Mr. & Mrs. Snow of Vermont

Once upon a time there was a national convention in Dallas..... and the happy presenter met the delightful participant and they decided to be friends. The presenter fell in love with the teacher's very name: Mrs. Snow, from Vermont. Memorable even in a sea of people. Then the colorful presenter made her way months later to the east coast. The capable teacher had the brainstorm to drive a mere 5.5 hours, thru NYC to go to dinner with her new friend the traveling troubadour, on the Boardwalk. Since it was Mr. Snow's birthday, he got invited so we could sing for him.

Boys and girls this is a true story. These are superlative people. A fireman and a teacher. The kind of teacher who would celebrate Dr. Suess' birthday, today, with having a party featuring: white middle-be-gone tea-dippers (white doughnuts, get it?? the middle is gone.)

We laughed. We hugged. We walked the city. We laughed some more. And then our enchanted evening ended and they all lived happily ever after.

You just want to "kweeze" em, these snow people. Maybe I should write a song about snow-people, oh, that's right, I already have.... Maybe that's why I like 'em so much!!

Josephine, from Brooklyn

Here's the new secretary of my fan club: Josephine, who drove down from Brooklyn and arrived at 3:00 a.m. to the convetion site, due to a series of episodes beyond her control. (The next time you see her, ask her just how much she loves that little puppy.) Yet, she stayed awake and attended ALL four of my workshops, keeping me company in the front row through the whole day. She led the pack, as cheerleader and participant all rolled into one, loaning me some of her youthful energy when I needed it. We're posed at lunch time, after I've just autographed her copy of my book. Wouldn't you want your granchildren in her classroom?

Handwriting Fun!!

New city. Same delight in a great project.

An extra thanks to my friends at ZB:

Look at the fun teachers have with me.

While we sing & we dance & make everything rhyme,

The good teachers are thrilled -- it works every time!!

Let's get on the road to handwriting now......

Our ideas will show young children how,

The developmentally appropriate ZB way,

Come and "Sky-Write" -- Oh HAPPY day!!

Breakout Workshops: A.C.

Now that's a LOT of enthusiasm for my little polliwog gaining her two back feet..... Always a crowd-pleaser, no matter their ages. Thank you DH (dearest hubby Allen) for writing the original lyric and crafting the tune too, all those years ago up in Door County in that amazing little boutique of infant baptismal gowns. Such an incongruity at the time. Such a treasure now -- and for all time to come. Special thanks to the company "Crocodile Creek" for creating the little prop that is so masterful at metamorphosis. Thank you teachers for sharing your excitement.

Keynote: Atlantic City!!

Staff Development for Educators entrusted me with the keynote for the combined, simultaneous PreK and K conferences and there was an incredible turn-out -- certainly twice the size of any group that I'd had the honor of speaking to, on their behalf up to this point. There were an unusual number of hi-jinks in the convention center sound system, especially frustrating since everything had gone smoothly in the 7:00 a.m. sound check, but "the show must go on." We made it work. The participants gave me their undivided attention and I did my very best to project to the back of the expanded ballroom..... periodically dashing from my stage to the back of the room. Ah, the life of the traveling-polka dotted one. The combination of all of these elements had my blood moving, that's for sure, and that's a good thing.

Sights from the Boardwalk

I never ran into Miss America, but it was a glorious afternoon of site seeing..... places that I could discover on foot. There were plenty of opportunities for retail therapy at some familiar and many 'new' places. It was great fun to take in all of the colors and wonders; Including a quick pop into the Rain Forest Cafe -- where they always have the most amazing aquariums to inspire. Atlantic City boasts both an indoor 'mall' complete with water show extravaganza on the hour and also a whole area of outlet mall stores, all between my Sheraton and the Boardwalk. Oh happy day!

Neatly Manicured Beachside

It's true that the Atlantic City beautification program has gotten some recent focus and muscle power. Everything was just gorgous for my quick rendez-vous with the big water energy. I just had the best time chasing down these sea gulls with the black & white polka dot tails. This one was kind enough to pose for my close up -- proof that I wasn't still hysterical from the limo ride.

First Ever Limo Ride!!

I knew that I was being picked up at the airport in Phillie to be 'shuttled' over here to Atlantic City, but little did I know that they'd send their full-size LIMO, complete with gray leather interior & crystal glassware to fetch me. It was right about an hour from Point A to Point B. I just giggled most of the way! I think my driver was a bit concerned for my stability. LOL. This was very very very FIRST time to even stick my head in a limo, let alone be personally chauffered for an hour. Omgooooooooooooooooodness!! After I got into my room & got all of the details sorted out I walked down to the boardwalk to do some ocean connecting. Love it. Love it. Love it!! Yes. Pinch me. I do indeed feel like a diva! Bring on Oprah.

Ladybug Alert!

Fantastic Funny Feet

1.) I will admit, I had to pose my friends and their fantastic shoes for this first picture. I just couldn't believe that the kids can now have their shoes in either checks OR polka-dots!! Do you know how long I have to search for my wardrobe choices?? Can you guess who's wearing the heart empowered boots above? 2.) Shakers with my little ones. 3.) Happy face smiles to start our session together -- a big favorite of mine: 'DING.' 4.) The itsy bitsy spiders just 'never' grow old. I get requests for that absolutely every time I take my surprise box back to classrooms where I've been before. Sometimes we have enough time to put on puppet shows for each other. It's good to be among friends.

End of an Era

Last night. Feb 21st...... we gathered together, amidst the snowflakes and the icy roads for our final Christmas dinner together. The men have gathered as the Worthington Sertoma group for over two decades, doing good deeds and supporting charitable programs, but they've decided the time has come and have chosen to pass the torch. So last night was a fond farewell. Our usual holiday gathering had often been on my birthday, or the day before, sometimes the day after..... it was so much fun to greet each other through out the night with a buoyant, "Merry Christmas" and I even got my usual birthday greeting from everyone. (A scheduling snaffu back in Dec forced a Feb. 'do-over.' ) As the evening wound down we started wishing each other a "Happy New Year" as well.

We decided that since it was the men who got us together for the first two decades, we wives would take over the organizational plans for the next couple. Better late than never.

One Day Project # 9

All righty-then!! All three of the wall-hangings are completely pieced and ready for their machine quilting treatment. From there it's on to staple gun attatchment to the IKEA shadow box frames. Then the wall awaits the new splash of color. I completely under-estimated the time it took me to machine quilt a piece. So I didn't get it up onto the wall prior to our Ohio departure -- but it's far enough along to be able to envision in the near future. Progress. Progress. Progress.

Paper Piecing Part 2

To make a 'triangle' border..... I just create two parallel lines on the tracing paper and then space the mountain tops & valleys at the same distance between the railroad tracks. This blue/orange pair are spaced 1.5 inches apart. Trimming excess fabric & pressing open as you go, gives a snappy little border element. Once I completed this triangle portion, I added some border fabrics to dress it up. I then started working with the remaining space that I have available. Presto. Snap. Snap. Whoooohooooooo. Number 3 is coming together!!