tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-55872170897481161382024-03-04T15:24:26.977-05:00Stuff We DoA collection of craft projects, preschool learning activities, and random ideas.Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.comBlogger78125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-72429816921443035372012-01-09T15:42:00.000-05:002012-01-09T15:42:21.664-05:00Play MakeupIf you were to ask Abby what her favorite Christmas gift was, she would say "my makeup.". This makeup was from Aunt Jessie and she paid a whopping $1.00 for it. Abby's new treasure was a plastic, yellow, Princess Belle cell phone filled with sparkly lip gloss. That child has used a lot of lip gloss. Aunt Holly savd the day when she told Abby that SHE only puts on makeup once a day. Genius.<br />
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The Princess Belle makeup quickly ran out, but the cry still rang out through our house, "Where my makeup?" This girl needed some makeup. I went through my own makeup and collected some that I don't use...a good excuse to clean out old stuff. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I discovered that if I used a butter knife, I could pop the little interior trays of makeup right out, in this case eye shadow and blush. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I then filled the trays with nail polish and let them dry. I did have to open some windows to air out the toxic fumes.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Here's my favorite part of Abby's play makeup: lipstick. I dug the lipstick out of a tube I got during one of my favorite times of the year...Clinique Bonus Days. I then glued a marble onto the tube, using a hot glue gun. Lastly, I painted the marble with two coats of nail polish.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Add some cheap-o brushes, purchased at Meijer, and we were ready to get beautiful.</span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jqZ9kK57z-U/TwcUoRViw6I/AAAAAAAAB78/2T5qjxF7zuY/s1600/18180401926.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="192" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jqZ9kK57z-U/TwcUoRViw6I/AAAAAAAAB78/2T5qjxF7zuY/s640/18180401926.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">This is one happy girl...who is wearing camouflage to offset the very extreme girliness of playing with makeup.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-x5wDHpfn28M/TwcVD5XQJZI/AAAAAAAAB8E/cTQkepl8wUw/s1600/18180422809.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-x5wDHpfn28M/TwcVD5XQJZI/AAAAAAAAB8E/cTQkepl8wUw/s640/18180422809.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I LOVE watching her with the lipstick. It's just too cute and a lovely color on her, I might add.</span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">You dazzle me, darling.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-sMV9vutaUK4/TwcV2O0NnlI/AAAAAAAAB8M/9jpBT4LQRPE/s1600/18180449167.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="268" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-sMV9vutaUK4/TwcV2O0NnlI/AAAAAAAAB8M/9jpBT4LQRPE/s640/18180449167.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Once Abby finished with her own makeup, she moved on to her babies.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">All lined up for makeup.</span></td></tr>
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It would be an extreme understatement to say that the makeup has been a hit. Abby puts on makeup at least a dozen times a day and her little makeup bag is never far from her line of sight. In fact, as I type this right now, she is sitting inside her princess tent putting on makeup. Abby has even been teaching her Daddy about makeup and he is a wonderful sport about it. If there was ever a man to to have a daughter, it is this one...what a great Daddy he is for our little girl. <br />
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There are two downsides to Abby's play makeup:<br />
<ol><li>At least once or twice a day my husband and I have to scurry around the house trying to find the makeup, while Abby tries to remember where she left it last. She can even tell if anything is missing. "Where my eye shadow?"</li>
<li>Every time Abby opens her makeup she likes to sniff it, as some of the toxic fumes still linger from the nail polish. Hmmmmmm.</li>
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Even with the scurring and the sniffing, however, play makeup has been a HUGE success at our house...and MY makeup is cleaned out and organized. A bonus. Oh Clinique Bonus Days, please come again soon...Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-64842097039657306062011-12-13T05:42:00.009-05:002011-12-13T05:47:08.584-05:00Bubble Wrap LettersI never know whether to start with a picture of the final product, so that you know whether you want to even keep reading...or, if I should save the picture of the final product until the end to build the suspense. Oh the dilemma. Well, today, we'll start at the end.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-A5NvzC5iGtw/TtoUT2Fs1KI/AAAAAAAAB2s/lP_5s3SbY-g/s1600/DSC_4819.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-A5NvzC5iGtw/TtoUT2Fs1KI/AAAAAAAAB2s/lP_5s3SbY-g/s320/DSC_4819.JPG" width="212" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Letter prints made using bubble wrap. I liked how they turned out so much, we framed and hung them up.</span></td></tr>
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And now, back to the beginning...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Pez9ILQ2NGg/TsUGi6ITtyI/AAAAAAAABwk/uAtB7TiYdIc/s1600/IMG_0753.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Pez9ILQ2NGg/TsUGi6ITtyI/AAAAAAAABwk/uAtB7TiYdIc/s320/IMG_0753.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I laid a print-out of the letters underneath the bubble wrap and then traced the letters onto the bubble wrap using a marker. You can see Abby's little hand popping bubbles. Really...who can resist?</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-q6c6gZFUcgY/TsUGi-vAC5I/AAAAAAAABwo/qBPTixwhUS0/s1600/IMG_0755.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-q6c6gZFUcgY/TsUGi-vAC5I/AAAAAAAABwo/qBPTixwhUS0/s400/IMG_0755.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I then cut out the letters and taped them to the waxy side of freezer paper.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-yFydGxCiZ1U/TsUHNMEoxkI/AAAAAAAABw8/lLFixbPd9qo/s1600/IMG_0759.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-yFydGxCiZ1U/TsUHNMEoxkI/AAAAAAAABw8/lLFixbPd9qo/s400/IMG_0759.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Let the painting begin. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wJ99nGu-iqg/Tt6TpQQ42DI/AAAAAAAAB4U/VZo59wiY2dQ/s1600/17670760768.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wJ99nGu-iqg/Tt6TpQQ42DI/AAAAAAAAB4U/VZo59wiY2dQ/s640/17670760768.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Each kid chose two colors of paint. I was concerned that if we used too many colors we would end up with brown gloppy letters.<br />
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<div style="text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZaqvbqId5r8/TsUHuk8qRlI/AAAAAAAABxQ/sO1Uz7mPQJE/s1600/IMG_0761.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ZaqvbqId5r8/TsUHuk8qRlI/AAAAAAAABxQ/sO1Uz7mPQJE/s320/IMG_0761.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Get your letter nice and covered with paint...</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fPh_5TVZK9Y/TsUH51cptiI/AAAAAAAABxg/_UZ0ttYvsvs/s1600/IMG_0762.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fPh_5TVZK9Y/TsUH51cptiI/AAAAAAAABxg/_UZ0ttYvsvs/s400/IMG_0762.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">...and then press a piece of paper onto the bubble wrap. Thankfully, my husband and I named our children good bubble-wrap-letter names. An "E" and an "A". Nice symmetrical letters. For a non-symmetrical letter, like an "R," for example, be careful. I am writing this at 5:30 AM, so I can't even picture what you should do. The bubble wrap letter should be drawn and cut in the reverse of the actual letter, right? Right? I am so confused and again, so thankful I had the foresight to name my children with symmetrically lettered names. I hate to say it, but I guess you non-symmetrical people are on your own.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
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</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Some finished products:</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_aclMLbV4Ng/TsUI-kNgkhI/AAAAAAAAByM/yiUTanIc0wM/s1600/IMG_0770.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_aclMLbV4Ng/TsUI-kNgkhI/AAAAAAAAByM/yiUTanIc0wM/s400/IMG_0770.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jkhZhs4LNc8/TsUJIq-ghSI/AAAAAAAAByU/naBpyBokDmE/s1600/IMG_0772.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jkhZhs4LNc8/TsUJIq-ghSI/AAAAAAAAByU/naBpyBokDmE/s400/IMG_0772.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YYDw6dgB__E/TsUJYrlJhaI/AAAAAAAAByc/K-5gZtcYLB8/s1600/IMG_0773.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YYDw6dgB__E/TsUJYrlJhaI/AAAAAAAAByc/K-5gZtcYLB8/s400/IMG_0773.JPG" width="400" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <span style="font-size: small;">For the last set, we just pressed paper onto the bubble wrap letters in a random fashion, using up the paint that was there. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ggpGQm6URT4/Tt6TZ42j9FI/AAAAAAAAB4M/lQNFyJ5kc7A/s1600/17670747338.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="160" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ggpGQm6URT4/Tt6TZ42j9FI/AAAAAAAAB4M/lQNFyJ5kc7A/s640/17670747338.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">And here's what happens to your "A" bubble wrapper while you are focused on your "E" bubble wrapper. Ok, so clearly I knew it was happening since I documented the process with pictures. </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-A5NvzC5iGtw/TtoUT2Fs1KI/AAAAAAAAB2s/lP_5s3SbY-g/s1600/DSC_4819.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-A5NvzC5iGtw/TtoUT2Fs1KI/AAAAAAAAB2s/lP_5s3SbY-g/s400/DSC_4819.JPG" width="265" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Back to the beginning. I absolutely adore these!</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">So, if nothing else, let this be a lesson in choosing names for children. Symmetry is key.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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</tbody></table>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-9702119911670100182011-12-03T08:13:00.000-05:002011-12-03T08:13:50.265-05:00Not Too LateWe decorated our Christmas tree on November 27. On the morning of November 28, Eli stood in front of the decorated Christmas Tree in great dismay because there were no presents under said tree. Upon questioning his rather passionate response to an empty-under-the-Christmas-tree, he said, "I thought it was Christmas." Before December even hit, I was asked numerous times if it was Christmas Eve, if Christmas was in two days, and if we would be getting presents tomorrow. Time for an Advent Calendar, of sorts. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">The Kids' Advent Calendar. I did not actually put this together until December 1, so "2" is our first day.</span></td></tr>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>We did this last year also and it was really easy to put together. I got little envelopes and stickers at a craft store. Each envelope is labeled with a number and holds TWO ornament stickers. (Incidentally, the stickers in each envelope are the same. Who wants to start their day with a battle over stickers?) A tree for each kid was cut out of green foam (this year from green sparkly paper). Each morning, the kids take the appropriate envelope down, remove the stickers, and decorate their tree. No more tears from a child who, on a random Tuesday in the middle of December, thought it was Christmas morning. <br />
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Here is how it looked last year:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TCjSDx-y0ZQ/TtoVfv_UIMI/AAAAAAAAB28/WPkledJWHck/s1600/17612219796.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="408" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-TCjSDx-y0ZQ/TtoVfv_UIMI/AAAAAAAAB28/WPkledJWHck/s640/17612219796.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">You can see on the second picture how envelopes are gone and trees are getting decorated. Christmas is coming...but it's not today, dear children.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-J7Nyf9XZUkY/TtoV0OG1mDI/AAAAAAAAB3E/1A-93hu0G3c/s1600/17612234476.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="276" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-J7Nyf9XZUkY/TtoV0OG1mDI/AAAAAAAAB3E/1A-93hu0G3c/s640/17612234476.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">More from last year...does the scowl make Abby even cuter? Maybe.</span></td></tr>
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So, it's not fancy, it's not spiritual, but it's a fun, visual countdown. AND...it's not too late to make one for yourself! If I am REALLY organized this year, I'll load the envelopes with stickers BEFORE I pack them away. Then, I'll just have to tape them up, making it more conceivable to start on the REAL December 1. If I type it here, maybe that will help me to actually do it. We'll see...<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><i style="color: #cc0000; font-family: Georgia,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Happy Advent Season</span></i></div><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">Advent is much, much more than stickers on a Christmas tree...<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcravEG2ATE&feature=share">check out this video</a>.</div>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-11190436194988008772011-11-29T09:39:00.001-05:002011-11-29T17:02:15.171-05:00A ChoiceMy home was already 63% demolished when the tiny 5-year old and 3-year old demolishers descended the stairs this morning. In a fort building effort, we demolished the rest. So, this morning, amidst rain and headaches and a desire to only see this:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DSMt2oDzikA/TtTqUTB-reI/AAAAAAAAB0M/A96j4Ah4584/s1600/17555612255.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="478" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DSMt2oDzikA/TtTqUTB-reI/AAAAAAAAB0M/A96j4Ah4584/s640/17555612255.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />
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I choose to see this:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vGCZXH8pDX8/TtTqsssskhI/AAAAAAAAB0U/GcNMw1M8HG8/s1600/17555625947.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="478" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vGCZXH8pDX8/TtTqsssskhI/AAAAAAAAB0U/GcNMw1M8HG8/s640/17555625947.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />
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A day is filled with so many little moments in which I must make a choice; a choice to see what is good in the middle of what seems to be the worst. I fail at this more than I succeed, but by God's grace, I hope to see that reverse. Every time I choose to see good over bad, every time I choose gratitude and thankfulness over ingratitude and bitterness, the scales start to tip the other way.<br />
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And now, I have to choose to clean. But, I get to clean while listening to the happy sounds of my kids playing together and for that, I choose to be thankful.Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-11478817042608279202011-11-17T16:35:00.000-05:002011-11-17T16:35:22.926-05:00Turkey Snack CupsI saw <a href="http://pinterest.com/pin/131097039122593122/">this</a> really cute idea on Pinterest and had to do it. Here's our spin on Turkey Snack Cups:<br />
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I started by stacking five pieces of multicolored construction paper so that I could cut five feathers at the same time. Once stacked, I cut out a feather shape, fanned out the feathers, and got this:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UDwMcXaZhzQ/TsUJn9Fw5TI/AAAAAAAAByk/ChjeHLY3njA/s1600/IMG_0787.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UDwMcXaZhzQ/TsUJn9Fw5TI/AAAAAAAAByk/ChjeHLY3njA/s320/IMG_0787.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">A piece of tape on the front and a piece on the back did the trick.</span></td></tr>
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Then it was time for the face. I used a circle punch to get a brown face and then put on eyes using a black marker. Googly eyes would have been cute (like in the original picture), but we didn't have any. I then cut out little yellow triangles for beaks and pieces of red yarn for the red, stringy, turkey thingy. What is that called? I don't know, but I am pretty sure it's not called a turkey goiter, which is the only name I can come up with. Here's how I put the face together:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZXqQUYOaL9Q/TsUJqKFCuFI/AAAAAAAABys/ktIl6VkeUmw/s1600/IMG_0788.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZXqQUYOaL9Q/TsUJqKFCuFI/AAAAAAAABys/ktIl6VkeUmw/s320/IMG_0788.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">After some deliberation, I decided to use one bigger piece of tape, putting the beak and turkey goiter on it first. The whole big piece of tape then went onto the face, with the excess tape being wrapped to the back of the face.</span></td></tr>
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Putting it all together:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-T8stF3zs82Y/TsUKHYPLXpI/AAAAAAAABy4/3nTV5Yfdb70/s1600/IMG_0789.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-T8stF3zs82Y/TsUKHYPLXpI/AAAAAAAABy4/3nTV5Yfdb70/s320/IMG_0789.JPG" width="240" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">One piece of tape secured the feathers to the back of the cup and then another piece for the face on the front. I did not use any glue, only tape, for this project.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FzX-u5QStpA/TsUKMUkMKGI/AAAAAAAABzA/yOyXUp0myD0/s1600/IMG_0790.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-FzX-u5QStpA/TsUKMUkMKGI/AAAAAAAABzA/yOyXUp0myD0/s320/IMG_0790.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Done. We filled our cups with raisins, but anything brownish would do. We have, however, "stuffed" our turkey cups with goldfish, animal crackers, cucumbers, water, and orange juice and they still look pretty cute. I did realize, after the fact, that these could be made with brown cups, which I do think would work nicely.</span><br />
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</span><br />
<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;">In an ideal setting, I would have drawn feathers on the construction paper and my children would have cut them out, using those fine motor skills. We would have discussed shapes, while we happily worked away together...circles for the face, triangles for the beaks. We could have made patterns with the feathers or read books about turkeys. We did not do any of this. Since I was making these for Eli's class, I was in mass-production-turkey-cup-mode. There was no time for learning, teamwork, or collaboration, and, 18 turkey cups later, I knew it was the right way to go. Sometimes, kids crafts are a little easier to do when there are no kids involved. The kids did get to use them, however, so I don't think they felt cheated in any way.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Z_YYbh5odbs/TsUKTVrSuII/AAAAAAAABzI/uSrNA42mSbw/s1600/IMG_0791.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Z_YYbh5odbs/TsUKTVrSuII/AAAAAAAABzI/uSrNA42mSbw/s320/IMG_0791.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AiBZt9xj-38/TsUKqKz_xiI/AAAAAAAABzU/g62yIK00rtA/s1600/IMG_0793.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-AiBZt9xj-38/TsUKqKz_xiI/AAAAAAAABzU/g62yIK00rtA/s320/IMG_0793.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;">Cheers</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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</tbody></table>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-3117117705266174002011-11-10T08:33:00.008-05:002011-11-10T09:02:20.877-05:00Who's Your Mama?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">In a recent <i>Parenting</i> magazine, I read an idea of a game to play to help children learn to consider the places from which food comes. Ideally, though far, far, far from perfectly, we try to eat food that comes from a real, natural source: the ground, a plant, a vine, a tree, an animal. My kids love bacon and the first time they realized that it comes from a pig, it took some time to sink in. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0VgK5BipG53aZ7xwGONzv4URPOtaQYUot8If2QukJI69OJ2iUrglzGJAUttreElHV2YvwckJLcl2pCQXYE5v2KdPwfjMRJce_w5D8zhT5YytBylPY14ch8IMUj6ZMHZJVogIfQz8vJ66G/s1600/olivia.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0VgK5BipG53aZ7xwGONzv4URPOtaQYUot8If2QukJI69OJ2iUrglzGJAUttreElHV2YvwckJLcl2pCQXYE5v2KdPwfjMRJce_w5D8zhT5YytBylPY14ch8IMUj6ZMHZJVogIfQz8vJ66G/s320/olivia.JPG" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sorry, Olivia.</td></tr>
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Back to the game. Select a food and ask your kids who the "mama" of that food is. It might look like this:</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Me: Milk...Who's your mama?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><i>Kids: COW</i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Me: Good or not good?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><i>Kids: GOOD! (generally accompanied by a THUMBS-UP)</i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Me: Now, let's talk about if this cow is grass fed or if it's pumped full of hormones. (Just kidding, I don't really say that...we'll save that for another day, little Eli and Abby. Cow is good enough for now. And standard cow is pretty much what mommy and daddy can afford, anyways.)</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Here it is, for your viewing pleasure, <i>Who's Your Mama: </i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><i> </i>(You get it twice because I had to actually embed the video code into the blog to avoid having creepy thumbnails of other videos appear when this one is done. Now I can't figure out how to get the second video out. I have decided to just leave it to spare you having to see a really weird thumbnail of Heath Ledger's Joker holding weaponry.) </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">((I also can't figure out how to get it centered when embedding the code. Math people are bothered by stuff like that. The left-justification of the video is really irking me.)) </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/NNp8U0noJrg?rel=0" width="560"></iframe></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/NNp8U0noJrg?rel=0" width="640"></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Our goal is playing this game? Finding food that has a NATURAL mama instead of a FACTORY mama. Again, we are not perfect (Who could possibly live without Oreos?), but we are trying to make strides away from the factory. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">All this to say, <i>Who's Your Mama</i> is a favorite around here and, by request of the kids, we play it a lot. Plus, it's just the cutest thing to hear your two-year old say, "Who's Your Mama?"</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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</div>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-29744044166203087252011-10-28T07:58:00.000-04:002011-10-28T07:58:08.051-04:00Pumpkin HeadWhen we dropped Eli off at school on Wednesday there was a "Pumpkin Head" on the table with which the children could play. A "Pumpkin Head" is this:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://i3.squidoocdn.com/resize/squidoo_images/-1/lens8757091_1262247078mr-potato-head.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://i3.squidoocdn.com/resize/squidoo_images/-1/lens8757091_1262247078mr-potato-head.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">But it's a pumpkin instead of a potato. Genius, huh?</span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">I also found this picture during my "Mr. Potato Head" Google Image search. It simply must be included here.</div><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41+wowf371L._SL500_AA300_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41+wowf371L._SL500_AA300_.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Darth Tater. Genius again.</span></td></tr>
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Ok, back to Pumpkin Head. Eli's very creative teachers had drilled holes, using a screwdriver, in a pumpkin and had the Mr. Potato Head pieces out for play. What a fantastic idea! We had to do it too.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Wg-zqGsjjSA/TqlWxcpXJSI/AAAAAAAABmI/NIJgq-hWGHc/s1600/IMG_0599.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Wg-zqGsjjSA/TqlWxcpXJSI/AAAAAAAABmI/NIJgq-hWGHc/s400/IMG_0599.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Abby and I picked up some "Funkins" on sale at Joann's. Eli's teachers had used real pumpkins, but I liked the idea of being able to save ours until next year. I am not sure I made the right choice...more on that later. Using our Mr. Potato Head as I guide, I started poking holes.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-v54AP_ZfYTQ/TqlW_0CeAeI/AAAAAAAABo8/GTvra3vefdo/s1600/17035479474.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-v54AP_ZfYTQ/TqlW_0CeAeI/AAAAAAAABo8/GTvra3vefdo/s400/17035479474.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I did not put a hole on top of the pumpkin, as the hats sat nicely right on top of the stem. Getting holes into the pumpkin proved to be a harder task then I had originally thought. I would have been better off to use a real drill. Also, this produced some dusty stuff, as you can see on the cookie sheet. I guess a "Funkin" has it's own kind of pumpkin guts.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MT1GNeiPP3M/TqlW_0rb5EI/AAAAAAAABpA/ixayEKrla8Y/s1600/17035493279.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MT1GNeiPP3M/TqlW_0rb5EI/AAAAAAAABpA/ixayEKrla8Y/s400/17035493279.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">My Pumpkin Head injury. I had to push hard to get those holes in. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6NY7406hCkc/TqqNqiLb7iI/AAAAAAAABo0/ks9Nzd1lkRU/s1600/17035448954.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="196" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6NY7406hCkc/TqqNqiLb7iI/AAAAAAAABo0/ks9Nzd1lkRU/s640/17035448954.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I do think the pain was worth it, however, to see all of these happy faces...on Children Heads and Pumpkin Heads alike.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nlCl-sJbMcU/TqlX-lIoWxI/AAAAAAAABnM/McGG685UV-U/s1600/IMG_0608.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-nlCl-sJbMcU/TqlX-lIoWxI/AAAAAAAABnM/McGG685UV-U/s400/IMG_0608.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">My picture of the final products. Sorry Green Hat Pumpkin Guy...your other pink ear seems to be missing in action.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-t7-fbKylAxE/TqlX-MRLVhI/AAAAAAAABnE/Z5-wOfB1OFQ/s1600/IMG_0610.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-t7-fbKylAxE/TqlX-MRLVhI/AAAAAAAABnE/Z5-wOfB1OFQ/s400/IMG_0610.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">And...Abby wanted to take a picture of the final products too. I think her picture is much more artistic than mine. She must have her Daddy's photography genes.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
My thoughts on using a real pumpkin versus the fake pumpkin: My first inclination toward the fake pumpkins had been my desire to keep them until next year and I didn't want to get pumpkin guts on our Mr. Potato Head pieces. BUT, the fake pumpkins have been leaving behind some dust, fake pumpkin guts, if you will. There is dusty stuff on our Mr. Potato Head pieces and I will have to wash them anyways. That said, I think I would rather have done this with real pumpkins. <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: large;">What great fun! </span></i></div><div style="text-align: center;">Thanks to Eli's wonderful teachers for another fantastic idea in their LONG, LONG line of fantastic ideas. We are so thankful for amazing teachers in the life of our son.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-84955437467884016222011-10-26T09:31:00.000-04:002011-10-26T09:31:57.804-04:00P Pumpkin PaintingOn Monday, a firetruck and some firemen came to visit Eli's preschool. While this type of event would bring joy to the hearts of most little boys, Eli is not fond of firetruck and firemen for undetermined reasons. I think it has something to do with the mask, which does cause complications as we near October 31st. Anyways, to avoid Eli having to seek therapy 20 years from now because his parents forced him to go to school on the firetruck day, we kept him home. Upon learning that he was going to stay home, Eli told me, "Since I am not going to school, we should do some homeschool." You got it, buddy. Since "P" was the letter of the day at school, it became our letter of the day at home.<br />
<br />
I had some leftover canned pumpkin in the fridge and my vision was to use that pumpkin to "paint" the letter P. <br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IOIPu6IS_94/Tqa1-n-ptcI/AAAAAAAABj4/5ew3sZxYeQA/s1600/IMG_0557.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-IOIPu6IS_94/Tqa1-n-ptcI/AAAAAAAABj4/5ew3sZxYeQA/s400/IMG_0557.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">We started by putting the "P" printout on a cookie sheet and then covered it with plastic wrap. Abby is pretty curious at this point.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
We got out the pumpkin and started making some observations...<br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ocm6yDzDVLo/Tqa19SxOEkI/AAAAAAAABjw/hM6415LJc7w/s1600/IMG_0558.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ocm6yDzDVLo/Tqa19SxOEkI/AAAAAAAABjw/hM6415LJc7w/s320/IMG_0558.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Smelling</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IO4oVUJTj7c/Tqa2uJQ4chI/AAAAAAAABkI/LpupJmWqatY/s1600/IMG_0560.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-IO4oVUJTj7c/Tqa2uJQ4chI/AAAAAAAABkI/LpupJmWqatY/s400/IMG_0560.JPG" width="300" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Touching</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CouqS-scDW4/Tqa2EZKcb0I/AAAAAAAABkA/clRenrRgsDA/s1600/IMG_0559.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CouqS-scDW4/Tqa2EZKcb0I/AAAAAAAABkA/clRenrRgsDA/s400/IMG_0559.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Listening</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HbeDx9ZMNlU/TqgJVQtXQNI/AAAAAAAABl8/dfs9PpF-1H8/s1600/17007419736.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="456" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HbeDx9ZMNlU/TqgJVQtXQNI/AAAAAAAABl8/dfs9PpF-1H8/s640/17007419736.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">And tasting. That would be the appropriate face after tasting pumpkin. It's amazing what some sugar and spices can do to that stuff.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><br />
When the observations were complete, we started our "painting."<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sVGXDaFEVoQ/Tqa5Z1UIazI/AAAAAAAABlk/G-uh1y3PpIs/s1600/16992767051.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sVGXDaFEVoQ/Tqa5Z1UIazI/AAAAAAAABlk/G-uh1y3PpIs/s640/16992767051.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I had envisioned that we would paint on the pumpkin in the shape of the P. It was hard to get it to spread, even with the plastic wrap. We decided to take the plastic wrap off to see if it would work better.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_27YfUIm_jw/Tqa5oQxs8ZI/AAAAAAAABls/30zm4pzDNKU/s1600/16992779252.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-_27YfUIm_jw/Tqa5oQxs8ZI/AAAAAAAABls/30zm4pzDNKU/s640/16992779252.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">No plastic wrap covering and still kind of a rough go for spreading. We did eventually use our hands a bit, but just for a bit. Neither of my kids like to have messy stuff on their hands. Weird. I imagine that if they were into being messy, this would have been loads more fun. However, the 30 seconds of using their hands did seem to be super fun for them....just a fast super fun.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JWKgwapZV7A/Tqa6nLCpyHI/AAAAAAAABl0/an4PnEZTz9c/s1600/16992818639.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="380" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JWKgwapZV7A/Tqa6nLCpyHI/AAAAAAAABl0/an4PnEZTz9c/s640/16992818639.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Our end products. Not quite what I had pictured, but fun nonetheless.</span> <span style="font-size: small;">Abby's was more the idea of what I was going for...painting INSIDE the P outline...but she did have a bit of help from me.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">Our conclusion: </div><div style="text-align: center;">Pumpkin probably works better in baked goods than for painting, but I still think we would do this again. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-84413334149234741282011-10-22T16:58:00.000-04:002011-10-22T16:58:13.460-04:00Growing Critical ReadersI like to ask my kids questions while we're reading books. At many times they may be thinking, "Good gracious, woman, just read the book." After hearing the questions enough, however, I hope that my kids will internalize the questioning process as part of being a critical reader. For better or worse, here are some questions I like to ask while reading, especially when sitting down to read a book we have never seen before. For the sake of discussion, here's a book we read for the first time last week and we really liked it!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://g.christianbook.com/g/product/9/982883.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://g.christianbook.com/g/product/9/982883.gif" width="200" /></a></div><br />
Before Reading the Book:<br />
<ul><li>Let's look at the picture on the cover. What do you see? What do the pictures make you think this book is about?</li>
<li>Can you predict who some of the characters might be?</li>
<li>(After discussing the pictures on the cover...) The title of this book is "The Very Best Pumpkin." What does the title make you think the book is about?</li>
<li>What do you predict will happen in this book?</li>
<li>Are you curious about what will happen in this book? What are you curious about? </li>
</ul><br />
While Reading the Book:<br />
<ul><li>Hey...I remember seeing that red shoe someplace...do you remember where we saw that? That's right; on the cover!</li>
<li>Peter sure seems to love the pumpkin he is growing. Can you predict what he is going to do with it? </li>
<li>I see something on this page that rhymes with "house." Can you find it? And the ever popular nonsense words...can you find something that rhymes with "mumpkin?"</li>
<li>How many pumpkins are in the picture? Let's count.</li>
<li>Wow! Peter just gave his pumpkin to his friend. Do you think he made a good decision? Would you have done anything different with the pumpkin if it had been yours? </li>
</ul><br />
After Reading the Book:<br />
<ul><li>What happened in the book? What was the plot?</li>
<li>Was our prediction about what would happen in the book correct? </li>
<li>Who were the characters in the book?</li>
<li>We predicted that the mouse on the cover would be a character in the book. Were we right? </li>
<li>Where did the story take place? What season was it? What time of the day? We just talked about the SETTING of the story.</li>
<li>Do you think that "The Very Best Pumpkin" was a good title for this book? Would you have given this book a different title? <i><span style="color: #990000;">To this question, Eli told me he would have named the book "The Very Best Apple." Hmmmm. We were then able to talk about how for the book to have that title, the setting would have to change to an apple orchard instead of a pumpkin patch.</span></i></li>
<li><span style="color: #990000;"><span style="color: black;">Did you like the book? What did you like or not like about it? </span></span><i><span style="color: #990000;"><br />
</span></i></li>
</ul>And that is why it takes me twelve years to read a book to my children. We definitely don't do this all the time, but reading a new book from the library is a great chance to practice being a critical reader. <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Have fun reading!</span></div>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-66661536034448599172011-10-18T10:21:00.001-04:002011-10-18T14:59:10.721-04:00Pumpkin Math (Loosely)I am a bit behind on blogging. A COUPLE WEEKS AGO, on the way home from school, Eli said to me, "Can we work on my math today?" Music to my ears. Seriously. Here's what we came up with:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-R2LpGSQ-eXE/Tp1_eaKKU1I/AAAAAAAABjk/XRjenrYNXYI/s1600/16883607011.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="294" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-R2LpGSQ-eXE/Tp1_eaKKU1I/AAAAAAAABjk/XRjenrYNXYI/s640/16883607011.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>I decided to have the kids investigate the different ways that we can combine numbers to make a total of <span style="color: #990000;">6</span>. I had both of these papers set up at the table, exactly like you see above, and invited the kids to explore.<br />
<br />
We started, of course, by eating the candy pumpkin. The six candy corns were used as the counters for the activity. I had a bag of candy corn and pumpkins in the pantry that had been purchased to top some cupcakes. We opened the bag a bit early.<br />
<br />
For Eli's paper, he would count out the candy corn needed for the sum. So, he would put<span style="color: #990000;"> 2</span> candy corns under the <span style="color: #990000;">2</span> (in the<span style="color: #990000;"> 2 + 4</span>) and then<span style="color: #990000;"> 4</span> candy corns under the <span style="color: #990000;">4</span>. We could then count the total and find that <span style="color: #990000;">2 + 4 </span>was indeed <span style="color: #990000;">6</span>. We worked our way around the paper, marveling at the many ways you could get a total of <span style="color: #990000;">6</span>. It's true; we marveled.<br />
<br />
On Abby's paper, there were boxes drawn in which she would place the candy corns. With her, this was more of an exercise of practicing one-to-one correspondence: one candy corn goes in one square. Many times, she would try to put two candy corns in one square. As with Eli, we would count the total number of candy corns once they were in the squares to find a total of <span style="color: #990000;">6</span>. Again, for Abby, it was great practice of counting with one-to-one correspondence as she does like to count the same candy twice. <span style="color: #990000;">2 + 4</span> is definitely not <span style="color: #990000;">7</span>.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pCo_ZGrC6yg/Tp1-dbZaE7I/AAAAAAAABjc/CCsAyhFQ6Ng/s1600/16883564830.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="496" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-pCo_ZGrC6yg/Tp1-dbZaE7I/AAAAAAAABjc/CCsAyhFQ6Ng/s640/16883564830.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Counting and adding away.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>Some fun extensions:<br />
<ul><li>Investigate what happens when you do<span style="color: #990000;"> 2 + 4</span> and<span style="color: #990000;"> 4 + 2<span style="color: black;">. Does the same thing happen for</span> 5 + 1 <span style="color: black;">and</span> 1 + 5? <span style="color: black;">YAY!! You just taught your kid the <a href="http://rpdp.net/mathdictionary/english/vmd/full/c/mutativepropertyofaddition.htm">Commutative Property of Addition.</a></span></span></li>
<li>How about some Algebra? I have 2 candy corns...how many more do I need to make 6? Essentially, you just solved the equation <span style="color: #990000;">2 +</span><i style="color: #990000;"> x</i><span style="color: #990000;"> = 6 </span>and found that <i style="color: #990000;">x</i><span style="color: #990000;"> = 4</span>.</li>
<li>And now the fun part...SUBTRACTION. Once all of the addition has been completed, start eating! I have 6 candy corns and I just ate one. How many are left?</li>
<li>Here's a tricky one: I have three candy corns left. Can I eat 6 of them? NO WAY. <span style="color: #990000;">3 - 6</span> and <span style="color: #990000;">6 - 3 </span>are not the same thing. You just taught your kid that subtraction is NOT commutative.</li>
</ul>I titled this "Pumpkin Math (Loosely)" because that is what it is. The pumpkin in the center of the paper is meaningless, it could just as easily be an apple or a Thanksgiving turkey or a Christmas tree or completely blank. You could also investigate ANY number. I chose <span style="color: #990000;">6</span> simply because it seemed like a good amount of candy to eat...enough to feel like you were eating a decent treat, but not enough to make kids crazy. All that to say, the pumpkin was festive for fall and we got to eat <span style="color: #990000;">6</span> pieces of candy. Ok, really, we got to eat <span style="color: #990000;">6 + 1 </span>pieces of candy, including the pumpkin.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Doing <span style="color: #990000;">math</span> while <span style="color: #990000;">eating candy</span> with my <span style="color: #990000;">sweet kids</span>...that was a fun day.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-77363889350634686332011-10-07T08:18:00.000-04:002011-10-07T08:18:09.606-04:00A is for AutumnHere's an easy "A" project that we did this week. I don't have any pictures of us doing it, since I decided to just enjoy the moment and not wield my camera. It was kind of nice.<br />
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So, I guess we will go backwards by starting with Eli's final product.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vUup7XsBJyQ/ToyOnzlXseI/AAAAAAAABjU/JnPq-bNeB74/s1600/16679658559.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="275" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vUup7XsBJyQ/ToyOnzlXseI/AAAAAAAABjU/JnPq-bNeB74/s640/16679658559.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />
We started this by project by painting the letter outlines with glue. You can find the letter pages <a href="https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&pid=explorer&chrome=true&srcid=0B9MKK8wNasSxYWVmYjU2NDItNTlhZS00ZTg1LTk5ZWUtNmEwMzgwNjY3MGM1&hl=en">here</a>. The kids thought it was pretty crazy to PAINT with a PAINTBRUSH using GLUE. Fun times. We then took our papers outside, covered them with leaves, and finally shook the extra leaves off. To finish, we thought of "A" words, with me making sure that "autumn" was one of the final words chosen.<br />
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<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-165Cocg3VRc/ToxpbzcUgGI/AAAAAAAABiw/rYS9oZ-_HEw/s400/IMG_0206.JPG" width="400" /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">A</span>nd <span style="color: #cc0000;">A</span>bby's<span style="color: #cc0000;"> A</span>rt. </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">She was much more meticulous than Eli, putting her leaves on one at a time.</span><br />
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<div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;">We also did this with a picture of a tree. As I have mentioned before, I can't draw, so I did a Google Image search using "tree outline" and found a nice leafless tree. Oh the woes of the those limited to stick figure drawings.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Z1Q2Pp6xtiA/ToyOPsl_XvI/AAAAAAAABjQ/1bQAivPgihQ/s1600/16679643350.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="474" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Z1Q2Pp6xtiA/ToyOPsl_XvI/AAAAAAAABjQ/1bQAivPgihQ/s640/16679643350.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #cc0000;"> </span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="color: #cc0000;">A</span>ll in <span style="color: #cc0000;">a</span>ll, this was a fun <span style="color: #cc0000;">a</span>utumn <span style="color: #cc0000;">a</span>rt project. </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">And...it was perfect for a boy, specifically MY boy, as it lasted about 60 seconds. </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i><span style="color: #cc0000;">A</span>wesome.</i></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><i> </i></span></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-70147958746114874642011-09-23T14:51:00.000-04:002011-09-23T14:51:08.192-04:00Sorting<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>I recently had a conversation with a friend about the value of preschoolers learning the skill of SORTING. Our conversation got me thinking about different ways we could sort items around our home, without buying anything special. So, we gathered up some coins and an empty egg carton...<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MG6e3zYQ6KQ/TnyOiyIbR0I/AAAAAAAABhU/t-lqgy-QVxo/s1600/16481504484.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="417" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MG6e3zYQ6KQ/TnyOiyIbR0I/AAAAAAAABhU/t-lqgy-QVxo/s640/16481504484.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Both kids emptied out their piggy (but not shaped like piggies) banks. I cut an egg carton in half and asked each of them to sort their coins.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Eli's Sorting:</span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ekjAq-ZReN0/TnyIxGT7jlI/AAAAAAAABgc/xEF4ntOL7PQ/s1600/IMG_0115.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ekjAq-ZReN0/TnyIxGT7jlI/AAAAAAAABgc/xEF4ntOL7PQ/s400/IMG_0115.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">It was interesting to see how Eli interpreted the directions to "sort the coins." In my head, it was obvious that there would be four piles: quarters, dimes, nickels, and pennies. But, Eli had two piles to start: a silver pile and a copper pile. Once I asked him if we could sort the silver pile by size ALSO, he was able to split that pile into three groups.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Abby's Sorting:</span></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oySkXoWvDnw/TnyKtO-8lmI/AAAAAAAABgo/H12AY-J8fMY/s1600/IMG_0118.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oySkXoWvDnw/TnyKtO-8lmI/AAAAAAAABgo/H12AY-J8fMY/s400/IMG_0118.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Hmmm...ok then. </span><span style="font-size: small;">With Abby, I realized after-the-fact, that I should have given her just two kinds of coins...maybe quarters and pennies. </span><span style="font-size: small;">At two years old, she needed a bit more of a concrete place to start and sorting JUST quarters and pennies would have been much more achievable for her.</span><span style="font-size: small;"> She could not even begin to comprehend sorting the silver into groups based on size. Actually, she had a hard time comprehending sorting in the first place.</span> <span style="font-size: small;">The fact that Eli could sort and she could not, leads me to believe that this is a learned skill. Or...Eli got all of the mathematical genes. As the children of a statistician and math teacher, I would have thought that we would have more than enough math genes to go around. Time will tell, I suppose...</span><br />
<br />
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>Just to make sure that sorting was as important of a skill as I thought, I did a quick reference to the Michigan Department of Education's <a href="http://www.michigan.gov/mde/0,1607,7-140-6530_6809-103343--,00.html">Early Childhood Standards of Quality for Prekindergarten</a>. Mind you, this is only the second time that I have referred to this document, but I think I will be spending some more time with it!<br />
<br />
<blockquote style="color: blue;"><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Mathematics Early Learning Expectation #2: </i></div><div style="text-align: center;">Children begin to develop skills of comparing and classifying objects, relationships and events in their environment. </div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>[HSCOFM 3.2.4, 3.2.1, 3.3.2, 3.3.3]</i></div></blockquote><blockquote style="color: blue;">Children typically:<br />
1. Can describe, match, and sort.<br />
2. Identify likenesses and differences.<br />
3. Can place objects or events in order, according to a given criterion; e.g.,<br />
color, shape, size, time.<br />
4. Recognize that the same group can be sorted and classified in more than<br />
one way.<br />
5. Can describe why they group or sequence in a particular way.</blockquote><div style="color: blue; text-align: center;"><i>( Early Childhood Standards of Quality for Prekindergarten, page 112)</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">YAY! What a great skill to be able to sort! After all, isn't that how we process information...by sorting it? As adults, in our own thought processes, we are always classifying, comparing similarities and differences, and putting things in order. We sort. All the time. So...let's sort!<br />
<br />
When folding laundry, children can:<br />
<ul><li>Sort by type of clothing: socks, pants, shirts, etc.</li>
<li>Sort by the wearer of the clothing: An Abby pile, an Eli pile, a Mommy pile, etc.</li>
<li>Sort by color</li>
</ul><br />
When putting away groceries after shopping, children can:<br />
<ul><li> Sort by temperature: cold into the fridge or freezer, not-cold into the pantry.</li>
<li>Sort by food group: fruit, veggies, dairy, etc.</li>
<li>Sort by meal: we eat this for breakfast, lunch, dinner, etc.</li>
<li>Sort by color</li>
<li>Sort by size: rectangle, square, circle</li>
</ul><br />
I really like the idea of sorting the same group of items in multiple ways. Laundry would work so well for this, plus my kids love to jump in the big pile of clothes. Though I would have to grit my teeth a bit while doing this with CLEAN clothes, my kids would be so excited to sort out the laundry and then re-pile it up AGAIN to jump in it AGAIN. I also like the idea of giving a child a pile of stuff and saying, "Can you sort this?" How fun to see how their little minds work as they explain how they have sorted the items! Don't we sort ALL THE TIME when working around the home? Putting away toys, unloading the dishwasher, organizing a closet.... <br />
<br />
How about sorting these household items??<br />
<ul><li>Save tops from milk jugs to later sort by color.</li>
<li>Sort pictures of family members.</li>
<li>Little girl accessories...sort barrettes and ribbons and necklaces by color or by type of accessory.</li>
<li>Cut pictures out of the weekly grocery story advertisement and then sort by color or food group. What about an "I like this food" pile and an "I don't like this food" pile?</li>
<li>Put a few types of cereal in a bowl and then sort...then have it as a snack.</li>
<li>Crayons: sort by color, or, if your crayons are anything like ours, sort by broken and not-broken. </li>
<li>Sort the items for recycling.</li>
</ul><br />
We can even sort without even moving items around. The other day, Eli called to me from the dining table and said, "Mom, I see some coupons." We had this conversation:<br />
<blockquote>Me: Can you tell what kind of coupons they are?<br />
E: No<br />
Me: Well, does it look like a restaurant or a store?<br />
E: Restaurant<br />
Me: Can you tell what kind of food they serve?<br />
E: (looking for a minute) Fish</blockquote>Just by looking at an advertisement, we could sort through the information to determine that it was coupons for a seafood restaurant, without having to read a single word. This is one thing I love about preschool education, our days are FULL of opportunities to learn, if we are on the lookout for them.<br />
<br />
I could keep going...I have gotten really excited about sorting, once again showing my mathematical nerdiness. I just can't keep it hidden for long.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Happy Sorting. </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><br />
<br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-57939637569703583492011-09-19T08:59:00.000-04:002011-09-19T08:59:21.397-04:00Scissoring<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">We like to cut paper with scissors.</span></div><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-C4XEzcXZ9qg/TnczZCdx-zI/AAAAAAAABf4/0vIBjjYh_s4/s1600/16422452522.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-C4XEzcXZ9qg/TnczZCdx-zI/AAAAAAAABf4/0vIBjjYh_s4/s640/16422452522.jpg" width="544" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">In my kids' lingo, we are "scissoring" with "kid scissors." In my lingo, we are really working those fine motor skills.</span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br />
</td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RJa2P_PwXJE/TnctS13TFRI/AAAAAAAABe4/2Z21GTbhiyM/s1600/IMG_0018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-RJa2P_PwXJE/TnctS13TFRI/AAAAAAAABe4/2Z21GTbhiyM/s400/IMG_0018.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Eli will cut and cut into smaller and smaller pieces. Here, he is using some fancy edged scissors. He thought that was pretty cool.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HpeFWRBxQV8/Tnct2VlZcxI/AAAAAAAABfE/7iKcMBaI9Pg/s1600/IMG_0021.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-HpeFWRBxQV8/Tnct2VlZcxI/AAAAAAAABfE/7iKcMBaI9Pg/s400/IMG_0021.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">It is so interesting to see the differences in their developmental stages. Abby has to have someone hold her paper and she does her "scissoring" with two hands, while Eli holds his own paper and cuts one-handed.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UgcI9Ws7sY0/TncuJW0uIgI/AAAAAAAABfQ/Y159xsXlizo/s1600/IMG_0025.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UgcI9Ws7sY0/TncuJW0uIgI/AAAAAAAABfQ/Y159xsXlizo/s400/IMG_0025.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">The final products. What a great way to use up scrap paper!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
Eli and I have also used the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Paper-Kumon-First-Steps-Workbooks/dp/1933241144">Kumon "Let's Cut Paper"</a> book to practice cutting skills. At this link you can "look inside" the book to see some of the cutting activities.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">Who knew scissoring could be so incredibly fun? </div><div style="text-align: center;">Scissor on. Scissor on.</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-2825528093001296352011-09-14T10:08:00.000-04:002011-09-14T10:08:46.086-04:00Re-purposing Kids' ArtI don't like to throw anything away that my kids make. As a crazy sentimental mommy, I would keep forever and ever a little scratching done on a Post-it note, if it was scratched by the hands that belong to these faces:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3WTh5mfq7fvF73WB-sNQOwMj14ffKu3kLwV6uIHonX_RMxiWJsPfKIX5EOizISn18XM0MG5IuFK5FYsLJpeDCEy60rUWh_XAKOQQG_gccB7nLBOPfNQYUJ1Eu_O8uglJuzmbaZmqzRYQ/s1600/DSC_3667.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3WTh5mfq7fvF73WB-sNQOwMj14ffKu3kLwV6uIHonX_RMxiWJsPfKIX5EOizISn18XM0MG5IuFK5FYsLJpeDCEy60rUWh_XAKOQQG_gccB7nLBOPfNQYUJ1Eu_O8uglJuzmbaZmqzRYQ/s320/DSC_3667.JPG" width="212" /></a></div><br />
The faces that belong to those hands are pretty cute, so, needless to say, I have stacks of paintings and colorings and markerings and stickerings. I know I can't keep it ALL, but, I can't bring myself to just pitch their creative endeavors. So, a way to get rid of some of the stacks of stuff, without just moving it to the trash...<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zL6XNuAloCA/Tm0HAW0_dpI/AAAAAAAABd8/uoovK9NFQbE/s1600/16299201320.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zL6XNuAloCA/Tm0HAW0_dpI/AAAAAAAABd8/uoovK9NFQbE/s400/16299201320.jpg" width="271" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I have had these on the wall for a long, long time and it was long past their time to go. We started by cutting out little rectangles from the paintings with the goal of making notecards.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rTO0VjSl1bc/Tm0HEd2FJ8I/AAAAAAAABeE/tX2v3PMTfO8/s1600/16299245915.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="257" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rTO0VjSl1bc/Tm0HEd2FJ8I/AAAAAAAABeE/tX2v3PMTfO8/s400/16299245915.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Rectangular cuttings all ready to go. I did bring myself to throw away the scraps, though it was a challenge. Told you I was crazy sentimental...I wanted to keep the SCRAPS of their paintings.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">We then glued the painting pieces to blank notecards purchased at the Dollar Store...</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6IFLRl0PXBA/TnCyIM-1D7I/AAAAAAAABeo/Y2g5wuv4pAw/s1600/16342360225.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="251" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-6IFLRl0PXBA/TnCyIM-1D7I/AAAAAAAABeo/Y2g5wuv4pAw/s640/16342360225.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Once we did the gluing, I did put the notecards under a bin of magazines to help flatten them out. </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
We also cut some longer strips from the original paintings and then folded them in half to make another type of notecard.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ihmeGoZUfVE/Tm0HGnYM0_I/AAAAAAAABeA/nugTMvxel24/s1600/16299218861.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="278" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ihmeGoZUfVE/Tm0HGnYM0_I/AAAAAAAABeA/nugTMvxel24/s400/16299218861.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">So, there is painting on both sides and blank on the inside.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">Sending off their art work in the <i>mail truck</i> sure seems better, to me, than sending it off in the <i>garbage truck</i>.</div><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MDzhNqxOmwY/TnCrCMogQ-I/AAAAAAAABeQ/h5rCEKkPTHA/s1600/DSC_3716.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MDzhNqxOmwY/TnCrCMogQ-I/AAAAAAAABeQ/h5rCEKkPTHA/s400/DSC_3716.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></i></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: large;">For Reading.</span></i></td></tr>
</tbody></table>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-9017453447085682622011-09-12T14:50:00.000-04:002011-09-12T14:50:58.946-04:00Saying YesA month or so ago I read an unbelievably, fantastic book called <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Loving-Little-Years-Motherhood-Trenches/dp/1591280818">"Loving the Little Years: Motherhood in the Trenches" by Rachel Jankovic.</a> The author is the mother of five young children and she is totally "in the fray," as we call it around here. I couldn't put it down and for that reason, it is good that it is a short book and a pretty quick read. I learned so much from reading this book and I know that I will be reading it again and again. It's that good. Moms of little ones, you have to read this book.<br />
<br />
One of many, many, many things that left an impression on me from this book was a section about really knowing your kids. I don't have the book here, since I borrowed it, so I can't give an exact quote, but there was a sentence that went something like this...<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><i>Is your daughter the one who always wants to paint and you always say no??</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Yes. As a matter of fact, yes, that is my daughter. My sweet daughter who loves, LOVES to paint, doesn't get to paint very often, though she asks a lot to do so. Generally, I say NO and we all know why: painting is messy. This specific situation struck a chord with me and I realized that I needed to say YES to painting, more than I was saying NO. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">On Saturday, I was working in the kitchen when I heard my husband say to my daughter, "You will have to go ask Mommy." </div><div style="text-align: center;">Out she runs and she says, "Paint, Mommy?" </div><div style="text-align: center;">I said, "Yes. Yes, we can paint." </div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"> Let me tell you, she was shocked. Her little face broke out into a huge smile and she ran back to her dad saying, "She said yes! Mommy said yes." It was the cutest thing, but yet, I could have cried. She was <i>too </i>shocked and <i>too</i> happy at me saying YES. Ouch. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">So, we painted...</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7s0OTvTRKko/Tm0Hhqci6II/AAAAAAAABdM/unZG4w4ZVrM/s1600/DSC_3696.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7s0OTvTRKko/Tm0Hhqci6II/AAAAAAAABdM/unZG4w4ZVrM/s400/DSC_3696.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">And we painted and we painted...</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iHG-N_0j-zI/Tm0Jl8oZWEI/AAAAAAAABd4/tcJ5J2YL_C8/s1600/16299139529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="158" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iHG-N_0j-zI/Tm0Jl8oZWEI/AAAAAAAABd4/tcJ5J2YL_C8/s640/16299139529.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Once she left the paintbrush behind, I did remember why I usually say NO to painting. </span><span style="font-size: small;">When the mess was cleaned up, however, I knew again why I said YES in the first place. That was one happy little artist.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: left;">So, all this to say...I am trying to say YES and not just to painting... </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Can you play Legos with me?</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Can you help me with this?</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Can we play Play-Doh?</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Can we go outside?</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Can we color? </i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Can you play with me?</i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">My answers too often are...</div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>In a minute.</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>When I finish this.</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>After I am done here.</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>Give me a few seconds.</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>I just need to send a quick e-mail.</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i>I can't right now because I am too busy. </i></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Granted, I can't drop everthing on every occassion to meet every need. But, I think I can say YES more than I do. I know for a fact that dirty dishes and laundry will wait for me. In the blink of an eye, I can see that <span style="color: red; font-size: small;"><b>I</b></span> will be the one saying, "Can you play with me?" I really, really want my <b style="color: red;">teenaged Eli and Abby</b> to say "YES. Yes, Mom, we can play with you." So, we'll start now. </div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-niDMEOvwD04/Tm0HipR50qI/AAAAAAAABdQ/v64P7fb_lC8/s1600/DSC_3697.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-niDMEOvwD04/Tm0HipR50qI/AAAAAAAABdQ/v64P7fb_lC8/s400/DSC_3697.JPG" width="265" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
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</div>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-8006226019131583802011-09-08T14:21:00.000-04:002011-09-08T14:34:48.852-04:00Cucumber Letters and Pride<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SI70eC9S8Uk/TmjxWxGdfgI/AAAAAAAABck/Ki0wSy2SIbY/s1600/16246823846.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SI70eC9S8Uk/TmjxWxGdfgI/AAAAAAAABck/Ki0wSy2SIbY/s400/16246823846.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">We played with our food today.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Tomorrow is Eli's first day of preschool. Since he is a really young five-year old, this is his second year doing preschool, so there are not as many unknowns, but it's still a big day for us. I had grand plans at the beginning of the summer to work with Eli every day while Abby was napping. I even have a copy of this book all ready to go:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.homeschool-curriculum-savings.com/images/teach-your-child-to-read-in-100-easy-lessons-homeschool-reading-curriculum-21472781.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://www.homeschool-curriculum-savings.com/images/teach-your-child-to-read-in-100-easy-lessons-homeschool-reading-curriculum-21472781.jpg" width="151" /></a></div>
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Let's just say...it didn't happen. I have kind of felt today like I am cramming for a final...checking to see which letters Eli can remember and hoping it's enough to show that he did actually learn something during his first year of preschool. Poor kid, if we didn't do school stuff over the past weeks, I could have at least let him enjoy his last day of summer. The cramming continued as we got out our magnetic letters and I quizzed Eli while making lunch.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MR-pmT9rr3w/TmjwRsGGBDI/AAAAAAAABcU/ktvVNZlrvnY/s1600/DSC_3637.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MR-pmT9rr3w/TmjwRsGGBDI/AAAAAAAABcU/ktvVNZlrvnY/s320/DSC_3637.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Love these!</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Today for lunch, I happened to be cutting cucumbers into strips, as opposed to our usual circles. With "letter recognition" and "fit a summer's worth of learning into one day" on my brain, I saw letters when I looked at the cutting board.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-KaSyYTO4PyE/TmjxMDV72TI/AAAAAAAABcg/dOahKIcNzN4/s1600/16246812968.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-KaSyYTO4PyE/TmjxMDV72TI/AAAAAAAABcg/dOahKIcNzN4/s640/16246812968.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I would make letters for the kids and they would tell me (HOPEFULLY) what they were.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-j_bkLT7qcOs/TmjxixGPyII/AAAAAAAABco/xPpzJ9chpoI/s1600/16246826274.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-j_bkLT7qcOs/TmjxixGPyII/AAAAAAAABco/xPpzJ9chpoI/s320/16246826274.jpg" width="107" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Turns out that you can make a lot of letters with cucumber strips.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-n7J7Ua2-DE4/TmjyHlpkCSI/AAAAAAAABcs/QDYG9MmkMwU/s1600/16246863124.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="278" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-n7J7Ua2-DE4/TmjyHlpkCSI/AAAAAAAABcs/QDYG9MmkMwU/s400/16246863124.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">When we got around to actually eating lunch, I asked Eli to make some letters for me.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">Where you see the arrow, he bit off a piece to make this "F." It was fun to watch his thought process.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mZ3aj2FANgw/Tmjv2u8Hk5I/AAAAAAAABcA/x76hnb-125Y/s1600/DSC_3632.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mZ3aj2FANgw/Tmjv2u8Hk5I/AAAAAAAABcA/x76hnb-125Y/s320/DSC_3632.JPG" width="212" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">"Mom, just let me eat, please."</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GVJ8w2K4rUw/TmjwLfD_vbI/AAAAAAAABcw/ZWtc8kyNgvc/s1600/16246910756.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="373" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GVJ8w2K4rUw/TmjwLfD_vbI/AAAAAAAABcw/ZWtc8kyNgvc/s400/16246910756.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">With another chomp, the "E" from the previous picture becomes another "F."</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RrAtguostWE/TmjwN97-M3I/AAAAAAAABcQ/FLxGbObgE3M/s1600/DSC_3634.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-RrAtguostWE/TmjwN97-M3I/AAAAAAAABcQ/FLxGbObgE3M/s400/DSC_3634.JPG" width="265" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">And...not to be outdone by her brother...</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
The results of our cramming? He knows most, but certainly not all of his letters. If I am really honest with myself, I am afraid that this will make me look bad. He has the same teachers this year and THEY will know what HE knows (or doesn't know) and then his teachers will know what his <span style="color: #cc0000;">mother </span>did (or did not do) with him over the summer. I am thankful for another reminder today (in line with years and years of reminders) of the prideful state of my heart and thankful for God's mercy to me. So tomorrow, without even knowing how many numbers he can identify, I will send off my sweet boy to preschool. No more cramming today...<br />
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<br />Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-60600220239591007832011-08-31T09:37:00.000-04:002011-08-31T09:37:21.017-04:00Food Group PlacematSome time ago, I was working my way through a parenting type magazine and found this little thing I decided to keep:<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinYEx-pcVB3RKjW0E4y9ZlzKv9Nbr9w1vGiAuJ0xzWHRMDxP9MaoTCHE4HNIRJufc1k8mxLAMTuA1NjUDtc3wJ9WRiLL-hQula6acHrhG_xYPVmreAYbcqD2onxZeE3cqB4hIHDF5Jej8/s1600/img010.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinYEx-pcVB3RKjW0E4y9ZlzKv9Nbr9w1vGiAuJ0xzWHRMDxP9MaoTCHE4HNIRJufc1k8mxLAMTuA1NjUDtc3wJ9WRiLL-hQula6acHrhG_xYPVmreAYbcqD2onxZeE3cqB4hIHDF5Jej8/s1600/img010.jpg" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr align="left"><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;">That's how I roll through magazines: I rip out what I want to check out later and then one of two things happens:</span><br />
<ul><li><span style="font-size: small;"> Ideally, the ripped out paper is filed in a binder to be referred to later when I am looking for fun ideas. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;">More often than not, the ripped out paper is stacked on the dining room table, along with other ripped out papers, and then moved to the kitchen counter and then back to the table several times, until I do something with it (like file it in the binder) or toss it.</span></li>
</ul></td></tr>
</tbody></table>On this particular occasion, I was fast to deal with my little ripped out clippings, and checked out, the DAY AFTER I RIPPED IT OUT (that's a record, people), <a href="http://www.choosemyplate.gov/">ChooseMyPlate.gov</a>. Wow! I had known that some time ago the classic food pyramid that had plastered the walls of home economics classrooms around the country had been replaced with this "Plate" idea. The basic idea: fill half your plate with fruits and vegetables, a quarter of your plate with grains (hopefully whole-grains), and the last quarter of your plate with protein. Throw in some dairy and you're all set. Anyways, this site has some really neat features and it was quite fun to poke around. I went to this site just to look, nutrition is one of my "things" right now, but then I found <a href="http://www.choosemyplate.gov/tipsresources/printmaterials.html">this</a> page with coloring sheets.<br />
<br />
We used "Coloring Sheet Option 1," which is a black and white PDF file of the "Plate" image I tore out of the magazine. My thought was to make a placemat with the kids, so we could make sure we had all the food groups covered, in the right proportions, at meal time. And what do you do with pre-readers? You have pictures to accompany the words. How I want to just post a document with the pictures I found, but I am just not sure how all the copyright-schmopyright details work. (Can anyone help me with that??) But, using Google Images, I found some really nice pictures by just searching each food group name. And then...we were off...<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jgpDtRFr4LI/TlzsRUktAkI/AAAAAAAABZY/Ud-wHSqa1R8/s1600/DSC_3607.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-jgpDtRFr4LI/TlzsRUktAkI/AAAAAAAABZY/Ud-wHSqa1R8/s400/DSC_3607.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">We backed our plates on 12x12 paper and started coloring. </span><br />
<br />
</td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-o-y63PYKHEw/Tl0qsIxjKmI/AAAAAAAABaI/0DHAm3QyOcM/s1600/16099045292.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="241" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-o-y63PYKHEw/Tl0qsIxjKmI/AAAAAAAABaI/0DHAm3QyOcM/s640/16099045292.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Doing craft projects with my kids teaches me a lot about myself and a lot about them:</span><br />
<ol style="text-align: left;"><li><span style="font-size: small;">Moments when I realize how much I like to be in control and have to let go of said control: Watching Eli smear layer upon layer of weird-waxy-orange-crayon-thing on his placemat and watching Abby color with a glue stick. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-size: small;">Moments when I get insight into my kids' personalities: I watched Eli color in his entire "Dairy" cup with great passion. At the same time I saw Abby watch Eli and then do the exact same thing with her "Dairy" cup. See in the pictures? Interesting...</span></li>
</ol><span style="font-size: small;"> </span><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TdPYuw0lWLE/TlzsqFSou6I/AAAAAAAABZk/uBJHxzwKfWM/s1600/DSC_3613.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-TdPYuw0lWLE/TlzsqFSou6I/AAAAAAAABZk/uBJHxzwKfWM/s400/DSC_3613.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Our usual pattern: Eli finishes in about two minutes and Abby could go for hours.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7xOwMxj9frQ/Tl0qJSlTFkI/AAAAAAAABaE/iHvJERCx10c/s1600/16099018344.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="264" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7xOwMxj9frQ/Tl0qJSlTFkI/AAAAAAAABaE/iHvJERCx10c/s640/16099018344.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Finished projects, which we covered in Con-Tact paper.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-W2GxwBhBxsM/Tl0slRgw89I/AAAAAAAABaU/fYb62iPZNL4/s1600/16099167850.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="277" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-W2GxwBhBxsM/Tl0slRgw89I/AAAAAAAABaU/fYb62iPZNL4/s400/16099167850.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Finished kids with their finished projects. Life is rough when your mom makes you make a Food Group Placemat.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-a7F7pZN6T6Q/Tl4wTbHv4ZI/AAAAAAAABbc/G3RXrZFhcUI/s1600/16111518911.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="263" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-a7F7pZN6T6Q/Tl4wTbHv4ZI/AAAAAAAABbc/G3RXrZFhcUI/s400/16111518911.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Finished projects in use. It's confusing that cheese is a Dairy AND a Protein. </span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
And we are now eating in style. I am sure that Eli wishes for a placemat that is ALL Fruits and Vegetables and Abby longs for an ALL Yogurt placemat. Well kids, you'll get no sympathy from me because I want an ALL ice-cream placemat.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><i style="color: red;">As a side note, in case anyone is wondering, this is the first art project we have done in a long time. A LONG time. Just so you know...</i></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-71758209137797418272011-08-19T14:52:00.000-04:002011-08-19T14:52:11.990-04:00Indoor CarnivalWe celebrated Eli's birthday four different times. That's a lot of birthdays for a five year old and a lot of birthdays for a five year old's mom. Each celebration was wonderfully fun, but it was still four celebrations. You've heard of this?<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1177718196l/728456.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1177718196l/728456.jpg" width="313" /></a></div><br />
Well, my husband and I felt that it could have been this:<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YgP8ZPohlCE/Tk5V5fs1omI/AAAAAAAABX8/Qe6yyRvjYEs/s1600/15903520906.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="398" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YgP8ZPohlCE/Tk5V5fs1omI/AAAAAAAABX8/Qe6yyRvjYEs/s400/15903520906.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Taken after the second of four parties.</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
On the fourth day of parties, I had some restless troops who needed some help waiting until said party was going to begin. I had one game in mind and Eli invented the rest. It was an Indoor Carnival, indeed. <br />
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">Game #1: Beanbag Toss</span></i>: <span style="font-size: large;"><i>My One and Only Idea</i></span><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-d24QolEbHdo/Tk5UR-8bYaI/AAAAAAAABW4/yMBg2JJOjg0/s1600/DSC_3107.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-d24QolEbHdo/Tk5UR-8bYaI/AAAAAAAABW4/yMBg2JJOjg0/s320/DSC_3107.JPG" width="212" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">We cut a cereal box in half, leaving the front/back panels each attached to one side panel. Did that make sense? A hole was cut in the middle of each.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9VRxUDc5PR0/Tk5TiPeMfLI/AAAAAAAABWk/AqYAgly1XSw/s1600/DSC_3097.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9VRxUDc5PR0/Tk5TiPeMfLI/AAAAAAAABWk/AqYAgly1XSw/s320/DSC_3097.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">These were then taped, by the side panel, to a table.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DIHSPlPZTNg/Tk5TeC2A7BI/AAAAAAAABWg/0x8oJkKU2oA/s1600/DSC_3096.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-DIHSPlPZTNg/Tk5TeC2A7BI/AAAAAAAABWg/0x8oJkKU2oA/s400/DSC_3096.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">We brought out the beanbags and started tossing.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jWZkkajtcH4/Tk5T8Y55EPI/AAAAAAAABWw/pX0xKg2RuiA/s1600/DSC_3104.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jWZkkajtcH4/Tk5T8Y55EPI/AAAAAAAABWw/pX0xKg2RuiA/s400/DSC_3104.JPG" width="265" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Eli elected to toss from a rocking chair. I guess at another year older he was really feeling the aches and pains of aging.</span></td></tr>
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<br />
<i><span style="font-size: large;">Game #2: Dueling Beanbag Toss</span></i><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-b27F9KlnGfo/Tk5U9-KVmLI/AAAAAAAABXM/2Ct7CZDArpY/s1600/DSC_3109.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-b27F9KlnGfo/Tk5U9-KVmLI/AAAAAAAABXM/2Ct7CZDArpY/s400/DSC_3109.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Eli wanted to tape a target to each side of the table and have he and his sister toss simultaneously. You can imagine how this ended, with the sister sobbing on my lap after a beanbag bounced off her cute little face.</span></td></tr>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">Game #3: Cup Pyramid Knock-Down</span></i><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bEACznz_1O4/Tk5U_uz4gRI/AAAAAAAABXQ/u2SJOCJDHKg/s1600/DSC_3118.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bEACznz_1O4/Tk5U_uz4gRI/AAAAAAAABXQ/u2SJOCJDHKg/s400/DSC_3118.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">The face says it all on this one.</span></td></tr>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">Game #4: Beanbag Toss</span></i>: <i><span style="font-size: large;">A Variation</span></i><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hZWL7sD3tck/Tk5XAiN4L4I/AAAAAAAABYQ/lFXtyLZ2zzM/s1600/15903554663.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="141" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hZWL7sD3tck/Tk5XAiN4L4I/AAAAAAAABYQ/lFXtyLZ2zzM/s400/15903554663.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">I happened to snap a picture of the only one that made it successfully to its target.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-FN195a7n5UA/Tk5Vb9kdCnI/AAAAAAAABXg/zCDtQPIqFXE/s1600/DSC_3121.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-FN195a7n5UA/Tk5Vb9kdCnI/AAAAAAAABXg/zCDtQPIqFXE/s400/DSC_3121.JPG" width="265" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">You can see the sister in the chair...still recovering from her beanbag-to-the-face injury.</span></td></tr>
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<br />
<i><span style="font-size: large;">Game #5: Bowling</span></i><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XUY5flXE9W0/Tk5Vswl5p6I/AAAAAAAABXk/RDhqd3eU5tI/s1600/DSC_3123.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XUY5flXE9W0/Tk5Vswl5p6I/AAAAAAAABXk/RDhqd3eU5tI/s320/DSC_3123.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Cups...a basketball...bowling, of course. Nice form, Buddy!</span></td></tr>
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<i><span style="font-size: large;">Game #6: Hanging Cup Ball Toss</span></i><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YJ5M-8YYr3c/Tk5VzG1QVtI/AAAAAAAABXs/H_YykiCg5KA/s1600/DSC_3125.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-YJ5M-8YYr3c/Tk5VzG1QVtI/AAAAAAAABXs/H_YykiCg5KA/s320/DSC_3125.JPG" width="212" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Eli did actually make a shot into the clear cup on the bottom. </span></td></tr>
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<br />
So, there you have it. One game that turned into six. Now, I did end up with a crying girl that never quite recovered and messier house than when I started, but, I also got this:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XwUIcq9HTTs/Tk5YnjKOjPI/AAAAAAAABYg/asroJQvVoW4/s1600/15903618431.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-XwUIcq9HTTs/Tk5YnjKOjPI/AAAAAAAABYg/asroJQvVoW4/s400/15903618431.jpg" width="340" /></a></span></i></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: large;">Worth it.</span></i></td></tr>
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Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-70661118192699387542011-08-16T22:08:00.000-04:002011-08-16T22:08:37.753-04:00Pet Clinic<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8lVjcSchoRAoJvEqOAJ0tvCKx_j0qbJQkElD1Ns7ROnDzNUyo09VYyj8OwPZY63S3CIJDyhKvAqeDK-1Uzhz7ddAj3iOXJ3ex3VvzIdeVjtvFnnTIyVp1oYhqqACVsSG8XieLM6fyHmM/s1600/Picnik+collage+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a>I know that kids like to pretend while they play. A recent trip to the <a href="http://www.grcm.org/">Grand Rapids Children's Museum</a>, however, has shown me that kids REALLY like to pretend while they play. <br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvfAqzzBYf9glZZDe5OhfkJvFAR0gt3gbe8FI6IqIyAAjj3bmYVI0IWoNnhSi0C_3Yi7bC4ju0ql_AG2QLSE81-5BFebAYnqFQsd1-7e9Cr-otUNN9xq_UPQtS5eHFpV4L3eQOaWIf4eI/s1600/Picnik+collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="140" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvfAqzzBYf9glZZDe5OhfkJvFAR0gt3gbe8FI6IqIyAAjj3bmYVI0IWoNnhSi0C_3Yi7bC4ju0ql_AG2QLSE81-5BFebAYnqFQsd1-7e9Cr-otUNN9xq_UPQtS5eHFpV4L3eQOaWIf4eI/s640/Picnik+collage.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Abby's favorite part of the Grand Rapids Children's Museum...the Pet Clinic. That child took care of the same sick puppy for at least two hours. We had to pretty much drag her out of there.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8lVjcSchoRAoJvEqOAJ0tvCKx_j0qbJQkElD1Ns7ROnDzNUyo09VYyj8OwPZY63S3CIJDyhKvAqeDK-1Uzhz7ddAj3iOXJ3ex3VvzIdeVjtvFnnTIyVp1oYhqqACVsSG8XieLM6fyHmM/s1600/Picnik+collage+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8lVjcSchoRAoJvEqOAJ0tvCKx_j0qbJQkElD1Ns7ROnDzNUyo09VYyj8OwPZY63S3CIJDyhKvAqeDK-1Uzhz7ddAj3iOXJ3ex3VvzIdeVjtvFnnTIyVp1oYhqqACVsSG8XieLM6fyHmM/s400/Picnik+collage+2.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Much to my surprise, my boy, my through-and-through-Lego-obsessed boy, was caring for the animals in the Pet Clinic. He dived right into the pretend play in ways that I had not seen him do at home.</span></td></tr>
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Inspired by the Museum and how much my kids loved the pretend play of the Pet Clinic, we decided to make one of our own...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNtigQL00KpzOtSpIl-v1Ybnh1-g7dKqjeQhfPzwTPOYTM6DahWFpLeAenM5t8Lxn7gEJn9ATe1JsdRINimSZkMWznYZIkBjfC1cKkcB7whfUCAuuzDgJboszgE2RSTZPBAmLpSLXdKx4/s1600/Picnik+collage+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="136" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNtigQL00KpzOtSpIl-v1Ybnh1-g7dKqjeQhfPzwTPOYTM6DahWFpLeAenM5t8Lxn7gEJn9ATe1JsdRINimSZkMWznYZIkBjfC1cKkcB7whfUCAuuzDgJboszgE2RSTZPBAmLpSLXdKx4/s640/Picnik+collage+3.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">We set up our reception station and found all of our pets, which Eli checked in.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuKnfWHt9C-eVi9bHMdWtorJSzhQ_1UtJenfKvNMkObVqpXoMJyKOWH21zocqitNdnMNjIfblDiCywhpjH0II95FC-rYkMk_uZ0xp-feIpnMk0kgm7ws91nawCLNkGKs4cgM0b4Xhicag/s1600/Picnik+collage+5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuKnfWHt9C-eVi9bHMdWtorJSzhQ_1UtJenfKvNMkObVqpXoMJyKOWH21zocqitNdnMNjIfblDiCywhpjH0II95FC-rYkMk_uZ0xp-feIpnMk0kgm7ws91nawCLNkGKs4cgM0b4Xhicag/s640/Picnik+collage+5.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Checked-in pets were put in various recovery stations. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrCFA4P6x1znn6WxRttLScyaACEgddy6hZJTRQgUQRr4ws6I3jqt8twkxB86zXSR7oS6V07Neui-6RDY3lbwn3IjpGOy9vLNrqMJH8UegicOHgcZbJwEwNcb7l6ifLSOZBqmvw6ifVUkk/s1600/Picnik+collage+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="158" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrCFA4P6x1znn6WxRttLScyaACEgddy6hZJTRQgUQRr4ws6I3jqt8twkxB86zXSR7oS6V07Neui-6RDY3lbwn3IjpGOy9vLNrqMJH8UegicOHgcZbJwEwNcb7l6ifLSOZBqmvw6ifVUkk/s640/Picnik+collage+4.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">A new receptionist was soon hired and she was thrilled to land a job in this tough economy.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggSsvQ36sSqV2RhvTvbAg2-yxVmnpziA-lWnqL0HD82Akpsp_ctD9XjuhZunS8jcaGR0b8-lsG1bliuNIIs350mzMuMfQ2HxVE4Il-otpcWK1srhV3ZIb3ZrHGEtITOth_58fIoLEz_q8/s1600/Picnik+collage+6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggSsvQ36sSqV2RhvTvbAg2-yxVmnpziA-lWnqL0HD82Akpsp_ctD9XjuhZunS8jcaGR0b8-lsG1bliuNIIs350mzMuMfQ2HxVE4Il-otpcWK1srhV3ZIb3ZrHGEtITOth_58fIoLEz_q8/s640/Picnik+collage+6.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Eli gave shots to Abby's pets using a Lightsaber from a Happy Meal...she cuddled them afterward.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS89vNdrd1whx7y9mWXfSjGNhOGC_kG8eJxz9-_XbCMVrlZLJkj53OCVt1_MBKaTaQNWYOnXnnfR-6MVpI3qJjb_tUNRN75kiHTgWPT7ijaqxjbFL30GDJuEsvqdFOV_7964TP1XNcKFs/s1600/Picnik+collage+7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS89vNdrd1whx7y9mWXfSjGNhOGC_kG8eJxz9-_XbCMVrlZLJkj53OCVt1_MBKaTaQNWYOnXnnfR-6MVpI3qJjb_tUNRN75kiHTgWPT7ijaqxjbFL30GDJuEsvqdFOV_7964TP1XNcKFs/s640/Picnik+collage+7.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Finally, recovered pets were allowed a playtime in the tunnel...an idea conceived by Eli.</span></td></tr>
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We have played Pet Clinic several times since our Museum trip, sometimes with all the props and sometimes a more bare-bones version. In fact, when Abby starts to drag the little table to the living room, I know that the next words out of her mouth will be, "My pet sick." So, a big lesson learned for me: I have completely underestimated the value of pretend play! My kids LOVE it, which has encouraged me to look for more ways to incorporate pretend play into our days.<br />
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Kind of ironically, as a child, I had wanted to be a veterinarian. Then, one day, I saw my dad give one of our dogs a shot and I almost passed out. I didn't want to be a veterinarian after that. Lightsaber pet shots for stuffed animals, on the other hand, are a little easier for me to handle. <br />
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Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-78565659711247514642011-08-03T09:20:00.000-04:002011-08-03T09:20:00.672-04:00Making a Bird FeederIt was 7:00 in the morning and Eli and I were chatting while he drank some milk. Here is how our conversation went:<br />
<br />
Me: Can you hear the birds? What do you think they are chatting about? Maybe about their breakfast?<br />
<i>E: Maybe. What do birds eat?</i><br />
Me: Seeds and worms. Hey, did you know there is a book called "How to Eat Fried Worms"? We can read it when you are older.<br />
<i>E: I do not want to eat fried worms.</i><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.readreactreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/how-to-eat-fried-worms-childrens-book-202x300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://www.readreactreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/how-to-eat-fried-worms-childrens-book-202x300.jpg" width="212" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">One of my favorite childhood books. This is even the cover I remember. No movie characters here.</span></td></tr>
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At this point we took a brief detour to discuss worms, gummy worms, and if birds can eat gummy worms. Then Eli asked if we could work on making a bird feeder. Sure, why not? We asked Google and found that a common way to make a bird feeder is to cover a pine cone with peanut butter and then roll it in birdseed. Well, we didn't have a pine cone and Eli is allergic to peanuts, so we kept looking. We then came across an idea that still used the peanut butter and birdseed, but you put it on bread. With some modifications, we got to work...at 7:15 in the morning.<br />
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Eli and I started by using cookie cutters to make some fun shapes out of our bread. Not necessary, but the airplane, rocket ship, bulldozer, and race car were pretty cool. We also used a straw to poke holes in the bread so that we would be able to hang our feeders. Then, the bread went into a 200 degree oven, just to dry it out a bit. I didn't take any pictures of the this step because it was 7:20 in the morning.<br />
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Eli and I picked up with our project again in the afternoon while Abby was sleeping. This time, I was coherent enough for pictures, but my camera is still broken, so phone pictures it is.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NBHMEAxMWI0/Tjg_xGkwNyI/AAAAAAAABRY/QozVgRkOHoQ/s1600/IMG_20110801_161445.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-NBHMEAxMWI0/Tjg_xGkwNyI/AAAAAAAABRY/QozVgRkOHoQ/s400/IMG_20110801_161445.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Fear not...Eli did not spontaneously combust. We used soy nut butter.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gRxDwblbUNc/Tjg_dR_vEXI/AAAAAAAABRE/RvWmta8-Vb4/s1600/IMG_20110801_163240.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gRxDwblbUNc/Tjg_dR_vEXI/AAAAAAAABRE/RvWmta8-Vb4/s400/IMG_20110801_163240.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Once the bread was covered in soy nut butter, we pressed birdseed onto each piece.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zADskf23_IY/Tjk8_pHKVGI/AAAAAAAABRs/6MPL-G0vJA4/s1600/15624647037.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="158" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zADskf23_IY/Tjk8_pHKVGI/AAAAAAAABRs/6MPL-G0vJA4/s640/15624647037.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">We hung our bird feeders outside.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-v-4L_7py4hM/Tjg_KoV47LI/AAAAAAAABQ8/AurGjw-02ps/s1600/IMG_20110801_164156.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-v-4L_7py4hM/Tjg_KoV47LI/AAAAAAAABQ8/AurGjw-02ps/s400/IMG_20110801_164156.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Trying to get a bird to eat out of his hand. No such luck.</span></td></tr>
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<div style="text-align: center;">And then the hard part. The waiting.</div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bN3UAfmDE8Q/Tjk9Y6AFtWI/AAAAAAAABRw/Ok_Bg3GvBKU/s1600/15624649876.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="160" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bN3UAfmDE8Q/Tjk9Y6AFtWI/AAAAAAAABRw/Ok_Bg3GvBKU/s640/15624649876.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">And waiting and waiting and waiting and waiting.</span></td></tr>
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I was starting to think that birds must like soy nut butter about as much as my kids do, which, is not at all. We did, however, have some birds fly in for a snack a few times. I don't think the bread was heavy enough for the birds to sit on, so they could only fly in for quick little pecks. Quick little pecks are pretty hard for an almost-5-year old to see, though he was very patient. When we do this again, I think we will use a pine cone, or if we use bread again, we might just prop it up in a tree instead of hanging it.<br />
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All in all, it was a fun project that was completely thought up by Eli...at 7:15 in the morning. He must be a morning person. I used to be a morning person, until I had one morning person child and one night person child, a combo doesn't work so well together. <br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><i>In addition, I was able to sing, "Feed the birds, tuppence a bag" all day long. It's debatable if that is a good thing or not.</i></div>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-40455460479556936292011-07-30T10:16:00.000-04:002011-07-30T10:16:03.301-04:00Making a Water Table<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;">Over the winter we had a big box that we filled with dry noodles and dollar store utensils.</div><div style="text-align: center;">(You can read more about our noodle-rific fun <a href="http://stuffwedo-sarah.blogspot.com/2011/04/noodles.html">here</a>.)<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-J8hSLmp33oQ/TaNOuHGKyBI/AAAAAAAAA14/1QqUXZnD6mU/s1600/DSC_0919.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-J8hSLmp33oQ/TaNOuHGKyBI/AAAAAAAAA14/1QqUXZnD6mU/s400/DSC_0919.JPG" width="265" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;">For the summer, we have bagged up all the noodles and converted our noodle box into a water table. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ssMEhV6xgOE/TjQPliJKMgI/AAAAAAAABQM/7Ewg99oD9X8/s1600/IMG_2847.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ssMEhV6xgOE/TjQPliJKMgI/AAAAAAAABQM/7Ewg99oD9X8/s400/IMG_2847.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">A box...filled with water and bath toys...means lots of summer fun. We did find that the kids seem to enjoy the water table more with it propped up on crates as opposed to being flat on the ground.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SqS_4Nq2yb4/TjQPjKgRBMI/AAAAAAAABQI/MrFonzyk1WU/s1600/IMG_2850.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SqS_4Nq2yb4/TjQPjKgRBMI/AAAAAAAABQI/MrFonzyk1WU/s400/IMG_2850.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Yay for Summer!</span></div><br />
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<span id="goog_235419520"></span><span id="goog_235419521"></span>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-74400169118979190052011-07-24T14:14:00.000-04:002011-07-24T14:14:30.484-04:00Buying Some Time<i>Disclaimer: My trusty camera is on the brink. These sub-par pictures were all taken with my phone.</i><br />
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The other day I had three baking projects going in the kitchen. For some unknown reason, I decided to work on all three projects simultaneously. So, as I am working frantically in the kitchen, Abby comes up to ask of me her favorite question, "Do?" Thankfully, I had just unpacked groceries, transferred the new oatmeal into a plastic container, and had the empty oatmeal canister on the counter. Or, I should say, the empty oatmeal canister was buried under a few layers on the kitchen counter, because, as you know, I had three baking projects going. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sLwZuk3g6kw/Tim0ITgkMXI/AAAAAAAABPU/g13KVeK4nAw/s1600/IMG_20110722_110626.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sLwZuk3g6kw/Tim0ITgkMXI/AAAAAAAABPU/g13KVeK4nAw/s400/IMG_20110722_110626.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">We cut an opening in the top of the canister and Abby worked on slipping knives through said opening. Yes, you read it right...knives...plastic knives. My first thought was that we could use poker chips, but I had no idea where to even begin looking for those. Knives and Poker Chips. Awesome.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7WeqBQfZsqw/TimzR7E6LGI/AAAAAAAABOw/GBF3J7s5PDg/s1600/IMG_20110722_110747.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7WeqBQfZsqw/TimzR7E6LGI/AAAAAAAABOw/GBF3J7s5PDg/s400/IMG_20110722_110747.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Then she proceeded to unload the knives... </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8MJ0zwg5ryY/Tim0OjCvANI/AAAAAAAABPY/pxHtQfq3Sbc/s1600/IMG_20110722_110616.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-8MJ0zwg5ryY/Tim0OjCvANI/AAAAAAAABPY/pxHtQfq3Sbc/s400/IMG_20110722_110616.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">...and re-load the knives. Look how fast her hand is moving. You should have seen how fast I was moving in the kitchen.</span></td></tr>
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Pretty soon, Eli wanted to get in on the action and I was even able to scrounge up two more oatmeal canisters. I KNEW they would come in handy for something. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QqQZNUNq-ss/TixbdCFVVkI/AAAAAAAABPw/Em7P5zUMlGQ/s1600/15437195757.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="214" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QqQZNUNq-ss/TixbdCFVVkI/AAAAAAAABPw/Em7P5zUMlGQ/s640/15437195757.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">With the addition of more knives, Star Wars Lego Guys, and some plastic cups, I had some happily entertained kiddos.</span></td></tr>
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It is in moments like these that I know God provides for me in the very basic and mundane times of my day. I needed to work in the kitchen. I had kids that needed something to do. In His graciousness to me, God brought to mind this activity, which I had seen sometime in the past, somewhere out there in Mommy Blog-land. Divine timing for a tired mom with lots to do. My kids even played long enough for me to clean my disaster of a kitchen. That, is what this mom calls a miracle...a miracle wrapped up beautifully in an oatmeal canister.Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-76695803278993015922011-07-21T08:25:00.004-04:002011-07-21T08:38:43.053-04:00Fractions, Fractions Everywhere<div style="text-align: center;">Fractions are important. </div><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://www.cartoonstock.com/newscartoons/cartoonists/mfl/lowres/mfln375l.jpg" width="285" /></span></i></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: small;">Ooooo...I like this...what an introduction for great problem solving. "Six moms are shopping at Target and their children smell the popcorn. If the popcorn costs 75 cents (I don't think Target popcorn costs 75 cents, but humor me) and the moms, of course, have no cash except for spare change at the bottom of their purses and the children will only be pacified with popcorn, how much does each mom have to pay?"</span></i> </td></tr>
</tbody></table> In fact, as a math teacher, I will go so far as to say...fractions are a vital, foundational concept in mathematics. If my goal was total mathematical world domination, the educational world, mind you, I would mandate that fractions be taught for an entire year. Only Fractions. For an Entire Year. At about the 3rd grade level. Students need a deep understand of fractions and we're getting started over here in a very basic way.<br />
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Eli doesn't like to get dressed. I guess I can't blame him...hanging out in your pajamas all day is pretty fun. Last week, Eli had already put on his dedicates (by this I mean underwear, but I wasn't sure I could say "my kid was in his underwear" on a blog). This is always the stopping point: in his dedicates staring at the shirt and shorts before him. Then it hit me. After almost five years of dressing children, I knew what to say:<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">"Eli, you are already<span style="color: red;"> </span><i style="color: red;">one-third</i><span style="color: red;"> </span>done getting dressed."</span></div><br />
He must be a mathematician like his mom, because he loved this. I went on to explain, "Look, you have three pieces of clothing to put on and you already have one on. This means that you are one-third done." He quickly and happily put on his shorts..."Wow! You are two-thirds done! That means you are almost finished." And the shorts..."Eli, you did it! You are three-thirds done. What does that mean? Yup. You are finished."<br />
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We have been dressing with fractions ever since. Let me say, it is so hot right now that we need a smaller denominator. To that end, I am pretty thankful that we don't have a denominator of, say, 7 or 8. That's a winter denominator, my friends.<br />
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My kids also don't like having sunscreen put on. Enter...fractions.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wQC4ncnuWOw/TigV0_1SCeI/AAAAAAAABOo/c3pDg3AIV_Y/s1600/IMG_20110717_153829.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wQC4ncnuWOw/TigV0_1SCeI/AAAAAAAABOo/c3pDg3AIV_Y/s400/IMG_20110717_153829.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Oh how I love our swim shirts as it reduces our sunscreen denominator by one. One head, two arms, and two legs. We count along as each part gets greased up...one-fifth done, two-fifths done, and so on. </span></td></tr>
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Now, these ideas are definitely not rocket science, but, I do think they are a great foundation for one day DOING rocket science. In closing, I do have to admit, that total mathematical world (the educational one) domination might be a tiny, tiny thought in the back of my head. I guess I will start by surrounding my kids with fractions....at least, eight-elevenths of the time.Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-29624438691973330632011-07-19T15:54:00.000-04:002011-07-19T15:54:11.064-04:00Legos and CrayonsRecently, we combined two of our favorite things to make make one so-so art project. Here is it, in all of it's marginal glory.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vazUc8aSsoo/TiQ7luSwgOI/AAAAAAAABOc/8sPdBn_iVNU/s1600/IMG_2844.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vazUc8aSsoo/TiQ7luSwgOI/AAAAAAAABOc/8sPdBn_iVNU/s400/IMG_2844.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">We started by arranging Legos on a Lego board. </span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KEU88LO8Sgg/TiQ6PvCkaAI/AAAAAAAABOI/wPBGPYcz0eI/s1600/IMG_2837.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-KEU88LO8Sgg/TiQ6PvCkaAI/AAAAAAAABOI/wPBGPYcz0eI/s400/IMG_2837.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Next, we laid paper on top and rubbed a crayon over the paper...making kind of a Lego-crayon etching. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WzwpCijYyYI/TiQ7Av-fumI/AAAAAAAABOU/luagbpS1wow/s1600/IMG_2841.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WzwpCijYyYI/TiQ7Av-fumI/AAAAAAAABOU/luagbpS1wow/s400/IMG_2841.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Mine, but only mine, turned out decently. The kids had a hard time, I think because the board was not entirely covered with Legos. The non-flat surface seemed to be problematic for the kids.</span></td></tr>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pSIyn7-lgm0/TiQ60L5AbII/AAAAAAAABOQ/cKqQkSTFmqU/s400/IMG_2839.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">We tried again, this time removing the Legos from the Lego boards so that the kids were working with a totally flat surface. This worked much better for them, though didn't produce the cool designs I had pictured.</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-V88QFoLPcx4/TiQ7fAGKmuI/AAAAAAAABOY/6fGAuZ4nRs0/s1600/IMG_2842.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-V88QFoLPcx4/TiQ7fAGKmuI/AAAAAAAABOY/6fGAuZ4nRs0/s400/IMG_2842.JPG" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Abby did work on her Lego coloring happily, but Eli jumped ship pretty quickly. "This isnt' so exciting, Mom," he said. I know, Buddy, I know.</span></td></tr>
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">This is one we might have to try again...when the kids are older or when their mom can think of a way to make it work better...which ever comes first. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5587217089748116138.post-82135243864773979852011-07-14T10:57:00.000-04:002011-07-14T10:57:28.256-04:00Loving our Local LibraryYesterday, for a last-minute thing to do we went to our local library for a craft morning. Three different crafts were provided for 3-5 years olds and my two kids were the only ones there. There's nothing like doing crafts someplace OTHER than your own home. No clean up. YAY!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pDOrinFGL1Y/Th25u-zjyRI/AAAAAAAABMc/EC8BS8l9bIc/s1600/IMG_20110713_101313.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pDOrinFGL1Y/Th25u-zjyRI/AAAAAAAABMc/EC8BS8l9bIc/s400/IMG_20110713_101313.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Making sticker pictures. Simple, but fun.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HxhRj-wbpvI/Th4_Uj6wg8I/AAAAAAAABNI/Q3UvItrwqI8/s1600/15227364375.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-HxhRj-wbpvI/Th4_Uj6wg8I/AAAAAAAABNI/Q3UvItrwqI8/s640/15227364375.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Making necklaces with lots of cool beads.</span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NKhMU7Pie-M/Th259r8BSMI/AAAAAAAABMk/1RQHR3IPDq8/s1600/IMG_20110713_101052.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-NKhMU7Pie-M/Th259r8BSMI/AAAAAAAABMk/1RQHR3IPDq8/s400/IMG_20110713_101052.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">And the coolest one...there was bubble wrap wrapped around a cardboard paper towel tube. You rolled the tube in paint and then rolled in on the paper. What a great idea!</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Lf30ejuL3Cs/Th252oSNsQI/AAAAAAAABMg/7ZefQWTwL7c/s1600/IMG_20110713_101100.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="298" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Lf30ejuL3Cs/Th252oSNsQI/AAAAAAAABMg/7ZefQWTwL7c/s400/IMG_20110713_101100.jpg" width="400" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">It's kind of hard for a boy to do crafts when there was a playground just outside the window through which he was looking.</span><br />
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</div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;">As an extra bonus, we were able to check out some books, even though the library was not "officially" open. I was excited to pick up this book which I have had on hold for awhile:</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://i.ebayimg.com/00/$%28KGrHqV,%21l8E1F1pK3nTBNg7Nf70iQ%7E%7E_32.JPG?set_id=89040003C1" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://i.ebayimg.com/00/$%28KGrHqV,%21l8E1F1pK3nTBNg7Nf70iQ%7E%7E_32.JPG?set_id=89040003C1" width="170" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">Making a sourdough starter from just flour and water? I am looking forward to this science experiment! </span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;">So, with craft projects and new books in hand we headed out to the park.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-N4BhboMYrQQ/Th4_Byjyi9I/AAAAAAAABM8/lL9eQktIN9o/s1600/15227336490.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-N4BhboMYrQQ/Th4_Byjyi9I/AAAAAAAABM8/lL9eQktIN9o/s640/15227336490.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br />
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</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Summer is such a great time for community events. </span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Check out the calendar of your local library today!</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br />
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</tbody></table>Sarahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03273318863173231985noreply@blogger.com2