Five Green & Speckled Frogs

A language extension appropriate for the Toddlers on up, any child who likes to sing and count! Below are the lyrics to the popular Raffi song. I bought the frogs at ACMOORE and sewed the pool and log from felt and fabric I had. The kiddos LOVE this work, it is chosen every day.



Five Green & Speckled Frogs
(Hold five fingers (frogs) on top of your other arm (log)
Sat on a bumpy log
Eating the most delicious bugs. Yum! Yum!
One jumped into the pool (jump a finger off the log into the pool)
Where it was nice and cool
Now there are Four green speckled frogs (Hold up four fingers)
(Fold arms and say in a deep voice:) Glug, Glug

Four Green & Speckled Frogs
Sat on a bumpy log
Eating the most delicious bugs. Yum! Yum!
One jumped into the pool
Where it was nice and cool
Now there are Three green speckled frogs
(Fold arms and say in a deep voice:) Glug, Glug

Three Green & Speckled frogs
Sat on a bumpy log
Eating the most delicious bugs. Yum! Yum!
One jumped into the pool
Where it was nice and cool
Now there are Two green speckled frogs
(Fold arms and say in a deep voice:) Glug, Glug

Two Green & speckled frogs
Sat on a bumpy log
Eating the most delicious bugs. Yum! Yum!
One jumped into the pool
Where it was nice and cool
Now there is one green speckled frog
(Fold arms and say in a deep voice:) Glug, Glug

One Green & speckled frog
Sat on a bumpy log
Eating the most delicious bugs. Yum! Yum!
It jumped into the pool
Where it was nice and cool
Now there is no more speckled frogs
(Fold arms and say in a deep voice:) Glug, Glug

For more fun with frogs visit this website.

Happy Croaking!
~~MM

And the Winner is...

Green Mama has won my Blog Giveaway! Congratulations Green Mama! Little One (honest and truly) picked your name and then jumped up and down screaming "Green Mama, Green Mama, Green Mama!" it was too funny and would have been very funny to watch on YOUTUBE....but alas I wasn't that quick with my camera. So all of you who haven't, stop by and visit Jessica at Green Mama; she's a mom who inspires!

Thank you to everyone who participated in this Giveaway! Check back, maybe I'll do it again. The concept is lovely and who doesn't like getting stuff in the mail?
In PEACE,
Jennifer

Belfast Teacher Becomes Children's Book Author

I just had to share this press release with you all.

Also great news! My camera arrived via post yesterday and as soon as it is charged. I will show the birds I made. I hope I don't disappoint. I have allot on my plate right now.

I plan on asking Little Man to pick the winner of the bird giveaway today.
Thank you for your patience!!!
I was overwhelmed with the response. 30 comments without a photo! Wow!
Anymore folks heading to the Conference in New Orleans next month?
Let me know.
In PEACE,
Jennifer

Birds of Change Giveaway

We have a new President! Yeah!
Because this is such a special day I am participating in the Birds for Change Giveaway. I didn't mean for that to rhyme, but I kind of like that it did.

Anyway, the idea came from Creative Kismet (ONE of my favorite creative Mama blogs)her enthusiasm was contagious. I made six birds! But because my camera is presently being mailed to me by my MIL (thank you Susan!)I do not have a way to display my birds for all of you YET. I had hoped to successfully scan one tonight but so far I haven't been able to.

I am having fun making birds to give away and look forward to the ones I shall receive. People are so talented, just visiting some of the participating blogs this evening, has given me MORE ideas for birds I could make. Stop by Creative Kismet for a complete list of other blogs giving away birds this week. Good luck!

Please leave a comment on this post by Friday at 5pm (US EST) and I’ll announce the winner on Saturday morning January 24th.

AMS National Conference

Are you attending? I AM!! I am so very excited and grateful to share this news with all of you. As I mentioned before my first book is being published as we speak, and will be released at this year's National Montessori Conference. I never thought I could attend because it is in New Orleans and I am well, in Maine. The funds are just not available for me, money is too tight.

This weekend however, I learned that my very dear friend and wonderful Directress, Paula, worked some magic and inspired some other gloriously generous folks to pay my way! I can't believe it and I hope I have written enough flattering words about those who contributed in the above sentence :)

I am so appreciative to everyone who has helped make this possible and I can't wait to attend the National AMS Conference! My publisher is arranging some book signing spots for me. So if you will be attending this year's conference PLEASE come by the Parent Child Press vendor table and introduce yourself! Even if you are not planning to make a purchase, I would still love to meet you. Stop by and say hi!

Again MANY thanks to those individuals who have supported me and inspired me and helped me make this dream come true. I am so thankful you are all in my life.
In PEACE
Jennifer Howard aka Montessori Mama
and author of When I Make Silence
PS I found my camera, Obama is our 44th President and a friend gave me a ton of beautiful fabric! Today is a wonderful day. Please leave a comment or email me at spirals@gwi.net and tell me if you are planning on attending the AMS National Conference in February? I look forward to meeting you!

It's a Hard Day's Night

This was written yesterday, January 14th
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hi Everyone,
I'm just sitting here feeling exhausted and thinking that allot of you probably are too. Some days tire us out more than others. Today was one of those days for me. It began with my cat leaving a dead mouse in my slipper. The following is a list of the events that followed:
All BEFORE breakfast:
Little One opened finger paint when I was unaware he was doing so ~ enough said.
Little One completely dumped not one, but TWO entire Rubbermaid totes of Legos in front of the bathroom doorway, guess who was in the bathroom without her slippers?
Middle Man refused to get out of bed, then got out of bed and refused use the bathroom....(too many Legos to contend with apparently) only after Little Man and I moved the Legos did Middle Man use the bathroom but then he refused to eat breakfast....I could go on but I'm not going to, you get the idea, there were lots of refusals.
'Taller Than Me' handed me a piece of paper that needed to be signed TODAY that, oh by the way..., needs to have a check for $75 along with it. Something about a band trip.
Flash forward to the classroom:
Little One begins his day by eating play dough and yelling VERY loudly when he is discouraged to do so.
Out of frustration I ask out loud..."WHAT IS GOING ON?" My assistant Mallory smiles and says, "Who's kid is this?" I love her! She knows exactly what to say, at just the right time.
The rest of the day is busy and loud, it was only 6 degrees outside so we stayed in. This upset to the routine and caused a few ripples.
My favorite part of the day is YOGA before rest. Watching one particular 18 month old little girl attempt the poses is especially sweet.
REST TIME: Little One struggles with sharing his Mom (a daily occurrence)but eventually napped (thank heavens!)
After transporting children and picking up Middle Man, we head home to a house with no phone! How can I Post this rant with no Internet connection!!! I call the phone company's 800 # which apparently is the only number (besides 911) that a phone can dial out when service has been disconnected. I pay the bill, because I haven't I am told and of course I believe them. "It will take 24 hours to reconnect you and a service charge", of course it will.
Anyway, Montessori Papa and 'Taller Than Me'are out for the evening, which leaves me with Middle Man and Little One who are very hungry. Little One begs for rice cake after rice cake (sometimes I think he's going to turn into a rice cake!) and Middle Man announces he'll eat only Popsicles for dinner. I am making veggie risotto (a dish I made up) and then the boys begin fighting over...I'm not sure what exactly, but it was loud and ended in tears.
Fast forward two hours later:
Anyway, now they have both been fed (PB&J sandwiches) because neither of them liked my veggie rice) and they have each had baths, brushed teeth and been read to. They are asleep and I am typing. The house is quiet and it is lovely. I'm thinking I'll take a bath, when in come Taller Than Me and Dad. 'Taller Than Me' NEEDS the computer for school and Dad needs the bathroom.
It's been a long hard day,
I'm going to bed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
So this was yesterday...today was MUCH better. Do you ever just have one of those days? Thanks for reading as always. Does anyone know where my camera is? I'm missing it!!! I would like to say a "THANK YOU" to Mallory for saying the right things when I need them most and to Paula for listening even when she has a terrible cold. HUGS to all,
MM

You're Too Kind!

I've been given an award! Thanks Shannon :)
Here's what I've gotta do:
The rules are:
- List six things that inspire my creativity
- Pass the award on to 6 more kreativ bloggers
- Link back to the person who gave you the award
- Link to the people you are passing it on to and leave them a comment to let them know.

Here goes:
Six things that inspire my creativity:
1.) classical guitar music (I used to play, I miss it.)
2.)the blueberry field by my home (it is my church, my sanctuary)
3.)other people's creativity!
4.) black and white photography
5.)Middle Man

So, I am passing the Kreativ blogger award onto SOME of the creative Mamas I know in Blog land: A bit of This and A Bit of That, Walk Beside Me, Creative Kismet, Writing Grandma's Book, The Moveable Alphabet, A Thousand Joys,

Goals for 2009

Oh where to begin?
I have so many goals for this year.
I guess the most important one is to become more healthy!
I've struggled with my weight for the last ten years and I'm so done with this up down (mostly UP) roller coaster I've been on. Now that I KNOW I have a sleeping disorder and I am slowly (but surely) gaining control over sleeping more (by using the CPAP machine)I am hopeful I will have the energy during the day to be more active than I presently am. Even though it feels like I NEVER stop moving, I know I need to move more in a constructive and purposeful way.

Then there is the matter of what I EAT or more importantly what I drink, since caffeine has been my saving grace for the past five years, breaking the habit is extremely difficult. I am proud to report that since January 1st I have not had ANY caffeine! But I will admit that I miss it. Obviously the other not-so-great things I consume, such as baked goods and chocolate in all of it's glorious forms, are not good for my waist-line either but I do believe caffeine drinks are the biggest culprit. For the most part I eat well, lots of fruits and veggies, no red meat, and I avoid prepackaged things. But I LOVE to BAKE and passing on chocolate when it is offered is unheard of for me. Wish me strength please.

During my recent visit home over the holidays, I spent some time visiting with my favorite Aunt. She shared with me home movies she had recently had converted to DVD format. In one particular past Christmas film, there I was:

17 years old, all 115 pounds of me, dancing to and lip-syncing Ice Ice Baby with my 11 year old cousin! It was so funny, I remembered it when I saw it but I hadn't thought about it for years. Damn I looked good! Now, please know I am not so naive to think I will make enough changes in my life this year to return to my former teenage self, nor would I WANT to! I love my stretch marks from carrying three babies and the laugh lines (I call them laugh lines rather than crows feet because it sounds more positive)around my eyes. I don't even mind the few gray hairs I've noticed appearing lately, but my body is not the one I want to spend my days in anymore.

At 17 I rode my bike everywhere, I grew up on Cape Cod where there are many bike trails. I surfed, I danced, I was a cheerleader (as hard as that may be to believe!) When I watched myself dance, truly I WAS a 'fly girl', I longed to move like that again, without getting winded! Now a days I'm lucky if I have the time or energy to walk down to the end of the driveway to fetch the mail! (we have a long driveway by the way) I would love to practice yoga or take a dance class, but to be realistic that's just not going to happen; time and money are my biggest obstacles now. I know I could easily pop in an exercise video and make it part of my daily routine but so far I haven't....maybe writing this post will help motivate me! I own several good ones. Loosing weight seems like an impossible dream but I am hopeful 2009 is my year. Wish me luck!!

Other Goals:
Get MORE sleep
Get out of Debt!!!
Use less curse words while driving
and of course to POST more regularly :)

What are your goals for 2009?
I know I'm not the only one with a chocolate obsession.
PS I can't find my camera!!!! Why do I keep losing my camera?
PEACE to you all,
Montessori Mama

One More Day

There's just one more day of vacation left. I'm looking forward to going back to school. I've missed my toddler friends and families and most of all the routine of it. I've decided I'm allot like the children I care for. I'm comforted by routine and structure and I love to sing the same songs over and over.

Happy last day of vaca.
MM

The message said: Bold what you HAVE done.
So here goes...

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Read an entire book in one day

Well there you go, I have no idea what this really says about me. If I had made the list I would have added some other tid bits. But, I'm not one to pass on a list.
As a side note I would absolutely LOVE to do number: 4, 15, 28 and 56 one day!
I'm having trouble posting photos again! Sorry for the boring list post.
PEACE
~~MM