TWELVE TREATS OF CHRISTMAS

This year instead of the usual Advent craft with my day care kiddies consisting of "paper chains" or "numbered ornaments"  on the tree or "bells" on Rudolph's harness, we opted for something simpler...Twelve Treats Of Christmas. We traced our hands to make mitten shapes on old Christmas cards, cut them out and glued two mittens together leaving an opening at the top into which I slipped a piece of card with a treat of the day written on it. Treats ranged from a chocolate, a special story, a pencil, or  pack of crayons  to a game of Reindeer Pokey.

Today's treat  was...popcorn for lunch...with real butter! It's funny how many kids have never experienced making popcorn other than sticking a bag in the microwave. They enjoyed watching it explode out of the air popper and really wolfed it down while telling me how good it was...even better than what you get at the theaters.

Maybe next Christmas I will pop it in a pot on top of the stove just like we used to in the "olden" days! They should get a real kick out of that.

Popcorn

Put the oil in the pot

and you let it get hot

Put the popcorn in

and you start to grin.

Sizzle...sizzle...sizzle

...sizzle...sizzle...sizzle

POP!

Raffi

A FLASH TO THE PAST

Last week when I stopped at a local department store to pick up a few items I experienced a time warp in which I found myself back in the past, circa 1977. I was standing in line at the check out waiting my turn when an elderly woman was called off the floor to open an extra cash for which which I was next to be rang through.
As luck would have it, my items would not scan...the registrar was out of tape and needed to be reloaded. It was easy to tell that this poor lady was used to working the floor and was not well experienced working the cash as she was having a difficult time installing the tape into the machine and was getting more flustered by the minute. I told her that it was OK and just take her time ... I was in no hurry, then focused my attention on what was going on around me so she would not feel that I was watching her. I too have a hard time doing tasks when I know someone is watching over me...things I can normally do with my eyes closed...and will become a bumbling idiot if I feel I am being watched.

As she struggled with the tape a couple of ladies...and I use this term loosely... joined the line behind me and immediately started to complain about her incompetency, making no attempt to keep their comments quiet. The more they talked, the more clumsy and flustered the clerk got and the more I felt her pain. I was transported back over thirty years when I worked at this very same store.

Like her, I was in charge of a department and I was good at my job, but occasionally, when things got busy, I would be called to open a cash.

I hated it!

If anything could go wrong it seemed it would happen to me, and with a line up of people waiting I would break out into a sweat and turn red as Borscht soup. While most people would be polite and patient, there were always the asses who were so full of themselves and their importance in the world that they did not hesitate to complain loudly. I remember wishing I could sink under the counter.

While my experience as a sales clerk when I was in my teens made me empathic for the position this sales clerk was now in, it did not give me courage, for I did what I always do. I kept my mouth zipped when I so wanted to turn around and tell those "ladies" to lighten the f*** up. I left the store feeling angry and discussed at myself for not speaking up.

But this tale has a happy ending...


I made one more stop on my way home, a local video store, to pick up a movie, when the sweetest little girl (I'm guessing around three years old) turned to me, a complete stranger, poked her finger at my boob and exclaimed, "I like those!" She was pointing to my tank top's purple sequin and bead "sparkies."... positioned...well, over my boob. While her Dad pretended he didn't just see his daughter poke a strange lady in the boob, I knelt down beside her and said "I do too! And I really like Strawberry Shortcake",  pointing to the movie she was holding in her hands, to which she gave a big smile and a "Me too!."











This little girls exuberance was all it took to "un-grump"  me and was a reaffirmation that:

•  I made the right choice thirty + years ago to not return to a costumer service type job but start an in home daycare.

• If you like sparkly things you should not be afraid to wear them. 

• Don't wait till you're old to wear purple! 

 Are you afraid?

YOGI TOES

Who says you can't push the gender stereotypes

...the boys were up for some
quality "girlie" time with me.

Attempting "downward facing dog"

...tongue out to make it more authentic.

...focusing on the breath..

...and some "spa" time.

JUST DO IT

Determination gives you the resolve to keep going
in spite of the roadblocks that lay before you.
Denis Waitley

Over the nineteen years of caring for children in my home I must have developed a cast iron immune system as I seldom get sick, but when I do it usually falls on the weekend and almost never during the week. The last time I took off a "sick day" from work was probably seven or eight years ago. That's remarkable considering the number of times I am coughed, sneezed and snotted on in the run of a day.

But this latest cold bug did not pass me by. I started feeling it coming on on Friday and sure enough, I woke up Saturday morning at 6:00 feeling lousy and really pissed off...there was no way I was going let illness ruin my free time so I forced myself out of bed and went for my usual morning walk and then filled my day with baking and shopping. I made it to 5:00 before crashing for a two hour power nap after which hubby and I enjoyed a late supper while watching the movie, The Inglorious Bastards starring Brad Pit.

Sunday dawned snowy but considerably warmer than the frigid minus 20 - 30 below temperatures we've had all week. It was too fantastic of a day to pass up a chance to go cross country skiing. Not sure how far I was going to be able to make it, we set off for what turned out to be a two hour trip. It was beautiful and fun.

Happy now that the cold bug didn't steal my weekend, it can now have me ...well after I enjoy my Ginger Pork Stir fry with Rice...then it can have its way with me.

Join Fresh Mommy for more Sunday Citars.

A LITTLE HELP FROM A FRIEND

While an in-service day means
a day off school
for the kids,
it means a very
full and "busy" day for me.

Luckily,
the after school kids
...certainly not angels by any wild stretch of the imagination
...are quite good with the little ones
and are quick to jump in and help when needed
...to spread glue
..to help a little one scrape
a lunch bowl clean,
...to pick them up when they fall,
or
as an extra set of arms to offer a hug
when my arms are already full.

Last Fridays in-service was spent
working on "pumpkin" crafts.

...and here are all the creative, happy "crafters"... minus the baby who was picked up early that day and missed the final photo shoot.

DO YOU BELIEVE?

....enchanted worlds still exist because the child within us never dies. The doorways may be more obscure, but we can still seek them out. There are still noble adventures to undertake. There are still trees that speak and caverns that lead to nether realms. There will always be faeries and elves within nature because they will always be dancing within our hearts. ~Ted Andrews

My daycare"little people" had a lot of fun making "woodland faerie" mask although, as you can see from my pictures, some of them were hesitant to wear their finished creation.

Did you know that Forest Fairies have an important job to do...Forest Fairies heal trees that have been damaged by storms, infestations or harmful insects. They are born with the knowledge of ancient forests.

CARBON FOOTPRINT “T’s”

In celebration of “Earth Day”, Wednesday, April 22, the kiddies and I wore our special carbon footprint T’s that we had made in March for “Earth Hour”. Lucky enough to find enough little white “muscle” shirts at Frenchys, all the children were able to have matching T’s. Using washable fabric paint, I printed the message on front and the kids had fun placing their foot into a tray of paint and then stamping their footprint onto the back of their T’s. The Moms had a little chuckle when first seeing the boys message “How big is yours?” until I quickly spun them around and pointed out the carbon footprint on back.

We also planted bean seeds in paper cups and are expecting them to sprout any day now.

CORKSCREW WITCH HAZEL- A REBIRTH

CORKSCREW WITCH HAZEL- A REBIRTH
A few years ago I planted a Corkscrew Witch Hazel in my front flower garden in an attempt to had extra winter interest during the long, cold winter months. While quite unassuming during the summer months, they really come into their own in the fall after dropping their leaves to reveal an interesting display of twisted and curled trunk and branches. Considered a hardy tree, I expected mine to grow and flourish, providing years of enjoyment. Alas, this was not to be. Last spring, only half my tree leafed out, withered and fell. I knew in my heart of hearts that my little tree had perished due to root rot. Not willing to say goodbye, I left my barren little tree planted with the small hope that it would miraculously come back to life the following spring. However, after a long winter of more than the usual amount of snow, my last glimmer of hope was dashed. When the long awaited spring melt finally arrived, it revealed my little tree, it’s trunk snapped at its base. Sadly I carried it into my basement, allowed it to dry, then mounted it onto a block of wood and potted it. It has now become my Daycare’s new Holiday/Seasonal tree that the little ones can decorate with crafts they create. My little tree that had given me so much pleasure while growing in my garden, has earned it’s right to a second chance, and I fully expect it to be fruitful. A little birdie has told me to expect our little tree to bear little green frogs any day now.

LITTER BUG

Another craft that was a big hit ...LITTER BUGS...simple to make by balling up a sheet of news paper and tying it with string. We used strips of vegetable netting for the legs (you could use straws), glued on buggy eyes, mini pom poms for a nose , a milk cap for a hat and styrofoam packing material for wings. Our string was used twine compliments of my husband who works for a construction company and brings home twine that was used for setting grades...hence the bright orange paint you may notice on the string.

EARTH DAY THEME

Earth Day may be over but at our house we are still continuing on with the theme. I just wanted to share some crafts my daycare kids have been working on. They are young, but have old hearts!
One day we made earth pictures using coffee filters made of recycled paper and blue bingo markers. By dabbing part of the filter with the blue marker, we made oceans and we left the remaining filter its natural color...light brown. We glued our earth onto blue construction paper and pasted the words to the "earth" song we've been singing all week. The kids had fun sticking fish stickers to the ocean areas and animal stickers to the land areas. These really show up well and we are very proud of them.

THIS LITTLE PLANET OF MINE
(This Little Light of Mine)

This little planet of mine, I’m gonna let it shine.
This little planet of mine, I’m gonna let it shine.
This little planet of mine, I’m gonna let it shine.
Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine!

This little planet of mine, I’m gonna keep it clean.
This little planet of mine, I’m gonna keep it clean.
This little planet of mine, I’m gonna keep it clean.
Keep it clean, keep it clean, keep it clean!