Lunchbox Day

This is the lunch Haeata is taking to kindy today. Carrot sticks, snow peas, pop corn, rice crackers, slices of cheese and as a special treat since it's the last day of term, a waffle toastie with banana and dark chocolate in it. No fruit because Haeata's kindy provides lots of fruit and toast for morning tea.  Healthy, environmentally friendly, inexpensive and I'll be amazed if Haeata manages to finish it all. 

But I look at this picture and realise how lucky we are. Much of the food in this lunch box is out of reach for many families. At $10 a block, cheese is pretty expensive. Snow peas are a luxury. Soy & Linseed bread is definitely out of the budget. Haeata had a banana for breakfast and now there's an extra half in her toastie. Many families can only afford one piece of fruit per day per child. If that. 

It doesn't matter where you put the blame, children in our community are going to school with no food. 

There is so much we should do but for today, all you need to do is txt Lunch to 8595 to make a $3 donation to KidsCan. The Campbell Live fundraising drive goes till the end of the day so tell everyone you know! If you can donate more then deposit money into this account number: 
ASB BANK 12 3026 0348180 03 to go straight to the KidsCan Charitable Trust.

ReQuest Dance Crew free performance and workshop

The Pick & Mix gang have really saved the best for last with the final installment of the year. The amazingly talented and now world famous ReQuest Dance Crew will be performing in the Aotea Centre at 11am on Saturday along with  2011 Hip Hop Mega Crew World Champions The Royal Family.

Following the performance will be a free workshop from 12 - 1pm so the kids can learn some dance moves/burn off heaps of energy.

These ladies are seriously taking over the world right now (American Idol performance, J.Lo video, world tour...) so this is guaranteed to be pretty impressive. 

West Coast Clean Up

This weekend the guys at Sustainable Coastlines are running a beach clean up on a whole lot of West Coast beaches - Piha, Anawhata, Bethells Beach, Maori Bay, Muriwai (South) and Muriwai (Rimmers Road) on Saturday from 11am to 3pm.

Their crews will be there with sacks and gloves so just turn up and look for the big blue flags. 

Moustache - Milk and Cookie Bar

Just a little bit excited to see what this new place is going to be like. We'll check it out as soon as it's open and report back. I give and I give and I give....

Srinivasa (Balaji) Kalyanam Celebration

Who knew there was a Mahatma Ghandi Centre right here in the middle of Auckland?! That alone should be enough reason to go check this celebration out. I don't really know much about this event but I will do some research and then update this post. Sai Baba sounds like he was a pretty cool dude and I think you should take every opportunity to expose your children to different cultures and religions so this could be worth dropping by for an hour or two. I'll try to find out which parts would be most interesting for kids. This is free and the organisers say everyone is welcome. 

Free Alphabet Printables

Today's post comes to you via my favourite blog full of fun things to do when the weather's crap - Babysteps. Now that it's officially Spring I feel even more impatient with rain and Haeata is constantly trying to sneak outside so any cool little craft project I can find is a huge relief for both of us. 


These printable alphabet blocks are pretty damn fly and would make a great toy for kids learning to read. Making them might be a bit tricky for the average preschooler but they'll have fun playing with them after you've finished maiming yourself with glue and craft knife. 

I think N for Ninja is one of my favourites, along with U for UFO. I'm still trying to figure out what Q is but I like it!

Stuff To Do This Weekend

On Saturday the Pick & Mix free concert and workshops at the Aotea Centre is going all Brazilian with Capoeira Madinga Aotearoa and the Brazilian Divas. Both groups will be performing and then after a short break you choose either a Samba workshop with the Divas or a Capoeira workshop. Capoeira Madinga actually do weekly classes for kids during the school term right in the city so this could be a good way for you to check it out and see if the kids are into it.

I've seen some of those Divas out at night by the way and I can confirm that they are amazing dancers so this should be a great show! 

Also on this weekend....

The Camera exhibition is still on at the museum. Activities for kids and a giant camera to climb inside. 

Today's the last day the Flower Chandelier will be exhibited at the Auckland Art Gallery! Go stare at the giant, trippy Alice In Wonderland type flowers open and close one more time. There are usually craft activities for the whole family happening in the same area. I'd recommend conning a relative/friend/impressionable neighbour into staying there with the kids while you go watch a free screening of Dirty Bloody Hippies! It's only one hour so it shouldn't take too much conning. 

Head back to the Gallery on Sunday to see Kent Mori and Andrew Deihl perform some acoustic guitar stuff from 2 - 3pm 

The Department Store in Takapuna is having a market day today from 10 - 2pm. Cakes, homemade jam, vintage clothes and specials. And while you're there go check out the wonderful new McKenzies project. Hanging out in Takapuna is becoming so much more than just tolerable! We had a delicious lunch at Mexico the other day. Sooo happy there's one on the Shore now. 

Happy First Day Of Spring everyone (even if the last day of winter was in fact nicer). Have a great weekend!

A cap for spring

Found - a sun hat both Haeata and I can agree on! Even better, it's just $12 at The Warehouse! 

National Geographic for Kids

I came across the amazing National Geographic website for kids yesterday while looking for something for Haeata to do online. We haven't had a chance to look through the whole site yet but we found the most important feature - cool games!

The graphics are great and a little quirky, while the music is surprisingly really good. 

Haeata spent ages helping a giant ape recycle rubbish found in a park and then raced around a rain forest saving endangered species. Fun and educational!

It's our new favourite. You can leave the kids to play on their own or sit down and play some games together. Actually found myself nodding along to the music instead of wanting to smash a hole in my speakers  discreetly push the mute button. 

Auckland Symphony Orchestra for free!

This Sunday the Auckland Symphony Orchestra is putting on a free concert in the Town Hall. It's on from 2:30 - 4pm but make sure you get there nice and early and these things tend to be crazy popular and seriously packed out. 

Celebrating Margaret Mahy

When Margaret Mahy died last month one thing I kept hearing people commenting on was how magical she was. It made me a little sad to think my children would never have then chance to hear her read a story. 

Well, this Saturday at the Auckland Town Hall Storylines is putting on a free event to celebrate writer Margaret Mahy's life.

There will be dramatised readings and songs from some of her most popular books like The Lion and the Meadow, together with recordings and videos of Margaret reading her own poems and stories

Amazing writers like Lynley Dodd, Tessa Duder, Betty Gilderdale and Dorothy Butler will all be there to read too!

Come dressed as your favourite Margaret Mahy character! Or maybe just wear a crazy wig.

Doors open from 2pm. FREE!

She Loves You - Snoopy's Beatles

Shout out to our friend DJ AD.1 from Kfm (and the other parenting half behind Fluffy ... Not So Fluffy) for this discovery!


This is kinda cute you guys. Beatles classics done on toy instruments and sung by kids. I can't tell exactly what it has to do with Charlie Brown except for a clever marketing angle but it sure beats the hell out of Dora. Which is playing on my TV as I type this. We've just got Sky and I am NOT on top of the scheduling yet. You put something safe on and type a couple of sentences, look up again and your 3 year old is deeply engrossed in some horribly repetitive cartoon. 


So, back to this! A refreshing cup of green tea to the insipid football headed tunes coming out of my TV screen at present. And while we're here, why not some classic Charlie Brown from the Vince Guaraldi Trio. Why more guys didn't turn out to be like Joe Cool I'll never know.

Wynyard Quarter 1st Birthday Party!

Can you believe it's been a year already?! On the other hand, can you believe there was a time when this wonderful space was just all industrial wasteland?!


The Wynyard Quarter is one of those places that has helped to put some more soul into Auckland in the last year or so. The soul of any city is in it's people so Auckland has always had heaps of it, but without anywhere for all those souls to gather it's hard to feel. 


It's so nice to be able to get out the house with the kids and instead of going to some fluorescent lit indoor playground/hellhole or some shadowy, empty suburban playground actually go to a place where there is life, activity and all kinds of people. 


If you feel the same as me about the Wynyard Quarter then get down there on Saturday and help them celebrate. If you still haven't been down there yet (it's ok, I won't tell anyone) then this will be the perfect introduction. 


There will be free activities all day, starting with a sing-a-long Dawn Chorus (cute) in Karanga Plaza at 7am. Then for the rest of the day there are free harbour cruises, tours inside classic yachts, $1 trips on the SS Puke, Silo climbs and free rides on the tram. 


From 2 - 5 you can make and decorate a lantern in a free workshop and then at 5:30 there will be launching ceremony from the tidal steps at dusk. Special!


The website also says there will be party games and "food suitable for a first birthday party" all day so I'm thinking piles and piles of fairy bread and sausage rolls. 


And then at 6pm they're screening "The Incredibles" on to Silo 7! What a nice way to wind up a massive day.

Fundraiser at Te Karanga Gallery today!

Go check this out today fam.  The 1 Million People Project is holding a fundraiser at Tea Culture, which is part of Te Karanga Gallery on K Rd. These people are trying to raise $1 each from 1 million people to buy some land that they can build a self sustainable community on. Part of it will be a interactive, ecological, educational visitor centre. The website mentions tree-houses, secret tunnels and wind turbines. Sounds like something we can all get behind! And in this current political climate it's quite cool to see a group of people trying to buy back some of that land and do something really beautiful with it. 

Oh and they're doing a poi workshop! 

The Fairy Shop cafe

These photos are actually from a few months ago when the Fairy Shop first reopened but I've only just found them now while looking for something else. My laptop is about as well organised as everything else in my life. 


Like many parents of little girls I've tried to avoid pushing Haeata in the direction of traditional girly things. She had a digger before she ever had a doll and when she was a baby I dressed her in any damn colour I liked. However, despite all my efforts she still loves everything pink, fluffy and sparkly. Which is the fairy shop all over. 


Haeata and her cousin had a feast of fairy cake, crackers and pink milk and then raced around the store trying on costumes. Of course they begged me to buy those dresses for them but at $90 a pop I told them to try their grandparents. 

Green, furry monster of a cardie

I've said it just recently but I'll say it again, I'm very lucky to have a mum that knits. I'm still trying to finish a blanket I started knitting when I was pregnant with Haeata. It's not even big enough to turn into a scarf. 

Denim dress - Country Road (but actually $6 at an op shop)
Olive green tights - Cotton On
Pink chucks - Cotton On (for like $5 or something crazy)

Poi E Remix - Peter Mac

Actually, it's better than a remix. It's an edit of the 12" inch disco mix that Peter Mac chopped up  so that the poi create new beats with all the same sounds. That 12" is now infact available for download on amplifier but here is Peter's amazing mix for your listening pleasure.

We put it on at Kapa Haka yesterday, handed out the poi and just let the tamariki go a little crazy. Haeata spent the remainder of yesterday excitedly telling everyone she saw about the new poi song at kapa haka. 

R.I.P Margaret Mahy

One of my earliest memories is of my dad taking me out at night when I was about 5 years old to hear Margaret Mahy read stories at the Dunedin Library. I don't remember what she read but my memories of the night are magical. My younger sisters and brother had to go to bed while I was allowed to put on my favourite skirt suit (I called it my Princess Di outfit. It was 1983) and go out with my dad. I remember their were stars in the sky. I remember the library all lit up and transformed by dark. And I remember this woman sitting in the corner of the library, full of magic and wonder, weaving a different world into our minds while we sat there. 


A friend of mine posted this great animated video of one of her stories on Facebook last night. It brings back so many great memories. Play it for your kids today and let her stories secure themselves in their memories too.

Te Wiki O Te Reo Maori

Arohatia te Reo - Cherish the language

Ko tenei Te Wiki O Te Reo Maori! Anei etahi mea pai mo koutou ki te tautoko tenei kaupapa.

It's Maori Language Week! Here are some things you can do to support the kaupapa...

This page has some great tips for beginners. Pronunciation, basic kupu (words) and korero ngawari (easy phrases).

And on this page they have some great suggestions for how you can celebrate Te Wiki O Te Reo Maaori in your own way. 

Sadly I haven't been able to find a single event happening in the city in relation to Te Reo but I'll keep looking at keep you all posted.

Meanwhile....

Me haere tere koe ki te toa (Countdown) ki te tiki to koutou papakupu Maaori (kore he utu!) hei mahue koe. 

Make sure you get down to your local Countdown store to pick up your (free!) phrase books. Get in there quick or you'll miss out! 

Anei etahi korero ngawari

Here are some easy sentences (Try using them with the kids this week)

Morena/Ata marie!

Good morning!

E oho! Maranga!

Wake up! Get up (out of bed)!

He aha o moemoea?

What dreams did you have?

E mate kai ana koe? 

Are you hungry?

Kaua e ngaungau.

Don't bite.

Tangohia o hu.

Take off your shoes.

Kaua e whakama.

Don't be shy.

Whengua to ihu.

Blow your nose.

He tino pai to mahi.

You've done a good job. 

Kei runga noa atu koe! 

You're the best!

Tino nui toku aroha mou.

I love you very much.

E moe.

Go to sleep.

And for those of you with teenagers already....

Kei te puta koe i ena kakahu?

Are you going out dressed like that?

As a disclaimer, my own Te Reo is still pretty basic. I had a lot of help from some very patient friends with this post! But whatever Reo I do have, I try to use with Haeata. We say wai for water, kai for food, kanikani for dance, mahana for warm etc... and other simple phrases like some of the above. We sing waiata, watch cartoons on Maaori TV and count to ten in Te Reo. This week I'm going to teach her "I love you" and use every kupu hou I know!

Exposing kids to other languages is never a bad thing and exposing them to Te Reo in particular gives them a much deeper connection to our country and a better understanding and sensitivity to our culture. Just start with the basics! Maori TV have recently cut their morning infomercials and have started showing language programs all morning so if you're at home switch it on and start to absorb!

As usual, I have music to go with everything so here is the beautiful and incredibly talented Ria Hall singing in both English and Te Reo.

Style - Woolly Jersey Love

Aww man, how insanely adorable is this little girl?! And how great is that jersey? I found this photo on tumblr and was redirected to a flickr stream from Iceland. Bet they got some bad ass woolly jumpers over there.


 I'm lucky enough to have a mum who knits so Haeata has no end of hand knitted goodness to keep her warm all winter. Still though, a lot of her best jerseys and cardies were scored at second hand shops. If you don't have a knitting Nan on hand then check out your local op shop, weekend market or even Trademe.


 A trip to Christchurch is also highly recommended. We visited a friend there last winter and the op shops were over flowing with amazing hand knitted gems. All super cheap too. 

Kapa Haka Super 12s

As part of the Matariki festivities there is going to be a Kapa Haka Super 12s competition down at The Cloud on Saturday. Just like the rugby tournament, there will be 12 teams with 12 members, each allowed to perform for 12 minutes so expect it to be pretty dynamite. The 12 teams will battle it out for a share of $10,000 cash until there is only one group left.


The competition is running from 10 - 5pm and entry is free. And while you're down on Queen's Wharf check out the markets with Maaori arts, crafts and clothing.

Emma

Emma is 7 years old and put her whole outfit together herself. I'm loving the boots, the layering and the cool little cross body bag. 

Matariki Market Day

Print  by Onesian - one of the artists involved in the Market Day

This Sunday the Auckland Museum is holding a Matariki Market Day from 10am - 5pm.


As well as contemporary Maori art for sale, there will also be raranga (weaving) and whakairo (carving) demonstrations, live traditional and contemporary music, taonga puoro (traditional instruments), traditional Maori healing practitioners AND a papa takaro (playground) set up where market goers can play traditional games! 

Stuff To Do This Weekend

Today we're heading out (in the beautiful sunshine, thank you Auckland!) to the Big Day Art at the wonderful Auckland Art Gallery. There will be live music, workshops where you get creative and one of our city's best dance crews is performing.


The Pick n Mix season is back on at the Aotea Centre. Today rap crew The Hypnotics are performing and then running a workshop. Learn how to beat box!


The Wynyard Explorer is back for the school holidays and look at that, finally a sunny day! Kids are just $1 and along with a ticket for the tram they have to sleuth around and find answers to questions about the area so it actually fills up a good hour. 


The Auckland Museum have a bunch of cool things to do today as part of their Camera exhibition. Plus a giant camera you can climb around in!


Botany Town Centre has got all kinds of things happening during the school holidays including today. Some free, some for a small price. Check out today's schedule here. 


Billy T : Te Movie is showing for free at Manurewa Marae at 4pm today! They're also showing four short Maori films before hand. Everyone is welcome, just bring a gold coin for tea and biscuits at intermission. Love that's it's a nice and early so you can all have a bit of a night out.

This weather is pretty perfect for the zoo which is great because today there will be a guided walk around Te Wao Nui, the beautiful native bird sanctuary, as part of Matariki. It's hosted by the Auckland Museum and so there will be some Taonga Puoro (traditional Maori instruments) specialists coming along for the walk.


On Sunday afternoon ditch the kids with the grandparents for an hour or two and go see the free film screening at the Art Gallery! Four different short Pacific Island themed films as part of the new HOME AKL exhibition. 


Of course if you'd rather lounge on your couch in the sunshine, the kids can still learn how to beatbox thanks to these helpful videos from Biz Markie!

Big Day Art

To celebrate the opening of the Home AKL exhibition, the Auckland Art Gallery is throwing another Big Day Art on Saturday. Entry to the exhibition will be free all day and there are a whole lot of free events planned for the day. Interactive drop in sessions where kids and adults alike can make art as well as a great line up of performances. 

Don't forget you can get a voucher at the gallery for $4 all-day parking at the Victoria Street car park. Bargain!

10am - 12pm: Drop-in session - North Atrium
 Weaving with Home AKL artists Louisa Humphry and Kaetaeta Watson  

11.30am - 12pm: Lower Grey Gallery

Enjoy traditional Tongan singing with the Fofo'anga group

12:15pm: Prestige Dance Crew - North atrium

1pm - 3pm: Drop-in session - North Atrium

Building sculptural landscape with Home AKL artist Janet Lilo

2pm - 2.20pm: Artist talk - Level 1 exhibition spaces

Artist Angela Tiatia gives short talk on her works Material Culture and Hibiscus Rosa-Sinensis.

2.30pm - 2.50pm: Artist talk - Level 1 exhibition spaces

Join artist Leilani Kake as she introduces her video work Ariki Tupu'anga.

3pm - 3.30pm: Poetry - Level 1 exhibition spaces
Contemporary Samoan poet Courtney Meredith is joined by other Pacific poets for an emotional spoken word response to Home AKL.

3.30pm - 4pm: Tatau Dance - North Atrium

Tatau Dance finishes the day with their renowned high-energy and fast-paced Samoan dance.

Movie Going Outfit

T-shirt - Trelise Cooper Kids (Second hand of course! I paid just $6 for it!) 
Cardie - Cotton On
Hat - From the St Vinnie's shop in Mangawhai
Pink Cords (from last week's Style post) - Cotton On
Yo Gabba Gabba Vans - Qubic

Stuff To Do This Weekend

Photo Source - Best Felt Friends 

Personally, I don't know if I'm going to be hitting up the ice rink in Aotea Square any time soon. But if, unlike me, you actually have some kind of co-ordination you should definitely check it out!


Celebrate Matariki by checking out some of the free performances at the Auckland Museum.


And while you're there go make a pinhole camera, go scrambling through a giant larger than life camera and learn how to draw big, glossy animal eyes. 


But make sure if you're there around 2pm on Saturday you don't miss 3D Great White Sharks gliding around the museum!


There is a really great looking world music festival happening down at Silo Park on Saturday. Live music and all the usual wonderful market stands and food stalls.


Wishing you all a lovely weekend! (Thanks to Babysteps for posting this video this week. We LOVE Jill Scott!)

Mimosa Cafe - Takapuna

Mimosa is a relatively new cafe and one of our favourite places in Takapuna. They have Kokako coffee, Hakanoa Ginger Lattes, Tea Lady tea (that's another post to come one day soon!) and some pretty mean scrambled eggs. Plus, a vintage filing cabinet with toys in the draws, preschool friendly seating, a communal table, piles of magazines and just an all round cool vibe. The latter not being something to be found in abundance in North Shore cafes! 

World Music Festival at Silo Park this weekend

FREE this Saturday, midday - 6pm at Silo Park


 Featuring Weird Together (Live) with Nick D & Dick Johnson, Yaw Boateng (Ghana), Karima Madut (Sudan), Mavs Adegbite (Nigeria), The ‘Not-So-Trini’ Steel Pan Allstars (Trinidad, Italy, Manchester) and The Balkan Brass-Master Boris Kalashnikov, The Burundian Drummers (Live), Mhara Marimba (Live) and Boycrush (Live)


Silo markets, food stalls and bar will all be open and you can climb the Silos!

12pm – 2.00 – Around The World in 80 Tunes World Music Jukebox

2.00 – 2.15 – Mhara Marimba

2.15 – 3.00 – DJ Hopepa

3.00 – 4.15 – Weird Together Live

4.15 – 5.00 – Uncle Barnie

5.00 – 5.30 – Boycrush

5.30 – 6.00 – Uncle Barnie

Acid Raindrops

I like to compensate for all the black I wear in Winter by dressing Haeata in as many colours as possible. I feel like I couldn't carry off this outfit nearly as well as she does.

Raincoat - Pumpkin Patch (I know! And yes, on sale of course)

Jersey - Vintage. For real vintage. My Gran knitted it for my youngest brother so it's been strutting it out on the streets for over 20 years now. 

Pink corduroys - Cotton On. $17 on sale just last week. Go get some! 

Yo Gabba Gabba Vans - (close up here) Qubic but I don't know if they still have them in stock. It's going to be a very sad day when she grows out of them. 

Matariki

Matariki, the Maaori New Year starts tomorrow and celebrations will continue till July 21. 


If you and your family are early rises anyway then why not celebrate the new year by heading up to Maungakiekie (One Tree Hill) tomorrow morning for a dawn ceremony. There will be a procession and then a karakia starting at 6am. The stars are still shining brightly at that time so you'll have a great view of Pleiades or the Seven Sisters - Waitā, Tupu-a-nuku, Tupu-a-rangi, Waipuna-a-rangi, Ururangi and Matariki.


The above book is a great resource for explaining Matariki to children.


I've included a couple of other books that are really good too. Most of them are available in Auckland libraries or you can get your own copy on Fishpond or Penguin Books, They all have really beautiful illustrations so a great thing to own!

Stories From Our Night Sky

Matariki

The Seven Stars of Matariki