nails
take a bubble bath
ride a merry go round


just some of what I can think of.

[rachelrgb]

I don't have any kids yet, but here are a couple things that I can't wait to do with them:

I want to cook with my kids. We could start with the easy boxed things, and move on to the made from scratch things that are really complicated and take all day. Who cares how they turn out. It's a learning experience and a whole day of bonding. Ever tried to make pasta from scratch, actually rolling the dough by hand?

Also, someday I would love to see the tapping of maple trees and watching the process of making maple syrup. I would love to be able to eat some pancakes afterwards smothered in fresh, and 100% real maple syrup. Anybody know of a place that does that?

I want my kids to learn to play an instrument, and then we could play some duets together.

I want to take them to the Wild Animal Park in San Diego and go on the tour where you go right up to the Rhino's.

I want to take them biking along the Katy trail here in St. Louis.

Flying a kite, of course.

I guess that's it for now. I'll have to add on to this later.

Rachel

[Karen Bowers]

i want to take them to see the grand canyon and niagra falls.

[Karen Bowers]

and i want to take them to yosemite and to crater lake. and to see the monarch butterflies in the winter in carmel, california. and to go see the sea elephants. and to go snorkeling. and to go to the tidepools. oh and to see whales. oh and i want to take them on a cruise to alaska...

[budletsmom]

I have so enjoyed reading everyone's lists. I have a two year old and love to play tourist in my town. I also love the little things and agree that those are the ones that you really remember. I can't wait for him to be old enough to really enjoy the museums and drive in movies these are things I remember from being a child. I also remember the forts made from sheets over the dining room table I thought that was so cool and still remember it and don't have any pictures of it - I have taken pictures with my son though.

The photo tour at the San Diego Wild Animal Park is awesome I did that when I was in Jr High almost 20 years ago and I still remember it and talk about it. It is something that I really hope my son will be interested in when he is old enough. I also want to swim with the dolphins at Sea World - you can do that when you are 6 but I think I want to wait until he is a little bit older so he will remember it better.

I also want to travel to the different National Parks - I used to go with my grandparents in their motor home and I really loved it.

We get passes to many of the parks and attractions around town and use them as often as possible so we have special days often.

I love the idea of special days for birthdays eatting certain things, going out and wearing a special hat anything special like that - didn't do anything like that as a kid but it sure sounds like fun and something that they would always remember.

[skt494]

Some of the things I've done with my son (now 6)
and some of the things I did as a child:

Play/dance in the rain
have frozen cool whip in your hot chocolate after playing in the snow
Make snow angels
Go on a bear hunt ... just like in the book
Treasure hunts (drew pictures of the rooms for clues)
Go to the Gardens .... botanical or anywhere.. just enjoy being outside
paint on rocks ... His is named "Rocky" and still sits on his nightstand
Stop whatever you are doing instantly if requested to read a book
Put on some classic rock, country whatever and do a little karokee ... He adores standing on the coffee table and singing into a brush microphone

Roast marshmellows, make somores
Play I Spy anywhere anytime

We love to make up our own stories ... I start out ..so and so went and he says the next sentence then we go back and forth, its evolved into us each making up our own stories and telling the whole thing to the other... he blows my mind quite often and it creates a good time to talk.

Go rollerskating .. yep even the little ones can do it now
Some Dunkin Donuts allow you to watch them making donuts- its way cool!
Let them put make up on your face ... my son loves to do this! He used to put in on himself but thinks its only for girls now. He will still comb my hair and give me tattos :eek: (you know I just LOVE that)

... and now I'm going to print this out ... so I don't forget! and see how far I can make it grow!