Today’s Guest: We are pleased to welcome Lisa Callsen to the show. She will be talking to us about Signing for Parents and Baby.

Story:

Thomas the Little Tailor
The Brother Grimm’s, Revision of Household Tales
By Mary Beth Marino and Pam Sargant

Used for Blog-Talk Radio Story-Hour, February, 2008

Once upon a time in a land far away there lived a little tailor named Thomas. One morning Thomas was sitting by the window, working cheerfully away, when he heard an old woman down in the street calling, “Good jelly to sell! Good jelly to sell!

Thomas smiled and called out “Here! I’ll buy some of that good jelly!” He selected two of his favorite flavors and eagerly took them into the kitchen to taste them. He took two thick slices of bread and spread out the jelly, brought them back into his work area and sat down to have a treat while he worked.

Before long several flies caught the scent of the wonderful jelly and came to have a treat themselves. Thomas did not like the idea of sharing his special treat with flies and started waving this way and that, trying to get rid of them. Finally he brought his two hands together with a loud SNAP! When he opened his hands again he found that he had caught 7 of them. Seven flies with one blow! As he went to wash his hands that phrase kept repeating in his mind and the little tailor was very pleased with himself. He didn’t think there was anyone in the world so skilled as to catch 7 flies with one blow.

Thomas went back to his window to continue his work and finish his treat. While he worked he started to sing a little song to himself.

Seven came and thought they’d stay
Ruining everything as they play

I told them all to go away
And seven with one blow I did slay

Thomas was working on a very nice belt for the Mayor, but he was getting so carried away, he decided to make it for himself instead, and stitched “Seven with one blow” right across the middle. He could always make another belt for the Mayor. He tried it on for size.

Then Thomas decided it might be time for him to go out on his own to seek his fortune. He gathered some things into a pack and before he could change his mind set off with a skip and a whistle.

Thomas was well into his journey, many miles from home, when he came upon a huge giant sitting against a tree. Now you would think that Thomas would be afraid, but not anymore…after all, his belt said, “seven in one blow”!

The overly brave Thomas, boldly called out to the giant, “Hello, Giant! I’m on my way to seek my fortune, do you know where I can find it?”

The giant glanced at Thomas and then decided to ignore him. Many a man would feel lucky to be ignored by a giant.
But Thomas was not afraid; he threw open his coat and showed the giant his belt with the inscription,“seven at one blow!”

Now the big giant looked twice at Thomas! This small human must be something special. But the giant decided to test Thomas himself and see just how great he really was.

The giant put Thomas through some tests. One was to get water from stone. Thomas knew he was not strong enough to do what the giant had done, but he put his brain to work on the problem. He had some cheese in his pack that looked like stone. He took it out and squeezed as hard as he could. There was a puddle of water at his feet! The giant was impressed.

Which each new test Thomas searched his brain and found some way to do the things the huge man asked of him. In the end, the two men sat down together for a rest and a good meal. The giant told Thomas of a nearby kingdom where he could try his fortune, “But be careful.” The huge man said, “I have two brothers who live near there and they are not as nice as I am.” After their meal, Thomas cheerfully went off in that direction, promising to be careful.

When Thomas reached the kingdom, he made his way through the castle town to the castle itself. On the way he heard many tales about the two giants who made messes all over the kingdom. He also heard that who ever got rid of the giants could marry the King’s beautiful daughter. By the time Thomas reached the castle he had an idea of how to do this.

“oh good King”, Thomas said. I hear you are having terrible problems with two mean giants who are making a terrible mess all over your kingdom. With your permission, I have a plan on how to take care of those giants and get rid of them once and for all.”

“How can such a little man take care of such big giants?’ the king asked.

“Trust me King”, Thomas said, throwing open his coat so the King could see his awesome belt”

The King, seeing the inscription on Thomas’ belt, “seven with one blow”, he realized that Thomas was just not “some little man”, but maybe a very powerful little man!

“O.k. Thomas, go and take care of those awful giants who are making a mess of my kingdom. I will give you the promised rewards if you can get rid of those giants once and for all”.

So, off Thomas went into the woods in search of the two mean giants.

He found the giants sleeping soundly under a huge oak tree. They were snoring so loudly, they did not hear Thomas creep up. Thomas picked up a large stone and a large metal cone and put them into a bag. Then Thomas quietly climbed up to top branch of the highest tree he could find and hid himself under the leaves, so the giants couldn’t see him.

Thomas counted, 1…2…3! And then dropped the brick on one of the giants. Thomas watched from the treetop, and heard the giant roar! Then he saw the giant stand up and start yelling at the other giant!

“You should NOT have thrown a brick at me”, he roared waking up the other giant who did not have a clue what was going on! Thomas then took out the large cone and yelled into it in his deepest voice. The cone made his voice boom over the countryside. “I threw the stone!” The two giants looked around. They could tell that whoever spoke was much taller than them but they couldn’t see a thing. “It must be a humungous invisible giant!” The older of the two whispered.

Thomas watched as the giants started to make poking motions around the area trying to find the other giant, then brought the cone to his mouth once more. “This is MY kingdom now! Leave before I step on you!”

The two giants looked at each other then up in the air around them. They were starting to get scared. Thomas brought the cone to his lips one more time and made the loudest scariest roar he could manage.

That did it, the giants did not wait to see what would happen and took off through the woods. They did not stop until they reached the other side of the world.

Thomas climbed down from the tree and was so proud of himself that he decided to add another inscription to his belt, “One blow and two giants, gone!”

So Thomas the Tailor, went back to the castle, and reported to the King that both giants would NOT be messing up his kingdom any more. The King was very impressed with Thomas and fulfilled his promise. Thomas and the king’s daughter were married, which made Thomas a prince. One day, he would own the keys to the kingdom and live happily ever after, knowing he had never in his life hurt a human being, but he did swat 7 flies all at one time.

Craft:

3-D Owl

 Today’s Guest: We were happy to welcome Katherine Reschke to the show. We discussed getting an active 3 year old to settle down for a group storytime and getting a stubborn child to listen to his parents.

Craft:

Easter Egg Pinata

Materials:

• Strips of newspaper
• balloon
• thin glue
• colored tissue paper
• scissors
• string

1. Prepare the papier mache glue.
2. Blow up the balloon and tie it
3. Dip the newspaper strips into the glue one at a time making  them completely  wet. Plaster them onto the balloon until the balloon is completely covered. Make sure newspaper overlaps.
4. Allow to dry
5. Cut a hole in the top, popping the balloon. Keep the piece you cut out.
6. Take the popped balloon out of the paper mache shape
7. Decorate your pinata. One way to do this is to wrap a small piece of colored tissue paper around the end the flat end of a pencil, covering the end completely. Dip into glue. Then glue to the pinata leaving a flower shaped piece of tissue.
8. Fill pinata with candy
9. Put the cut out piece back onto the top and seal it with paper mache glue or tape

About Our Guest: Crystal Pina of Crystal Visions Administration. She is the mother of 5 and unschooled the youngest two since they were in grades 5 and 6. Today she will be talking to us about what unschooling is and giving us some facts and resources to unschooling and homeschooling.

Easter Egg Flowers

Materials Needed

• 8 Egg shaped Styrofoam balls
• 8 Pipe Cleaners
• Paint
• Construction paper
• Pie tins
• Scissors
• Markers

1. Pour paint into the tin plates, leaving one plate for mixing.
2. Stick one pipe cleaner into each egg shaped ball
3. Dip “eggs” into paint then roll in empty plate to create swirly designs
4. Allow to dry
5. While paint is drying, use markers to draw out flower shapes on the construction paper
6. Cut out shapes
7. Find the center of each flower shape and cut a small hole
8. Push the flower shape onto the pipe cleaner so that it rests just under the egg shapes
9. Add extra flower layers or leaves if desired

Poem from Crystals daughter Erica.

Today’s Guests:

Michael Smith is from Buxton Derbyshire in England. He is currently studying media, at the University of Derby, Buxton. At the age of 10, was diagnosed with Dyslexia, in 2000 his mum heard a radio interview with Winford Dores, the founder of the DDAT, talking about Dyslexia, and from that one interview started down a path which has helped Michael, gain a better understanding of his dyslexia, and while not cured, is a lot better than he used to be.

Sandra Weber is the host of WAHF Radio and the mother of 7 children, 2 of which were diagnosed with Dyslexia.

Her husband Thierry was also diagnosed with Dyslexia at the age of 11 and is the owner of Jungle Dad Productions.

_____________________________________________________________

Cut-out 3-D flower

Materials Needed:

· Heavy Cardboard

· Construction Paper

· Pipe Cleaners

· Glue

· Scissors

· Glitter

· Hole Punch (Optional)

· Poster Board

This craft also requires a bit of preparation on the part of the parent. Draw a flower shape on a piece of cardboard. This can be a minimum of four petals, but as many petals as your child would like. I found that four petals work best for this craft. Cut out the flower shape and use that as a template. Trace the flower shape onto several pieces of construction paper. You should have at least four copies for each child. You should also give them a choice of colors, so make a few extra. You can have your child cut these out or do it yourself beforehand. Kindergarten teachers always seem to be concerned if your child does not know how to handle scissors, so teaching them yourself through crafts like this are recommended. It is always recommended that young children be well supervised whenever using tools such as scissors.

Now comes the fun part, decorating the flowers. There are a variety of items your child can use to decorate. Let his/her imagination take full reign for this. Use glue and glitter, a hole-punch, stickers, crayons, etc.

While they are doing this, you can glue a pipe cleaner onto poster board. This will be our stem. It will take time for the glue to dry enough for the pipe cleaner to stay. You can also cut out a strip of construction paper to use instead.

Once your child is finished decorating his/her flower petals they can glue the flower petals one on top of each other onto the poster board, overtop of the stem. Give an eighth of a turn to each set of petals to make the flower look fuller, then curl or bend the petals upwards to give them a 3-d look.

To finish off the flower, you can trace and cut out leaves, and put a circle for the center. These can be glued onto the poster board as well.

If you look closely at some flowers you will notice little straight parts coming from the center, called stamens. You can add these as well with curled pieces of construction paper or pipe cleaner. You might even want to take this opportunity to teach your child a bit more about nature. The flowers use these stamens to pollinate themselves through bees and other small insects. Another idea is to draw and cut out a bee shape, color it, and add it to the flower picture. You can either add it right onto the poster board or use a strip of construction paper folded in an accordion shape to make the bee look like it’s flying.

_____________________________________________________________

Bobby and Susie Bake some Cookies

“I am so excited today!” Susie shouted to her mom as she ran down the stairs to go eat her breakfast.

“Why are you so excited dear?” her mom asked as she smiled at her pretty blond six year old bundle of energy.

“Remember? This is the day that I get to go to Bobby’s house after school! We are going to bake a whole bunch a treats with his mommy!”

Suzie chattered on excitedly during breakfast about how much fun she would have at Bobby’s house. She thought it was wonderful that Bobby’s mother got to stay home and cook all day. Suzie’s mommy agreed that it would be great to be able to stay at home instead of working in the post office all day.

“Some mommies just have jobs that they can do from home. Bobby’s mommy makes dinners and desserts for restaurants and parties. Your mommy runs the mailroom at the post office and makes sure everyone gets their letters from their Grandmas and Santa. We all have important jobs; just some jobs can be done from home.”

Her mother kissed her gently on the head while she played with Susie’s ponytail.

“Now go wash your face for school, the bus will be here in a moment.”

Her mother gently shooed her out the door towards the washroom.

All through school, Susie could not sit still, thoughts of strawberry cakes and big fat chocolate chip cookies kept dancing through her head. She could not wait to be able to go to Bobby’s and meet his Mommy.

Finally the day was over. Susie rushed to put her coat and boots on and meet up with Bobby outside.

Bobby’s mommy was waiting outside in their blue mini van with the cool TV for watching movies.

They all climbed in and drove to Bobby’s apartment which was in a nice area with a big park full of trees, swings, slides, and a wading pool for in the summer. Susie thought she would love to come over in the summer to swim and play.

When they got into the house Susie smiled. It smelled like fresh bread and brownies. Yum.

“Susie, come into the kitchen and we will make some chocolate chip cookies for the bake sale at the church on Saturday. Have you ever baked before?” Bobby’s mother asked with a smile as she tied her pink frilly apron around her waist.

Bobby went to a large cupboard and opened the doors. Inside the cupboard Susie could see bags of raisins, chocolate chips, candy sprinkles, nuts and other goodies used to mix in cookie dough.

“Oh this is going to be so much fun! This will be my first time making cookies.” she said with a laugh.

“Well then, this will be a treat.” Bobby’s mommy said with joy.

Susie and Bobby had a lot of fun learning to bake with his Mommy. Soon they were done, and headed off to play in the living room.

While they played, Susie could hear Bobby’s Mommy making plans on the phone to make a lasagna dinner and salad for one of her customers.

“Having your mom home to do stuff with is great isn’t it Bobby?” Susie asked.

“Yeah, it is. But she still has to work; she has lots of paper stuff to do so I can’t bug her too much. I just help her when she bakes cookies. That’s my favorite part.” Bobby grinned as he finished putting the cards face down for their game.

“Does your mom cook all day, every day Bobby?”

“Mom usually talks on the phone a lot. People call her all the time to make orders. Sometimes she gets big party orders, and then she is running around all over the kitchen trying to make all these meals. Other days she doesn’t get any work, and then gets upset cause she has nothing to do. I hear her talking to Daddy some days and she wonders if she should just go back to being the manager of a restaurant. But most days she gets orders that are just right and she can make them no problem, and get them delivered. She likes to make special sandwiches and salads the most I think because she always seems to sing and be in a better mood when she has these kinds of jobs.” Bobby replied with a crooked grin.

“My mommy works in the post office. She is in charge of all the mail coming in and making sure it goes to the right addresses. Her job is pretty important too, I know but sometimes I wish she could stay home and be with me.” Susie commented with a frown.

“It is nice to be able to come home to your mom after school, but sometimes she gets cranky. Sometimes she has to do deliveries when I want to do something else. If she doesn’t have work to do, she doesn’t get any money. Your mommy always gets money because she has a regular job. That is good, especially when your daddy doesn’t live with you.” Bobby spoke as if he were much older than his seven years.

Susie sat back and thought about what Bobby had just said. Bobby was right. Her mommy had to make sure she made money all the time. With Susie’s daddy not around her mommy had to pay for everything all by herself. Susie did miss having her mommy be home all day with her, but Susie also knew that when her mommy did come home at night she always made sure to spend lots of time with her.

They would talk about their day during dinner. Then after Susie would do homework at the table while her mom cleaned up. Her mommy liked to be close by in case Susie needed help with her homework. Then when she was done, they would cuddle up under a blanket on the couch to watch a Disney movie. Susie smiled. She was glad to have special time with her mommy and wouldn’t trade it for the world. Susie looked forward to going back home in a little while to spend some time with her mom.

By Melanie Bremner- 2008

________________________________________________________________

Song of the week:

When will it Snow?

When will it snow

Oh when will it snow?

There’s school tomorrow

I don’t want to go

I’m dreaming of angels

With snowy wings

Sliding down hills

And snowball flings

I’ll build a fort

From which to plan

A glorious battle

With my friend Dan

I sit by the window

I watch and I wait

If it doesn’t snow soon

It will be too late

There’s school tomorrow

I don’t want to go

When will it snow

Oh when will it snow?

I’d really like to know.

___________________________________________________________________

Links mentioned in the show:

http://www.sokarsstudio.net/about/page20/page20.html

http://www.sokarsstudio.net

http://www.dore.co.uk/

http://www.interdys.org/ the International Dyslexia Association

http://www.bdadyslexia.org.uk/ The British Dyslexia Association

http://www.dyslexia.com/ Dyslexia the Gift

http://www.dyslexiaaction.org.uk/ Dyslexia Action

http://www.dyslexia.com/qafame.htm Famous People with the Gift of Dyslexia

http://www.dys-add.com/symptoms.html Symptoms of Dyslexia

http://jungledad.momsbooknook.com/ Jungle Dad Productions

http://www.wahftalkradio.com Work at Home Family Radio

http://ebooks4families.biz/shop/ Informational E Books for Families

In this day and age, people are plagued with self doubt, lack of self worth, and feeling insignificant. Parents struggle every day to put food on the table and pay the bills; there is often no time left to help their children grow into happy, healthy adults.

Children are cruel and often say hurtful things that can scar a young child’s psyche for years to come. When there is no positive reinforcement from home, the child often tends to allow the negative comments to take a hold and a belief system is born.

Every day on the television we see the horrors of daily life in which we are subjected to. More often than not, the evils that surround us go unmentioned in our own world due to the emotions that encompass them. Although we do not mean to, the effects of our hidden secrets, control our sub conscious mind causing a negative impact on the necessary outlook that we enforce. If we are unable to provide a positive attitude in which to offer our own children, they will more than likely grow up with the same lack of self confidence or esteem.

Although we can not always control our external environment and circumstances which surround us, we can have control over how we react to what is within our own walls. Our children are the number one most important asset that we are given. It is not only our duty and responsibility to ensure they are raised with a healthy ego, it should be our prime concern to ensure they know the power contained within maintaining a positive outlook on life.

If you allow your children to grow and mature as they have been ordained to do so, encouraging them to follow their own desires, creative activities, and innovative ideas, they will learn to believe in themselves regardless of what others may do or say. We can help our children learn to become leaders. We can help our children know what it feels like to stand proud over their achievements and remain strong and assured as they venture forth into another adventure.

We all have the power within us to decide for ourselves what type of people we want to be. We have the power to show our children that regardless of how dismal our surroundings, we can make a conscious effort to gain and hold onto the positive in everything, no matter how hard.

There is no measure for a child’s smile, a spontaneous loving hug, or the proud look of accomplishment on your child’s face when they are awarded for a job well done. All these can be yours to share if you can find the time to spend with your children teaching them the value of love, trust, honesty, and total acceptance for who they are. If you help to foster a resilient attitude within them, together you will be able to rise above and mature into healthy, happy people who will be able to handle anything that comes your way.

About the Author

Melanie Bremner is presently running and maintaining an online Family EBook Sales shop, and produces a weekly newsletter full of stories, facts and fun for the whole family.

Sign up for her newsletter and receive a monthly bonus. http://ebooks4families.biz

Welcome to the Puddle People Hour!

Each show will include an interview or discussion related to children or parenting issues, a craft, songs, and a story.

Some of the resources that will be showcased on the show come from The Mother’s Survival Kit Series. If you would like your own copy of the book you can pick it up at http://www.pamsargant.com in the store. You can also find great gear in our Cafepress Store!

This is a kid friendly show, so feel free to cuddle your little one on your lap while you listen in.

Listeners (yes kids too with parental approval) are welcome to call in during the show with questions or comments. (646) 378-1633

Katherine Reschke born in England, UK and originally trained as an elementary school teacher. She left the teaching profession to become a full time mom and has 3 children. She came to the States in 1999 and worked as a substitute teacher before training as a coach. Her ethos as a parenting coach is that her clients are the experts in their family and know the best answers once they are asked the right questions. She helps all her clients catch their children being good.

Her website is www.betterparentingcoach.com and her email is coach@betterparentingcoach.com

This is a story from public domain through Project Gutenburg Canada

The WOLF and the SEVEN LITTLE GOATS

THERE was once an old goat who had seven little ones, and was as fond of
them as ever mother was of her children. One day she had to go into the
wood to fetch food for them, so she called them all round her.

“Dear children,” said she, “I am going out into the wood; and while I am
gone, be on your guard against the wolf, for if he were once to get
inside he would eat you up, skin, bones, and all. The wretch often
disguises himself, but he may always be known by his hoarse voice and
black paws.”

“Dear mother,” answered the kids, “you need not be afraid, we will take
good care of ourselves.” And the mother bleated good-bye, and went on
her way with an easy mind.

It was not long before some one came knocking at the house-door, and
crying out,

“Open the door, my dear children, your mother is come back, and has
brought each of you something.”

But the little kids knew it was the wolf by the hoarse voice.

“We will not open the door,” cried they; “you are not our mother, she
has a delicate and sweet voice, and your voice is hoarse; you must be
the wolf.”

Then off went the wolf to a shop and bought a big lump of chalk, and ate
it up to make his voice soft. And then he came back, knocked at the
house-door, and cried,

“Open the door, my dear children, your mother is here, and has brought
each of you something.”

But the wolf had put up his black paws against the window, and the kids
seeing this, cried out,

“We will not open the door; our mother has no black paws like you; you
must be the wolf.”

The wolf then ran to a baker.

“Baker,” said he, “I am hurt in the foot; pray spread some dough over
the place.”

And when the baker had plastered his feet, he ran to the miller.

“Miller,” said he, “strew me some white meal over my paws.” But the
miller refused, thinking the wolf must be meaning harm to some one.

“If you don’t do it,” cried the wolf, “I’ll eat you up!”

And the miller was afraid and did as he was told. And that just shows
what men are.

And now came the rogue the third time to the door and knocked. “Open,
children!” cried he. “Your dear mother has come home, and brought you
each something from the wood.”

“First show us your paws,” said the kids, “so that we may know if you
are really our mother or not.”

And he put up his paws against the window, and when they saw that they
were white, all seemed right, and they opened the door; and when he was
inside they saw it was the wolf, and they were terrified and tried to
hide themselves. One ran under the table, the second got into the bed,
the third into the oven, the fourth in the kitchen, the fifth in the
cupboard, the sixth under the sink, the seventh in the clock-case. But
the wolf found them all, and gave them short shrift; one after the other
he swallowed down, all but the youngest, who was hid in the clock-case.
And so the wolf, having got what he wanted, strolled forth into the
green meadows, and laying himself down under a tree, he fell asleep.

Not long after, the mother goat came back from the wood; and, oh! what a
sight met her eyes! the door was standing wide open, table, chairs, and
stools, all thrown about, dishes broken, quilt and pillows torn off the
bed. She sought her children, they were nowhere to be found. She called
to each of them by name, but nobody answered, until she came to the name
of the youngest.

“Here I am, mother,” a little voice cried, “here, in the clock-case.”

And so she helped him out, and heard how the wolf had come, and eaten
all the rest. And you may think how she cried for the loss of her dear
children. At last in her grief she wandered out of doors, and the
youngest kid with her; and when they came into the meadow, there they
saw the wolf lying under a tree, and snoring so that the branches shook.
The mother goat looked at him carefully on all sides and she noticed how
something inside his body was moving and struggling.

“Dear me!” thought she, “can it be that my poor children that he
devoured for his evening meal are still alive?” And she sent the little
kid back to the house for a pair of shears, and needle, and thread. Then
she cut the wolf’s body open, and no sooner had she made one snip than
out came the head of one of the kids, and then another snip, and then
one after the other the six little kids all jumped out alive and well,
for in his greediness the rogue had swallowed them down whole. How
delightful this was! so they comforted their dear mother and hopped
about like tailors at a wedding.

“Now fetch some good hard stones,” said the mother, “and we will fill
his body with them, as he lies asleep.”

And so they fetched some in all haste, and put them inside him, and the
mother sewed him up so quickly again that he was none the wiser.

When the wolf at last awoke, and got up, the stones inside him made him
feel very thirsty, and as he was going to the brook to drink, they
struck and rattled one against another. And so he cried out:

“What is this I feel inside me
Knocking hard against my bones?
How should such a thing betide me!
They were kids, and now they’re stones.”

So he came to the brook, and stooped to drink, but the heavy stones
weighed him down, so he fell over into the water and was drowned. And
when the seven little kids saw it they came up running.

“The wolf is dead, the wolf is dead!” they cried, and taking hands, they
danced with their mother all about the place.

Paper Plate Space Ship

Materials:
- 3 Paper Plates
- 3 Plastic forks
- Tape/Glue
- Paint
- Markers
- Crayons
1. Take two of the paper plates and line them up bottom to bottom.
2. Glue or tape the two plates together
3. Take the forks and stick the end without the tynes into the plates for landing gear, make sure they are tilted out at a 45 degree angle
4. Tape the forks into place.
5. Take the 3rd plate and place it over the top to create a saucer
6. Tape or glue into place
(Another way to do this is to use yarn and a plastic darning needle to sew them together)
7. Decorate your space ship.

Make some variations on this. For instance, cut a door into the top plate that will open and close.

Popping Corn
Lyrics by Pam Sargant
© August 14, 2006

Pop, pop, pop, goes the popping corn
Pop, pop, pop, from night till morn
It popped so high
That it touched the sky
Still pop, pop, pop, goes the popping corn I went to make some popping corn
All my friends they tried to warn
Not to use too much
Not to use too much
I didn’t listen to them at all
That little cup just looked too small
I put a bit too much
I put a bit too much
OH! Pop, pop, pop, goes the popping corn
Pop, pop, pop, from night till morn
It popped so high
That it touched the sky
Still pop, pop, pop, goes the popping corn I never thought such a small little thing
Could get so big and then take wing
I put in way too much
I put in way too much
The next time I am popping corn
I’ll listen when they try to warn me
Not to put too much
I won’t put in too much
STILL!

Pop, pop, pop, goes the popping corn
Pop, pop, pop, from night till morn
It popped so high
That it touched the sky
Still pop, pop, pop, goes the popping corn

 

For the third year in a row, Miracles of Hope, http://www.miracles-of-hope.com, is collecting Prom Dresses for Katrina Victims through Becca‘s Closet, http://www.beccascloset.org.

The Prom Dress campaign, for those who don’t know the story, began with Rebecca Kirtman, a remarkably caring 16 year old from Florida. In the spring of her freshman year at Nova High School, Rebecca started a dress bank to provide dresses and accessories to high school girls who wanted to attend their prom or homecoming but could not afford it. That year, Becca was able to collect over 250 prom dresses. Regretfully, Becca passed away in a tragic automobile accident on August 20, 2003, but her legacy goes on through the efforts of friends and family.

Last year Becca’s Closet and Sharon Stone’s organization, Planet Hope, helped Miracles of Hope with every single girl who contacted them for help. In addition, Planet Hope also donated two designer gowns, along with accessories of jewelry and perfume for the girls. Donations are accepted all year long, however, the deadline for this prom season is April.

Miracles-of-hope.com is helping direct collections to the areas who need help, for example, there is a group of 40 high school musicians who are going to New Orleans to give a concert and donate 100K worth of musical instruments. They contacted Miracles of Hope because a couple of the girls want to collect gowns so they are setting them up for their collection to go to a Becca’s Closet chapter in that area. Denise Marhoefer, founder of Miracles of Hope, also says that, “anyone who would want to collect and be responsible for sending them to the Katrina area can collect for me that way, I have people on the ground there who can distribute.” She goes on to say that she is concentrating on helping the hardest hit areas this year.

The Miracles of Hope Network is a fantastic organization dedicated to helping children all over the world. The description on their website states, “Miracles Of Hope Network is made up of child agencies, organizations, and celebrities world-wide, who are dedicated to the creation and restoration of good in the lives of children.” These agencies and organizations include: The Defense Foundation for Children, The Juvenile Defender, Healing Horses, Brainstormers INC, and 911 Gear.

You can visit http://www.miracles-of-hope.com and view a “RockYou” slideshow of the beautiful gowns. It is amazing to see one girl’s legacy touch so many hearts. The inspired spirit of humanity moves on.

If you would like to assist in this worthwhile project, please visit http://www.beccascloset.org to either find a chapter near you or start a chapter of your own. You can also contact Denise Marhoefer at defensefoundation@gmail.com for information about sending dresses directly to the Katrina area for distribution.

Written in collaboration with Mary Beth Marino, The Writing Editor, www.thewritingeditor.com

Today I’m talking with two aspiring young writers, Amanda D. and Ashley A. of Florida. These two young ladies started writing within the last year and it was a joy to speak with them about their writing and then they even added some of their ideas about crafts. Thanks girls….you were both fun to have on the show.

Valentine Snowflake Heart Card

Materials:

• Plain white paper
• Red construction paper
• Scissors
• Markers
• Glue

1. Take the white paper and fold in half
2. Cut out a half heart shape with the middle of the heart towards the fold
3. Fold the half heart down so that the top of the heart is in line with the bottom point
4. Fold in half again from left to right. so taht the outside curve of the heart meets the point
5. Fold diagonally
6. If you want you can fold diagonally again
7. Take the scissors and cut out shapes, Try cutting out half hearts
8. Open your heart and see what design you came up with
9. Fold red card in half if it is the large size, or leave flat if it is the small size
10. Glue heart to to front of the card.
11. Write your Valentine’s message around the heart
12. Decorate the rest of the card as you see fit

Make your own Glue

2 parts flour to 1 part water plus 1 tsp of salt
mix well
to make thicker add flour a little at a time
to make thinner add water a little at a time
save in airtight container

I gave my Love a Cherry (Riddle Song) circa 1850 (Traditional) I gave my love a cherry that had no stone
I gave my love a chicken that had no bone
I gave my love a story that had no end
I gave my love a baby with no cryin How can you have a cherry that has no stone
How can you have a chicken that has no bone
How can you have a story that has no end
How can you have a baby with no cryinA cherry when it’s a-bloomin it has no stone
A chicken when it’s piping it has no bone
The story that I love you it has no end
A baby when she’s sleeping has no cryin
nooo
A baby when she’s sleeping has no cryin

Rocking the Baby to Sleep
Music and Lyrics by Pam Sargant
© August 14, 2006 Back and forth
Back and forth
Rocking the baby to sleep
Forth and back
Forth and back
Rocking the baby to sleep As I sit here rocking
And dreaming away
I wonder what life will
Hold for you someday
For as long as I live
Till time passes away
I will care for you
And I’m rocking the baby to sleepBack and forth
Back and forth
Rocking the baby to sleep
Forth and back
Forth and back
Rocking the baby to sleepMy precious little one
Asleep in my arms
I will make sure that
You come to no harm
For as long as I live
Till time passes away
I will care for you
And I’m rocking the baby to sleepBack and forth
Back and forth
Back and forth
Back and forth

Welcome to the Puddle People Hour!

Each show will include an interview or discussion related to children or parenting issues, a craft, songs, and a story.

Some of the resources that will be showcased on the show come from The Mother’s Survival Kit Series. If you would like your own copy of the book you can pick it up at http://www.pamsargant.com in the store. You can also find great gear in our Cafepress Store!

This is a kid friendly show, so feel free to cuddle your little one on your lap while you listen in.

Listeners (yes kids too with parental approval) are welcome to call in during the show with questions or comments. (646) 378-1633

Resources mentioned in the show

Pop bottle lid wind chime

Materials Needed:
• 8 Pop Bottle Lids
• String
• 1 Margarine Container Lid
• Glitter (Optional)
• Paint (Optional)
• Plastic Pop Bottle Lid Liners (Optional)
• Beads (Optional)
• Buttons (Optional)
• Small jingle bells

The first step for this craft is a little preparation. You should remove the plastic liners from the pop bottle lids and wash them along with the lids. We are going to save the liners to decorate this craft or to use in another craft. Poke a hole into the center of each pop bottle lid and into the center of the larger lid. Poke ten holes around the rim of the margarine container lid, equal distances from each other around the edge and one in the center. You need 10 pieces of string about 8 inches long and 1 piece about 10 – 12 inches long.
The next step is the fun part. Get the kids to decorate the pop bottle lids and the margarine lid. Be creative with this. They can glue glitter and/or paint the lids. They can put beads or liners on the strings for decoration. Beads make better sounds.

Take every other string from around the edge of the margarine lid and tie them together to hang your wind chime. Thread each remaining string through a pop bottle lid and tie a small bell at the end.
Thread the longer string through the remaining three bottle lids. Thread the upper part of the string through the margarine lid. Tie it off with a good knot or a button.
Your wind chime is ready to hang.

Popping Corn
Lyrics by Pam Sargant
© August 14, 2006 Pop, pop, pop, goes the popping corn
Pop, pop, pop, from night till morn
It popped so high
That it touched the sky
Still pop, pop, pop, goes the popping corn I went to make some popping corn
All my friends they tried to warn
Not to use too much
Not to use too much
I didn’t listen to them at all
That little cup just looked too small
I put a bit too much
I put a bit too much
OH! Pop, pop, pop, goes the popping corn
Pop, pop, pop, from night till morn
It popped so high
That it touched the sky
Still pop, pop, pop, goes the popping corn I never thought such a small little thing
Could get so big and then take wing
I put in way too much
I put in way too much
The next time I am popping corn
I’ll listen when they try to warn me
Not to put too much
I won’t put in too much
STILL! Pop, pop, pop, goes the popping corn
Pop, pop, pop, from night till morn
It popped so high
That it touched the sky
Still pop, pop, pop, goes the popping corn

When I Grow up
Music and Lyrics by Pam Sargant
© August 14, 2006 My mommy asked me what would I be
When I grow up
When I grow up
I answered back as pleased as could be
I wanna be a train when I grow up A train speeds along
The countryside,
Seeing all the sites
Giving people a ride
I’ll toot my whistle
And never stop
I wanna be a train when I grow up My mommy asked me what I would be
When I grow up
When I grow up
I answered back as pleased as could be
I wanna be a truck when I grow up A truck is shiny
With lots of wheels
When I go really fast
I can make them squeal
I’ll honk my horn
And never stop
I wanna be a truck when I grow up My mommy asked me what I would be
When I grow up
When I grow up
I answered back as pleased as could be
I wanna be an ambulance when I grow up An ambulance goes
So fast you see,
Cause that’s what the people
Really need
I’ll sound my siren
And never stop
I wanna be an ambulance when I grow up
I wanna be a truck when I grow up
I wanna be a train when I grow up (You and your child can come up with many more verses)

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Story: Meeting Drippin by Pam Sargant

Here is a new show I found that mom’s might find interesting. You can find this show at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/littlebytesnewsThis weeks show features information about children and the internet, how to keep them safe, as well as a chat between Patty and myself about working at home.