Halloween

I do have to admit that I do miss Halloween with my little boy.  It was almost as exciting as Christmas with the prep and anticipation that was involved with going trick or treating.  I can remember back to when we were all kids and the day of candy approached.  We would start planning what costume we were going to wear almost as soon as school started...there was a lot of planning and prep involved in creating the ultimate costume.  "My costume is going to be soooooooo cool ...way better than yours" could be heard from many people.  I remember throwing the line around too.  It was so important that each of us come up with THE costume.  It had to be unique and over the top all at once.  Buying your look was totally unacceptable.  The harder the better was our motto.  A large cardboard box could turn you into just about anything...

How different things are today...the big day for the costume is the Halloween parade at school and most of the looks were purchased from Party City or Walmart.  Hardly anyone makes their own costume and even more don't even go out trick or treating.  Every year I hear from friends and family that hardly anyone came by the house...Not us-- we could hardly wait to get going.  Armed with a pillowcase we were off-running from door to door, coming home to dump the pillowcase into paper shopping bags when it got too heavy and back out as fast as we could.  This mission of sorts, would go on until we were turned back home by the sight of police driving through the neighborhoods and less and less porch lights on...We would drag ourselves home cold and tired with aching feet to sit down at the table and watch our parents go through our stuff so that we could dive in.  I remember getting up to 5 paper shopping bags full of all kinds of candy.  Real candy-not this tiny stuff they give out now.  Oh how I enjoyed that! 

Then I became the mom--still fun to dress them up but not so fun to do all the walking and holding the crap that went with their costume when they got tired of carrying it...in the rain, the cold, one year got lazy and drove.  Yes I became one of those parents!  Now I just hand out candy and miss my little boy trick or treating. 

Now he is the dad with the little man in a Buzz Lightyear costume and plastic pumpkin walking around...

HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYONE!

Love this time of year

Anyone that works with kids will tell you that the Autumn is one of the fun times of the year.  The air cools off so that you can take them out to play and the trees become a great source for learning.  From collecting colorful leaves to hunting pumpkins it becomes a fun time for all. 

One year I had the Kindergartens in an after school program.  They were a great group of kids.  My kids were so much fun.  We decided to take them outside to run around one day and somehow it all became a nature walk along the forest that backs up to the school.  I explained how the trees all change colors when the weather turns cold.  Pointed out the oranges, yellows and reds of the leaves.  Somewhere along the way I decided that we would make a autumn leaf collage when we went inside.  I told my kids what I wanted to make and that they should go out and find some really pretty leaves to put on their collage.  They excitedly hit the trees collecting leaves.  After about 10 minutes I called them all back and we headed inside to our work table.  Armed with paste and paper we all sat down to make our collages.  First I made one up real quick so they could see what it could look like.  They were all excited to get their hands into the paste and get started.  It was right about then that I realized that they had all pretty much picked up all brown leaves. . . I do not know why I expected anything different when my son's favorite color at this age was black.  Well they all had a good time making their Brown autumn collages.

The Decernable Taste of a child!

You know some days you just can't seem to get your act together...so it is the quick and easy sandwiches for dinner.  Stopped on the way home and grabbed lunch meat - you know ham, cheese, Lebanon bologna and liverwurst.  While we were eating I remembered a great story starring my kid. 

Chris must have been 6 or 7.  He had latched on my neighbor.  Loved hanging with him all the time.  Luckily Pat didn't mind, kind of liked him.  One day Chris called me and asked if he could walk back to the Heritage(a small convience store in Jersey) with Pat.  I said sure.  About 10 minutes later my son is running through the door yelling, "Ewwwwwwwww mommie!"  

I asked him."What?"

"Ewwwwwwww Pat just bought a Lemon and Baloney sandwich!  Yuck!  Can you imagine - A LEMON AND BALONEY SANDWICH!" 

Now it took me a minute for it to dawn on me what he was talking.  All I could do is laugh.  "What are you laughing at mom?"

I stopped myself from laughing and explained,"Chris it isn't a Lemon and Baloney sandwich - the meat is called Lebonon Bologna because it is made in Lebonon, Pennsylvania."

"Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh...."       That was too funny.

A shared story from a friend

Sometimes it isn't the words that the kids share but the words that come out of our own mouths.  Teachers have some -isms of their own.  Our minds are engaged but our mouths just won't co-operate.  A friend of mine Joe Palumbo said I could share this little tidbit with you.  Hope you enjoy it.

"Probably the funniest teaching moment happened to me yesterday. I was attempting to say, "We can't have any bad sets tonight." Being sick and having trouble talking with a clogged nose, what came out loud and clear, through the mic was, "We can't have any bad sex tonight!" Needless to say the entire band and staff lost it."

Thanks Joe!  I understand completely!  LOL

Kid-isms: the wisdom that kids share: What is IT?

Kid-isms: the wisdom that kids share: What is IT?: "Over the years I have been many different people to children: teacher, friend, mom, mom mom, babysitter and afterschool provider. A couple..."

What is IT?

Over the years I have been many different people to children:  teacher, friend, mom, mom mom, babysitter and afterschool provider.  A couple years back I got to work with third graders at an afterschool program.  Being the oldest group at this particular school district and leaning on the edge of adolescence; these kids were the big bad pre-teens of the program.

The daily practice at this program was the group would arrive at the end of school, sit at their designated tables and we would take attendance.  This was the time of the day when the kids would socialize, do homework, you know quiet table time; ok, they were talking but they were not running around.

On this one day I was taking attendance and I overheard a few of the boys talking about girls.  They got on the subject of IT.  You know "Do you think you can get IT?"  or "I heard she gives IT."  Now I am laughing to myself as they are talking and wondering what a bunch of 8 and 9 year oldS know about IT?!

When I got the chance, I jumped into their conversation.  "What is IT?"  I asked.  First thing they all did was turn various shades of red and one(you know the one that thinks he is the coolest) said,"Awwwwwww Ms. Joy you know what IT is."

"Nu-uh" I said shaking my head.

"Yes you do," they all chimed in.  The looks on their red little faces were priceless.  They thought I was some kinds of crazy.  How could this old lady not know what IT is?  I was dying to laugh but of course I had to keep it going.  I put on this totally innocent face on my mug and said, "I do not know what IT is." 
All of a sudden the smart boy pipes in,"Come on, Ms Joy!  you know what IT is...haven't you ever watched GENERAL HOSPITAL?"  Well I died.  He had me rolling on the floor.  So now we know where they are getting their sex education:  soap operas. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA