Each week when the kids leave on Friday, I always hope that they come back on Monday healthy. Â We have been so plagued with coughs and colds this week. Â I have NEVER had anything like this before. Â NEVER. Â I keep being amazed that I’m not getting more bugs than I am. Â When a blog reader, Ila, said I live in a petri dish, she was SO right.
Last weekend was same…runny nosed, coughing kids left on Friday and prayed for a good Monday with healthy kiddos, then realized I had President’s Day off so prayed for healthy kids to return on Tuesday. Â It didn’t happen.
As of Thursday I three kids on antibiotics. Â The cough and colds have been terrible. Â The baby even got RSV. Â It just doesn’t end…and as proof of that, Friday morning one of the school aged kids started puking and Friday I sent another home complaining of a tummy ache…and one with an ear infection. Â UGH.
Even with the “yuck” we did a few fun things.
We made these trains one day. Â The 2-3 year olds are learning the letters in their names. Â The engine has the kids name on it and the box cars all have the letters of their name.
The trains are staying here and the kiddos are going to practice recognizing the letters in their name and putting them in order. Â The kids love doing this.
I know of a few of you who read the blog are teachers, grandparents who provide childcare or are involved with kiddos in some way. Â It anyone wants the programmable train print off to make this, drop me an email to rogjok@iowatelecom.net and I’ll send it your way. Â The request can only come to that email or I can’t get it to you.
Remember my little girl who wants me to make her a quilt? Â For a long time she was stuck on Zuckerwatte from Bonnie Hunter’s String Fling book. Â Well I almost had a little problem. Â She started paging through Bonnie’s newest book, Addicted to Scraps and found the quilt Twirl Around. Â Well…now she’s not sure which quilt I should make. Â At this point I have two of Zucherwattes cut out and partially sewn so I’m REALLY hoping she sticks with Zuckerwatte. Â She’s observant enough to know if I “made the wrong one”.
She’s a real quilt lover.
Friday school was cancelled so Neighbor Girl was here all day. Â She loves babies. Â She played with Carver for a long time. Â Here they are playing “So Big”.These two are big buddies.
I needed something to break up the day Friday and wanted an easy project for the kids to do. Â It’s hard because Neighbor Girl is in 4th grade but I also have two year olds that want to do the same project.
I ended up coming up with this…simple and easy. Â Each kid did their projects their own way. Â I let them choose a large white or black piece of construction paper. Â Then I game them a basket of pieces of paper I had cut. Â Pieces varied from long to short, square to rectangle to triangles.
Here’s Neighbor Girls….
..and a five year olds….
and a three year olds. Â With the three year old we focused on how to use glue sticks. Â She was suppose to put the glue on the piece but she got a little carried away. Â They often think glue sticks are markers.
It was something they all could do and they seemed to enjoy it. Â The great part is we can do this project again and again. Â Â The pictures will be different each time.
..and what’s a Childcare Chronicle without a picture of Ruby. Â Here my little guy was watching television. Â He rested on Ruby while he did. Â She stayed there as long as he wanted her too…and she put up with a stuffed dinosaur in her face too. Â She’s so good with the kids….so good.
I’m so thankful that we can still fit in fun but an entire group of healthy kids would be one of the biggest blessings I could have at this point…so it’s the weekend and I’m back to saying the same prayer…please let the kids come back healthy.
Love reading about your childcare adventures! You are so creative! What a treasure you are to all those children, especially the Neighbor girl.
Thanks for the cute train name idea Jo!
We too have had our share of the coughs
Runny noses. Spring is coming
Carver looks super happy playing with Neighbor Girl! And Ruby is such a trooper!
What a good dog she is! So patient.
Love the name recognition trains. I’m a retired kindergarten teacher but just came seem to leave it behind me! Also love how you made the art project to work with all levels as well. Your child care families are very lucky to have you…but I’m sure they must know that.
You do so well with the kids. I enjoy reading about it. I liked the quilt the baby is sitting on. Looks like a cathedral windows made with blue jeans? I copied a pattern similar to that off the internet. On my bucket list of things to try.
I love hearing about Neighbor Girl! I am so glad that you two found each other. The best part of this article is how Roger worked on Neighbor Girl’s bike. Reminds me of how my daddy worked on our bikes. Dad built bikes for each of us kids with parts from old bikes he found in the dump. Such wonderful memories. Neighbor Girl is going to think the same thing when she is my age.
Jo, I love seeing pictures and stories of all the children who stay with you. These children will always remember the things you have done with them. Our daughter had a person who kept her when she was little. To this day, she talks about her sometimes. The little girl who loves quilts is something. Hope she doesn’t change her mind on her choice of quilts!
Thoughts and prayers for healthy children next week!
Take care.
Great post! I work in a University–another Petri dish!
I’m sewing the binding on my Twirl Around today. Mine isn’t pink, though. :)
OH that’s the downside of taking care of Children! ILLNESS! I do love the kids construction paper art work. I think the first one and the last one could be quilts.
Friday-Sunday, lysol and clorox!
Joy I love your blog so much ,you are like a Grammie to all of those children and they will never forget you . I love your little girl from next door ,I have two grandchildren but are both boys and not too interested in sewing. My one boy is blind and when he was little loved to sit on my knee when I was sewing and was very interested in my machine but nowhere he is ten so not too interested anymore. Your blog is so interesting I wish I lived closer and I would sent you some fabric but postal rates are so expensive in Canada. Do you think sending by Manilla envelope or by box is better? I am going to look into it. I also enjoy hearing about your family, l was a RN but am retired now but love hearing about your daughters they are such lovely young women and Carver is a really a sweetie pie . Hugs and Blessings Sandra
Your Zuckerwatte story is too cute. Your childcare children and their families are so fortunate to have you caring for their little ones! We had a whole school district closed last week due to the flu. One of the local weathermen wondered if it was because of fluctuations in the weather we have had this winter.