Family Resources Kid's Resources
Family Support
The Parlor Join us on our message boards for conversation, introductions, support, encouragement and chit chat. Stop by and introduce yourself Here!
Recipes
Tea
Crafts
Garden
Forums
Family Reading Activities
By Brenda Hyde
March is National Reading Month and it's the perfect time to
plan some fun reading activities. First, check your local libraries
and museums for special fun they may be sponsoring this
month. Second, do some things with your kids that will
show them how special reading is and how much fun it can be!
Reading Quiz Show: Pick a book that everyone in the family
can take turns reading fairly quickly. Have each person write
down five questions or more to "quiz" the other family members
about the book. Let each person ask their questions and either
take turns answering aloud or write the answers down. The
person who has the most correct answers wins a small prize.
Make this a fun family night with pizza and snacks beforehand!
Book Theme Dinners: Pick a favorite book and make a dinner
or snack based on the book such as an Alice in Wonderland
tea party, a French dinner with Madeline, berries and milk
with Peter Rabbit and his friends, spaghetti and meatballs
with Frances in Bread and Jam for Frances by Russell Hoban,
or a British meal with Harry Potter. Let the kids help plan out
the meal, and take turns reading the book after eating!
Garden Fun: Read A Gardener's Alphabet by Mary Azarian,
Vegetable Alphabet Book by Jerry Pallotta or The Tiny Seed
by Eric Carle. Afterwards help each child plant their own seeds!
You can plant grass seed for a fast, fun project or let them start
their own vegetable and flowers. Use little peat pots so they can
transfer them into the garden in the spring.
Nightly Reading: If you aren't already, read a book EVERY
night before bed. Picture books are usually better than chapter
books if you still have toddlers. The older kids still like them,
and can help read aloud, and the younger ones enjoy it more.
Donations: If you are fortunate enough to own a lot of books,
use this month to sort through all of them, adult titles too,
and donate the books your kids have outgrown or the ones
you feel you won't read again. Donate them to a shelter or
another charity organization that will give them away!
About the Author:
Brenda Hyde is a freelance writer, editor and owner
of Old Fashioned Living.com. She is also a wife and
mom to three children who love to read.
SeptemberLady "Born and have lived in Southern MD most of my life. My husband and I just finished building a new home on the family farm, where I hope to retire in the near future.
My interests: Doll collecting, cookbook collector (especially old ones), antiques, family/friend get-togethers, cooking/baking, flower and vegetable gardening, bird-watching."
Memorial Day: Backyard Grilling Memorial Day signals the start of barbecue season. Everyone wants to light that fire and charcoal that first meal. A few tips might pre- vent your entree from becoming a "Burnt Offering."
Read these tips for plenty of grilling ideas, make this year's barbecue perfect!
Growing and Using Garlic Chives Garlic chives, Allium tuberosum, is a hardy perennial (Zones 3-9) that will grow to about 12 inches high. The stems are skinnier and flat, instead of hollow as are regular chives, with greenish white blooms that are about an inch wide and not as rounded. They bloom in the summer rather than spring. The bloom stalks grow much taller than the leaves, sometimes up to 30 inches.
The stems and blooms are both edible and have a mild garlic onion taste. I've noticed many writers will list this as primarily as an Asian herb, as they are also known as Chinese chives, Chinese leeks, ku chai (China) or Nira (Japan), but it has many other uses as well!
The Perfect Porch Swing Perhaps it is the soothing rhythm or the reassuring creak of the porch swing that attracts us. Perhaps it is the companionable silence or quiet conversation. Or maybe swings simply remind us of more genteel times.
Although porch swings can be purchased in a wide range of materials, the most common are wicker and wood. You can also make your own porch swing from one of the myriad of woodworking patterns available at garden centers, hardware stores, or on the Internet.
Memorial Day: Backyard Grilling
Growing and Using Garlic Chives
The Perfect Porch Swing