As you can tell from earlier posts, reading with our grands is truly one of my favorite activities. Recently, my mom shared an article about a new children’s book, The Wild Symphony by Dan Brown, (also known for The DaVinci Code), reviewed in the New York Times. I was intrigued. So, of course, ⌨ click-click-click on Amazon. My three-year old granddaughter received it two days later. Fortunately, this book is also available at public libraries. Many reads and recommendations later, it’s unanimous: The Wild Symphony hits a high note with grandkids. Here’s why…
I had been on the hunt for fun Halloween activities when I got a text from my friend, Lori Manoogian, that stopped me in my tracks. She sent me an ebooklet from a creative art series she’s working on, “Beyond Words.” Her new addition? Little Monster marvels! I was so excited. Perhaps my Halloween activity search was over. This would be great for long-distance grandparents to do with their grands! Lori graciously agreed, and is offering a free download for our Smiles Beyond Miles readers.
Getting to Know the Artist/Author
Lori is a multi-talented artist, who is also an amazing teacher. We got to know each other when she taught for our Lifelong Learning department at Anne Arundel Community College. Her students adored her, and it was no surprise. Her passion for teaching was obvious, and her enthusiasm contagious. The instructional handouts she created for each class were legendary. They were always fun, colorful, and easy to follow. Lori designed our logo for Smiles Beyond Miles, too!
The ebooklet, “Beyond Words: Little Monsters” continues her earlier work. It’s a step-by-step guide to drawing one-of-a-kind mini monsters. We’ll tell you how to use the booklet in a bit. But first, Lori, in her own words.
A Chat with Lori Manoogian
Me: Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?
Lori: I am a mixed media artist, which is a fancy term for someone who is creative but can’t make up their mind:). Although I’m a graphic designer by trade, I’m also a glass fusing artist, Zentangle® instructor, and jewelry designer. I love hand lettering and creating useful artsy things: however, my greatest joy is teaching others.
My favorite thing to hear? “I can’t believe I just made that!”
Me: What inspired you to develop a series of ebooklets designed to make art accessible for people young and old?
Lori: Everyone is creative. Some are creative in the kitchen while others find their creative joy in the garden.
When it comes to putting pen to paper, however, it’s hard to know where to start, so I made these little lessons during the early stages of quarantine to give my friends and family something fun to try. I realized that while some wanted to practice hand lettering techniques, there were others that just loved the tiny drawings. It was fun to see my 35 year-old niece and her 5 year-old daughter creating from the same lesson with completely different artwork.
Me: Do you have any special hints for long-distance grandparents when using the “Little Monsters Mini Lesson?”
Lori:
First and foremost, make it fun. Fun. Silly. Fun. Follow along with the first “Build a Monster” steps with your grandchild, making sure yours is equally as childlike:).
Giggle along the way as you make believe. “Oh, my monster has silly eyeballs, I think I’ll name him Goofy.”
Ask questions. “What does your monster eat? Mine likes moldy bread.” Sometimes it can start unexpected conversations. “My monster is friendly but doesn’t like to share. Does your monster like to share?”
Cut out and tape monster (parent could help do this) on a Popsicle stick. Together you can act out a little monster show.
You know your grandchild best. If they want to continue and draw another monster, do that! If they would rather act out another monster scene, do that! It’s all about your time together.
Additional Thoughts on Halloween Fun: Little Monster Marvels
The supplies you use for your little monsters are very simple. Lori spells everything out in her ebooklet.
Older grands can draw for themselves, young ones might need a little assist. Here are several options:
Young children love to color. So, if they’re too young to follow the directions, you could create a monster drawing and email a photo for parents to print! Then, the grands can color as they like.
Begin by asking your grands to choose each element of the monster. You draw the monster for them, and then follow the previous steps so they can color it in (that’s the idea I followed for my younger grandchild).
Or, you could just ask them to pick out each element, draw it yourself while they’re watching , and then talk about it. For example, “What’s the monster’s name?” or “Where does your monster live?”
In any case, you’ll find using the gooseneck arm mount for your phone a great help for this activity!
In Appreciation
Thanks so much to my grandkids who created our featured image and had a blast doing it.
And, many thanks again to Lori Manoogian for sharing this wonderful, creative, Halloween activity with all of our grands. Please let us know if you try it out, and send photos!
There’s a corner of my dining room table where I collect things to send to my two, far away grandkids. Each item is selected with its recipients in mind. On delivery, we have something new to do and talk about. I love each part of the process. It feels like I’m sending a “postal hug,” since the real thing isn’t possible. However on one fateful mailing, all didn’t turn out as planned. Yes, another long-distance grandparenting blooper was in the making.
Here’s the details: I filled and sent one box or envelope every couple of weeks. The contents changed based on the season, and what my grands were learning. Most importantly, the package items were meant to be shared.
This system worked very well. Until, that is, one particular FaceTime chat with them. I Read more
With all the art supplies I’ve accumulated, it’s ironic that one of my favorite things to use is as close as my hand. Literally. And for anyone who feels, not so confident in their artistic ability, fingers can be better than brushes! Ask your grandkids: they naturally use them all the time! What do they know that we may have forgotten? Long-distance grandparents – creativity is at your fingertips!
Let’s start with a basic fingerprint. By itself, it’s a lovely oval shape. But, if we add just a few lines and then play with color and repetition, we open up a whole new world. Our fingerprints can become animals or plants or imaginary thing-a-ma-jigs. They’re also perfect for video chats with our grands, because the shapes are simple and the lines are easy to see. And, I’ll show you how to use them for games, too! Read more
Like many of you, we have yet to meet our adorable 6-month-old grandchild. I’m obsessed with figuring out the best time to visit him and all our kids and grandkids. Up north. Down south. Throughout the day, travel questions run through my mind…. Should we rent an RV or fly? To go or not to go visit grands seems to be the question many long-distance grandparents are thinking about. We want to see these kids, touch their chunky cheeks. Not just on FaceTime!
In July, since it was a reasonable drive, I decided to visit our northern kids and grandkids. Yes, there were many deliberations. In the days before the trip, worries kept popping up. Who am I putting at risk with my visit? Should I bring my own towels and linens? (I did). Truthfully, once I arrived, the anxiety melted away. As you can imagine, we enjoyed every moment.
Growing up, my son thought it was hilarious when he did an impression of my expressive hand movements when I talk. I’d like to think that Charles Caleb Colton’s quote, “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery,” applied to his antics. But, I’m not so sure that was his goal. Years later, however, I would be treated to an example of true-blue flattery from my son’s very own daughter! Through imitation, my long-distance grandchild transformed herself from student to teacher. And it’s hard to get more flattering than that!
It all began in the weeks just before COVID19 brought traveling to a full stop. I was so lucky to get to visit my son and his family. During our visit, my granddaughter and I went to a local coffee shop together. What a special treat it was for both of us! Over tea and a little nosh (snack), I taught her some of the basics of Zentangle®, a meditative art form I teach. I taught her things like how to draw slowly in simple patterns, and a few ways to play with shapes. We had a wonderful time and she seemed so proud of everything she drew.
Long-DIstance Grandkid: From Student to Teacher
When I returned home, I continued to teach her during our video chats. She paid close attention as I drew, and with pencil in hand carefully followed each direction I gave. Read more
Being a long-distance grandparent, I cherish the moments when I sense a new connection blossoming with my grandkids. These moments appear as sweet surprises and pop up out of nowhere during our regular video chats. In these wondrous moments, the miles between us seem to disappear and I feel the warmth and love of my grandchildren. Because this means so much to me, I began to wonder how other long-distance grandkids create special moments with their grandparents – beyond the long miles.
I decided to check it out with some family and friends. Read more
Grandparents, we have lots to offer our grands when it comes to reading! Given our experiences, we can help them navigate the route to fun and engaging reading. With our school-age grandkids, virtual storytime is like a partnership. I like to call it, “read-sharing.” Put another way, vIrtual read-sharing is like Uber. And, virtual read-sharing with school-age grands delivers smiles beyond the miles.
For tips about reading with school-age kids, I turned to my daughter-in-law up north (nDIL), master teacher and elementary school reading specialist extraordinaire. For bonding at a distance with reading, I checked in with my mom and cherished long distance grandparent. Read more
Did you know that a roll of ordinary gift wrap can open a world of possibilities for you and your long-distance grandkids? Join me now on a creative journey that begins with a quick glance and an idea. The result: wrapping our way to a story.
One afternoon at home, I happened to be looking around for something to do with my grands on our next video chat. Suddenly, out of the corner of my eye, I saw a roll of birthday wrapping paper with dogs in party hats. “Hmmm…”, I thought, “the grandkids love anything with dogs. Maybe we’ll have some fun with this.” We did, and you can, too!
As a devoted gadget lover, I’m always looking for the next best thing to make my life easier! Recently, I was in hot pursuit of something to use for video chats with my long-distance grandkids. I already had a phone tripod that worked great for some of the things we did, but not others. For example, when we tried to play a board game, getting a view of the gameboard was a challenge. For my long-distance video chats to flow more naturally, I needed a flexible set up. So, it was love at first sight when I discovered my new favorite accessory for long-distance video chats, a phone holder gooseneck arm mount!
Using this Accessory for Long-distance Video Chats
The gooseneck arm can hold my phone in a variety of directions. Read more
