Last week, my daughter Lucy ran a pancake stand to raise money for Kindermusik. (Full recap here.) Although it caught one couple expecting to score some lemonade a bit off guard, everyone hailed it as a great idea and wonderful success. And it was, for many reasons, not the least of which were all the lessons Lucy learned in the process. But another unexpected benefit was the opportunity to get to know many of our neighbors better, as well as meeting some for the first time. Although I am always wary of waxing on about how much better the olden days were (I’m not that old yet!), it sure …
Archives for August 2015
Saturday Morning Sprinkles: Unicorn Poop Edition
• Did you know unicorn poop was edible? It is. It's hard to come by, but if you ever did, you could seriously just pick it up and eat it. Fortunately, Sweet Insanity Bake Shop has provided a recipe so you can make your own. Magically delicious! • These absurd and whimsical water faucets remind me that there can never be too much whimsy. • Rules always seem permanent. It's easy to forget that they often change. Seth Godin reminds us: We've changed the rules of football and baseball, many times. We've recognized that women ought to have the right to vote. We've become allies with …
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Wanna Help Us Hide Marty?
It's been very exciting to see people finding the prints I've hidden as part of our Find Marty Art Drop. It works like this: I hide a limited edition signed print somewhere in the world and post a clue on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. A tiny penguin (aka "Marty") is included with the print, along with a note containing instructions and a little bit about Penguins Can't Fly. The winner is the first to find it. If he or she takes a picture with it and tags us online, we send them a free autographed book. The photos above are some of our favorites, with locations like Green Bay, …
Lessons from Lucy’s Pancake Stand
One of the great freedoms of homeschooling is the opportunity to create customized, comprehensive, teachable moments that align with our kids' interests and serve as relevant lessons for real life. Our daughter Lucy's recent Pancake Stand is one such example. Last year, Lucy ran a successful lemonade stand to help raise money for music lessons. With a new semester on the horizon, she was ready to take things to the next level. After making pancakes as part of a recent meal with friends, Lucy decided she might like to run a pancake stand. Who ever heard of a kid running a pancake …
Meet Monsieur Bart!
The Small Rebellion is a playful group of escape artists who share a joyful, indomitable childlike spirit and are not afraid to let that spirit come out to play! They’re united by a common goal of fighting Adultitis and the doo-doo heads who embrace its ideals. Quite frankly, they’re pretty much the coolest people on the planet. Here's one right now... • My name is...Bart. • My hometown is...Deventer, The Netherlands, Europe, Earth. • My biggest dream...is to live in a happy and playful world. • My inspiration...Children, clowns, nature, music, stories. • When I was a kid, …
How to Deal with Difficult, Adultitis-Ridden People
Since 94% of the population suffers from at least a mild form of Adultitis, odds are that anyone with a job has to work with someone infected with this vile disease. Maybe it’s a co-worker, or a client, or – gulp! – the boss. Sometimes the people I chat with after my speaking programs will confess to being married to someone with a full-blown case of Adultitis. So the question, of course, is how do I fix someone who has it? Unfortunately, the truth is...you don’t. I am a professional speaker. Most speakers I know started their careers with the hope of making a difference and changing …
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Saturday Morning Sprinkles: Coolest Bookstore in the World Edition
• This is the coolest book store ever. The Last Bookstore is California’s largest used and new book and record store. I want to go there. Has anyone been? • Wanna hang out with us online this Wednesday night? Join us on Facebook for Escape Adulthood LIVE. • My friend Michelle sent me this link to a DIY Kids Hotel Activity Pack. Wish we would have had it on our trip to Florida, but we will make good use of it on our upcoming journey through Minnesota and South Dakota! • Woah, you guys. This fascinating TEDx talk by Peter Gray discusses the alarming correlation between the decline of …
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House Party: Escape Adulthood Edition
The #Notarule Tour has taken us to some interesting locations. A bookstore, of course, but also some zoos, ice cream parlors, and an old bank. It's been a fun chance to experiment, and one of the most "experimental" stops was St. Charles, Illinois. That's where we had our first ever house party. It all came about after all of the locations we had in mind for the Chicagoland area fell through (mostly due to store owners with Adultitis). After one with a full-blown case treated my wife rudely, I took to Facebook to vent. And Beth, who had attended an Escape Adulthood Summit with her …
Highlights from the #Notarule Tour: Ice Cream Socials
I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream! Ice cream parlors are among the best Adultitis Hospitals, and we recently visited two as part of our epic #Notarule Tour. The first was at Pied Piper Creamery in Nashville, Tennessee. This cool place was in a neat little neighborhood and featured some creative flavors, such as "Trailer Trash," which is Vanilla with Oreo, Twix, Butterfinger, Nestle Crunch, Snickers, M&Ms, and Reese’s Pieces. Lucy was a big fan of that one. I really enjoyed my choice: "Oatmeal Raisin in the Sun." Not only was it a beautiful night for hanging out, but we …
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What I Learned From Driving 2,300 Miles with My Kids
I was sitting on the beach reading, and I looked up from my book to a most wonderful sight. It was of my daughter Lucy, clutching a boogie board, being escorted to the shore by a strong wave of saltwater. The entire ride lasted barely five yards, but the transformation in her was light years from a few hours earlier. The initial introduction to this unfamiliar ocean vessel was marked with trepidation and more than a few tears. Her triumphant, tooth-deprived grin was one of my favorite moments from our recent 11-day, 7-state, 2,300 mile road trip with three kids under seven. (The second …
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