Episode Fourteen: Drawing Competition

When I grew up there were four things I loved to do: play Lego, play Matchbox cars, jump on the trampoline and draw. Interestingly enough, I still like all of these things.

Drawing is such a cool activity for younger people. There is something about being able to create something from nothing on a blank page. A squiggle here, a squiggle there and you have a masterpiece. As you grow up, and you may notice this in your children, they start to think about how things should look and that magic goes away. 

One activity we do with our children is drawing competitions. It may sound weird; adding a competitive element to something so creative and so subjective, but for some reason it works. It's not a race, it's not about accuracy - it's about imagination and technique. Here's how we do it:

Each person takes a turn suggesting what everyone should draw. This may take a bit of practice because a great suggestion can make or break a round. Get as silly as you can. Get as descriptive as you want. I usually go first to give them an idea of what is a suitable suggestion. An adjective and a noun works great: A statue made of cheese. From there, everyone draws their own interpretation of the suggestion.

The winner of the round isn't who drew it first or who drew exactly what was suggested (although maybe if it's a abstract suggestion that would be worthy of a win) - someone could win for the colours they used. For their approach. It's all about encouraging your children to enjoy drawing. To show them it's not about whether your drawing looks realistic. It's about the fun of drawing. It's about showing your children that there is merit in every work and a good artist isn't necessarily a photo-realistic artist.

Go around in a circle so everyone gets a go making a suggestion. Maybe the person who makes the suggestion can also be the judge? I'm sure you can figure out something that works for your age groups.

Here are some rounds from a recent game we played to illustrate my point (ha!):

"A Space Chicken" (from L-R) Literal drawing by Dad. A chicken in a space suit saying 'Rawk' by middle boy. A colourful chicken with a rainbow head by youngest boy. Winner: Middle boy for awesome space suit and cool planet Earth.

"A Super Space Ship" (from L-R) A UFO wearing a cape because it's super by Dad. A humongous green and brown space ship by youngest boy. A cool spaceship with a power source and defensive shield by middle boy. Winner: Youngest boy for sheer size of the ship.

"A Parrot With A Robotic Body Part" (from L-R) Parrot with remote control beak by Dad. Liam the cyborg bird by middle boy. A bird with bugs around it youngest boy. Winner: Dad for imagination.

As you can see, the sky is the limit and that way, everyone kicks a goal! Give it a crack. The best part about this activity is that you don't even have to be good at drawing (which is a great confidence booster for kids in the 'I can't draw phase') and it rewards imagination and participation.

If you give this activity a go, please consider posting your results on our Facebook page. The boys and I love checking out artwork. 

Have fun!

Friday, Funday VI

Hey Team,

Here are some cool things to look at while you're waiting for the next idea...

Some awesome industrial robotics footage of the Tesla Model S being made. Some incredible robots in this one. Not to mention cars made out of aluminium. Start saving those Coke cans.


This video is crazy! Rally drivers in Italy going incredibly fast. A great first-person view of what the driver, and ever-important co-driver, see.


A neat little documentary on toy sculptors. Sounds like a pretty awesome job to me. Some very cool toys in this video.


Some really clever guys got together and made a real-life Wall-E! It moves, looks and sounds just like the real Wall-E. Very interesting and very clever people.



Finally, some nice slow-motion footage of mud pools from Rotorua. I don't know if you've had a chance to see the mud at all, but it's pretty crazy stuff. So gloopy.



Have fun!

Episode Thirteen: The Water Balloon Box

I feel like we've been doing a lot of philosophy-based ideas to begin with so this week I decided to try a tangible, make-able idea. I present to you, The Water Balloon Box.

For this idea you will need a shoe box, a nail, water balloons and two dozen knitting needles or, if you don't have thousands of knitting needles in your house like we do, you can use bamboo skewers. 

I don't know if you're familiar with the game 'Pop Up Pirate' but it is a game where you stick plastic knives into a barrel until one of them hits a trigger and a pirate doll pops up. Whoever makes the pirate jump out of the barrel is the loser. This idea is along the same lines but you create your own playable game from scratch. 

With this game we put a blown up water balloon into a shoe box with holes on the lid. The players take turns putting knitting needles or skewers through the holes in the lid. Whoever makes the water balloon pop, loses.

In this instance my middle boy and I went outside to enjoy the sunshine and I gave him instructions on how to put the game together. I think he enjoyed making the holes in the top of the lid with a nail more than actually playing the game. The holes are made in the top of the lid to make it easier for younger players to put the needles into the box. We made our holes in a grid pattern which ensured that the needles wouldn't all bunch up in one area and the balloon wouldn't be struck.

I recommend using water balloons because of their size. They fit in the box perfectly, they can be blown up til they're quite big and that makes them tight and easier to pop. If you use regular size (party) balloons you can't blow them up as big and that makes them soft and harder to pop. Also, blowing up water balloons can be pretty hard work so you're probably better doing this part of the idea for your children (pro tip: stretch the balloon half a dozen times before blowing and push your cheeks in with your fingers while blowing so you don't get that painful feeling in your jaw. Looks and sounds funny but it works!).

Once all the holes are made in the lid, the balloon has been blown up and the lid is back on, it's time to play! Divide the skewers/needles between the players and take turns putting them in a spare hole. Whoever pops the balloon loses the game. But if you're like me, popping the balloon is the best part. Just a word of warning here: for some children balloons can be scary, especially the thought of popping balloons. Explaining to them that the box will contain the balloon and it won't go flying into their face may allay their fears. Also, purposely popping the balloon and showing them that it's not as loud or as scary as they think might be a good approach.

The best thing about this idea is that it can be all packed into the box and put away for another session at a later date but please, please, please put the broken bits of balloons in the rubbish and away from young children as they are a choking hazard. Apart from that, it's fun times in DIY-ville: An easy idea which I'm sure your kids will get a kick out of.

Have fun!

Episode Twelve: Share Their Hobby

Two weeks ago we talked about sharing your hobby with your children and how it gives them an insight into you as a person and what you do when the cats away. This week we are looking at sharing their hobby but with a totally different aim.

This week I got my children to share one of their interests with me. I had a bit of a head start with this idea because I already knew what hobby this would be and I knew that this idea would make their day. This week I learnt about a game called 'Minecraft'. A game that my two sons are absolutely obsessed with and that I have tried very hard to avoid.

Just a quick run down: Minecraft is a game my sons have on their iPods played in a world where you need to build structures, or dig holes, fight zombies and try not to get killed. It sounds like my worst nightmare but they love it. They know I'm not a huge gamer so I've managed to avoid playing it and avoid getting involved in any discussions about the finer details of the game. This has suited me. But, it also provided itself with the perfect Idea for Dads.

To begin with, I explained to them that I shared my hobby with one of them and that I would like them to share one of their hobbies with me. This got a lukewarm response. When I said, "I would like you to teach me about Minecraft", they went nuts. So that was that.

The aim is not really to become a Minecraft addict like them, but rather for them to share their passion with their Dad. There was a big focus on explaining the game, giving an overview, teaching me and then letting me have my own go. It turns out the game is a lot harder than I thought it was. I didn't enjoy it but I got a great deal of satisfaction from their teaching me.

I don't know how successful I was, but the aim behind this idea was to teach them how to teach other people; To teach them how to explain something to another person. I have started a new job and have had a lot of days where different people in the business have taught me things. I've noticed that some people are great teachers and some are not. I began to wonder whether this is a natural occurrence or whether it comes with experience. So, why not start that experience early?

While my sons were explaining the game, I gave them prompts, things they could tell me. I asked them the right questions to move the conversation along. At the end of it I learnt a lot and they really revelled in the idea that they were experts and could teach their Dad a thing or two.

If your children aren't game-obsessed you could ask them to explain their favourite TV program. Or get them to tell you about their favourite toy. Or even get them to show you around their kindergarten. The possibilities are endless. The aim remains the same: Teach them to share their knowledge and their wisdom and who knows what you're setting up to do in later life.

Have fun!

Dadism: What Can I Do With My Baby?

Babies are hard work. If you've only had one or only having one I guess I should say right now, it gets better. Not only the sleepless nights, the teething and your house turning into a war-zone but the frustration that, as a Dad, there isn't a whole lot you can do for these little creatures at the beginning. Babies need their Mothers and for the first few weeks you'll merely be someone who walks up and down the hallway with them trying to get them to sleep.

But slowly they will develop and all of a sudden they notice you're there. It's pretty awesome. You'll get a smile and a bit of interaction and all of a sudden the fun begins.

It's often frustrating when they are so young because you can't take them fly-fishing or teach them how to use a chainsaw, so some of your skills might be lost on them. When they are at this stage it's hard to know what you should be doing with them. How do you entertain them? How can you build a relationship with these little creatures?

The number one thing I have found is: talking to them works wonders. Sit in front of them, or hold them and talk to your baby. Not only are you getting them used to your voice, you're getting them used to your presence. Provided you're not doing your best Pinhead impression, they will start to associate your voice (and face) with security. If Dad is there talking to me, I know things will be alright. It's pretty simple stuff.

Once they get older and start to sit upright and hold on to things, they aren't quite at the teaching them your golf swing stage, but they're certainly a lot more interactive than those first few months. This is a cool time. This is when you can do things like passing them objects and saying 'ta'. This is the most basic game but you could do this all day and your baby will love it. Babies love repetition.

I find once you get to about 10-11 months you can start doing things like sitting them on your knee and holding them under the armpits and pretending they are slipping off your knee and then 'rescuing' them back on to your knee. I don't know why, but all my children have found this to be hilarious. Or pretending to drop them but actually having a firm grip on them. With the right voice and mock surprise, they love it. I imagine as well as being a pretty entertaining game, you're teaching them to trust you. If Dad is holding on to me, he'll protect me and stop me from falling. I have no doubt that this lesson carries on to later life.

Needless to say, please be careful with your baby. Writing about pretending to drop your baby is probably courting controversy but I trust that you are sensible enough to know what is right and what will cause brain damage.

The take away lesson from all of this is that having a presence is the best thing you can do with your baby. Talk to them, smile at them, sing to them, hold them and dance with them. Act the fool and laugh with them. It all adds up to them hearing your voice, seeing your face, smelling your smell and learning that Dad is fun and safe and makes me feel happy.

Many Dads are at a loss with what to do with their baby. The truth is, the cool things like playing pinball with them or staying up to watch the All Blacks doesn't happen for quite a few years. So lay those foundations and get in while their brains are soaking up all this new information. Make sure they associate Dad with fun times and you'll be away laughing.

Have fun!

Episode Eleven: Take A Nostalgia Trip

I had hoped to offer you a sequel to the 'Share Your Hobby' post this week, but we've had a nasty bout of stomach bug which made things difficult. In the mean time, enjoy...

If there is one thing I remember about my Dad when I was growing up, it was that he loved to tell stories about when he was growing up. To hear the sort of fun he got up to and the inventiveness of what they did was fascinating. It sounded like a different world where 50c got you a ride to town on the tram, two movie tickets and a bag full of Goofy Gums. In hearing these stories, I wished there was a way I could relive those times with him.

I find myself telling my son my own stories about what I did growing up. The fun I had, the mischief I got up to and the lessons I learnt. The interesting thing about my generation is that technology and computers snuck in pretty early and some of my favourite memories of being a pre-teen involve computer games.

I was trying to explain to my eldest son about a strategy war game we used to play called 'Command & Conquer: Red Alert'. It involved defence, offence, construction and finance. The best thing about the game is that it was a multi-player game allowing you to compete over the Internet with different people. It was, in it's time, pretty high-tech, but these days sounds as primitive as my Dad's tram rides and 7c movie tickets. The cool thing about the time my son is growing up in, is that I can show him these old games first hand.

I'm not a huge gamer; I like one or two games and play them until I get sick of them. Then a few years later I get back into them. So, I feel like I have a handle on them and hopefully can pass that approach on to my son (not winning so far, he is game crazy).

Anyhow, we had a great time reliving my early years showing him my strategies and having a friendly competition. Who could outwit who? He's still got a bit to learn, but it's nice to share that little slice of my childhood with him. He probably looks at this game like I look at drawings on cave walls by primitive men, but still.

Apart from being a good excuse to sit inside on a sunny day and play games, the take away lesson is that sharing your experiences with your children is invaluable. If you can relive them, or at least demonstrate those experiences to them, even better. Being able to put those stories into context and letting them see what you got up to as a snot nose will give them an insight into what makes you tick. Those shared experiences will bring you closer together.

Over the last eleven weeks of sharing these ideas with you, I've noticed two things: One, the activity doesn't matter, the time you spend does. I eluded to that earlier but it really is true. Two, a lot of these ideas are humanising us as Dads. I think that is one of the single most important lessons that helped me with my own parenting journey: realising that my Dad was just a regular guy, trying his best. If you can break down that barrier with your children, I think you'll both reap the benefits down the road (I'd like to write more on this if anyone is interested?).

Have fun!

Friday, Funday V

OK Team, I've been scouring the web for some holiday videos. Check these out:


Awesome look at what it takes to make a Formula One car from scratch. Very, very cool (and expensive)!


They're making a Lego movie! The possibilities are endless!


How to moonwalk. As a kid I always wanted to know how to do this, now I know!


Sticking with dance for a second, you might remember this video which features some awesome break dancing.

Happy school holidays everyone.