Search Results for: blog smash it crash it crunch it rain newcomb amp bobby mercer

The Leaping Sliding Sprinting Riding Science Book – Bobby Mercer

The Leaping Sliding Sprinting Riding Science Book by Bobby Mercer has 50 sports related science activities. Even kids who aren’t great at sports can use this book to have fun and learn at the same time. Considering that the Olympics are coming up, I’m sure there will be extra interest in sports in the next few months. Each of the activities has a list of equipment you need. Most of the activities use sports equipment such as footballs, stopwatches, skateboards, and bicycles, and they may need things like pencils, calculator or rulers. Each activitiy also has instructions, followed by a … Continue reading →

The Magic School Bus: Creepy, Crawly Fun (1994)

I can’t think of any other children’s television show that illustrates science so creatively as “The Magic School Bus.” You can get most of these awesome episodes on video and DVD to watch whenever you like. Today my children and I took a look at “Creepy, Crawly Fun.” It was creepy. It was crawly. And it was fun. The DVD contains three episodes. In the first, “Inside the Haunted House,” Carlos is trying to invent a new musical instrument that will really knock the socks off the competition at the band tournament. But no matter how he tweaks his invention, … Continue reading →

The Dangerous Book for Boys – Conn Iggulden and Hal Iggulden

The Dangerous Book for Boys isn’t really that dangerous. It’s a fun book, though you may have a bit of trouble convincing the kids of that. At first glance, the book seems a bit old fashioned and looks a little like a history book. On the other hand some of this stuff is questionable, and a bit dangerous. Matches, a Swiss army knife, and a fishhook are considered essential gear. The authors, Conn Iggulden and Hal Iggulden, are brothers. They are encouraging boys to get out an play, explore, and learn about the world. The book is a great resource … Continue reading →

Making Music With Water and Bottles

Here’s a fun activity for the end of a summer dinner or picnic. Take empty glass bottles or water glasses and fill them with different amounts of water. When you tap gently on the bottles or glasses with a spoon they make a neat chiming noise. If the kids can’t manage to tap gently with a spoon try giving them a wooden spoon or stick to use, or save the activity for when they are older. I also wouldn’t do this with my best crystal. Experiment with different levels of water in the glasses.. Your children will quickly figure out … Continue reading →

Interview with Bobby Mercer – Part Two

On Sunday, we visited with Bobby Mercer, author of Quarterback Dad. Today, Bobby joins us again with ideas for celebrating Father’s Day. One laugh out loud moment for me in the QB Dad book was that you wanted a football party for your daughter’s first birthday. Did you really buy supplies? Sure did, I have one entire kitchen cabinet full of football party trays, plates, cups, snack bowls, etc. That makes it easy for me to host the Super Bowl party every year. How are you celebrating Father’s Day? and/or Do you have good ideas for celebrating Father’s Day? We … Continue reading →

Interview with Bobby Mercer – Part One

Last week, I reviewed a humorous and informative book for new and expectant fathers called Quarterback Dad. Today, the author of Quarterback Dad, Bobby Mercer joins us for a few questions about his book and about fathering. What made you want to write a book for dads? And what feedback have you gotten from other dads? I got a few guy pregnancy books for gifts and they were funny, but not necessarily helpful. Or they were helpful, but boring to read. I wanted a book for the average guy that could be funny and informative. And one they might actually … Continue reading →

Quarterback Dad – Bobby Mercer

I read and browsed through a lot of parenting books when I was expecting my first child. They were all geared towards mothers. In most of the books the fathers of the babies got a brief mention, or at best a chapter. The role of fathers has changed in the last few generations, and that leaves a lot of men without clear guidelines on what to expect, what to do, and how to be a good father. Quarterback Dad: A Play-By-Play Guide to Tackling Your New Baby is a great book written just for new and expecting dads. Author Bobby … Continue reading →

Gardening Wizardry for Kids – L. Patricia Kite

Gardening Wizardry for Kids: Green Thumb Magic for the Great Indoors is a fun book for children and parents alike. Teachers will also find lots of fun growing experiments and food lore they can use in their classrooms. The legends and histories behind different foods are fascinating. Did you know that in the Middle Ages magicians put celery seeds in their shoes, hoping it would help them fly? Or that there are more pictures of onions on Ancient Egyptian tombs than any other plant? Or that the soldiers inside the Trojan horse ate carrots before getting in the horse to … Continue reading →

Media Week in Review – February 25th – March 1st

We’ve had so much fun in Media Reviews this week. If you missed some of our fabulous blogs and are now feeling left out, it’s okay! You can catch up. We started the week with the second half of our interview with author Sandra Worth. What an awesome lady and talented author she is. Then we got to know another awesome lady in “Meet a Families.com Blogger – Lauri Griffin.” “Smash It! Crash It! Crunch It!” is an activity book to introduce important scientific principles. It sounds fun and really messy. “Smell of Death” is a cozy mystery about a … Continue reading →

Toys! Amazing Stories Behind Some Great Inventions – Don Wulffson

Have you ever wondered who invented the bicycle, or who came up with kites or Silly Putty? Toys!: Amazing Stories Behind Some Great Inventions by Don Wulfson will answer those questions. Toys! explains the strange histories and accidents behind some of our most familiar and popular playthings. Slinkys were a mistake. They were originally an invention that didn’t work. It was meant to counterbalance Navy ship instruments during rough times at sea. Slinkys didn’t work for that, but as a toy they made their inventor a millionaire. During the Vietnam War the Slinky did end up serving the military as … Continue reading →