Patti Schiendelman, a self-describe "mom, indexer, editor, cook, gardener, and maker of things" is one of the many talented people I was fortunate enough to work with on the book. She is a meticulous, and infinitely patient, indexer who tolerated daily harassment email from me, mostly asking her to do something that she had, of course, already thought of. (If you are writing a book and need an indexer, you could not do better than Patti. And I am not just saying that so she will work with me on my next book. Really.)
New World Geek is where Patti plays, and it is worth a stop when you are looking for fun weekend projects to do with the kids.
Sunny weekend? Try recycling a plastic lettuce container into a salad garden, or turning old roof gutters into planters.
Indoor projects include this cleverly cut paper Popup Spinner that spins and twists in the most fascinating way when you unfold it. Yoga mats can become flip flops. Older kids, or a parent/child pair might want to delve into something a bit more complex like stamp carving.
The marshmallow gun looks pretty darned cool, too! (disclaimer: The title of that article says the marshmallow gun is dangerous so please don't make one for your two-year old, okay?)
If that's not enough, there's kid stuff, free stuff, cheap stuff, recycled stuff, and if you happen to live in the Seattle area, local stuff.
My weekend plans include time in the herb garden, unless it's raining, in which case I may have to try that marshmallow gun. Strictly for research purposes, of course. How about you? What are you and the kids up to this weekend?




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