Simon's Stash

Simon's stash for last week -

1. Speech therapy tools
2. Worksheets with colored pencils
3. Coloring sheets with crayons
4. Stickers and paper
5. Cotton ball lamb craft (Easter theme)
6. Jello mix
7. Mickey mouse puzzle ($1 from Dollar Tree - about 1 out of five puzzles I get there are warped, but they are so cheap it isn't an issue)
8. Memory game
9. Dr. Suess door knob hanger (for Read Across America)

We had great celebrating Dr. Suess all week.

A Few Valentine's Day Ideas

A few random Valentine's Day ideas.

These are the Valentine's Simon made for his friends.

I got the idea here. It took us several nights of work to get 14 of them completed. We started out by tracing his hand repeatedly, then I took a night cutting out hearts, one night was gluing down the hand with thumb and forefinger, one night gluing down the other two fingers, and one night adding glitter paint. We were quite pleased with the result, and it was excellent reinforcement of his ASL (American Sign Language).

This is a craft Simon made at school...

And a cute crayon melt Valentine he received from a friend....

Cheerio Bird Feeders

These were a great deal of fun and a fantastic way for Simon to practice his fine motor skills. I got the idea from Preschool Playbook.

We started with four pipe cleaners and a bowl of Cheerios (okay, not Cheerios, whatever cheaper, circular cereal we got at Aldi). I put a loop in the bottom of each pipe cleaner to stop the cereal falling off. Simon and I took turns threading cereal onto the pipe cleaners until they were full. We made a counting game of it. I put on five - he put on five. I put on six - he put on six, etc. I put a loop in each end when the pipe cleaner was filled.

Simon, with a bit of a lift, hung the feeders from our deck.

The birds haven't had a chance to get at them yet, since it has been raining all day. I am sure they will enjoy them once we get another bit of sun.

Blossoming Tree Craft

We enjoyed reading My First Chinese New Year several times while Simon was learning about the holiday at school. (Don't even get me started about what a fabulous job his school did - they even had the head of Asian Studies from the largest university in the state come in and give a preschool appropriate talk on Chinese culture. I love Simon's school!) Simon liked the part in the story where the family buys blossoming branches to decorate the house. We made our own fingerprint blossoming tree inspired by Crafty-Crafted.

I drew the "tree" first with brown crayon. Simon dipped his finger in red paint to make some of the blossoms, and then dipped my finger in paint to made the rest.

Construction Vehicles in Shaving Cream Snow

It was my friend Kendra's brilliant idea to spray shaving cream on the table and let construction vehicles play in the "snow". I included a can of shaving cream (which has seen us through several crafts) and some small construction vehicles in last week's stash. It was brilliant fun! The small trucks got buried in a snow drift, so we had to bring in the recycling truck and Scoop to rescue them. (The trucks washed off very easily and are no worse for wear - the same may be said for the child.)

Panda Bear Craft ...and other fun with shaving cream

This was meant to be a polar bear based on this craft, but since I chose to make some changes, I feel that it ended up looking a bit more like a panda bear than a polar bear. This is in keeping with this week's theme for our stash, I suppose, since Simon is learning about Chinese New Year at school.

We started with:

Shaving cream
White glue
Two large black circles, cut from construction paper
Three small black circles, cut from construction paper
A "v", cut from construction paper
A circle of cardboard, cut from the back of a cracker box

We mixed 1/8 cup of shaving cream with 1/8 cup glue in our bowl, then had a lovely time smearing it all over our cardboard. Simon carefully placed the facial features on top. After a night of drying, this was our finished product.

The texture of the paint is fantastic, and Simon is fascinated with how it is dry but still a bit pliant.

After we had put our bear together, Simon still wanted to play with the shaving cream. I helped him spray it all over the table, and then we had fun writing our names in it and making a mess. (A mess that smells good and is easy to clean up.)

I used to do this when I taught preschool, until the powers that be decided the kids might try to eat it and dictated that whipped cream be used instead (which is only a good idea if you like children who smell of sour milk). I assure you that Simon ingested no shaving cream and had a lovely time.

Stash x2

For a quick recap: Simon's stash is a small laundry basket that stays in our dining area. Each Sunday I refill it with education activities. The goal is to complete one activity each night. Some of the items stay in the basket all week (like puzzles) while others are replenished as they are used (like coloring pages). Materials for activities needing multiple parts or supplies are placed in bags. This has been an excellent tool for ensuring that Simon and I get quality time together after work/school.

Last week's stash:
1. Preschool worksheets (thank you Dollar Tree) with crayons
2. Old catalog with scissors to practice cutting
3. Muffin mix
3. Alphabet puzzle cards
4. Sequencing set (we got ours from Scholastic - here is a similar activity)
5. Supplies for bird popsicles
6. Supplies for polar bear craft
7. Coloring pages with markers
8. Speech therapy supplies (Simon recently started speech)
The stash is sitting on some polar bear books that I pulled to go with the unit his preschool class was studying.

This week's stash:
1. Coloring pages and colored pencils
2. Worksheets and crayons
3. My First Wooden Matching Puzzle Spell and Learn (I paid about $3 on clearance at Ross)
4. Jello mix
5. Strawberry Shortcake Old Maid
6. Shaving cream and small construction vehicles (it was my friend Kendra's idea to spray shaving cream on the table and let the construction vehicles play in the "snow")
7. Stickers and paper
8. A toilet paper dragon
9. Speech therapy supplies

I updated my original Simon's Stash blog to show state standards met by each activity.

Popsicles for the Birds

One of the crafts in our stash this week was popsicles for the birds - an idea inspired by Ice Ornaments.
First, I let Simon pour birdseed into plastic containers.
Second, he poured one cup of water into each container.
Finally, he lay a piece of yard into each container with enough hanging out to tie onto a branch.

We placed the containers in the freezer. We checked them a couple of times before bed so that Simon could see how the water temperature was changing and how ice was forming on the surface. The next morning, he was chuffed to see they were completely frozen. When we returned home from work/preschool, I took him outside to hang the bird popsicles (which popped easily out of the containers) to one of our evergreen trees.

The yard happened to be full of birds, so Simon tried to speed the melting process in order to feed them, but found the ice a bit to thick to "bam" apart.

He settled for going inside and looking through our Audobon guide to see who might be eating the seeds once the ice melted.

Overall, a successful, education, enjoyable project;)

Snow Foam

Last week, one of the crafts in Simon's stash was snow foam.  We had a ton of fun with it! In fact, Simon kept saying, "We're having so much fun! We're having a great time, aren't we?"

We mixed 1 cup of shaving cream with 1 cup of white glue to make our foam. Them, we finger painted on 12x12 sheets of sturdy scrapbook paper (salvaged from my pre-motherhood art supplies, which have all now gone to Simon).  We had great fun exploring the texture of the foam and drawing through it with our fingers and the cap from the empty glue bottle.

We ended up with a plethora of finished products - here is a sampling.

I love the one with our hand prints! We plan to do this again when we have friends over, since it was cheap,  easy to set up, and easy to clean up.

Knut the Baby Polar Bear

Continuing with Simon's week of polar bears, we made our own Knut the Baby Polar Bear. I got the idea here and simply modified it a bit. First, I let Simon glue cotton "snowballs" across the bottom of a piece of blue paper. (Yes - I let a three year old glue - I am brave.) Then, I painted his hand white and let him make a hand print. After the print was dry, I used a sharpie to define his hand as Knut.

Although the real Knut tragically passed away last year, the board book based on his early life is a very sweet story.

Two notes:  First, Stone says, "You are going to have to explain that we have custody of Simon." Well...there you are. We have custody of Simon.

Second, I promise there will be recipes here again. I am just terribly knackered tonight, and an art project will have to suffice for now:)

So lovely to be seeing all of your blogs again and hearing from you!

Polar Bear Cookies

Simon has been learning all about winter and the arctic at school this month. To reinforce that, we have tried a few winter crafts and recipes. This week we made polar bear cookies. I found the idea here but modified it because the original ingredients don't work (three Hershey's kisses on an Oreo will not fit well).

We broke three Oreo cookies in half and placed the icing covered sides on our plate. Then, Simon gave them mini-marshmallow ears by smashing the marshmallows down in the icing. He added two chocolate chips for eyes and one for a nose. The results were cute, and he had done it all himself!

While Simon was eating his creations, we read two books featuring polar bears. First, God Gave Us You. This is the story of a mother polar bear explaining to her cub how parents anticipate the birth of a child.

Second, we read On the Night You Were Born. In this beautifully illustrated book, the whole world rejoices at the birth of a baby. Simon adores this book and is convinced it was written about him. Who am I to tell him otherwise? ;)

With my baby on the way, Simon has needed to be reassured that his arrival was also greatly anticipated - that just as much fuss was made over him. Add a bit of chocolate to that, and you have some great togetherness time. 

Preschool Stash

One of the stresses of being pregnant has been the worry that I am not spending as much quality time with Simon as I need to. We still spend time together, and I make sure that Stone or I read him at least six books every day, but there are times at the end of the day when I think, "What else did I do with him today that was real, quality time?" I feel like too much of that quality time has been lost, first to me having to rest and -since I am feeling well - to my mad cleaning and baby preparations.

This weekend, I came up with a partial solution that I am calling "Simon's Stash". I bought a cheap, small laundry basket at the Dollar Tree and filled it with all kinds of brain enriching activities. My goal is to do at least one activity with Simon per day.

On Sunday, the basket contained the following:
1. A box of Jello for us to make together
2. A Ziplock bag containing a matching game cut from HighFive magazine
3. A 25 piece puzzle
4. A Ziplock bag containing all of the supplies for snow paint
5. A Ziplock bag containing all of the supplies for a toilet paper roll shepherd
6. A Ziplock bag containing coloring pages and crayons
7. A Ziplock bag containing preschool worksheets and a writing utensil
8. A Ziplock bag containing Play Doh and some Play Doh tools

Here is the basic plan for the basket:
I will offer Simon some Stash time every day. He can choose whatever activity he wants. If we have time, and he feels like it, we can do more than one activity. Reusable (Play Doh, puzzle, matching game, etc.) will stay in the box for one calendar week. Single use items (coloring pages, crafts, etc.) will be replaced as they are used.

Each item in the box correlates to one of our state standards for three year olds.
1. Jello - Cognitive/Social Emotional: Social Studies: Human Interactions/Cultures: Develops growing awareness of jobs and what is required to perform them.
2. Matching Game - Social and Emotional Development: Approaches to Learning: Cooperation: Engages in cooperative play with other children. (Okay, I am not other children, but we still take turns.)
3. Puzzle - Cognitive Development: Early Literacy: Whole-Part Relationship: Completes puzzles of 4 to 10 pieces. 
4.  Snow Paint - Cognitive Development: Science: Physical Science: Begins to participate in simple investigations to test observations.
5. TP Shepherd - Social and Emotional Development: Approaches to Learning: Self Control: Gains control over impulses. (Simon has to wait to play with his TP person until the glue dries). 
6. Coloring sheets - Cognitive/Social Development: Creative Arts: Art: Scribbles and paints.
7. Worksheets - Cognitive Development: Early Literacy: Visual Discrimination: Can discriminate which pictured objects are alike or different based on color, shape, size, and number.
8. Play Doh - Cognitive/Social-Emotional Development: Creative Arts: Art: Uses a variety of art materials for tactile experience and exploration.

So far, Simon's Stash is working well. His eyes lit up when I showed it to him, and Simon's Stash time has been a daily treat. He is loving the choices and the knowledge that we will have structured time together at the end of the day. I am going to bed knowing that I have spent time bonding with him and nurturing his brain.

Speaking of which, since he has been patiently sitting beside me and reading to himself for the last few minutes, it is Stash time!

Cooking with Simon, Soy Cream - 3 points, Chocolate Corn Pop Clusters- 3 points

Weight Watchers has been sending me challenges to try as part of the Points Plus system. The one for this week was to invite someone into the kitchen to cook with me. It was supposed to be someone who does not normally help me. I am surrounded by very helpful people, so it was difficult to think of someone who is often around but not often doing kitchen duty. Then it came to me - Simon!

My nephew is often under foot when I am cooking, but he has never helped much. He has mashed bananas a few times, but we have never walked step by step through a  recipe together. I was working on a cooking project for us and happened to come across a recipe for soy cream in his High Five magazine. It was lots of fun to make!

Chocolate Soy Cream
1/2 cup chocolate soy milk
1 tbsp sugar
lots of ice
7 tbsp salt

1. Place several cups of ice in a gallon sized Ziplock bag. Top with salt.
2. In a quart size Ziplock bag, combine soy milk and sugar. Seal the bag tightly and place it on top of the ice in the gallon bag.
3. Pour more ice in over the soy milk bag. Seal the gallon bag tightly.
4. Shake the gallon bag for 5-10 minutes, until the soy mixture has hardened. (This part was lots and lots of fun. We wore gloves to protect our hands and made up very complex songs like, "Shake it, Simon, shake it. Shake it, Auntie, shake it!")
5. Yields 1, 3 point serving

Stone is having a dessert party tomorrow (his kids picked the theme) but has lots and lots and lots of graduate work to do this week. Last night, Simon and I graciously volunteered to help him by making Stone's contribution to the party. I looked around my kitchen - which is looking very much like the larder of a teacher who has come to the last budget week of the month (in other words, poorly stocked). Hmmm...what do I have? Corn Pops. Chocolate chips.

So, I searched the blogusphere and found a recipe for chocolate Corn Pop clusters at Sunday Treats. We had a blast making them. Simon especially enjoyed melting the chocolate in the microwave. "It look like chocolate yogurt, Auntie!"

Chocolate Corn Pop Clusters from Sunday Treats where they were adapted from Kellog's
2 cups chocolate chips
2 cups butterscotch chips
4 tbsp peanut butter
8 cups Corn Pops

1. Combine chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, and peanut butter in a large, microwave safe bowl. To melt, microwave on high, stirring at 30 second intervals until smooth.
2. Add Corn Pops to bowl and stir to coat.
3. Drop by rounded tablespoons full onto waxed paper. Cool until firm.
4. Yields 50, 3 point servings

Please keep in mind that Simon is the one who spooned these out. I think he did an excellent job for a two year old!

Do you think he likes them?

Now, on a completely separate note. My friend Deborah took a trip to China to do volunteer work at an orphanage. While she was there, she fell in love with a beautiful little boy named Jack who has special needs. She and her husband (along with their four little girls) are in the process of adopting Jack. It is very expensive, and they need all the help they can get. If you are a coffee lover, please consider looking at this post. You can order some delicious, fair trade, organic coffee and help bring Jack home. In any case, I hope that you will send loving thoughts to this family as they work to complete the piles of paperwork that stand between Jack and the family who wants him to come home.