Maggie’s Month: A Family Philanthropic Project

by Mary Ann on October 26, 2011

This is a yearly event that is so dear to my heart. Maggie is my darling granddaughter. Maggie’s Month is the brain child of my darling and very inventive daughter. Maggie’s Month is an opportunity for families to experience philanthropy at its finest. Read on for the chance to have some special experiences with your children.

little maggie picture Hi, I’m Maggie! I’m 5 years old and I have a disability called Cerebral Palsy from a brain injury at my birth. I need your family’s help to get a special therapy called Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT).

Because of my brain injury I can’t walk, talk, feed myself, or even sit up by myself. HBOT has the potential of helping me walk, talk, and do things that I’ve never been able to do before, in fact, it’s already made a big difference in my abilities. Heck, I know I could even go to college some day and have a family of my own. I want to be ready for that!

HBOT therapy is very expensive and is not covered by insurance. So, in 2010 my mom and dad had an idea that is really fun! They created a special annual fund-raising project called, Maggie’s Month: A Family Philanthropy Project.

The idea is for your family to work together through Maggie’s Month to raise the money to sponsor 1 of my HBOT therapies ($150). The funnest part is coming up with ways to work together so that everyone in your family can get involved. Our annual goal is to get 80 dives sponsored.

HELP MAGGIE

Family Philanthropy is a really terrific way for your family to work together to make a difference in the world.

So, here’s what you do . . .

Maggie being a kid!

1. Visit my website and learn more about this project, get fundraising ideas, see fun videos of me, and to donate online. LIKE my Facebook page . Share these with everyone you can.
2. Sit down with your family and come up with lot’s of fun ideas to raise the money to sponsor 1 of my dives ($150). Make sure you have some yummy treats while you’re brainstorming. It makes your brain work better, and I know about brains!
3. Send my mom an email if you’d like your fundraising event listed on the Events page of my website. Her email is [email protected].
4. Complete your fundraising project and then send my mom a report of what your family experienced. We love pictures! She’s going to post what families are doing and their experiences on my website. You can watch the dive chamber fill up with pledges at the bottom of my page. Send your emails to [email protected].
5. At the end of your fundraising event, get your family together to count all the money you’ve earned. Gather around the computer and together click the DONATE HERE button on my web page. Then give some cheers and go have more yummy treats!

Maggie with her dog Ody Lew picture Of course, if you’d rather just sponsor a dive or a portion of a dive yourself, you are welcome to do so at any time on the DONATE HERE page of my website, or through my mom and dad.

My dog Odie Lew is really grateful for your participation, because he really wants me to be able to scratch his belly. Thank you for helping me.

Love, Maggie (and Ody Lew)

Maggie still being a kid!

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Teaching kids about inventions and inventors

by Mary Ann on October 25, 2011

kids with their rocket propelled robot invention

Our super-dooper rocket propelled robot

I found the most amazing book at the library!!! I happened across it quite accidentally. It was about Leonardo daVinci and the amazing visions that he had in his life time. But that wasn’t all. It showed how, in time, all of his inventive ideas were actually created by other people and who those people were. Oh my gosh, I wanted to teach my grandchildren about this.

However, it was a book with a lot of words and probably over their heads. I stewed on what to do for a few days. Then my daughter suggested that I teach them what an invention is. Voila, what a perfect solution to my dilemma. So that is what I did.

The Creation Box

We had so darn much fun and one slight owie. : ) I took my creation box for the Traveling Closet this week. If you aren’t familiar with that here is the description. It is a cardboard box that I collect junk in: plastic ware, Styrofoam cups, old keys, buttons, wiggly eyes, toilet paper tubes, paper towel tubes, paper clips, popsicle sticks, washers, Styrofoam balls and cones, yarn, whatever comes my way that would otherwise be thrown out.

I began the day by asking Jack if he knew what an invention was. He said he thought it was a place to go. I told them that an invention was an idea in someone’s head that they turned into something real. I suggested that we look at some inventions to get an idea about what they are. Then we looked at the wonderful book about Leonardo daVinci.

I thought that they would be bored because it is a bit over their heads, however, they loved it! We looked at the old drawing and how the actual invention looked. We talked about the fact that Leonardo only had people making things go but that the real inventions used electricity and motors.

Interested in inventions

We looked at pictures of old TV sets and Philo Farnsworth who invented the TV. Jack and Maggie couldn’t believe how different they look today and Jack was enthralled with the name Philo.

We looked at a book about the Day-Glo brothers and the brilliant paint colors they invented.

The children were very excited about all these wonderful inventions. Then I asked them if they would like to make an invention. Oh my, they were excited. However they didn’t know how to do it. So we talked about all the items scattered on the table and just started putting them together. I had brought the hot glue gun with me because I knew as little as they are that regular glue wouldn’t work. When you use a glue gun it is tough to make it safe. Jack reach out to touch something that still had pretty warm glue on it. He wasn’t burned much but was an unhappy camper. Hot glue is a bit dicey with really little people; hard to be careful enough.

Can't be too careful with hot glue!

We blew up the balloons first because, of course, they really wanted the balloons. As we went along we decided we were making a robot. Notice the eye and the teeth (the safety plug)

Mary loved the balloons best

The best part of the day was when the light went on in Jack’s brain. He saw the Styrofoam cone and a long tube. He put the cone on top of the tube and realized that he had made a rocket. He was so excited about his own “all alone” invention.

Jack's "all alone" invention

Then we glued the rocket to our robot and we had a rocket powered robot. It really was a fun learning day and Jack, Maggie and maybe even Mary will remember what an invention is and that there are so many of them.

If you have older children then it would be a wonderful thing to do this project and then study one new inventor each week or month for the whole year. You would never run out and there are all kinds of experiments, projects and crafts that you can do to demonstrate and mimic what the inventors did.

Books about inventions for kids:

The Day-Glo Brothers by Chris Barton
Neo Leo by Gene Barretta
The boy who Invented TV by Kathleen Krull
So You want to be an Inventor? By Judith St. George – A wonderful book about the traits of inventors, some of which aren’t valued, like daydreaming. : )
Now & Ben: The Modern Inventions of Benjamin Franklin by Gene Barretta
The Kid Who Invented the Popsicle: And Other Surprising Stories about Inventions by Don L. Wulffson
Brainstorm!: The Stories of Twenty American Kid Inventors by Tom Tucker
Kids Inventing! A Handbook for Young Inventors by Susan Casey
Girls Think of Everything: Stories of Ingenious Inventions by Women by Catherine Thimmesh
The Kids’ Invention Book (Kids’ Ventures) by Arlene Erlbach

DVD’s on Leonardo daVinci:
Leonardo’s Dream Machines PBS Home Video, 2005
The Life of Leonardo daVinci: The Most Brilliant Mind in History Chicago: 2003
Modern Marvels: DaVinci Tech The History Channel, 2005

On-Line videos of kid’s inventions:
A girls invention group
A fun invention-this is absolutely hysterical!!!
Great inventions by grade school age children

Inventions made by kids:

Allan Chu is 17 years old and he has just invented a way to speed up the Internet! He was tired of how slow it can be so he took matters into his own hands. He invented an algorithm which will compress data and allow information over the internet to be presented to you much more quickly. An algorithm is a step by step mathematical procedure that solves a problem especially by a computer. Allan entered a math, science and technology competition and won first place and $3,000! Quite an accomplishment for such a young person!

If you have ever thought about inventing something yourself, you don’t need to be a math and science genius to devise something clever. Have you ever heard of a Popsicle? Well, in 1905 an 11-year-old boy named Frank Epperson invented it. He accidentally left his favorite fruit drink with a stirrer in it outside on the porch overnight. When he awoke, the drink was frozen and he found a new delicious treat. He went on to patent his idea and is the creator of the Popsicle, Fudgsicle, Creamsicle and Dreamsicle!

How about Chester Greenwood? In 1858 at the age of 15, he was ice skating and kept getting irritated at how cold his ears got. He tried wrapping his head in a scarf but that probed to be too bulky and itchy. He went home and fashioned 2 ear shaped loops from wire and asked his grandmother to sew some fur on the loops. These became the first ear muffs which he patented and ended up making a fortune on his invention by supplying the US soldiers with ear muffs during World War I.
From http://www.chevroncars.com/learn/odds-ends/inventions-kids

Want to see some other cool inventions, take a look.

I really like this invention! Makes me want to drink some lemonade!

Some very clever inventions

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Foods for Fall harvest and Halloween

by Mary Ann on October 21, 2011

Autumn is a time for old fashioned treats

It is harvest time and Halloween and a time for treats. I love fall food and I have some darn good Halloween and fall food recipes. So in honor of my favorite time of year, AUTUMN, I am going to share a few with you. These are “get the family together for some fun” recipes. Let the kid’s help, make a mess, clean up together and then delight your taste buds.

Now a word of caution, I am no gourmet cook. I just like to eat and I like working with children so these recipes work just fine for me. Go ahead and check out these easy Halloween treats kids can help you make.

Have an old fashioned taffy pull

Salt Water Taffy Recipe

Want something to do on Halloween night. Gather some of your neighbors into your kitchen and have a good old fashioned taffy pull. The fun is in the pulling and the reward is in the eating!

2 c granulated sugar 1 c light corn syrup

1 ½ tsp salt 2 Tb butter/margarine

¼ tsp oil of mint or other flavoring 7 drops food coloring

Combine sugar, syrup, salt and 1 c water in 2-qt saucepan. Cook slowly, stirring constantly till sugar dissolves. Cook to hard ball stage (265 degrees) without stirring. Remove from heat; stir in remaining ingredients. Pour into buttered 151/2” X 10 1/2” pan. Cool till comfortable to handle. Butter hands; gather taffy into a ball and pull. Keep pulling by stretching it out and bringing it back together. When candy is light in color and gets hard to pull, cut into fourths; pull each piece into long strand about ½” thick. With buttered scissors quickly snip into bite size pieces. Wrap each piece in waxed paper. Makes 1 ¼ lb. (If you have a group doing this project then you will already have your taffy into small enough quantities to pull into a long rope and snip.

Old fashioned candied apples on a stick

Cinnamon Apples Recipe

These were my favorite treat at the state fair, next to cotton candy. Never did learn how to make cotton candy but love making these! I choose nice small apples so they don’t go to waste and are not too cumbersome for little mouths to manage.

6 crisp, small apples 6 wooden skewers

11/3 c granulated sugar 2 c light corn syrup

¼ tsp red food coloring 10 drops oil of cinnamon

Wash and dry the apples; remove stems. Insert skewers into blossom ends of each apple. Combine sugar, corn syrup, and food coloring in top of double broiler. Cook directly over low heat stirring till sugar dissolves, about 4 minutes. Cover and cook slowly 8 minutes. Uncover. Cook without stirring to hard crack stage (300 degrees). Stir in flavoring. Place top of double boiler over boiling water in lower part.

Turn each apple in syrup to coat. Twirl apple to spread coating evenly-let excess syrup drip back into pan. Set apples on a buttered cookie sheet. If syrup thickens, reheat over direct heat. Makes 6 apples.

The BEST caramel corn ever!

Caramel Corn Recipe

This is by far the best recipe I have ever used and it is very old. I got it from a friend when I was newly married and she got it from her mom who was even older!

4-5 quarts popped corn ¾ c sugar

¼ tsp salt 1 tsp white vinegar

½ c white corn syrup ¾ c brown sugar

½ c water ¾ c butter

Cook all the ingredients except the butter to 260 degrees. Add the butter. Cook for 5 minutes. Pour over the corn and stir. If you want pop corn balls, my preferred way of eating candied pop corn, quickly butter your hands and begin forming medium sized balls until the corn cools so that it won’t stay together. I am pretty good and can get a lot of balls made before it cools too much. If there are old maids in the corn they are hot and the candy is hot. Little children probably won’t want to make the balls but older kids will hop up and down on one foot yelling “hot, hot”, while they make a ball or two. Very fun!!

So now that we have some great fall treats let’s read some great fall books together and enjoy a cozy evening as a family.

Autumn books for kids

Too Many Pumpkins by Linda White – As a child, Rebecca Estelle’s family spent a month eating pumpkins when they couldn’t afford anything else. Afterwards, Rebecca Estelle swore she would never eat, or even look at, another pumpkin again. “Until…” fate stepped in a sent a plague of pumpkins into her garden. Reader’s will love how Rebecca Estelle tries to get rid of the problem.
Patty’s Pumpkin Patch by Teri Sloat – Patty’s pumpkin patch is wonderfully illustrated and maps out the entire life cycle of a pumpkin plant from seeds and planting to the actual growth and harvest.
Waltz of the Scarecrows by Constance W. McGeorge – Marvellous story. Beautifully illustrated. Children love this story. The search for the scarecrows hidden in the pages creates a level of glee that keeps the child and adult involved.
The Seasons of Arnold’s Apple Tree by Gail Gibbons – This book covers the basics of what a tree goes through every season.Arnold and his dog take you through each season and explain what type of activities they do with the tree.
Picking Apples and Pumpkins by Amy Hutchings – An engaging, informative and beautifully photographed book for kids and parents.
Hurry Hurry Mary Dear by N. M. Bodecker – The illustrations are delightful, with much detail. There is almost a second story line in the antics of the small black cat found on most of the pages — very nice when reading to kids; it allows them to make up a story of their own to go along with the main story.
Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert Like Leaf Man – I was blown away, but not by the wind, by this beautiful book. It’s a pleassure to read, children love to find the animals quickly getting the hang of seeing them in the leaf shapes.
Giving Thanks by Jonathan London – The father in this story teaches his son to give thanks for all of the things in nature that they encounter during a walk in the woods – for the sun and moon, frogs and crickets, a fox, and more. A lovely book to read before taking a fall hike.
Leaf Jumpers by Carole Gerber and Leslie Evans – A fantastic introduction to identifying leaves!
Wild Child by Lynn Plourde – Lynn Plourde’s text snaps and crackles like the leaves of fall as Mother Earth gently gets her daughter ready for bed.
Henry and Mudge Under the Yellow Moon by Cynthia Rylant- An early reader – In the autumn Henry and his big dog Mudge watch the leaves turn, meet with some Halloween spooks, and share Thanksgiving dinner.
By the Light of the Harvest Moon by Harriet. As the harvest moon shines down, the wind picks up, sending orange, yellow, and crimson leaves dancing, until they settle in a pumpkin patch. One-by-one, leaf people emerge to celebrate the autumnal equinox.
Strega Nona’s Harvest by Tomie dePaola – An all-new Strega Nona picture book.
Pumpkin Moonshine by Tasha Tudor – I just love her illustrations!

What is your favorite autumn treat and why. Please share : )

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Teach kids the origin of Halloween and Trick or Treating

by Mary Ann on October 19, 2011

Autumn, a time for different celebrations

Halloween is coming and whether or not it is a holiday that you celebrate you can use it to teach your children a myriad of things. So here are some ideas for your Closet for next week.

The Celts were a tribal people.

1. Halloween has its origins in the ancient Celtic festival known as Samhain, pronounced “sah-win”. This festival is a celebration of the end of the harvest season in Gaelic culture. The Celts were a tribal society in Roman-era Europe.

The Romans worshiped various gods and on October 31, a special feast was held in honor of Pomona, goddess of the fruit trees.

Why not put some books about the Celts and Romans in your Closet and tie them to the beginnings of Halloween.

Books for kids about the Celts and Romans

• Celts (Usborne Beginners) by Leonie Pratt – This is a very refreshing book aimed at the younger reader up to about 7 years old.
• Who Were the Romans? by Phil Roxbee Cox – The book is best suited for ages 6-8 years.
• Romans (Usbourne Beginners) By Katie Daynes – for ages 5-7
• Roman Things to Make and Do (Usborne Activities) by Leonie Pratt – Activities that you can add to your Closet.
• Celts (Britain Through the Ages) By Hazel Mary Martel – Focuses on Celtic life in Iron Age Britain.

2. The Celts came to Britain and Ireland around 500BC. The Celts called Britain and Ireland the “Pretanic Islands” which evolved into the modern word “Britain”.

A Celtic Knot

Make a Celtic Knot Greeting Card

History of Trick-or-treating

Trick-or-treating resembles the late medieval practice of souling, when poor folk would go door to door on Hallowmas (November 1), receiving food in return for prayers for the dead on All Souls Day. Now you can add some books about Ireland and Britain.

King Arthur was a legendary British leader of the late 5th century. This would be a fun person to study.

King Arthur was a legendary king in early Britain.

Books for kids about Ireland, Britain and King Arthur

• Camelot: A Collection of Original Arthurian Stories
• Castle: An Interactive Guide to Castles
• Excalibur by Hudson Talbott – Arthur leads his knights in glorious battle and takes on heroic quests to prove himself. Ages 7-up
• Favorite Medieval Tales by Mary Pope Osborne – King Arthur to Sir Gawain to Beowulf to Robin Hood
• King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table from Sir Thomas Malory’s Le Morte d’Arthur edited by Sidney Lanier. This adaptation of the classic text is part of the Illustrated Junior Library collection.

Build a castle for King Arthur and his knights.

Halloween and similar celebrations in other countries

3. In Scotland this holiday is called All-Hallows-Eve. Get a book on Scotland and learn a bit about the country and the people.

Make a Scottish Stick puppet.

A Scottish stick puppet

Books for kids about Scotland and All-Hallows-Eve:

• All Hallows Eve: The Story of the Halloween Fairy by Lisa Sferlazza Johnson
• The Water Horse by Dick King-Smith Two kids find a strange egg on the beach, and when it hatches, they hide it in the bathtub.
• The Luck of the Loch Ness Monster by A.W. Flaherty, Scott Magoon Delightful tale of the Loch Ness monster, and a little girl who doesn’t like to eat her oatmeal, the national breakfast food of Scotland.
• The Boggart by Susan Cooper When Emily and Jessup’s family inherits a crumbling castle on Lismore Island in the middle of Loch Linnhe, the kids encounter the Boggart, a gleeful spirit that flitters about, likes bacon and sausage, and plays tricks before breakfast.
• The Story of Scotland by Richard Brassy, Stewart Ross Humorous illustrated history of Scotland, from Skara Brae, to the Romans, Robert the Bruce Mary Queen of Scots, Bonnie Prince Charlie, plus castles, legends, and famous figures. (Picture book)
• B is for Bagpipes by Eve Begley Kiehm, Alexa Rutherford Scotland from A to Z in quick rhymes and fun facts – from Auld Lang Syne, clans, dances, food, landmarks, kings and queens, to Zetland, the northernmost isles. (Picture book)

4. Mexico has a Day of the Dead Celebration. This is not a scary time but a time for happiness and fun. Learn a bit about the country, the people and the celebration.

Good food is part of Mexico's Day of the Dead celebration

Books for kids about Mexico and the Day of the Dead:

• Maria Molina and the Days of the Dead by Kathleen Krull
• The Spirit of Tio Fernando: A Day of the Dead Story by Janice Levy
• Postcards from Mexico by Arnold, Helen
• Mexico, A True Book by Heinrichs, Ann
• Life World Library: Mexico by Johnson, William Webber
• Mexico, Rookie Read-About Geography by Marx, David

Make a Mexican God’s Eye.

By the way this could lead you to an adventure to learn about the Aztecs!

• The Aztecs, Journey into Civilization by Nicholson, Robert

5. In China on the 15th day of the 7th lunar month they have a Spirit Festival (Ghost Festival).

• Free Coloring pages for kids of the Ghost Festival

• Make some Good Luck Goldfish

Chinese Good Luck Goldfish

6. Have a map handy to find all these wonderful countries.

7. You might have a conversation about why people celebrate the dead; fear the dead and how your family views the dead.

8. Books for kids on Halloween in America

• Halloween Merrymaking: An Illustrated Celebration of Fun, Food, and Frolics from Halloweens Past by Diane C. Arkins
• Halloween: An American Holiday by Lesley Bannatyne
• Witches, Pumpkins, and Grinning ghosts: the Story of the Halloween Symbols by Edna Barth. Hee is a book to explain all the funny business on October 31. It opens the door for a conversation about why you do or don’t celebrate this holiday and the value of symbols.