Good Afternoon!

To start off the day, Clara waved bye-bye to her friends as she went to the door to leave. She made sure to grab her purse as she left! P.K. relaxed after eating breakfast.

We headed outside for water play! It was a hot day. We stayed in the shade and filled up the sensory water tub with cold water. Our friends used different toys while playing in the water. A few favorites included sponges and measuring cups that children filled with water and then dumped back in the water. They found that it made a splash!

Clara and P.K. were so enthused during water play, they let out a variety of screams!

Friends played with one another and shared toys.

Chloe had a fabulous time running through the sprinkler! She had a non stop smile on her face. She laughed when the water hit her face as she was running.

Clara joined Chloe in the sprinkler fun!

Our friends had a great time in the water. Children found out quickly that when they are wet and play in the sand or dirt, they become muddy and very dirty!

Marina opened her mouth wide to scream with excitement while running through the sprinkler. P.K. scratched his head while thinking what he should do next!

For breakfast, children had corn bran and oranges. Lunch consisted of egg salad sandwiches on whole wheat bread, cucumbers, and cottage cheese with fruit. PM snack was whole wheat crackers and bananas.

Have a wonderful evening!

-Mindy

Breakfast: Chex and pear slices. Wee Sprouts: Snap peas. Lunch: Egg salad on whole wheat bread, cucumber slices and pineapple.

Have a great day.

Happy Monday!

Hope everyone had a terrific weekend.

Our friends started their Monday off with gross motor activities. Children climbed, crawled, and jumped on our gross motor stairs and slide. Everyone is getting used to the new toy and the different things they can do on it.

P.K. and Clara had quiet time while sitting under the cubby area.

We started a painting activity today where children painted their hands and pushed their hand on the paper to make a hand print! We talked about the different colors that we used.

Outside, friends gathered in the sandbox where they filled different containers with sand. The sand was still wet from the rain we got over the weekend. Children liked the feeling of the wet sand on their hands. Clara decided to take shade shelter and play with the pebbles. She poured the pebbles from container to container.

P.K. scooped sand using a shovel into a bucket. He worked on his fine motor skills and then decided to switch to gross motor by bouncing on a bouncy ball. He held the railing and propelled himself up by using his legs.

Zoey grasped different toys today and then transferred them to her mouth. Her hand muscles are getting stronger along with her upper body! She can hold her head up for a longer period of time.

Marina played pretend by serving herself coffee and drinking it with a spoon.

For breakfast, children had chex and oranges. AM snack was carrots. Lunch consisted of pita bread with hummus, corn, and apples. PM snack was whole wheat crackers and string cheese.

Have a great evening!

-Mindy

Parents: Water play tomorrow!

Day 36 of Around the World in 55 Days. Whew. What incredibly imagined summer journeys  Wee Friends have taken, thanks to the great generosity of YOU…Wee Friends parents and families! THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!! Today, Amy Crosson guided our trip to…..

The Land of the Midnight Sun

We kept very busy this morning, waiting for our captain to arrive. Nate worked on a photo journal design project.

Macy, Max, Sophie, Jada and Sloane worked puzzles together.

Cassie and Arleigh continued their needlework on the Wee Friends House. Macy and Sydney joined in.

Ada found a quiet place to read.

And then it was time to take flight! Amy brought a Box of Sweden with her that included a variety of fabulous books, “Kubb” ( a Swedish outdoor game akin to chess), a map, a paper doll, a flag, a reindeer, an accent….and a fluent Swedish tongue.

Amy taught us that Sweden is called “The Land of the Midnight Sun” and that, during two summer months, the sun never sets! Swedes love to swim and the country is filled with moose and reindeer.

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We studied the Swedish flag and Amy named the two colors of the flag in Swedish.

She shared that her family lives very far north and showed us a fabric with an indigenous Swedish scene on it.

We learned a little about who the Vikings were! We agreed that they could be described as a people similar to pirates ….a little tough and not so very nice to others. We learned that there is a king and queen in Sweden.

We passed around a beautifully painted toy wooden reindeer.

Amy explained how far Sweden is from South Bend.

She regaled us with Swedish poetry, read in her lilting, musical Swedish accent. Our friends met the wildly fantabulous Pippin Longstocking!

Friends listened intently about Pippi and her life. We learned that she is strong enough to hold a horse with one hand. We also learned a few phrases from the the 1970’s TV show theme song “I am Pippi Longstocking.” Amy brought us a ‘wild natural treat from the Swedish forest’: Lingonberry jam on whole grain Wasa crackers. 

To the musical sounds of a Swedish Clap Song, we had our passports stamped and headed outdoors for a game of Kubb.

While all this was going on, Chef Lisa was in the kitchen whipping Swedish potatoes and rolling out Swedish meatballs! Thank you, Lisa, for the extra special lunch prep.

 

Tack så mycket, Amy! What a tremendous journey! We are grateful for your time, energy and knowledge of Sweden! SKOL!!!!!

Breakfast: Cheerios and bananas. Wee Sprouts: cucumber slices.

Have a great day.

Happy Friday!

**We’re asking current Wee Wee Friends families to please bring a family picture in next week if possible. We’d like to update the family picture board in the kitchen. Thanks!

Here are a few pictures that were taken throughout the day!

For breakfast, children had English muffins with cinnamon and apples. AM snack was green peas. Lunch consisted of turkey sandwiches, mixed fruit, and snap peas. PM snack was blueberry muffins and raisins.

Have a great weekend!

-Mindy

Chloe wanted to say “Cheese” to the camera. She ran towards the camera and got a little too close! So we tried the second time which was a success! She was shown the picture of her face up close and she said, “Look, Chloe!”

 

Leisure

What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
No time to stand beneath the boughs
And stare as long as sheep or cows.
No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.
No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night.
No time to turn at Beauty’s glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance.
No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began.
A poor life this is if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.

by William Henry Davies

Wee Sprouts are carrots and snap peas. Breakfast was whole wheat bagels with cream cheese and orange slices. Lunch was whole wheat sandwiches with turkey, watermelon and snap peas.

Have a leisurely weekend!

ps: scroll back to Thursday’s blog for contest info.

Good Afternoon!

Clara started her morning by dressing up and telling her friends “bye” as she went toward the door! She also showed affection toward her baby doll by giving it a hug and kiss. Being able to show affection towards others is an important skill that children learn as they get older.

Chloe worked on putting Legos together. She took two Legos and snapped them together. She built a tower and took it around the room to show her friends!

We worked on our gross motor skills this morning.

Children climbed on the jungle gym. They slide down the slide and jumped up and down!

P.K. then went over to the stairs and slide combination. He loves walking down the stairs and has started to run! His coordination is getting increasingly better with each day.

Our friends also played dress up this morning. Chloe admired herself in the mirror while wearing the magician cape.

Zoey spent the day touching her toes and grabbing them intensely. She also spent a good amount of time on the floor where she reached for different toys. While on the floor, she kicks her legs with force.

For breakfast, children enjoyed Kix and banana. AM snack was green peas. Lunch consisted of rice with pork, mixed fruit (watermelon, blueberries, cantaloupe), and cucumbers. PM snack was a yummy orange and banana smoothie which was delicious and pretzels.

Have a great evening!

-Mindy

The Wee day began like many other wonderful Wee days. There were smiles, uncertain goodbyes, letter explorations and writing projects….

…..Wee gymnasium workouts and balance beam practice….

…a healthy breakfast…..Chex and orange slices…

…a family of slugs hunt…and the sweetness of the slug discovery…

 

…ice cream preparation and sales….

…and a multi-step dump truck project.

 

And then something happened. Something the teachers couldn’t have planned with even the best intentions for a rich educational experience. When Melinda came into the yard, Elliott took her hand and said…”Look.”

And there it was. A very brave and skilled man (Steve) was standing in our neighbor’s tree. What ensued was an hour long mini-field trip to our neighbor’s back yard to study how Bobby, Steve and Eric from

removed our neighbor’s tree from the tip top to the ground.

It was very loud but our friends remained very interested. Melinda explained that what was flying out of the chute, into the truck, was mulch. Bobby willingly salvaged some of the mulch for our friends to better explore.

Bobby laughed and said that the log he was carrying weighed as much as four Wee Friends!Eric explained how to tell the age of the tree and also what the liquid oozing from the center of the log was.

By counting the rings in the log, friends discovered that this particular tree was 15 years old.

Our thank you came in the form of song as we belted out familiar repertoire: “Jackhammer Joy”, “Jack and the Beanstalk” and “Wee Friends, Anthem #1”.

The guys hung around for a photo op and we got to see pictures of Eric’s new 6 week old newborn, Shelby Grace.

 

We can’t thank “A Cut Above” and Bobby, Steve and Eric enough for sharing so generously their time, daring feats and expertise. YOU MADE OUR DAY!

Here are a few anonymous quotes. The first parent to match five quotes with their owner will win a batch of homemade WF cookies!!

Kid Quotes:

• “Those guys better be careful! Hey guys..be careful!”
• “It was very loud.”
• “There was white stuff coming out of the tree.”
• That can become pencils or paper.”
• “They put the wood in there and they turned it on a cut it.”
• “I like how they cut it.”
• “Cut.”
• “Bobby was my favorite. He carried the big giant log and he was nice.”
• “My favorite was when he cutted the tree.”
• “There was a man in a yellow shirt.”
• “I liked when they took a picture with us.”
• “They carried big logs! They did it!”
• “I liked when we sang to them and when the guy screwed up the wood.”
• “I liked the tree coming down and the guy climbing in the tree!”
• “I liked watching the noise. The wheel goes ‘cuz the log goes in, like that.”
• “I don’t want to talk about it right now.”
• “I didn’t like it.”
• “There’s blue rope, just like my dad’s.”
• “This looks like a piece of chicken.”

Teacher Quotes:

• “I know I’m getting old when just watching makes my joints ache.”
• “They really went out on a limb for us.”
• “Look! A real life Jack in the Beanstalk!”
• “Oh goody! More logs!”
• “The lesson plan for today is life experience!”
• “I noticed there were big spikes on (Steve’s) shoes used to dig into the tree so he could climb up.”
• “They were a cut above!”
• “That’s a dangerous piece of equipment!”
• “O my gosh, they are very strong!”
• “I’m stumped in amazement!”
• “This is tree-mendous!”
• “This is better than The Music Man!”
• “O my god! Their muscles are huge and strong!”
• “They must eat a lot of Wee Sprouts!”
• “When we are done, we’ll act like a tree and leave.”
• “This is building community.”

Contest in effect ‘til we have a winner. Come on….it will be fun…..

Happy Wednesday!

Our friends often turn to the camera, stop whatever their doing, and say, “Cheese!”

Today, we welcomed our newest friend, Daniel, to Wee Wee Friends! He had a short visit yesterday but he stayed for a while today to play with us. He especially liked playing with the trains this afternoon.

Marina and Emma travelled to the kitchen this morning where they played with different cars. Marina showed Emma how to push the car on a hard surface. Emma drove her car on the table as well as the floor and chair.

Marina then joined Chloe to color using markers. Marina was focused on drawing straight lines while Chloe chose to draw circles. Our friends are working on their fine motor skills by coloring and doing intricate movements with their hands.

The sprinkler was set outside to water the flowers and plants. P.K. enjoyed watching the water move and got excited when the mist hit him in the face!

Chloe made special music outside. She took pebbles and put them into a container. She then shook the container making music that she found very exciting!

We are all loving the new words that our friends are saying! After touching the slide, P.K. looked up and said, “Hot!” referring to the slide. Miss Mindy explained that since the hot sun is shining on the slide, the slide then becomes hot.

Zoey worked on her fine motor skills this afternoon while laying on her baby jungle gym. She reached for her favorite toy. She tugged on it with great force. Her goal was to put it in her mouth. She was successful!

She worked on her hand strength as she held a green soft ball in her hands.

Emma also held the ball in her hands. She threw it across the floor and then went to get it. This was done multiple times! She had a great time throwing the ball to her friends.

For breakfast, our friends enjoyed eggs with cheese, English muffins, and banana. AM snack was oranges. Lunch consisted of ham and cheese tortillas, mixed fruit, and peas. PM snack was animal crackers and oranges.

Have a “cheesy” evening!

-Mindy

 

Today our oldest friends took a field trip to Tami’s pool.

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Back in the classroom….Elliott directed a concert from a podium he built himself. He  conducted and belted out “Twinkle”, “Puff” and “ABC” with Sloane and Jada.

Melinda led a creative music session that ended with her playing the accordion-a favorite experience for Wee Friends! Among the many songs she played were “You’re a Grand Old Flag” and “Puff the Magic Dragon”.

We’re close to finishing our American flag.

Jada and Lea spent much of their morning working together, taking care of baby dolls, trying on different pairs of shoes and discussing different subjects.

We set out a question: “How many stars are on the United States Flag?”. Friends took turns drawing stars with a stencil, free handed and also sticking star stickers on.

While the older friends waited to depart, we worked on a couple clap songs: “Miss Mary Mack” and “Say, Say, Oh Playmate.”

Elliott served chocolate chip cookies with ice cream. Then he washed his own dishes!

Max worked with several cell phones, having conversations along the way.

Finn began working on a magnetic ball and sphere structure and Nate and  Max rushed over to join him.

And then came OUR special treat! The trampoline! Our Wee Friends were so very patient as they sat together on the Waiting Blanket.

Have a good day.