Friendship Movie for Preschoolers

Evan loves the show Wow! Wow! Wubbzy. He's just so drawn to it. So when Mom Central asked me to review the new Wow! Wow! Wubbzy! DVD, I couldn't wait to get it in the mail and play it for Evan. I knew he'd be thrilled! The new DVD is called A Little Help From My Friends and it has 6 episodes. Each of these episodes holds Evan's interest to such a degree that he watches it without moving an inch! He's enthralled with that little Wubbzy character and his friends. The stories on this DVD teach valuable lessons, too. The value of friendship, being yourself, and asking for help when you need it, are all taught in fun stories that are just long enough to get the point across without boring him. This DVD also features two bonus episodes, a music video, and a Kooky Kostume game. And for more Wubbzy fun, you can go the Wubbzy Website (Evan loves the printable coloring pages) or watch it on Nick Jr. and Noggin.

TTFN

~Tina

Newspaper Field Trip

Our local home school group went on as field trip to see how newpapers are made. I figured this would be great for our girls, since they were so interested in the American Girl Kit book series and movie. Kit, in case you are not familiar, has the dream of becoming a newspaper reporter. So we joined other homeschoolers and met with a very nice lady who gave us a tour. First, she showed us a room where these sheets are made. One sheet has to be made for every page.She then took us to the back room where the newspapers are printed using huge machinery. One cool little fact about this particular printing press is that it is 100 years old and still the best that money can buy.

Huge rolls of paper are used that way at around 1000 pounds each! In the picture below you can see the rolls are stacked high.This gentleman showed us the ins and outs of how it all comes together. He also answered the many questions that our little gang had.This section of machinery is where the inserts, like coupons and advertisements, are put into each newpaper.And this machine binds the newpapers into bundles. Although the machines weren't in operation during our field trip, we did get to see this one in action. It was fast!After seeing the back, we went out into the offices to meet some reporters. This lady is responsible for posting the "funnies"! What a cool job!
We ended the morning by eating our lunches on the way home, and discussing what we learned.

We are looking forward to the next field trip that comes at the end of the month. We'll be going to the local museum for some hands on historical fun!

TTFN

~Tina

Alice in Wonderland

Taylor was so happy to be a part of our local children's theater's production of Alice in Wonderland. It's one of her favorite stories! And all of her theater friends got into the show, too, which made it extra special. Here are some pics of Taylor and her "buds".

Caroline (the duck), Brynn (the duchess) and Taylor (the Daisy)

Taylor, Bri (the lobster) and Lauren (the 9 of hearts)

The final cast party.....they really didn't want it to end.

Caroline, Taylor and Michael

A Taylor Twinkie....all the kids surrounded Taylor and called it a Taylor Twinkie. They said she was the best icing ever! So sweet!

TTFN

~Tina

FIGHT FOCA

Through my email, Americans United for Life Action has just made me aware of an effort to pass FOCA one step at a time through the Congressional appropriations process.
They let me contact my Member of Congress and encourage him/her to sign onto a letter going to Speaker Nancy Pelosi encouraging her that all pro-life provisions in the federal budget remain in place.
You can do so too at AUL Action's website, http://action.aul.org/site/Advocacy?pagename=homepage&id=133. But hurry! The deadline for Members of Congress to sign on is this Friday, February 13.
Thank You!

TTFN
~Tina

Toddler/Preschool Valentine's Day Crafts

Just about every day, Evan asks to "Do a craft?". So I've been trying to plan more crafts and activities for him. The Toddler/Preschool Activity Bags that we made this past summer have come in handy, but some of those things are still too involved for Evan, and I look forward to using those next school year.

I've been trying to do some crafts and activities with Evan, at least a couple of things a day. Some of the things follow a theme, many do not. Valentine's Day has been our latest theme. One of the crafts we did was simply gluing tissue paper squares onto a heart cut out of construction paper. I like him to have practice in spreading the glue around with his fingers, instead of using a gluestick all the time. So next time I'll use cardstock, so it holds up better with the more "liquidy" glue.

He was quite proud of his work!
Another craft we did, was a collage of hearts. I precut the hearts out of construction paper, and let him glue them to the cardboard. So simple, but he loved it!

Ta daah!

The next activity Evan did this past week, was to use beans to fill in a heart that I drew onto cardboard. It dried clear, but unfortunately I don't have a finished picture to show you.
I suppose you could do a shape to suit any theme and fill in with any number of things, too, like colorful buttons or rice.

I had this foam doornob hanger on hand and decided to let him use some foam heart stickers to decorate it. Peeling the back off of the stickers can be a real challenge for his little fingers, but it's great for developing those fine motor skills. We did a little recycling for this craft. I used the Valentine's Day edition of the Oriental Trading catalog. I cut out pictures and let Evan glue them on. This time he used a glue stick because I was afraid the flimsy paper wouldn't hold up to regular bottles glue. Alexa joined him for this craft. They added stickers to their creations, too. Evan's...Alexa's...And here are a few things I plan to use this coming week....

First is this math activity made out of and egg carton, popsicle sticks and foam heart stickers.

I cut slits in the top of the egg cartons, and put numbered, heart foam stickers on the front of each section.
Then I put 1 though 6 hearts on 6 popsicle sticks. I wrote the number of hearts on each stick.
I will use this for Evan to practice counting to 6, and for number recognition up to 6. He'll match the numbers on the sticks to the numbers on the egg carton and slide the stick into the correct slot.Another craft for next week will be a heart suncatcher. I precut two hearts out of clear contact paper. I will tape one heart, sticky side up, to the table. Then I'll give him tissue paper shapes to put on his heart, along with some shiny mini hearts and construction paper hearts. When he's finished, we'll put the other contact paper heart on top, sticky side down, and whole punch it. I have some red curly ribbon, so we can hang it in the window.It should turn out cute. I'll try to post a picture next week.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

TTFN

~Tina

YES!!!!!!!!

Pittsburgh Steelers

Superbowl XLIII Champions
Yes!!!!

TTFN

~Tina

A Song for Female Steeler Fans

This was sent to me from my sister, too. Thanks, Ter!

Click here for a song for Steeler Ladies!

TTFN

~Tina

For the Steeler Fans

I received this in an email from my sister. ~Thanks, Ter.

‘Twas the Night Before the Super Bowl

‘Twas the night before the Super Bowl, when along the gulf shore,

Steelers fans were praying for “just one more;”

The players were nestled all snug in the sack,

With visions of the first NFL Six-Pack;

Coach Tomlin was young, but wise for his years,

So I drifted off to sleep without any fears;

When at the stadium there arose some strange chatter,

The Cardinals feared, what was the matter;

We heard “Okel Dokel”, we heard “Double Yoi,”

We jumped from our beds, our hearts jumped for joy;

He stood at the fifty with a grin ear to ear,

Steelers fans everywhere started to cheer;

Then in an instant to our surprise,

This little old man had tears in his eyes;

He went to the booth and there took his chair,

While Terrible Towels waved in the air;

Then over the airwaves came his shrill voice,

The Steelers Nation began to rejoice;

He said, “I am back, but you know I can’t stay,

I just had to see my Steelers play;

From my home up above, I have a great view,

But I wanted to celebrate here with you;

So bring on the Birds, we’ll send them a flyin’,

On the way back to Phoenix , they will be cryin8 0;

Ben, Hines, Troy , Jeff and all of the rest,

No matter the outcome, to me you’re the best;”

The airwaves went silent, the stadium still,

Was this just a dream, it seemed so real;

In our team we have faith, in our team we have hope,

But the game’s not the same without Myron Cope

Written by: A.K. Young 01-23-09

TTFN

~Tina

GO STEELERS!