Fairy House & Farewell

Soft moss a downy pillow makes, and green leaves spread a tent,
Where Faerie fold may rest and sleep until their night is spent.
The bluebird sings a lullaby, the firefly gives a light,
The twinkling stars are candles bright, Sleep, Faeries all, Good Night.

~Elizabeth T. Dillingham

























































































We're officially on holiday! While we're away, two of my prints will be on exhibit (and for sale) at the "Vision of Squam" Exhibition at Artstream Gallery in Rochester, New Hampshire. I'm thrilled to have my work on a wall with so many of my talented friends. Show closes September 30th.














See you when we return on September 8th at which time I'll announce the winners of the Travelin' Tot Two Ginormous Giveaway. Until then, grab your kids and check out Music From a Tree...

Travelin' Tot Giveaway Part Two

“Live in the sunshine, swim the sea, drink the wild air.”
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

We're off to the outer banks for a family holiday in a cozy cottage with friends. Props to P for finding the affordable little gem...it even has a little observation deck on the roof for star gazing, so I may have to pack my trusty old telescope, if there's room in the trunk.

One thing I will certainly be bringing is the Life-tech compact binoculars by Brunton. These are super handy for impromptu star gazing and observing the local wildlife. They are solid yet light weight and portable. They can fit in your pocket and yet the optics are just as good as some of the larger models I've tried. Best of all, they are reasonably priced.

For Satch I packed the Echo Pocket Scope by Brunton. It's the coolest little monocular I've ever seen and surprisingly powerful. It's the perfect size for the kids to carry on nature walks. We plan to check out the local nature center as well as go look for those wild horses.

I made these summer constellation cans to amuse the wee folk in the eve. They'll be using them with a flash light to project the summer sky on the ceiling.






























I've been planning some beachy crafts and activities for the wees, like sea weed prints, cyanotypes, fossil rocks with shells and clay, and beach bottles. (I will post photos of them when we return.) I put together two super simple kite building kits to be decorated with some sea life rubber stamps and highly coveted Sponge Bob stickers. I plan to do some kiddie science experiments like how salt makes things float and another regarding those little black specks in the sand so I packed some magnets.

I made this little family game for the car. I printed some tiny question cards to fit in a pocket sized candy tin that I had in my studio. Every 30 minutes, we'll pull a card from the deck and take turns answering the question. (This idea was given to me by my friend, Julie who found it somewhere on the web). And I have just enough time to make a couple of these sponge balls.

I should mention that in Satchel's car caddy, I keep a container of these learning links (I don't know why, but he loves them). I also keep a small set of Wikki Stix, a box of eBoo's Musical Friends lacing cards, some early reader "I Spy" books and a magnetic robot playset by Mudpuppy.


I've packed sea related story books and guides and eeBoo's Go Fish Game in case of rain. I packed the nets, funnels and a Zak mini colander to sift for creatures. I Tucked away some glow bracelets for night time crab searches and acquired a secret stash of Sponge Bob tattoos to last the entire week.

I've put together a little treat for our lambies. I've made some shadow puppets with which the grown-ups will be performing a shadow play of House for Hermit Crab. Of course, the kidlets will be playing with them post show. They are quite easy to make. You can draw the characters freehand, as I did, or trace them directly from the book and transfer them to black poster board. To do so you would need to trace the drawing using a white grease pencil then place it (white side down) onto the black poster board and go over your lines using a hard tip pencil or pen. Cut the drawings from the black poster board and use hot glue to attach sticks. Our show will be performed behind an illuminated white sheet. However, I photographed the puppets in front of blue tissue paper taped to the window because it looked purdy!

*I used poetic license on the lantern fish, and made it part Anglerfish, (because Satch loves that hanging light thingy), but sans the scary teeth.

Click to enlarge image!















As you already know, I'm big on packing a small trip related gifty or two. For our beach adventure, I chose the following:

These Juggling Scarves by Wizard of Math are colorful, light weight and easy for little ones to juggle. They float in air quite beautifully. Since they are so portable, it makes the perfect activity for rest stops and rainy days.


The Buddha Board Mini is a perfectly portable canvas for the travelin' tot. I've written about the larger version here. This 5 inch mini verson comes in 5 colors and folds right back up into its easel stand. It's small enough to take with you for some creative play at restaurants or rainy day destination play. All you need is water and imagination! The generous folks at Buddha Board will give you chance to win one of these awesome boards at the end of this post.

Splash Attack by Fundex is a clever little game that comes in a little fabric pouch for easy transport. Perfect for the family beach vacation, restaurants and rainy day play.

The adorable Piscari by HaPe Toys.












Piscari was designed to nurture the imagination as well as concentration. It is perfect to play at the beach, rest stops or on rainy days. The toy can be played with solo or in pairs. It is made of natural bamboo and is small enough to fit in your purse. It's a different spin on this fishing game that I made for Satch.

And since the Indigo Dreams cd was such a big hit during "the nap that dares not speak it's name", we thought we would try out Lori Lite's other guided relaxation cd, Ocean Dreams.



We LOVE Sun Print Paper by Lawrence Hall of Science to make some beautiful prints and a bit of tot science regarding the importance of sunscreen. The paper is very easy to work with and the kids love it! Here are some prints that Satch made.


















The kind people at Lawrence Hall of Science is giving you a chance to win a pack of Sunprint coolness at the end of this post.


As you may have guessed, I fancy small things that I can carry in my bag and whip out when the need arises. I like the Fingerprinting Art Set for rainy day destination play. It's messy, yet washable fun and very Ed Emberley!!!



Satch is a bit too young to launch the Maple Seed Copter, but I figure his daddy can do the launching and Satch can do the chasing and catching to burn off some pent up energy from the ride. Designed to look like a real maple seed, it can soar up to 100 feet, then gently spins to earth like the real thing. There are some interesting seed facts printed on the package for fellow nature lovers.

A great toy for rest stops and outdoor destination play!

This Sea Animal Ball by Crocodile Creek is a must for the beach. The illustrations are beautiful and it's made of heavy gauge rubber so it is built to last and it won't blow away like classic beach balls.

It was time to get Satch an extra water bottle because we've been worried about losing the one we bought him over a year ago. We're not big on having "extra" of anything, but in this case it's good to have a backup. So we bought our nature boy this Animal Tracks Bottle also by Crocodile Creek. The bottle is stainless steel and BPA free! He's been diggin' animal tracks ever since the Track Lab program at our nature center.

There are not only wild horses roaming the beaches, but there are also deer. We will be bringing this deer call by Knight & Hale. It's easy to use, even for the wees, and certainly gets their attention. Hunters use them to lure the creatures near. Nature loving vegetarians like us, think the deer call is awesome for observing these beautiful creatures.

We've also packed this super cool gadget, the Audubon Bird Call to observe our feathered friends. These pocket sized beauties are handcrafted and sound like the real thing with just a simple twisting motion. It drove my cat nuts when I gave it a test run. They were created by Roger Eddy who has since passed away. His grandchildren have carried on the tradition of crafting the Audubon Bird Call in their attic workshop.

By the way, the Eddy family also manufactures the Soda Bottle Feeder.
They are perfect for recycling drink bottles into bird cafes and because they are made of zinc, they are built to last and the squirrels can't destroy them. I would like to add that we have a rather well endowed male squirrel who is on a mission to destroy our feeders...so well endowed, in fact, that my son has named him, "PLUMMY".

The extremely generous Eddy family has allowed me to host a giveaway! SIX mother rising readers will win this wonderful Audubon Bird Call and One lucky winner will win an awesome Soda Bottle Feeder.

Simply leave a comment on this post by midnight on Sunday September 6th:

• First Prize - Buddha Board Mini (1 winner)
• Second Prize - Sunprint Kit (1 winner)
• Third Prize - Soda Bottle Bird Feeder (1 winner)
• Fourth Prize - Audubon Bird Call (6 winners)

The winners will be chosen by random generator and announced on Tuesday September 8th. Good Luck and enjoy some Music From Sand...



The winners of last week's giveaway are posted here!

The Summer Day

Who made the grasshopper?
This grasshopper, I mean--
the one who has flung herself out of the grass,
the one who is eating sugar out of my hand,
who is moving her jaws back and forth instead of up and down,
who is gazing around with her enormous and complicated eyes.
Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughly washes her face.
Now she snaps her wings open, and floats away.

I don't know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields,
which is what I have been doing all day. - Mary Oliver

Most Alive Monday: Secret Message (& Winners)

"Mama, I wrote you a secret message...it says...dear Mama...I love you really much... you are my best friend...and I drew a question mark"

Sometimes Satch says things that make my heart burst...like on Saturday when I returned from our library book sale with a tote of used books. He said, "MAMA you get me the BEST stuff!" I was awash in the sweetness of his gratitude and I had this feeling of contentment for knowing what interests him.

Children have a way of showing us the beauty in the ordinary.

Tell me, won't you, what was that beautiful thing that happened to you recently? What secret messages did you receive? Seriously, I want to hear about the sweetness of your days.

This drawing was a bit complicated because a comment from the lovely TZel would not publish. Must be some weird blogger glitch that is new to me, however I emailed her to let her know the situation then saved her comment in my Inbox so that I could factor her into the equation. So, that brought the number up to 30. And the winners are...

First Prize (Zoom to the Moon) goes to Michelle M!
Second Prize (Peeper Puppet) goes to Carmelle!


(Winners, please email me with your shipping addy: wendy at wendycook dot com)













Yes! Giving is one thing that makes me feel Most Alive! We're leaving for the beach on Saturday and I'll be having another awesome Giveaway before we leave...

*About Most Alive Monday: I've decided to make at least one "most alive choice" each day and post my favorite each Monday. This, of course, is to motivate me to consciously "live juicy"! I hope you'll join me and share your "most alive moment" in the comments section so we may inspire each other.

Gratitude

If you want to talk about this
come to visit. I live in the house
near the corner, which I have named
Gratitude. - Mary Oliver















































I'm grateful...that's all I have to say.
Have a good weekend. See you Monday.

Mom to Mom: Lori Lite

I discovered this amazing mama when I was researching children's wellness products and relaxation techniques for Mighty Girl Art. I can personally attest to the benefits of guided meditation because an amazing nurse used guided imagery with bio feedback to help me manage the stress of IVF while trying to conceive Satch. Lori has been featured on CBS News, in USA Today, and Prevention Magazine. Her mission is to "empower children to be active participants in creating their own calm, peaceful, heart driven lives". She utilizes story telling, guided imagery and meditation as tools to help children manage anxiety, and stress while promoting self-esteem. It is a pleasure to introduce, Lori...

Mom: Lori Lite
Of: Three lovely Children.
Where: Marietta, GA
Site: Lite Books
Blog: Stress Free Kids

1. In what ways has becoming a mother changed you?

Being a mom really changed the way that I look at the world. It affected my anxiety levels. I never considered myself anxious prior to children. I became much more aware of my surroundings and felt tremendous pressure to make sure my children were safe.

2. What message would you like to share with other mothers?

Being a mom can be a stressful journey. I would encourage moms to learn relaxation techniques for themselves. I created Indigo Dreams: Adult Relaxation for that purpose. A relaxed mom makes for a relaxed child. I would also introduce your children to stress management techniques as young as 4 years old. All you do is read one of my books like Sea Otter Cove, the child follows the characters along and learns diaphragmatic breathing.

3. How do you orchestrate your passions as Mother, Author?

I work from my kitchen table. I can whip up a homemade soup and write a story all in the same space. I like that my children see me work and create.I show them to always follow your dreams and believe in yourself.

4. What inspired you to create Stress Free Kids?

Receiving heart warming notes from parents, teacher, and psychologists that have seen my stories touch and change a child’s life has inspired me to create more books and CDs to help children. When I go to sleep at night I know that I have made a difference to a child and I want to give them more ways to help them have a peaceful sleep.

5. What are some things that parents can do help alleviate the effect of stress in the lives of their children?

Parents should remember that stress is contagious but so is calm. If you demonstrate relaxation and positive statements in your parenting routine your children will follow. Schedule downtime, watch what your children are being exposed to on TV, give them boundaries. Handle situations calmly and give your children the tools to counteract stress, anger, and anxiety. My Indigo Dreams CD series makes it easy.

6. What moves you, grounds you, fills your well?

I find that I am happiest when I am creating. It could be working on new stories, taking a photo to use in a newsletter, or working with my artists. Right now I am creating a new look for my website and writing new relaxation stories with a rain forest theme. My heart feels like it could burst with joy when I hear one of my children advising a friend with words of wisdom they heard from me. I am moved whenever I read a positive experience someone has had with one of my stories…… so please keep the little notes coming my way.

*Lori is going to be a contestant on "Shark Tank," SUNDAY, AUGUST 23 (9:00-10:00 p.m., ET).

Travelin' Tot Giveaway Part One!

As you know, after Mighty Girl Art, we packed up and headed to the Mid West for a wedding. It was a 1000+ mile car ride and I thought I would share some swell things that we found to entertain our very active 4 yr old boy and keep him comfy during the trip.

We went to Michaels to restock his pencil case with a fresh set of crayons and washable markers for the ride. We got him a new sketchbook and a nifty lap tray for snacking, drawing and playing.

I bought a set of Gladware minis to use as snack packs for the road rather than storing large amounts of food in the cabin of our very small car.


In the packs were:

• Trader Joe's Baked Cheese Chrunchies
• Organic Mini Peanut Butter Sandwich Cracker
• Organic Ducky Crackers
• Annie's Bunny Graham Friends
• A combo of Trader Joe's freeze dried blueberries and bananas
  
• Homemade trail mix of cashews, cranberries, and unsweetened carob chips

I packed our snacks and drinks in a small picnic basket behind the driver's seat. And put the larger boxes/bags for refilling in the trunk of the car.

I tossed a Peeper Puppet in my bag for an extra dose of cuteness and because we LOVE puppets! If you haven't seen the peeper in action, take a moment to do so now and you'll see why all the kidlets in my family are getting one for Xmas this year. Peepers are the brilliant creation of the award winning puppeteer, Hobey Ford. They're only 1.75 when you buy 17 or more so grab a bunch as party favors, stocking stuffers or to bring a bit of joy to all the wees in your life. They make a handy tool for pediatricians, dentists and photographers. You'll have a chance to win one of these wonderful toys at the end of this post.



I stocked Satchel's toy/book caddy with a few favorite books which include, this awesome Taro Gomi coloring book, and this Charlie and Lola book which is darling. I packed some vintage audio recordings of Mr. Toad, Peter Pan, House on Pooh Corner, as well as some Arnold Lobel audio books .

The Indigo Dreams cd by Lori Lite was perfect to listen to during the time he would normally have "the nap that dares not speak it's name". The cd is very soothing and is designed to promote relaxation.


As a boredom buster, I made a I Spy / treasure bottle filled with colored rice, found objects, plastic ants, a miniature clothes pin, a penny, a dinosaur, and a handful of colorful plastic charm beads from Michaels that included animals and all sorts of funky shapes. ( I colored the rice with food coloring) And for when all else failed, I packed the portable dvd player with some Charlie & Lola vids that I borrowed from the library as well as an early reader learning video.



Of course, I brought his soccer ball for some exercise during rest stops. And I packed this little travel potty for him in case of emergencies.



One of our traditions for long trips is to wrap little surpise gifts to be given along the way. We specifically look for gifts that can be played with in the car or at restaurants. This year, we chose:

The Zoom to the Moon playset by Imagiplay. It was an HUGE hit! The little fabric rocket zips up to become a carrying bag for little wooden astronauts and alien creatures. It's extremely well made, and truly adorable. It fosters imaginative play and it is portable so it's perfect for trips, restaurants and rainy day play. In Satchel's words, "It's slick town, Barnaby!"

You'll have a chance to win one of these at the end of this post!


The Scratch Magic Pad for creative play. There's no mess (for those who worry about such things)...kidlets just use the wood stick to scratch rainbow colored illustrations into the pad...again, another good choice for the road and restaurant distraction.

The Pop Zolo by curious toys - a funky little creative building toy that comes in it's own carrying case. They are like pop beads that stay together until taken apart. One of the beads is actually a little hook for clipping the creation to a belt loop or back pack. Portable and imaginative!

In less than two weeks we'll be leaving for our beach adventure and I can't wait to tell you all about the little goodies I have in store for that trip. Science experiments, beachy crafts, and wonderful tools for observing nature with kids. There will even be an amazing giveaway, so stay tuned...

And now what you've been waiting for - the generous folks at Imagiplay are allowing me to give away the awesome Zoom to the Moon Playset seen above!!! Or you can zoom over to their web store because...Imagiplay is offering a 20% discount to Mother Rising readers. Simply use the following coupon code - integrity09. The coupon code is valid for 30 days.

AND speaking of generous, the awesome peeps at Peeper Puppets are allowing me to give away one of their super cool peeper puppets. Simply leave a comment on this post by midnight on Sunday 8/23 and please specify which cool toy you are swooning for. The winner will be picked by random generator and announced on Monday 8/24. The first prize winner will get the Zoom to the Moon Playset. The second prize winner will get the Peeper Puppet. Good Luck.

* post script: we have some winners!

Most Alive Monday: Swann

It is with great joy that I welcome this beautiful boy to Earth. Swann was born on Wednesday night to my dear friends, Fanchon and Jim.

Dear Swann,

I met your mama many years ago when she was visiting the US as an Au Pair. I offered her my NYC flat on the weekends and showed her my favorite haunts. We went to New York City Center and grooved to Jamiroquai. We found a secret room in the attic of the Limelight where we danced to Marcia Bella and laughed wildly over the candy girl with the light bulbs in her beehive hairdo. I adored her so much that I gave her a copy of my key so that she could stay with me anytime she wanted. Each time she came to visit she brought treats, quick breads, homemade jam, and the most awesome bubble wands in the world (because she knew that I enjoyed blowing bubbles on the roof top). These very wands I now share with Satch. She's adventurous too, your mama. One summer day I decided to go camping on the beach, grabbed my tent and sent word to your mom of my plans. When I jumped off the train on Long Island and walked to the ferry, there she was at the dock sitting on a cooler. I knew then that she was someone very special. We toasted the sunset with a bottle of champagne and we watched the sunrise while swatting mosquitoes. She taught me how to make respectable crepes and how to swear in French. She's one of the most beautiful, warm, and gentle women that I have ever met. I see so much of her in your sweet face that I think I may know why you are smiling. I look forward to meeting you. Together, we will salute the moon, and one day your mama will tell you what I mean by that.

Welcome to the world, Swann, you are so loved!

Love,
Wendy

Click to enlarge this beautiful poem written by his papa...














*About Most Alive Monday: I've decided to make at least one "most alive choice" each day and post my favorite each Monday. This, of course, is to motivate me to consciously "live juicy"! I hope you'll join me and share your "most alive moment" in the comments section so we may inspire each other.