When Santa (was glued together) & Got Stuck Up the Chimney

When Santa got stuck up the chimney

He began to shout

You girls and boys won't get any toys

If you don't pull me out!

My beard is black

There's soot in my sack

And my nose is tickling too!

When Santa go stuck up the chimney,

Achoo! Achoo! Achoo!

This is one of the Christmas songs that one of my client's preschool is learning. Apparently it is very well known in Britain and not so much over here. I have no idea what tune it is sung to but I found a cute video on YouTube to replay. http://youtu.be/UIY-V2efNW8 To aid my client's learning I downloaded the cute video onto my iPhone for her to have a accurate version to learn from (I tend to change the tune every time I sing it). I also created a Santa, a sack and a chimney. I have a glue gun and I know how to use it! Also my sewing machine. It took about a hour to gather the stuff and build it, so no big time investment needed. Just have to know where your stashes are.

Stuff needed to make a simple Santa (not for heavy use):

Sock in desired skin colour (mine is tan)

White felt-trim

Black felt-boots & belt

Red felt-nose & mouth

Red flannelette (for the suit & hat)

White fake fur trim (beard)

silver paper ribbon for belt buckle (I said it wasn't for heavy use!)

white ribbon

felt pen for eyes

fiber fill or anything light enough to stuff it.

The sack is stuffed with fiber fill and a wad of loosely bunched tissue paper (for noise appeal), glued shut & tied with a narrow white ribbon

sewing material-machine or needle & thread

glue gun

I used a sock that I had used the other one for a doll. Cut it off at the ankle--or it was already cut I can't remember. Stuffed it with fiberfill (had to hunt it down) and sewed the base. I cut out a t-shaped shirt/pants combo & sewed the sides and underarms. Sewed the triangle hat. The pants are just the shirt cut to waist-the sock ends at the waist so I put fiberfill down the legs. The coat is glued shut and the white trim covers the glue mess (though it is visible on his left leg where the glue gun stuck to the fabric). Everything else is glued on. Oh, the eyes are felt pen dots. Real extravagant eh? I freehanded cutting everything. The hat white spot is only that, a spot. The belt, neck and wrist trim wrap completely around him. The neck is sucked in with button thread and held in place with the glued on neck trim.

The chimney is a one litre milk carton cut just short of Santa's height. I covered it with brick printed paper (googled "brick" & scanned through the images until I found a black & white brick pattern) then I cut & pasted to fill the letter size sheet. Printed it off and then placed it on a book with textured cover and did a red crayon rubbing, with some spots heavier than others. Cut & glued it to the milk carton to fit. Viola! A chimney for Santa to get stuck in!

She appeared to enjoy pulling Santa out--she was laughing & smiling over and over again. Today in preschool she participated and looked like she was saying some of the words. (She has a profound speech delay amid small & large motor issues but otherwise is typical).

It was easy to make and is holding up to the handling rather well. I have another client who spotted it in my workstuff bin and played with it. I can't remember any of the songs his class is learning that would relate to Santa so just "ho ho hoed" and prevented him from trying to take the hat and boots off. A success really, visual aids don't have to be expensive or etsy quality, just durable to sustain the play time. I'll be keeping this for next year because it turned out better than I thought it would and I keep things "just in case" (I refuse to call it hoarding).

Christmas is coming!

Last night my dd and I went to our Relief Society Christmas make something evening. We made fabric flower headbands and decoupage J-O-Y wooden blocks. Each woman received a CD of Christmas music. I'm playing it in my car now.

I'm hunting for a Christmas craft that my kiddos could create for their parents. It has to be really simple since their attention span and fine motor skills are weak. Pintrest will be receiving hours of research for this project! I am thinking of making homemade Sculpty/Fimo and making earrings for mom or just an ornament from it (http://thenewnew.blogspot.com/2011/06/homemade-polymer-clay.html).

The skill level of children must be taken into consideration...fine motor abilities and attention span...who wants unfinished projects lying around? Personally, I can create my own pile of unfinished projects. Sweater for my 3 year old who is now 31? Sailor suits for the 3 boys (ages 2, 4 & 6) who are now 31, 29 & 27 (this wasn't my fault I maintain, the pattern didn't fit itself!).

Merry Christmas Crafting!

Thanksgiving-thanks to other moms & women

Today is Canada's Thanksgiving and we had our dinner/feast on Saturday in order to accommodate the two married kid's in-law schedules...that is what happens when you start planning the week before the big day! We should decide what time our Christmas meal will be so others can plan around us!

Some families have gratitude books where they record daily what they were grateful for that day. I wasn't that organized to maintain that, but the concept is workable and flexible. I like it because it lets you enjoy that moment in your life. Yesterday a mom (of 4) said me that when she first got married she started the "I can't wait" drone and realized that if she didn't stop she'd miss half her life!

We really have to remember to "flower where we're planted". There was a story years ago in a church lesson where a woman who was married to a armed forces man (therefore moved a lot) was questioned why she was planting tulips when she knew that the likelihood of her seeing them bloom was small. She replied that if she didn't enjoy them then someone else would. This wise woman believed in enjoying where she was. She enjoyed gardening and planting so she did so knowing that someone would enjoy them.

I love the thought of planting something and having a stranger discover flowers blooming in the garden of their new home. Not all moves are wanted or planned, some are forced and wouldn't it be nice to have a nice surprise in the new home?

I am thankful (and awed) by the women who blog frequently (more than once a week) and are creative and still spend time with their children. I enjoy discovering what other women/moms are doing and get so many ideas that I have to tell myself to be realistic--will it get done?

We women haven't created a "old girls club" similar to the men's "old boys club", but we still learn from each other and when their is a need, strive to help. We may not get paying jobs, but we tend to the important stuff-people.

Story Time

I'm going to two preschools for work now and am so amazed how professionals believe that 'moral' books are interesting to 3/4 year olds. The ones with titles like "I Can Share" or "Co-operation Is Fun". Gag. They are dull with very weak story lines and really, from the response of the children, aren't appealing to them either. I'm pretty sure the manner in which the 'stories' are read (definitely not told) adds to the boredom level.

My prof in Literature for Children HATES those books and I understand now why. The children have zip idea what they are saying. I love how one little girl asked "What is share?" It says it all--the kids don't get it. Weave what you want them to learn into a delightful simple story and "bing"! they understand. But no amount of reading stories is going to create a sharing child, that is done by example and by doing. Otherwise it sounds like Charlie Brown teachers "wha wha wha".

Read good stories that are well written and your child will be engaged if you also tell the story and not drone on through the words. Teach your child by example ("do as I'm doing, follow follow me").

Our family liked the Berenstain Bears "First Time" books and Robert Cosgrove's "Serendipity" series of books. Yes they would/are considered 'moral' books but like parables, they are also a good story. (Franklin books-the non-TV series ones- are good also). So is Dr. Suess' "Green Eggs & Ham", "I Will Never Eat Tomatoes" and other Lauren Child's Charlie & Lola stories. There are so many good quality children's books that those mediocre (read lame) books are just fire starters.

Enough is Enough-protect not objectify your little girls

I have to speak up on this, bras for 4-12 yr. old girls???? Why would anyone even conceive that idea? I've always though two piece bathing suits were just silly because they really aren't practical for little kids...the tops never seem to stay where they're meant to be, but really, bras???

This sexualization of our girls is gone on too long and people, men, women, mothers, fathers, aunts, uncles, grandparents, everyone MUST stand up and say "ENOUGH!" Let our children be children, they are not little adults...that thought was debunked in the late 19th Century. At least back then children were either ignored or put to work in factories or the family farm, not wholesaled off as mini-porn stars.

CRIN-the Child's Rights Information Network has an article about the sexualization of children that is well worth reading:

http://www.crin.org/resources/infodetail.asp?id=25916

This isn't just about girls either, little boys are exposed to little girls and become conditioned to seeing provocative clothing and it becomes their "normal".

" Gail Dines, a sociology professor at Wheelock College in Boston, similarly slammed the top, saying it would encourage girls to think about themselves in a sexual way before they are ready.

"It (also) sends out really bad signals to adult men about young firls being appropriate sexual objects," she told CNN affiliate WHDH. (http://edition.cnn .com/2011/BUSINESS/03/26/abercrombie.bikini.controversy/index.html)

Abercrombie & Fitch this year brought out padded & push-up bikini tops for little girls...why would someone even THINK that a 7 year old needs a padded swimsuit??? They also have sold thongs to this age group-and I'm not talking footwear either.

Another company created onesies with "MILF" printed on the front--for those babies as young as 3mos.! Some mothers on an online bulletin board actually defended this by stating that they saw it as a compliment!

What is really disturbing is that these items are not being created by only men, but women see nothing wrong with dressing little girls like hookers or porn stars. Somehow selling your body either via internet or in person has become something to aspire to. So much for all the work we've done trying to be recognized as thinking people.

Feminist say that this tolerance of sexualization is a misconstrued belief that being overtly sexual is part of being free of stereotypes. Unfortunately, it is only confining them into another stereotype, and a very dangerous one at that. What those who seen nothing wrong with being sexually objectified do not understand is that they are advertising themselves and/or their little girls as fodder for sexual predators. Which then starts (or continues) the destructive cycle of sexual abuse, which is a very difficult emotional prison to be freed from.

Considering this era of 'helicopter' parenting, it seems contradictory to encourage your girl to be an open advertisement for sexual adulation.

So sad that tolerance includes acceptance of emotionally destructive behaviours.

Lets keep our children...ALL of our children be their ours, neighbours or in another country... lets work to keep all of them safe from sexual predators.

Summer is finally here and now almost over

Summer 2011 throughout North America...from British Columbia to Washington D.C.

Private Campground near Prince George, B.C.


Canada Day 2011 in Hinton, Alberta:




It was a cool wet July with bursts of sun but the kids still were able to get out and play at a play yard built by the city of Spruce Grove, Alberta.


Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. Families came to view and contemplate. And preserve memories of the visit.




Albert Einstein...a great man who as a child struggled to learn traditionally and then became a great scientist.


Make the most of what is left before formal schooling starts again (or continues for those who are doing a modified school calendar).

Attachment theory

A couple of weeks ago I attended a seminar put on by the Alberta Play Therapy Association. It was on Attachment Theory as perceived/developed by Dr. Gordon Neufeld. http://www.youtube.com/user/neufeldmedia The clips aren't long but do give a clear idea what he is about.

I was quite enthralled with it. I somehow have misplaced my notes, so no quotes. He did surmise that all behaviour issues with kids stem from a break in the attachment of the child to a parent/caregiver. I see what he means, but I also see potential for wailing and gnashing of teeth from parents that don't think or didn't really connect to their child--and especially so if that child suffers from a mental illness.

If he is correct, then what? Reconnect them. Or connect them to someone who will be a constant in their life. How to do that? It is more than bonding in the early days or months of the child's life. It needs to continue and develop further. Get to know them, play with them, eat with them, talk with them.And don't stop when they start school, be it pre-school or regular school. That is when it is even more important to remain connected to them. Dr. Neufeld suggests that we develop a relationship such that the child wants to please us, to obey rules. He states that by doing so we will be giving them the freedom to be independent. I don't think he was talking about 'helicopter' parents. That is being too involved in your child's life. If the child is secure in the knowledge that their parent(s) will always be there for them, then the child will have the confidence to try things.

What if a child still strays? I'm not sure what his stand on that is...I'm of the thought that children are born with innate characteristics...personalities that is. As long as you did the best that you could, at the very least ensure they know that you will always love them.

A scene that is often played out is when the parent(s) leave the young child someplace and the child cries when they try to leave. Some children stop shortly after the parent leaves...and gives the impression that the crying was only for the benefit of the parents. Or they continue to cry and after they stop their behaviour isn't socially acceptable.

To assist with the child's 'connectiveness' with the parents, they could give something of theirs for the child to keep. We stay connected with others by touch, smell and presence. Since presence is not an option, letting the child have something that feels or smells like (or both!) the parent that can be kept in their pocket will provide that intact contact that is so needed. I have not had a chance to try it, but isn't that similar to the security 'blankie' or stuffy some children demand to keep with them? Logic says that could also work with the straying teen, let them have something small that they can carry with them always. A necklance, ring, photograph...something that will help remind them that they have a family that unconditionally loves them. It is worth a try anyways.