It's summer - I'm Bored!
Everyone counts the days until summer vacation, then, 28 seconds after it starts…”I’m bored.” So what can you do?
Many spend a small fortune trying to keep the kids occupied and entertained
– There’s church camp, Parks and Rec with the City, a local staycation / vacation – you know those trips to Disneyland, SixFlags, Schlitterbahn Water Park (I kid you not), Knott’s Berry Farm, Knoebels (pronounced just like it’s spelled), Cedar Point, Sandusky Ohio (voted the Best Amusement Park IN THE WORLD for the past 11 years), Holiday World in Santa Claus, Indiana (seriously) and other amusement parks and county fairs that cost more than the Gross National Product of Zimbabwe. I see you’ve been there.
Then of course there are things like going to the movies
(where 13 cents worth of popcorn sells for $10), playing video games (don’t get me started) and watching nothing on television for six straight hours. Did I mention endless texting?
Other parents simply deal with the “I’m bored” syndrome by assigning chores every time their kids utter the phrase. Kids learn very quickly, but the resulting silence can be scary.
Some parents have an “I’m Bored Box” which is filled with various items they hope will keep the kids occupied; the older the kids the more expensive the items. Once the boredom scale reaches toxic levels, they bring out the box, blindfold the kids and let them take out an item. I hear it is not uncommon in Beverly Hills for an “I’m Bored Box” to contain jewelry by Tiffany & Co. and keys to a new BMW. I spent a weekend walking up and down Rodeo Drive saying “I’m Bored”, but nobody cared, except the nice and very handsome police officer who showed me his badge and SAG card. He thought I was part of a hidden camera reality show.
There has to be something more to end “I’m Bored” than throwing money at it. There is. It’s called (wait for it…wait for it…). a book. Yes, I know it’s a radical idea, but if introduced correctly, you won’t spook the kids. You can entice them to visit faraway lands and experience wild adventures all in the safety and comfort of their own home. Really! If you choose wisely, you can even load their smartphones with a Kindle Reader app and they can read on their phones and iPads without even knowing their holding a book.
I have just the right book in mind to get you started: Silverglade - The Dream. It is the first book in a seven-book adventure series. Silverglade - The Dream is designed to capture the imagination and not let go. The Kindle version costs $2.99. You spend more than that for a box of Junior Mints at the multiplex. What do you have to lose? You can get a real-life, hold-it-in-your-hands paperback version for about $10 more. Again, what do you have to lose?
Here is what people are saying about Silverglade - The Dream:
*** "I think this plot is ingenious. I am hooked."
*** "We liked Nemo and Quasar because the interaction between them is
hilarious."
*** "After reading for several hours I told my son he needed to find a stopping
point and get to bed. He wasn't too thrilled. The next morning he was up early, reading!"
Silverglade -The Dream tells a story of hardship and perseverance, friendship and faith. It is full of tall-masted sailing ships, mighty armies, simple villages, and, deep within the hidden valley of Silverglade, the secretive People of Light.
You might even want to read it yourself. That’s the trick. You let the kids find you while YOU are reading it. Don’t say a word – you will be the book-whisperer. They will come and maybe, just maybe, you can read it aloud to one another.
You can find Silverglade -The Dream,
Silverglade - People of Light
and the other Goldenrod and Emeraldsea books now.
ENJOY!
