KEEPING CONNECTED TO THE WORLD

INTERNATIONAL NEWS IS A PRIORITY

For the last six months I have slowly been isolating myself from the world, not in a bad mental health way, but, by not keeping up on what is happening around the globe. It happened gradually, a change in job and routine meant I stopped listening to podcasts. A faster commute to work meant I missed the World News on the radio. Summer - well, you are forced to disconnect with the rest of the world when you are off camping. 
I didn't think much about it, I mean listening to the news and keeping up with world events was kind of a hobby, a luxury...but, I'm too busy now and it doesn't fit into my life. 

So what?

Well, I realized the other day that I'm becoming ignorant. 

A few small things happened to make me realize that the path I'm leading is probably not that great. I just happen to be was watching (no judging please) the Duggers (that 25 kids and counting even more show) and one of the boys was on a honeymoon in Greece. The thing that struck : how obvious it was that they knew nothing about Greece, the people, the cities, the history, the politics, how hard the financial crisis of ten years ago hit them (and they are still paying for it), the immigration problems...nothing. They knew nothing! Which makes sense b/c their family completely isolates themselves from the world. Fine for them, but, I don't want to be like that. And, I certainly don't want my kids to start their life like that.

What American's think of Europe.

Then I managed to hear about the terrible bridge collapse in Italy, and someone questioned how that could happen. And, I actually had an opinion - from the years of listening to world news I've learned a few things about how Italy runs (and it doesn't seem to have the most efficient public service sector) and I recall hearing concerns over infrastructure in Italy years ago. It made sense to me. I felt informed. 

That made me realize how important taking some time to keep up on international news. It's one of those things where you take in tiny clips everyday and over the years you develop a wide knowledge base that you can call upon to make sense of the world. It kind of helps see through fake news...

Long term exposure to news lets you see the real picture

What I am doing to accomplish this you ask?

Making time to listen to my favourite (and most trusted) update - CBC World at Six. I listen to the podcast the next day b/c I'm usually busy at six taking the kids to sports, or making dinner, or just living life.

Getting out of North American, figuratively of course. It seems the North American news bubble is so focused on itself that it rarely notices there are places like Europe, Africa, Asia, where interesting things happen too.
Which is why I make the trip to BBC World Service - Making a point to visit this site where there are interesting shows and articles from the entire world. And, the 'news' is not the typical negative-fear inducing-headline worthy kind of news that we are used to. There are positive stories about small accomplishments that give you a real idea of how life works in different parts of the world.

I am going to make an effort to share tidbits of what is going on in the world with the kids. Have those mind blowing conversations around the dinner table where I explain the intricacies of how the European Union is dealing with immigration...or maybe keep the topic simple. 

SCHOOL LUNCH TIME IS BACK

MAKING SCHOOL LUNCHES AGAIN

Finding that balance of good quality nutritious food and 'junk' is tricky.

Go into any classroom and you will see a variety of lunches - from one extreme (junky): lunchables and a pop
To the other extreme (hippy-dippy): a free range hard boiled egg in the shape of a hello kitty on a bed of organic kale.

We try to meet in the middle.

I have a little fun with the extremes in this video - from 'would your grandparents recognize the food' to POGOs!

I really think you can't go wrong with my strategy: A foundation heavy on the fruits and vegetables. A sprinkling of things considered unhealthy, processed, sugared, nitrate-ized....this strategy works well, even on that day when you say, 'we need to do groceries'. You can use what you have. That's what I do in this video:

We all have time constraints, energy limits, budgets, picky eaters...it's the classic economics question - marginal gain per unit of energy put into a task.
How much time and effort do you need to put into a lunch to make it just healthy, tasty, and cheap enough?

Hopefully this last video will inspire you to do the least amount possible...with the most reward. AKA - easy to make lunches that are tasty and healthy:

MORE LUNCH IDEAS FROM THIS BLOG

A PLAYLIST OF THE BEST SCHOOL LUNCH YOUTUBERS I HAVE FOUND

LET KIDS BE BORED

BEING BORED IS ESSENTIAL FOR CREATIVITY

I remember being bored as a kid. I'd be bored with my toys, bored with TV, bored with books, so I'd complain to my parents, "I'm bored". They'd throw back the typical parent response, 'go find something to do'.
I'd trudge back to my room, lie on my bed and be bored. 
But, a little while later I'd be busy again, drawing or cutting up old hockey cards and creating a new game with them. I'd be outside climbing the tree stringing up rope to catch a bird. Something like that. I'd end up creating something; a game, a picture, an inventive bird catcher (that never really worked). That's what you did when you were bored.

Is that still happening today?

It sounds like not that often. With overscheduled kids, working parents that feel guilty 'doing nothing' on a Saturday, cell phones constantly grabbing their attention...there is just no time to 'get bored'.

But, it turns out being bored is very, very, very good for the brain.

There is more and more evidence coming out making the connection between boredom and creative thinking/brain health. Turns out letting our mind wander, getting bored, zoning out, daydreaming, all those kind of things are very important for the brain.

Another one of those perks of slowing life down or simplifying life. Being 'unproductive' is the new productive!

I read a great article - linking boredom and creativity - urging parents to rebel against our culture of 'being productive' at all times and instead take an alternate route and devote time to your inner self (and appearing to be unproductive). This article does a great job of explaining how the brain reacts to boredom.

I also stumbled across a similar podcast explaining how boredom is NEEDED to make the brain as creative as possible. https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/the-school-of-greatness/e/51883202


Just something to think about. 

TRUMP! SERIOUSLY?

HOW TO EXPLAIN...

On Monday, Olivia (our 10 year old daughter) asked me, "Did Donald Trump win the election in the United States?" (we are Canadian to put this into context). She had run across a news headline while working on the ipads at school proclaiming 'Trump won and the world is going to end'.

I calmly replied that there is no way that anyone with common sense would allow a Donald Trump to run their country.

Lolli then started asking really tough questions. "Why does he want to get rid of Muslims? All the muslim people in my class are really nice."

"Why does he want to put up a wall?"

"He sounds racist, is he racist? That is not ok."

I tried to explain that the US is a different country, with different beliefs, a different social structure, a history of racism and slavery and all that...wow, what a complicated thing to try and explain and even harder b/c I don't understand the thinking behind a vote for Trump at all.

What makes it even harder is the extreme difference between Trump and our new prime minister Justin Trudeau. Justin is all about breaking down walls, helping refugees, bringing people together, trying to solve our own racial problems dealing with our native people, and he is just a happy positive guy...with great fashion sense to boot (when he is out and a'boot).

I'm very thankful that we have a leader I can tell my children to look up to.

PM Trudeau | "Wheels"

FISHING ON FATHER'S DAY

A FABULOUS FATHER'S DAY

Father, Father, kids and kids

Father's Day was full of activity. The citizens of the PUTP packed up their fishing equipment and headed out to their secret fishing spot. They met Grampa out there, whom the children would describe as an 'expert angler' or more likely 'a man obsessed with all things fishing', and they set their hooks.

After an hour, and many fish caught, the activities changed from fishing to just playing in the water.

 

"It was nice to go fishing with the kids," said PUTP Father Matt, "it reminds me of when I was young and would go fishing with my Father." A tradition passed down through the generations continues in the PUTP.

LIFE LESSONS LEARNED THROUGH HOCKEY

THE SEASON IS OVER

Many of the citizens of the PUTP are letting out a sigh of relief knowing the hockey season is now over. "What are we going to do with our weekends now," is a comment that will be heard often over the next month or so. To say that weekends are dictated by the hockey schedule is no joke. Throughout the entire winter every Saturday and Sunday has hockey scheduled into it. Hockey is a big commitment. And sometimes, like this year, this commitment takes place at 6 in the morning.


There are many benefits to this time consuming / early morning schedule:
1) A reason to get up at 5:30 am in the middle of winter
2) A reason to get out of the house before the sun rises
3) A reason to get out of the house and get some fresh air and sunshine when you'd rather burrow down into the couch and eat chips
4) A reason to meet up with family and friends (when you'd rather burrow down in the couch with a bag of Doritos)
5) The most important reason is because Eli loves playing

Here is a video showing a few snippets of the season.

Although hockey does bring on a few challenges, the benefits far outway the costs. Many life lessons are learned at the rink - for both kids and parents.

For the player: Eli has not only learned physical skills like skating and shooting, but, more importantly he has learned some wonderful social skills. Being part of a team has made him more empathetic. He has had a chance to see that the world is made up of many people. The team can only succeed if they all work together. Eli has taken this attitude and run with it. He is constantly celebrating his teammates successes. The first comments when he hits the changeroom is about his team - "Mikey scored four goals today!" - while being humble about his skills - "Sure, I scored two, but, it was only because Alyson was so good on defense". This life skill, of seeing the big picture, is a tough lesson to learn, but, hockey (or any team sport) allows this to happen.
This year the season was loaded with dawn cracking early morning games. Eli quickly learned another important life lesson - planning ahead. The night before he would be the one getting out his clothes for the morning, he was the one questioning bed time (is 7 early enough?), and he was the one that requested getting up an hour earlier than required so he'd have time to wake up, and time to get mentally prepared. He learned a lot about himself with those early morning games, about how his mind and body work, and that he does not do well when rushed. And he was the one who found a solution to that by getting up earlier. Pretty impressive for a six (now seven) year old.

For the parent: Hockey is another time you have to let go of your child and allow them to explore the world by themselves. If you look around at the other hockey parents you will see a wide range of reaction to this loss of control. The extremes range from totally ignoring all that goes on to yelling instructions from the stands. It is tricky finding the ideal balance of being involved and letting your child discover the world of hockey for themselves.
If you are looking for some advice from a great hockey parent, or at least the parent of a great hockey player - check out Walter Gretzky's book. He is the father of The Great One - Wayne Gretzky. In his book he talks about how he approached hockey when his children were young. He gave the kids some general advice, but, he never told them what to do. He let them explore the game for themselves. Experimenting, trying new things, learning new skills - that's what keeps the game fun.
As a parent, hockey is one of those lesson in restraint. There are times you want to yell from the stands. There are times you want to push your little player because you know they can skate faster. There are times you want to correct them, tell them how you think they should be playing the game. It is easy to get caught up in the game. The game. That is the lesson here for us parents - it is only a game. In the grand scheme it doesn't matter if they win or lose. It doesn't really matter if they skated as fast as you thought they could. They are out there to learn a game, make friends, and just have fun. It is a tough exercise in restraint, but, one with great satisfaction when you find yourself sitting on the edge of your seat watching your little one try out that ridiculous move they invented in the backyard (the triple deke, kick the puck with your skate, do a twirl and slap shot it) and actually score with a goal with it. Then have their teammates crowd around high fiving them while they humbly try to give credit to their teammates great passing play. It is well worth the effort and the tired mornings.

BEING THE KID'S #1 FAN

THERE IS NO LACK OF FANFARE FOR THE ATHLETES OF THE PLACE UNDER THE PINE

The Place Under The Pine started out as a quiet place - mainly full of artists, crafters, musicians, and readers. As the PUTP grew in population the demographic make up started to change. No longer were the citizens a homogenous group of artsy types, but instead, they have shifted towards a more sporty type. The younger cohort, those under the age of 10 who make up 60% of the population, are the cause of this shift. As this younger segment ages they engage in more and more sporting activities. The older generation, instead of rejecting this change have embraced it. They now spend more hours at arenas and basketball courts than they do crocheting, sewing, painting, and any other 'creative' activity. In fact, one parent has taken his support to a whole new level - becoming a superfan!

Example of a superfan

The superfan is someone who is there for every game and every practice. The superfan is one who memorizes the stats, collects memorablilia, maybe even creates homemade hockey cards. They are often the one who can be heard in the stands when 'their' player makes a good play.

Is a superfan a good thing?

One theory is that since a superfan is devoted for life, the player always knows they will have undying support whether they win or lose. It can make them feel special...and loved.

The PUTP superfan can often be seen waving his #1 Fan Finger. Although the children appear to be embarrassed by the finger, deep down they know, when they look up and see the big yellow foam hand waving, that someone is out there rooting for them.

VOTING - A FAMILY TRADITION

NOT BOATING, VOTING!

There has been a long standing tradition around the Place Under the Pine of respecting the democratic process, acting in a responsible manner when electing our leaders, and encouraging all to voice their opinions - in other words : FAMILY OUTING TO VOTE! (Possibly followed by ice cream).

This year the clan took advantage of the advanced polling

The thinking around the PUTP is that learning to vote is an important life lesson, one that takes time and effort to learn. Since elections do not happen all that often, when they do it is given special status. Political discussion happen around the dinner table. Pamphets and websites are read and discussed. General political science theories are essayed about. And most importantly, the entire family takes a trip to the polls and casts their votes.
The results of this educational strategy are striking - Lolli, for eg, has went from saying, 'where is the boat' (around age 2) to spouting out party names and their stances on environmental, aboriginal, and educational issues (age 9).

Random political quotes heard around the PUTP:
"...should help out those that need help"
"...98% of lakes are not protected! What will we drink?"
"...Who is the Green sign again?"
"...the marginal enjoyment of an extra dollar is far less for those with higher incomes which is why the UCB does not make sense..."