Caring for a baby is exhilarating, exhausting, and often daunting, even to a newly-minted second-time parent like myself. Sometimes all you want to do is gaze into your little one’s eyes, or marvel at their little fingers and toes. But sometimes, man, sometimes you gotta get out of the house! Here are some ideas for [...]
By Laura Knauer of Baby Sensory You may have heard the statistic that states that a baby who skips crawling and goes straight to walking could have a learning difficulty later in life. This research has stirred up a lot of controversy and has many parents losing sleep because their little one has yet to [...]
As a parent of a child with Asperger’sSyndrome, Misti Moxley is always looking for ways to help her son connect with his peers. As children, both Misti and her husband, Ian, went to camp every summer. It was a special kind of experience that cannot be matched in any other setting, forming deep friendships and [...]
You know when you have one of those ah ha moments, when you’re watching or experiencing something that puts a huge smile on your face? Well I had one of those moments while at E.A.T., a kid-friendly restaurant and performance space inNE Portland. Sitting in one of the pews in The Old Chapel at E.A.T. [...]
by Caroline Lewis of Verdura Culinary Gardens There are many reasons to involve your kids in vegetable gardening. They learn where their food comes from, they develop healthier eating habits, and they spend more time outside. But to me, the best reason is a somewhat selfish one: seeing the look on their faces the first [...]
By Brooke Preston This academic year, the Portland Jewish Academy (www.pjaproud.com) celebrates 50 years of educating students. From the time it opened its doors as Hillel Academy in the fall of 1961, the school has connected students with history and tradition, while earning a well-deserved reputation as a trailblazer. Hillel Academy began in the basement [...]
Interest in Immersion Education has grown steadily since its inception in 1971. Families and educators see the benefits their children gain from being bilingual in our ever increasing global society. In Portland, families can lottery into immersion programs in the Public School System, attend private schools that provide immersion education or enroll in a handful [...]
In Portland, every child is guaranteed a spot at their local neighborhood public school, as determined by your address: Find your neighborhood school here. Some never look further than their neighborhood school; others feel compelled to unpack the full range of options before deciding. But no matter what, you’re always guaranteed a spot at your [...]
by Angela Garcia Deciding where to take your child for care is one of the most important decisions you will make as a parent. Most parents have pondered the difference between childcare and preschool, especially if you are a parent relying on care so that you can work. Early childhood educators and policy makers have [...]
RLP Studios www.rlportraits.com what is your specialty? We primarily photograph families and children. Will and I had both always been passionate about art photography for years and then, in the classic story, fell in love with photographing our own baby when she was born. That quickly progressed to capturing her life and the friends [...]
truFocus Photography http://www.trufocusphotography.com/ what is your specialty? We are two photographers specializing in Maternity, Newborn and Baby photos. Randy is a master of the “Soft Focus” portrait and Karen specializes in casual portraiture. We often work together on a shoot so you get a variety of styles and two points of view for your images. [...]
Jennie Borello Photography http://www.jennieborello.com/ what is your specialty? Children, babies and family. where do you photograph? I always photograph on location. Whether it is at their home or at a park, it’s a place where the kids feel comfortable and feel free to roam around and have fun. what do you love about photographing children [...]
Posy Quarterman Photography http://www.photoposy.com/ what is your specialty? I specialize in what photographers refer to these days as “lifestyle photography.” That is, documentary style portraits of families, children and creative people. I love working with people to create fun, honest, un-posed, natural photos of their children, family and selves. where do you photograph? [...]
Looking for a fun treat to make with the kids for Valentine’s Day? Here’s an easy and fun recipe brought to you by our friends at Merry Kitchen. It’s tasty and the finished hearts are adorable; perfect for Grandmas and other Valentines alike. 1 brownie recipe of your choosing 1 envelope unflavored gelatin or (kudzu [...]
We’ve been watching these little cuties pop up all over crafting blogs for the past few months and have been secretly fawning over them, collecting broken crayons and counting down the days with our kiddos. With Valentine’s Day right around the corner, and a strict no-sugar policy at school we thought this would be the perfect Valentine’s Day [...]
So maybe you’ve committed to all handmade gifts this holiday season and you have experience with a sewing machine. Or your ‘tween daughter (a burgeoning sewist) is itching to complete a project over the holiday break. Here’s your chance to cozy up behind your machine and complete a fantastic project, just in time for gift [...]
We play a lot of games at my house. How can anyone resist a sweet voice asking “Does someone want to play a game with me?” Sometimes it has to be a quick game and other times I have to admit I speed a slow game up, by making or not making a certain move. [...]
Book Reviews by Elizabeth Pusack of Green Bean Books Two is for Twins by Wendy Cheyette Lewison (BB $6.99) “Each one has the other there to play a game to help…to share. Two ride the seesaw. Two build with blocks. Sometimes two get chicken pocks!” Hiroe Nakata (Daddy Calls Me Doodlebug and more) paints [...]
Red Sled by Lita Judge (HC $16.95) Alaskan Lita Judge’s Red Sled hosts no proper words, harboring instead all sorts of scrinches, scrunches, hrmmmms, fluoomps and woahs. The woodland creatures convene for a moonlit sledding session. Bunny and Raccoon hop on bear’s lap, Porcupine surfs Moose’s antlers, and mouse clings for dear life to Porcupine’s quills. [...]
The PJ Library and the Children’s Book Bank both have children’s literacy as their primary concern. The reading of books by parents and children together fosters literacy and in the case of PJ Library, Jewish literacy. In honor of Jewish Book Month, the PJ Library is coordinating a Jewish community book drive to benefit CBB [...]
We are so excited to announce the release of Made To Play: Handmade Toys & Crafts For Growing Imaginations, the first of hopefully many titles by our fave local craftdad Joel Henriques. Joel has been very busy of late promoting his book and has just made an appearance on the Martha Stewart show. Wow! Made [...]
by The Learning Community Recent news reports show an increase in sports-related injuries. Heat exhaustion, concussions, knee injuries, and heart problems all have resulted in a growing concern about kids’ sports safety among safety advocates, doctors and parents. These Tips for Parents will show you what the risks are and how to decrease or prevent risk [...]
The Oregon Center for Applied Science (ORCAS)* is conducting a study to test the effectiveness of an educational computer program. As many parents know, raising a family is time consuming and finding time and energy for extra things, like learning CPR, can be challenging. ORCAS created a program to help teach parents these basic life saving skills, and [...]
In our house, one of our favorite stories is The Three Little Pigs (or The Big Bad Wolf as we like to call it). Since Dad is a contractor, our boys really enjoy and pay attention to this classic introduction to building techniques. Our 3- year-old especially loves the fable and will chime in on [...]
The Early Intervention Program at the University of Oregon is collecting data on the Ages and Stages Questionnaires and Ages (ASQ), Stages Questionnaires: Social Emotional (ASQ:SE), and Social Communication Questionnaire (SCQ). The ASQ and ASQ: SE have been used widely across the U.S. and translated into 28 languages; many studies support the use of the [...]
by Caroline Lewis of Verdura Culinary Gardens There are many reasons to involve your kids in vegetable gardening. They learn where their food comes from, they develop healthier eating habits, and they spend more time outside. But to me, the best reason is a somewhat selfish one: seeing the look on their faces the first [...]
by Andrea Davey and April Ruth Peck of St. John’s Swap ’n’ Play, An Intentional Sharing Community I have always had a love for sharing; sharing knowledge, tools, meals, rides, resources. To me, it just makes basic sense. Sharing benefits the community in three dramatic ways; socially, environmentally and financially. When we choose to share we find new ways to [...]
ver wonder what happens to clothing after you donate it or throw it away? The EPA states 12.7 million tons of textile waste ended up in landfills in 2009. So how can you reduce this environmental impact and support your local economy? Shop resale! According to the website earth911.org, 12 to 15 percent of people [...]
We love Halloween and all the fun that comes with it, but realize in recent years we’ve created a whole lot of waste in celebrating the holiday. This year we’ve made the commitment to green our Halloween with these simple ideas. Costume Swap Did you know that unrecycled Halloween costumes amount to 6,250 tons [...]
by Jana Wingate What do people do all day? Well that is the question that the Northwest Childrens Theater is trying to answer as we follow Huckle Cat for a day in the new and highly entertaining production of Richard Scarry’s Busytown. This musical comedy opens with a bang, or should I say [...]
Looking for something to do over spring break? Here are a few great option; some in town, some just a hop skip from Portland. In town: 1. Springbreak Nature Activies at Leach Botanical Gardens 2. The Playground Gym Open Play 3. Hit up Mimosa Studios for a paint your own pottery session 4. Head out to Northwest Children’s Theater to see Busytown – [...]
From unique furniture and vintage flash cards to wall decals and art, we’re always in search of inspirational objects for our kiddos’ rooms. We’ve been longtime admirers of Heather Frazier’s line of beautiful mobiles. We love these minimal and modern designs of vintage and found paper shapes, and are particularly enamored by Frazier’s pom pom mobiles. [...]
Caring for a baby is exhilarating, exhausting, and often daunting, even to a newly-minted second-time parent like myself. Sometimes all you want to do is gaze into your little one’s eyes, or marvel at their little fingers and toes. But sometimes, man, sometimes you gotta get out of the house! Here are some ideas for [...]
By Laura Knauer of Baby Sensory You may have heard the statistic that states that a baby who skips crawling and goes straight to walking could have a learning difficulty later in life. This research has stirred up a lot of controversy and has many parents losing sleep because their little one has yet to [...]
