LOCAL SPOT: Maui Children's Bookstore - now carrying Ivy & Co.!

Maui Children's Bookstore owner Amanda and I. 

There is great satisfaction when you meet someone who's vision aligns with yours. Today I had a meeting with Amanda, owner of Maui Children's Bookstore (MCB). Immediately I could tell that Amanda has the gift of friendliness and encouragement, and is a true artist, which is evident in her translation of her shop space, inventory selection, and fashion sense. (She hung my bunting way better than I did).  It was unbelievably gratifying to be in the space and talk with her! Here are a few reasons why:

1. She owns a bookstore! 
Those are rare these days, and I know that's why the masses are rallying around Amanda and her shop. Literacy is so important to development, and it's essential that kids never lose the chance to turn the pages of their favorite books. She shares a storefront with the well-established Maui Thing, and it's been so neat to see that partnership develop. MCB carries a handpicked selection of new books including children’s literary classics and contemporary stories for babies to tweens. I noticed some great renditions of Alice in Wonderland and Pride & Prejudice!

"We aim to spark wonder and deep appreciation for the beauty of books, story and language."

Photo courtesy of Maui Children's Bookstore.

Ivy & Koa checking out all the fun toys. 

2. She is family-oriented, which I've noticed is central to the mission with MCB. After all, this is a CHILDREN'S bookstore. Check out her latest blog post to see all members of her family working to get MCB up and running. Prior to securing the location within Maui Thing, Amanda facilitated pop-up shops around the island, with an emphasis on story time and healthy snacks for the whole family. Her husband and son seem to always be helping out and actively participating in MCB's activities. They both popped in during our meeting. Later on Ivy showed up, so Amanda got to meet part of my family too. 

Aside from books, MCB carries children's clothing, baby products, eco-friendly educational toys, and art work.

3. She likes Ivy & Co.! 
She gave me one of the biggest compliments I've received in a long time: she loves my fabric choices and the way I put them together. You see, I've always been a performing artist. Since Ivy & Co. (sewing & furniture restoration) came about in 2011, it's been interesting to watch my creativity morph into something new. It's a little bit of an insecurity to put myself out there in this way (I'd be more comfortable dancing onstage in a flashy costume!), but now this aspect of artistry is being validated by these shop owners who are carrying Ivy & Co. 

If you can't tell, I'm elated about this working relationship with Maui Children's Bookstore. 

If you're on Maui, pop on by: 

Maui Children's Bookstore

7 N. Market St. 

Wailuku, HI 96793

(Shared space with Maui Thing)

Follow MCB on Facebook

Follow MCB on Instagram

www.mauichildrensbookstoreandcafe.com

"Through books, through play, through sweet classes and tea.  I want you to know that we're going to do our best to create an environment that begs to be filled with heart-synched moments like these."

-Amanda, from the blog post "At the heart of it all"

Don't forget to draw something on the chalkboard while you're there!

Aloha, Rebecca

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A Number A Day - pre Pre-School prep

Well, we've finished "A Letter A Day" and it only seemed right to do "A Number A Day" next. 

A little background: Ivy is 3 years old and itching to learn new things! She's not yet in pre-school (see the reasons why, here) so I'm doing what I can in the meantime to foster her love of knowledge!

So here's how we approached learning A Number A Day:

1- WRITE - I write out the number on a small white board a few times, with Ivy watching me. Then I have her try and write the number herself. If need be, I make a dotted line version of the number for her to trace, or I help her write the number. 

#2- BOOKS - We use a few books that have to do with numbers. We only read up to the page of the number we're on. I don't want to confuse Ivy with all the other numbers at once, but I do want to review the numbers we've already done. I just found books about numbers we already had.

"Count With Me," from a mini Sesame Street collection

 "My Very First Book of Numbers," by Eric Carle

"Ten Little Ladybugs," by Melanie Gerth

#3- CLOCK - Next I use a clock (an awesome hand-me-down from my cousin!) and I ask Ivy to find today's number on the clock. I also look around to see if we can find today's number on other household items: calendar, other books, phones, microwave, etc.

#4- PLAY-DOUGH -  Here's the fun part! We get out the play-dough and use the stencil/cookie cutter things (what is the word for those?!) to make today's number in the play-dough. At this point I let her use all the numbers (0-9) to play around with, so they become familiar to her. 

TIPS

*Be patient! Numbers are new to your child, they're not going to learn them all at once or in one day. Today Ivy insisted that #4 was an 'H.' She also gets I, L, and #1 confused... haha. She'll get it as long as I gently correct her and help her remember. She also may get stuck on not being able to remember a number, but it will eventually click a few days later.

*Talk about the numbers throughout the whole day. Ivy points them out on signs, in the grocery store, on TV, license plates. Learning doesn't stop when your "number lesson" is done.

*Try to do it every day, and at the same time every day. I'll be honest, this doesn't happen for us, but when it does, it's better for all of us. Believe me, Ivy asks for it every single day, even later in the day on the days we've already done it! She asks so much that I get a little frustrated! However, if she knows she can expect it at the same time every day, you have some ground to stand on. 

*Fill in other caregivers. Ivy is watched by me, my husband and both of my parents. I let them all know what she's learning so they can be aware of it and help her out it the opportunity presents itself. 

Ivy turned 3 last month, and it's been... interesting. More emotional than age 2, that's for sure. (For example, Ivy is sobbing over the angle of her sock seam right now). I found this pin on pinterest. It's been helpful. Enjoy! 

Aloha, Rebecca

Source: thechildwhisperer.com via Rebecca on Pinterest

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A Letter a Day - pre Pre-School Prep

We just decided that we are going to wait until next Fall to enroll Ivy in Pre-School. She turns 3 this week. I know she's ready to learn, but the logistics of pre-school just don't work for us right now. I know everyone makes these decisions for different reasons. Here's ours:

1. I work in the afternoons (3:00pm-7:00pm usually). So Ivy would head to pre-school all day, then when it's time to pick her up, I would be leaving for work. :(

2. She has a late birthday, which means she would be in pre-school for 3 years if we enrolled her now.

3. Money. We have been working really hard to get out of some debt, and we're very close to meeting our goal. Adding on a monthly pre-school payment would set us back. We live next door to my parents, who work from home, so it's not like we need "day care." They gladly let Ivy come over anytime we need her to.

4. Germs. This isn't a real reason, but it does sit in the back of my mind. I have had huge trouble with my immune system, and I do all that I can to not get sick, especially since I work with kids all week long. In the last year (via diet change, herbal supplements and acupuncture), I've made leaps and bounds boosting my immunity. If right now Ivy went to school and started bringing home all those little illnesses, I think I'd be right back to square one, health-wise. In another year, my immune system will be that much stronger. Lucky for Ivy, when she gets sick (which is rare) she's over it in a day or two, just like her daddy. For me, I'm down for the count for about 2 weeks. 

With all that said, I know Ivy is craving a piece of academia. So I started doing "A Letter A Day" with her. We started at the beginning of the alphabet. Here's how we do it:

1. On a piece of paper, I write the letter. Then I draw a dashed version of the letter for her to trace. Then I have her try to write it on her own. For now, I just do uppercase. Some of the books show the lowercase, and I briefly say to her "big H, little h, uppercase H, lowercase h" but I really just stick with learning the uppercase.

2. I tell her the sound that letter makes, then recite a bunch of words off the top of my head that start with that letter. For 'H,' I said, "hand, head, happy, hurry, help..." It's really neat when she "gets it" and then says a word. When we did the letter 'J,' she interrupted me with the word "juggle"! I was overjoyed. :)

3. I gathered these Alphabet items we already had: 3 books and a stacking block set. After we write our letter, she knows to go get these things.

4. We go through each book and find the page with that letter, and say the name of the picture that goes along with it. The "Elmo's Alphabet" book is cool because it has a whole little paragraph that goes along with the letter. 

5. Then we get the Alphabet Block with the letter on it, and I have her find the letter on it. It also has a corresponding picture, which gives her more chances to hear the sounds.

6. Then we go to our bookshelf and try to find the letter in the titles of the books.

7. Lastly, we take the letter we wrote and put it on the refrigerator with the rest of the letters. When daddy comes home from work, we show it to him proudly!

I will also usually write the letter on our main family calendar, so I remember which one we're on, if we happen to miss a day. Ivy watches me do this, and that's kind of the beginning of teaching her about dates!

If you have a toddler at home, I hope you can take something from this post and use it!

Ivy just loves doing her Letter A Day, 

and reminds me about it all the time. 

How did you come to your decision about pre-school?

Aloha, Rebecca

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