You know how women's magazines have those little articles about fun things to do with your family? This is like 10 years of those ideas all in one place. Only you are spared those obnoxious photos of pristine toaster ovens and closets organized by that sect of hermits who take a vow to own nothing but three pieces of splashy, sassy, ready-for-spring ensembles to pair with their strappy heels. Also, no perfume ads.
Instead you get page after page of practical, realistic ideas for unplugged family activities that you can customize to match your kids' ages and interests. The chapters are organized by types of activities (crafts, meals, outdoor adventures, etc.), and there are several easy-to-read indexes in the back to help you quickly find the ones that match your budget and energy level. Most of the suggestions are either free, or involve money you were going to spend anyway. (You are going to eat today, right?)
Other than the chapters on prayer and on the saints, the activities themselves can be purely fun family time, or they can be explicitly tied to the Catholic faith. Every activity includes suggestions on how to make the faith connection.
What if you aren't crafty? Don't panic on the crafts, there aren't that many and they are very low-key. Indeed, I'd say this is the perfect book for people who don't do glitter glue, foam art, or anything involving popsicle sticks, ever. Did I mention Sarah R. is a real mom of young children, with a farm, and a writing job, and . . . you get the picture. You may find yourself wanting an internet connection to pull off a few of these activities (I see you have access to one, very good), but no glue gun will ever be needed.
What if you are, in fact, the grumpy, curmudgeonly type? See the next section. I advise letting your kids pick the activities. That way you never need fear you've gotten all goofy and relaxed for nothing. Also you could tell the kids you aren't going to do Chapters 1 and 2 yourself, but you'll give them five bucks if they'll just be quiet while your finish reading the paper. (Um, wait a minute. No, that's not how the book's supposed to work. Oops.) Chapters 3-9 are Curmudgeon-Safe, though the one idea about a backyard circus makes me a little nervous . . .
Who could use this book? Three groups of people come to mind, and last was a surprise to me, but it's true:
1. Parents, grandparents, and other relatives.
-If you're trying to think up new ways to connect to the kids, and get out of the rut of doing the same old things.
-If you have a long summer vacation ahead, with stir-crazy children and no money for expensive camps and activities.
-Or if you didn't have a satisfyingly Catholic childhood, and you want to find ways to share and practice your faith without being all stodgy and dour about it.
2. Kids. My daughter is fighting me for custody of our copy. The book is eminently readable, so you really can hand it to a late-elementary or older child, and say, "Pick something out for us to do Saturday." I like that because then the onus is on the kids to decide which activity sounds fun -- and I'm always surprised by what kids come up with when given the choice.
3. Catechists, VBS volunteers, scout leaders, and anyone else charged with keeping a group of kids busy for an hour or two. Some of the activities will only work in a family setting, but very many of them are well-suited to using in a classroom. The suggestions for faith tie-ins make this an awesome resource for religious ed and VBS. If your parish doesn't have money for a high-priced pre-packaged program with talking pandas and cheesey chipmunk videos, you could seriously just go through this book and pick out activities to assemble a home-grown series of your own.
Sarah's put together a great book. Enjoy!
[For those who wonder: a)Yes, Pauline Media sent me a review copy. And b)Yes, I work with Sarah R. and we are friends as a result, so if she wrote a bad book, I just wouldn't review it. But let me observe that c)I've actually gone and bought a copy with my own hard-earned cash to give as a gift to my DRE. Trust me I don't spend dollars I don't have to, so if it were a so-so book, I would've just given my free copy to my DRE and been done with it.]
