Mudpies & Butterflies

Upcoming Events
Aug 13 - Venia's Vacation: Belarusse, Vienna, and..

Aug - 6 Topanga Beach Day (boogie boards and sandcastles)

July 30 - Summer Parkday

July 23 - Leather Stamping

July 16 - Ancient Rome

July 9 - Japan Past & Present

July 2 - Independence & H2O

June 25 Beach Day

June 18 Tenzi Frenzi

June 11 - Juggling Craft and Fun

June 4 - Stokes Theater & Plays

May 28 - Christina's Family Yogatime

May 21 - Bring your crafty projects & Potluck

May 14- Career Day

May 7 - Mother's Day Tea

April 30 - Art Show & Painting

Apr 23 - Earthday Show & Tell and Planting

Apr16 - 19 Joshua Tree Annual Family Campout

Apr 9 - HexiFlexigons - rescheduled

Apr 2 - Magic Tricks & Juggling Sticks

Mar 26 - HexiFlexigons - Geometry Gone Wild

Mar 19 - Potluck & Nat Amer Kid Presentations

Mar 12 - Nat Amer 2: Plains & Tipi's

Mar 5 - Native American 1: Inuit & Carving

Feb 28 - The Art of Debate

Feb 19 - Potluck & Chinese New Year & Korean, Vietnamese

Feb 12 - Valentyne's Day exchange

Feb 5 - Favorite Books

Jan 29 - Build an African Kalimba

Jan 22 - Patents and Inventors

Jan 15 Potluck, Patents and Inventors

Jan 8 - Boardgames and Beginnings

Jan 1st New Year's Playday

Dec 25 Merry Christmas No Parkday

Dec 18 Kwanza; Hannukah; Xmas; Solstice Celebration & Lunch Potluck

Dec 15 Caroling at Retirement Homes

Dec 11 Holiday Craft Day

Dec 4 Idioms by Maria Wheee!

Nov 27 Happy Thanksgiving No Parkday

Nov 20 Venezuela by Enrique & Potluck

Nov 13 Science Bloopers

Nov 6 Inside a Courtroom

Nov 4 Take your Kid to Vote

Oct 30 Costume Halloween Party

Oct 23 Bring a Poem

Oct 19 Campfire Potluck &Talent Show

Oct 16 Poetry Play Day & Potluck

Oct 9 Save Big Cats & Habitats

Oct 2 Making & Launching Rockets

Sept 28 Watts Tower Drumming Festival 10-4pm

Sept 25 Basket Weaving with NewsPaper

Sept 18 M&B Family Campout @ Sequoia Nat'l Park (No parkday)

Sept 11 OuterSpace Aeronautics or
Sustainable Farming & Husbandry (if cool enough for goats to visit)

Sep 10 M&B Free @ LA County Fair

Sep 2 Amazing Aeronautics

Aug 28 Beach Day

Aug 21 Pioneer Day

Aug 14 Five Year M&B Anniversary

Aug 7 Solar Ovens Part III

Jul 31 Solar Ovens Part II

Jul 24 Solar Ovens Part I @ Beach

Jul 17 Balloon Fun/Physics

Jul 10 Blind as a Bat (Braille & Sonar)

Jul 3rd (No Parkday Independence)

Jun 26 Tal Family

Jun 19 Kinetic Ball Run & Squirt bottle motion & Potluck

Jun 12 Summer Festival & Games

Jun 11 Full Moon Hike

Jun 5 Let's Get Tiny - Cells (Animal & Plant)

May 29 Lets get tiny - Cells (Animal & Plant)

May 22 Famous People

May 15 Beach Day & Potluck

May 8 Celebrating Mothers

May 1 Secrets of Water

Apr 24 Earthday & Planting

Apr 17 Games & Crafts Bring Your OWN

Apr 10 Nat'l Poetry Month

Apr 3 Cotton Magic

Mar 27 Bacteria Fun

Mar 20 Potluck & Organ Day!

Mar14-16 Joshua Tree Annual Spring Family Campout

Mar 13 - No Theme due to weekend Campout

Mar 6- Birdwatching & Nesting Day

Feb 27 - Physics of Bowling due to Rain

Feb 20 - The Winter Olympics

Feb 14-17 Backyard Bird Count

Feb 13 - VOLUNTEER PLEASE. Valentines Day

Feb 6 - Taxonomy & the Darwin Challenge

Jan 30 - Lunar New Year of the Horse

Jan 23 - Simple Machines II - Pulleys & Levers

Jan 16 - Habitats & Keystone Species & Noon Potluck

Jan 9 - Cogs & Cams: Simple Machines

Jan 2 - Reconnecting after holidays & New Year's Celebrations

Dec 26 - No Parkday Happy Holidays

Dec 19 - Celebrate Holidays: Winter Solstice, Kwanza, Christmas & Hanukkah

Dec 12 - Solar Fun & Mask Making with Michelle

Dec 5 - Monarch Magic & Eucalyptus

Nov 28 - Happy Thanksgiving - No Parkday

Nov 23 - Fieldtrip to Monarch Groves in Goleta

Nov 21 - Monarchs & Eucalyptus Trees postponed

Nov 14 - Atoms, Protons, Electrons, Oh My!

Nov 7 - Autumn Leaves & Sewing with Heather

Oct 31 - Halloween Festival

Oct 24 - Spooky SeeSaw Algebra

Oct 17 - 3 City Geography & Int'l Potluck & 6:00pm Talent Show

Oct 10 - 2nd M&B Bug Faire

Oct 3 - Abacus Math Magic

Sept 26 - Bark Painting & Spirit Animals

Sep 19-23 Annual Sequoia Family Campout

Sep 14 Fieldtrip to Point Vicente

Sep 12 - Lighthouses & Prisms II

Sep 5 - Build Splash Toys @ Pool

Aug 29 - Lighthouses & Light I

Aug 22 - DeSalination @ Beach PD

Aug 15 - Weaving yarn or old clothes

Aug 8 - Hula Hoop II

Aug 1 - Hula Hoop I @ Beach A

Jul 25 - M&B's 4th Anniversary
All ages Talent Show

Jul 18 - Hawaii Day & Potluck

Jul 11 - Bubble Science Fun

July 4 No Parkday HOLIDAY

Jun 27 No Parkday HOLIDAY

Jun 20 - Crafts Free for All

Jun 13 - Gold Mining & BoomTowns

Jun 6 - Anyone? Or Lemonade Stands

May 31-Jun 2 Family Campout at Montano De Oro

May 30 - MayDay PlayDay II

May 23 - MayDay PlayDay

May 16 - Bats, Owl Pellets & Potluck

May 9 - Primitive Arts & Indian Trading Blanket

May 2 - Painting & Poems

Apr 25- Help Our Wildlife Thrive

Apr 18 - M&B Earthday & Potluck 5pm

Apr 11 - Missouri Day / Bees Part 2
HoneyLove.org

Apr 4 - Bees ($3/kid for candlemaking)
Ula's Birthday

Mar 28 - Feathers, Microscopes & Origami Cranes

Mar 21 - History of Sugar; Plant own sugarcane

Mar 14 - Robots & Circuitry $3/kid

Mar 7 - Rainy Day @ Skirball Free

Feb 28 - Felting & Fiber Arts

Feb 21 - Morocco II
and Islamic Prayer

Feb 14 Valentines & Asian New Year Traditions

Feb 7 - Huichol Yarn Paintings
& Esme's Bday

Jan 31 - Birth of a Nation

Jan 24 - Cancelled
due to RAIN

Jan 17 - Craft parkday

Jan 15 - USA Tour @ Skirball

Jan 10- Morocco Senses & Allah

Jan 3 - Free for All Playday

Dec 27 - Free For All Playday

Dec 20 - Xmas, Hanukkah, Kwanza, Divali & Winter Solstice (Carols & Potluck)

Dec 13 - Morocco, Art & Mint Tea

Dec 6 - Pompeii Part II & Archeology

Nov 29 - Let's BOWL
due to Rain

Nov 22 - Thanksgiving - No Parkday

Nov 15 - Duct Tape Crafts & creations by C & C
and Lunch Potluck

Nov 8 - Ancient Pompeii & Mt Vesuvius

Nov 1 - Election & Voting Debate:
More trees or Waterslide

Oct 25 - Trunk or Treat; Dress-up
Halloween

Oct 18 - Peace Building &
Anger drop

Oct 11 - Superhero Rain

Oct 4 - Inks from Nature

Sep 27 Ireland Fun & Culture

Sep 20 -Sequoia-sized Boardgames

Sep 13 - 3rd Sequoia Campout

Sep 6- Heroes and Heroines - Kids Presentations

Aug 30 - Simile, Metaphors & Figures of Speech

Aug 23- Letterboxing II

Aug 16 - Letterboxing I

Aug 9 - Beach Day

Aug 2 - Modern Olympics II

July 26 - Ancient Olympics I

July 19 - Paper Arts: Bowls, Books & Beads

July 12 - Beach Day

July 5 - Statue of Liberty - 4th July

June 28 - Storytelling & Aussie Rainsticks

June 21 - Fun Games Field day

June 14 - Mystery Math = Algebra Fun

June 7- Silly Summer Day Fun

May 31 - Build Miniature Golf

May 24 - Sewing & Haiku Part II

May 17 - Haikus & Drums & Evening Potluck

May 10 - Rock Hunter Guest Speakers

May 3 - May Day Celebrations

Apr 26 - Fibonacci & Nature

Apr 19 - Thai New Year -Songkran & Potluck

April 12 - Spring Bling & Night Crawlers Planting season

April 5- Easter /Passover Crafts

Mar 29 - Ethics & Fairytales

Mar 22 - Detective Fingerprints & Crafts

Mar 15 - Prep for Joshua Tree

Mar 8 - Marbles & Physics

Mar 1 - Make Real Dream Catchers

Feb 23 - Pirates, Sea Captains &Tall Ships

Feb 16 - Wilderness Survival - guest Speaker

Feb 9 - Anatomy Guts vs Feeling Guts

Feb 2- Gravity Fun Games

Jan 26 - Cement Bridges Part Two

Jan 19 - Kids first Rock & Gem Show

Jan 12 - Global New Years Celebration

Jan 5 - Rockets-Aquarius M&B helped launch

Dec 29 - Cement Construction hand print tile

Dec 22- Kwanza, Hannukah, Bodhi Day stories & games 12/8

Dec 15 - Amy's Anatomy Obstacle Course

Dec 8 - Painting so it POPS! w/ out wind

Dec 1 - Painting so it POPS!

Nov 24 - Happy Thanksgiving - No M&B Parkday

Nov 17 - Fun with Manners & Empowering Etiquette & And 3rd Thurs Potluck (lunchtime)!

Nov 10 - History of Photography - Make Pinhole Cameras

Nov 3 - Butterfly & Bug Faire & Poems & Riddles

Oct 27 - Pumpkin Festival *Dress UP!!

Oct 20 - Empathy & Empowerment

Oct 13 - Braille & Visually Impaired

Oct 6- Atoms & Cool Molecules

Sept 29- Black Bears & Sequoias

Sept 22 - Sequoia Fires & Cones

Sept 15- Clay Creatures & Open-ended ?s

Sept 8- Beat the Heat Beach Day

Sept 1 - Lemonade Stand Commerce

Aug 25 - Back to Homeschool Play

Aug 18 - Saw Safely & make a Jacob's Ladder

Aug 11 - Biomes, Habitats & Soda Bottle Terrarium

Aug 4 - M&B 2Year Anniversary Party

July 28 - Finger Knitting & Natural Fibers

July 21 - Stone Soup Potluck & Storytime

July 14 - CrazyFun ScienceLab Experiments

July 7 - Independence Day Celebration @ Zuma Beach

June 30 - Nocturnal Creatures & Owl Pellets to dissect

June 23 - Book Exchange Circus

June 16 - Lewis & Clark, Quill pens from feathers & Potluck

June 9 ATC- Making Artists' Trading Cards

June 2 Petraglyphs, Pictoglyphs & Rafting the Grand Canyon

May 26 Historical
Figures that changed the World
all Kids Perform

May 19 Pharoahs, Pyramids & Crafts
And Potluck 5pm-sundown

May 12
Mars & Space Travel

May 5
Mother's Day
High Tea

Apr 28
Physics & Imagination=
Future Travel

Apr 21
Mask Making & Storytelling

Apr 14
Sound Waves

Apr 7
Geodesic Dome

Mar 31
Earthquakes & Tectonics

Mar 24
Show & Tell & Games

Mar 17
Family Campout Joshua Tree

Mar 10
Mardi Gras

Mar 3
Africa & Wangari Maathai

Feb 24
Brains: the Inside Story

Feb 3
Chinese New Year

Jan 27
Pioneer Parkday Part 2

Jan 20
Days of Yore

Jan 13
Fun & Safety
with Germs

Jan 6
Chess by Jahan

Dec 31
New Year's FreePlay

Dec 23
Kwanza, Hannukah
& Christmas

Dec 16
Engines & Cars
& Alternative Power

Dec 9
Microscopic World

Dec 2
Cartoon & Collage

Nov 25th
Thanksgiving Holiday

Nov 18th
Nature Crafts & Yoga

Nov 11th
Wind Turbines

Nov 4th
Indian Diwali Celebration

Oct 28th
Spooky Obstacle Course

Oct 21st
How Songs are Born

Oct 14th
Build a
Weather Station

Oct 7th
Prisms, Vision & Zoetropes

Sept 30th
Spanish CultureFest

Sept 23rd
Russian Culture & Potluck

Sept 17
Family Campout @ Sequoia Nat'l Park

Sept 9th
Chemical (molecular) Reactions

Sept 2nd
History of Flight

August 26th
Light, Refraction & Rainbows

Aug 19
Potluck

August 12
Turtles, Tortoises & YOU

August 5th
Honey, Bees & Wasps

July 29th
M&B 1 year anniversary

July 22
Inuit Culture & Games

July 15th
Bastille Day - French Independence

June 17th
Swedish MidSummerFest

June 10th
Catapults & Parachutes
Gravity & Lift

June 3rd
Our BodyGuards
Snot & Scabs

May 27th
Pollination, Fruit & Seeds

May 20th
Hawaii & Potluck Luau!

May 13
Ladybugs, Silkworms & Praying Mantis

May 6th
Knots, Pirates & Explorers

April 29
Earth Day Part 2

April 22
40th anniversary of Earth Day

April 15th
Japanese Girls' & Boy's Day

April 8th
Bridges, Cantilevers & Treehouses

April 1st
Magnetism part II: Physical Force of Nature

March 25
Magnetism part I: I'm attracted!

March 18th
Desert Life

March 11th
Global Timelines

March 4th
Spring Bling:
Worms, Dirt & Seeds

Huichol Indians & Yarn Paintings 2/7

Join us this week as we explore some of the cultural traditions, arts & crafts, and kinship of the Huichol Indians of the Sierra Madres. The Huichol Indians (descendants of the Aztecs), like many Native American’s mannnn hold a deep reverence to the elements of wind, water, sun, mountains and sky. But they consider them family: “Brother Cloud”, “Sister Rain”, “Father Sun,” etc. Isolated by geography from much of the modern world’s influence, the Huichol (who call themselves Wixáritari – “the people” in their native language) held onto their animists traditions longer than most indigenous peoples – giving us much to gain and honor.

I will share the story of Tunuri and The Blue Deer, and lead a discussion on our relationship to our Environment as well as considering what it would be like if the wind, the ocean, the hills were all like our siblings or uncles and aunts. I expect this to inspire the kids (and parents) to imagine a Tableau that is worthy of turning into a Huichol Yarn Painting. The entire book of Tunuri is illustrated with yarn paintings – a playful art form of the Huichol. Fiber arts have long told stories: rugs, tapestries, quilts, and felted collage. I recently saw the work of Edith Krinitz at the American Visionary Museum in Baltimore, where she embroidered her childhood experiences onto cloth. Her work and daughters’ organization inspired the Hero Project, where 5th graders chose a relative or ancestor to be the focus of their soulful cloth art and stories of powerful remembrance.

SUPPLY REQUEST: Yarn, cardboard & gluesticks

(and if you don’t have any supplies, we can share).

Craft: Kids will draw a simple scene on a piece cardboard. Then with glue, we will attach small pieces of yarn in line with their drawings. And then circle the image with more pieces of yarn to make a fuller figure. In addition to yarn, you can add pieces of nature, or leave the rest of the space untouched. For those who want to complete their picture with yarn like the Huichol, we will fill in all the space around the figures with more yarn until the entire piece of cardboard is covered with yarn. I will bring 3 kinds of blue yarn for sky or ocean. deer mann

mom bday Sacred Circle time: For those who want to participate, I will share some of the ceremonies and intentions of the Huichol as I understand them (sorry, no Peyote) to further reflect upon our connection to our environment and families.

table In addition, I invite you to sing Happy Birthday to Esme who will be turning 6 this Thursday. I will bake something to stick candles in. (here are my yummy Vegan cupcakes I baked topped with my signature hibiscus flavored frosting!) boys girls

T-Party, Declaration, Constitution 1/31

This was my park version of the fabulous exhibit at the Skirball Museum - Creating a Nation, where I gave a homeschool tour (see blog before this one). The Skirball has 200 year old documents from the Library of Congress: Declaration of Independence, letters to George Washington, Common Sense (by Thomas Paine), Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclomation and the Constitution of the United States. Signing

On our blanket we shared a few books including one on the Boston Tea Party of 1773. I prefer to share this part of the beginning of our Nation, as it was entirely NON-Violent, unlike much of the American Revolution. This event created alot of momentum to rally the people who lived in cities as well as the frontier of purely Native American land.

Telephone Game: Passing on what was just whispered to him about the Boston Tea Party

We played a game of Telephone to prove that word of mouth would not give an accurate portrayal of what occurred in Boston. Which is where the role of newspapers, flyers and pamphlets were so important. As the early colonists did not have radios, televisions or the internet – since they weren’t invented yet. So each child was consigned to bring the news to a different colony – NC, SC, NJ, VA, etc. And try to convince the men to leave their families to the threats of nature, bad crops, Native Americans and just other bad colonists long enough to push the RedCoats (British soldiers) out of the land.

Then we discussed the Declaration of Independence and how that was lovely and all, but it took 8 years of Revolutionary War to truly get King George III to pull his Redcoats out of the land which was to be known as the United States of America.

image (5) But until the American Constitution was drafted and ratified, the so-called united states, were very unstable for five years. And people couldn’t decide if they wanted a King of their newly fought for nation, or many different countries like Europe.

I brought Quill pens for each of the children to sign their names on the tea-stained version of the Constitution I had stayed up the night before creating. They all chose what state to sign their name beneath. Supporting the decision to have the power of the country divided 3 ways: President, Congress & Supreme Court.

Many states were concerned that they wouldn’t have as much say in Congress, due to their population, which is why we have the Senate and the House of Representatives – both of which have equal say in Congress.

It was another fun day of learning and interacting with History! I also read a fun book about how George Washington lost all his teeth by the time he was President of the United States. Sad, funny and true!

FYI – all of the books on this post are in the Topanga Library’s collection.

And the ink we used to sign our names came from the day we made our own Paper and Ink from Nature with berries and flowers.

“Creating our Country” 1/15, 12:00 @ the Skirball for a Kid-friendly Tour

Join us on for an interactive tour of the Documents that created our Nation and made it Great!

Get a sense of how this country went from colonies to country in 1776. “Creating the United States” is an amazing exhibit that hosts the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Paine’s Common Sense, United States Constitution, Letters to and from George Washington and Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation. This exhibit from the Library of Congress has already had 2 million visitors.

sketch Meet us at Noon, on Tuesday January 15th at the outdoor amphitheater of the Skirball Museum. Enjoy your packed lunch while I set the scene of the early American colonies under the rule of the British Crown that led up to the Revolutionary War. Kids will be invited to participate. At 12:20 we will enter the exhibit to see these 200 year old documents first hand.

Once in the exhibit gallery, kids will go on a Scavenger hunt for the below items to sketch in their notebooks. This hunt adds excitement to the artifacts as well as creates a record of the story of the beginning of the United States of America.

Scavenger Hunt

1. Snake
2. Boat with a Lion
3. Letter to George Washington
4. Brown Bessie (tall and skinny)
5. A signature from the Declaration of Independence
6. Yankee Doodle Dandy
7. Black Chair
8. Woman with a pen & ink
9. in cursive, “A Proclamation” 10. Common Sense

Plan to arrive closer to 11:30 am, as it will take time to park, pay and walk to the amphitheater (outside of Noah’s Ark).

Guess Who? Not a part of the exhibit, but a FUN part of my Tour!!!

When you pay, get your family stickers to go into Noah’s Ark at 1:15 pm where we will go to play after our story and tour.

Bonus: A special temporary “Lincoln Spotlight” will present rare original artifacts on special loan from the Lincoln Presidential Library, Springfield, IL, during the run of this exhibit.

Click on the Constitution, to go to a great kid-oriented site to get a bit of background on the 4 months it took to draft our nation’s Constitution.

Admission is $5 for kids 2-12; $10 for 13 and up. Members are free. Admission is free on Thursdays. For those who can’t join us to witness these documents close up Tuesday, I will host a parkday in its honor on Jan 24th.