‘All I really need is love, but a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt…’  Lucy Van Pelt, Peanuts
‘ Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day.’  Unknown
Today I Got a Valentine
Today I Got a Valentine
from everyone but Kay.
But that’s alright . . .
I never liked her that much anyway.
She never trades her Oreos.
She isn’t good at catch.
She doesn’t like my favorite bands.
Her socks don’t often match.
She doesn’t play computer games.
She wears her hair in braids.
She’s something of a teacher’s pet
and …

Here it is New Year’s Eve. I’ve just been to the market to pick up some appetizers and a couple of desserts to bring to a party which will be fun in which to indulge along with the other tempting dishes…but the problem is the aftermath affect it will have when I attempt to shop for clothes during the Winter Clearance Sales! I’ll moan, accented with many whimpers, and come home with clothes for the grandkids instead. And, just like every other January, I will vow to begin another diet …

Out with the old, in with the new…odd socks!
It is the beginning of a New Year so that means revisiting old resolutions and making new ones. One New Year’s resolution I keep is to start the New Year by cleaning out drawers and removing unwanted clutter. By getting rid of the old, I’m actually making room for the new that I know will eventually takes its place. The sock drawer is a good starting point when teaching young children how to organize their drawers. This “chore” can be made into …

Funeral poems are difficult to choose for a special, loving grandmother while emotions are at their peak. You have friends that want to help you in any way they can. One way they can help while you are grieving the loss of your grandmother is to ask them to search for five grandmother funeral or memorial poems. From those five funeral poems, you can choose one poem that comes the closest to expressing what your grandmother meant to you. You can then make the memorial poem your own by adding or changing words or lines.
The Journey’s Just Begun
Don’t think of …

Merry Christmas to you! I have written a Christmas poem using internal rhyme which I am posting for the first time. At the end of The Christmas Elf Meets the Christmas Mouse are a few questions that are meant to be used to open a dialogue about Christmas wishes, the meaning of Christmas, and the simple lesson or two that Elf may have learned from this experience. I would love to hear what answers your child or grandchild had for the questions at the end.
The Christmas Elf Meets the Christmas Mouse is …

Listening to and singing Christmas songs is a fun way to teach children about poems and rhyme. As you enjoy the Christmas songs with your children or grandchildren, make a game of discovering the rhyming words – whether it is end rhyme or internal rhyme. Everyone loves singing Jingle Bells, Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, and Frosty the Snowman, just to name a few of my old favorites that are great examples of alliteration, too. Plus, there are some classic Christmas movies that just can’t be left out of the fun Christmas nostalgia list, such as …

Christmas handprint crafts are easy and fun to make! This version of Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer is easier for the youngest to make with a little help from grandma or grandpa. This Christmas handprint craft can be made to hang as a decoration or placed on a larger sheet of paper and laminated to be used as a Christmas placemat. Make one for each Christmas dinner guest, too!
All you need to do is to first trace your grandchild’s hands on dark brown paper (antlers) and cut out. Next draw …