Musings from the Week of November 1st

Can we just say how lucky we are this week for this wonderful weather! Last night was so fun...with it getting dark so early I was worried it would be hard to sneak in outside time and get homework completed...I am sure we shorted homework a bit with the older kids, but what fun they had learning how to play ghosts in the graveyard...and kick the can is on the schedule for this evening!

For the younger group, as soon as they were finished snack Marisol took them down to the park...and they ran around at the park until it was too dark to see their noses! This fall has provided such a great time for spontaneous out door play. Our favorite game so far was taking all the toys bins and using them to collect the leaves in order to dump them on a blanket and the together throw them up in the air and see where they land. This game looked like so much fun many of the neighborhood kids joined in too. Check out the pictures!

I am constantly amazed at how the older kids will take the younger kids under their wings and help them in whatever game or activity we are doing. Now that is not to say that when the older kids have built a huge, magnificent train track they are fine when Jimmy comes by and tears the bridge down...but they do usually build Jimmy his own to play with!

With winter around the corner we will still be outside, so please make sure your kids have the clothes to play outside...I am looking forward to what games they will come up with this year. Last year we had such a fun time with building tunnels and forts that I hope we can continue the fun...and don't forget the sledding we did! Looking forward to it.

In the coming weeks I will be returning to a bit more structured learning for the preschool/toddler kids since the weather will be turning and we will are likely to spend more time inside. I will coordinate a project each week, that will go along with the theme for the younger kids, that the older kids can do if they want, or not. I firmly believe kids need time just to be kids, and what more fun than to have that time when you are around other kids.

As always, if you have suggestions for activities, field trips or even meals/snacks please let me know...mixing things up is always fun.

Musings from the Week of October 18, 2010

What week...with the school age kids having two half days for teacher conferences, the week proved to be busy and exciting. What a great time all the older kids had creating towers and tracks with the little guys.

The older kids took a field trip to the Notebaert Nature Museum this Thursday...what a fabulous museum...for young and old. We had the chance to see two exhibits. Ask them about lock and damns....they had such fun experimenting how to move a boat through a lock without it capsizing and really how to flood a neighborhood with a damn...Liam and Olivia really were able to fill every crack and get the water quite high...

Joe and Olivia continued to have a blast at Preschool, even saying that they wanted to stay on Thursday when we had to drop Thomas off...instead we came home and had a tea party!

Jimmy continues to defy gravity...he's one to keep an eye on...anything he can climb he will...maybe a lumber jack is in our midst?

This week we welcomed back Sierra and her brother Kegan. They will be with us on and off in the afternoons till the Holidays. Olivia and Thomas were particularly excited to see Sierra again...and Elliot quite happy to have Kegan join Zeno, Viveck and he in their imaginative play...

Here's to another week...if you have not let me know that you need care on the 5th for school age kids please do....our spots are limited because Marisol is taking a much needed vacation for the 4th and 5th of November.

Talley

The First

As many of you know I have been trying to play around with the media to find a fun and easy way to communicate. Also a place to post pictures and upcoming events. As the year moves on and we get into our curriculum for the younger kids, and projects for the older ones, this hopefully will provide a forum for reminders and pictures.

I have included a link to the weekly menu on the side bar, as well as a link to the former website on Shutterfly, so that you can return to see the pictures. If you had family that had subscribed to the site, I will send them an invitation to this site as well.

If you have suggestions or ideas for this let me know.

Enjoy!

Talley