Playing Mommy

"We say that a girl with her doll anticipates the mother. It is more true, perhaps, that most mothers are still but children with playthings." ~ F. H. Bradley

I've been having some fun this week looking through pictures of little girls and dolls. Now anyone who had known me well in the past would know that as a child, I loved playing with dolls and had the same experience with my two daughters. Not only did they enjoy their dolls, but I enjoyed their dolls almost as much as I had my own. It is a definite fact that our dollies were, in fact, members of the family. Actually, they still are.

Now, in looking through these various photos and paintings of girls and dolls, I've discovered something. To the child, a doll can fulfill several roles. It can provide companionship, be a little "me" who can wear the same outfits, be a student, be a patient, and who knows what else. But more often than not, with the heart of a little girl being what it so often is, you'll find that this little make believe person is someone whom the child can "mother." Somewhere in the interaction between the girl and the doll, you will see it come out. And sometimes the pretend child is almost as big, if not bigger, than the real one. How delightful it is to watch the child's imagination and play. And we all know how important this play is; in fact it has often been called the child's "work." But it is in many ways usually preparing them for adulthood.

Now you may be wondering why this sudden interest in dolls to the extent that I would be perusing photos of them. Well, the reason is our new board at Pinterest. Having recently pinned an absolutely gorgeous vintage photo of a young girl and her doll, this whole idea of "playing mommy" was so apparent, it inspired me to do a whole board dedicated to the concept. So, I've been looking for pictures to put on it, and you won't be surprised to find out there are many to choose from. There are so many pictures of girls and dolls, however, that I decided to be rather choosy about it. You'll see that the focus is not on the dolls themselves, but the children. It's what the child is doing with relation to the doll(s) that I've been trying to capture, or something in her demeanor that caused me to gravitate to a particular photo. Sometimes, it's the look on her face.

You can just imagine how much fun this has been! And you'll even see a few pictures with a little girl and a real live younger person who's being mothered! Remember, we're focusing on the maternal instinct which comes out at a very early age. The board is here and the photo above is typical of what you'll find there: Budding mommies "playing," but in reality, preparing for the future.

Jigsaw Puzzles

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28

Isn’t that ever an important truth to teach our children? So many things in life, when taken alone, will never give us real insight into what God’s big plan is for us. His ways are right and good, though very often we're not able to see that rightness and goodness at a particular time. Some of those “things” are difficult and painful. Some bring joy and gladness. But if we are to trust this beloved passage of Scripture and embrace it, we have to believe it in the dark times as well as when the sun is shining.

Sometimes children go through darkness; life isn’t always bright and carefree for youngsters. There are times when sickness comes, either in their own bodies, or in that of someone dear to them. If you think hard enough, you'll even think of some children you know who are right now going through tough times.  Actually, there are often valleys which children have to go through, more than we may think, if it hasn’t touched our own kids’ lives yet.

I have a suggestion: use jigsaw puzzles as a means to teach this truth. How about finding one where the completed picture is one which will be pleasing to them, a picture of something they enjoy or like. Work on the puzzle together, pointing out that some of the pieces have colors which are not very attractive when taken alone. But then you can tell them how those particularly “unattractive” or darkly colored pieces are each a necessary part of the total. In fact, the finished work would be lacking without them.

My oldest granddaughters both like doing jigsaw puzzles and I LOVE doing them with them.The older one has done a few really complex ones all by herself. Both girls are delighted when they get one all finished and so are the rest of us.  I sure do hope they continue to enjoy doing these puzzles and that their parents will take every opportunity to help this activity teach them Romans 8:28. Hopefully, I can have some input too. Perhaps this will be an incentive for you to make use of this important tool for teaching many spiritual truths.

Lovingly,
Maxine, a/k/a Nanna 

Unusual Ice Cream Cone

Now isn't this a good idea?

Source: rugged-life.com via Speakable Gifts on Pinterest

KOC Crossword

I feel I've been neglecting the Kids of Courage here a bit, and certainly don't want to do that. I notice today they posted a crossword puzzle which is a worthwhile activity for your children to do. They can learn and benefit a lot from doing this puzzle and I would encourage your family to bookmark and go to the KOC site from time to time. Surely the children of this generation can't be hurt by having something to pray for outside of their own interests and needs. For this particular puzzle, why not sit down together and finish the puzzle over there ?

Blessings,
Maxine, a/k/a Nanna

Maypole!

Two days before the first of May but it's not too late to make something special. When I was young, we played around an actual maypole in the school playground with crepe paper streamers. But those days are over. But you still can have a maypole! Make the day special with your own little party in your home. This cake is a great idea and I have NO doubt the average child will love it.

Source: studiodiy.com via Speakable Gifts on Pinterest

Ten Terrific Birthday Traditions

Source: creativewithkids.com via Alissa :: Creative With Kids on Pinterest

One Hundredth Day Project

Just wanted to share my granddaughter's 100 day project they did in their homeschool yesterday. There's lots of ideas floating around for these projects, and this is another one that she, mom, and little sister did together. They thought up the idea themselves, and it's a basket of flowers with one hundred things she's learned so far. It's also a basket of blessings if you ask me. What a fun project it was!

Maxine a/k/a Nanna

Farmer's Almanac Online Style

Just thought it's a good time to remind you once again of this great website which is full of riches for you and your children. Love gardening at your house? Then go here and the regular OFA site to take advantage of their gardening section. Start out here and go from there. Look around all over for info and fun for the family!

The general Farmers Almanac site is here.

Gardening With Kids

In one of our 2008 newsletters, we had a delightful article on gardening with children, and somehow, to our dismay, the article was deleted. However, we still have the links which we had shared in that article and thought we'd give you a link to the page, as many folks are thinking about this topic now that we're coming out of the throes of quite a difficult winter.

Someone wrote us last week to say they had benefited from the article and also to send us a great link on herb gardening. So go now to our "Gardening With Kids" page and take advantage of the various links offered there.

By the way, above is a picture of my granddaughter who made a pretty good attempt at gardening that same year at the ripe old age of two!

Blessings,
Maxine

Orange Pomanders

I had my daughter make this for my mom years ago when she (my daughter) was a little girl who liked doing projects. It really did have a pleasant smell and Mom loved it, mainly because her beloved granddaughter had made it. I don't know how long you can access the instructions from the link, but check over at The Old Farmer's Almanac for this and other activities for your kids.

Commandments Calendar

I think this is really a great way to teach the ten commandments this coming year: One of my favorite sites has calendars children can create with all types of themes, but I particularly like this one with the ten commandments. You print the calendars with images or without images (so your kids can draw their own), and you can make yearly or monthly printouts. Great if you want to make some up and give as New Year's gifts since it's too late for Christmas.

SG had a calendar publication which has now been discontinued for sale, but it was good for giving as gifts for Sunday school students at Christmas. These would work as well. Nice project for children who like to draw and/or color.

Praying that the coming year is blessed indeed for your family.

Total Lunar Eclipse

Nice show put on courtesy of our Creator God in the early morning hours of December 21st. If you can afford the lost sleep and if the weather would permit doing so from outside, no doubt this would be quite worth while observing with your kids. More information is at The Old Farmers Almanac site. Please bookmark the sky watch page for kids to use in your science studies.

Candy Corn Cookies

Candy corn is one of my favorite treats for this time of year. I could go on and on stuffing them in if a bowl is set before me. YUMMY! I saw this unusual recipe on one of my Yahoo groups today and wanted to pass it on. Might be a fun activity for you and your kids, only I would change the margarine to butter. For our household, margarine is a no-no for flavor. It's got to be butter for baking. Anyway, hop on over to the "Cooking with Kids" site and enjoy!

On Line Puzzles at TOFA

The Old Farmers Almanac kids section has some fun online puzzles your children might enjoy doing. You'll find them here. Hope they enjoy!

Build a Dollhouse

I came across the following website quite by accident and I LOVE it!!! I just HAD to pass it on to folks who come here to HCG so that you can bookmark it. Excellent project(s) for the whole family to work on together and a wonderful hobby for older boys and girls alike. You'll find links to all kinds of goodies, especially for art and applying math skills. Hats off to this lady, Jennifer; I sure do wish I had tried this when my children were smaller.

Dollhouses are so great. And making your own. . .well, that's the best. Hours of enjoyment for young people of all ages and surely you'll agree that it reaps lots of imaginative benefits as well as decorating skills which will be useful in future days.

If any of you out there do try your hand at any of these projects, please let us know how you make out. Go now to Let's Build a Dollhouse and look around!

Coloring

There is one thing modern technology hasn't ruined. We can still give our kids a blank piece of paper and a box of crayons and keep them occupied for who knows how long. And what benefits! The TV and computer have not yet taken away this wonderful means of encouraging imagination and quiet time activity. Do you keep the projects that your children so lovingly give you? You can always date them, punch holes, and start a notebook to give to them when they graduate from high school! Wish I had done that!

And aren't coloring books wonderful ? One of the few things that is still cheap at that!

Maxine

Learning from Joseph

We're having VBS at our church this week and our theme is the story of Joseph. Need I tell you of the many lessons which kids can learn from this Bible character? It's a story of forgiveness, of course, but there are many other important Biblical truths to be learned. Have you ever read through the account of Joseph to see all of the similarities to Jesus in his person and life? You might want to get out a little notepad and jot them down. You may be surprised at how many there are. Our pastor handed out a listing of some. Here's an interesting one: "Both Joseph and Jesus were stripped of their clothes." That's really something! I hope you'll be teaching your children about this Old Testament saint, instilling meaningful lessons of godly principles while you do. He's one of those Christian heroes we want to hold before them, even if he was from long ago.

The above image is a little craft you can do with children from this story, either in your home school or Sunday school. It's one of the many neat crafts found at a favorite site of mine. Go here to check out this activity and many others.