Mass shootings continue to take place. Bullying is getting worse. Young people are feeling lonelier than ever. Child suicide rates are increasing. Mental illness is going undiagnosed. Gun policies are not changing to protect our lives. Blame continues to take precedence over taking responsibility and action.
While there are no easy and immediate solutions to any of this, we can start with one small step – that is, to be kinder to ALL. We know the way we act today will impact the behavior of future generations. However, this can easily be forgotten when we are upset or angry. It’s not enough to give our children food, shelter, and love. It’s not enough to make sure they succeed in school so they can get into the best colleges or invest well to ensure their financial stability. Let’s make kindness to ALL a priority too.
Have you ever wondered if you are indeed getting the best result when you type in “the best” (of whatever it is) on Google?
I am not much of a cook, so I appreciate simple and quick recipes. There is that occasional baking from a box and maybe something made from scratch once a year. This weekend, I got an urge to bake cookies after reading May I Please Have a Cookie to my son. Rather than taking the easy way out with the pre-made Nestle or Pillsbury cookie dough, I thought it would be nice to do it the old-fashioned way.
I wasn’t sure where to start, so I reached out to my trusted friend Google and typed in “best cookie recipe” and went for the first search result. After following the recipe to the best of my limited cooking abilities, here are the results!
Taste test:
Husband – he gave it an 8 out of 10. He went for a second one the following day, so it must not have been that bad.
Son – I am pretty sure he would give it a 10. What kid would give chocolate anything below that?
Me – I gave it a 5. I think I prefer the pre-made cookie dough. It really is eye opening when you make something from scratch and realize what goes into what you eat. I couldn’t believe how much sugar I had to put in! I think I would rather have that occasional treat without knowing the sugar content.
So, did I get the best cookie recipe from my quick Google search? My honest opinion is no. The search continues. If you do have a favorite cookie recipe, please share.
In other cookie news:
For those of you who are in NYC, Levain Bakery has opened up another location on the Upper East Side. As they continue to expand, DC may be next.
Waze users can now get driving directions from Cookie Monster.
If you like coffee and cookies, Nestle just released espresso chips.
And of course, here are some cookie books for the little ones:
Are you looking for inspirational books for your kids or to give as a gift? While in Berlin a few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of spending some time with my friend Zohra again. Her daughter was my son’s first friend until she moved back to Germany. Zohra gifted Dylan these two inspirational books.
I was especially excited to get them as I had seen the books at a London bookstore the week before. I had contemplated on buying them, but decided against it to save some baggage space.
Little People Big Dreams. It’s such a great series! You can take your pick of so many influential people:
Where were you on July 20th, 1969? Possibly not even been born yet? You may have noticed that there have a been a lot of space related news, shows, and events going on lately. That’s because tomorrow is the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 spaceflight that landed Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin on the moon with Michael Collins piloting the command module. Five decades ago, 38-year-old Neil Armstrong took “one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind”. It’s just amazing how that one day has led us to explore so much more outside this planet and open our minds to endless discoveries. I can’t even imagine what kind of leaps will be made in the next fifty years.
Here are some interesting finds and links celebrating this special moment in history:
Did you know that all three astronauts carried a uniquely minted 14K gold coin with them during their mission to the moon? Neil Armstrong’s 14K Gold Robbins Medal has been with The Armstrong Family Collection until this week when it was sold by Heritage Auctions for $2,055,000 to an unknown buyer.
Here are two moon landing movies available on Amazon Prime: Apollo 11 (2019) and First Man (2018)
And finally, here are some books for the little ones:
Metallica announced this week that they will be releasing a children’s book – The ABCs of Metallica, co-authored by Howie Abrams with illustrations by Michael “Kaves” McLeer (from my old neighborhood – Bay Ridge, Brooklyn!).
Three decades later, the well-known 80’s heavy metal band is still holding
strong with their performances and now trying to teach a whole new generation
the alphabet in a fun and interesting way. Even if heavy metal was never your cup of tea,
you may still be able to appreciate the book’s unique
blend of music, history, art, and education.
According to Metallica’s website, “Including rhymes and illustrations, The ABCs of Metallica looks back at the history of the band from, duh, A to Z! Each letter of the alphabet highlights a moment along our journey from Garage Days to Master of Puppets to fun facts about us.”
The book is set to be released on November, 26 2019. You can pre-order it from the Met Store or Amazon. A portion of the proceeds will go to Metallica’s All Within My Hands Foundation to support communities with workforce education and fighting hunger.
On another note, if you want to bring some live music into your house, have your child try out this Hape Kid’s Wooden Toy Ukulele. It’s not quite an electric guitar, but it’s a great start for those tiny hands that want to pluck some strings.
On a recent trip to London, England my husband and I were hosted by long-time friends with their three lovely children. We truly enjoyed our time with them in their beautiful home as we devoured the generous and delicious meals they made. Although I was missing my son who we left with my parents, I was kept occupied with the great company of Sebastian (age 11), Linnea (age 5), and Nicholas (age 6) who had quite a collection of books.
It really is interesting to see what kids are reading in different parts of the world. Here are a few current favorites in this London household:
Joan Procter Dragon Doctor is based on the true life of Joan Beauchamp Procter, a British zoologist. It’s an empowering and inspirational story recommended for little ones ages 4-8. Curiosity and a passion for what others thought of as odd only led to great achievements for Joan.
Chris Ferrie is a Canadian physicist, mathematician, and researcher who has written over 20 children’s books. His books have been introducing curious little minds to the very complex world of science. My son is a huge fan of his! I recently had the great privilege of interviewing Chris:
When and how did your passion for science start? My parents never pushed my brother and I one way or another when it came to academic and extracurricular interests. My dad ran his own construction company and so I would see him building things all the time and it fascinated me. I still have some visible scars from trying out the saws myself.
My parents were both avid readers and had lots of encyclopedias
and atlases that I remember spending hours reading. I remember doing well in
mathematics throughout school which mostly came from positive reinforcement
from my mum. Science per se wasn’t something that interested me. Though, I
didn’t really understand exactly what the word meant. In hindsight, I was
always a scientist. I was constantly testing and breaking things, tinkering
with toys and software, and observing and improving on methods.
What led you to start a children’s book series? I started writing children’s books because I wanted to read something about physics and mathematics to my own children. At the time, there wasn’t anything available. So, I wrote some myself! I had never planned on writing the whole series, but the early positive feedback led to writing more.
What else is Chris Ferrie interested in besides science? A lot of my interests—including reading, movies, and games—involve science or science fiction themes. But science is a fairly broad term. Apart from all the science, I enjoy traveling with my family.
What are some of your children’s favorite books at the moment? My 9 and 7 year old absolutely love graphic novels. Some series’ we recently finished are The Bad Guys, Lumberjanes, Phoebe and Her Unicorn, and Amulet. My 5 year old will still continue to pull The Book With No Pictures off the shelf—though, let’s not discount my performance when reading it! The youngest, who is 2 years old, will listen to anything.
Do you feel that there is more pressure on kids today to know and learn more at an early age? I don’t think there is pressure for kids to learn or know anything specific at earlier ages. But there is immense pressure to perform well, whatever the task may be. This comes mostly from parental fears of “falling behind”. Now, children have 24 hour schedules curated by parents to ensure the child has a competitive application for the best schools. This, of course, will not create happy and healthy adults.
What one piece of advice would you give to parents and educators today? Freedom. Children need free time to explore their own interests and guide their own learning. They need to be bored and learn how to cure that for themselves. They need to test boundaries, argue, lie, fight, get hurt—all while they are still young and have the time to learn and heal from it.
Thank you Chris! We look forward to reading more of your books!
As of Sunday, June 20th 12:20 PM Eastern Time, one Bitcoin was valued at 10,692.80 (US Dollar). It was steadily on the rise the past few days. One bitcoin has more than doubled in value since earlier this year. It almost reached 20,000 in December 2017 before it dropped again, so hopefuls are standing by and wishing it will go up again. People are going through a buying frenzy right now as they don’t want to miss out on a potential great opportunity (“FOMO” – fear of missing out). It is also leaving people to wonder when the next big crash will happen and questioning the moment to pull out.
Before I go on, for those of you who are new to this, there are three terms you may want to familiarize yourself with:
Bitcoin – a form of cryptocurrency that was first released in January 2009.
Cryptocurrency – a digital asset that is decentralized, passed from person to person, encrypted, found all around the world, and does not require the input of personal information.
Blockchain – a database of every transaction that has ever happened using a particular cryptocurrency.
Here is a link that explains how this complex system works in more simple terms: What is Cryptocurrency?
And what exactly can you do with Bitcoin? You can use it to purchase goods or services, trade it, or hold onto it.
Not only is Bitcoin’s value rising, but so is the amount of attention it is receiving from mainstream media and celebrities. The number of Google searches are up there along with Donald Trump and Kim Kardashian (who was given her first physical coin last year).
The types of investment opportunities continue to change every generation. You can only imagine what your child will be investing in one day!
Chris Ferrie’s books for children are a big hit at our house! I highly recommend it if your child has a curiosity for science. Although it is sold as a children’s book, I think anyone from age 1-100 that has an interest in learning how things work would enjoy it. I initially bought ABC’s of Science for Dylan when he was a year old. Now at the age of two, his collection just keeps growing. My husband and I continue to learn new facts ourselves as we read along with him.
At first glance, it does look like it may be too complex for a young child. However, Chris Ferrie has managed to provide simple visuals and explanations that children seem to find intriguing (along with us adults too). He is a researcher and dad currently in Australia that believes that children are capable of learning more than we expect them to. He has successfully sold more than 20 books and they keep on coming. From Quantum Physics to Robotics, he has opened the door for parents to introduce more advanced science to their young ones. He is also the same author that wrote Goodnight Lab that was mentioned in my initial post and 8 Little Planets from my Solar System post.
Dylan and I
look forward to more books from him!
“A child’s mind is like a beach towel. If you take it to the beach, it will get wet and used. If you just keep it on the shelf, it will stay dry and stagnant” – Rani Thomas
For almost two years now, women everywhere have been quite obsessed with everything Meghan Markle, aka HRH The Duchess of Sussex. The Meghan Mania includes everything she has worn, cooked, and furnishes her home with. Items get sold out as soon as the brand is identified and linked to. Classic shirts, ripped jeans, and comfy flats have once again regained the attention of fashion enthusiasts. Just Google Meghan Markle Style and see all that comes up!
Fashion brands such as Aritzia, JCrew, Club Monoco, Smythe, are amongst the many that have seen items from their inventory quickly dissipate. Knock-off hunters try to find anything that resemble what she has worn at a discounted price at Amazon, Poshmark, and other affordable shops.
There are dedicated sites that document every piece she wears out in public such as Meghan’s Fashion, Meghan’s Mirror, and What Meghan Wore. You can find Meghan’s wardrobe on Pinterest, Instagram, and in articles from top magazines such as Vogue, Marie Claire, and People.
Meghan herself has helped the public get a glimpse into what she likes and values through her blog, The Tig that was shut down before her royal career began. (Although you can still check out some archives from The Tig for a limited time).
The Meghan Madness goes beyond fashion. It reaches out to what she eats, drinks, and fills her home with. A Soho Home teapot and mug received a lot of attention as soon as Meghan’s makeup artist posted a meal she had made for him on Instagram.
So what is the reason for all this? During an interview with Business Insider, Instagram user Sharon Joan (@royallyinspired) explained that “Dressing like her reminds me that I too, can be strong and confident and stand up for what I believe in.”
Now that Archie is here, I am sure we can expect to see some royal fashion chronicles for him in the near future. For now, we get a sneak peek into what may be on Baby Archie’s bookshelf. According to Real Simple, the book Meghan is looking forward to reading to her little joy is The Giving Tree, by Shel Silverstein. It’s such a touching book that can inspire one to be less selfish and more generous. Great for adults too – royals and not so royal!
