Ballet for Kids

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We took Theo to see Ballet West‘s performance of The Nutcracker last Christmas, and he was enthralled. Not only is the music and dancing beautiful, but the athleticism and discipline of the dancers is apparent. It is a great way to show children that you can be both artistic and athletic. The ballet is a lovely combination of both.

I was so excited to see that this season they are offering another family-friendly performance in the spring: Aladdin! These performances will feature the dancers of Ballet West II along with children of the Ballet West Academy. I think it’s great that children in the audience can see their peers on stage and imagine that it could be possible for them to participate if they were interested and dedicated.

There is a short segment that was produced by KUED called “Contact in the Community” about this particular show, which could be a fun way to introduce the ballet to kids prior to attending the performance. They go “behind the scenes” and show costumes and preparation backstage, which is fun for both parents and kids!

Click to watch the video here.

Jane Goodall is Coming to Utah!

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When I heard Jane Goodall was coming to Salt Lake City to give a lecture, I knew I had to go and I knew I had to take Theo with me. I remember first learning about her as a child and thought she was the embodiment of intellect, adventure and kindness. Her story is just amazing and I feel it is such a great real-life story for kids to relate to (who doesn’t want to live among the animals?).

She is coming to speak on Friday, April 24, 2015 and information can be found here.

In order to get ready for this event, we will be re-reading the wonderful children’s book, ME…JANE by Patrick McDonnell. The illustrations are adorable and there is a short snippet at the end with a biography of the real Jane from the story. There are other biographies that you can also find that give a wider overview of her research and work, but I feel like this picture book is a nice introduction.

When Theo was younger, it felt like we constantly had Raffi songs playing in the background. Two of the more charming songs had Jane Goodall as the subject matter. They are below: “Roots and Shoots” (referencing the name of her global environmental and humanitarian youth program) and “Jane, Jane.” I am so excited to have the opportunity to see her in person and have Theo experience the inspirational work she does first-hand.

Free Community Exploration Card

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My love for the public library is well-known, and we are so lucky to have two great library systems in Salt Lake City. We live in the same neighborhood as the Sweet branch of the Salt Lake City public library system and enjoy the convenience (especially since I put everything on “hold” online so I can efficiently check out the books I want instead of searching for them in the stacks).

A few years ago, a friend of mine told me about this great perk that seems relatively unknown. At the beginning of every month, each branch of the library gives out a limited number of “Community Exploration Cards” that give you free admission for 4 people to the following places for the duration of the month that you get the pass:

You need to have a library card with the SLC public library to get one of these passes. Each household only gets one of these passes in a calendar year, so you have to plan ahead accordingly. Also, they run out quickly so it behooves you to go on the first day of the month that the library is open and go first thing in the morning. We are planning on using our free annual pass in the month of March this year since that is when Theo has spring break and we will be in town.

Field Trip to Provo: Origami Exhibit

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We don’t often go down south to Utah County on our adventures, but we took the opportunity to head to Provo yesterday to visit the wonderful “Folding Paper” exhibit at the BYU Museum of Art. We recently went to an activity at our local public library where they had the Origami Lady show the kids how to do various simple origami projects. Theo loved it and we ended up folding origami hearts for him to give out as Valentines to his classmates. When I saw that there was this exhibition so close to us, I wanted to check it out.
It was my first time at this museum and I was really impressed. It is a beautiful space and the other exhibitions were also lovely to see. The Folding Paper exhibit met all of our expectations. We saw amazing examples of origami, and beautiful displays about the history and art of origami. Everything was made out of paper and they were incredible.

One of our favorite parts of the exhibit was this station where they set out iPads and origami paper, so that we could try folding some of it ourselves. (I admit, while you’re looking at all the art, you’re thinking to yourself, “I want to try this!”) The iPads had a great app on them where they had videos and illustrations walking you through how to fold various projects. The app is available to download for iPhones and iPads on the iTunes store and is called Folded BY-U. I love that origami is a combination of art, geometry, fine motor skills and really is a fun activity. Try it out, either at home or by visiting the museum!

Playing Dress Up with Mom

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I ran across this fun article the other day on social media, and loved the concept behind it (I Let my Toddler Dress Me for a Week — Here’s What Happened). Basically, the author gave her son free reign on her closet and willingly wore whatever he put together (even mismatched shoes!).

This morning I was scheduled to go into Theo’s classroom to volunteer (a parent reader brings a book to read aloud to the class every week), so I thought this would be a fun occasion to try this out. Last night I told him about it after dinner, and he immediately went up to my closet to start looking. He was methodical (he insisted on layering — me wearing a shirt “on the bottom and the top”) and knew he wanted me to wear leggings and a skirt and not pants.

It was hilarious to watch him toss things aside or keep them in consideration. Except for my leggings, he immediately eliminated anything that was black or gray. Obviously he enjoyed patterns and bright colors. I even let him pick out my lipstick, jewelry and shoes, and he had so much fun running around and looking at all the pieces together.

This was such a fun activity for us to do together: 1) it’s free, 2) it gives your child some agency and being able to tell mom what to do/wear, 3) makes you consider wearing things beyond your comfort level. Try it out!

Greatest Snow on Earth – for Kids, too!

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This is Theo’s 3rd year taking skiing lessons, which he has always done at Brighton. He’s enjoyed doing the multi-week programs so he can get familiar with the same instructors and kids in his group throughout the season. As we do every year, we stopped by Utah Ski & Golf to update the size of his skis and boots (as part of the great kids rental program I wrote about earlier). The weather has been so unusually warm that I’ve been able to sit out on the patio of the lodge during Theo’s lessons and enjoy the warm sun and clean air — very enjoyable for a non-skier like me! (But if you are a skier, parents get discounts on lift tickets the day of their child’s lesson.)

Theo also goes skiing with his dad, who is a native Utahn and skied his whole life, and is it great that Brighton is free for kids age 7 and under (we have one more year!). Other ski resorts that have generous lift policies for kids are Solitude, Snowbasin and Powder Mountain, all of which are free for kids 6 and under.

Although Theo loves to ski, he will probably just enjoy it as a wintertime hobby, rather than advancing to ski racing. However, if he was really interested, we would consider joining the Rowmark Junior program which introduces kids in 1st grade and up to the world of competitive ski racing. They have a ski program that integrates with the academic school curriculum and is a great resource for serious skiers, even young ones. The Rowmark Academy program continues all the way through high school and has had such illustrious alums as Picabo Street and Hilary Lindh, and has had 10 athletes from the program named to the U.S. Ski Team in the last 12 years.

Regardless of your commitment to skiing, from sitting at the lodge watching the skiers and snowboarders going by, all the way to being a competitive racer and Olympic athlete, the ski resorts in Utah are a great place to spend some time in the mountains during the winter (and, ahem, avoid the inversion in the valley).

It’s Time for Sundance 2015!

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One of my favorite things about living in Utah is that we get to experience the Sundance Film Festival every year. Last year, I wrote about the inaugural Sundance Kids festival, which was co-sponsored with the Utah Film Center’s Tumbleweeds program and included independent films that were kid-appropriate. We absolutely loved it! We greatly anticipated this year’s lineup and were excited to see one that Theo is crazy about: Shaun the Sheep. He has watched every episode available on Netflix and is excited to bring a friend to see the new film at Sundance.

There are three movies offered as part of Sundance Kids this year, which are:

You can find out more about the films and about our experiences and motivations for attending Sundance in this article which was published in today’s Salt Lake Tribune “The Mix” section. Theo was thrilled to see his name in print and we are ready to start Sundancing!

Junior Jazz Basketball

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Go Blue Lightning!

This is Theo’s first time playing basketball on an organized basis and so far it has been a lot of fun. I think his dad is the most excited about this of all of us, because he is the coach and gets to relive his school days playing on the basketball team. We organized a team of players of mostly school friends, so all the kids are familiar with each other and have a very no-pressure experience.

I know there are lots of different places around the valley that offer Junior Jazz seasons, and we are doing ours at the Jewish Community Center. They have teams available for age Kindergarten through age 14. The JCC provides court space, small “junior” sized balls, jerseys, and tickets to a Utah Jazz game.

Theo’s team has had a few practices and just one game, and so far it is highly entertaining for both spectators and players alike.