Okay….I know that’s not a chicken, but it is our adorable new granddaughter and I couldn’t resist putting her pic in this post, cause I just know that one day she’s gonna love our chickens!
Have you ever kept chickens? We acquired our first flock last summer and fell in love with them. First of all, they are a riot! When we kept finding ourselves just sitting around and watching the chickens we decided to call it chicken TV. Seriously, they are that entertaining!
There is really nothing cuter than new chicks (except for that granddaughter of course). They really aren’t that hard to keep, they make great pets and are a great project for kids to learn about responsibility and Nature.
There’s all kinds of websites devoted to that darling of human existence…the chicken. Some of our favorites are Backyard Chickens and My Pet Chicken.
In regards to issues of sustainability, well, chickens are awesome. They are basically pigs with feathers, so they will eat all your scraps, take care of the weeds in the yard and eat the mosquitoes that drive you crazy. And their poop (once composted) is great for your garden. Less waste and fresh eggs too!
I mean, check this out…..…..…that’s entertainment! They follow us around like a pack of dogs. I think you could safely call them spoiled chickens…lol!
Oh yes, the best part of all? Farm Fresh Eggs…..
Yep, those are our eggs…..pretty aren’t they, and believe me, you’ve never tasted better!
First off, this post isn’t going to be about WHY you should recycle. We’re going to assume here, that you, our reader, has great intelligence and already understands the importance of recycling and most especially, the importance of teaching our kids the lifelong habit of recycling.
We feel that the very first thing one can do to get kids into recycling, is to instill in them a love of the natural world….as humans, we naturally want to protect and care for the things that we love – and Mother Earth is a great place to start!
So, our #1solution is……Go outside, be outside!!! If you are lucky enough to live in the country, you probably spend quite a bit of time outdoors anyway, but if you live in a city, find a park! Most citys provide parks and other recreational outdoors areas for families. Find yours and use it often!
Take the time with your kids to observe the natural world, help them to really see what’s all around them. In this day and age, life is fast and busy. Take the time to slow down for an hour or two and watch bugs, birds, and clouds with your kids, help them fall in love with nature (it’ll be great for your blood pressure….lol) and feel the joy that the natural world can bring. Check out the flurry of activity that surrounds us at all times, but often goes unnoticed.
Get a book on the flora and fauna in your area and develop your own fascination with the natural world. Invest in a magnifying lens, they are inexpensive and sooo much fun!! We use ours all the time. Kids love to learn new things and seeing them up close makes it all the more real for them.
Enthusiasm is contagious! Even hanging out in your own yard can be fascinating! The NRDC has a great web page with lots of links on this subject (but save that computer time for a rainy day)!
Fall in love with nature yourself and your childs’ lifelong habit of caring for the earth by whatever means are necessary will naturally follow…… HAVE FUN!!!
You know how much fun kids will have with a cardboard box. But what about a cardboard box that is in the shape of a cottage? Firehouse? Schoolhouse? Barn!?
Imagination Box Co. knows just how entertaining box play can be. They’ve created a handful of easy-to-assemble, American made, 100% recyclable cardboard structures for kids to build, paint, and enjoy!
All of the dyes and materials used in Imagination Box Co.’s products are non-toxic and completely safe. Their toys have won numerous awards such as Dr. Toy awards and the iParenting Media Award. What’s more, Imagination Box Co.’s products are assembled by individuals at PSNI, Panhandle Special Needs, Inc. PSNI provides employment services for people who want to work and need assistance in finding the right match for their skills and abilities.
I came across this video on You Tube that was made by a woman named Megan for her Gender and Language course in College, so first of all, thank you Megan!
We understand that some of you will view this video as an extreme example, but we still offer it to you as food for thought……
Of course there is the biology of gender. Oftentimes girls do tend to like household toys and boys do tend toward tools, etc…. BUT, it is most certainly exacerbated by culture. When you think about it, the truly frightening part of the video and todays’ culture, are attitudes toward physical appearance. Here are some statistics from a site called Love Your Body Day -
As many as 10 million women and girls suffer from anorexia and/or bulimia, in the United States alone.
Approximately one million men and boys suffer from anorexia and/or bulimia, in the United States alone.
An additional 25 million people in the U.S. struggle with binge eating disorder.
Eighty-six percent of people with eating disorders report the onset of the illness by the time they reach the age of 20 (by no means is an eating disorder “less severe” when the eating-disordered person is above the age of 20).
An estimated 85-95% of people with anorexia nervosa and bulimia and 65% of people with binge eating disorders are female.
A shocking 81% of 10-year-olds are afraid of being fat.
Young women that have anorexia are 12 times more likely to die than other women their age.
We certainly understand the differences in gender, but when people are stereotyped, they are then forced into a box that they might not fit into.
It boils down to the question, how much control do you want the media to have over your childs’ self image? In other posts we’ll be talking about how much violence a child is exposed to within the toy industry. Thanks for letting us share our thoughts with you!
To the toy industry – it needs to be about about the children first, not just what sells…….
Both Russell and I are artists (at least in our own minds…hehehe) and there has always been a big emphasis on art in our home. We have always felt that art was important to our childrens’ development, but why? Aside from the obvious whys -
What other research as been done? So, I decided to put a little time looking into the why’s and here’s a bit of what I found……
Art is actually considered by some researchers as a fundamental biological need, a need that defines our existence and the human condition ( see-Dissanayake, 1992). When you think back to all the art found on cave walls, this makes sense.
I am going to quote here from an article I found at Education.com:
“Art should be valued “for art’s sake” because it is considered an important means for self-expression—spontaneity, imagination, play, experimentation, and lack of inhibition are desirable components of making artworks—and for freedom of expression.
Art is also valued as an emotional mode for communicating unconscious things otherwise unsayable (Feldman, 1996) and for enhancing “healthy” personalities. Art also enhances childrens’ cognitive processes, involving children in problem solving, thinking, and using symbol systems to record their thoughts, ideas, and feelings. In many ways, art offers a form of spiritual awareness as well, revealing itself through the heart and intuition (Barthes, 1972) and embodied or somatic ways of learning.”
Wow! I like that, in fact, I couldn’t have said it better myself, guess that’s why I didn’t ! Someone with alot of education said that…lol!
I’d love to hear any other ideas you’ve got about the importance of art in a childs’ life!
You might have noticed in our first post that we call ourselves an ethical company. Just what does that mean anyway?
Okay, so here’s the Wiki definition -Ethics (also known as moral philosophy) is a branch of philosophy that addresses questions about morality—that is, concepts such as good and bad, noble and ignoble, right and wrong, justice and virtue.
Hmm……. so how does that apply to us? First of all it’s a very subjective question, after all, everyone has different ideas about right and wrong or good and bad, right? Here’s a few of our ideas of an ethical toy business and what we try our best to ascribe to -
1. It’s all about the children not the bottom line
2. Promote non-violence
3. Promote healthy values
4. Don’t advertise directly to children (they get enough already)
5. Teach children respect for Mother Earth
6. Teach children to explore the world through their joy and imagination
7. Think globally and acting locally
Whew…….sounds like alot doesn’t it? It is, but it’s just the beginning and it is so worth the effort! At IBC we truly want to contribute to the world by helping to nurture kids and the environment, not create more consumers.
It’s one of the many reasons our toys are 100% recyclable and inside each toy are socially responsible messages such as “Please Recycle”, “Respect All Creatures Great and Small”, “Honesty”, “Courage”….and more. Another way that we keep the circle going is by having our toys assembled by people with special needs, it’s a way to give back to our community.
What are your ideas of an ethical toy company? We’d love to know………
“Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere.“
That quote, is from Albert Einstein and we love it! That “we” is us, Kim and Russ Cash the owners and creators of IBC. If you’re brave, you can actually see our picture in the About Us section of our website. You can also find out how and why we started IBC, so we won’t torture you by reprinting it here….lol! We are the Owners and creators of Imagination Box Co. and we have lots on our minds to share with you.
As owners of a unique and ethical business that’s geared toward the children of the world , we are aware of the awesome responsibility that comes along with it. We don’t believe in violent toys or anti-social toys. The toys you place in a childs’ hands and minds have a lasting effect on them. We know this from our own experience raising our daughters.
As we began our business, we asked ourselves the following – ‘do we want to help nurture better human beings or better consumers?’ The answer was obvious and IBC was born!
We want this blog to be a place for thought provoking and perhaps controversial….wait….. lets not say perhaps….lets say definitely controversial ideas. Who knows…we all just might learn something along the way. So hop aboard, stay tuned and join us on this mind expanding journey.
Okay….I know that’s not a chicken, but it is our adorable new granddaughter and I couldn’t resist putting her pic in this post, cause I just know that one day she’s gonna love our chickens!
…..
…that’s entertainment! They follow us around like a pack of dogs. I think you could safely call them spoiled chickens…lol!
and already understands the 
If you’re brave, you can actually see our picture in the 