Departing the Big Apple

Well, now I'm nearly an entire & complete month behind on all of the excitement of my travels & fun. I'd better get these farewell photos added so that I can always remember the enthusiasm of my hostess, Nili on my downtown New York City excursion. Thanks, Nil-dog. You made the whole morning memorable in every way. You made it happen and simultaneously you participated. Thanks for the invitation. Thanks for connecting the dots. Thanks for getting the ducks in a row. My hat it off to you.

***Folks I go where I get invited. We make it work. We figure it out. Let me know. I'm willing. Have guitar -- will travel!!

WonderFUN! WonderFUN!!

How terrific to drive across the country and find wee wonders who respond just the same as my wee wonders "back home." Blink your eyes, click your heels and wind-up the fun. Location. Location. Location.

I've come to the conclusion that location is one of the least significant of the variables. Children are the significant portion of the equation. Where they are seems to be inter-changeable. Smile & jump. Freeze and giggle. The specifics aren't as important -- as the joy.

Quilt for "Red, White and Blue"

Sometimes a morning goes flying past at such speed that I hardly have time to keep up with myself and all of the excitement unfurling in real time. When the NYC morning's young 14th St. Y preschool class emerged from the elevator I was so excited that I completely forgot my role as documenter slash blogger. There's no explanation, other than I was thrilled with their emergence into my presence. They came roaring across the lobby like a herd of buffalo. There were a couple of flags in the group and the teachers were carrying this child created quilt in honor of my new picture book.

I LOVE this quilt project. I LOVED it so much at the time that I totally forgot to snap any pictures, as it was time to get the party started and begin our singing together. Nili was clever enough to send me a digital postcard of the children's work long after I'd returned home to the midwest.

What I particularly appreciate about this effort is that you can clearly see that the children created the squares themselves. Ric-rack and tissue paper, cellophane & card stock, wrapping & scrap book papers......... all tied together with magic marker love. Child created in it's authenticity, yet a masterful masterpiece of mastered methods. Are you feeling the love?

Back to Bloggin': NYC

The last couple-a weeks have truly been a blurr, even by my standards. As I type, with laptop in the car (yes, I promise I AM the passenger) we are departing Ohio for the last time as residents..... officially beginning our status as FL residents -- for at least the snowbird season, whatever that means. We are at this minute treking south thru the Carolinas on route to a family Christmas celebration in Augusta, GA. A four generation Christmas.

Yet when I left off here, in blogland, I was just showing you around in a fully decked out Little Italy. So rewind the sands of time and let's get back there. The Big Apple. Beginning of Dec. Welcome to the 14th St. Y -- where I am being hosted by Columbus transplant Nili Talis of former Bexley JCC staff status. Nili has long been a supporter & encourager, saying repeatedly that it was time to get me into the big city...... so she talked up my unique skill set and here are a few of the faces from our morning together.

That first picture is the two of us, captured on Nili's phone and sent out to our mutual world of FB friends -- to announce my real-life visit was about to unfurl. I'm not sure who was the most excited? Nili or moi?? It is such a thrill to go half way across the country and encounter dear people from a former chapter of my life & see where they engaged in now. Pinching myself.

Achshav! Achshav!

It's good to be amidst the very friends that taught me the Israeli folk dance: "Achshav!" My favorite part is still the turning around: 'tumba, tumba, tumba' and this group had a ball dancing together. It was right about this point that I realized I missed my old friends, and I dare say that they may have missed me a tad bit as well. Once everyone got their eyes closed it was time to pop out an old favorite -- back by special request, 'Calamity Sam' reminding everyone, 'ya gotta love me, for who I am.'

Rainbows WITHIN Reach!!

Good golly, Miss Molly. There really IS a rainbow within reach!! I couldn't have posed this picture to make it any more amazing than it actually is! These are the little pips & goosh-bundles of fun.

The week of the Young Child traveling show makes it's way back to the Bexley JCC. To add extra delight to my visit, they also declared that it was Wear Your Jammies to School Day!!

None of us could remember how long it had been since I provided weekly sessions of music for all of the classes at the J. Three years? Four years?? Five years??? We all agreed that it had been tooooo long since I've been there. It felt like old home days in more ways than one. Lots of familiar faces in the staff...... not one familiar child's face. Lots of change over in the children in a few years time.