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Keep a Special Sick Day Toy

5/23/07 - By Anna Fader

Sun Prints are pictures you make by creating shadows on photosensitive paper. By laying objects on a piece of sun print paper and then exposing it in a sunny windowsill, you create your own image. There's really something magical and poetic about it. When I was a kid, Sunlight Prints were the thing that my mom pulled out whenever I was sick and stayed home from school. I don't know what gave her the idea of reserving a special toy for sick days, but it was brilliant. Like a cheesy Campbell's soup commercial, I would be laying sick in bed, and when my mom walked in with the sun prints, my face would light up with a smile (Begin commercial montage of me spending quiet, but happy hours in front of a sunny window making prints).

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Of course being the 21st century, The Sunlight Print Kit has gone all fancy. You can buy just a pack of the paper, but for a couple dollars more you get a full kit with a little book of tips and techniques, stencils and acetate to help make cool images. These kits make great gifts for elementary school kids. I just bought several to keep on hand for upcoming birthday parties. Done.

About the Author

Anna Fader

Founder of Mommy Poppins

A fourth-generation Brooklynite, Anna started Mommy Poppins in 2007 to help families find the best things to do with kids in NYC, with a particular emphasis on sharing activities that are free, affordable, and enriching. The site, used by millions of families, has grown to become the ultimate resource for parents in the major US cities, plus travel guides for 100s of destinations.

Anna is a believer in the magic of summer camps, traveling with kids, and that you can raise kids on a budget and still have a rich life full of amazing memories. Anna's first Mommy Poppins book, The Young Traveler's Journal and Activity Book, published in 2025 and co-written with her daughter, Amelia Eigerman, brings that ethos to life, in addition to this website.

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