Airplane Entertainment for Little Kraut

As we're preparing for a trip to Germany in two weeks, one of the main things on my mind has been how to entertain Noah on such a long international flight. He is super excited about the trip and loves airports and airplanes. He has already been on a few flights in his short life and has done great, so I'm not too worried about it. At the same time, since it's such a long flight, I want to be prepared and have a few new fun things available for him.

The plan is to keep everything a surprise until we're on the plane and then to bring out activities one at a time. When I picked out games and activities I chose ones that are creative and can be used and played with in a variety of ways, by himself or together with us, so that hopefully he won't be bored a few minutes into it.

Sketchbook and Pencils

Drawing and coloring is fun for everyone, and this can keep Noah entertained for quite some time, especially if we engage with him and draw things together. I bought a high quality nice looking sketchbook that we've used before on a trip and added to our collection of colored pencils. I love the artwork on these sketchbooks and the paper is nice and thick. Our local book/crafts/toy store typically has only a few different options, but of course Amazon.com has a wide selection, including some for a great price: http://amzn.to/1U4g2St
We already have a good selection of pencils, but I liked the ones that came with the sketchbook and I think they'll make for a great surprise.

Sexist Emojis?

I totally just stole the title from a "stuff your mom never told you" episode. This was this podcast's first episode I listened to, and I chose it because I immediately had an association to a thought I had recently, when responding to a friend's text about how she had kicked ass at work with emojis. But more on that in a moment. 

When it comes to using emojis, I consider myself pretty conservative. I have my moments where I'll throw some random ones in there, but for the most part, there are only a few basic ones I use, and typically only in specific contexts.

Thanks for Helping me Grow Teacher Gift

Last week was teacher appreciation week at the kids' daycare. I don't normally care too much about days where you're supposed to give presents (I'd rather get a "thanks for everything you do" on a random day than when society tells us to), but at the same time it's a nice occasion and a good reminder to say 'thank you' every once in a while. 

I had planned to make cards and get gift cards last weekend, but then both kids ended up being sick, so we didn't get anything done. I felt bad all week, but then decided - who cares! a thank you gift will still mean just as much a week later. It's about showing appreciation and not meeting a gift giving deadline, right? Or so I hope...

No time to read? Listen to a podcast!

It feels like it's been forever since I picked up a book. I do miss reading but I just don't have time for it. I used to read quite a bit on the bus on my way to work, but since I started driving to work that's not exactly a safe option any longer. The one thing I don't like about being in a car is that it feels like such unproductive and therefore wasted time. Listening to the radio is great for a while, but once you're up to date on the daily news, listening to it for an hour each way got boring. And while I love rocking out to music in my car every once in a while, I just can't do it every day. So I started to listen to a few specific shows that I liked on NPR. I was super late to the game and hadn't even fully understood the whole concept of podcasts yet. I knew you could stream shows that would otherwise be on the radio, but somehow I had missed that there's so much more out there. Anyway, so I started listening to shows like Fresh Air, the TED Radio Hour, and Radiolab. Since then I've broadened my horizon a bit and now have a variety of shows I listen to. I know there's so much talent I haven't yet discovered, but there are a number of podcasts that I have really enjoyed. Here are the ones I enjoy the most, in no particular order. 

note to self

"The tech show about being human"

Note to self has been one of my favorite podcasts lately. Manoush Zomorodi is funny, and has a very down to earth approach to discussing technology, and how it helps or messes with our lives. I like that the episodes are relatively short (about 20 minutes). First, I can squeeze on in when I don't have all that much time. Second, they don't drag out the story just to fill 40 minutes or so. Episodes are fast, upbeat, and to the point. None of it is really super eye opening or life changing, but they're easy to listen to and cover a range of topics you probably never gave much thought.

Website: 
http://www.wnyc.org/shows/notetoself

Recommended Episodes: 
Forget Edibles: Getting High on Wearables
Two Dope Queens on Feminism