Happy Wednesday!

Marina was very fascinated with babies this morning. She mimicked Miss Marty while Zoey was getting fed. She also sat by Zoey as they watched the fish swim by.

Ellie spent a good deal of time on a gross motor activity. She slide down the stairs and slide and then continued by running to the top.

We made amazing artwork this morning with neon watercolors. Everyone picked out the colors that they wanted to use. There were five colors that were available to paint with.

Strokes were made with paintbrushes.

Straight lines were also made.

Dots and smudges also captivated the paper.

Chloe rode a tricycle this morning with much grace! P.K. sat in the back of the bike carrier. He was waited for someone to give him a ride.

Marina indulged in the sandbox. She enjoyed filling up buckets and glasses to the very top.

Legos were a main stay outside. P.K. built a ‘choo-choo’ and pushed it along the ground. Chloe followed and pushed her Lego cars along the deck.

P.K. spent quality time with his brother Nate as they swayed back and forth together on the teeter-totter.

For breakfast, children had malto-meal with raisins. AM snack was snap peas. Lunch consisted of egg casserole, banana, snap peas, and whole wheat bread. PM snack was fresh apples and rice cakes with cream cheese.

Have a terrific evening!

-Mindy

Day in and day out Wee Friends spend hours riding the Wee Friends backyard bike trail.

What really happens on the bike path, day in and day out?

Today, Elliott’s bike wheel got caught on Lea’s bike wheel. Kai immediately noticed a problem, moved closer to his friends and guided the rescue. Other friends had to wait. They expressed their frustration, but they remained patient until Elliott could freely move. Patience.

Next, Jada needed to cross the road. With Elliott coming full speed, Jada problem solved: I must move quickly to avoid getting run over. She did it. She saw, she assessed, she solved. Problem solving.

“There’s a problem with my bike!” Elliott shouted out. He pulled over and Lisa said “Pull over to the full service pit!” Roadside (teacher) assistance.

Many times, on the WF Bike Path (and playground), friends are able to resolve, independently, the obstacles they confront, but roadside assistance is there. Support.

 

Sometimes friends can breeze by carefree, on the path….other times, the pea gravel slows ‘em down.  Today, Ada recognized the rocky path and set out to fix it for her friends. Thoughtfulness.

 

Sophie smiled. Happiness.

Sometimes friends pedal in the opposite direction. It’s not a problem until another friend, pedaling in the established clockwise direction comes upon them.  New direction is negotiated and the fun continues. Safety Rules of the Road.

 

The rickshaw always provides invitations and inclusion. And a great gross motor workout. Friendship. Exercise.

“This is my cup. You can have it when I’m done.” Finding their voices and negotiating, at the same time. Confidence and Compromise.

 

“Red means stop, green means go.” Giving directions and taking directions. Teamwork.

There’s a lot of learning happening on the Wee Friends path. The path to being a big kid.

“This is my laptop. Sydney made it.”

“I’m a pre-school teacher and I’m Nate, Sophie and Jada’s mom.”

“I’ll take the picture.”

And finally, today, the sparkly, pink Play-Do.

Wee Sprouts: Pea pods. Breakfast: Cheerios and apple slices. Lunch: Farm fresh egg casserole, bananas, and whole wheat toast.

Good Afternoon!

Emma is starting to stand on her own and showing the determination to start walking! She lifted her arms up this morning to show that she wanted up! She hops all over Wee Wee on her knees!

Friends enjoyed painting this morning using different color paint including purple, green, blue, and yellow. Some children chose to mix the colors while other kids stuck to one color per piece of artwork.

We used brushes to paint the paper.

When we were done, we decided to paint the table!

Zoey was dressed in a lovely checkered dress today! She is getting more advanced every day. She has started to stretch her arms straight to hold herself up. She has showed the first signs of rocking by slowing tilting her legs up.

While on her baby jungle gym, she enjoyed looking at her reflection in the mirror.

One of our favorite books lately has been ‘Baby Beluga’. Friends took turns reading the story aloud to themselves then we formed a big group and read it together. Ellie can read the book almost word for word by looking at the pictures and from memory.

Marina took a picture of Miss Mindy! She watches what her teachers and friends are doing and imitates them such as feeding the baby. When baby Zoey is getting fed, Marina will grab a baby and fed her baby!

For breakfast, children had raisin bran. Lunch consisted of hummus sandwiches on whole wheat bread, mixed fruit (mango and banana), and mixed vegetables. PM snack was pretzels and sliced cheddar cheese.

Have a wonderful evening!

-Mindy

“There is fungus among us.” – Lisa

There is also music among us.

…and within us.

There are salt dough sculptors creating bone necklaces with funky colors, among us.

There are shoes and community organizers among us.

There are bugs and future bug scientists among us.

There are artists and expressive beings among us.

There are linguists among us, studying Spanish.

There are future readers and writers among us.

There are engineers, architects and articulate, collaborative leaders among us.

A Wee World of Diverse Wee People. All in a day’s work….a day’s play.

Wee Sprouts: Cucumbers. Breakfast: Chex and raisins. Lunch: Whole wheat tortillas with peanut butter, mixed veggies and mango/banana fruit salad.

Enjoy your day.

Happy Monday!

Zoey loved floor time this morning. She kicked her feet and pounded them into the ground. She is beginning to scoot on the floor. Her laugh and conversation skills are growing rapidly.

P.K. called friends and family using a play phone! He used his fingers to press the numbers in.

Our sensory activity for the day involved shaving cream. Children loved running their hands through the shaving cream that was provided on the table. Our friends took the shaving cream in their hands and squeezed!

Daniel clapped his hands together as he listened to music!

Emma jumped up and down on her knees as she watched her friends dance during our movement session this morning.

While children napped, Zoey enjoyed laying under her baby gym in the darkness. She used her hands and feet to hit and kick the material over her head.

For breakfast, children had corn bran and raisins. Lunch consisted of whole wheat penne pasta with beans, mixed fruit, and cucumbers. PM snack was animal crackers.

Have a great night!

-Mindy

“Has anyone ever been to Mexico? Has anyone ever had Mexican food?” These were the questions that began our journey into MEXICO! Jason Ruiz (Uncle Jason to Kai and Dylan), American Studies Professor at ND and Crystal’s dear friend, visited Wee Friends this morning to share the stories of his family’s native Mexico.

As always, friends had their passports stamped before joining flight attendant, Lisa, and special guest, Jason, onboard. Today, we had another special guest in the house, ANNIE! She wo-manned the immigration checkpoint with an “M for Mexico” stamp.

When the last friend had boarded, Jason began with a big “Bienvenidos a Mexico!” friends showered him with the answers to his questions and made their own observations:

In Mexico you eat:

• “Carrots!”
• “Sticky rice!”
• “I eat pasta!”
• “Are you Kai’s dad?”
• (Mexico) is next to California!”
• “I’ve been to Los Angeles and I saw a lot of people who speak Mexico.”

Jason explained that in order to speak the language of Mexico, Spanish, one must learn how to roll one’s ‘r’. Friends took a few moments to experiment with that.

Jason asked Wee Friends, “Do you know where your spine is?”

We learned that our neighbor, Mexico, also has a spine. The high mountain range that runs vertically through Mexico has a ridge that is likened to a spine. We learned that Mexico has 31 states and is the 13th largest country in our world.

Next we learned the Spanish word for several familiar images:

• Sol=sun
• playa=beach
• chipi chipi=light rain (Jason’s favorite kind of day in Mexico!)
• sandia=watermelon
• ninos=children

Jason told us a Mexican legend about the emblem on the country’s flag.

It is said that when the Aztecs were searching for a place to settle, a wise oracle instructed them to find land beside a lake. Near the lake, there would be a marshy region where they would see a cactus growing. Upon the cactus they would find an eagle with a snake in its mouth. It is there that the Aztecs should settled, instructed the oracle. The Aztecs found(ed) this very spot: Mexico City.

Jason taught us that Mexicans LOVE spicy food! He brought us three special food treats to sample:

• Sweet Galletitas
• Salty Chicharrons
• Spicy Chili covered lollipops

The sweet little cookies were devoured, the salty fried pork skins was devoured and the spicy, chili covered lollipops were….examined and consumed very carefully! The lollipop was a sweet, maize shaped candy that had been dipped in chili powder.

• Ada: “It sticks to my tongue!”
• Taylor: “It IS spicy!”
• Viv/Kai: “It’s too sweet.”
• Max: “No!”
• Nate: “I like it!”
• Arleigh: “I don’t want to try it.”
• Annie: “It stings my tongue.”
• Lea: “I like spicy food!”

When Jason poured the spicy picante sauce in a dish, many friends dipped their chicharron and lollipops in before eating them.

We said thank you and goodbye to Jason by singing Wee Friends Anthem #1 and Annie agreed to sing a song that she learned in her musical theatre camp this summer.

Muchos Gracias, UNCLE JASON for taking us all the way to Mexico and sharing with us, the wonderful stories and food of your culture. We hope you’ll come again!

Speaking of traveling around the world, Marta came home today! Welcome back, Marta!

Wee Sprouts: Cucumbers. Breakfast: Chex and raisins. Lunch: Whole wheat penne pasta, peas and fruit salad.

Buenos Dias y Adios.

 

Happy Friday!

We started the day off by dancing!

It then lead to a relaxation time where we listened to music. Ellie ran and got a soft teddy to lay her head on.

Chloe and Clara built with blocks this morning. The blocks are see through and have different objects in each block. One of the blocks has fish in it. Chloe and Clara made their fishy face to show their friends!

P.K. practiced flipping pancakes in the air.

We used new play-dough that Miss Tami made us! We used different tools as well as cut-outs.

Zoey is continuing to kick her feet up and down and bang them on the floor. She enjoyed holding a blanket which helped to comfort her.

For breakfast, children had cinnamon toast with raisins. AM snack was cucumbers.

Lunch consisted of whole wheat English muffin pizzas, frozen blueberries, cucumbers, and ham/cream cheese roll-ups. Our friends LOVED the frozen blueberries!

PM snack was vanilla yogurt with blueberries.

Have a safe and happy weekend!

-Mindy

Today, we say goodbye to Simon. We love you, Simon! Good luck at your new school and know how much your Wee Family will miss you! We hope you (and Bunny) will visit us and tell us tales of your next Great Adventure.

 

Today, friends painted their bone sculpted necklaces. We hopped in and out of the outdoors as rain permitted. We worked on a special card for Simon and Melinda played an observation game with the kids. She set out several items on the carpet. Friends studied the items, Melinda took one away, and then friends guessed which item was missing. We read books and had discussions about kindness and listening.

Wee Sprouts: WF garden cucumbers. Breakfast: Whole wheat English muffins with PB and cinnamon and pear slices. Lunch: Cheese pizza on whole wheat English muffins and ham and cream cheese rolled in whole wheat tortillas, WF garden tomatoes and pear slices.

For our pm snack, Simon has made us homemade tarts for his Sending Off Celebration!

Have a great weekend.

PS: We are starting to refurbish our art supplies! If you have lids (milk, salsa, PB or 2 liter pop bottles) and/or TP/Paper towel rolls, we’d welcome them! Thanks so much!

Good Afternoon!

Welcome back Daniel! Daniel travelled with his family for the past few weeks on a family vacation! We sure did miss him!

Children enjoyed listening to different stories being read.

It was all smiles at Wee Wee this morning!

Daniel worked with Legos and different fine motor activities.

P.K. and friends climbed on the jungle gym and exercised their gross motor abilities.

Zoey is talking more and more! She enjoys conversations that are happening throughout the house. When her friends are talking to one another, Zoey looks in their direction to listen.

This afternoon we started a new sensory activity. Children painted coffee liners using fall colors. We are going to string them in the entrance of our classroom! Our friends painted mutliple coffee liners while using different colors each time. They chose what color they would like to use.

For breakfast, children had Kix and oranges. AM snack was blueberry muffins. Lunch consisted of tortillas filled with cheese and black beans, cantaloupe, and green beans. PM snack was animal crackers and cantaloupe.

Have a terrific evening!

-Mindy

 

Happy Wednesday!

Water Wednesday was a success! Our friends loved splashing the water and smelling the soapy suds.

Marina took the soap sods in her hands and squeezed. Clara giggled as she felt the water on her stomach.

P.K. filled water into a container that had holes at the bottom. The water poured out of the holes and back into the sink.

Clara stared up at the sun that was coming through the window. Ellie joined in on the fun as children played with various animals.

Clara took a measuring cup and added a rock to it. She shook the measuring cup and the rock made a loud noise. When the rock fell out of the cup, she put it right back in.

The flowers smelled beautiful today.

Friends found chalk and drew on the black board. Clara decided to draw on the cement ground.

Zoey extended her arms out today as she lay on her belly. She stretches them out to the front of her as well as to the side. She’s learning how to become more stable as she’s laying on her stomach.

Zoey’s also beginning to take flying lessons!

Clara enjoyed playing peek-a-boo!

P.K.’s gross motor skills have been increasing on a daily basis. He runs all throughout the house. He has two favorite books of lately: ‘The Very Hungry Spider’ and ‘Baby Animals’. He came running with his book of choice wanting it read to him.

For breakfast, children had cinnamon bagels and banana. AM snack was green peas. Lunch consisted of whole wheat cous cous with ham and cheddar cheese, fresh mixed fruit (watermelon and cantaloupe), and carrots. PM snack was blueberry muffins and raisins.

Have a great evening!

-Mindy