Funny Friday December 2019: Ruff Life

Hey O friends!

Today’s post is this month’s Funny Friday, a regular feature published on the last Friday of every month. Funny Friday is a collaborative project. Each month one of the participants submits a picture, then we all write 5 captions or thoughts inspired by that month’s picture. Links to the other bloggers’ posts are below, click on them and see what they’ve come up with. I hope we bring a smile to your face as you start your weekend.

Here’s today’s picture. It was submitted by me!

This is a photo of BallPark Frank, age 13

1.  BallPark: "Let a family rescue you, they said. They will treat you with dignity in your final years. Yeah, right."

2.  BallPark:  "I'll put on your silly outfit (ONCE!) for the low-low price of a Sirloin Steak."

3.  BallPark: "If any of the other hound dogs see this picture, my reputation as 'Alpha Dog' is over."

4.  Ballpark: "How do I simultaneously look like I hate this AND love how everything feels at the same time?"

5.  BallPark: "The humans bought ME jammies for Christmas too? Don't make eye contact or you'll cry. I really am part of a family!"

Happy New Year, friends!

-Michele

Click on the links below and let some other bloggers make you smile!
Happy Weekend, friends.
-Michele

Baking In A Tornado

               Spatulas on Parade 
              Southern Belle Charm  

Use Your Words: December 2019: Sweet.

Hey-O friends!

Today’s post is a writing challenge created by Karen @ Baking in A Tornado.  8 participating bloggers picked 4 – 6 words for someone else to use in a post. All words must be used at least once. All posts will be different as each writer has received their own original set of words. No blogger knows who received their words or in what direction the writer will take them. Until today.   

My words are: 

wind ~ profit ~ lady ~ base ~ older

They were submitted by Dawn@: https://spatulasonparade.blogspot.com

Thanks, Dawn!

Once in a while, when the wind blows just right, I remember how much I miss teaching. The ache for it happens much less now that I'm older and my energy isn't as high. Still, I stop and reminisce about how much joy I had telling stories, doing activities, and watching children's eyes glow in awe as they learned while having fun.

I'm not working for profit anymore. I'm no longer teaching a room full of young people. But something wonderful has taken up my free time. Grandkids! Like my own children, they won't stay young for long, so I am choosing to soak up every minute I get with them. 

One of the perks of getting to watch my five-year-old grandson, S. three mornings a week, is getting to share with him some of the activities I once did with my students.

This past week, S. and I read four different versions of "The Gingerbread Man". I taught him a song and we acted out the story with little finger puppets. He was able to retell the saga to his grandpa and watch him laugh at S.'s storytelling.

On another day, we made paper gingerbread people and tried to come up with solutions on how to make sure the Gingerbread Man would stay in the oven until the old lady could take him out to decorate. (The old lady in the story, not me.)
S.'s solution was to tape the base of the cookie to the pan! Haha. We finished that morning decorating gingerbread people.

decorating and tasting Gingerbread Men

Putting the Paper guy who's taped to the pan in the (turned off) oven,

On the last day, we decorated a gingerbread house, discussing what rooms might be inside and which window the "real" gingerbread man might have jumped from.

 S. was engrossed the whole time. You know it might be going well if your sugared-up little man keeps his attention focused for large chunks of time.

I was in charge of the glue.

Some might say, "Big Deal, you had fun. It's just a little kid. What does that have to do with teaching?"
My answer is that the whole thing was teaching/learning. Without calling it what it was, S., age five, was learning:

*What a beginning, a middle, and an end are in a story."
*How to retell a story.
*How to talk about how four different stories of the same Gingerbread man can be different.
*Learning the words to, and reciting a song.
*small motor skills of decorating tiny ginger people cookie.
*small motor skills of cutting and gluing paper gingerbread guy. (and taping him to a pan!)
*Hypothesizing the ending of a 5th story based on the other versions of said story. (Using prior knowledge).
*Coming up with solutions to problems. (How would we keep him in the oven?) 
*Spatial skills/Problem solving (Imagining where rooms are located in the Gingerbread house and knowing that the Gingerbread man escaped through a window, where the kitchen might be.

*Senses: How the cookies smelled, how the candies tasted sweet and sour, hearing and singing notes in a song, how cookies feel (HOT!) coming out of an oven, and how the house and cookies looked with different colored decorations.
*Sharing: retelling the story to Grandpa, and later, to sisters and brothers. S. took all the cookies home, so I'll assume he shared those cookies with family.

Those are some skills, man! Children are incredible.

What in the world does any of that matter? Sometimes we underestimate the capabilities and hands-on knowledge that little people gain, simply by playing/experimenting. No written tests needed. Just experiences.

Ugh. Those sweet little hands.

Lord, I've missed it. Thank heavens for grandbabies. And for the simplest of stories.



Have a sweet weekend, friends.
-Michele

Links to the other “Use Your Words” posts:

                     Baking In A Tornado

              Wandering Web Designer

                     Spatulas on Parade

                           On the Border 

                                Sarah Nolan

                   Southern Belle Charm  

                                     Climaxed   

     Part-time Working Hockey Mom           

Funny Friday November 2019: Gone to the Dogs

Today’s post is this month’s Funny Friday, a regular feature published on the last Friday of every month. Funny Friday is a collaborative project. Each month one of the participants submits a picture, then we all write 5 captions or thoughts inspired by that month’s picture. Links to the other bloggers’ posts are below, click on them and see what they’ve come up with. I hope we bring a smile to your face as you start your weekend.

Here’s today’s picture. It was submitted by me!

The photo is of our two dogs, BallPark Frank (age 13), and Henry (age7).

1. Henry to BallPark: "When I put my paw on your shoulder, close your eyes. The people won't make us get off the bed if we're asleep."

2. BallPark: "No one told me I'd be with a dog who snores..."

3. Ballpark: "If I go to sleep right now I'll get a good 14 hours in. In the meantime, let me think of every mistake I've ever made." 

4. BallPark: "Hmm, I'm warm and comfy, but now I have to pee.

5. BallPark to Henry: "Yeah, this position is making me feel uncomfortable."

Click on the links below and let some other bloggers make you smile!
Happy Weekend, friends.
-Michele

Baking In A Tornado

               Spatulas on Parade 
              Southern Belle Charm