Elyse Major divides her time between being a mostly stay-at-home mom, writer, communications consultant at Neighborhood Health Plan of Rhode Island, tinkerer, blogger and online shop owner. Elyse is a contributing writer at Romantic Homes magazine and has had work published in Artful Blogging and other publications. She is currently working on a craft book. Elyse's efforts are cheered on by her husband and two boys in Rhode Island.
Here’s a fun idea that doesn’t require many tools and the main material is not only free but provides a little field trip! These projects are made from paint chips, the free cards displayed at paint departments that show ranges of related colors available from manufacturers. The white lines that divide the colors and the sturdy card stock make them perfect candidates for crafting. And did I mention they are free?
We love getting to know parents in our community. In our Home Work series, we ask moms and dads how they juggle their work while raising kids, hoping to get some insight on how to better balance our own work/playtime while being introduced to our neighbors and their cool businesses. Today Elyse Major interviewed Eric Bulmer. Meet the “Science Guy.” He is the Owner and Program Director of Pow!Science! a leading provider of Elementary Science enrichment programs in Rhode Island and Southern Massachusetts with two locations that are part toy-store and part-workshop/party space.
Kidoinfo: What inspired you to start your business?
Eric Bulmer (EB): A couple of things. Although I loved classroom teaching, I was not enjoying the administrative aspects of the job and felt I was being held back. Teaching to a test has never been my style. Also, during my last year as a classroom teacher, I began performing science birthday parties and workshops for another company and saw the potential to take science “performance” a lot further. When Keith Michael Johnson, one of RI’s top enrichment performers, told me I “had the stuff” to go it on my own, I believed him.
Make Comics! is run by the Providence Comics Consortium, a group founded by educator/comic enthusiasts Walker Mettling and Andrew Oesch. Sessions held at library program rooms take place two afternoons per week, two hours per session. As a former art student and crafty mom, I was impressed by all facets of the classes: the obvious planning, the materials offered, the instruction of using panels for storytelling, inking and using details such as facial expression to succinctly convey emotion; there was even a healthy snack! To close the session our instructor Walker presented each child with a bound anthology of student work from both sessions, assembled with great care.
Vinegar easily makes my “what would you bring to a desert island’ list – the practical version anyway. At less than four dollars for a gallon jug, white distilled vinegar offers a myriad of uses that can easily replace costly and harsh pesticides and chemicals.
Vinegar can be found throughout my home whether in its original jug in the basement, the filled spray bottle in the cupboard or the dainty cruet on the kitchen counter. Even more than its low-cost, I like the idea of cleaning with something that has no warning-paragraph. There is no fear from vinegar accidently getting sprayed on foods or tooth brushes, in fact, you can spray it on foods and toothbrushes.
Elyse Major and I were recently invited to sample services at The Spa (formerly the Red Door), located in the Providence Biltmore in downtown Providence. Having the opportunity to spend the afternoon at a spa is a luxury that never seems to fit either of our budgets or timetable. But after spending an afternoon at The Spa—I had an amazing manicure and pedicure while Elyse enjoyed a massage, followed by relaxing in the quiet room with candles and magazines and ending with a delicious lunch and glass of wine at McCormick & Schmick’s Seafood Restaurant—we both felt like we had gone away for the weekend, forgetting any stress or pressures of everyday life.
