A Father’s Day Tribute to the Fathers I Have Known

Posted on June 19, 2011 by viviankirkfield

To my own father: We both loved Saturday mornings when we watched TV together…Tarzan and Ramar of the Jungle. Walking to the little grocery store on Sunday to buy Thomas’ English muffins to have with breakfast…you always bought me a Charlotte Russe…if I close my eyes now, I can see the mound of whipped cream topped with a cherry. Going to the park across the street with you and my best friend, Jane, and her father…eagerly running ahead to grab swings next to each other so both proud papas could push us so high, we were almost parallel with the top bar. And bowling together as a father/daughter team when I was in college…winning the little trophy that was awarded to the highest scorers…we were both so proud!

To my husband: You were always there for all three of our children, especially when they were troubled…or in trouble. You never scolded at those times…you supported them 100% and let them know that you loved them. You encouraged them to follow their dreams and worked hard to provide for them. When our oldest son was a toddler, you took a second job to supplement your teacher’s income…after working all day; you had a hurried dinner and then worked at a convenience store till midnight. When you had your first heart attack at age 36, our three children were all under 10 years old and I know you thought you would never live to see them grow up. But you persevered and, even though you had your third heart attack a month before our daughter’s wedding, you flew half-way across the country so you could walk her down the aisle and give her away. I know how proud you were then…that was in 2002…and last week you gave her son his first fishing lesson.

To my oldest son: As a SAHD, you constantly impress me with your loving yet firm approach to parenting. Your twins are almost six years old already and you’ve supported them in their varied interests in every stage of their development. They are bright, loving, caring and funny and a joy to be with and I am proud of the father that you are to them.

To my son-in-law: There is a lot of talk about being a “hands-on” parent…we expect it of moms…but often dads are busy with work and they don’t care to spend their spare time with their little ones. You have been there as an equal partner raising your son…what a team you and our daughter make! Jeremy has a wonderful role model in you…you are a wonderful father and the bond you are establishing now will last a life-time!

The past two Saturdays, I’ve met quite a few fathers…last week at the PBS Kids Fun Fest in Acacia Park and yesterday at Monument’s Summer Soul-Stice. I’ve been really impressed with how many dads accompany their families…after all, they could be home watching a ball game or taking a nap. 🙂

Seriously though, to be in your child’s memories tomorrow, you need to be in their lives today. Dads and moms strengthen the parent-child connection when they spend “quality” time with their little ones.

I hope you’ll visit my website and check out Show Me How! It’s really a great book for families who are looking for things to do with their kids.

It’s an activity book…100 simple craft projects, 100 easy recipes, 100 picture book suggestions and summaries.
It’s a memory book…every other page has a lined area where parents can record important highlights or how a book or activity helped solve a problem the child was having.
It’s a parenting guide…100 tips on building a positive self-image along with an hour-by-hour sample plan for your day.

You can’t get much of real value these days for $22.50…that’s a saving of 50% off the cover price. Start your summer off with a plan of activities…the school bells will be ringing before you know it.

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood – Colorado Springs PBS Kids Fun Fest at Acacia Park

Posted on June 13, 2011 by viviankirkfield

Hundreds of happy children and their parents turned out for the Southern Colorado Rocky Mountain PBS Kids Fun Fest on Saturday, June 11^th at Acacia Park in downtown Colorado Springs.

With music and entertainment on the bandstand and Clifford the Big Red Dog and Curious George in costume, Acacia Park came alive. It was also the official opening of the Uncle Wilbur Fountain that many children enjoy during the hot summer days.

I was thrilled to be partnering with PBS and even before the event got underway, early visitors stopped by to check out the SHOW ME HOW table. Almost 70 parents filled out an entry for the free craft supply kit…and the winner is…Dawn!!! I’ll be emailing her today to let her know she is the lucky winner!

Many of the participants at the Fun Fest offered activities for the children…at the Show Me How! table, we were crafting Curious George paper plate faces and Clifford the Big Red Dog headbands with doggy ears. Easy enough for a very young child to do and so much fun…using inexpensive materials that parents already have around the house…paper, crayons or markers, a paper plate, scissors and glue. Hundreds of happy children walked away proudly wearing their Clifford headbands and waving their Curious George paper plate faces.

It was amazing to see how much the children enjoyed these simple art activities. Even though my book is geared for children ages 2 to 5, many of the older children sat down and eagerly began decorating their headbands or paper plate faces. Just because the headband was for Clifford the Big Red Dog didn’t mean that the children had to color it red. In fact, there were many rainbow headbands and others with detailed designs. One child decided that his Curious George paper plate face needed to be a frog instead of a monkey and so he used green markers to color it in. Hurray for the uniqueness of every child!!!!

I was so happy to see the parents participating with their children because that’s what Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Esteem Through Reading, Crafting and Cooking is all about! The book is a road map for parents and teachers…open it to any page and you will find a picture book suggestion with summary and a simple craft project and an easy recipe.

Are you overwhelmed and tired at the end of the day? I know I was when my children were small. I would have loved to have a resource like Show Me How! In fact, that’s why I wrote the book, because I realized that many parents have so much on their plate these days, they often don’t have the time or the energy to plan fun-filled educational self-esteem-building activities for their little ones.

Please head over to my website where you can purchase a copy of this amazing award-winning book for only $22.50…that’s a 50% saving off the cover price! You can’t get much for under $25 these days when it comes to gifts and Father’s Day is right around the corner. Chris Singer @bookdads is doing a tribute to fathers and I did a guest post on his blog. You’ll have fresh ideas for the whole summer and beyond! And here’s a BONUS: if you purchase a copy from my website during the next 14 days, you’ll be entered into a drawing for a free craft supply kit for your preschooler…safety scissors, glue stick, construction paper, and more!

I’d also like to remind anyone who is local to the Colorado Springs/Monument Colorado area that next Saturday, June 18^th from 11am to 2pm there will be a town-wide festival for children called the Summer Soul-Stice. I’ll be at the Covered Treasures Bookstore, crafting with children. There was an announcement in the Denver Post and other local papers about it…so I’m hoping there will be a big turnout! Please stop by and say hello.

Can You Take a Young Child Fishing and Hiking?

Posted on June 6, 2011 by viviankirkfield

Our 2½ year-old grandson has been visiting us.

We’ve had so much fun together…reading, crafting and cooking using the suggestions from my book, of course!

But one of the best activities during the last few days was when we went to Eleven Mile Canyon near Lake George, Colorado.

My husband is an avid fly-fisherman…and wanted to give Jeremy his first fishing experience. Armed with a scaled down size spinning rod and reel, Jeremy was put in the competent hands of his grandfather. What an awesome time they had together. Jeremy was excited about everything…except for the worms which wiggled too much!

When Jeremy was ready for a break…so that his mom and dad could have a chance to wet the line…he was more than happy to sit on the grass and make dry grass bouquets.

The outdoors is an amazing place for children. With a little preparation and care (hat and sunscreen, water to stay hydrated, etc.) they can have a wonderful time while learning how to preserve and protect our precious planet.

For those of you who are local to Colorado Springs, please don’t forget about a great FREE event this coming Saturday…Rocky Mountain PBS Kids Fun Fest at Acacia Park in downtown Colorado Springs from 10am to 2pm. There will be entertainment and so many activities for children. Please stop by the Show Me How! table and say hello! If you bring your kids, they can craft a Clifford the Big Red Dog or Curious George paper plate.