olympics.

(source unknown, this is london by m. sasek)

brought to you by Danielle, contributor for A Little Artsy blog.

I will always regret not making the two hour trip to the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.  Who knows if I'll have the opportunity again.  I can tell you this, I won't pass it up next time!  And as for the 2012 London Olympics, who wouldn't want to be there?  Even if you are like me and stuck watching from afar, there are still plenty of Olympic memories to make with your littles.  Here's a few of our favorites to spread out over the next two weeks.

1.  Use bed sheets and dress up your child in a TOGA.  Explain to them this is how the very first Olympians dressed.  

2. Construct leaf head garlands from green construction paper like this.  Or if you are the ambitious crafter, make your own from actual vines and leaves like this.

3. Read your child a book on London (this is my favorite).  Explain to them that the games take place every 4 years and at different locations.  

4. Make use of the vintage wall maps and globes we are all collecting by mapping out past Olympic venues.

5. If you have any large boxes around, this double decker bus is sure to provide hours of fun!

6. Find cartoons like Paddington, Babar and my favorite Charlie and Lola to watch.  These are English based shows.  Particularly point out the difference in the way the characters speak and dress (native to England).

7. A high noon tea party would be perfect sometime these next weeks.  Maybe even pull out Grandma's china for the occasion and use real tea bags.

8. Bring home plain glazed donuts from your favorite bakery and then frost with blue, yellow, black, green and red.  To look like the Olympic rings.

9.  Create the British flag like this one from tissue paper.  Or create your own country's flag to wave at the opening ceremonies.

10.  Finally, get those babies in your laps and watch the games together!  

You can join me here, to see which of these my own littles and I do over the next few weeks.