Crafting with Mema, YouTube Videos Revisited

Guest Post by Char Huskins

A long time ago (like six years!), my children and my mother worked on several fun craft projects together and made “Crafting with Mema” YouTube videos for Nanahood.

Check out this one with my little three year old Martha and Mema making a paper bag puppet.. you can see the YouTube video and the instructions HERE. Mema lives two states away, so we weren’t able to keep up with the YouTube videos like we hoped… but the kids LOVE watching them now, and laughing at how little and “cute” they were.

Fast-forward a few years, and my kids are now 9, 11, and 14. They are adept at all things technology. When I am not sure how to do something on the iPad, I can be sure at least one of my children WILL know, and they will also be a little smug while happy to show me. This has been bittersweet as I’ve always considered myself tech savvy, and I was pretty sure the day would NEVER come that they would know more than me. Well, the day is here. (Like two years ago, actually). I’m so proud of what they can do, but really.. do they have to be SO good at it?

YouTube Videos-Without Mema

YouTube videos have changed a LOT in the last six years. Filming the videos has changed even more. There is an entire industry of YouTube video stars who cater to kids and teens. My kids have been regularly watching YouTube channels for a couple of years now, and Martha is as obsessed with a few specific YouTube stars like teens in the 50’s and 60’s were obsessed with Elvis or the Beatles.  She watches them talk about dolls, about gymnastics, about books and toys and candy. It reminds me of the “old days” when my grandma would schedule her life around her soaps…Martha literally runs for the iPad at 4:00 p.m. every day to watch the latest video from one of her favorites.

And both of my boys watch “gamer” YouTube stars. They are always looking up how-to videos and cheats for their video games.  Searching Google for a how-to article isn’t good enough anymore – there is sure to be someone out there who has made a how-to VIDEO.  It boggles my mind how long they can sit and watch someone ELSE play a video game, but it’s one of their most favorite past-times, and they both aspire to being big gamer YouTubers some day.

Making YouTube Her Own

We made sweet, simple crafting videos of the kids six years ago, and if we’d only known what it could have become! I am 100% certain that one (or all) of my children will eventually have a YouTube channel, as soon as I can figure out how to help them maintain an element of privacy.  Letting Martha have free reign with her videos and a YouTube channel is a little frightening (especially since she thinks I always look beautiful, and I’m afraid she might catch me in my PJ’s and the world does NOT need to see that!) But, they sure are creative, crafty (still), and have an entrepreneurial gene or two, and if one (or all) of them can support me eventually with their endeavors…

Are your children or grandchildren obsessed with videos and YouTube? We’d love to hear that it’s not just in OUR house!