Bunchland

Wow. You need to do this. Immediately.

Here at Bunch we can’t think of anything more awesome than combining water balloons and the always awesome sidewalk chalk. And just to sweeten the deal, combining them for some live action Angry Birds. It is, in fact, even better than playing Angry Birds on your phone. Believe us. We gotta credit the brilliant Allison McDonald at No Time For Flashcards, who’s always coming up with creative activities.

You’ll need:

• Balloons (preferably in red, yellow and blue)
• Water
• Permanent marker (to draw your birds faces on the balloons)
• Washable sidewalk chalk. Don’t have any sidewalk chalk laying around? It’s actually quite easy to make, and you can get the recipe here.

For the complete instructions and more photos on how to set up and play this game, check out the full post here.

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June is Bike Month! Celebrate it in style.

Perhaps crocheting a cover for your bike is not a project you’d be willing to tackle, but there are lots of other great (and much easier) ideas to jazz up your bike in time for bike month.

The classic bike decor typically centers around strapping on a store bought coloured plastic basket and calling it a day. Cute enough, but we think you can do better with simple dollar store stuff or old toys and some hot glue.

You’ll need:  Read more...

• Basic bicycle basket
• Plastic flowers
• Feather Boa
• Beads or necklaces
• Other decorative items such as figurines, stuffed animals, toys, pom poms etc.
• Hot glue or wire

What we’re reading today:

1. Kids don’t really need Gatorade, unless it’s really hot and they’re running around a lot.

2. One San Francisco mom was a little scared away by “mommy makeovers” being promoted in her otherwise helpful new mom newsletters, what with the multiple plastic surgery procedures you get all in one go, so she started making her own clothes.

3. One author says that parenthood is swallowing marriage.

4. How to raise a socialist.

5. Social Family news: Soldier dad can’t be there for the birth of his son, so he watches the whole thing on Skype:

Photo by r3v | cls via Flickr

The face of skepticism.

Today’s Postcard from Bunchland comes to us from Bunchlanders Ramon and his daughter Keira, from Richmond, BC.

Do you have a Postcard from Bunchland?  Send photos of family fun to meghan@bunchfamily.ca or find us on Flickr.

Rounding up some cool ideas for exploring in your own backyard.

Summer is (finally) here, and at Bunch we are ready to get outside and explore! This outdoor toy and gear roundup has everything your kids will need to become expert explorers, scientists and botanists in your own backyard.

1. Backyard Safari Birdwatching Kit

This bird watching kit has everything for the budding ornithologist in each of us.  Binoculars, tripod, field guide and three types of bird call whistles will help to attract and identify our feathered friends.

Image via Toys R Us.

2. National Geographic Explorer Kit

A must have for the general explorer in every family. Binoculars, a compass, magnifying glass and an LED flashlight keep kids oriented and engaged.

Image via National Geographic.

3. Do and Discover Insect Collecting Kit

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While Beth Blenz-Clucas enjoys her Memorial Day holiday, she’s recruited Aussie Indi Taylor of {Kid} Independent to fill in.

When you’re a child, you make your way through life with a unique set of priorities and opinions. Important issues like how to eat as few vegetables as humanly possible, pondering how to defeat the monster posse residing under your bed, trying to dig your way from your backyard to the other side of the earth and how to build a rocket ship out of toilet rolls and tin foil are all crucial parts of your daily routine.

On the other hand, learning the boring stuff that they teach in school resides firmly at the bottom of the priority list.  Read more...

What we’re reading today:

1. Conservative columnist Benjamin Shapiro says that TV is full of shows that promote left-wing agendas. In his new book, Primetime Propaganda, he calls out Sesame Street for promoting pacifism because the characters talk about resolving conflicts peacefully. The nerve of that Elmo.

2. If you’re crying in front of your kids, are you teaching them empathy, or burdening them with taking care of you? Salon’s Mary Elizabeth Williams is having a whopper of a year and has found her self bursting into tears more than usual.

3. How open are you with your kids about sex? Brad Pitt says there are no secrets in his house, when he and Angelina Jolie need some alone time, they tell the kids they’re going off to kiss.

4. If your kid’s born in November or December, would you hold them back a year before starting school? Have you?  Read more...