Live... Happily Ever Active [and an anti-rant]

I sent my friend H some Tom’s of Maine toothpaste that my kids didn’t like.  In return, H sent me this delightful children’s book featuring real live children interacting with a re-imagined world filled with whimsy, positive thinking, bright colors, and ridiculous amounts of cuteness.   A quick internet search revealed that the book is part of a synergistic enterprise combining the book, a dvd, kid fitness classes, and merchandise.  See the website here.  I’m sounding a little like an infomercial here, but that’s really the only way I can think to describe it. 

I don’t feel too guilty about totally hawking this book because of the overwhelmingly positive and adorable message the author delivers.  The whole “Live Happily Ever Active” operation does not reek of capitalist greed (although I have nothing against capitalism!).  It seems to promote a lifestyle of harmony between mind, body and spirit, and  I really do believe in all that gobbledygook.  The message is aimed at kids but cannot help but spill over to parents.  The brand is a little cutesy cutesy for my taste, but I can imagine it would have great mass appeal.

Anyways, back to the book.  After I stopped expecting it to rhyme, I really enjoyed it.  It felt like a 21^st century holistic adaptation of Oh! The Places You’ll Go! – and what self-respecting person doesn’t read that at least once a year?  The real live kids walking amongst animated trees, creatures and sky are precious.  Every kid in the book – quite frankly, every kid in the world – is downright gorgeous.  When we got to the page with the Chinese girl twirling, my oldest daughter asked me if we knew her.  Funny how that works.

My favorite lines, from the first couple pages:

My mom tells me:

Life is a journey.

Take one step at a time, Always bring your body along for the ride.

Pack only what you need, and leave everything else behind.

In summary, I loved the photos, the illustrations, the colors, and the message.  All 4 of my kids aged 4-9 thought the book was pretty great.  Further, I’m thrilled to have such a lovely friend who would send it to me.  Thanks H!

That was quite a love fest.

I have a whole other rant section that I had planned to type out.  I was going to ramble on about parenting, expectations, and developing our children of character while still allowing them to enjoy their youth.  I have spent plenty of mental calories trying to understand my children’s motives in order to inspire/discipline them appropriately.  I have a great many thoughts about education, both on a local and global scale.  I struggle to parent with perspective in a country filled with privilege and plenty.  I meditate on what adult I would have become if so many forces in my own childhood had been different – and how to translate those theories into practical parenting skills.

You might be surprised to know that writing takes an inordinate amount of energy.  Writing is not just a mental exercise.  So much emotional and intellectual energy are bound up in the formation of coherent thoughts that I don’t have the energy to lay them out.  Not today.