My Picks
This is the part of this site where I get to have fun! Here I will share with you some of my "favorites".
Stuff for Parents
Websites
Shape of a Mother This is a site that "helps women reclaim their sagging skin and stretch marks as things of beauty". Very interesting, which lots of write-ups and pictures by average women who've had children. Support forum as well.
Saskatoon Events How could I not include my own site in my list of favorites!
Engrish.comThis website is HILLARIOUS, or I should say, HIRRARIOUS! It's a site of messed up English from various countries around the world.
Adult Books
"A Thousand Splendid Suns" and "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini. Two completely different stories about life in Afganistan. Very moving books. Prepare to cry....
"The Birth House" by Ami McKay - Very interesting book about midwifery in Nova Scotia in the early 20th century.
"The DaVinvi Code" and "Angels and Demons" by Dan Brown. Great murder mysteries.
Xyron Sticker Maker - I bought the cheapest one at Michael's (it looks like the letter "X") with one of their 40% off coupons so it cost less than $10.00. This is a nice little thing. I have my daughter color tiny pictures then we run them through the machine to make them into stickers which we used on some of our holiday greetings.
We have a 6 ft parachute and some plastic practice golf balls. When we have a play date the kids get a real kick out of playing "popcorn" or "ring around the rosie" with the parachute. It's a great toy that gets the kids off of their duffs. I bought my parachute off of e-bay. Gymboree sells some bigger ones in store.
Discovery Toys Wiz Kids Game - Educational and fun! I use this game when I teach ESL, as well as with my own kids.
Puzzle Books - I love these things! Usborne Books has some great ones. A story and a puzzle in one.
Basketball Net (mini)- Both my kids loves this thing. I appreciate toys that promote either learning, creativity, or physical activity so this one is great.
Play Dough - Gotta love this stuff. So many things can be done with it by using common stuff from around the house.
Melissa and Doug Latch Board - a board of locks and latches for little fingers to try to figure out. I find a lot of their products to be a bit overpriced, but occasionaly they have one that I don't mind shelling out the bucks for.
"Crayola Model Magic". This stuff is really neat. It's a new type of modeling clay that doesn't mess up the house. It feels like foam, but is just as moldable as regular clay. I did buy a batch of the flourescent stuff which was like a sponge, so I had to return it. All of the flourescent packages were sponge-like and no good. Be sure to squish the package before you buy it. If it's really tough and doesn't squish at all, it's not good.
Roar! Trumpet! Hiss! Squack! Lift the Flaps book.
Moo! Baa! Oink! Quack! Lift the flaps book.
These two books have very few words but teach animal sounds in a fun way. Kids open the flap (the mouth of the animal) while you or your child makes the correct sound.
Nursery Rhymes - Any nursery rhymes books with colorful pictures. I prefer ones that you can sing rather than read.
Flap books for the older kids (8 months +).
Texture books.
1-3 years old
For this age I like any books with textures to feel or flaps to lift.
Blankie by Leslie Patricelli. This is a very cute book. It tells the story of a relationship between a little kid and his blankie.
Usborne Look and Say "Beach". This is great as it's sort of like the "Where's Waldo" books. The child has to find certain objects you would normally see at the seaside. There are other books (themes) of this same idea put out by Usborne in this series.
Hide and Seek Polar - This book is a fun lift the flaps book for kids yet it annoys me as there is an incorrect word used on one of the pages. The author uses the word "Eskimo" instead of "Inuit". (Just a PC thing that bugs me.)
Find the Puppy (and other "find the" books) - Usborne Books. Cute little rhyming books. There are a number of these, such as "Find the Kitty" etc.
Counting Sleepy Sheep - By Rory Zuckerman. A great twist on counting sheep to help you fall asleep. The copy I purchased has a CD in the back with this story and 5 others by the same author on it. Makes me want to buy the other books.
Any SANDRA BOYTON books. These are all excellent!
Goodnight Moon - Margaret Wise Brown. I used to truly detest this book but it grew on me over time.
The Very Hungry Caterpillar - Eric Carle. A book that shows the metamorphosis from caterpillar to butterfly in a fun interactive fashion. Teaches colors, days of the week, fruits and other foods as well.
3-7 years old (or older)
And Tango Makes Three - Peter Parnell and Justin Richards. True story about two male penguins in a monogamous relationship that raise a baby penguin named Tango. A very sweet little love story.
Click Clack Moo: Cows that Type This is a Caldecott award winner. It is a really funny book. Written by Doreen Cronin.
Love You Forever by Robert Munsch. This a tough book to get through because it's so touching. Brought me to tears a few times.
Where the Wild Things Are - Maurice Sendak. A true classic. Might be scary for some kids.
If You Give a Pig a Pancake - Laura Numeroff. A cute cause and effect book.
Walter the Farting Dog (and other books in this series) - William Cotzwinkle and Glenn Murray. Hey, everyone does it! A cute and funny book about a flatulating dog.
Even Older Kids (or you, if you like reading kids stuff)
The Secret World of Og - Pierre Burton
The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe - C.S. Lewis
The Harry Potter Series - J.K. Rowling
A Series of Unfortunate Events - Lemony Snicket. Rather dark but entertaining.
Anne Of Green Gables (and the series) - L.M. Montgomery
For the very young I like:
Boohbah It's about as annoying as the Teletubbies but it is great for little ones.
Backyardigans
Bo on the Go Gets kids up and moving. Similar to Dora in a way as there is some problem solving, doors to get through and so on.
Dora the Explorera problem solving show which makes your kid think.
Busytown MysteriesVery cute mystery solving show for young kids.
Wiggles If your kid likes music and movement, this is for him/her!
Baby Einstein DVD's - great for the very young
4 Square Fully interactive so your kids at home can play along. Singing, poetry, exercise and movement games. The outfits of the exercise people bothers some of my friends as the costumes don't really leave much to the imagination. If you can get past this, the show is quite good.
Fisher Price (on-line games)
Enchanted Learning for learning materials and craft ideas.
DLTK's for crafts and printables
Prairie Dog Campbell - Local Children's Entertainer.
KindermusikAny of these are great. You can order some on-line.
Disney's "The Little Mermaid"
Any "Wiggles" CD.
Make a fort out of blankets and cushions.
If you are tired, see if your little one wants to play "hair salon" so you can sit and read while he/she works on your hair.
Make an obstacle course out of stuff around the house. In the summer we do this outside with outdoor objects.
Hide and seek!
Kindermusik, or sing on our own at home. We have a lot of instruments around the house (including ones we have made ourselves).
Crafts, in home or at "Michael's". (They have a nice kids club on Saturdays for kids over 5, or under 5 with parents help.)
Rubber stamping, then color in the stamp pictures. I recently bought a Xyron sticker maker so we can make our pictures into stickers.
Go swimming. We like the Lawson Centre because we like to play on the indoor playground before going in the water.
Go skating. Outdoor or indoor. The rink by the Bessborough is well kept so it's fun to skate on.
Visit the library. Lots to do at the libraries. Most have toys, puzzles, programs and games for kids.
Go shopping or people watching in the mall. Prepare a scavenger hunt if you're going grocery shopping. For pre-reader, glue pictures of the items you are shopping for and tell your child that he/she has to find those things on the list.
Go for a walk and pick up leaves, twigs, rocks whatever, then make something at home with our treasures.
Play in the back yard or at a playground. We try out playgrounds in different neighborhoods on a weekly basis.
Bake something together.
Go to the zoo, even in the winter! (Less crowds to contend with and it's free!)
Go to a pet store. It's like going to the zoo only warmer in the winter!
Go to a bookstore such as Indigo (they have toys in the kids area) or McNally-Robinson, who has a free story time once a week.