Preschool: Christmas

We did it! We completed our year of weekly themed preschool. Baylor has grown so much throughout the year. She recognized so many more letters and numbers compared to the first of the year. I think next year I will do preschool activities based off a letter of the alphabet per week and hopefully in the fall she will go to real preschool. Why do kids have to grow up so fast? 

Our last theme for the year was Christmas which is always a fun one to do. Our first day we started with Christmas Bingo and she loved eating the marshmallows and I had to get more because I wanted her to do blackout but she was eating the marshmallows too fast.

Then for art she created salt dough ornaments. This was a process that took more than today but for today she helped make the dough, roll it out, cut the shapes out, and used a straw to punch out holes at the top of each ornament for the string.

Then for music, we first did a finger play with our fingers: Here is the chimney (thumb in fist); here is the top (place palm on top); open the lid (remove palm); out Santa will pop! (pop up thumb). We did this a couple of times.

Then we used the jingle bells we had and sang a couple of Christmas songs.

For learning time we talked about traditions around the world. First we talked about what we have done for Christmas- put up a tree and decorated it, decorated the house, we have advent calendars, and we talked about presents and how Santa comes. Then I had a map of the world and we talked about different places. When I would tell her about a place I had a picture to correspond with it and I would point on the map where it was. We talked about in Mexico they had piñatas and poinsettias, in Australia Santa lets his reindeer have a rest and he travels around with kangaroos, in Germany they do gingerbread houses, in Great Britain they have churches that have giant bells to ring, in Sweden they celebrate St. Lucia with a crown of candles, and last was Netherlands where we talked about how Santa leaves presents in their shoes. Once we talked about all of it, we did a matching game with the pictures.

Then we ended with reading this book.

The rest of the day Baylor kept herself busy with playing with the leftover salt dough which was awesome that it kept her entertained for as long as it did.

The next day was a busy day so we didn't do preschool but we did find time for Baylor to finish up her salt dough ornaments. She painted them and added a little glitter and once they dried we put on string and she hung them on the tree.

Our second day of preschool we started with playdough.

Then for art she decorated a popsicle stick Christmas tree.

For music we sang a song to the tune of Mulberry Bush: Here stands a Christmas tree, a Christmas tree, here stands a Christmas tree, so early Christmas morning. Other verses: Here's the lights for the Christmas tree; Here's the star for the Christmas tree; Put the presents under the tree. I had the pictures to represent each verse so that she could put it all together.

For learning time we first made Santa's beard with marshmallows. I had numbers 1-20 that she could pick and then she would have to put that many marshmallows on his beard. I told her that she could pick any number but she insisted on going in order.

Then I created these little elf cards that had a number by lights, ornaments, and presents. I had so many of each one and then she would pick a card and have to follow the card and put that many of each thing on her Christmas tree.

For our last day of preschool we did a family field trip. We went to Carpinto Brothers to see the live reindeer. They also had a gorgeous light display to enjoy.

And our last stop was to see all the different poinsettias that they have.

What a fun way to end our preschool for the year!

Winter Doings

I haven't blogged for the last little bit besides preschool so I wanted to post about some of the things that have been going on. We had a nice Thanksgiving with the Smith side. There was supposed to be more people but because of sickness and other circumstances it was our family, Dale and Margaret, Mike's family, and Violet and Lylia. Paige and Baylor had fun with Myla over the few days they were here. Thanksgiving started with the girls playing in the hot tub.

Then it was dinner at Dale and Margaret's and dessert at our house.

The next day of course the Christmas decorations came out and Myla was even there to help us decorate our tree.

I had a gift card to the movies that I have had for a long time (we never go to the movie theater) and there was finally a movie showing that Paige wanted to see and I knew Baylor would enjoy. We went and saw the new Clifford movie and it was Baylor's first time going to the theater and we even got some popcorn to share.

December 1st, Mr. Elf arrives at our house and watches the girls until Christmas. During the night he moves from place to place and one day he left Paige and Baylor a Lego message. The elf on the left is Nona and Pop's elf and the girls loved going over there and seeing where their elf has moved throughout the night.

I finally got around to cleaning out all the dead stuff from our garden and I never got around to picking the carrots. They stored very well in the ground and Baylor was a big help in picking them and washed the dirt off all of them so that I could peel and slice them up.

The first Saturday of December we had a fun day. Nate had to work for the city event so it was just me and girls. The city event was a drive through holiday event with Santa so we drove through that early in the afternoon.

Then that evening since Nate was still cleaning up and he had gone to this with Baylor the night before while Paige and I were at a card making event, I took the girls to this drive through Nativity since Baylor liked it so much the first time and Paige and I wanted to see it. They had lots of light displays, a large house with Santa that also had a big shoot where elves shot candy canes into your car from the 2nd story of the house, some hot cocoa, and then ended with the live nativity.

Paige's friend, Addison, has a December birthday and she invited Paige and Baylor along with other friends and cousins to this awesome place. The girls loved it and Paige wanted to try it all and was super brave with the high things. Baylor mostly liked to jump and towards the end played more with the group. We had lunch there and the girls had so much fun and want to go back.

Then we also had our ward party. It was a Christmas Luau. We were fed very well and the girls got to see Santa. Baylor didn't want to look at him but she was brave enough to tell him what she wanted for Christmas.

We are super excited for Christmas especially since Grandma and Poppy are coming on Christmas Eve and spending a week with us!

Preschool: Wheels

The end of the year with holidays I haven't been the greatest at preschool but we got 2 days of preschool this week. They were fun and simple and our theme was wheels.

Baylor started our first day off with playing with kinetic sand. 

Then for art I put some paint dots on some cardstock and then she drove a toy car all over in the paint to make lots of colorful tire tracks.

We sang a song about wheels going round and round to the tune of "The Farmer in the Dell." When we sing a new song like this we sing it 3 or 4 times and I try to have hand motions or pictures to help her with the words.

For our learning time I had vehicle riddles with the pictures of each of the answers. I would say the riddle and then she would have to pick the picture of the vehicle that the riddle was talking about.

Then she did some cutting practice with following the yellow dotted line down the roads.

And last she raced toys cars down our hallway and then we would use the tape measure to see how far each of them went. She would tell me the numbers that she saw. She was so excited to finally get one of the cars to go all the way to the end of the hall.

Our second day she started playing with little people. I got as many of the car related things out for her.

Then for art she colored a car. She wanted to color the car like Dad's work car and talked the entire time she was coloring.

We sang "Wheels on the Bus" and then for learning time first she did a matching activity. I had a picture of a car with a number and then she had to match it with the card that had the matching number of wheels.

And our last thing was I drew a parking lot on a paper and then she would pick a card that had a number on it and had to park that many little people cars on the parking lot.