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A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of interviewing Amanda Soule, author of the wonderful book The Creative Family, and writer of the hugely popular blog Soule Mama.
Photo by Meg McElwee
I adore her book. It has given me a renewed spirit of creativity with my family, and it has provided me with practical know-how for pursuing crafts and ideas I might otherwise not do. Amanda’s idea in this book embody simplicity and creativity – two things I highly value.
I’ve got two great things today for Simple Mom readers. First, I’ve got my interview with Amanda – and I hope you enjoy her answers as much as I do. Secondly, I’m giving three of you a chance to win a copy of The Creative Family! After the interview, I’ll give you details on how you can win.
The Interview
SM: First off, congratulations on your latest pregnancy! Reading your book and blog, it seems like you really love being a mom. What overall message do you hope parents take away from reading your book?
Photo by Wesley Satterwhite
AS: I suppose the overall message I hope to give would be that of embracing creativity as a means of connection with your children. It’s certainly the motivation behind my blog for me – as well as a reminder of the gift of parenthood, and the fleetingness of it all – the preciousness in the everyday, mundane and beautiful moments of this life. That’s what I try to remind myself of when I write, and I hope it’s what others take away from it all as well.
SM: As I read your book, I repeatedly told my husband, “It must be so fun to be a kid in this family.” It seems like you guys play so much! How do you balance making time to play with your kids and doing “grown-up things” like managing your home?
Photo by Allison M
AS: Certainly there are many moments and many days where my energy is shifted to the more ‘grown-up things’ that are involved in managing a home and family. But on the best of days, there’s a balance and fluidity between the two. Incorporating ‘play’ into the work is helpful, especially as children are naturally such mimickers of what we do anyway. Sure, it may take twice as long to wash the windows with the kids, but if I can let go of the rush of it and turn it into a game, everyone’s happier, they’re learning something, a task is being completed, and we’re all doing something together.
Some tasks, of course, need to be completed by just Mama (or Papa!), and I find opportunities for those come up especially after a period of truly connected, and fully present play with my children. When their cup is full (of love, attention and connection), so to speak, they’re more able to find something to work on by themselves for a bit while I work. Sometimes this happens naturally, and sometimes it’s more spelled out, “I really want to play Animal Lotto with you, and then it’s going to be time for me to do X.”, etc.
One last thing I want to say about this is that my idea of ‘managing a home’ might look really different than others. Having an immaculate, super organized home just isn’t the priority for me right now. Someday, I’m sure it will be more important, but for right now, I want to remember that there are only so many things I can do in a day. And I want to choose those things I spend my time on mindfully.
SM: I love the idea of your craft cabinet that’s in your dining room, and that you recommend children using quality art supplies. Do your kids have free-range access to all art supplies at any time? If so, are there issues with messes and clean up? (My first thought was panic at the idea of my 3-year-old having access to oil paints!)
Photo by Barry
AS: The shelves that are in reach of the children are all materials that are all-access all the time – paper, stickers, crayons, clay, colored pencils, etc. On the higher shelves, are the materials that require a check-in with Mama first, or things that require a lot of time and help from an adult – oil paints, glitter, papier mache and other ‘messy’ art materials.
Since our “art” table is also our “dining” table, I keep a vinyl tablecloth underneath the cloth one all the time. So I can easily whip off the cloth one for craft projects, the vinyl is so easy to clean up, that really helps. There are definitely lots of spills and messes, but nothing that’s too impossible to clean up (outside crafting is also a great solution for the super messy stuff. Somewhere you can just spray down with a hose when you’re done!) The kids have art aprons on the side of the cabinet, so they almost always wear one of those which helps eliminate some of the extra laundry I’d otherwise be doing.
SM: Simple Mom is a blog about simplicity, and I frequently advocate that simplifying your life ultimately increases productivity. What would your thoughts be for a fellow mom who feels like she just doesn’t have time to be creative with her kids, that her life is just too busy?
Photo by Wesley Satterwhite
AS: My intent was that The Creative Family provide ideas for incorporating creative play and pursuit into the time we already have and spend together as family. For example: creatively celebrating our meals and other everyday rituals; games that require little to no ‘materials’ and can therefore be done anywhere and anytime, etc.
Sometimes, if creative play isn’t already in our daily lives, and yet, it’s something we’re feeling a craving for more of – it might take a little more effort to fill that need. Planning the time to make it happen, taking a look at some of the ‘extras’ in our days that might be ‘let go of’ in order to pursue what we want, etc. The reward for someone feeling that need can make these efforts and sacrifices so worth it, and lead to a more centered, grounded, and connected self and family.
SM: I know you get asked this all the time, but how are you able to do so much? Give us a few time management tips you’ve learned.
AS: Well, first I must just say – because the thought of another Mama out there feeling somehow inadequate just about breaks my heart – that I most certainly do not ‘do it all’. Sometimes the nature of blogs – and particularly the way that I keep mine focused for the most part on the joy – can create a bit of a false illusion. So I hope no one ever for gets that what you might see on a blog is just one paragraph of someone’s day, or what they’ve chosen to focus on from their day.
But…how do I make time for all the things I do? I guess the overriding factor is that I’m pretty mindful of how my time is spent. And not in a way that I’m watching the clock all day, but in a way that I cut out a lot of the ‘extra’ that doesn’t feel important to me, and really try to make the important things a focus of our days. We don’t watch TV, and I try to not waste away hours on the computer (besides working), we don’t ‘leisure shop’, etc, etc. The important things to me – our time together as a family, time spent in nature, creative exploration, making a ‘home’ – these are the things that I spend much of my time on.
Photo by Quadrupe
I have to add that my oldest son just walked in the room and asked what I was doing. I read him this question, asked it of him, and he said, “Well, I just do one thing at a time.” So there’s that, too! One foot in front of the other, one task at a time. Trying not to get overwhelmed by all of them together, and frequently reassessing to ‘let go’ of what isn’t going to fit.
SM: Describe your method of homeschooling, in just a sentence or two.
AS: Our style of homeschooling fits under the ‘unschooling’ umbrella, meaning, for us, that we treat the world as our classroom. Our learning happens rather organically, with a combination of following our children’s interests as well as exposing them to new things all the time. I know that’s vague, so if anyone is interested further, I’d recommend reading anything by John Holt as a start!
SM: How would you encourage someone like me, who lives in an urban city of 3 million people, to more fully experience and enjoy nature?
Photo by Wesley Satterwhite
AS: My reality is that I’ve only ever lived in a city the size of the one I live in now (the metro Portland area is roughly 230,000), or even smaller (we started our family in a town of 81 residents!), so yes, of course, access to the natural world is easy for us (and a huge part of our decision to live here!). I have to believe that while the effort to find the more ‘natural spots’ is greater in urban areas, also greater would be the reward and importance of doing so. City parks, urban gardening – there is so much nature to enjoy wherever we are.
SM: Why do you advocate children having fewer toys at home?
Photo by Abra
AS: For many reasons, I think “less is more.” I think simple, natural and open-ended toys lead to more imaginative play and creative exploration. I think it’s also a matter of too many toys being overstimulating at times – when you’re spending so much of your time looking for something, or trying to even choose what to play with. Fewer toys doesn’t always have to mean getting rid of things – sometimes just rotating things in and out of a storage area can be helpful. When we see something we haven’t seen in a while, or it’s presented in a new way, we can often find new creative uses for it.
SM: How has creating or crafting helped you to be a better mom?
AS: Creating things nurtures me as a person, and therefore makes me more able to meet my children from a place with more peace and centeredness.
And creating with my children has given me so many amazing opportunities to connect with them, get to really understand them better, and share our family time together in ways that are important to me.
SM: If you could only do one craft for the rest of your life, what would it be?
AS: Oh gosh, that’s impossible to say! I guess if we were including writing as a ‘craft’ (which I do), that would be it without a doubt. Writing feels like breathing to me. But a handcraft? Probably embroidery….a little bit of linen in a hoop with thread and needle is just the perfect little blank canvas.
The Giveaway
Three readers will win a brand new copy of The Creative Family! To be entered, simply comment on this post by answering the following question – What was your favorite thing to play as a child?
To be entered a second time, subscribe to Simple Mom and email me the secret code at the bottom of all the posts. Check here for more info on this, if you’re unsure what I’m referring to. You don’t have to be a new subscriber – anyone who subscribes can email me the code.
Lastly, to be entered a third time, mention this interview and giveaway on your blog, and make sure you link back to me about it in some form.
The contest will be open from today, July 28 until Friday, August 1, midnight EST. Worldwide entries are accepted!
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Oh I am so excited and hope I win! My kids are very artsy and creative, and I am totally NOT… at least not in that way. But I believe much of what you both talk about here. I would love to win the book, hopefully it will help me find my creativity.
Carrie at Natural Moms Talk Radios last blog post..Peaceful Parenting For a Peaceful World
Me, me! I have heard so many great things about this book! As a child, my favorite thing to play or to do was read. I was a big, big reader and still am, as much as I can be. Reading helped me be imaginative and play made up games and scenarios, which was, I guess, my other favorite thing to do.
Kelly from Almost Frugals last blog post..Eating Out Frugally: Have A Picnic
I hadn’t heard of Amanda and her book, so thank you for your interview. She sounds fascinating.
I was reminded of one of my childhood favourites a few weeks ago by my girls. Making “perfume” and potions with my cousin from flowers and leaves collected in our gardens. We used to fill afternoons trying this and that in an attempt to get something that smelt halfway decent
No toys, just our imaginations and nature.
Journeyers last blog post..Getting to Know You
I LOVE your blog and have learned so much from you!
What a wonderful book! I am always looking for ways to think outside the box with my two Boys and incorporate more creativity, but I feel I fall so far short!
My fave thing to play when I was little was “Babies on the Doorstep.” My sis and I would start an orphanage for all of our dolls. We were one big happy family!
Oooh, as a child, my favourite thing to play was “olden days house”. I was a big lover of the Laura Ingalls’ books. :0)
Charitys last blog post..Lace Ribbon Scarf
I loved to play “dance recital” — putting on a record (usually Tina the Ballerina) and dressing up in some old crinolines from my grandma’s house. Ahh, those were the days.
mollys last blog post..Small Cygnet on Etsy
I grew up on a mountainside as a child. My favorite pastime was to climb on a set of huge boulders near our house. I would make the cracks and crevices different “rooms” in my pretend house. I’d drag large grapevines over to the rocks to make “furniture” for the rooms and use piles of dried leaves for cushions. I’m just grateful I never ran into any snakes!
Katharines last blog post..Third time is a….?
I was a huge pretend player as a child,. and my favorite thing to do was to use my dolls to act out whatever book I was reading, inside or in my parents’ large garden, building houses out of rocks and old bricks and found wood. For hours and hours.
My favorite thing was playing cooking in the backyard. The air condition compressor was the stove. Grass/sticks/flowers/leaves they main ingredients. We lived in an area with RED mud, so everything had marinara sauce too!
PS-I couldn’t find an email address to email you directly. My email isn’t set up correctly on my laptop, so the “email me” link won’t get it to you…
I would love to win a copy of this book. I don’t feel very creative when it comes to playing with my kids. My favority thing to do when I was a child was, ironically enough, to play pretend with my friends. We would pretend we were princesses, detectives, etc.
My grandmother lived about eight miles away in a small sleepy town, but eight miles felt like 80 miles as a kid, so it always felt like a great big adventure when we went to see her. Her house was big and old–meaning, it smelled of moth balls in a fresh, clean, grandmother’s house way and was built with oak and maple doors and stairways, glass windows and stained glass portholes, faucets that squeaked and closets that creaked, and so big with rooms that were tucked away and never used. It also meant that there were treasures (old letters, knick knacks, books, receipts, paper pads) and costume jewelry hidden in drawers and under beds, in between pages of books, and behind secret doors. My brothers and sister and cousins and I would spend hours there playing post office. Someone was the postman, others were storekeepers, and someone was a hairdresser. We made sure that we got so heavily involved in our pretend and simple world, that there was no other option other than to let us stay overnight; otherwise, I’m quite sure, we’d have considered our world turned upside down. That was my favorite thing to play as a child.
Maureens last blog post..Feeding Connections
I started reading Amanda’s blog when she gave birth to Adelaide. I’ve been hooked since!
When I was a child, my favorite thing to play was bat and ball with my Dad on the side of the house. My “bat” was a giant, plastic red thing and my “ball” was a wiffle ball, but I LOVED it. I’m still close to my Father and so appreciate that he would play for hours with me.
HollyRheas last blog post..URGENT and IMPORTANT and LIFE-ALTERING
Great interview! My favorite thing to play was teacher. I had a chalkboard for instruction and even confiscated an old typewriter to make up worksheets and homework. Now that I’m really a teacher I avoid worksheets like the plague, but they were fun when I was 5.
My grandmother lived on a “farm” in the arkansas mountains. My favorite thing to do as a child was to climb up in the woods and just play pretend. Often times I imagined I was somewhere else, but wow, what I wouldn’t give to do that again!
I am definitely lacking in the creativity department. I would love to be able to do fun crafts easily with my girls!
I really loved the interview, it was great to hear how Amanda deals with the day to day. As a child I spent most of my time outside. We had an old plaster works near our house and we used to use large chunks of plaster to write and decorate the footpath. We would make patterns, draw around our body shapes, make up hopscotch outlines etc. It would amuse us for hours.
PlanningQueens last blog post..Menu Plan Monday – A Big Planning Session
What a fun giveaway! My favorite thing to play as a child was probably “Night Games” with all of our neighbor friends. Games like “Kick the Can,” “Annie-I-Over,” Red Rover,” and “Capture the Flag” were played nearly every night in my neighborhood!
HI! My favorite thing to play as a child was Little House on the Prairie! My sister & I would be Mary and Laura, and our German Shepherd dog was “Jack”…we would spend hours by our creek and build forts and pretend to hide from the indians…We had hours of fun…we would lay pine tree branches down as our beds…we even had a little “potty area ” – haha….I hadn’t thought of that in years…
we had SO much fun!
I LOVE your blog! Have GREAT day!
I’m so interested in this book. My favorite game as a child was hide & seek especially during dusk.
As a child, I loved so many things to play! There was definitely no favorite…I played Barbies, dolls, paper dolls, and imaginative play outside. I was usually in my own little world. I am such a huge believer in imaginative play!
I do subscribe to simple mom on my google reader. I don’t know what secret code you are talking about, I don’t see it!
My favorite thing to play growing up was “chef”. I loved to mix recipes with real food (and an adult’s help) or make pretend dishes out of playdough. Great giveaway
Love the interview!
Michelles last blog post..Use the Sun to Whiten Your Dipes!
I would love a copy of SouleMamma’s book! I’m raising two energetic boys who have incredibly creative imaginations. I strive to provide the type of creative environment I was blessed to grow up in as a child…thanks to my wonderful parents. My favorite thing to play with growing up was actually more of a thing to do…I loved going camping with my family. My father was born and raised in Colorado so the outdoors were a natural part of his life and he shared that love with his children. I loved sleeping under the stars (we only used tents…no “camper” camping for us!), hiking the mountains of Northern California and Colorado, cooking out, the campfires, exploring the forest, rivers and lakes, fishing and collecting “treasures” found in some of God’s most beautiful playgrounds!
Joelles last blog post..it’s been way too long
My sister and I used to love playing “Travel Agency”. My dad used to travel a lot for work, and he’d save his old ticket stubs and boarding passes for us. My sister and I would take turns sitting behind the desk, coming up with travel suggestions, issuing each other tickets and then pretending we were customs officials! Guess we travelled a lot too, so thought this play-acting was fun!
I love your blog and this book looks awesome! My favorite thing as a kid was splashing around in our creek!
Please include me for the book give-away as I have four creative, crafty girls but could use the encouragement for myself! My favorite pasttime as a child was to curl up with a Nancy Drew mystery, but as far as a game or activity, we had fun playing librarian in my grandparents old library room! Thanks, Barbara
As a child, I loved to play in the woods – pretended a great large grouping of vines was my house, cinderblock was my chair and I would imagine away an entire afternoon.
Karens last blog post..Pocoyo: Juego limpio
I have to say, I stumbled apon your blog when you wrote the post about keeping homemaking skills alive and have learned so much from you! Your post about RSS feed and how to subscribe to blogs was enlightening, simple and exciting to me. Of course, I subscribed to your blog right away and have been using my google reader instead jumping from one blog to another to see if they’ve updated. Thank you for the wonderful tip!
As far as the contest goes -this book is something that I would love! My favorite thing to play asa child was any kind of “house.” Whether it be dressing up my barbies and playing through them, or being outside in the “woods” with my cousins -house definitely topped the list!
I just Twittered it, does that count?
My favorite game with called Big People, when my sister and I would act out stories we created from our imaginations. No props or toys required. Today, I watch my kids do the same thing.
Monica @ Paper Bridgess last blog post..When two worlds collide: Elizabeth Gilbert and why I home school
That was an excellent interview. Well done! I’ve been wanting to read Amanda’s book for awhile. I’d love to win it! My favorite toys as a child were Barbie.
Nicholes last blog post..Sheltered
My favorite toy as a child was my little plastic Fisher-Price dollhouse with the handle on top. I spent hours imagining the lives of the little family that lived inside, and used things from around me to “redecorate” the rather limited interior. Thanks for the reminder……it’s up in my attic right now and I think my children might like to try it for themselves!
Amy G.s last blog post..Monday
I loved being outdoors, riding bikes was the ultimate fun for me. All day – up and down the hills, andI don”t remember getting “bored”! Great interview – would love a copy of the book!
My favorite game as a child was Uno. As an only child it was difficult to play because I would have to recruit people or my mother to play with me. So, I guess my default my favorite thing to do ended up being reading. I love reading to this day.
I enjoyed this interview and really hope to win this contest, the book sounds amazing!
My favorite game as a child was playing grocery store with my sister. We made a cash register out of cardboard and we would take turns buying things from around the house. Very fun!
This sounds like a great book! My little guy still mostly just _eats_ crayons, but I’m sure that our creating days are just around the corner! This would be great not only for us, but also for our MOPPETS activity times!
Princess Leias last blog post..THIS is Parenting
One of my favorite toys to play with when I was a kid was my legos. I actually still like playing with my girls legos. It takes alot of imagination to build something and I think building is alot of fun. I think legos was one of the few things that me and my brother actually played with only one “toy” at a time, everything else was pretty much all mixed up together.
My favorite thing to play with as a child were my Cabbage Patch kids. For awhile there, one of them went everywhere with me, for on-the-go play. I think it really helped develop my imagination, and they were pretty good for cuddling, too!
I’ll e-mail you the code!
Jenis last blog post..I Really, Really Love Target
My mom is very creative and I’m so thankful for her influence on us. She enjoyed her hobbies and therefore we did, too. She brought us along to do pottery, photography, stained glass, woodworking, painting and sewing. We had shoe boxes full of silkworms in the garage. What fun.
Chrys
My all-time favorite thing to do as a child was READ. I would read constantly! I still enjoy reading today! This is a great giveaway, I hope I win!
I will also be emailing you the code!
I figured I’d come back and actually answer the question! The playing I remember the most happened outdoors. I remember learning to ride my bike, using the curb to reach the seat as it was too big for me. I remember rollerskating up and down our dead-end street. I remember feeling very grown up and independent being able to walk around the corner to the little neighbourhood park where there was a tube slide and a really neat swing that I loved. I spent a lot of time on our swing set and in our driveway with our ‘Big Wheel’. Once we moved to a more rural location, again on a dead-end laneway, there was more adventerous outdoor play. My brothers and I would explore the fields – making it ’snow’ in August when we opened every single milkweed seed pod we could find. We spent copious amounts of time trying to stay away from the ‘haunted house’, a little shack near our property and we got a lot of enjoyment out of the neighbour’s geese following us around. Thanks for the prompt to remember!
Bonnis last blog post..Recovering Well
I remember having the most fun pretending I was a witch making mud pies with sticks, acorns, leaves, rocks, and anything else lying around. It was better when I fed them to my brother and he ate them.
Michelle Pendergrasss last blog post..Stay Tuned for The Big Remodel
My favorite thing to play with as a child was this huge TeePee my mom had made with a bunch of fabric, some PVC pipe, and painted with Indian designs. It was a tent, a fort, a house, everything you can imagine. I loved it!
Shannas last blog post..Follow up
I loved playing with my babydolls. My sister and I would take our little wooden table out into the yard and set it for a doll’s tea party. Such fun!
CharityGraces last blog post..Linkety Link
Hopschotch!
My favorite activity growing up was when we played “Little House on the Prairie” at the park across the street from our house. We would drag pots, blankets, baby dolls and all other manner of stuff across the street and then set up our “homes” under the trees.
Emilys last blog post..Unplugged Project: "Flat"
As a child I loved playing with the doll house that my Uncle Michael made for me – hours and hours of fun with that! I also did a lot of art projects… drawing, cutting, pasting, colouring… often making something out of found objects like egg cartons or cereal boxes.
Thanks for letting me remember!!
alexandras last blog post..Lately…
I loved Tinkertoys as a kid esp. when my dad would get down on the floor with me me build something really cool.
Halles last blog post..Flowers
As a child, my favourite toy must have been Legos. I had a Lego plastic briefcase filled with the plain lego shapes (no special pieces/characters for me).
My favourite activity was making houses for my brother’s G.I.Joes. Of course, then there would be a war and the house would be destroyed and I’d have to start all over again…
My favorite thing to play as a child was “house”. I also really loved riding my bike!
Hello – it’s hard to narrow it down to a favourite, but I really loved playing fairies and elves outside, making castles with autumn leaves and our picnic table. How lovely to have that question presented and start remembering all the things I loved to do as a kid! Thank you!
My favorite thing to play as a child was pretending I was a character in a favourite movie or book. Cinderella was my personal favorite- talking to little mice and birds, living in a tower…
Great interview! My favorite toy as a child were blankets and scraps of wood….my sister and I would hours outside each day building “houses”. I have such fond memories of doing that and it is so wonderful to see my own kids starting to do similar construction. I am a big fan of Amanda’s blog and book (keep checking it out from the library but would LOVE to have a copy for our family). Also, nice to discover your blog. I’ll look forward to exploring it.
Lucias last blog post..Way to Go, Jo!
I enjoyed the interview, thanks! But I really appreciated reading everyone’s favorite childhood games. For me, I think reading was the top of my list. Especially once I was old enough to ride my bicycle to the library. That, and making up dance routines with my sister.
As a child, my favorite toy was my dollhouse. It was 3 stories high and I could empty it and rearrange it all day long. Loved it!
I love SouleMama! And I would love to have her book too!
My favorite thing to do as a child was play “orphans”…I played with my cousins and we would roam around their farm making up tasks that the “master” wanted us to do. Kind of bizarre, but it kept us entertained for hours…we would even beg her mom to give us chores to do as part of our game!
Great interview!
I have two younger sisters, and we grew up kind of out in the middle of nowhere, so our favorite thing to play was always “Little House”, and I got to be Mary:)
Ashleys last blog post..Trying Something New
Thanks for the interview… Iloved reading more about this unique, creative mom and her family!
My older brother liked playing with his mini tractor and trucks and I liked my Raggedy Ann doll doing the Mama role thing. However, we found that we liked playing TOGETHER when he brought out his vehicles and plastic farms animals to the sidewalk and the ants parading on the cement became our “people” and I could boss them around better than he could because of all my practice with Raggedy!
Debs last blog post..Meeting the Little Man
Since my mom was a teacher, I got old copies of her handouts – math and spelling sheets and the like. We also had an old desk from the school. So, I played “school” a lot!
Stacys last blog post..Closer to Fine….
Perfectly timed question! I grew up in the 70s and was caught up in the Nadia Comaneci craze! I’ve been reminiscing about this with the Beijing Olympics coming up soon. My sister and I played at being Nadia and her teammate [Teadora Ungureanu -- talk about "where are they now"?] and living our lives as elite athletes and *stars*. Anything we were doing, be it going out for ice cream or going to the farmer’s market, we did as “N & T”; we felt so much larger than life when we were being our heroines. At the time I was a pretty decent gymnast, though nowhere near competitive caliber, and even now my four-year-old is deeply impressed with how well I do cartwheels.
Naomis last blog post..Thursday is Farm Day, a brain dump
Is it cheating if my favorite thing to “play” is a three-way tie?
1. Anything that involved make-believe outside, specifically pretending to be various animals
2. Writing! I actually wrote (and typed) a 100+ page book (single spaced!!!) when I was in 5th grade
3. Reading
Yes, I was a wee bit of a nerd.
I loooovvvveeee doing creaive activities with my kids so I really hope I win this book!
What a fun giveaway! I played so much as a child it is difficult to name just one game. As a younger child, I played school, house, grocery store and pioneer family (think Little House). I played hopscotch and jumped rope. I roller skated (the kind with the key). As an older kid, I played hide-and-seek with the entire neighborhood. We built a putt-putt course. I played pickup kickball and football in the street and basketball in the alley. I rode bikes for miles and miles. I hit tennis balls against the neighborhood school. I walked to the library and read for hours. If I had to name something that hasn’t been mentioned, I wrote and performed puppet plays making the puppets and designing the sets.
I loved to play school! I would write my letters and enjoy coloring with the new crayons. I still love gathering the new supplies each year.
My favorite thing to do was to ride my bike – all afternoon. I also liked climbing my grandparents’ crabapple tree and eating the crabapples!
I’ve been wanting this book since before it came out. Nice interview and great giveaway. Thanks!
mayas last blog post..Routine: noon
I’ve been trying to pick up this book for the last few months…our local book store is always sold out or not in stock. I get my daily dose by visiting SouleMama every day.
My favourite toy…….hmm, would have to say my little suitcase full of dress up clothes for both me and my dolls. Its now been handed down to my little girl who is on the brink of being able to do the buttons herself.
Just found your site and will be signing up for emails….
PicK ME, please!
I’m sure I had other favorites, but what’s coming to mind right now is that I used to love to “cook” with things from outside–for example, a dandelion “soup”, an acorn and leaves “salad”, and so on.
Meryls last blog post..It’s the Bee’s Knees
i grew up on a farm in switzerland and riding any kind of vehicles around the farm was one of my most favorite things to do. as well as helping with cooking, making jam and preserving food. there were lot’s of people helping and it was fun to work together.
My favorite thing to play when growing up was Sardines. Our parents let us “play out” on weekend and summer evenings with our neighborhood friends. We would all put on our darkest colored clothing and then played this twist on hide ‘n seek once it got dark. One person goes to hide while everyone else counts. When you find the “it” person hiding you quietly join them until everyone has found the crew. You really had to squish together like sardines into the hiding place with out giggling or complaining! The first person who found “it” is “it” for the next round. Soooo much fun. Round after round of fun!
I am so thankful to have recently found your blog & spent the weekend looking around. I have been eyeing this book for some time now.
Hmmm….I guess puzzles. I’ve always loved them, right on up until adulthood.
Rebeccas last blog post..Talk About It: Painting
My FAVORITE thing as a kid was legos. I always like to dream about my own house and I’d build homes complete with furniture and landscaping, long before “girly” legos existed. I was quite a nerd for doing so, as no girls I knew at the time cared one lick for legos. I still have all of them in a box in my closet for my own daughter to play with one day.
Michelles last blog post..Then/Now
I loved to play cook. I was always trying to make nettle soup, it was only when I got to be big that I realised you would need more than a bucket, nettles and rainwater for this to taste nice!!
Nicolas last blog post..On turning 29
My very favorite thing to do as a child was to explore the fields and woods in my neighborhood. We would head to a spot that was filled with Native American Lore…the same tale that my father grew up hearing. It had great mystery and intrigue. The neighborhood kids and I would just hang out and imagine life in a different time soaking in all that nature had to offer from cliffs to babbling brooks.
travelinmas last blog post..Chicken Wire Fence
One of my favorite things to play as a kid was dress up. My mom had this huge wooden box that we could climb in filled with all sorts of great things like old nightgowns, silly pants, my cousin’s flower girl dress. . . my sister and I would spend hours putting on different costumes and acting out our dramas!
One of my favourite things to do as a kid was play up in a tree “pretending” all day. One memory I have is of me laying on a big branch like a leopard and practicing my “growl”. No toys involved.
Colleen Belliveaus last blog post..And Now She is Seven
playing house outside with my homemade cabbage patch kids
My absolute favorite thing to play when I was a child was “kitchen”. I adored my play kitchen, tinkering around like I was cooking for all my dolls and animals. I currently have Amanda’s book out from the library and it is fantastic! I would greatly enjoy having my own copy to reference…Thanks for the opportunity!
Susans last blog post..How do you measure success?
I was a big reader…every week I’d check out at least ten books from the library, if not more. As far as playing goes, my most vivid memories are of being outside…picking questionable berries and making pretend pies…playing red-light-green-light…spending hours on the elementary school playground across the street.
Julies last blog post..This one’s for you, Lisa…
Growing up I always just loved to play outside. Whether it was wrestling with my brother, or making mud pies with the neighbor, I always had fun using my imagination.
Laceys last blog post..All Things HP
I found your website today from SouleMama’s link. This is a lovely place! My favorite thing to play as a child was tag. We lived in a neighborhood that we could run through all day. Once it got too dark, we would switch to catching fireflies in Mason jars.
I love the quote “a reminder of the gift of parenthood, and the fleetingness of it all”. I used to like to play school, and make my little brother and his friends be the students.
Rachels last blog post..Resisting the Desire to Acquire
hi, I’m a grandma and I’m raising my granddaughter. Your blog has lots of great ideas.
My favorite thing when I was a child (eons ago) was cardboard boxes, any size. They could be turned into anything.
bev e
My favorite thing to do was to play outside, either on the swingset, in the sand box or riding my bike. This book looks great!! Thank you for the opportunity to win a copy!
when i was a kid my favorite thing to play with were the weeds in the back yard. i enjoyed trying to make birds nests. everyday i would go out and check the nests that i had made to see if any birds wanted to live there. obviously i didn’t understand that birds don’t live on the ground. but i remember doing it and loving it.
christy hintons last blog post..2 card creations
As a kid I love playing with friends, no toys, just friends. I love staying out till dark, playing hide and go seek, red light green light, Simon says, all until we saw the street light turn on and we would all run home.
It makes me think of all the hundreds of toys my 3 boys have and that they are missing out on what we loved when we were younger. Time to clean out their room!?
I was also a child of the woods. Fallen trees were my kingdom. Whole words lives among and beneath the trees. I would spend hours creating stories about those who lived among the trees. Most of those stories never made it out of my head, but they still inform my “self” today.
Amy Jos last blog post..perfection triumvirate: sweet, sour, and salty
Living on an island, my favourite thing to do was play on the beach. A couple of friends and I would play store on the beach in summer. We would each have our own store, ie. bakery, jewelry store, anything. It was so fun. We would play for hours, making little things out of seaweed, driftweed, shells, and beach glass. We used tiny periwinkle snails for currency.
Virginias last blog post..poppies quilt
Great interview! My favorite thing to play as a child was with horses- play horses, Breyers horses and real horses!
I loved to play with dolls….any kind–paper dolls, baby dolls – no matter. My friend and I would name our dolls and they would even get to spend the night with each other, just like we enjoyed doing….so fun!
I just found your blog because of Soule Mama’s blog! And this is fantastic! Definitely putting you on the list of “must read” blogs! Thank you for this great giveaway.
Our favorite thing as kids – I think my favorite was reading. I started reading early and just never stopped! We have so many pictures of me reading in trees, on bikes, in tents, by the pool, on the beach… you name it, I was there reading. Of course there was a lot of playing too, but I was never to far from a good book.
What a great interview…I really hope I win this book. I grew up in a family where anything that could make a mess was banned…no markers, no paints, absolutely no glitter….my favorite toy was my trust tin of lincoln logs.
Some of the best childhood memories I have are playing either librarian or newspaper journalist with my cousin. We spent hours organizing books, creating systems to check books in and out, and sending our stories “to press.” It is no wonder she now writes for a small-town newspaper and I am an avid reader.
Thank you for this awesome give away!
I love Amanda Soules Blog, Soulmama.
When I was a child I loved to play with the neighbors pet cats. The whole neighborhood worth would come into my families yard each day to find their little play buddy, me. This is my best memory. Unconditional love. Best warm regards.
As a child I grew up on a farm so my siblings and I played outside in our “fort”. One of my favorite things to do was to make mud cookies. We would go collect pebbles/rocks of different sizes and twigs (break them up into different sizes) and then add them to our black dirt and water ….we made hundreds of dozens of “cookies” and then rinsed off under the garden hose.
My favorite thing to “play” as a child was make believe…we had a huge yard and a garden, with woods behind. I would go out and imagine myself in a different place, making up stories and exploring. I am a definite fan of rotating toys to avoid too many choices. I have also been known to take the batteries out of certain toys to reduce overstimulation. Wonderful interview!
Take care,
Steph
Stephs last blog post..Menu Plan Monday
One of my favorite things to play with as a child was actually something I played on – our ‘treehouse’, which was really only an old wooden palette from dad’s work set in the crotch of a tree in our backyard. But we pretended it was so much more!
I loved playing restaurant as a kid – I’d create menus, make food out of clay, have an order pad and an apron – I could entertain myself for hours this way! Imaginary patrons or family members roped into playing with me – it didn’t matter!
SouleMama was one of the first blogs I ever read years ago – I really enjoyed reading this interview, and would LOVE to win Amanda’s book!
My cousins and I used to play “library” when we were little and it was my favorite game. We would get as many books as we could find and we would take turns being the librarian. Still to this day, I love books because of it. I still can’t remember who started the game though. It was probably me since I was the “ringleader” and oldest lol.
Amiyrahs last blog post..Meal plan Monday!
Loved the interview!!!
We used to build mud castles in our orange orchard.So much fun!!!!
Hmm.. my favorite thing to play as a young child was house, with my cats standing in as baby’s. They would lay in a crib, allow me to dress them and even put a bottle in their mouths. Those cats were amazing!
Thanks for the giveaway!
Rachels last blog post..The Scoop on Food Colorings
My favorite toy was my baby sister….
I love to play with my sit and spin.
Ariellas last blog post..Vacationing with Mom & Dad
Soule Mama is one of my favorite blogs, and I’m happy to have found Simple Mom through that channel, too! I remember just playing outside when I was little, kicking around the neighborhood, riding bikes, jumping rope. Unplugged, and happily NOT missing what we were “missing.”
Thanks for a great interview!!
MelissaSs last blog post..Another Challenge Card…
My favorite thing to do as a child is pretend and imagine. I used to pretend I was a princess on an adventure. Thanks for your wonderful website and this opportunity to win!
I love Soule’s book–it fits my philosophy perfectly! I am actually buying an armoire from craigslist today as an arts cabinet.
The challenge with less toys is, I find, friends, cousins and grandparents. Lastly, my fave toy growing up was definitely my dollhouse!
I was always playing house or school.
I’m really excited about this book. Sounds like a lot of great ideas.
I loved reading this interview. My sister and I called our favorite activity building “leaf houses”. We would rake the fallen leaves in our yard into floor plans and play in our imaginary house for hours. As the older sister, I always got the master bedroom!
I can think of a few things I loved to do… for one READ- I was (and am) a huge reader, I also loved going camping with my family!
This book looks awesome, thanks for the interview!
nicoles last blog post..SuperMarkets & Snacks
When I was a kid, we loved to play anything outside.
We usually made up games and played them all the time.
Sally W.s last blog post..not often
This looks like a great read. If I don’t win I will go out and buy one. Thanks for the interview.
I am a true fan of soule mama, she makes me crave creative time with my children. As a child I played many things with my twin sister. I have to say among the top two memories are putting on shows with songs from the Supremes is at the top, with spending many Saturday afternoons in the large downtown library and exploring for hours being second. Thank you, Joanne
Hmm…I remedmber Loving to play house and begging my brother to play with me…it only worked sometimes. But it was so much fun when I could convince him to play house with me and my dolls.
I hope I win! My daughter would LOVE it!
Oh, a notebook and a pencil (sharp). Or scraps of cloth to twist and tie and rubber-band and stitch into clothes for my dolls.
cindys last blog post..one more thing: two introductions
i loved my art supplies. and i still do. i make sure my kids have lots of art stuff and it’s accessible to them, as well.
make art every days last blog post..We purged.
My favorite thing to play… I spent a lot of time outside with my friends I remember one summer we tried to build a raft to take down the creek, it didn’t really work but we had a ton of fun. It lasted almost that whole summer!
Renees last blog post..Reverisble Bird Seed Skirt GIVEAWAY!!!!
What I remember spending huge amounts of time playing was keep things off the floor. My favorite was balloons. I loved the dreamy way that they wafted up when hit, then floated down. I always played this by myself in my room while daydreaming about meeting my most recent book’s characters.
I was actually thinking about this the other day and when I was about nine I used to make all my own yarn dolls (made out of yarn, sort of like corn husk dolls) because I was annoyed that every family had a mom, a dad, a boy and a girl. I wanted to create all different families, ones that represented my friends and the families I know.
thanks for asking that question
brits last blog post..Weekend Rundown
My favorite toy was my Chrissy doll. Edie
My favorite thing to play when I was young was with Lincoln Logs. My kids and I still play with the set I had.
I loved playing in the woods and pretending to camp. I had the best times as a kid playing in the many, many acres of woods behind our house!
I loved to “play school” as a child. My mom gave us all kinds of used text books to use, and she set up an entire corner of our playroom as a schoolroom. We took playing school very seriously! My favorite part was giving my little sister “assignments.”
This book looks amazing, especially because I don’t consider myself a “creative mom” at all. But, I want to be!
I am already an e-mail subscriber, and I love it.
Elizabeths last blog post..Just Elizabeth, Please
I loved building things when I was a kid. I had a big box of wood scrap blocks from my grandpa’s workshop that I played with a lot. Later on my sister and I had Legos and I could play with them for days on end.
I loved playing with my Mom’s bags full of fabric remnants. There was pieces big enough to wrap around ourselves and our dolls. My friends and I would pin ourselves into elaborate outfits and do fashion shows.
Jennie C.s last blog post..This Week’s Masterpieces
As a child, my favorite thing to do was read. I love that my DD loves to read also – we can sit and read stories together for well over an hour!
Such a fascinating lady! My most vivid childhood memory of imagination and playing is having tea parties in my parents Canna garden. They had hundred of bulbs planted on one side of our yard. They were a very tall plant with all colors of flowers! My friends and I would have tea parties right in the center of their flower garden. We even pretended to have tiny fairies as guests. Great memories! Thanks for a wonderful book giveaway contest. Thanks, Cindi
my handsewn mousie was my favorite — i recently posted all about her, and the mousie my mom made for my daughter at
thanks for the great interview!
cloth.paper.strings last blog post..gocco noted + giveaway
This is the first time at your blog. I’m looking forward to visiting more!
My favorite play as a kid? Running outside. I was lucky and grew up in Maine with lots of land to explore. And sheds too. Playing house, in a ‘real’ house in the middle of the woods. Now that’s a good time!
My favorite thing to play– dress up! I hope my kids are so easily entertained.
Ooo…I hope I win. ;o)
It’s hard to say what my favorite thing was to play, but one of them was making “potions.” My siblings and I would go outside and find all sorts of random things around our yard and in the woods behind our house, then we’d mix, poor, stir, crush rocks into “powder” etc. It kept us busy for hours!
favorite thing to play with when i was a child…oh that is easy! and without a doubt it was our natural surroundings, playing in the willow trees, walking through the prairie finding snakes, climbing our cherry trees and eating cherries looking for the really red ones at the top. these are the things i remember most of all, and not a toy at all.
WONDERFUL interview, and the most profound help i got was to fill your childrens cup before moving on to an “only mom can do it” task. that is some good advice and totally explains what happened over the weekend.
thank you Amanda!
A pair of pantyhose and an flower girl’s dress were my favorite things to play with growing up. Sound weird? Well, my sister and I just to take turns being the princess and the hand maiden. When you were the princess you wore the dress and put the pantyhose on your head, the waistband fit like a headband covering your hair and you had really long “hair.” It was so fun, I still can’t put a pair of pantyhose on without a smile!
I had an older, handicapped sister growing up. She couldn’t walk or communicate with us in any way, so I would always make up games for us. Once I remember setting up all my stuffed animals and music boxes and pretended like we were conducting a symphony; holding a baton in my sister’s hand. Such a blast!
One of my favorite games was a pretend game I played with my sisters in the hemlock hedge at my grandmama’s. We would climb to the top of the hedge and make our homes in the branches. We would use the ground for the bottom story of our homes, using rocks and branches to outline our homes. We made potions and food in old bottles and bowls. The story was never the same, but we were always fully engaged and hours would pass by.
My favorite to play as a child was kick-the-can with all the neighborhood kids during the summer months. We would all gather outside our homes after dark and play until our parents let us.
Debra Gs last blog post..Boy oh Boy…
I must say that I just loved playing in my garden outside. Digging, planting, watering. It would keep me busy for hours!
How exciting! I gave Amanda’s book to my sister for her birthday without even reading it because I knew it would be good! Now I am hoping for a copy for myself! Thank you for posting a great interview….it helps get my day going in the right direction.
When I was little, my mom would bring home large quantities of things like butcher paper and paint stirring sticks. We would use the paper to roll out and draw great big houses and the sticks would become the people. We would draw their faces on and add clothes. I believe those activities were so important in shaping who I am. Now I get to have fun doing similar activities with my son and love it!
My favorite thing to do as a kid was jumping in puddles on a rainy day…
Ohhh, I would love, LOVE to win this book! My favorite activities were anything we could play outside. I had a very active imagination and loved to make up new games. From pretenting to be pioneers on a long journey west, to creating an outdoor carnival using only natural elements, to making up imaginary worlds full of interesting animals and fantsiful characters – there was always lots of fun to be had!
One of many favorite things we would do is make special “stews.” My mom would give us old spices and things like that which had expired, and we’d mix in leaves and dirt and flowers from the yard and make “potions” and things. Then we’d make up the ailment that it healed and someone would have to pretend to have that ailment so we could fix them. Quite fun.
One of my favorite things to do as a child was to draw pictures and create things. I dreamed of being a fashion designer. I would sit for hours and draw pages full of ladies all dressed up in the clothes I designed. I am currently trying to make more time in my life for being creative. I recently discovered your blog and I am enjoying it. Thanks!
We used to dig up carrots from the garden, cut them up, put them in a pot of water with lots of salt and call it Carrot Soup. I don’t know that it was my parent’s favorite game…
Mrs. Sprinkless last blog post..Bloggy Giveaway!
My favorite activity was playing ‘pioneers’ in the small pine trees on the sand dune near my house (I grew up on the Oregon coast – lucky me!). We would designate certain areas as houses, a fort, etc.
I loved the interview, so much wisdom and love. the book is sure to be even better.
Hi from The Netherlands,
Favourite play: making radio programs! With cassette tapes and an old recorder.
ballees last blog post..babes II
My best friend and I started a business making nests for birds. Yes, we knew our customer – they needed a nest, and we were just the ones to make it for them. We would mash up weeds and mud with bricks and leave the nests on the back fence. We were so pleased when we saw one of our nests up in a nearby tree (her dad put it there…).
My favorite times spent playing with my little sister were simple times – mostly out in the woods around our house, playing hide-n-seek in the pine trees and ferns, collecting fireflies in peanut butter jars, and practicing our tennis backhand on the horseflies. It took a lot to deter them!
I borrowed this book from the library and was so inspired! I was bummed I couldn’t renew it for another two weeks because it was on hold. Argh. I do need my own copy, though, for the great resources to use over and over.
To answer your question: I spent hours and hours and hours in my grandparents’ woods building forts out of sticks and trees and dirt. I can’t stress this kind of activity enough for my young daughters so we have a nature basket building now while they are too little to create mansions out of twigs. : )
shawns last blog post..Anything to make them smile
I loved playing town mouse and country mouse with my sister and best friend. One of us would wear the peasant clothes (and the pink play lipstick!) and the other would wear the regal clothes (and the red play lipstick,) and my little sister would have to carry the robes of the fancy “mouse,” -poor kid!
Thanks for the interview!
What a wonderful book! I’d love to do more crafts with my little guy, who’s two, but I’m kind of terrified of the mess we’d end up with
We pretty much stick to coloring right now, and I’m debating getting some safety scissors.
One of my favorite creative activities as a child was stringing buttons. My grandmother took every spare button that came with every coat or piece of clothing she ever bought and stored them in a big box. She must have had hundreds of buttons, from little plain black or white buttons to big fancy buttons with rhinestones, or painted buttons. My sister and I would string them to make bracelettes or necklaces, or just big strings of buttons. I’ve started trolling garage and estate sales for interesting buttons to make my own big button box for when my little guy is a bit older.
I would so love to win this book! As a child my favorite thing to do was go to my grandparents during the summer to help tend to the garden. I truly have such fond memories of picking tomatoes and okra, gathering up the tilled potatoes, and shelling peas. Ahh, the days when life was at such a slow pace. I long for those days again.
I loved to make ‘zoos’ out of a cardboard box, a bit of sod, sticks, leaves, flowers, and whatever frogs, toads, snakes, and bugs I could find.
This book sounds great! I was an only child, and spent lots of time pretending. I loved pretending to be a teacher, chef, librarian, and even a check-out person at the grocery store!
Thanks for doing the interview! Interesting. My favorite thing to play as a child was make-believe . . . pretending I was a teacher, a flight attendant, a mommy, etc…
I so hope I win! I am so excited to start trying to become a more in tune parent and learning how to connect with my kids.
My favorite thing to play with as a child was my Cabbage Patch doll.
This was a wonderful interview. So inspiring. My favorite thing to play as a child was imaginary explorers. My brother and I would go into the woods behind our house and pretend we lived by the huge rocks and trees out there. We had our own “food” supply and built shelters and so on. I wish my active boy had the same outside freedom as I did – we’re trying to make that happen soon.
One of my favorite indoor pretends was Detective Agency — a little corner “office” between the couch and the wall. And lots of snooping about and writing things on notepads.
Another favorite was “hot lava”. The universal rules of which are to get from one designated point to another without touching the ground. Lots of climbing on furniture indoors or scooting across the top cross bar of swingsets outdoors.
Jills last blog post..Pantry, could you be more efficient please?
hmmm….i think my favorite this was nature hunts and then using all those goodies as “materials” for art projects. being a nnay of 6 for over 5 years we spent many a day hunting, walking, looking finding…thne returning home sitting outside for pasting painnting drawing gluin…fun fun!!
I loved playing tag as a kid. We lived in an apartment complex so all the kids would congregate in the courtyard and play tag.
I have been reading Amanda’s blog since she first started it. Our kids are very similar in age, so it’s always been fun to watch our “sister” family in Maine, while we are here in Colorado… plus I have three boys, so it’s fun to watch would it would be like to have a girl!
My favorite thing to do as a kid was play school. I’d sit my brother down, the dog, dolls, anything I could get to be the students. I’d always have a list of student’s names so I could take roll. That’s usually as far as the lesson plan would go! Sometimes it turned in to “Fame.” All the students were dancers!
I’d love to win! I have three creative youngsters and need more ideas badly!!!! As a child, I spent hours playing make believe with my brother. We were a king and queen in a castle, pioneers building a cabin, Indians on a hunt, etc! We could improvise anything we needed! Who needs fancy toys!
Growing up with 2 sisters and a brother we lived in the trees. We would literally climb up in the morning and not come down until dark. Mom would bring our lunch out to us. Now my three daughters only have little tiny trees were we live, so we make a point of climbing trees every chance we get!
With two older twin brothers and no younger siblings, I played by myself a lot as a child. I loved to invent little worlds of my own in which I could play – such as taking a piece of string and using it to make divisions in a room. In my bedroom for example, I would use string or yarn and divide up the room into sub-rooms, into which I could then place my dolls or small stuffed animals with my handmade items for furniture – like spools for tables. Most of my memories of childhood come from those types of little imaginary worlds. I didn’t have a bad or negative childhood, but both of my parents worked and we had a woman who came in to be paid to watch us after school, and she didn’t play with us, so most of my time was spent discovering what I could do on my own. Now as a homeschooling mom of one little five-year-old girl, I try to explore her own interests and light a wee fire under them so she can explore and soar with someone to cheer her on and participate along with her. I am much blessed. Thank you for sharing the interview and your generous offer.
I loved playing restaurant in the sandbox (er, dirtbox) with my little brother. We served up all kinds of mud concoctions, and one of our neighbors even tried some of our “coffee.”
When I was a kid, I used to love making and finding things from scavenger hunts. My friends and I would take turns hiding toys outside and making clues to find one toy and then the next. We’d always put something extra special at the end – like food or a special toy to play with.
Four square comes to mind. It was a game I played at summer camp. Many fond memories come to mind…bike riding, hide and seek, camping…everything outside!
I loved to play “House,” “Grocery Store” (a friend’s mom would let us take food out of her cabinets to set up in the living room as our store), and “Office.” Anything that made me feel grown up!
thrilled by the thoughts last blog post..Grandma’s Party
I loved to play house. I loved being the Mommy. Now, I am blessed to be Mommy to 3 wonderful kids. I love being creative in everything I do…. I love doing crafts with my kids and teaching them how to be creative on their own.
My favorite thing as a child was (gulp) pretending to be Madonna and having singing contests with my friends. We would put together dance routines, use anything we could for a microphone and get to it!
wow. i just found your website today through a friend… and it all just speaks to me! I was a art student and really feel it important to incorporate that into my kids daily routine. Thanks for the great interview!
My favorite thing to play as a child was anything outside… i loved (still love) to explore anything under the sun… lucky for me i had parents who encouraged me coming home late and dirty everyday!
nicholes last blog post..I am a Foodie! aka. nerd
I love Amanda’s blog! Great interview! As a child, my favorite thing to play was “school”. I was always the teacher and my brother was always the “class clown/trouble maker”. Funny the games we play when we are young, because I grew up to be a teacher!
My favorite thing to do was to create stories and let my barbies, dolls and stuffed animals act them out!
Saras last blog post..Into the Woods
my sister and i love to play “3 ninjas” and “mighty ducks” both inspired from two of our fav movies!
my friends and i would take turns being “teacher”, we would even make up our own lesson plans:)
Great stuff in this post! Crafts are a must in our home and I know I could glean some fabulous ideas through Amanda’s book. My favorite thing to play with as a child? Dolls, hands down. During the summers, my sister and I would play as soon as we woke up until our parents made us go to bed at night. Such fun memories!
My favorite thing to “play” as a child was “The Littles” with my brother. We’d pretend we were little elves scurrying around the house looking for things to do to help my mother. She’s talk loudly to herself about future tasks that she’d like to do next and then she’d find that some Littles had done them for her. She’d leave little treats for the the elves as a thank you. Looking back, I’m sure this was my mother’s favorite game as well.
I hope to win the book to get ideas for my own family.
Sand! By far it had to be sand. Digging tunnels, making castles, covering up my favorite rocks and my toes. The endless possiblities! My kids love playing in the sand just as I still do. My son even goes one step further and eats it whenever he gets the chance!
Thanks for the great interview. Amanda Soule is a great inspiration to me and to creativity in our family.
Dawns last blog post..Saturday at Sugar Camp
I remember my sister and I climbing trees all the time. We had 2 in our front yard that we would spend hours in, pretending that we lived there. Do kids even climb trees anymore? We were a couple of monkeys.
This book looks exciting; I think of myself as being a creative person, but I have a hard time transferring that into my parenting of my two daughters.
My favorite childhood activity was either reading, or playing some form of house or make believe with my sisters. We played make believe or house everywhere from sitting in our cherry tree in the Summer to playing “interior designer” with paint samples and book “how tos” in our basement.
Thoras last blog post..A Two Bedroom Townhouse Apartment of My Own
My favorite thing to do as a kid was to play cops and robbers or cowboys and indians with my cousins. It involved hiding in the bushes, climbing trees and running around outside barefoot with waterguns and it was the greatest fun a girl could have… although my mother wasn’t always pleased with my tomboyish antics
Blesseds last blog post..My Little Helper
I would love this book. All of her ideas about “unschooling” and creativity sound great. My favorite thing as a child was climbing the tree in our front yard because one of the branches made a perfect handle to grab. I can’t really remember a specific toy or game, but I loved being outside.
My mom’s an architect. I used to go into her studio, which smelled wonderfully of ink and pencils, and I would go through the drawers, take everything out, and pretend I was the owner of a store that sold pencils, rulers, rubber bands, etc.
I love Amanda’s blog and I’d love to own her book! My siblings and I loved to play outside. I remember many summer (and winter!) days playing “pioneer” – we’d build forts out of sticks, collect berries and leaves for food and have all kinds of adventures (inspired by Laura Ingalls Wilder, I’m sure!)
As a kid, I had two favorite activities, imagination play or hide and seek with my brother and our neighborhood friends, or exploring outside. When I was very little we lived near a woods and a creek and my brother and I would catch crayfish for long hours in the creek. I can still remember the feel of turning over the wet rocks and the delight of finding a crayfish hiding under there!
Heathers last blog post..Weekdays away…
I’ve been enjoying Amanda’s blog for some time and really enjoyed her interview here on simplemom!
As a child, I loved enjoying the great outdoors. Playing games with the neighbor kids, creating “foods” out of leaves, flowers, nuts, twigs and serving in sand box toys, playing house under the huge forsythia, wading in the creek behind our house on a hot summer day. Things things and many more bring back fond memories of a happy and simple childhood.
I love playing outside with my sister. We lived in the country so we had lots of nature and space to play in and use our imaginations!
We played lots of imaginary games–I loved playing School, with me as the teacher and my little brother as my student, of course!
I loved to play Connect Four. At 5 years old, I was beating most adults. The ones I couldn’t beat, when they weren’t looking, all the chips would “accidentally” fally out! I really enjoy your blog and have been using the Daily Docket. Thanks for entering me.
Hello! Great interview, thank you for sharing. My favourite thing as a child was to play with Pedro, my little donkey-on-wheels. And yes, I still have him, many years later!
Dianas last blog post..Summertime
When we were younger my Mom would set us up on the outdoor patio with her marble mortar + pestle and an assortment of spices, seasonings, etc. We would grind, mix, and smell as we played the “scientist” in our “experiments”. It was so much fun.
p.s. I love your blog, it’s a new find for me today.
JILLs last blog post..{cell phone snaps} empty
My favourite ‘toy’ was our large, somewhat overgrown garden. It provided activities for every mood. Curled up with a book on the branch of my favourite tree. Picking posies for grandma nextdoor or digging holes to China. Building ‘boats’ or anything to keep us afloat while throwing the jucky green stuff (duck weed) at each other. Sleeping out in my own tent my mother made me: a bit scary and glorious at the same time. Stealing grapes and berries long before they ripened, just because you couldn’t wait a minute longer. Ice skating on the pond and building giant snowmen, back then when winters still were cold…
I just loved to be free: to walk in the woods or to the park or around the block alone. I try to encourage my girls to do this, too. We’re lucky enough to live in countries where this is possible for them.
I’m visiting my mom right now and the old street where dozens of us kids always hung out all summer is virtually empty at all hours, despite the fact that there are more kids living on the street now than there were 30 years ago.
MamaShifts last blog post..Sweety…
My favorite thing to do when I was a child was to go into the woods behind my house with my brothers and neighbors and create living spaces in the woods. We even got an old door and attempted to paint it (with those tiny brushes) before giving up. We had a living room in one space, a pretend bathroom in another, etc.
Gardenmamas last blog post..Veggies
I would love a copy of this book!
My favorite things to play as a child were jewelry store with my grandmother’s costume jewels and a carbon copy receipt book. I also really liked playing adventure barbie in the creek beside my house – they were always being swept downstream or otherwise in danger of mud and rocks.
Blaynes last blog post..words from Ruth Sawyer
I loved all of those summer night games we would play, like “Ghost in the Graveyard!” So fun!
I loved ths interview and would love to win this book! My favorite thing to play growing up was either tag with all my neighborhood friends, playing Barbies with my friend next door, reading (big time favorite–loved library visits!) and playing “mom” with my babies.
Irenes last blog post..Mystery Shopping With TrendSource
Thanks for organizing this giveaway. I’ve been watching this book on Amazon – but have been waiting for a sale or used copy.
My favorite play activity has to be “horseback riding” – of course the horse was a golden retriever, named Shannon.
I was (and still am) a solitary child–I had brothers, but they didn’t want to play with their sister and the neighbor girls were not a lot of fun, either–so most of my games were for a single player. The game I played most often was to immerse myself in whatever book I was reading and become, as fully as I could, my favorite character. I’ve been Pippi Longstocking, Jo March, Laura Ingalls, Caddie Woodlawn–the list goes on and on. I’m almost through re-reading the Little House books now and still long to be Laura . . .
i loved family game night growing up. every Friday night we would have pizza and play board games all night. it was so much fun to stay up late and giggle over who was loosing and who was winning….
emilys last blog post..now i know why….
I really enjoyed this interview with Amanda, she is a very lovely person. I loved playing teacher or any sort of role playing/imagination as a child.
As cliche as it may sound, I loved playing house when I was little. My sisters were quite a bit older than me and never wanted to play with their little sister, but my cousin and I would play all the time. She’d bring her dolls over and we’d have a blast! Good times…
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Sounds like a great book! My favorite game as a child was to play “Lost” with my brother and friend. We would forage around the back yard to find food and supplies to survive until my mom “found” us and called us inside.
When I was a little girl, my cousins and I used to play “Tornado” which is where we would hold hands and spin in a circle until we broke apart and then would pretend that we woke up in a new far away land.
Basically a game of make-believe, but I think there was a summer where we played it every day until we heard the ice cream truck come by.
Thank you for this wonderful interview. As mother to be there are so many questions and concerns about what kind of mom I want to be and so many expecatations to meet and possibly not meet. Your blog and this interview are a well needed reminder to remember what is most important–being in the moment with your child.
Leslies last blog post..Tasha Tudor
My favorite thing to play as a little girl was mud bakery. We had an old porch behind our garage that was sunny and warm and I would set all freshly made creations to “bake”.
The memory that first comes to mind is playing in the woods with my sisters. We would often play “house” finding the spots where the trees were just so, making rooms & furniture easy to imagine. A big green mossy patch was the bedroom. We were always “cooking” soups of water, acorns, inedible berries, etc. We thought that the decaying wood of fallen trees looked just like chicken.
This is my first time to this blog and I am definately signing up, so I can read more…and for another chance to win:)
Thanks!
I loved playing in my kitchen and making “chicken and wice.” My daddy built my kitchen and for my daughter’s 2nd birthday he renovated it and now it is hers. She loves it as much as I did.
Pick me!
Kellys last blog post..Here we go!
My absolute favorite thing as a child was to climb trees. I’d climb as High as I could, invite friends up to talk, role play, swing from branches. My father was in the Army, so every few years when we moved, I had a whole new neighborhood to scout looking for awesome trees to climb.
My favorite thing to play as a child was probably school. I had two brothers who were 5+ years younger than I was, so I was the teacher and they were my students. As a mom, I feel one of my weaknesses is that I don’t engage in much imaginative play with my kids. This book sounds wonderful and would hopefully be a good encouragement to me. I enjoyed the interview! Thanks for the chance at winning the book!
Jennys last blog post..Mid-Summer Slump
another blog to add to my list!
This looks like a great book. My son is finally getting old enough to do cool stuff, but I feel like I have been failing at ideas!
When I was a kid, I made up all sorts of stuff around my dolls, house, diner, prairie… they made great participants! I think my best idea was turning my canopy into a Conestoga wagon
Katharines last blog post..
Sorry about that – I forgot to leave the permalink to my giveaway post.
Here it is: http://thefaeryinn.blogspot.com/2008/07/simplicity.html
Faerylandmoms last blog post..Simplicity.
My favorite thing to play as a child was something we called simply, horses. We would set up a horse racing course with jumps and all kinds of obstacles. Then we would gallop, trot, and walk the “horses”–it was just us running– around. The “judges” would score us and we would have an awards ceremony with wreaths made of leaves and pinecones and other natural things. It’s never ceased to amaze me how real a world we were able to create by just using our imaginations.
I loved playing “Explorer” with my sisters and brother. We’d figure out who was captain, gather what provisions we’d need, make a vessel and set sail – all in our own backyard. I think we ruined quite a few sheets making sails…
Oh I hope I win this exciting book!
What an awesome sounding book. My kids would love it. My favorite thing to play with when I was a kid was a big brown teddy bear. And I loved to play in mud puddles. Thanks for a great website.
Melissa
Glad to have been directed to this blog! Right after posting this, I’m subscribing!
When I was young, my sister and I would play at acting out these complex stories of lost treasures and tragic problems to solve in the backyard. We pretended to be ‘lost girls’ who were wild but armed with the ability to save the world!
When we got just a bit older, we would pass a notebook back and forth on family vacations with long hours in the car and take turns writing down similarly drastic-fantastic stories.
The girl is wandering through here dressed as “a mystery maker”. I’ll have to get her to elucidate on that. She is so fanciful and imaginative. When I was her age, my favorite way to play was to explore. It was in the 60’s and parents were less protective and I ranged far and wide through the woods and town. I hoping to win a copy for a friend. I got one to give away but couldn’t let it go!
My favorite thing to do as a kid was to play with the dollhouse my grandmother and aunt made me for one Christmas. I still have it, and now my almost-three-year-old daughter likes to play dollhouse. It certainly brings back the memories for me.
Most definitely, my favorite childhood pastime was (successfully) hula hooping! Do you think I can do that today??? Not on your life :< though I’ve been tempted to start practicing it again, just for the easy cardio health benefits! Thx for the giveaway!
Vickis last blog post..Having a garden demands having good neighbors…
I loved to swim. Actually, I still do. We lived in an apartment complex with a swimming pool and LOTS of other children to play with. I was either there or riding my bike!
When I was a child, I lived beside a furniture/appliance store. Almost every day, there was a big box thrown away. I have painted, decorated, made curtains, carpeted, etc. many, many cardboard homes in my life. And, just when I grew tired of it, the rain would always come to flatten it so I could start all over again with a new design plan. Free fun…can’t beat it.
My favorite pastime as a child was “pretend”, whether it was dressing up as Cinderella (interestingly, as the regular, dirty Cinderella, not the ball gown bit) or just using all the dolls in the house for an elaborately plotted story. I spent a lot of time reading and making crafts, too. When Mom was feeling generous, my friends and I also made “potions” from whatever leftover bits of shampoo, soap, and other toiletries we could find around the house.
This book has to be amazing! My favorite thing to play as a child was “school”. My favorite thing to do as an adult is “teach”!
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I think my favorite thing to play as a kid was either dress up or just playing in the mud and making decadent desserts for my family, out of mud of course
I’ve also signed up for your RSS feed 
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My favorite thing to do as a child… there are many. I loved marching and dancing around the dining room table with my mom as we listened to children’s records. My cat would sit on the chair and try to snag us as we marched past. I also loved playing outside, making mud pies, houses out of sticks and chairs, and swinging until my daddy came home.
My favorite thing to pretend as a child was that my bicycle was a horse and I was a warrior princess, complete with a sword at my side and a babydoll tied to my back.
My sisters and I would play for hours with our little people, making ‘furniture’ and setting up a house for them.
Great giveaway!
Lianes last blog post..(Cat) Door with a view
My favorite thing to play as a child was hide and seek! We had a big yard and a lot of kids in the neighborhood so it was SO much fun!
Rachels last blog post..Veggie Cowl
My favorite thing to play as a child? That is easy:
dress up
Had a whole collection, including my mother’s discarded wedding dress after her divorce. Such fond memories!
I used to like to play that I was pressing clothes (my father was a dry cleaner). I’d spend bath time pressing the wash cloth with a bar of soap. P.s. love your blog and read Amanda everyday. thanks for the interview. hope I win the book
When I was little I loved to fish in the creek for crawdads and other critters much to my mothers dismay. Just this weekend I took my children back to my old fishing hole and they got to experience fishing for crawdads.
Breannas last blog post..My Inspiration
do I really have to pick just one?
Let’s see inside favorties…
playing house, playing like I worked in a office, playing restaurant, playing store. The list could go on and on.
Outside favorties…
pretending to be a famous iceskater, horsebackrider, gymnast.
long bike rides, sledding, snowmobiling, igloo making
it helped that we lived in the country on a farm. Mom didn’t run me all over the place to entertain me. I was on my own.
so many times I look back and am so fond of my childhood memories.
Denises last blog post..a spoonful of sugar
I received my favorite doll for Christmas when I was 7 years old, and from that point forward my favorite thing to play was anything involving her. We moved a lot when I was little, so there would be long periods of time where I didn’t have any friends outside of my little brothers and that doll. She went with me absolutely everywhere. I’d explore outside with her in my backpack, climb trees to read books from the upper branches, set up little picnics for us next to tiny creeks, set up and play “school” at home (we were an unschooling family as well). I constantly made tiny versions of everyday things to enhance my play with that doll–I’d make her little books, little biscuits or sandwiches (the kind you’d actually eat afterwards), toys, everything.
My favorite thing as a child was riding bikes and roller skating. I loved to be outside. This sounds like a great book.
Melissas last blog post..Bloggy Giveaway #5 Happy Housewives
My favorite game was probably flashlight tag. Something about our being outside having wholesome fun caused our parents to suspend all curfews.
Scotts last blog post..1/2 Party
I loved to play house!
One of my childhood favorites was the Fisher Price little people and house. We have now collected many of the same ones from yard sales. Now my children enjoy them . And that makes me smile. : )
My favorite thing to do as a child…well so many but I think what brings back the sweetest memories is playing in the ocean here in Southern CA. My brothers and I would bring our old fashioned rubber rafts with the rope on the top and ride the shallow waves into shore as we sat on the rafts pretending we were riding dolphins and whales.
When I was a kid we were outside all the time, playing make-believe games. We had a huge dress-up trunk, which my mother had stocked with her old clothes, some thrift-store finds, and some things we made. We were often found in our “forts” outside, which were clearings in the trees, a board or two nailed to a tree, or a blanket tacked onto things. We actually spent more time narrating the story and characters to each other, rather than actually acting them out, although mud pies and “soups” got made with some regularity.
I am new to this blogging thing, but am gleaning all kinds of inspiration from your blog. I love the simplicity, the peacefulness, and the joy that living a more meaningful life brings.
One of my favorite things to do as a child was to rearrange the furniture – no joke! My mom was soooo frugal, but everything was always beautiful. I had no idea we had no money growing up. She would always clean the house and rearrange the furniture, moving things and adding in new pictures from other rooms. It taught me to find more uses for the things you had taken for granted…and I still carry that practice on to today.
I am new to this blogging thing, but am gleaning all kinds of inspiration from your blog. I love the simplicity, the peacefulness, and the joy that living a more meaningful life brings.
One of my favorite things to do as a child was to rearrange the furniture – no joke! My mom was soooo frugal, but everything was always beautiful. I had no idea we had no money growing up. She would always clean the house and rearrange the furniture, moving things and adding in new pictures from other rooms. It taught me to find more uses for the things you had taken for granted…and I still carry that practice on to today.
Jessicas last blog post..Walgreens Deals July 27th – August 2nd
This book was just mentioned the other day on one of my favorite blogs and I was so disappointed to find it’s not available through my local library system. Now you’re offering me the chance to win a copy – thanks! My favorite thing to play with when I was young was Barbies. I remember playing for hours at a time with the dream house and swimming pool
flmoms last blog post..Things I Love, part 2
i loved the interview, thank you.
my favorite game as a kid was one my friend and i made up, called trade and pay. clearly, i was cut out for frugal living and she was cut out to be a shopper, because this game simply consisted of writing notes back and forth to each other stating how much money the other owed, just so we could write checks (voided ones our parents gave us) or use Monopoly money!
My favorite thing to play was “School.” The variations were endless!
Love the site and am glad to have found it.
I was a big tree climber as a kid– I love the world as it looked and sounded just 10 feet from the ground…
e
The game I loved to play the most as a child was house. I’d spend hours spreading my crocheted baby blankets on my floor to serve as “carpets” for my fantasy rooms. I was always collecting milk cartons, cereal boxes, and egg cartons to use as play food and to cut up and turn into doll chairs and beds. I loved pretending that I had a space of my own, decorated just so.
Yolandas last blog post..Arrythmic
Books. I read all the time and never asked for toys as gifts. I had a book wish list several pages long. Still do.
Joannas last blog post..Cry Baby
Well, my favorite thing to play as a child was NOT the piano
. We lived on a dead-end street, and there were three gigantic old trees in a vacant lot at the end of the street. I loved to play underneath the middle one. Sometimes I’d play ‘house’ and create meals using dirt and sticks and leaves. Sometimes I’d be an archaeologist and dig things up, using my mom’s pastry brush to clean off the dirt just like real archaeologists did. And sometimes I would invite my sister and brother along, and we’d be explorers.
I loved reading, loved playing outside (all day, everyday, all year long), and my favorite thing to do as a child was to wander in the woods about 1/2 a mile from our house, along the river. I would walk out in the morning and stay all day, coming home for supper. I liked playing in cemeteries, too. At home, I loved to play “Swiss Family Robinson” with my sister, and our bed was either the raft we were floating on, or the island.
Fun!
Jennifers last blog post..And my one regret is leaving you behind…
My brother and I played outside quite a bit. One of my favorite things to play was making snow houses with paths to various rooms, snow tables, snow chairs, snow tunnels, etc. We would spend hours outside, come in for a quick bite to eat then head back outside for more snow fun.
Ellens last blog post..Winner! & Final Dress-Up Giveaway!
We didn’t have many toys around so were always playing outside and making games up. One thing we used to love to do is host a radio show and we’d record it on tapes with one person doing weather and sports, another entertainment and another being the actual dj. It never got boring, especially with my sister always having us do many takes.
wayfarers last blog post..little dude cuteness
My favourite game as a child? Making cubby houses. Especially on rainy days, nothing gave me more pleasure than finding the big, pale blue flannel blanket, sone chairs, and a ton of cushions, and making myself a little hidey fortress somewhere in the house.
My favorite thing to play as a kid was baseball outside on the street. There were always tons of neighborhood kids outside ready to play. Sadly this is something my kids cannot do (we live on a windy road on a hill and don’t have neighbors with kids the same age).
My favourite thing to do as a kid was sing and dance around the house – something i am actually not very “good” at these days, but my 2 girls do the same now at 3 and 5 yo! another favourite was any pretend play – playing house, doctor, school etc.
Hi!
I loved making tents out of blankets over the clothes line. Then we would bring in our dolls or books and hang out for hours.
We now live in China in a huge apt complex, so my kids have to “settle” for tent cities in the living room.
I also remember playing train with our stuffed animals, we would line up all the chairs in the house and go for a ride with our animals.
Thanks for such a great blog
My favorite thing to do was to play in my cousins’ tree house. We did all sorts of imaginative play there. I remember recreating “STAR WARS” once as Princess Leah!
I’ve just found your blog today, but I’ve been reading Amanda’s for awhile now, it’s very inspiring.
My favourite thing as a child was to play with my farm animals and matchbox cars in the sandpit. I was a bit of a tomboy, still am really.
cheers Kate
My favorite thing to do as a child was to play school, and to pretend that I was various kids in the Sears catalog when I was at the pool.
Tara
I loved playing with Lego. All day, every day.
Jennifers last blog post..monotasking and the multicolored medallion
My favorite thing to play as a kid was jump rope – I lived in Japan and it was both a practical thing to do to keep warm and a near obsession to reach 100 jumps in a row. I jumped all day, everyday – at home, at school, waiting for the bus…..
Thanks for a great interview!
My favourite games to play as a child would be a toss up between creating dance routines and then doing a lounge room concert, or playing “mommy’s” where we’d breast feed our dolls and change their diapers, put them to bed etc. Loved it!
I would be so excited to receive Amanda’s book as I’ve got a little one that gets bored easily and I’m up for some new ideas!
Julias last blog post..A lock of hair
I loved making maps of the “wild” areas that surrounded our neighborhood. My best friend and I would rework our maps over an dover again adding new “territory” and making detailed notes of the terrain. Recently my kids started to make maps (without ANY prompting or “when I was a little girl stories)… I can’t tell you how giddy I feel watching them discover the joy in navigating through their world from their own perspective.
My favorite thing as a child was my dollhouse. Every sort of character lived and played there and it was something I didn’t give up until very…. very… .late into pre-teenhood! Now, our dollhouse is my son’s favorite toy!
My favorite thing as a child was getting together with friends and making up shows and musicals, dressing up, dancing and singing for our parents… so much fun!
As a child I loved to play doctors and nurses. I had a little red bag full of ’supplies’ and I would cover my little sisters in Bandaids!
Sarahs last blog post..Plastic Bag Crochet
My favorite thing was playing behind our house in “no man’s land,” making forts. I also really liked a colorful set of plastic milk bottles my mom bought me and any red ball.
I have heard great things about this book!
As child number 5 in a family of 10, I think my favourite thing to play with was my siblings!
We had a great big backyard and great cubby house my Dad built, and we would just have fun making up games and being outdoors – something I think a lot of kids miss out on these days.
Rachels last blog post.."Can I say that?"
Playing teaparties with water for tea and uncooked pasta for food, or making kites out of sticks and brown paper with my Mum.
Emmas last blog post..The ABC’s of me…
Thank you for doing an interview with Amanda. I have her book on loan from the library right now, and would love my own copy, it’s marvelous! When I was a child, we played hide and go seek in the dark outside with all the neighborhood kids for hours on end. Great memories
The book sounds very interesting!
I’d have to say that my favorite thing to play was school. My second favorite thing was to play house… which is funny really, since before I became a stay-at-home mom, I used to be a teacher.
Blocks. I loved to play with blocks so much that I still had some when I was in college. I couldn’t wait for my oldest to reach the age where he wanted to build things so I’d have someone to play with again!
Jennifers last blog post..They paved paradise…
My favorite thing to do as a child was to make doll clothes on my tiny little child’s singer sewing machine. I need to make time to do that with my daughter.
I had so many favorite things to play as a child. My favorite was probably playing school. I would play with my friends and sister or just with my dolls and stuffed animals. I used old papers I got in kindergarten and first grade. We had an easel and a few desks. I loved organizing papers and using pens and crayons and worksheets. That’s how I knew I wanted to be a teacher- I teach second grade now!
I have to add my second favorite because it’s almost a tie. We’d play “town”. We would each have a business (hair salon, restaurant, pet shop, etc.) and set it up in a room and create menus, etc. We would also have a mailbox and write letters to each other and the mailman would deliver them. Then we would visit each other’s businesses. It was so much fun!
Leahs last blog post..Pictures!
Such a great interview! This was my first time to visit SimpleMom – I found you via the link from Soulemama – but I will definitely be back.
My favourite thing to play as a child was “cubby houses,” with sheets draped over tables and between beds, or in the back yard. My brother and sister and I would spend whole rainy weekends that way.
suzys last blog post..inspiration
Sounds like a great book — I’d love a chance to read it! My favorite thing to play as a kid was dress up. We had a huge chest full of fantastic dress up clothes that would keep me occupied for hours.
Michelle@Life with Threes last blog post..Shiny, Pretty and Sparkly…oh my!
My favourite thing to do as a young girl was to play with my dolls…designing and sewing outfits, styling their hair and creating all sorts of make-believe adventures with them and my real-life friends.
Oooooh. My friend introduced me to Soulemama, and I am HOOKED!!
Fun interview. Thanks!
And as for my favorite thing to play as a child. as boring as it is (and NOT at all like me now), the truth would be playing Barbies. My metropolitan-coolio-cousin had gobs of tem and the car, house and even motor home (did you even know there was such a thing?!!). Boring-smalltown-me had a handful and some clothes. Every time we got together it was BARBIEFEST!!! We barely come out for food!
Now I am hoping my girls will say the same about their lovely little wooden doll house families (oh no…they already love the Barbies they get to play with at Gramma’s!!). Oh well. At least I can relate! =)
My favorite thing to do when I was a kid (and now) was to play games-board games, card games, etc. It made me feel like one of the grown-ups and I can’t wait until my kids are old enough to have family game night!
My favorite things as a kid were to play outside. I loved playing in the creek across from our house, climbing trees, and just using my imagination, anything that was outside.
Ravens last blog post..Tomato problems and What I did this week
I started to write “My favorite childhood toy was definitely…”, and then realized that I couldn’t narrow it down to a “definitely”. One of my favorites, though, would have to be dress up clothes. We had a big box of dress up clothes, some made specifically for that purpose, others outdated real items from my mom and (much older) sister. We spent hours and hours playing dress up.
Thanks for this great interview. I read the SouleMama blog every day and am so excited to read the book!
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My sister and I loved pretending we were characters in the books we read and the movies we saw. We loved pretending we lived in caves like the Fraggles from Fraggle Rock. I spent tons of time sitting on a quilt my grandma made for me, with a couple of wooden toys and a ball, pretending I was Laura Ingalls during a blizzard from THE LONG WINTER. We even pretended that we were the little boy living in a prison camp from the movie EMPIRE OF THE SUN.
We had this huge yellow bus, I’m not even sure who it was by, but it was big, and you could ride on it and there were these alphabet letter blocks that went inside of it. I wish I could find one of those for my kids today.
Rebeccas last blog post..Modern Day Conveniences For The Ever So Modern Mother
I loved playing hide & seek and my 2 yo son does too.
So wonderful to be reminded that we don’t need to buy so many things to make our families happy. We really need to spend our moments connected with our kids. Thanks for the review – very thought provoking.
My favourite game to play as a kid was dress ups with my twin sister. We would go and pick strawberries in all our princess attire! Those were the days
Ruthies last blog post..Big Changes Coming to Menu In A Box
I loved to play “store” with my sisters. We’d take every last can out of the pantry, line it up on the table, shop for our necessities and check out. We all wanted to be the cashier. This was my all time favorite game!
Briannas last blog post..The "Jump On In" or "Hop To It!"
I absolutely loved playing teacher. All I needed was my chalkboard and chalk. Throw in a willing-to-play brother and I was REALLY happy.
staceys last blog post..How I broke my hip
i loved go to the head of the class- it represented a big family and i was an only child.
tamis last blog post..menu, excellent wife and deals
My favorite childhood toys were barbies… blush!
Thanks for the great giveaway! nw_wife(at)hotmail(dot)com
The Chatty Housewifes last blog post..How it Grew!
Thank you for the lovely interview with Amanda Soule. Amanda has truly inspired me to became a a better person and a better parent to my child . As a child my favorite thing to play was puppet theater I loved making paper bag hand puppets and putting on a show for any one who would watch.
My favorite toy as a child was my blocks. I still find myself wanting to take over when building with my kids!
Thanks for the great giveaway. Looking forward to reading your blog.
Greenstylemoms last blog post..Wild Dill Giveaway
I have three older brothers, so hands down I loved playing either kick ball or stick ball. Always topped off with some homemade lemonade!
Denise @ EatPlayLoves last blog post..As The Smoke Clears…
As a young girl growing up in the country with feilds of corn , alfalfa and earth all around, my favorite thing to do was make mud cookies. What are mud cookies you might ask….only the greatest cookies on the planet to a young girly girl in love with dirt. There was nothing ever so sweeter than to go out in the yard with old cookie cutters,pans and anything else I could grab from Moms baking cabinet and whip up some not so yummy, gooey, chocolately looking make beleive cookies. Zero calories and completly homemade. You must have your little ones try them today!
Tirzahs last blog post..When all else fails…
My friend and I loved to play ‘pretend’ when we were kids. We would play orphanage, runaways, etc. Pretty funny!
when i was a kid i loved being the boss…of everything. something i’m still trying to get over. mud-pies were fun!
definitely dress-up, & make believe.
kats last blog post..hogwarts homeschool
Hello! I am new to your site & am looking fwd to looking around
– double petticoats & bracelets and crazy hair. What fun!!
I came from Soule Mama’s link.
When I was a child…I used to love to dress up like Madonna (the early days
I have never encountered Soule Mama’s blog or her book before today so thank you for sharing them with me!
When I was a kid, definitely a great portion of my learning was through playing “school”. I loved setting up my dolls (friends and bother when I could!) and creating “lesson plans” with themed stories and activities. I loved what I learned to create these classes and my mom and dad were wonderful to make sure I had a little school desk (still have it) and a chalkboard to encourage the play!
Crossing my fingers now! Thanks for the opportunity~
I loved “playing house” with my brothers and cousins…we would section off whatever room we were playing in or a part of the yard and “sweep”, “wash dishes”, “cook supper” and take care of the “baby.”
I just found your blog thru SouleMama’s blog. I’m hoping to be blessed to be a Mom soon and I’d really like to simplify our lives so I’m looking forward to what I find here! Thanks! ~Angela
Play school. My mom made me me own little teacher’s desk in my bedroom. I would spend most of my time organizing my school supplies on my desk. I would assign work and grade it and put stickers on it.
I usually taught my cabbage patch dolls because if my brothers played with me I had to promise to play He-man with them. I”d take the dolls out for recess and take them to the kitchen for lunch time.
I became a elementary school teacher. Go figure.
Tiffanys last blog post..Twilight Pillow Fights
My favorite thing to play as a child was hide and seek outside with all of the neighbors. We would play until it got dark…
Devons last blog post..Productive day…
I used to love playing school with my stuffed animals!! Then I became a school teacher!
Beths last blog post..Monday Giveaway: Boxing Day
I just adored this interview so much! Thank you! I am also so grateful I found your blog..I have connected with so much of what I have read so far!! My favorite thing to play growing up as a child is really simple. I didn’t really watch tv very often so my sisters and I spent most of our time outside. My best memories of play as a child, are those spent climbing/sitting in trees. Also, exploring dirt and that contained within….observing bugs…the smell of each season…running against the wind down a hill….ahh!
As a kid my friends and I would spend a lot of time in the creek behind our house. The whole thing was our imaginary home and we would set up where our bedrooms were, the kitchen area where we would pretend to make food, the living area, etc. We would spend all down there in our imaginary world. Thanks for this great interview, I love reading Amanda’s blog.
shannons last blog post..little tree top
My favorite thing to play as a child was to be the “ditch-baker”. My sister and I would long for the rain to stop and then run outside to the ditch drain in our front yard. There, we would scoop up mud and make pies, cupcakes, pancakes, and candies to sell. It was messy but fun to imagine.
Jawans last blog post..Broken lens
I really loved reading so honestly, I would read all day when I could and then imagine I was the main character. To this day I just adore collecting books!
PaperGirl Productionss last blog post..I’m back!!
I would love to have a copy of this book! I need to infuse some creativity into our family! I need to stop worrying about the mess!
My favorite thing to do as a child was to play dress up! I love pretending to be whomever I wanted!
Fredas last blog post..Have I told you lately…that I hate you…
I love hearing from Soule Mama thanks. One thing I LOVEd to do as a child was build forts in the house. Our kitchen table become a cave or the living room couches lion dens. Or in our basement my dad would collect huge boxes for us with which we would build a city for fairies. That was my favorite way of playing growing up.
Paris Nists last blog post..Good Luck Charm
My favorite way to play was to draw. I see my daughters are folowing my footsteps =).
oops! i forgot to answer the question!
my favorite thing to do was form “clubs” with my brother and our cousins (who lived on the same street as us). we would make signs with our cool club names, like “the monkees” or “the crazy kids”, and build forts and run wild all over our little community.
mindis last blog post..a place for everything
I loved keeping “pets” like snails, caterpillars which are great as they’d turn into butterflies and then I’d release them, tadpoles which turned into frogs and lizards that my brother and I caught. I would make a habitat for them in an old fish bowl and nurture them. My mother was a great source of inspiration and encouraged all kinds of crafts and nature exploration. I hope I can do the same for my children and instill this love for art and creation in them.
Nesss last blog post..I’m a bad blogger
I grew up on a farm and my favorite thing to do was in the summer when the weeds/plants were taller than I and my sisters and we would make tunnels and forts in the weeds. Sometimes we would let our brothers play.
As children we used to jump the back fence to a vacant block of land and collect snails from the long grass. We would keep them in a container under our beds. Until mum found out because they got pretty stinky.
Just one thing? We had so many fun things to do.
One of my favourite things was to play dogsled racer. We’d hitch our poor dog to the toboggan and try to get him to pull it. It would go just fine as long as we were leading him, but if we tried to sit on the sled he’d just turn around and not go anywhere.
We were fortunate to live in a big house with a huge garden, just in the center of our small town. Me and my sister seldom played indoors. Most of our play was a sort of “role play” either as shepards, teatchers, store owners or whatever we came up with.
It was a very happy childhood!
I remember spending hours and hours cutting out pretty bits from magazines and collaging them all over my school books. When mum bought home a box of old magazines I thought it was Christmas!
Hi… Ooo my favorite plaything as a child would have been ‘Bungo’, he was an orange coloured teddy bear that I got as a gift when I was 1 year old (had fallen down some stairs and spent the night in hospital).. Bungo was my best friend, he was my class mate (when I played pretend school), he was my pilot (when I was flying round my pretend world)… He now guards my loft from a safe and comfy suitcase!
x
I’m a fan of your blog as well as Amanda’s, all the way from Israel.
My all time favourtie childhood play was dress-up. My mom used to pick up fabric remnants at the sewing store and keep them in a box. They provided hours of entertainment and offered – when joined by some costume jewelry, some hats, and other random objects – endless imaginative possibilities.
I now have a similar box on the go in my own house and I love to see my two little ones playing much as I did with my brother. Good times!
One of my happiest memories as a child is playing imaginary games with my sister and cousins. One day my day brought home something in a huge card board box, I can’t remember what was inside, but I do remember makinght emost amazing castle out of the box, we drew turrets and towers onto it, and even made a little drawbridge that could be pulled up and down with string. We played robin hood in/around that box for weeks.
After a while when the box became rather battered (with the help of mum) it got turned into a pirate ship with a shoe box dingy that the dolls “sailed” along side in.
Of all the things, I feel a cardboard box, and some imagination, is the best toy, and that the number of children that can fit themselves inside will always be a suprise.
Ruths last blog post..Camera in a Camera Camera Case
Hmm, I spent hours and hours doing “plays” and reenacting books with my best friend. I mean, there was the planning, the rehearsals, and then the play, which was usually only a couple of minutes long
Great interview and I love your blog, I only discovered it recently so I have a lot of catching up to do!
My favourite thing to play as a child, much to my parents dismay I am sure, was together with my sisters, jumping off the window sill and flipping onto the bed!
So happy to see that this giveaway includes us “internationals”!!!
Janes last blog post..Don’t Waste your Free Time!
Under the table and dreaming! I use to spend time on bad weather days under our coffee table just dreaming and talking to myself. When outside I’d climb a tree and do much of the same.
Thanks for a chance to win….and the interview with Amanda.
I’ll be sure to post this on my blog.
Jen As last blog post..Gingerbread and a scrapbook challenge
My absolute favorite “toy” was the big giant blackboard my grandmother bought at a yard sale. I played school all the time.
Great interview – I would love to win this book! When I was a kids I would spend hours and hours playing Little House on the Praire. I saw that someone else commented the same thing – which is so awesome!
We had a huge rock that my sisters and I would sit on, it was our covered wagon. When we were finished traveling we would make a lean-to to “spend the night”. Thanks for the giveaway!
I LOVED to play teacher or store. I would sit in my room for hours playing both of these. It is ironic because my daughter is the same way. I also loved playing barbies and pretending. I hope that I win.
Great interview by the way.
I would love to win the book for my family. My favorite thing to play when I was growing up would have to be “School” I was the teacher and had imaginary students. My daughter also plays this all the time. She calls it playing preschool.
We do homeschool so I get to “play school” with real students now.
Angela
My favorite thing was to play house. Building a Fort out old towels and blankets in the backyard and we’d play house out there with our baby dolls. We even had pieces of cloth that we would wash and hang up to dry that were our cloth diapers.
I loved to play any type of game that required using my imagination and transported me to another place and time: house, going on vacation, being on my own talk show, etc.
Lynleys last blog post..Two Little Monkeys Jumping in the Bed
The book must be wonderful. I’m from Portugal so I’m glad this giveaway is open to No-US residents.
As a child I loved to play with Lego. I could spend hours putting the small pieces together and building my imaginary world.
Lauras last blog post..Giveaway: Fandango Voucher to watch the movie of your choice
My favorite thing to do was – read…since I grew up in a really small town it was my exposure to so many different things and the world.
Outside my favorite was Hiding Seek. Inside it was playing with my Fisher Price Little People. I also loved playing Evil Knevil and have scars from it
Excelant interview! I would love to win a copy of Amanda’s book. I guess my favorite toy as a child would have been playdoh or clay. I still love it to this day wen I play with my girls.
I love, love, love reading Amanda Soule’s blog and find inspiration from all she does as a woman, mom, person, crafty lady (and more!).
As a child I loved all things having to do with learning…I would make/force/beg my cousins to be the students and I would be the teacher. We would wonder about on feirce expeditions around my Nana’s house. Ahhhh, to be a kid again. Atleast I have the opportunity to get close to it all again with my own son.
Thanks for the chance to chance to win the Creative Family…I have been yearning for it yet never pamper myself enough!
Carols last blog post..Dream Weekend…..
From about age 4 – 6 my favorite thing to play with was Barbie dolls. From around age 7 – 9 it was Jacks and Hopscotch. Around age nine we got a set of World Book Encyclopedias and I was hooked researching anything I could think of and then follow up with their suggested reading. Before age four I think I liked tossing a ball and running with friends. Tricycling and bike riding were also big. You know, it’s hard pinning my favorite activity down to just one thing … everything is fun.
I loved any kind of art project – could do it all day long!
My siblings and I always played make-believe as children. A favorite was the classic “our parents died and we have to live in the forest”!!! Lol.
My strongest memories of playing as a child are from weekends at the cottage and playing in the lake. My sister and I would spend hours in the water playing any number of games – who could hold their breath the longest, dive the furthest, stay on the tube the longest; practicing our “synchronized swimming”; playing water volleyball. And I’m thrilled that my daughter now gets to spend her weekends up at the same cottage playing the same games.
My favorite were tea parties and dress up at Grandma’s house. Complete with vintage gowns, hats and jewels. Second would have to be experimental cooking. xx Brandie
I love Soulemama and read her blog daily. She is such an inspiration!
As a kid, I enjoyed my moms junk drawer. She would toss bottle caps, paper clips, string, tape, bits of ribbon and all sort of odds and ends in there. It was sometimes a place to start making something or a place to find that missing art object. I just started a junk drawer in my kitchen for my kids and my son is constantly in there. I find that he is more creative lately..with just a little inspiration!
Having Soulmamas book would inspire us even more!
When I was little my cousin lived right next door. We played outside all the time. She had a little pop-up camper that we ofter played in, a screaned in porch that we often roller skated on, and sometimes she would bring out her barbies (old hand-me-downs from her 2 older sisters), I still remember the smell of the plastic of having those barbies out in the heat, still today (20 some years later) I have a fond memory everytime I smell that hot plastic smell. But I think my most favorite thing we played was when we played house in the shadow of her house. The shadow of her house fell between my house and hers and we played like the shadow was our house. If you were in the shadow you were INside the house, if you were not in the shadow you were outside. I had lots of toys but the best memories don’t involve the toys
Sarahs last blog post..Today is…
My favorite thing to do/play as a child was reading! Books opened my imagination so much, and I was able to pretend anything I wanted!
I played a lot of “make believe” when I was little, usually casting myself in a fairy tale. My mom loves to tell about walking in on me dancing with Prince Charming, as Cinderella of course. (BTW, I do love Amanda’s site. I’m not a big crafter, but I am a relatively new mama, always seeking to simplify my life…and she provides much inspiration.)
As a child, I loved to read books. And when my brother and I played together I often insisted on playing “library.” I’ve heard great things about this book. Thanks!
We loved dress up, and we’d normally include the cats, putting them in our doll clothes. Another favorite was acting out. We’d hang a sheet accross the clothes line or garage door for a stage, then make up and act out our own plays. Needless to say, we did a lot of pretending.
I loved dolls…of all types. I love to dress them, baby them, love them, feed them, etc.
Hope to win!
I really need to be hit by the inspiration bug! I think this book would help.
As a child I loved to play with my stuffed bear and stuffed lamb. I had a flowered bedspread, and they would graze and talk for hours.
Thanks,
Susie
I loved to play school…I had a chalkboard and everything. As I got a bit older, I still played and it helped me study for tests because I would teach “my kids” what I needed to know for real!
My favorite thing to play as a child was anything that was make believe.
Like being a teacher.
Chriss last blog post..Funny Short Story For Your Monday Morning Entertainment
My favorite thing to play as a child was “house.” As in “you be the daddy and I’ll be the mommy” or the baby. Usually, I was playing with one of my brothers who would be a baby or the daddy. Sometimes I’d play with a friend and we would each have our own “house” (the landing on the stairs or a branch on a tree, whatever) and we’d be two mommies who hung out during the day. There would be elaborate scenarios developed. And always a few dolls.
Deannas last blog post..Sprinkles!
Love this book!!! Got it from my local library and my 3 weeks went way too fast.
My favorite thing to play as a kid was all things art. Color, draw, paint!! You name it, I did it. Also play forts. Any furniture that could be covered in blankets became a fort. It is so fun doing these things with my boys now!
This book looks terrific!
My favorite thing to play was either a) pretend to be a secretary, like my mom, or b) go outside and play in the woods and with our dogs.
Thanks for offering this giveaway!
My favorite game as a young child involved “planting” a garden in our sandbox. My brother and I would pick leaves and twigs and place them in pretty little rows and pretend we could watch our garden grow.
Thank you for the great interview of Soule Mama! I read her blog, and now I’m happy to have found your blog.
My sister and I used our imaginations to play games. We played school: I was the teacher, she was the student. We played restaurant: we were both waitresses. We read Nancy Drew books: then we’d pretend to solve mysteries in our neighborhood.
My brothers and I played out in the woods all the time. We created our own secret outdoor club and loved playing in the tree fort.
Thanks!
I loved playing any and all board games as a child, and I still do. Great site, by the way. I have been enjoying it for a couple of months. Love the non-cluttered look.
I loved my big back yard. We’d let the grass grow long and mow paths through it and pretend they were streets, or secret paths. It made for hours of fun!
Tashs last blog post..Seriously? Roseola AGAIN!
As a child my favorite thing to do was play school with my sister. We would use old school book pages from my mother who was a first grade teacher. She had all the props we needed to feel authentic.
i loved constructing a tent from dining room chairs and old blankets. and once inside my tent… i just daydreamed. was no secret code in bottom of posts via bloglines, btw.
rebeccas last blog post..buying buying bought
As a child I LOVED my playschool school bus. There was nothing better!! Thanks for the chance to win, this book looks amazing!
Pattis last blog post..Bloggy Carnival Giveaway TIME!!
We had a huge empty basement in our house and we used to spend HOURS stacking boxes, draping sheets held in place with clothespins, etc. to build forts, play school, house, whatever we could come up with.
one of my favorite childhood memories was building a cabin in the woods, with my sister. Such good memories. What a great giveaway, thanks….
My baby dolls were always my favorite toy.
I would buy them clothes & toys with any money that I earned.
When I had my first baby my mom said it was like my dolls were finally real.
Ivy
As a child my favorite thing to do was play outside. My friends and I would pretend to be living on a farm. We made potatoes with rocks, pies with dirt, etc. Our bikes were our horses.
aprils last blog post..The Tree
I LOVED to play dressup with my sisters and our friends. My mom had a big box of old clothes that we used to play princesses.
My favorite thing to play as a child was “bug hospital.” I would take my sister’s Barbie furniture and dishes to use as hospital beds and to serve hospital food to worms and pill bugs. Needless to say, she hated that.
My very most favorite thing to do as a child was to design clothes for my Barbies and dolls. My mom had huge boxes of scrap material and I would spend hours and hours going through her fabric to find the right thing for my Barbie to wear!! I still enjoy sewing!
Freeze Tag!
Amys last blog post..The Juice is Loose
Ooh, what a great interview! My favorite plaything as a child were all of my stuffed animals (and I had many many many!). They were my constant companions and were loved to pieces.
Loved to make big forts out of hay bales and such, and little dolls and houses from leaves, petals, sticks, etc.
I loved just playing “house” as a child. I have been wanting her book. I hope I win.
LadySnows last blog post..Note to Self….
I played Adventure Family with my brothers – we would pack our knapsacks with supplies for the day and go out for l-o-n-g hikes on the abandoned farm behind our house. We forded creeks, climbed trees, and sledded down hills. My younger brother still resents being the first to rappell off the kids’ treehouse….
i just discovered your site today. amazing. here I thought I was in the minority in simplifying.
Kirstens last blog post..Sorry about the weather
Hi there, I’ve just discovered your blog via ‘SouleMama’ – I just love that girl!
My favourite thing as a child was to help my Dad tend the vegetables. We lived in the centre of a town in the north of England and didnt have much of a garden so my dad rented a small plot of land. He used to grow all of the veg we ate and also enter local ‘horticultural’ competitions. I just adored going to the plot each day. I had my own little section and would grow a few flowers and easy veg like radishes and salads. I have two kids of my own now and still not much of a garden. I try to keep Dad’s ’spirit’ alive by growing a few things in pots and tubs. It also keeps us in touch with nature and helps the kids to understand where food really comes from.
My sister and I played school with our blackboard for hours! Thanks for the great giveaway!
My favorite thing was to play school and of course I was the teacher!!
Thanks for the chance to win!
My FAVORITE thing to do as a child was playing teacher! My friend and I would play all the time–all through elementary school!
I would love to get my hands on this book! So amazing. My favorite thing to play with as a child was this huge box of dress up clothes my mom had collected for us. We were everything from explorers to belles at a ball. I have already started collecting dress up clothes for my baby.
My grandma had a box of wooden blocks, poker chips, pill bottles and tennis balls in her sun room. We would play with that simple box of toys for HOURS up until the time I was 15 and my sis was 13. Days on end were spent creating and destroying villages, castles, and other living art.
There were some woods at the end of my street and my best friend and I would go down to the woods and build forts and make up names for all the different kinds of plants we saw…It was a great place to imagine!!
Amys last blog post..Happy Anniversary
Looks like a wonderful book! My favorite memory of a fun thing as a child was making an igloo out in the very deep snow. Then we got creative and played cards and drank hot chocolate IN the igloo. No money needed…just imagination!
My favorite thing to do as a small child was make “caves” out of blankets tied across, around, or over our furniture and dining room chairs. My mom says there were time you couldn’t walk across the room because of my caves!
I hadn’t heard of Amanda or her book, so thank you for doing the interview.
My favorite thing to do as a kid was to ride my bike with my best friend or brother all over town. There were some great fields with lots of bumps and little hills to ride through.
Maries last blog post..Three Cheers for Keira!
I grew up on a ranch and used to love making play forts under the orange trees and grapevines!
I love to play fort with my siblings. It was a wooded tree area nears my parents house where we would play in. We would take turns being the parents and make mud pies. Was a whole lot of fun to do.
Shilo Beedys last blog post..La Vie De Laurie contest
I already have Amanda’s book but I loved it and if I win would definitely gift it to a friend.
I have always loved to read and that has stemmed from my childhood. I did also enjoy playing outdoor games like boxball. Wow…it’s been a long time since I thought of boxball. I should play that with my kids.
Thanks!
Mom to 2 Boyss last blog post..My 100th Post…sort of
A favorite game of mine was pretending to be an archaeologist. I’d bury things in the backyard and then systematically dig them up – using a paint brush to not harm them. I am so grateful that my mom let me dig up so much of our yard to do this
Debs last blog post..Dryer Sheets are Dangerous!
My favorite thing was to make tent houses out of blankets and such. I didn’t get to do it much though, and now that I’m a mom I understand why.
But still, I try to be more lenient with my kids in this area!
Ambers last blog post..Sunscream
The joy of reading the ‘adventures’ of Soulemama has been nourishing me for years now and, today, I’m delighted to find {Simple Mom}!
I loved to play when I was a child and I still love to play. We made all sorts of things, imagined all sorts of worlds and played outside in all sorts of weather. One favorite memory… when we were very little, we each had a scrapbook. We’d ‘help’ our mom make paste and then she would set us up at the kitchen table with all sorts of paper, crayons, magazines and other colorful stuff. .. and we would paste things into our treasured scrapbooks. We especially loved to use the scissors!
My favorite thing to play was “house.” I loved it. We had a cradle, a couple baby dolls, baby clothes, a play kitchen, and little aprons. My sister’s and I considered that little girl heaven.
Rachels last blog post..Great Advice for saving on Groceries!
I read Amanda regularly and always come away inspired. Lovely interview.
My favorite childhood thing would most definitely be a new big box of Crayolas…the smell, the colors, the newness, and of course the promise of the creativity to come – I so loved it. I remember my dad bringing home a giant stack of blank newspaper print one day and bouncing off the walls with glee.
Days last blog post..Floor Quilt
I would SooOoo Love to win this book ~ thanks for the opportunity to enter this giveway
)
My favorite thing to play as a child was “fishing” in our living room! My little sister and I would hop on the big boat (couch) and toss our family’s shoes all over the floor before us. We’d then pretend they were fish and “fish” for them. Sometimes we’d toss the cushions from the couch or pillows on the floor as islands to fish from too! …Now I’ve played this with my own children but a little differently ~ we’ve actually made fishing poles using small wooden dowels and hot glued string and a magnet to it’s end, then created paper fish attaching a paper clip to them which allows the magnet to “catch” the fish. Young or old, rainy or sunshiny day, fishing can be a fun family INdoor activity too!
…Thanks Again!!
Great book! My kids are always wanting to create and I cannot keep up with new ideas. I think my favorite thing as a kid was driving my mother crazy! Not that i was bad, just adventurous, creative and energetic… hmm… now i see where my kids get it.
I love this site! Thanks for all the great ideas. As a kid, I loved playing with Lincoln Logs and Legos. In fact, now that I’m a mom to 6…I still love playing with both of those. Blessings!
Ohhh, I have wanted this book since I first heard about it! Loved the interview, how cool to learn more about the mom who wrote it. I’m already a subscriber, will be emailing you now.
My favorite thing to play as a kid was teacher. I would line up all my dolls, assign homework, and even got in trouble for using my wall as a blackboard.
One of my favorite things to do as a child was to play grocery store. My mom would save empty boxes and containers and let my brother and I use her canned goods to have a ‘pretend’ store. It helped us to learn to count money and to ’spend’ what we had. We could spend hours doing this.
I also loved to read. I still do.
I love Amanda Soule’s blog and have requested her book at our library so I could read it before buying it, but it’s always out! Having my very own copy would be wonderful!
lovely interview and very inspiring…just what a Mom needs when the summer holidays are on…as for my favourite things as a child…I used to love to play postoffice…I would set up a cardboard box and fill it with paper and envelopes…anything stationary orientated and just play in my make believe world for ages…that love of paper and little pots for keeping things in has never gone away
Suzie Sewss last blog post..What’s in the box…
One of my favorite things to play as a child was ice cream with my bicycle, where you would turn your bike upside down and spin the pedals to make ice cream. I also remember riding my bike a lot.
I am a new mom, but love it so much and would love new and fresh ideas for helping my 14-mo. old daughter grow and learn and have fun too!
My favourite thing to play as a child was “Our town”. My little brother and I had a big piece of plywood which we drew a town on– complete with roads, stores, school, parks, church etc. We then spent hours with his matchbox cars driving around this town doing those things that anyone does in their day driving around a town!
Thank you for SimpleMom. It is crisp, clean and often a “light” in my day.
I wasn’t allowed to have Barbies (mom was worried about me developing a distorted body image) so of course I loved playing Barbies. I actually did get a Skipper and a Happy Birthday Barbie when I was 10 or so. I made the coolest apartment building with an elevator out of my bookcase. To this day I love to walk down the Barbie aisle at the store
A funny sidenote, I just gave my daughter a Barbie and she is thinner in the chest and thicker in the waist than my old Barbies, maybe a little more realistic? So some of my old Barbie clothes don’t quite fit the new Barbie!
Your blog is my favorite!
I loved playing ghost in the grave yard. Just thinking about it now makes me wish I was out in the country on a hot summer’s night with my brothers, sister, and cousins. Oh, the thrill of hiding and being found. I loved all the giggling involved as we waited to be found.
Jennifer Panza
What a wonderful interview, and great idea for a giveaway!
My favorite thing to play as a child was ‘make-believe.’ I loved dressing up and pretending to be people I wasn’t, doing things that I didn’t do. And season tickets to our Children’s Theater certainly helped me with that!
Katherines last blog post..I Wish I’d Made This
sorry, i pushed submit without naming my favorite thing to play as a child…I loved being in charge as a child and so I love to play teacher or hotel owner or restaurant owner…I loved pretending that I could be the creative “boss”-of course, I would always reel my brothers, sister, friends and cousins into playing with me-it was so fun to have a full staff
My favorite thing to play as a child was classroom. That and anytime we got to make things, which was all the time.
Sarahs last blog post..One WIP down
I used to collect extra mimeographed papers from school and play teacher with my younger brother. I also fondly remember just playing in the local park all day in the summer…
underwater basket weaving
my favorite as a child was playing in the creek with my brothers: building dams, panning for gold
, watching for water animals, etc!
what a great book!! and a great site! never been here before, but am loving it already! my favorite thing as a child was reading – i would even hide in the bathroom and sit on the floor and read, when i was supposed to be doing chores! “playing house” was another favorite, but really, escaping in books was the best.
Jennifers last blog post..Lots of g