The Kidoinfo family has certainly grown over the last year and there are now over twelve regular contributing writers. Our computers, Wi-Fi, and email allow us all to work virtually anywhere and anytime—especially helpful if juggling multiple jobs, childcare or sick kids. The downside is since we don’t need to see each other to get our articles written and posted on the Kido blog, we often don’t see each other. I am a big believer in face time and connecting offline—and although I love my computer and use it quite a bit—I decided it was time to meetup in person with the other Kidoinfo writers.

We met at Jake’s in the jewelry district, conveniently located for people driving from all parts of the state and a groovy place to have food and drink inside with a great jukebox or outside on the patio. They have free Wi-Fi as well in case you need it. What a blast. People met for the first time, found out more about each other, decided on ways we can all stay in touch, shared ideas about future stories and more.

Kidoinfo writer meetup (pictured above L to R, except for Martha Iachetta (thinking mom) who had not arrived yet): Jill Davidson (education), Maura Keating (product reviews), Michelle Riggen-Ransom (nature/nurture), Anisa Raoof (publisher), Erin Goodman (it’s a date), Nancy King (editor), Marianne Ruggiero (risd artplay), Katy Killilea (grocery news, food, general), Jaci Arnone (general)

Snacks and dollars for the jukebox—since it was so nice outside we decided to save our dollars for the next Kidoinfo meetup.

Other Kidoinfo contributors who were not able to attend: Mark Binder (story of the month), Megan Fischer (providence children’s museum), Adam Darowski (general), Geoff Griffin (general), Hope Foley (audubon society), Katie Mulligan (nutrition), Christina Mitchell (pediatrician), Melissa Brusso (sports mom), Jen Morin and Kirsten DiChiappari (wellness).

The Parks Department will run the 2008 summer lunch program, which provides free lunches to children at pools, parks and recreation centers in Providence.

The program will begin on Monday, June 30 and run five days a week until Friday, Aug. 22, 2008.

Lunches include a sandwich or pizza, fruit, milk and juice. Any child 18 or younger is eligible to receive a free lunch (no questions asked), as long as he or she eats it on site.

Check the Kidoinfo summer guide for a list of pools and waterparks.

By Michelle Riggen-Ransom

This “Meet a Parent” is a little different than usual. To kick off a summer of gardening, I interviewed my friend and avid gardener TJ Sondermann about his gardening habits. TJ is a librarian who is currently at home with his almost seven-month-old son. He’s also a committed urban gardener, a fount of techie and greenie information, and an all-around nice guy. Let’s meet him!

Where do live?
TJS: Providence, RI

What are you planting this year?
TJS: This year we’re removing lots of lawn to make room for perennials. In the veggie garden, we’re planting corn (which we grow mainly to make the dry stalks into fall decorations as the squirrels always eat all the corn), lots of assorted greens, eggplant, tomatoes, pickling cucumbers, our regular assortment of herbs, and we’re experimenting with Brussels sprouts.

We’re also planting a neighborhood BYOS (bring your own scissor) herb garden on the side of our house this year. Come on over for a sprig of thyme if you need it.

Where do you garden?
TJS: The first day we looked at the house that would become our own, my wife was asking all sorts of appropriate questions about taxes and heating bills. Me, I had my eye on about sixty square feet of space in the backyard that was screaming, “Clear me out and plant some veggies.”

I’m also volunteering a bit at the Mount Hope Community Garden this year. I can’t think of a better way to get your family involved in the fabric of your neighborhood than by standing shoulder to shoulder, knee-deep in compost with the diverse group of folks who generally make up a community garden.

Who do you garden with?
TJS: Generally with my wife and a small group of friends whose children range in age from 4 months to 6 years of age. We all pitch in (with advice or manual labor) from time to time at one another’s backyard plots and share the bounty either directly or through weekly dinners. Last year a few of us (kids included) plucked many pounds of basil leaves from stems and had a pesto making party. Everyone went home with a few containers of freshly made pesto.

What is your favorite thing about gardening with your child?
TJS: I’ve been hooked on gardening since my grandfather sat me on his lap at age 5 and showed me a cucumber that he had grown inside a beer bottle (Michelob, of course), and I cannot wait to do the same for my son.

Thanks, TJ! Happy Gardening to you and your family.

Nature/Nurture, written by Michelle Riggen-Ransom, is an occasional column with ideas and information to help kids and their families engage with the natural world in fun, interesting ways. Share your thoughts and explorations by adding your comment below, or contact us with your story ideas.

PHOTO CREDIT: From TJ Sondermann’s Flickr account

By Marianne Ruggiero
Coordinator of Family Programs at The RISD Museum

Artists nowadays choose to work with many different manmade materials. Why do many opt for Styrofoam, of all things? Hold a cup in your hand, and you’ll see it’s light as air. Leave the cup on your kitchen counter and you might see your kids, later in the day, decorating it, looking for additional cups to make a tower, or playing “telephone.” Grownups create with Styrofoam as well, a lightweight, inexpensive material. A case in point is the current show at The RISD Museum: “Styrofoam: From Industrial Invention to Artistic Transformation.” The show brings together unusually compelling art works by major contemporary artists all made of, you guessed it, Styrofoam. The fact that the works exhibit such a variety of interesting forms and textures is tribute to the fact that Styrofoam can be easily reworked. Some of the artists whose work is on view simply create with found pieces of Styrofoam. Tony Feher, for example, just happened upon the Styrofoam “bricks” that make up his witty Blue Tower.

Styrofoam, as we all know, doesn’t biodegrade like paper or plastic, so using cast-off pieces of it to create art, or simply making art objects of lasting value with it may be one of its appealing qualities to many artists. Kids love to create with Styrofoam as well, and they’ll have plenty of opportunities to discover and make imaginative art with this material at The RISD Museum’s June 28 Free-For-All Saturday program, STYROWORLD. At 1 pm, Rhode Island’s own Big Nazo puppet creatures will animate the day’s program with their outlandish costumes and zany antics on the Museum’s front lawn.

Location: RISD Museum, 224 Benefit Street, Providence, RI. (directions)
Time: 11AM-4PM.
Cost: Free
Information: contact Marianne Ruggiero at 401-454-6674 or follow the link above.

Illustration: Tony Feher, Blue Tower, 1997, Collection of Eileen and Michael Cohen, NY courtesy of D’Amelio Terras, NY and Pace Wildenstein, NY

For over 60 years, Meeting Street has been a pioneer and leader in designing and advocating for early intervention, inclusion, education and therapeutic services for children with various needs. They are experts in childhood development and education who are committed to the success of every child.

Meeting Street is where infants, preschoolers and children of all ages and abilities receive individualized attention from highly trained, dedicated educators, therapists, and staff who work as a team, sharing strategies and identifying solutions to bring out the best in each and every child.

Find a list of summer programs here. Learn more about Meeting Street by visiting their website.

The Kidoinfo website and email has been temporarily unavailable yesterday and part of today due to a malfunction with a server at our web-hosting company. I am pleased to say the problem is now fixed. I hope you were mesmerized with the phenomenal range of weather in the Rhode Island area yesterday—from blue skies to lightning to hail—and you missed us a little, but are ecstatic to have us back.

By Jill Davidson

With the school year ending, many parents may be spending more time with their kids. And while their days may be filled with camp, playdates, classes, and more, and our adult days are filled with our adult stuff, we need to continue to cultivate the art of kid conversation.

Some families have kids who are naturally proficient reporters, but many of us have kids who are like my oldest son, aka “the vault.” With him, what happens at school (or camp or a friend’s house) stays there, unless and until we can get him talking about his day. So here are some tips from parents to get your kids to talk about what happened in their days, all of which we have applied with success to “the vault” and his brothers.

First, find the right time for the right conversations

If you make a practice of having family dinners, that’s a great place to talk. Car rides, walks, and playtime can also work. Find settings that make your kids happy, and establish the habit. And know your kids, and what makes them comfortable. Betsy Schwartz, mother of an 11-year-old girl, says, “I am pretty involved in my kid’s education, but I’ve never gotten a direct answer to ‘How was school today?’ I do get a lot of information at random times, usually in the car when I’m trying to get across a bad intersection, or when I’m trying to figure out what we have that’s edible, or other times when my mind is half elsewhere. Some kids find it easier to talk when the high beams are off.”

Marjorie Ingall, mother of two girls, ages 3 and 6, agrees. “I always liked that expression: ‘Shoulder-to-shoulder, rather than face-to-face.’ Sometimes the best and most effective conversations happen when you’re commuting, going for a walk, doing something else, and not having a Very Important Sit-Down Discussion.”

“I swear all our shoulder-to-shoulder conversations happen when I’m trying to parallel park,” jokes Kristin Courtemanche, mom to a 2-year-old son and a 5-year-old daughter. Communication with our kids happens when it happens, and that’s one of the real challenges of parenting—being in the moment when you need to be.

Get the conversation going in unconventional ways

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When the temperature starts rising like it did recently, we need to find ways to help our kids (and us) cool off fast while hopefully entertaining them at the same time. Make sure you always have plenty of cold water on hand for you and your child to drink.

INDOORS:
Visit your local branch of the Public Library
Visit the Mystic Aquarium (inside part) or NE Aquarium
Visit a museum
Go to the mall (Emerald Square Mall has a carousel in the food court)
See a movie for free
Grocery shop
Hop on the bus (though not all are air conditioned) — free on ozone alert days
Explore the indoor play areas at McDonald’s or Burger King (you do not have to buy anything to use the play equipment)
Take a cool bath

OUTDOORS:
Play with spray bottles filled with water
Make water balloons
Eat popsicles
Set up the sprinkler/kiddie pool in a shady spot in the backyard
Head to a local water park (Open July-August)
Visit a shady park like the Baby Park, Lincoln Woods, or Colt State Park
Take a walk after dinner to your local ice cream shop

Tell us your ways for staying cool and having fun when it heats up outside!

I am sending my boys (age 6) to day camp for the first time this summer. Here is our checklist to help keep track of all of the essentials and make our camp mornings easy and stress-free. Print your own copy and tuck into your child’s bag so they can check off everything they should bring home. Add your own suggestions in the comments below.

This list of items for day camp should fit into your child’s backpack.

___ Sunscreen with an SPF rating of at least 45 (I think the roll-on kind is easier for younger kids to re-apply it themselves.)

___ Insect repellant wipes and/or insect repellent wristband (Do not send an aerosol can of insect repellant—the spray will sting if it gets in your child’s eyes.)

___ Bathing suit and towel (I recommend the cheap, super thin ones—less bulk in the backpack.)

___ Water bottle filled with ice-cold water

___ Hat

___ Comfortable running shoes or closed-toe sports sandals WITH socks

___ Extra set of clothes (especially a pair of socks and shirt if they get wet from the rain)

___ Rain poncho (rolls up small)

___ Medication: All camps should have your child’s medical information on file. Having an extra note with details in their backpack and attached to their Prescription medication and/or Epi-Pen is helpful.

___ Food: Most day camps will provide lunch and snacks. If you pack a lunch it should be easy to eat on the ground. A sandwich (avoid peanut butter since most camps are nut-free), fruit and a juice box or water makes for a healthy lunch. Granola bars make an excellent snack. Some camps may have snack bars – find out the rules and cost of items ahead of time so you can plan if and how much money you want your child to have everyday. I recommend putting money in a zippered change purse or Ziploc baggy. Notify the camp of any food allergies your child may have.

Optional:
___ Change purse with $1-$2 for snacks
___ Benadryl cream for itchy mosquito bites

Photo Credit: Children’s Critter Pack from LLBean

By Jaci Arnone

Recently, a neighborhood mom tipped me off to a great alternative activity that’s just perfect for escaping the dog days of summer that lie ahead. Several cinemas in the area offer free summer movies for kids and their families (see listings below).

During the recent heat-wave, I jumped at the chance to check this out for myself. I took my three younger kids to see Over the Hedge at Cinema World in Lincoln. The kids were admitted free of charge, and my ticket was $2 (although adults are free with a donation of a non-perishable food item). There was a balloon artist in the lobby, which was a huge hit with my kids, and I must admit that the AC was absolute bliss.

I’m usually the last person to suggest watching a movie over outside play, but I’ve been looking for ways to limit our UV exposure and find a balance between fun in and out of the sun. I will definitely be making these summer movies a regular part of our schedule.

Cinema World Free Kids Movie Series (website)
Where: Cinema World, Lincoln Mall 16, 622 George Washington Highway, Lincoln, RI
When: Every day, all summer long at 10 am.
Cost: Children under 12 are admitted free of charge. Adults pay $2 or free with donation of non-perishable food item for local food banks.

• June 20 - 26, Open Season
• June 27 - July 3, Happy Feet
• July 4 - 10, Madagascar
• July 11-17, Shrek 3
• July 18 - 24, Flushed Away
• July 25 - 31, SpongeBob
• August 1 -7, Curious George
• August 8 - 14, The Wizard of Oz
• August 15 - 21, Alvin and the Chipmunks
• August 22 - 29, Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium
• August 30 - Sept 4, Surf’s Up

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