Recently I took my daughter Jude to a show at the Grammy Museum where afterwards the craft activity included making shoebox guitars. I am always amazed at how makeshift toys captivate kids like my daughter, who have no shortage of store-bought goodies from parents, aunts, grandparents and other relatives. She played with the guitar all weekend long, and used it to accompany her heretofore a cappella lyrics. I even got treated to the best duo rendition of Jingle Bells I’ve ever heard from Jude and her dad.

The Power to Play – From Trash to Treasure at the Museum of Tolerance celebrates this international and intergenerational idea, that items—in this case toys—made from makeshift items, spur the imagination and are never lacking in the ability to entertain. The concept for the exhibit began with a Kenyan boy in 2000 who created a toy boat from found items. Motivated by this, ChildFund International has collected more than 300 toys constructed by children throughout the world using found and discarded items, effectively turning trash into treasure.

The result is this inspirational exhibit in Los Angeles only until December 31st that will be a lesson to kids and a reminder to grown ups that no matter the circumstances, resilience in children allow them to create, imagine and play.  The exhibit showcases toys created from recycled and other locally available materials by children from Africa, Asia and the Americas.  Merely seeing the toys stirs the imagination and heartens the spirit at the thought of how much joy these items have brought to the kids who made them.  Particularly with the impending holiday season, this is a timely and poignant reminder that to receive is human, to give is divine and to create something from nothing and still feel blessed is out of this world.

The Power to Play – From Trash to Treasure

Museum of Tolerance
Simon Wiesenthal Plaza
9786 West Pico Blvd., Los Angeles, 90035; (310) 553-8408
Now through December 31, 2009
Monday-Friday – 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Sunday – 11 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Ages: All
Cost: Adults $15; Seniors $12; Children 5-18 $11; Children 5 and under FREE
Website

Well, we are in Chicago and my initial attempt to spend only $20 a day on everything, with a toddler, has already proven to be overly ambitious. We arrived in the afternoon and dinner at the restaurant next to our hotel cost $28. Already $8 over budget on our first day. The good thing is that there’s nothing left to do on this day but head to the hotel, unpack and get ready for tomorrow! We’ll see what tomorrow brings.

On our way to Chicago, these clouds just begged to be recorded.  I took this with my iphone.

I overheard my husband downstairs discussing and negotiating with our daughter Jude over what her travel backpack could carry for our trip to Chicago.  The result, below.  Jude’s possessions that made the cut. 

November 1, 2009

-Three-year old Jude taking her latest favorite princess dress off before bedtime, realizing that when clothes are dirty around here, there’s no telling when they’ll be clean and ready to wear again.

October 24, 2009

Two more things to add to my list of free entertainment for Jude and me when we visit Chicago for $20 a day:

1) The Chicago Greeter Program
Free guided walking tours of the City neighborhoods or tours of a particular focus! You can even reserve a tour right on the website ahead of time. The best part is the tours are for parties of 6 or less, so the experience is intimate. According to the website: “Enthusiastic city-wise volunteers impart their love and knowledge of Chicago to parties of six or fewer during FREE two- to four-hour visits on foot and public transporation. Have a special Chicago interest? Let Chicago Greeter incorporate it into your visit. Select from more than 25 neighborhoods and 40 popular interest areas including Fashion, Film, Ethnic Chicago and Public Art.”

2) The Art Institute of Chicago
What could be more appropo for a toddler and a mom who likes art than the exhibit “Picture Perfect: Art from Caldecott Award Books, 2006-2009″ The prestigious annual Caldecott Award recognizes “the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children.”

Admission to The Art Institute of Chicago is a whopping $18 for adults! And although it is free for kids under 14, a day’s entrance fee would leave me with only $2 for the rest of the day! With a little persistence and research though I found out that Chicago public library members can get in to the museum for free.

57 degrees not counting the wind chill factor didn’t stop my daughter Jude from splashing in the water at Crissy Field in San Francisco with her Auntie Amy, whom we visited for a quick girls weekend jaunt.

October 13, 2009

Last week I wrote about our trip to Chicago and my attempt to spend just $20 per day on food, entertainment and transportation. Well thanks to the endless number of free things to do in Chicago, even with a toddler in tow, it’s looking like I’ll be able to use the entire $20 on food and transportation. Partaay! My initial research reveals that Jude and I will be quite busy gallivanting the city (mostly the downtown area where we’ll be staying). Here’s what I found:

1) Lincoln Zoo – Free
2) Millenium Park – Free destination
3) Chicago Model City features an awesome, kid-sized model of downtown Chicago – Free
4) Shedd Aquarium – Free on select days in November
5) Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art – Free on Tuesdays
6) The Harold Washington Library Center with the Thomas Hughes Children’s Library housing the largest collection of children’s books in Chicago – Free

I’m searching for an alternative awesome view of the Chicago skyline because the Sears (now Willis) Tower observation deck will apparently set us back $31 for tickets and painful hours of waiting.

October 12, 2009

Time flies so quickly that I rarely ever wish it would fast forward, especially when it comes to my daughter Jude. But yesterday I discovered these websites that will help you create your own handwriting font and download it directly to your computer for easy use right along side your Arials and Times New Romans.  I write everyday so have no interest in creating a font of my own, non-descript handwriting. But what if I could capture my kid’s handwriting? Now that would be cool, at the very least a nice keepsake to track her handwriting at age 5, 6 or 8.  Except Jude is only 3 and though I must say her “E”s are quite advanced, I’ll have to wait a while to try this with her. If you’ve got a little one who’s script begs to be immortalized right now, check out the websites HERE and HERE let me know how it goes.

October 9, 2009

I’m about to embark on an adventure to see if Chicago really is my kind of town. I’ve never been, but an opportunity arose for my daughter and me to tag along with her dad on a business trip. The only thing is, with the holidays around the corner, who can afford a trip? Not me. But armed with my frequent flyer miles and hubby’s company-provided lodging, I figure all it’ll take is a little creativity, resourcefulness and persistence to make this a (nearly) free adventure. Think we can do it? Five days and $20/day is what I hope to spend. That’s $100 for food, entertainment and public transportation. How expensive can deep dish pizza be? Stay tuned for updates!

P.S. Drop me a line if you’ve got good suggestions on where to eat, where to go and how to get there!

photo by brokinhrt2 on flickr

October 8, 2009