"MERRY CHRISTMAS DAY!!"

Hello Everyone!!

I trust that everyone is enjoying the simple pleasures of post holiday festivities and a wonderful vacation week -- and -- on behalf of all of the teachers, I thank you, all, for your thoughtfullness and generosity!!!!

As you likely already know, the week prior to vacation was a whirlwind of celebratory activity!!

On Monday, Tammy and Amy, especially, spent a great deal of time in the kitchen, preparing potato latkes, which were then served, with applesauce -- (according to Amy, they are very tasty with sour cream, as well) -- Kelly was very busy making lots of cookies to distribute to all of our helping hands -- (thank you, to all of the teachers and students, for their hard work and happy faces) -- and -- later that afternoon, the children painted wooden dreidels!!!!

Tuesday morning, we took our little friends Christmas caroling, at "The Big School" -- accompanied by the Minuteman C & T HS Early Education and Care Students, as well -- they sang, rang their jingle bells and handed-out homemade snowflakes to staff members -- it was a grand experience -- everyone was joyfully exhausted upon our return to the CDC . . .

Watching the Polar Express, in their jammies, and being served hot chocolate, was the highlight of Wednesday, for Butterflies and Puppies, alike!!

Our amaryllis is now 24 inches tall, (two feet!!), and, thanks to John, (:)), we saw the plant beginning to flower, which, we were all hoping to experience, before heading off on Wednesday -- it appears that four flowers are forming, while another bud is shooting up, from below -- we watered the amaryllis, generously, to keep it healthy until our return.

Other activities, this week, included, adding artwork to our Jan Brett-themed board, reading oh so many wonderfully interactive holiday books, (that I lost count!!), filling-in seasonal coloring books, (focused on shapes), fashioning pipe cleaner/cheneille stem decorations and mixing green play dough with silver glitter, (great fine motor skill activities), riding wheeled vehicles, (great gross motor skill activity), painting trees with salt and water, (to look like snow and for texture), math activities, (to encourage practice in one-to-one correspondence), wrapping gifts for family and friends, cutting-out snowflakes, and much, much more!!

And, during meeting times, we discussed "giving" as the major component to the holiday season, and, shared ways that we can make positive differences in our world.

I wish you a blessed holiday season and a happy new year, filled with joy!!!!

Love Miss Peacock XOXO