National Visor Day

Belonging is important to each of us. We want to feel like we fit in. We want to be part of something. We want to connect.

I'm learning from listening to Kenz that family is very important to her. Kenz has a single parent family. She has two wonderful single parents, but she considers her family to be much larger than that. Family to her is anybody that's related to 'us.' Us includes her dad, her mom, her Nanas, her grandpas and her cousins. Not only is this extended group 'family,' but she has started calling a friend at her preschool 'sister.'


Family is a feeling. That feeling has a branch called playing. I think a great way to tighten up a family visit is to have an activity where you all make something together and then wear it. We did that yesterday. My brother Joe and his two daughters, ages 13 and 21 came to stay with me for a few days. Kenz came over while my daughter was at work.

Although for a few days my house went upside down (are you loving Jack Johnson?) it was well worth it---that is diving in and being with family.

For my granddaughter it was pure excitement. We had planned ahead, her and I, that we would do a project, but we hadn't planned on the outcome of it, which was even more fun.

Are you ready? Well, we found some soft rubber visors at Michael's for 50 cents each. We picked the colors we thought would fit each person. We picked black for my brother Joe, purple for Olivia and white for Traci. Kenz and I would match in a pretty pink. We got a couple extras ones.

Then we bought glitter glue and some sponge stick ons, those things called foamies. The Foam Bucket we bought has some sequins and jewels included.

The actual visor making time was a quiet time. With a blank visor in front of you a whole world of possibility and surprise opens up. One big one, was that grand uncle Joe did not want black, he wanted purple. Uncle Joe had never made a visor before or even played with foamies. He worked intently; freely expressing himself in wearable art. As you can see from the picture, he became a decorated extension of his creation.

We all wrote our 'names' on our visors. That was the start of it. What happened from that point was the departure. Creativity is like that. It's a road you travel to a place you don't really know. When you get there though--- it's an adventure. Children live in this space. Since people, places and things are new and fresh to them ---they stay in soak mode, celebrating discovery.

We took our visors with us--- out to Sushi. Our group was as colorful as San Francisco in the sixties. Flower children revolting against a normal day. When you wear a funny hat and you've in a group with a bunch of other funny hats--- you're OK. Even if you're (yikes) 13 or 21 or--- in your fifties. If you're four and a half ---it's heaven.

Go ahead and make a National Visor Day experience for your 'family.'