Ten Cheap Ideas for Family Summer Fun
By Celeste Leibowitz
The school bell has rung for the last time, and the kids have burst outside, waving their report cards and singing, “No more pencils, no more books!”
Now what? It may be time to roll out those “lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer,” but how can you keep the family occupied without spending a bundle? Here are some suggestions for families with at least one stay at home parent (SAHP).
1. Start a co-op day camp: If you’ve got a babysitting co-op going to save on child care costs, you may have the makings of a co-op day camp. To get this going, round up four other committed families. Commitment is important, because if one family drops out, the structure falls apart.
Each family is responsible for two days each week. One family takes the lead role each weekday, with the second family acting as backup. This gives each family three weekdays completely free to pursue errands, relaxation, or keep up with the demands of a home based business. If the families can afford to chip in a little money, and a couple of families have teenagers, hire them to assist with the day’s activities, and give every family four days off instead.
Plan ahead for activities, and play to each parent’s individual talents. Have you got a musician, an artist or artisan in your group? How about a green thumb, a bird watcher or photographer, a dancer, an athlete? Who’s got a swimming pool, or a big back yard with lots of play equipment?
Each day should be different. One day the kids can bake cookies, the next day learn square dancing. Remember to plan alternate activities for those boring rainy days! Ask older children to keep a record of the camp fun, with photos and scrapbooks. At the close of the season, throw a potluck party or barbecue, and have the kids put on a talent show to demonstrate what they have learned.
2. Free programs for kids: Keep up with free activities offered during the summer. In some towns, the public schools operate free day camps and offer free breakfast and lunch for school-age children during the summertime. Libraries run summer reading programs with a kickoff event and a closing party for children who read the required number of books. There may also be arts and crafts programs, movies and free music offered at the library, along with the free books and films you can check out to enjoy at home. Investigate the playgrounds and parks; there are often free programs such as nature walks, storytelling, and sports events for youngsters.
3. A day at the beach: If you are near the seashore or a major lake with a beachfront, you’ve got hours and hours of cheap entertainment at your disposal. Take the kids swimming (only if there is a lifeguard, please!), and let them play for hours in the sand. Hunt for seashells, driftwood and “beach glass” that has been worn down to rounded edges. Bring home your finds and create arts and crafts projects as souvenirs. Help the youngsters to build a magnificent sand castle or other sand sculptures. For instructions, take a look at websites such as http://www.missico.com/personal/kids/sand_sculpture.htm. You don’t need fancy, expensive tools or equipment to make a sandcastle; utensils from your kitchen or garden will work just fine.
What to bring to the beach:
Sunscreen with a SPF of 45 or better for babies and children (adults, use it too!)
A blanket and lightweight beach chairs
Sunglasses for everyone, swimsuits and towels
Caps
Picnic lunch and water
Flipflops or water shoes for walking on blazing hot sand
Toys: pails, shovels, funnels, spoons and forks, an old sifter
4. Free outdoor concerts and performances: Summertime is the best time for free music. Check online and in local papers, and find out when outdoor concerts, dance performances and even free or inexpensive circuses are in town. Bring a blanket or folding chairs and your picnic dinner, and dance while the stars come out. Some concerts even feature a fireworks finale.
5. Go birding: Bring a pair of inexpensive binoculars and bird guide (Half.com has lots of them), and watch the birds. Some parks have bird-watching groups that assemble in the early mornings. Note migrations and keep track of the species you spot. If the birds are close enough, take photos.
Do you live in an area with lots of pigeons? If so, the kids can take part in a scientific study, Project Pigeon watch. For more information, go to http://www.birds.cornell.edu/pigeonwatch/GettingStarted/kit and download a free Pigeon Watch starter kit. It’s fun, it’s educational, and it costs you nothing.
6. Gone fishing: Have you got a fishing rod and tackle sitting around the house? Or maybe you fish on a regular basis. Bring the kids, but be sure to observe the local fishing laws and regulations. Look them up online before you go, or the fine may ruin your frugal fun!
7. Hikes and bike trails: If you live near a state or national park, hikes and nature walks are readily available. For safety, bikers should wear a properly fitting helmet. Bring enough food and water, and put together your own “trail mix” of nuts, dried fruits and chocolate bits (M & M’s work well). You can find bicycle lanes on many streets and in the parks. Have fun, get some exercise, and enjoy the greenery as you march or ride along.
8. Parades and street fairs: Summer is also time for parades and street festivals. Street festivals are great fun, with free music and entertainment. They’re also a good way to learn about services and organizations in your hometown, because many groups rent a table and distribute their literature along with free samples and goody bags. One thing to watch out for at street festivals is the tendency to spend too much money on flea market items or exotic foods (shish kebabs, mango roses, frothy fruit drinks). Pack a lunch and stick to one food or drink item you can’t get on an everyday basis.
Parades provide great summer entertainment. Arrive early to get the best view, and bring that camera. Many towns have an Independence Day parade, but there are also plenty of unusual themes in towns and cities across the nation. New York City has the Coney Island Mermaid Parade on the first Saturday of summer, and a number of communities hold Pet Parades with costumes and prizes for the best-dressed pets.
9. Art shows: If your town has an art society or a camera club, summer is the time for outdoor art shows. The artwork itself can be pricey, so treat it as a museum exhibit and just look. Have the kids bring sketchbooks, pencils or markers, and make their own renditions of their favorites. Maybe one year their own entries will be in the show.
10. Explore your town’s history. Who founded your town, and when? What sort of people settled there? What was everyday life like a century, two centuries, and three centuries ago? Are your streets named for famous people? Learn the town’s folklore and legends. Are there any special “holidays” your town commemorates that no one else knows about? Celebrate them!
These are just a few of the many ways to enjoy summertime, keep the kids occupied and happy, and keep your budget on track at the same time. Happy summer solstice, everyone!
Monday, May 31, 2010
Saturday, January 02, 2010
New Year's Goals
It looks like I haven't given up completely. It's 2010, finally, and I am hoping things will be looking up. 2009 was not kind to us. Bruce lost his job because his plant closed down. After over 30 years in the envelope industry he had to search for something new in a new industry.
He's finally found something. It's a big step back financially, and there are no benefits. But we're considering it an internship, and hoping that if he proves his worth by September, when our COBRA discount is about to run out, they might be willing to work something out so he can have decent benefits for the family and be able to continue on there.
So the first big goal for 2010 is to get back on our feet financially and at least get back to where we were before the plant closing and the layoff.
My personal goal is to find a full time job with benefits, or else to raise my consulting rates to the point where I can afford to pay for benefits for the family.
Another goal is to continue fighting for healthcare for all Americans. We need Medicare for everyone, and any spare time I have I'd like to devote to this cause.
Jason's goals for this year are a part time job, achieving his A.A. degree, and starting towards his B.A. in the fall.
We're ready to take on 2010, but I certainly hope it will be a kinder year for everyone. I'm sure glad to see the back of 2009.
He's finally found something. It's a big step back financially, and there are no benefits. But we're considering it an internship, and hoping that if he proves his worth by September, when our COBRA discount is about to run out, they might be willing to work something out so he can have decent benefits for the family and be able to continue on there.
So the first big goal for 2010 is to get back on our feet financially and at least get back to where we were before the plant closing and the layoff.
My personal goal is to find a full time job with benefits, or else to raise my consulting rates to the point where I can afford to pay for benefits for the family.
Another goal is to continue fighting for healthcare for all Americans. We need Medicare for everyone, and any spare time I have I'd like to devote to this cause.
Jason's goals for this year are a part time job, achieving his A.A. degree, and starting towards his B.A. in the fall.
We're ready to take on 2010, but I certainly hope it will be a kinder year for everyone. I'm sure glad to see the back of 2009.
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Should Dreamscapes Retire?
I'm thinking about hanging this blog up and going for one that's more targeted. While I won't erase it, it's got some great memories recorded, I may grab some old posts and move them into a new, improved blog.
It's time to come up with a new title, a real focus, and a way to get some attention through social networking. Posting every six weeks or thereabouts is not going to get this blog noticed.
Some of my areas of expertise and/or interest are:
Frugal living (isn't everyone these days?)
Changing careers & job hunting
Grant writing
Causes: LGBT rights, especially youth
Health Care reform
I'm interested also in books and read a great deal, also in animal protection, human rights and other topics. What to choose??
That's going to be my question to ponder for the time being.
It's time to come up with a new title, a real focus, and a way to get some attention through social networking. Posting every six weeks or thereabouts is not going to get this blog noticed.
Some of my areas of expertise and/or interest are:
Frugal living (isn't everyone these days?)
Changing careers & job hunting
Grant writing
Causes: LGBT rights, especially youth
Health Care reform
I'm interested also in books and read a great deal, also in animal protection, human rights and other topics. What to choose??
That's going to be my question to ponder for the time being.
Saturday, September 19, 2009
How to Conduct An Interview
Recruiters, take heed. There are millions of job seekers out there, and we’re comparing notes.
Sure, the economy is supposedly recovering, but meanwhile job losses continue and the official unemployment rate is climbing towards 10 percent. That means work for you is down too, and many recruiters have received pink slips. At one recruiting agency for nonprofit organizations, every time I call, I hear another staff person has left.
So for those of you who remain standing through all this chaos, it’s imperative that you do your job well. This includes treating potential recruits with respect.
We may be a dime a dozen, but we’ve got more than one avenue for job hunting. We’ve studied up on the job market and we know which fields are in demand. Some of us have taken courses on writing better resumes and cover letters. Because this is the worst period of unemployment and general economic shakiness since the Great Depression, we’ve prepared ourselves for the job market as never before.
So please, don’t give us unsolicited advice about fixing up our resumes. If we’re having trouble getting interviews, we’ll ask for help. Don’t take it on yourselves to reformat or rewrite our resumes. One recruiter insisted my resume had to fit onto one page, and left out important information about my most recent positions in order to make it fit. Others drop the font until you’d need a microscope to read it. It’s a resume, not a Procrustean bed, folks!
An interview should help the recruiter elicit a candidate’s experience and positive traits. Ask the right questions to get these answers. Nit-picking at the resume and asking why we left our last three positions may be relevant, but if you fail to balance these questions with questions such as, “Describe your greatest achievement,” “What do you like most about (occupation),” or “How would you deal with this situation…” you’re not letting us put our best feet forward. That’s a loss to you, and a loss to the organization on whose behalf you are interviewing candidates. By being too zealous about making the candidate justify her years as a stay-at-home Mom, or questioning every achievement as if you are conducting a cross-examination with a hostile witness, you’re letting the good ones slip away under your radar.
Please don’t tell an older candidate to drop his college graduation date off the resume. We’ve read the pros and cons, and the decision to leave it in and face possible ageism is not an oversight. You aren’t the expert on his job search: he is. His next prospective employer could interpret the lack of a graduation date as evasiveness about his age or even put his claim to a degree in doubt.
In short, the more respectful and friendly you are, the more you establish rapport with a candidate rather than creating a back-room interrogation atmosphere, the better you’ll be able to elicit the candidate’s best examples of her skills and experience. Try this approach and you’ll find more potential employees for your clients. The bottom line? That’s more money in your pocket.
And remember, what goes around comes around. Treat us with respect, and we’ll keep in touch. When that pink slip comes your way, one of your former recruits might just point you towards your next position.
Sure, the economy is supposedly recovering, but meanwhile job losses continue and the official unemployment rate is climbing towards 10 percent. That means work for you is down too, and many recruiters have received pink slips. At one recruiting agency for nonprofit organizations, every time I call, I hear another staff person has left.
So for those of you who remain standing through all this chaos, it’s imperative that you do your job well. This includes treating potential recruits with respect.
We may be a dime a dozen, but we’ve got more than one avenue for job hunting. We’ve studied up on the job market and we know which fields are in demand. Some of us have taken courses on writing better resumes and cover letters. Because this is the worst period of unemployment and general economic shakiness since the Great Depression, we’ve prepared ourselves for the job market as never before.
So please, don’t give us unsolicited advice about fixing up our resumes. If we’re having trouble getting interviews, we’ll ask for help. Don’t take it on yourselves to reformat or rewrite our resumes. One recruiter insisted my resume had to fit onto one page, and left out important information about my most recent positions in order to make it fit. Others drop the font until you’d need a microscope to read it. It’s a resume, not a Procrustean bed, folks!
An interview should help the recruiter elicit a candidate’s experience and positive traits. Ask the right questions to get these answers. Nit-picking at the resume and asking why we left our last three positions may be relevant, but if you fail to balance these questions with questions such as, “Describe your greatest achievement,” “What do you like most about (occupation),” or “How would you deal with this situation…” you’re not letting us put our best feet forward. That’s a loss to you, and a loss to the organization on whose behalf you are interviewing candidates. By being too zealous about making the candidate justify her years as a stay-at-home Mom, or questioning every achievement as if you are conducting a cross-examination with a hostile witness, you’re letting the good ones slip away under your radar.
Please don’t tell an older candidate to drop his college graduation date off the resume. We’ve read the pros and cons, and the decision to leave it in and face possible ageism is not an oversight. You aren’t the expert on his job search: he is. His next prospective employer could interpret the lack of a graduation date as evasiveness about his age or even put his claim to a degree in doubt.
In short, the more respectful and friendly you are, the more you establish rapport with a candidate rather than creating a back-room interrogation atmosphere, the better you’ll be able to elicit the candidate’s best examples of her skills and experience. Try this approach and you’ll find more potential employees for your clients. The bottom line? That’s more money in your pocket.
And remember, what goes around comes around. Treat us with respect, and we’ll keep in touch. When that pink slip comes your way, one of your former recruits might just point you towards your next position.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
A Song for Healthcare Reform
This is roughly to the tune of Meat Loaf's "Took the Words Right Out of My Mouth." Unfortunately my singing voice frightens the horses. I'm hoping someone who can play an instrument and sing might adopt this and use it at rallies.
The doctor said you needed a new operation
Well the doctor said you needed a pill
The insurance man said, No, you can't have that
Stay healthy or just go to hell!
The doctor said, without this treatment you're dead
There was nothing else they could do
So we sold off our house and we sold off our stuff
Almost sold off our firstborn too
Then we lost our jobs, no more insurance
Everything we worked for was gone
The emergency doctor said, we'll take care of you
But you didn't get here fast enough
You died in the ER, you died in the ER,
The insurance man laughed and said, Tough!
We gotta break their power, we gotta take back our lives
We gotta make the US join the first world
We gotta have single payer
Before we're all dead
Pass the public plan today, single payer tomorrow
Fight on for the people, fight on for the people, win it, win it now for Ted!
I've posted this on Facebook and sent it to Moveon.org. I hope it will be useful, because protest songs can really get people going. That's my contribution to the movement!
The doctor said you needed a new operation
Well the doctor said you needed a pill
The insurance man said, No, you can't have that
Stay healthy or just go to hell!
The doctor said, without this treatment you're dead
There was nothing else they could do
So we sold off our house and we sold off our stuff
Almost sold off our firstborn too
Then we lost our jobs, no more insurance
Everything we worked for was gone
The emergency doctor said, we'll take care of you
But you didn't get here fast enough
You died in the ER, you died in the ER,
The insurance man laughed and said, Tough!
We gotta break their power, we gotta take back our lives
We gotta make the US join the first world
We gotta have single payer
Before we're all dead
Pass the public plan today, single payer tomorrow
Fight on for the people, fight on for the people, win it, win it now for Ted!
I've posted this on Facebook and sent it to Moveon.org. I hope it will be useful, because protest songs can really get people going. That's my contribution to the movement!
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Health Care Rally in Times Square
Bruce and I attended the rally for Healthcare Reform in Times Square this afternoon. I think there were more than the 1,000 people the media is reporting, but anyhow, we were a lively and spirited crowd. Bruce and I were right near the barricades, so we held our signs up facing the passing cars. Taxi drivers were especially happy to see us and honked their horns, even jumping out of their cabs at the red lights to take some of our flyers. Most of the tourists on the double decker buses seemed to support us also.
I'm convinced that more people support the public option and even single payer health care than the media is reporting. It's just that we may not be as vocal as we need to be. It's hard to get people to turn out to demonstrations, especially on a day where it rained in the morning. But I wore my poncho and went, rain or shine.
There was lots of positive energy at this rally and I hope we can continue to build on this energy and create a groundswell.
"Be Careful With My Heart," POP Arts at Hetrick-Martin
After our visit to the Zoo, we headed into Greenwich Village to see a POP Arts show at The Hetrick-Martin Institute. POP Arts stands for Peers Outreaching to Peers, and the program educates young people about safe sex, STI and HIV prevention, and facts about STI's and HIV/AIDS. They also learn acting techniques and scriptwriting, and together they write their own play to inform other youths about what they have learned.
This year's show was a stunner. Called, "Be Careful With My Heart," it portrayed just about every kind of relationship: straight, gay, lesbian, and bisexual. Kids of various orientations attended a party where couples went off to bedrooms together, and heavy consequences resulted. There were breakups, there was risky sex, heartbreak and betrayal. Yet there was also a lot of built-in comedy so that the show was anything but grim.
One young woman sang a beautiful song, and there was a hot and humorous dance number. This is a talented bunch of young people coming to terms with different sexuality and with the hormonal ups and downs of horny teenagers. After the show, the performers answered questions from the audience. Many people were so touched that happy tears were shed. It was truly a moving and educational performance.
I was particularly struck by the dilemma one young woman faces. She is Muslim, and their tolerance of gays and lesbians is slim to none. I had to admire her courage in coming to Hetrick-Martin and taking part in this show, and I hope it will not blow up in her face if her father ever finds out what the show was all about.
Hetrick-Martin accomplishes so much with kids who would otherwise fall by the wayside. I'm proud to be associated with this great organization.
This year's show was a stunner. Called, "Be Careful With My Heart," it portrayed just about every kind of relationship: straight, gay, lesbian, and bisexual. Kids of various orientations attended a party where couples went off to bedrooms together, and heavy consequences resulted. There were breakups, there was risky sex, heartbreak and betrayal. Yet there was also a lot of built-in comedy so that the show was anything but grim.
One young woman sang a beautiful song, and there was a hot and humorous dance number. This is a talented bunch of young people coming to terms with different sexuality and with the hormonal ups and downs of horny teenagers. After the show, the performers answered questions from the audience. Many people were so touched that happy tears were shed. It was truly a moving and educational performance.
I was particularly struck by the dilemma one young woman faces. She is Muslim, and their tolerance of gays and lesbians is slim to none. I had to admire her courage in coming to Hetrick-Martin and taking part in this show, and I hope it will not blow up in her face if her father ever finds out what the show was all about.
Hetrick-Martin accomplishes so much with kids who would otherwise fall by the wayside. I'm proud to be associated with this great organization.
Thursday at the Zoo
We visited the Bronx Zoo to celebrate Jason's 20th birthday. Thanks to his summer job, he was able to get all of us in for free and get us a 30% discount on lunch as well.
The animals were great. I enjoyed seeing many baby animals: a little lemur named "Cupid" because he was born on Valentine's Day, a baby giraffe, and a baby flamingo. Peacocks roam the Zoo grounds at will, and we got up close and personal with a peahen and her adorable chick. It's always fun to visit the zoo and learn some new facts about the animals there.
Saturday, August 08, 2009
Don't Believe the Scare Stories
It amazes me that people are believing the Republicans and the big insurance companies who are bending over backwards to stop a public health care option. They're shaking in their shoes believing that the government is going to decide who lives and who dies.
Guess what, people, wake up! Right now that's exactly what the insurance companies are doing. Not to mention the people who don't have insurance coverage, either because they are out of work (realistically, close to 20% of us when you count the underemployed and those who have given up) or because their employers simply don't choose to provide it. They're skipping doctor visits and taking half doses of needed medication. And guess what else, our infant mortality rates are the highest and our life expectancy rates are the lowest, in the industrialized world.
Even if you have insurance coverage, a layoff will do away with it. And even if you have insurance coverage, your necessary treatment could well be denied, even though it could save your life. So who is deciding whether you live or die? Not your doctor, that's for sure.
Back in the sixties, a cousin of mine was having a terrible struggle to have a healthy child. She had one miscarriage after another. Nobody's fault, right?
Wrong. She and her husband moved to the Netherlands so he could take a job there and complete a Ph.D. The Netherlands happen to have -- gasp -- socialized medicine. My cousin was placed on complete hospital bedrest for months of her pregnancies, and gave birth to three healthy children who are now young adults. Not one of them would have been born in the US where months of hospitalization would have been prohibitively expensive. I don't even think anyone suggested it to her as an option, here in the good old USA, best damn country in the world...except when it comes to taking care of our people.
Sure, there will have to be cuts, so how about if we cut down on unnecessary tests and on unnecessary procedures? Why does the U.S. have a disproportionately high number of caesarian section births? How about cutting back on that and having more natural childbirths? We can certainly trim expenses without harming anybody.
It's time to stop listening to the lies of greedy people who would rather snap up your money and let you die in a ditch, than see you cared for at the government's expense. It's time to insist that we catch up to the civilized world and take care of all our people...rich, poor or middle class, from the cradle to the grave, no exceptions.
Guess what, people, wake up! Right now that's exactly what the insurance companies are doing. Not to mention the people who don't have insurance coverage, either because they are out of work (realistically, close to 20% of us when you count the underemployed and those who have given up) or because their employers simply don't choose to provide it. They're skipping doctor visits and taking half doses of needed medication. And guess what else, our infant mortality rates are the highest and our life expectancy rates are the lowest, in the industrialized world.
Even if you have insurance coverage, a layoff will do away with it. And even if you have insurance coverage, your necessary treatment could well be denied, even though it could save your life. So who is deciding whether you live or die? Not your doctor, that's for sure.
Back in the sixties, a cousin of mine was having a terrible struggle to have a healthy child. She had one miscarriage after another. Nobody's fault, right?
Wrong. She and her husband moved to the Netherlands so he could take a job there and complete a Ph.D. The Netherlands happen to have -- gasp -- socialized medicine. My cousin was placed on complete hospital bedrest for months of her pregnancies, and gave birth to three healthy children who are now young adults. Not one of them would have been born in the US where months of hospitalization would have been prohibitively expensive. I don't even think anyone suggested it to her as an option, here in the good old USA, best damn country in the world...except when it comes to taking care of our people.
Sure, there will have to be cuts, so how about if we cut down on unnecessary tests and on unnecessary procedures? Why does the U.S. have a disproportionately high number of caesarian section births? How about cutting back on that and having more natural childbirths? We can certainly trim expenses without harming anybody.
It's time to stop listening to the lies of greedy people who would rather snap up your money and let you die in a ditch, than see you cared for at the government's expense. It's time to insist that we catch up to the civilized world and take care of all our people...rich, poor or middle class, from the cradle to the grave, no exceptions.
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