Cool Stuff: Cartoon Themes!

Check this one out for some serious blasts from the past! My kids loved this video if not for recognising some of their favourite cartoon theme songs then for how much fun it looks like the musicians are having.

The animations give you clues but it's still fun seeing how many you can guess without looking.

Have fun!

Episode Twenty Eight: Use Spray Paint

When I was young my Mother was making resources for one of her childcare centres that she owned. She got milk bottles, filled them with rice, covered them with newsprint, spray painted them and, with brushes, painted weird Aztec patterns all over them. I probably helped with measuring up cups or rice or mixing the wheat paste for the newsprint or something like that - but I don't remember. All I remember is that I got to use spray paint!

Spray paint is one of those perennial favourites with kids (and adults) - like balloons or pizza. Spray paint never stops being fun. I'm in my thirties and I still love mucking around with spray paint. I decided to share the joy and let my kids have some good old supervised fun with aerosols.

The first thing to note about spray paint is that the stuff is pretty fumey and full of crazy chemicals - so if you're not into exposing your kids to that I would suggest masks, gloves and safety glasses. I compromised by letting my children use the spray paint in a well ventilated area and to give them a lesson on which way to aim the nozzle etc. 

What my middle boy learnt was that painting anything precise with spray paint is hard. Really, really hard. I tried to show him some tricks that I picked up during my younger days. We talked about graffiti and tags and we talked about how, although it's naughty to paint on things that aren't yours, some of the graffiti is pretty clever. It takes a lot of practise to make things look cool.

Basically, there wasn't any lesson or point I was trying to get across. This idea was merely just a chance to be out in the sun mucking around with a bit of paint (and give the clothing rack last seen in Episode Seventeen another run). We painted a bit, stood back and admired our work and then went inside to eat lunch. Easy.

What sort of things do you still enjoy doing that you loved doing as a kid? These may be the very things that help you and your children connect. As I've said before, your children will love to see your enthusiasm for a certain activity. It's infectious. Why not dig out that old hobby - the spray cans, the Magic: The Gathering Cards, or chatter rings and show them? You never know, you might have bred the next Cope2 or Tony Hawk.

Bonus: A great video on can control. There's more to it than you think.

A New Idea

Hey team,

Thank you so much for reading this site, reading this tweet or viewing this post on Facebook.

Ideas for Dads was a project I set out to do in order to share my parenting journey with interested parties. What I didn't realise is how much my own parenting would be affected. It has been a great journey so far and what I've come to realise is that I'm just getting started.

I'm going to be real with you: I set out to post 104 ideas on this website. My plan was that it is one idea per weekend for two years. I was going to edit each of the ideas and compile them into a book that I could pitch to a publisher and then travel the country being Nigel Latta's understudy. But unfortunately the plan changed without me really knowing it.

What has happened is that I've had a considerable lifestyle change. Well, a few things have changed and/or happened to me and with those changes and new experiences my perspective has changed. My aim and goals have changed. It's a good place to be in. While spending quality time with my three children is still a huge priority in my life - the need to package each of these experiences into a 'How To' has changed. I feel like the time has come for me to just document what I'm doing with my children and those of you who are interested can get inspiration from the recap. This means instead of step-by-step instructions on how to spend time with your own children, you can read about what I've been doing with my children and take your cue. You can copy my ideas or you can use them as a spring board into all sorts of cool times with your own kids.

Also, I have been loathe to post any 'Dadism' posts because I haven't felt qualified enough. I have felt that I am just a guy posting cute pictures on a blog and am in no way an authority on parenting advice. What I've learnt through my latest experiences is that, I am. I mean, I'm no Steven Biddulph, but I do feel I have a unique voice when it comes to parenting.

I want to share with you my concepts and thoughts on parenting. Not because I think they're 100% right, but because I feel I have a different way of looking at things that some people may feel refreshing. I have been told that I have a gift to share, in parenting advice, and so I am going to use it.


Please keep reading, keep sharing the posts, retweeting and keep liking the posts on Facebook etc. The more people I can get reading the site, the more effective I can be in helping Fathers, Mothers, Grand Aunts, Step-Uncles, Nanas, Koros and Big Siblings to make the most of the time they spend with the children in their lives. Thanks for supporting me to do what I love.

Many thanks,

Abraham

Episode Twenty Seven: Screw Screws

This project has taught me the following things: Inspiration can come from anywhere and the simplest ideas are often the best. Case in point: this little gem that I nicked from Softfluffycloud on Instagram. Also, this isn't so much about spending time with your children, but thinking on your feet and finding ideas from different sources. Fear not though, I will be screwing screws with my kids soon in another idea coming soon.

On New Years Eve the Auckland cousins came to play! It was awesome and without a doubt our children's favourite past time: playing with them and showing off their toys. As the children get older and can entertain each other I get a chance to talk to my brother without being interrupted. Win-win really.

On this particular visit we had arrived home from our Christmas camping expedition the day before and the children discovered that there was one more present they hadn't unwrapped on Christmas day: A 14ft trampoline. Needless to say they were ecstatic and very keen to show it off to their cousins.

For one reason or another we had to keep the children off the trampoline and so quick thinking was needed. That's when I looked at the huge pile of cardboard boxes from the trampoline and thought about that Instagram image. These kids could screw screws into the cardboard and that would keep them distracted and would (hopefully) be more interesting that the trampoline.

The instructions for this one are pretty simple. Grab some cardboard (I used about three pieces stuck together to make it hard work for the boys), half a dozen screws and a screwdriver. Bam! Done. I got all of the boys together and told them I needed their help: I needed all of those screws screwed into that cardboard. They were off and away laughing. I had them distracted for a good ten to fifteen minutes.

Just a quick word of warning here: Obviously the screws come out the other side and they can be sharp, that's why I put the cardboard on the grass. This avoided them screwing into our wooden deck or anything else precious. Also, I gave them strict instructions to leave the cardboard on the grass and not carry it around as the other end of the screws can really hurt. Keep that in mind.

All in all this was a dead simple idea that I was able to pluck out of the memory bank and, best of all, it actually worked! Have you found any great ideas from unlikely places? I really enjoy Pinterest for finding ideas and old magazines like Jabberwocky. Let me know of any other places I can look.

Have fun!

Episode Twenty Six: Go Crabbing

As far as I am concerned, and my children would probably agree, this is the idea to end all ideas. If this website was made up of one idea this would be it. It is quite simply the perfect idea: Go crabbing.

If you're lucky enough to live in New Zealand,  you live within 10km of the coast. If you're even luckier you live near a harbour with low and high tides, this is prime crabbing country. Sorry international readers, I'm not well-travelled enough to know if you have harbours like ours - I've been to one other country and they did. So, here's hoping.

With low tide comes mud and with mud comes crabs. The particular spot we frequent for crabbing features thousands upon thousands of little crab holes which are full of tunnelling mud crabs (Helice crassa). These little guys tend to hide in their holes but if you stand still for a moment and cast your eyes over the whole mud flat, you'll see dozens of brave souls scuttling from one hole to another. It's amazing.

All of our family (toddlers, boys, parents and grandparents) love squishing around in the mud - some in aqua socks (haha) or barefeet looking for crabs. We challenge each other to find the biggest one, collecting each one in a butterfly net that we bring along for this very purpose.

Not only is there a competition to see who can find the biggest crab, there is also a challenge to see who is brave enough to pick them up with their bare hands. How big a crab can you pick up with your fingers? It's great for confronting fear and doing things out of our comfort zone.

For me, this idea ticks quite a few boxes: Family involvement, competition, pushing boundaries of fear, getting dirty, being outside and close to nature, compassion for animals/creatures, exploration, discovery and the thrill of the chase. What more could you ask for?

Watch out for those pincers, they're small but they still hurt. Have fun!

Friday, Funday VII

Wow! Haven't done this in a while sorry team. Here are some cool videos that I've found and that some helpful people have sent me:



Apart from making me want a drum kit very much, this video shows how different environments affect sound. That effect you can hear is called 'reverb' and you can learn more about it by clicking here.



I've been thinking about ancient man and the evolution of humans lately and although this video doesn't explain much, it shows how awesome some people are at sculpture. This guy is amazing!



Speaking of clever sculptors, check this guy out! Making seemingly robust object malleable and flexible. Very clever and very weird.



The boys and I have been body-boarding this summer and catching some pretty mean waves. Now that they have an understanding of the ocean, videos like this can be seen in perspective. Watch in fullscreen!



This may be a bit cheesy, it is a Malaysian bank advert after all. But, it shows a huge mix of water and cornstarch and people doing nutso crazy stuff on it.



I'm afraid there is a naughty word in this one so maybe not suitable for allll the kids (from memory it's the f-bomb?). I don't know what sort of rules you got going on over there. Anyways, this video is about one of my most favourite people in the world and I used it to show my kids that not all adults are boring squares that won't let them stay up late and eat chocolate for dinner.

Thanks for reading!

Episode Twenty Five: Answer Their Questions

When I was young I remember my father telling me about the hard questions we asked him. My brother asked why was the sky blue, my sister asked where do mountains come from and I can never remember what I asked. What I can remember is that he tried his hardest to answer them and when he was exhausted with the follow up questions he said "go ask your mother". When mum got exhausted of those questions she said "go ask your teacher" and the teacher said "go home and ask your father". Classic.

The other day while doing some yard work my wife found a bird's nest. I don't think I'll ever cease to be amazed by the way a bird can construct something so intricate and so ornate. They are incredibly complicated and I've often thought about how I could recreate one but I'm convinced I couldn't replicate the attention to detail. Incredible!

My children were equally impressed and we all took turns looking at it and examining it; wondering what sort of bird could possibly come up with such a puzzling piece of architecture. We also talked about the different strands that were used; not just sticks and twigs but parts of shade cloth, polythene and moss. 

My wife wondered aloud how the birds transport the mud that is used to put it all together (really hoping it's mud, otherwise ew!). My eldest boy wanted to know whether birds get taught how to build nests by their mothers or was it just 'natural ability', as he put it. My middle boy asked if they needed to be reminded how to make nests or if they learnt once and remembered every time. My youngest girl was just happy to poke and prod away at the nest.

With these questions in mind we went inside and looked for the answers on the magical internets. I always think about how lucky my children and I are to be living at a time where all the answers are stored on an easy-to-use network that can be accessed by anyone with a subscription and the technology. I think about how in the past knowledge has been kept guarded by those with influence or wealth. It was held in universities and other establishments that you had to get accepted in to. If you wanted to learn about how the brain worked you had to go to the school that had the best information about the brain. Now days you just do a search on Wiki. It's so awesome. People, who in previous times, wouldn't have had access to this knowledge have begun to use it in all sorts of ways.

Answering your children's questions honestly, properly and effectively is probably the best thing you can do for them. You're teaching them to think, to explore their ideas. You're teaching them that their thoughts and opinions have value. Anyone with a child going through the "why?" phase will know that it's so easy to just give one word answers and dismiss all the questions. But actually indulging these questions can be a pretty fascinating past time. Children seem to have the craziest brains that come up with all sorts of weird and wonderful questions ( thinking). If you don't know the answer, show them how to find out. Or do a search together. Knowledge is power and you can either be like the university that held on tight to it's research and knowledge or you can give it out for free and see what your children do with it.

 If you're interested, a bird knows how to build a nest by instinct and by looking at the nest they grew up in. Birds don't need to be reminded how to make nests but aren't always great at it to begin with. Birds transfer mud and clay in their beaks when building nests. We also found this awesome BBC footage on YouTube - check it out:

Have fun!