April Village Playday

In honor of Earth Day on April 22nd, we made RECYCLED PAPER with the Thames & Cosmos Recycled Paper Press Experiment Kit for our Village Playday activity.

This science kit is intended for ages 8+,
but with help from an adult it was a fun activity for children as young as 3.

I saved all of the gift wrap and tissue paper scraps left over from the presents that had been wrapped the day before, along with the sports section of the news paper that someone left behind on The Salon at Kids Club waiting bench, and cleared out the hole punches of their tiny paper dots.

I tore and cut the paper into small pieces and mixed them up in a bucket with lots of water and let the whole slurry soak over night. This gave the paper a chance to break down and the fibers to separate. The next morning it was all mushy and ready to be made into a new sheet of recycled paper.The kids had a lot of fun touching the mushy paper pulp in the water.

I helped dip the provided trays into the paper pulp and water mixture and shake the tray so that the pulp was in a relatively even layer. I placed the layer of mesh over top and let the kids use the yellow tool to press out as much water as they could. This step was very easy for the toddlers to do without help from an adult. Since it was the second to last step, it gave the children a sense of accomplishment, being able to see that they pressed the paper into it's final product.

Here it is!

A beautiful piece of recycled paper!

If I do say so myself, we made the most beautiful recycled paper I have ever seen because we started with such fun and colorful gift wrap paper. Which we just happen to have lots of left over scraps in our recycling bin everyday.

What activity do we have planned for our May Village Playday?

Something SUPER special!!!

A LIVE IN-STORE PERFORMANCE WITH CASPAR BABYPANTS!!!

Tuesday May 17th

performance will start at 10:00 a.m. sharp

Listen to music, watch videos, and read more about caspar babypants on the web here:

http://www.babypantsmusic.com/fr_home.cfm

It takes a U Village!

Okay, so you've heard the old adage 'It takes a village to raise a child,' but I say it takes a U Village!

There are so many great kid-friendly shops, restaurants, and activities in U Village! You just can't get this experience anywhere else.



Of course, I have to mention Kids Club and The Salon at Kids Club! Your one-stop-shop for everything you need.



I really like this well-worded description of Kids Club by Jane Keller Watson, NWsource Editor:

'If you're a parent, this small independent toy store/children's boutique/kids' hair salon in the heart of University Village could become your home away from home. The store carries a well-edited and high-quality selection of baby gear, toys, games, puzzles and books as well as fashionable clothing, shoes and accessories for infants through the tween years. The experienced sales staff is knowledgeable and helpful, and the kid-focused hair salon at the back of the store makes getting a haircut a fun experience, even for squirmy little ones. Nursing moms will appreciate the sitting area and restroom near the back of the store, and little Thomas the Tank Engine devotees won't be able to tear themselves away from the train table -- no matter how many times Mom says it's time to go.'



If you need some new kicks you must head over to Sole Food for the best selection of children's shoes, not to mention all of the great ones for mom's and dad's too! Sole Food is locally owned and operated by the same owner as Kids Club. They have knowledgeable long-time employees that are dedicated to helping you find the right pair of shoes for your little one. Every shoe is thoughtfully ordered with specific attention to durability and cool factor. Some great brands you can find at Sole Food are See Kai Run, Camper, Keen, and Kickers, just to mention a few.



Like painting with the little ones, but not the mess you have to clean up afterwards? Make lovely painted ceramics at Paint the Town, and best of all, the take care of the mess! Paint the Town is a do-it-yourself ceramics painting studio that is super kid-friendly. There are hundreds of ceramic items to choose from, ready for your child's artistic touch. They will even host your next birthday party! Bring your little one in to make a hand-painted mug for a mother's day or father's day gift for your spouse.




Cook with your kids! Have you seen the show on the Food Network, Worst Cooks in America? I'm certain that as children, their parents were not in the kitchen cooking with them. Teach your kids simple age-appropriate skills that will stay with them for their whole lives. Mrs. Cooks carries a great selection of supplies, like adorable little aprons and kids spatulas, that will make cooking with your little one lots of fun!



Village Playdays is a weekly event at U Village hosted at a different store or restaurant every Tuesday from 10:00am to 11:00am, that offers a free activity to entertain your little one. Past Village Playdays at Kids Club have included face painting, a puppet show, crafts, a Caspar Babypants concert, and lots more! Check often for the schedule of Playday events on the U Village webpage: http://www.uvillage.com/village-playdays/