For 19 years, Stamford’s annual holiday balloon parade, has become one of the largest events of its kind in the country, with giant helium balloons floating through Stamford Downtown. Last year it drew over 100,000 people. Among the many balloons, The Lorax and Red from Fraggle Rock will make their debut this year. Don’t miss the Master of Ceremonies, Alan Kalter from the Late Show with David Letterman. Award winning marching bands will add pazzaz to the day. The Westhill and Stamford High School marching bands will march along with many other bands.
Where: The parade route starts on Summer Street at Hoyt and ends on Atlantic Street, just a few short blocks from the Stamford Metro-North Railroad Station.
When: 12:00 PM
Who: All ages welcome
How: visit stamford-downtown.com for more info
Cost: free
Category Archives: Kids
November 6 – John Philip Sousa’s birthday – John Philip Sousa was born in 1854 and is famous for composing marches – classic American patriotic music. Make a marching band with the children and have a parade. Children love to make noise, so you don’t need fancy instruments. Try two pot lids as cymbals, a stick and an empty cardboard or plastic container as a drum. Sandpaper rubbed together makes a great noise too! Homemade flags or paper hats would dress up your parade even more! Go to the library and get a recording of one of Sousa’s famous pieces and play it while the children are marching. Is their a musician from your country who is famous for his marching music?
Child Focus
Homework – Now that the school year is well under way, your host children may have more homework than before. Tips to help everyone get homework done can be found here http://aupairinamerica.com/resources/activities/homework_support.asp
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Driving – Keeping children happy in the car can be challenging. One helpful approach is to engage them in car games in the safety of their car seat or seat belt.
I Spy: Very young children can play”” I Spy with my little eye”” and they say the color of the thing they are looking at and everyone else in the car needs to guess what it is. For example, “”I spy my with my little eye something red”” and people guess that the child is looking at a red car or red mailbox.
Alphabet Game- ages 3 and up – Children who can identify letters and can easily see out the window of the car can play this game. One child starts with A and has to find a word on a sign visible from the car with the letter A. The next child has to identify the B, and so on. Older children can play the Geography Game. One person starts by saying aloud a country, city or state and the next person must take the last letter to begin his country, city or state. For example: 1st person says New York and the next person can say Kansas and the next person can say Seattle.
Fun Things to Do Next Weekend:
Saturday October 27 at 8 p.m. Haunted Hayride in Shelton. Join other au pairs for an evening at the Fairview Tree Farm where ghosts, goblins and other Halloween frights await you in the woods . www.fairviewtreefarm.com
Sunday October 28: Westport Playhouse will be hosting Community Day. Purchase tickets for the play Raisin in the Sun for $15. Phone: 203-227-4177 www.westportplayhouse.org
Monday October 29: Have your little ones dress up in their Halloween costumes, meet in front of the YMCA at 3 p.m. and have them join the parade down Main Street. The parade will end at Town Hall, where there will be music and refreshments . If it rains, just go to Town Hall for an afternoon of Halloween fun.
October Calendar
October 8- Columbus Day – Today commemorates the landing of Christopher Columbus in the “New World.”
October 24 – Game One of the Baseball World Series – In baseball the World Series is the championship games of Major League Baseball in North America, played in October after the end of the regular season between the pennant winners of the American and National Leagues. The Series winner is determined through a best-of-seven playoff, meaning that the first team to win four games wins the series. The World Series has been an annual event since 1903. It is played at the baseball stadiums of the two teams in the series. Baseball is so popular that it is sometimes called the “national pastime.” The word “ballgame” in the United States almost always refers to a game of baseball, and “ballpark” to a baseball field. The rules of baseball can be found here http://aupairinamerica.com/resources/life_in_the_us/baseball.asp
October 24 – United Nations Day – This is the anniversary of the creation of the United Nations in 1947, committed peace and development, based on the principles of justice, human dignity and the well-being of all people. Teach your children something about your country today – a song, a story, game, a new food or a national tradition.
October 31-Halloween This is the day children dress up in costumes and, in many communities, go door-to-door to ask for candy. Safety on Halloween is extremely important – don’t take our eyes off the children and don’t let them eat unwrapped candy.
Fun Things to do with your Host Children:
October is National Stamp Collecting Month –Collecting stamps is a fun and easy introduction to geography, history, art and nature. Help your children start a stamp collection by sharing stamps from your letters from home. Ask your au pair friends for stamps from their countries. https://blogs.aupairinamerica.com/cha/wp-content/uploads/sites/67/2012/05/576640-01-main-103×1031.jpg
Make a Pizza – Pizza is easy and fun to make and can be a nutritious meal for the children. Buy ready made pizza dough (in the refrigerated or freezer section at the supermarket) or a ready-made crust (in the bread department). Buy shredded mozzarella cheese and a jar of pizza sauce. If you want meat on the pizza you can cook a small amount of ground beef in a pan until it is brown. If you would like vegetables, sauté some sliced peppers, onions or mushrooms in a little bit of oil. You and the children can then make the pizza. First the dough or crust goes on a cookie sheet or pizza pan if you have one. Then spread the sauce, add the other toppings, and last of all, sprinkle the cheese. Bake as directed for the crust. Be careful, especially with the children, as the oven must be very hot to make a nice crusty pizza.
Cookies are popular everyday, but since October is also Cookie month you might want to bake your own with children ages 4 and up, or buy large plain sugar cookies at the store and have fun decorating them with store-bought icing, chocolate chips, sprinkles and other toppings. https://blogs.aupairinamerica.com/cha/wp-content/uploads/sites/67/2012/06/7512892-delicious-and-tasty-chip-cookie1.jpg
Paper bag masks – Use a large brown paper grocery bag for a mask by cutting out holes for the eyes (try it on the child to get them in the right place) and then coloring the face in fun ways with crayons. You can make different characters – a monster, a king or queen, animals etc. Cutting holes for the shoulders can also be helpful.
Make a bird feeder – Go for a walk to find a pine cone at least 4 inches long. Cover the pine cone with peanut butter and maybe bits of bread, crackers or cereal stuck to the peanut butter. Hang it from a tree by string or yarn and watch the birds come eat it. Try to hang it away from any place a squirrel can get to it.
Water Painting – If you have an old paint brush use it to paint fences, houses or the sidewalk with water. You will be surprised how long this activity stays interesting.
August Activities
Dream Day – Not everyone remembers their dreams but if the children are old enough to tell you about their dream, it might be fun to create a dream log with words and or pictures. Children who have scary dreams may be helped by reading There’s a Nightmare in my Closet by Mercer Mayer, or The Berenstain Bears and the Bad Dream by Stan and Jan Berenstain.
Sea Serpents – Sea serpents are not a part of our everyday life and so they are fascinating to children. Have fun drawing your own ideas of fantastic sea serpents, remind the children that they can be friendly or scary but are never real. Two delightful books about sea serpents: Harry by the Sea by Gene Zion and The Mysterious Tadpole by Steven Kellogg.
Toasting marshmallows over a campfire is a summertime treat. This may not be possible at home, but you can still make ‘smores, a messy, gooey, sweet summertime delight.
Ingredients for one ‘smore
2 graham cracker squares
1 large marshmallow
Handful of chocolate chips
2 tablespoons melted butter
Tin foil
Place marshmallows and chocolate chips in graham cracker squares, like a sandwich and wrap in tin foil. Place in the toaster oven or under the broiler for 2-3 minutes and Voilá a tasty gooey treat!
In the US we most often eat potatoes baked or fried. However, almost every culture has its own way of preparing potatoes – introduce your family to potatoes as you know them. Potatoes are also useful for many craft projects. Cut one in half and carve a simple design into the cut end, then dip it in paint and use it for printing. Cut an end off a sweet potato and let it sit in shallow water for several days. It will start to grow into a beautiful vine
This Weekend
Saturday, June 30 – Great Duck Race
$10,000 raffle supporting local charities. 3,000 rubber ducks launched into Saugatuck River, and the first 10 ducks across finish line win a prize. Fun includes bouncy castle, games, music, arts and crafts, food and drink, magician.
Where: Saugatuck River at Parker Harding Plaza, WestportWhen: 10:30 AM – 2:00 PMWho: Sponsored by the Westport Sunrise RotaryHow: $20 Raffle tickets available at Fairfield County Bank, TD Bank, Black Duck, and The Russell AgencyCost: free admissionFor more info: visit www.thegreatduckrace.org
Compo Beach Cluster Meeting
Westport Au pairs gathered together at Compo Beach Playground to say good bye to some friends and to meet some new ones. Host children who were there 
had an opportunity to make some Father’s Day cards.
May 2012 Calendar
May 1 May Day – Similar to Labor Day, it is a spring festival celebrating the renewal of nature. It was popular in England during medieval times, with children dancing around the Maypole.
May 5 Cinco de Mayo -Cinco de mayo commemorates the May 5, 1862 Battle of Puebla (Batalla de Puebla) in which Mexican troops defeated Napoleon’s French forces. Cinco de mayo is celebrated more in the United States than in Mexico.
May 8 – Teacher Appreciation Day Today is a day to honor teachers – if your child is in school he or she might want to make a card for the teacher. Preschool age children 3-5 love playing school. Let the child be the teacher and read you a story or give you homework. You might want to invite some dolls or stuffed animals into the classroom as well.
May 8- Mother’s Day– Today is a day to celebrate and pamper Mom. Help the children make cards or gifts or plan a special meal or other surprise for Mom.
May 11 Annual Castles in the Sand – Raise money to support the homeless and other neighbors in need. The build a-thon will be held at Compo Beach from noon to 4 p.m. Call 203-226-3426 ext. 11 or www.ihawestport.com to reserve your sand sculpting lot or obtain further information.
May 28 Memorial Day Parade – Parade begins at 9 a.m at Saugatuck Elementary School and travels up Riverside Avenue over the Post Road and on to Town Hall. Stand on the Post Road near Main Street and join the fun. Memorial Day started in 1868 after the Civil War ended. Dead soldiers from both the north and the south were honored as a way to try to heal the nation. Now all past soldiers are honored. It is also a day that is considered to be the start of the summer season. Many people celebrate with a cook-out or even a trip to the beach.