Bearly Ready Christmas Program 2017

Dear, Dear Parents,

I am filled to the brim as I breathe in a big satisfied sigh of what your children did on stage today… so well behaved! So spot on! So perfect in all their executions and songs with no meltdowns, no fits and no terrified bolts from the stage! Awesome! All our work in class certainly had its reward. I dearly love your children and I am so very proud of them and all they accomplished today.

For many, this was their first experience of singing and dancing, costume changing and performing on stage for over an hour. I wanted to hug each one of them and say, “Way to go, Idaho! Great job! I knew you could do that!” And that perfect Santa! 

My only regret was that my microphone batteries died before I got the chance to present Miss Julie and Miss Jessica their gifts and publicly express my gratitude for all they have done in preschool for the last several months. I love them and we will all dearly miss them as they move on to new adventures in their lives. Miss Jessica has been laboring long to acquire a teaching degree with experience in our school these past few months. She, like Miss Julie, has been invaluable. Thank you so much for all of your tireless efforts. We can hardly bear our losses.

Thank you for so many wonderful treats to enjoy and help with the food, hats and props, and a special thank you to Madden’s sweet dad, Randall, for helping my healing husband put away the stage, fix the chairs and load everything up. I so appreciate willing and capable strong men! They are my favorite!

We spent one little day on Letter M. We examined an m&m and found the small letter m on it. Then, we examined the package and noticed the m letters as we sucked on the melting chocolate while rubbing our tummies, “Mmmmm!” Mmmonkey! Mmmittens! Mmmickey Mmmouse! Mmmrs. MmmcClure! Ha!

I had just a few reports that I saved to tell you about, now that all of the Christmas surprises are in sight. When we were decorating the angels with glue and then glitter, Kohl was surprised at the outcome, “Woah! It shows! How did it do that? That’s amazing!” I love how these first childhood experiences can turn us into magicians!

As we were loading Dani into her car, we were discussing the elf that was watching to see if she was being good. Her reply has made us giggle all week, “I’m so nervous!”

Miles W. came in sad on Monday, wiping tears from his eyes. I quickly told him, “Christmas in one week away. You better watch out! You better not cry!” Like the flip of a switch, he broke into a beaming smile! Like I said, “Magic!”

Lastly, thank you to so many for your sweet and generous tokens of love and gratitude. Miss Julie and I feel so spoiled and so appreciate your support and love. I will cherish all of those beautiful family photos and Christmas cards, the ones I have fallen in love with.

We hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas and enjoys their family time together into the New Year. It is such a beautiful time. May I boldly say how very grateful I am for the amazing gift that we, the world, have received in the babe of Bethlehem, our dear Lord and Savior, even Jesus Christ? How incredibly grateful I am, that He was sent from above to bless and to save us all. Glory to the newborn King!

Merry Christmas! See you back on Monday, January 8^th.

Mrs. McClure

Miss Julie, too.

December Recap

Letter {Ss} Week

Letter Ss Week was ssso saturated with Ss words, Sssanta, Ssssleigh, Sssnowman, Ssstar, Sssinging Sssilly Sssongs, and Sssewing Ssstockings! And that was just the Ssstart! Ha ha! 

We sang our flag-prep song, changing all the first letters to S. Sut sor sight sand son sor sart. (Put your right hand on your heart if you’re smart) and then, we saw who was smart. Soston was smart. Sendrix was smart. It was fun. Avery became Savory! Fox changed into Socks! Clyde slipped into Slide! Madden was so Sadden. Lincoln was totally Sinkin’! Kohl found Soul! Que became Sue! And Lilly, well, she was just Silly! If Ryder hadn’t been absent, we could have had cider! Ha!

Monday, we started singing Christmas songs. Oh my goodness, how the children love these songs! Singing them together has been a joy! We also did some secret Santa surprises, sewed our stockings and assigned solos. Sienna was funny. Her mom said she was afraid to sing a solo because she didn’t want to “go to the microwave!” When Dani was sewing her stocking she said, “Hey! I’m in trouble with my sewing! That’s the awkward part!” Ha! 

We had a great discussion about Santa and the chimney. I wish I had recorded some to their sayings. “We don’t have a chimney!” “Santa is magic!” “If you’re not good, you’ll get a lump of coal!” The children are so excited for what is to come this month. 

Thursday, the children had fun creating a “Countdown To Christmas Snowman”. The snowman’s carrot nose should be pointing towards #23 today, signifying 23 more days ‘til Christmas. It will be at #1 before we can turn around!!! Ahhh!

Lincoln’s mom brought home a cute little brother for him play with. Congratulations. Becky and baby Miles are doing great and Lincoln is a sweet, helpful big brother.

We lost our cute little Paisley with a move. We hope the best for her and her family in a new place. We loved her! Todd Torgesen will be joining us in her place. We are anxious to have Todd come. We look forward to having everyone get to know him. Chance will be moving after Christmas. We are sad at the thoughts of losing him, too. Oh, how we love our Chance! These sweet children carve a permanent place in our hearts forever. They will be sorely missed! 

Miss Julie is getting a nice computerized long arm machine this month to begin a quilting business and her husband was able to get a new nice job. We are very sad to announce that she will be leaving us after the Christmas break, as well. Miss Julie has been our biggest bubble of joy, greeting moms warmly and sweetly welcoming children in and sending them off with a kind smile, much more than anyone we have ever had. This is a big jolt for us and for the children. Oh, how we will miss our beloved Miss Julie. She has been invaluable to us with all the things she has done in our school.  I have loved having her come. Oh, how we will miss her. But, she loves to quilt and is an expert at it. We wish for her the very best with her new adventures in the quilting business. Miss Walters has agreed to come help us to the end of May. We are grateful for that.

Monday, we will be making candy houses. It will be a very fun day. We crank up the music and sing our hearts out while decorating every side. We will also be painting horns, so plan for a very messy day. We are excited.

We love this time of year. The children come in with raised brows and big smiles anticipating the fun projects that greet them. “Ooooh! My mom is gunna love this!” “This is so pretty!” 

Have a great weekend. See everyone back on Monday.

Letter {Dd} Week

Oh, my Goodness! Our Christmas Program is almost here! We are so excited! The children have been working hard, singing their little hearts out, and being so patient with me, as I have been making last minute changes on a few songs and props. Thank heavens they adapt so much more easily than an adult ever could. They are quick learners and completely amiable! I happened upon some last minute things at the store, and I could not resist! It’s going to be great! I cannot wait for you to see what they can do! I hope you noticed the letter we sent in your child’s backpack this week, along with a January calendar and treat schedule. Here is a recap of the letter. The children need to arrive at the church building at the corner of Harris and Bates, just North of McKellips, at 9:00. We need to have a chance to work with the children on stage for the first time, as we combine the 2 classes together. The Program will begin at 10:00 sharp. Santa will arrive at 11:00, so we must keep a tight schedule. Please be prompt, as we do not have the luxury of waiting for everyone to arrive at will. Please have your child wear their preschool t-shirt, and pants or skirt. We have several things to work out before the actual program.

Please refrain from any bows, ponytails, or pigtails in hairdos. We have many hat and headband changes, and we have designed for them fit exact. Please arrive early for best seating. Your child has a set spot tagged onstage. Should you arrive and wonder which side would be best for you to watch from, you can check out the names on stage.

Letter D was almost ditched this week, as we continued to work on our Christmas surprises. Kohl stepped into a classroom setup one morning to exclaim, “What’s all this?” and then, “My mommy’s gunna be so happy!” Joseph has also been vocal about his feelings and keeps reminding us, “I love Christmas!”  So cute!

We did manage to do the letter D Dance and find lots of Dd words, dad, dog, dance, don’t dance! We also turned our footprints into dog drawings! Doggone adorable!

We want to express our congratulations to Trig, who received a new brother this past week. We are thrilled that his mom, Natalie and little Tuff are doing well. We wish the best for her recovery. Good job, mom!

All this excitement has been a bit diminished at the thought of losing our Miss Julie in January. We are so sad! We will also miss Eva and Rustin, her grandchildren, who were able to attend because of her traveling accommodations, making it possible for them to come. We love them and will miss all of them most cruelly! Ahhh! Like a dagger to my heart! But, Miss Julie got her amazing new machine in this week, and can hardly think of anything else! So exciting! We wish her the best! 

We will have two openings in the afternoon class, should anyone know of anyone interested.

We look forward to our last day on Monday before the program and winter break. The program will be on Wednesday, the 20^th, and we will resume school on Monday, the 8^th of January. We hope everyone has a wonderful holiday!

{Ss} Week

Dear Parents,

Letter Ss Week was ssso saturated with Ss words, Sssanta, Ssssleigh, Sssnowman, Ssstar, Sssinging Sssilly Sssongs, and Sssewing Ssstockings! And that was just the Ssstart! Ha ha! 

We sang our flag-prep song, changing all the first letters to S. Sut sor sight sand son sor sart. (Put your right hand on your heart if you’re smart) and then, we saw who was smart. Soston was smart. Sendrix was smart. It was fun. Avery became Savory! Fox changed into Socks! Clyde slipped into Slide! Madden was so Sadden. Lincoln was totally Sinkin’! Kohl found Soul! Que became Sue! And Lilly, well, she was just Silly! If Ryder hadn’t been absent, we could have had cider! Ha!

Monday, we started singing Christmas songs. Oh my goodness, how the children love these songs! Singing them together has been a joy! We also did some secret Santa surprises, sewed our stockings and assigned solos. Sienna was funny. Her mom said she was afraid to sing a solo because she didn’t want to “go to the microwave!” When Dani was sewing her stocking she said, “Hey! I’m in trouble with my sewing! That’s the awkward part!” Ha! 

We had a great discussion about Santa and the chimney. I wish I had recorded some to their sayings. “We don’t have a chimney!” “Santa is magic!” “If you’re not good, you’ll get a lump of coal!” The children are so excited for what is to come this month. 

Thursday, the children had fun creating a “Countdown To Christmas Snowman”. The snowman’s carrot nose should be pointing towards #23 today, signifying 23 more days ‘til Christmas. It will be at #1 before we can turn around!!! Ahhh!

Monday, we will be making candy houses. It will be a very fun day. We crank up the music and sing our hearts out while decorating every side. We will also be painting horns, so plan for a very messy day. We are excited.

We love this time of year. The children come in with raised brows and big smiles anticipating the fun projects that greet them. “Ooooh! My mom is gunna love this!” “This is so pretty!” 

Have a great weekend. See everyone back on Monday.

Much love and devotion.

Mrs. McClure

And Miss Julie, too!

Thanksgiving Week and Letter {Ii}

Thanksgiving is all about gathering with family. We were filled to the brim at our house and hosting my out-of-town company was a full time job. This email just had to wait.

I just wanted to report our last days before the big grateful day.

We finished our last preparations for our Indian costumes with the introduction to Letter Ii. Indian, inches, igloo, isn’t it itchy. We also pulled out a tape measure and measured several of the children, discovering what ‘inches’ were. “Do me! Do me!” Ha!

Our Indian headbands had triangles to fill in. Trig was so cute, “My teeth are done!” The children had finger painted Indian signs on their costumes, an orange sun for ‘day’ or a blue rain sign. As we were putting our costumes on, Navy noticed that one of the paintings looked more like a blue splash of water, “Mrs. McClure, she kind of scribbled the paint all over!” I told her that some of us may be artists and some of us may be singers. She quickly replied, “She must be a singer!” Ha! Miss Julie and I laughed and laughed!

I asked the children, “What is a feast?” Miles B. said, “A kind of ant!” Gracia said, “Passing out food!” Madden said, “Helping people grow plants!” Trig said, “Eating food!” Mason said, “Where lots of food is and people get together and eat!” Que said, “Everybody comes to celebrate!” Hendris, “The Pogrims!”

I asked, “Where did the pilgrims come from?” Nash asked, “From space?” Ha!

I asked the children to tell me about the first Thanksgiving. Lincoln said, “They came from a king castle.” Josh said, “The mean king said you must go to my church!” Mason, “You have to pay the king!” Que said, “They moved to a different place on a boat.” Jace said, “Because they wanted to be free.” Boston said, “They went on a big ship.” Gracia said, “The Main Flower!”  Navy, “It was the Mayflower!” Madden, “They went to America!” Sienna, “It was all plain.” Hendrix, “There was no houses!” Navy, “They had to cut down trees to make log cabins. Lily, “They were very tired.” Madden, “The pilgrims were hungry.” Lily, “No corn at the store!” Mason, “They tried to plant seeds, but it didn’t grow well. Josh, “The Indians were watching them.” Joseph, “The Indians do it!” Lily, “The Indians helped them and then they growed!” Jace, “Three fish in the ground. Put seeds in and it grows.” Que, “Taller and taller and taller! Weally tall!” Gracia, “The pilgrims invited them to a feast but only the braves could come.” Preston, “They invited 2 Indians.” Que, “60!” Rustin, “14!” Fox, “100!” Nathan, “No! It was one and one and one and one.” Navy, “It was 99 braves. Only boys! Not girls! The chief said!” Kaylee, “The Indians brought turkeys.” Mason, “They shooted wild turkeys!” Daphne, “And they cooked them up!” Navy, “They were thankful!” 

Our feast was fabulous, as each child filled their plate with all the things they wanted to eat from our feast table. While we ate on blankets on the front lawn, we talked about what we were thankful for. Most of the children mentioned their family or moms and dads. Smith said, “My snacks!” Chance said, “My dog!” Navy said, “Jesus.” Ivy said, “Our costumes!” Mason said, “Taco Bell burritos! The bean ones!” Preston said, “I like kitty cats.” Ha! We had a great day! 

We hope all of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We are so very thankful for you!

We will be sending a song line for your child to memorize as part of our Christmas program. We will be assigning those today and sending those out this week. Look for them in your child’s folder. Please remember no Show-N-Tell until January. You may find little to nothing coming home in the weeks to come. We will be making things to display or wrap up for our program on the 20^th. We hope all will be well to come as much as possible. Everyday will be filled with lots of things to do and accomplish as we move into this busy month. It is hard to make up projects in class, but we do our best. We are excited with the season of Christmas in full bloom. We absolutely love this time of year.

Much, much love and devotion for all.

Mrs. McClure

Miss Julie, too!

Brown Week {10} {Tt}

Good morning! Let me bring you up to date on letter Tt! It was terrific! It was tremendous! It was toooo much turkey fun together!     

We all listened to the tick of my clock from off the wall held very close to our ears, “tih, tih, tih”. We learned “Tt Ticks To Tell The Time!” We discovered many Tt words, train, tiger, turkey; even Teletubby!

We sang and twirled for one last time as we spelled B R O W N, being our last color word for the year. We will miss our color weeks. In past years, we have heard the children ask, “What color is it this week?” Sorry! No more colors. You can wear anything you want. Inevitably, someone will ask, “So what color do I wear?”

We will also not be having anymore Show-N-Tell until after Christmas. We will use the time to learn songs and dances for our program on the 20^th  at 10:00am. Please, please mark your calendars to attend. You will not want to miss it. We will have a hat and/or prop or a cane for every song they sing. You will want to invite family members and/or grandparents to attend. Plan on using your cameras bigtime!

We jumped right into the grateful holiday by making turkey hats. As soon as the children started, we began to hear a myriad of squawks and clucks. Despite my persistence to remind the children that a turkey says, “gobble, gobble”, the end result was a chicken barnyard. Madden led the foul group, “Look! I’m a chicken! Bawk! Bawk! Bawk!” flapping his wings to lead a string of brainless birds flapping and squawking and strutting around! “Madden, It’s a turkey! Turkeys gobble! They gobble!” Too funny!

It just got bigger and better, louder and squawky-er as the week progressed. By the time we made our turkey/number game and made our turkey bag costumes, I’m sure the week had gone to the birds! Ha! I couldn’t, resist while packing the little birdies in their cars, announcing, “This one was a real turkey today!” Buah-ha-ha-ha-ha!

  

We were surprised and delighted one of those mornings to have one little turkey change the mood of our day. It was totally refreshing when we heard Gracia softly serenading herself during tub time, “Glo-oh-oh-oh-oh, O-oh-oh-oh-oh, O-oh-oh-oh, Or-ia!” repeating the chorus over and over again as she stacked blocks together. It was the sweetest thing! It absolutely filled me with the Christmas Spirit and I have longed for that holiday to come ever since. Thank you, Gracia!

A couple of fun conversations: I can’t even remember what Dani did wrong, but she profoundly announced, “I made a mistake, Mrs. McClure! Mistakes happen!” So cute!

While waiting for Ryder to get picked up one day, he asked me what my big door was, high up inside the preschool. I told him it was my attic door. I asked, “Do you have an attic?” “Yah. We keep dogs and chickens and goats in our attic.” Really? “Yah. ‘Cause they always want to run away!”

I get a kick out of Ryder. He is always saying things that make us laugh or raise an eyebrow. Several weeks ago as we were waiting for rides, my husband and daughter parked down the street and came in through the front door of my house. Ryder alerted me, “Mrs. McClure! I think I just saw your gramma and grampa going inside your house!” I tried to repeat that to tell Miss Julie at the time and I could not even get the words out! I was doubled over so much from laughing. We still laugh at that. Surprisingly enough, my daughter and husband were not amused!

This coming week is a change from our regular schedule. I hope you noticed it on the calendar and the treat schedule. We sent a note explaining most of that along with a plea to send 25 small bite-sized somethings for our feast. Please send no backpacks on that day and the ‘somethings’ in a disposable bag or container. We will be dressing in our Indian costumes. It is a fact that 99 braves and their chief attended the first thanksgiving feast with the pilgrims to honor and help celebrate their gratitude for them with so much abundance in the face of starvation. So, in a great effort to throw all political “correctness” out the window in order to honor the true facts of history, we will be representing those 99 braves who helped to save some starting immigrants; our ancestors. Times will remain the same. We simply switched school on Wednesday, to Tuesday so we could dress up the children, celebrate the feast and add a day that didn’t encroach upon my own Thanksgiving plans.

Might I add my thankful heart and gratitude for all of you wonderfully supportive parents who patiently plow through these lengthy emails and follow our suggestions and requests to an abundant degree? How very thankful we are for you and your perfect children. Thankful. Thankful. Thankful.