storytelling Archives - Because Babies Grow Up

Spiderman Scott Returns to Play

November 7, 2013 by ajpassey 2 Comments

The Story of Spiderman, Batman, and Scarecrow

Scarecrow was running down the street toward the bank. He wanted to steal the money from the bank. The money that didn’t belong to him. The money that belonged the the people of the city. Batman was chasing him down, but couldn’t catch him. Batman called Spiderman. “Scott, Scarecrow is trying to steal the money from the bank. I need Spiderman’s help to stop him.” Scott answered, “Spiderman is on his way!” Then Scott jumped into his Spiderman suit and spun his web. He swung from building to building to building to building until he arrived at the bank.

Spiderman arrived before Scarecrow and was ready for him. When Scarecrow arrived, Batman flew up and surprised Scarecrow. Spiderman shot his web and spun it around and around Scarecrow until Scarecrow was all tied up and couldn’t move. Then Batman and Spiderman said, “Wahoo! We saved the money in the bank! Let’s eat dinner.” Spiderman said, “What do you want?” and Batman said, “Scarecrow!” Then Scarecorw said, in a high pitched, scared voice, “Don’t eat me, I’m a bad guy, not dinner! But I don’t want to be a bad guy anymore. Please let me eat with you.” And Spiderman said, “Fine. Let’s have pizza!”

And so Spiderman, Batman and Scarecrow ate pizza together for dinner. Scarecrow changed his ways and never tried to steal again.

This is the story I have been telling Scott multiple times a day, particularly at bedtime. The other day at the gym he tripped and bit his lip. They called me in because he was so upset they couldn’t see how bad it was through the blood. After calming him down and assessing the lip, he still didn’t want to go back in. So I snuggled him up on my lap and told him the story of Spiderman, Batman and Scarecrow. He loves to shoot his web as I tell the story. By the time I was done, he rose, triumphant, from my lap; he spun his web and then he marched off into the play area.

Stories can empower our children to face hard times, to work through sad times and to forget about minor owies. I’m so glad we had the foundation of this story to help Scott get back up and get back to play. He is my superhero in so many ways on so many days.

Green Golly & Her Golden Flute Picture Book Review

October 11, 2013 by ajpassey 1 Comment

“It’s a good thing the girl had so much time to grow hair, because frankly it was the only way up to the tower.” Sound familiar? I thought you’d recognize Rapunzel!

In Keith Torgan and Barbara Siesel’s version, Green Golly is the name given to the baby girl traded to the witch for a plate of leafy greens. The witch is afraid of Green Golly’s beauty and the attention she began to receive from the fellas. And so Green Golly finds herself very, very bored in a tower. To alleviate her boredom, the witch introduces her to the flute and the great classical composers. The audio telling of the story weaves Barbara Siesel’s beautiful flute playing into the story introducing young listeners to Mozart, Beethoven, Mendelssohn, and Korsakov.

If you purchase the book through the publisher or from The Green Golly Project, the book comes with the CD. If you purchase through another retailer such as Amazon, the CD is sold separately. However, there is a Story Sticker QR code inside the book so that you can access the audio telling of the story through the app. That code is available in all copies of the book (including those where the CD is included.) The CD contains a dramatic telling of the Green Golly story. We had the opportunity to review the CD a few years ago. You can read our review of Green Golly and Her Golden Flute here. Back to the book…

The illustrations in the book are magical. I love the drawing style and the color combinations. It’s whimsical, filled with little details throughout to explore as you listen to the story. I love this description from the press release: “Suzanne Langelier-Lebeda’s charming illustrations partner beautifully with the book’s text, narration, and music to create a work that has unity, contrast, and a lively flow of energy from one page to another, striking a healthy balance between classical children’s illustration and the modern graphic novel.”

I’m excited to be able to offer a copy Green golly & Her Golden Flute, the picture book including the CD, to a BBGU reader! I’m thinking 57 minute quiet time for you, right here! It is that captivating to little ones. Just fill out the Rafflecopter widget below. There are two different questions to answer for some easy entries. You’re welcome 😉
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Universal’s Islands of Adventure

August 27, 2013 by ajpassey 3 Comments

Our final day of the Family Forward conference was spent at Islands of Adventure. We started the day by splitting up. Brent and the boys stayed at the hotel to keep Ben cooled off so the girls and I could head over to the park and ride some of the rides Scott’s not big enough for.

We rode Spider-Man, Bluto’s Barges and Rip Saw Falls before we met up with the boys for lunch. Elli absolutely did not love simulator rides and was rather terrified of all the villains in Spider-Man. She made me promise her that she would never have to ride that ride again. Which was rather disappointing to Sammi who would have loved to have ridden it multiple times.

We got thoroughly soaked on Bluto’s Barge ride but left with smiles and pleas to ride again. I didn’t bring a bag or anything to protect my phone and I was worried it wouldn’t survive another trip. Instead we decided to follow it up with Rip Saw Falls, a log ride where, you guessed it, we got wet. But not so soaking wet on my pocket. Elli loved this ride, which has a lot of turns and drops but more comic strip cartoony and much more her style. We road this one twice and they wanted to go again but it was time to meet up for lunch.

Side note, the only reason we were able to ride so many rides in less about an hour and a half is because we were gifted Express Passes. So totally worth it. I don’t think I will ever do a theme park again without them. Our young children would not have survived the heat or the length of lines had we not had those passes. They even meant that Brent and I both got to ride the Hulk and it took us less than 20 minutes each to wait in line, ride it, and meet up again. Simply a blessing when you’ve got 4 kids to contend with in a hot amusement park.

We decided to try out the meal deal the park offers. It’s a one time price ($25 for adults, $13 for kids 9 and under) for unlimited trips through the cafeteria style food courts in the parks. It was definitely a good deal for the kids, especially since we didn’t have to buy a pass for Scott because he’s only 2. Brent and I ate more than we probably needed to just so we felt like we got our money’s worth. The Comic Strip Cafe was our favorite.

After lunch we headed through Jurassic Park on our way to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Brent to the girls on the Jurassic River ride while I took the boys to the Jurassic Park Discovery Center where we played with Dinosaur eggs, watched a baby dinosaur hatch, and got out of the sun and heat. Scott loved it! Sammi and Elli also enjoyed exploring when they returned from their ride. Sammi even got to name the baby dinosaur she saw hatch. Of course she named her Rosie. That’s the name she had picked out for Ben if he had been a girl.

We got to Hogsmeade and rode the Flight of the Hippogriff taking turns so all three kids could ride it. After that the rain started. And it rained and rained. And rained and rained. It was a light to medium sprinkle so we bucked up and headed over to Seuss Landing. By the time we got there the medium sprinkle turned into buckets and buckets. We dug out our complimentary ponchos–so glad Brent put those back in the stroller basket–and made our way to the Caro-Seuss-al. It was one of the few rides still operating in the rain. We were so sad that we finally made it to the area with lots of rides for all our kids and it was all closed down because of the rain. But the carousel started to make up for it. While I nursed the baby Brent took the other three to the Cat in the Hat ride. They all loved it and rode a couple times while Ben ate.

After they came back we decided to eat one last thing and call it a day. We were kinda sad about the rain and all the closed rides, but also full of happy memories of all the rides we had been on. As we were eating, the One Fish Two Fish ride started going again. We got over there and were able to ride it a whole bunch of times. Then the girls and I went on the High in the Sky Seuss Trolley Train ride. After that Brent left us at Mr McGrew’s Zoo so he could ride the Hulk. The kids were disappointed that Brent was finished sooner than they wanted to be done. But we packed up to go meet him and that’s when I snuck away to ride the Hulk.

Okay, to this point I had ridden every ride with at least one child. Sammi and I did Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey and Hollywood Rip Ride Rockit, both of which I was sure would terrify her but they didn’t. She loved them and wanted to go on them again, just not right away. So there I was on the second row of the Hulk and we’re propelling toward the top of the first fall and I was terrified. Then I remembered I didn’t have to worry about if a child was doing okay and enjoying the ride. I was able to just enjoy it for me. And I LOVED IT! I literally shouted “I love this!” at least four times during the ride. The rest of the time I was screaming or laughing. I’m sure those around me were thinking,”Man, this girls doesn’t get out much!” And I don’t, at least not all by myself. Man, I love roller coasters! I was on such a rush I had to call Brent and my mom to tell them how much I loved it.

We ate one more time and bid farewell to the park. Our last ride was the water taxi back to our car at the Loews Royal Pacific Resort. We ended up staying four hours longer than we planned and didn’t get as far on our drive home as we had hoped. But it was worth it. Scott has been asking all morning if I would drive him back to the Cat in the Hat. He’s been telling me everything he remembers about the rides and the water taxi and the pool and anything else that comes to mind. He’s quite the storyteller and this trip definitely gave him lots of stories to tell.

Mixed Media: Mama Dada Blues

January 30, 2013 by ajpassey Leave a Comment

Why Music?

Music is becoming an increasingly important part of our play. Music is great for dance parties and altering sour moods. But it’s great for so much more, too. Music is good for learning, bonding, communicating, and creating! As we have gotten to know various albums, specific songs have sparked art projects, gifts, and parties. With so many opportunities to review and share new music here on the blog, I’ve felt inspired to explore and elaborate on the connections we’re making between music and other early childhood education activities.

Welcome to the Fourth Edition of Mixed Media!

In each Mixed Media post I’ll share a song and a creative project that was inspired by the song. My hope is that you will be inspired to share music with your little one in a way that gets you two (or three or four!) connected to each other and to your creative sides. This week’s song is Mama Dada Blues by Vanessa Trien and the Jumping Monkeys. You can pick up Bubble Ride on Amazon to add to your music library. It’s full of awesome songs.

As we have got to know this song, I kept envisioning cute baby faces showing different expressions. It’s so fun to look at pictures of our kids as babies and all the facial expressions we were able to capture. As we listened to the song I asked them to listen for 1) how old the babyis, 2) what things the baby is thinking, and 3)what the baby is actually able to say. With a new baby joining our family this summer, I used this as a way to prepare the kids for what it’s like to have a non-talker around again.

For our craft I found several pictures of babies with different expressions in magazines and online. I also cut out several shapes and sizes of speech bubbles. Each of us chose a piece of construction paper and the baby faces we wanted to use. After gluing our faces to our papers, we glued a corresponding speech bubble down. Then we filled in the bubble with what we thought the baby was trying to say based on their expression.

Elli matched up lines from the song with her baby pictures. Scott said, “What’s your name?” I don’t know if he was asking the baby or if that’s what the baby was asking us! Sammi was very creative in what her babies were expressing. We all had so much fun thinking of what could be going on for these babies. I was amazed to see how well the girls could recognize and explain the different emotional expressions in the babies.

Don’t forget to grab Bubble Ride and a magazine today and share this activity with your little one.

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Reading Rocks! Review and Giveaway

December 8, 2012 by ajpassey Leave a Comment

We are in love with all the albums combining music and storytelling. Johnette Downing‘s newest album, Reading Rocks! is no exception. Our children have thoroughly enjoyed the stories on this CD. They are folktale style stories telling how things came to be for certain animals. Their favorite is Why the Oyster has a Pearl. Many of her stories have also been published as books. The newest addition to her collection is Why the Possum has a Large Grin, which is also on Reading Rocks!

We’ve enjoyed the songs as well. The album has the feel of a visit to the library for storytime. There’s a warm up finger play, stories, and songs that are fun to move to. I like that the songs focus on promoting reading. It’s the perfect combination of both my passions, music and literacy!

Johnette Downing has graciously offered a copy of Reading Rocks! to a BBGU reader! Thanks, Johnette. Just use the Rafflecopter form below to enter the giveaway. The giveaway is open to residents of the US and Canada who are 18+. It will close Fri, Dec 14.
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Helping Your Child Go to Sleep at Night

November 26, 2012 by ajpassey 1 Comment

Every parent’s challenge!

Today’s post is written by Sukey Molloy. Sukey Molloy is a children’s music performer, award winning recording and video artist, and former professional modern dancer. Based in Nyack, NY, Sukey has studied Developmental Movement, Kidnastics, and Infant Development, and has designed and taught music and movement programs in nursery schools, after-school programs, and elementary schools. In 2005 Sukey launched her own program of “Mommy & Me” classes and teacher training workshops, creating PlayMove&Sing Inc. Sukey Molloy’s latest CD release, “I Am Sleepy!” was released in October of 2012 and is available at www.SukeyMolloy.com. Back to Sukey’s own words:

I have experienced many a night trying to help my children go to sleep. My husband and I read “A Tournament of Knights” so many times out loud that the pages eventually fell out and our sons still knew whether or not we had skipped a word. The same was true with “Goodnight Moon”. I have found that children thrive on ritual, and that they need a lot of encouragement when learning how to “let go” of the day. Transitioning from day to nighttime is an awesome task.

I’d like to share a few bedtime rituals that have helped me with my children, and with my music and movement class participants who share their experiences at circle time. I hope you’ll let me know what works for you.

Here they are!

Say goodnight to the whole world. Say goodnight to the whole world with your child at bedtime. Name the special people loved near and far. Name the many different animals that live all around the globe. Name the oceans, the trees, the mountains, the stars, the moons, and the suns. This can help a child feel that the whole world is right there with them as they fall asleep.

Share moments from the day. Share with your child special moments you each remember from the day. What was fun? What was silly? What was sad? What was hard? See what you can remember together. With a little prompting, even toddlers can do it.

Read a story. Read a story out loud to your child, but only one! Choose a book together earlier in the day, and with your child, leave the book under the pillow. When bedtime comes, the chosen book will already be there waiting.

Tell a story. Create your own story to tell (on the spot) at bedtime, continuing each night with more episodes. You will surprise yourself. My husband told hundreds of “Purple Bird & Talking Banana” stories that were never rehearsed. Your child will help you with content to be sure!

Use a special goodnight puppet. Include a new or favorite hand puppet as part of your child’s nighttime ritual. You can use the puppet to say or sing goodnight to loved ones and treasured objects in the room.

Listen to a story. Play audio stories to help your child fall asleep. Stories can be very soothing. Don’t be surprised if your child wants to hear the same one over and over again.

Put a favorite toy to bed. Your child will love to make a special “bed” for favorite toys and stuffed animals to sleep in at night, complete with blanket and pillow. Your child will feel very nurturing being in a parenting role at bedtime.

Turn on the night light. Invite your child to “turn on” the night light before going to sleep. If it’s a self adjusting light, see if there’s a way you can help your child participate in that moment.

Learn a lullaby. Learn a special lullaby to sing to your child at bedtime. When I was young, I remember my mother sang to me and I was enraptured. She sang the same songs night after night and it was very comforting.

Move the bathing ritual earlier. Move your child’s bath, pajama, and tooth brushing ritual earlier in the evening (or day) if possible, to eliminate stress. Too many things to do at bedtime can be exasperating.

Listen to music. Play your child’s favorite quiet time music at bedtime. It’s a great way to drift off to sleep. But, decide together earlier in the day what the music choices will be. Draw a picture together about one of the songs, and save it to look at, at bedtime.

Make a wish. Make a special wish together with your child before going off to sleep. Making a wish can create a sense of security, especially when the wish is made for someone else.

Hugs and kisses. Hugs and kisses are of course the highlight of any nighttime ritual. Make sure you enjoy your time together, even if it takes longer than you intended. You’re creating memories for a lifetime.

Thank you to Sukey Molloy for sharing your expertise and experiences with Because Babies Grow Up readers. Stay tuned next week for a giveaway from Sukey!

What works in your bedtime routine? What suggestions are you interested in trying?

I Am Sleepy! by Sukey Molloy Review

November 19, 2012 by ajpassey 1 Comment

We enjoyed Sukey Malloy‘s latest album, I Am Sleepy! from the first listen through. Elli insisted on listening to it as she feel asleep. She particularly loved the storytelling tracks. I made the mistake of trying to skip The Story of Twinkle Little Star to let her listen to a song. She was not interested! She wanted to hear how the story ended. My storytelling heart loves to see the kids so involved in a story.

In May we reviewed I Am Happy! by Sukey Molloy. We have enjoyed her music and working with her. I’m excited that she will be guest posting on Because Babies Grow Up later this month. Then at the beginning of December we will have an awesome gift pack from Sukey Molloy to giveaway.

I Am Sleepy! is available on Sukey’s website.

What do your children love at bedtime?

Farmer Jason and Nature Jams

October 26, 2012 by ajpassey 1 Comment

We received Farmer Jason‘s latest release, Nature Jams, last month and have been thoroughly enjoying the creativity of this album. He has many buddies from his time in the adult music world who perform with him on this album. I love that they tell a little background before each song. Storytelling always brings things to life for me.

Sammi’s favorite part of the CD is “Prairie Riddles” with Iris Dement. This is a cute song where the verses give clues about animals that live on the prairie. Sammi loves yelling out the answer before they sing it.

Elli’s favorite song is “Can You Canoe?” with Alison Brown. We sing this one back and forth to each other during many daily activities. In fact almost anytime a question starts with “Can you..” we take a break and sing “Can you canoe?”

I love that every time The Saw Doctors start “Well Oh Whale” I feel like I’m transported to an Irish soccer match. It just brings back great memories of my early adulthood when I was really into soccer. Pitter patter goes my heart.

From Farmer Jason’s about page: Jason Ringenberg received the Americana Music Association Lifetime Achievement Award. Ringenberg is one of the pioneers of the modern Americana and alt-country genres. In 2002 he created Farmer Jason to educate and entertain children about farm life and the wonders of nature. The character is based on his own farming background and love of the great outdoors.

His songs do a great job of sparking interest in nature and a desire to get out and experience it. We really felt the connection one day as we ate Keebler Bug Bites as our snack while listening to Nature Jams 🙂

Farmer Jason’s website: http://www.farmerjason.com/

Farmer Jason on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/farmerjasonofficial

Nature Jams is available on iTunes, Amazon and from Farmer Jason’s website.

How do you get your little one excited about nature? Is that even important to you?

The Day We Survived the Tornado

September 21, 2012 by ajpassey 5 Comments

I have never been so scared in my life. I have never prayed with such simple, intense pleading.

We had decided to leave our friend’s house in what we thought was a lull between the storm waves. I loaded up the kids for the 7 minute drive home. About two minutes away from their house the wind kicked up and it sounded like things were starting to get bad. I immediately regretted my decision to leave.

But as we came to the stop sign, a truck drove by and I thought, “Whew, we’re not the only ones crazy enough to be on the roads.” I turned to follow the truck and then dark got darker. I couldn’t see the truck. I could hear things falling to the ground and I was panicked. Then Brent called. I turned into a driveway to go back to our friend’s house. I told him it was freaky and got off the phone. Then I invited the kids to pray with me. And we prayed hard!

Once I was turned around I was horrified. The clear road I had just driven down was littered with rather large branches and other debris. I could only see as far as my headlights lit the way so I couldn’t see any houses. But the entire two minute drive back to their house felt like forever as I thought any moment was our last and that poor Brent would be…yeah, it was awful.

When I got to our friend’s house I turned down their long driveway. I had to weave around huge tree trunks that had been blown down. I wasn’t even sure I was going to see their house. It was absolutely terrifying. But, the trees that would have fallen on all the cars in the driveway, they were still standing. Not a single car was hit. The house was not hit. Wind had damaged the house, but nothing fell on it. I knew I was witnessing a miracle. They sent someone to help me get the kids inside. We were so panicked we were nearly unfunctional.

We spent close to an hour in the bathroom, 3 adults and 8 children, while the men folk assessed damages. We had time finally to explain to my children what a tornado was and what it did to anything in its path. They had missed the previous explanation because we were, you know, narrowly avoiding that path. Seriously we drove right at it, then turned around and followed it. A miracle, I tell you.

These are the kinds of experiences that take time to process. Lots and lots of time. Also, lots of talking, rehashing, sorting out, learning vocabulary and facts. This happened in March and still, it comes up. Elli makes connections to tornadoes most frequently of us all. At first I had no clue what she was talking about. She always said “tomatoes” and when I tried to clarify it was always “tomatoes, the swirly kind that kill people.” “Ah, tornadoes.” I clarify. “Yeah, tomatoes.”

It came up again this week. We were listening to Vienna Trien and the Jumping Monkeys. I am really enjoying their CD and so is Elli. Her favorite song is Tickle Monster. One song is called Spinning Around and I asked Elli if this was her song because she loves to spin so much. She agreed and started going on and on about spinning around. Which then reminded her that “tornaToes” also spin around and around. “And remember that time, Mom, when we were in the bathroom for an hour and the swirly tornado knocked all the trees down? Yeah, me too. I remember that.”

And then it happens again. The flashbacks. Not just memories and images, but the emotions. My heart races; I pray all over again. This time my simple, intense prayer is one of gratitude that we were spared that day when my very unwise choice placed our little family in death’s path. And we are all still processing and assimilating this experience into our personal history.

To lighten the mood, here’s something for your listening pleasure. The song that inspired this post:

Spinning Around by Vanessa Trien and the Jumping Monkeys

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

I Am Happy-A New Album from Sukey Molloy

May 7, 2012 by ajpassey 3 Comments

When I pulled out I Am Happy by Sukey Molloy for one more listen before writing this review, Sammi exclaimed, “Goodie! I like her.” And for good reason, Sukey’s music connects with kids in an energetic, engaging way. This album brings Happy into our house every time we turn it on.

Sukey Molloy really connects with the preschool crowd. Her songs are spot on with what interests and engages little ones. The girls were following along the songs that invite actions and Scott was bouncing and bobbing along to every song.