Kids VT, March 2017
How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Youth Wrestling; The Costs and Benefits of Paid Family Leave; Summer Camp Guide
What Advice Do You Give to Nervous Parents?
Sending kids to camp can be nerve-wracking. Whether you’re worried about them sleeping away from home or being injured on an adventurous day-camp outing, parental concerns come with the territory. We asked local camp directors for advice they give to worried parents. Find their wise words here. Hosmer Point, Craftsbury Common Parents should feel confident…
Family Play Day at Middlebury Indoor Tennis Hits All the Marks
Middlebury Indoor Tennis, 360 Boardman St., Middlebury I’m always looking for inexpensive ways to help my 2-year-old daughter burn energy during the colder months. Family Play Day at Middlebury Indoor Tennis hit all the marks: free, fun, supportive and family-oriented. The indoor tennis facility, which operates as a membership-based tennis club, opens its doors to…
Investing in Nesting: Vermont Businesses See Dollars and Sense in Helping Employees Bond with Their Babies
James Marks of Putney is luckier than most new fathers in Vermont. His employer, Bellows Falls-based Chroma Technology, offers paid leave for all new parents. The high-tech optical coating manufacturer enacted a generous new parental leave policy for all of its 120 Vermont-based employees just weeks after his second daughter, Laura, was born in December…
Wrestlemania: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love Youth Wrestling
The Sunday before Valentine’s Day, I crouched at the edge of a padded mat on the floor of the gym at Lake Region Union High School in Barton. My son was getting ready for his first wrestling match of the season. Anxious and excited, I held up my smartphone to film it. Graham, 11, wore…
Family Yoga
I’m a yoga teacher. I’m also the mom of two boys — 8-year-old Jules and 6-year-old Kai. I wish I could say the convergence of these roles means that every night I lead our family through thoughtful yoga sequences, and every morning I meditate away any chance of flipping out on my kids. But I’d…
Washi Tape Walls
Teal Doggett has two sons, 11-year-old Felix and 9-year-old Isaac. But it’s not their artwork that dominates the family’s home — it’s hers. Doggett created nine modernist wall installations throughout her house using strips of bright washi tape, a decorative Japanese masking tape made from natural fibers. The pieces match the dwelling’s midcentury modern style,…
Fresh Air Fund Seeks Hospitable Hosts
Since 1877, the Fresh Air Fund has provided more than 1.8 million New York City children with free summer experiences in suburban, rural and small-town communities on the East Coast and in southern Canada. The organization is currently looking for new Vermont families to host boys and girls, ages 7 to 12, for one to…
Getting the Veg Out: Farm Fresh Foods for Healthy Kids
Has purchasing a local farm share been financially out of reach for your family? The Farm Fresh Foods For Healthy Kids project could put fresh veggies on your table. Eligible low-income families with kids ages 2 to 12 get half-priced local farm shares. In exchange, participants share information about what they eat and take part…
Smooth Sailin’ with Rockin’ Ron the Friendly Pirate
Seeking some nautical tunes to take you into the warmer months? Look no further than local musician Ron Carter, better known as Rockin’ Ron the Friendly Pirate. The swashbuckling singer, who describes his style as “‘Sesame Street’ meets Monty Python,” recently released his third album,The Flying Pirate Circus. Some of its 28 songs are pure…
It’s Story Time for the Vermont PBS Kids Writers Contest
Creative kids have until the end of March to submit their entries to the Vermont PBS Kids Writers Contest. Now in its 22nd year, the contest asks kindergarteners through fifth graders to create their own stories with a minimum of five illustrations. A panel of local experts will select first-place winners and runners up for…
A French-Canadian Fave With a Twist
A few years ago, I decided to put a waffle-y spin on different dishes from around the world. I made taco waffles, pizza waffles, curry waffles and more. My family’s favorite? Poutine waffles. Poutine is a classic Québécois comfort food made up of French fries topped with gravy and cheese curds — the solid part…
Name Changer: A South Burlington Teen Speaks Out Against Racism
NAME: Isaiah Hines AGE: 17 TOWN: South Burlington Since South Burlington High School was established in 1961, its sport teams have been known as the Rebels. Some believe the moniker is a nod to Vermont’s long history of anti-establishment rabble-rousers — most notably Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain Boys. Others suggest the name is…
Dishing With My Teen: Why I’m (Really) Teaching my Son to Cook
When the nurse opened the waiting room door and called “Eli!,” my son and I both stood up. “Oh no, we just need the young man right now, Mom,” she said brightly. “We’ll come get you when we need you.” “Oh, sure,” I said, trying to sound like I’d anticipated this change. After all, my…
Like Our New Look?
Whether it’s a new backpack, a dramatically different hairstyle or a vacation to someplace you’ve never been before, change can be good — and result in a renewed sense of purpose and enthusiasm. In that spirit, we bring you a new-and-improved version of Kids VT this month. A little backstory: When Seven Days bought Kids…
The Sweet Life: A Sugaring Family on Teamwork and Going with the Flow
For six weeks in late winter and early spring, Marsha and Bill LaPorte of Underhill drop everything to sweat it out in their wood-fired sugarhouse over a giant pot of boiling sap. It’s a duty Bill and his brother, Jim, took over 12 years ago from their grandparents, who started the small sugaring operation in…
Girl Rising: An Interview with Local Author Tanya Lee Stone
In 2013, South Burlington author Tanya Lee Stone attended a screening of Girl Rising at Merrill’s Roxy Cinema with her two teenagers. Directed by Richard Robbins, the film tells the stories of nine girls around the world, from Haiti to Afghanistan, who overcame the challenges of poverty, arranged marriage, abuse and more in pursuit of…
What’s the Right Age to Give Your Child a Cellphone?
Remember when rotary dialing your friend’s phone number took a solid 30 seconds? Remember begging your parents to buy a longer phone cord so you could drag the whole thing into your room and talk for hours? Yeah, those days are over. Now we’re always on our phones — googling, shopping, watching SNL clips. So…
