Tiny Iron Fists

"Elephant Safaris--Into the Wilds" by Eames Demetrios

Several of Lulu's beloved Eames elephant cousins are going on a safari! Here's what the Eames Office had to say about it:

If you enjoyed the epic A Gathering of Elephants from a few years ago, Eames Demetrios, director of the Eames Office, has made another Elephant movie, this time animated on location in South Africa, at Mala Mala Game Reserve outside Kruger National Park.

The stop-motion film is a joy to watch and an adventure worth experiencing. I loved the zebra crossing. And chilling with the water buffalos. Where will the herd go next?! Somewhere fun, no doubt!

Fresh Impressions on Brandmarks (From my 5-year-old)

From a dad, "A fun Sunday project with my daughter on brand logos."

It's amazing how many of these corporate logos the five year old gets right. And it's incredibly scary and awesome how she points out the obvious for things I've never stated but always felt. For example, she describes the McDonald's logo as, "An M for McDonald's and it looks like a fry but it's an M made out of fry." My thoughts exactly! And I loved that every big cat she saw was just a plain old "cheetah" even though noneo f the logos were of a cheetah (someone brandmark a cheetah now)!

No doubt kids are affected by the thousands of impressions that hit them daily. And more than ever, I appreciate why my aunt had a "no-logos" rule in place for gifts her daughter received. That said, we try to find a healthy balance in how and what we consume.

Someone remind me to try this little experiment with Lulu in a couple of years.

Fun Neistat Family Home Videos

I love YouTube filmmaker (and award winning filmmaker) Casey Neistat's videos. But my favorite videos are the ones with his son, Owen. They seem to have so much fun together. See for yourself. It's hard not to watch and smile ear-to-ear. LOVE!

"Where the Wild Things Are" (as read by Christopher Walken)

We should all be so lucky to have Christopher Walken read us children's books. His reading of Maurice Sendak's "Where the Wild Things Are" had me giggling. That said, I was also kind of scared by Mr. Walken's voice and cadence!

His commentary on the book's famed illustrations are kooky and off-color. This is how he described some of the monsters: "There's a goat-headed bastard riding on the back of some kind of rhinoceros and then there's a big-headed monster that sort of look's like Ernie from Sesame Street, gone wrong. And then there's some kind of duck-footed lady, you know, kind of scratching her arm up in the air."

Needless to say, it would be a dream to fall asleep to such a voice. For all the parents who've read this book a million times already, Christopher Walken really breaths new life into the classic!

"DNW 2012" by Davi/ZONGY

Our friend Davi and his family went kite flying on New Year's Day too. Check out his beautiful, calming and poetic family video. What a wonderful way to ring in the New Year!

Supercute!'s "Dumb Dumbs"

I suppose candy is poison. But these gals are all good! This video's about having a sweet tooth and having cavities right? Love the new "Dumb Dumbs" video from Supercute! [Hat tip to Boing Boing]

Happy 2012!

This New Year's Day we participated in the Japanese tradition, Takoage, in which children in Japan fly kites on the first day of the year. Thanks to Lulu's godparents, Theresa and Bod, we were able to head to the beach for a sunset kite flying session. A first for both Lulu and Silvio, fun was had by all. I hope you will join us next year for what looks like a new family tradition.

Happy 2012, dear Tiny Iron Fists readers and supporters! I wish you a happy, healthy, and prosperous New Year!