This post contains affiliate links. We will be compensated for qualifying purchases you make at no additional cost to you. Thanks for your support! One thing that has happened because of this global pandemic is a lot more screen time for everyone, especially kids who have had to participate in school online for what seems like forever. Then, after they finish school, they want to play video games to relax! Does anyone even know how to play outside anymore? Believe it or not, BOOKS can help open up the world for you and get everyone outside for a change!
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That's right we're bringing back the podcast! We're so excited to be doing this again and chatting about our favorite movie adaptations of some of our favorite books!
Since it's Women's History Month we decided to start with a work of literature by one of the most famous women in literary history, Jane Austen! We chose to do a comparison of Jane's Emma and Amy Heckerling's "Clueless." That's right, if you didn't know "Clueless" is actually a modern day retelling of Ms Austen's Emma. And we love it. So listen in as Lindsey and I discuss how "Clueless" aligns with Emma and why we think books are made into movies in the first place. If you'd rather read our discussion I'll post the transcription below!
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I may have gotten a little over excited when I went to Target last month and saw the dog and cat cookie cutters. As I stood in the store fondling them and debating whether I should get them or not, a woman walked by and she said, "You know, if you buy those you will have to bake cookies!" She was right and I didn't feel like making sugar cookies at that moment, so I put them back.
Over the next few day, I couldn't get them off my mind. I kept thinking about how cute it would be to make the Gingham Dog and the Calico Cat and give them with the classic poem as a gift to a friend, neighbor or to my grandchildren. So, I went back and bought them! Life got busy and I didn't get around to making the cookies for awhile, which gave me time to think about the gift giving possibilities. We know that many people are struggling financially during these pandemic days. Some people always struggle, because of living on a fixed income or other reasons. As a grandmother with 11 grandchildren, 6 children and their spouses and other family members and friends, I know how expensive it can be to buy things for everyone. But, I am sentimental and giving gifts is a way that I like to express my love. Not only that, Christmas doesn't seem like Christmas to me if I don't make some of the gifts that I give. As I considered all of this, I realized that there is something of myself that I can share and maybe this idea is something you would also like to borrow.
When I was young, my mother would read poetry to me and share pieces that she loved. I always remember "The Duel" by Eugene Field, or sometimes known as "The Gingham Dog and the Calico Cat." It isn't necessarily a Christmas poem, but I think the coziness of my memory makes it seem like Christmas to me. Since my mother is still alive at the age of 97, all of my grandchildren know her and love her. I think that I could definitely share this poem and my memories of reading it with her and they would appreciate it. It will be very inexpensive to print the poem off myself, scroll it up and wrapped it with a ribbon, and give it along with the cookies that I lovingly baked and decorated. (My cookies are delicious, even if my decoration isn't perfect.)
If you are familiar with the poem, you know that by the end of the story, the dog and cat have eaten each other up! A card accompanying the cookies could take a line from the poem and express the hope that the recipient "eats these cookies up" and enjoys them! Here is the poem if you haven't read it, or would like a copy yourself.
This poem has been made into book form and unfortunately, it seems to be a collector's item and is usually very costly! But I did manage to find this version for a fairly reasonable price if you would like to give an illustrated book along with your cookies.
Perhaps you have a story or poem that you cherish from your childhood that you could make into a similar gift. Here are some suggestions:
You can find a printable version of the story here.
What stories or poems do you love that you could gift with cookies? I would love to hear your ideas in the comments! How fun to eat and read together! What a great way to instill a love of literature!
This post contains affiliate links. I will be compensated for purchases made through those links at no additional cost to you. All views expressed are my own. Thank you for your support On Pinterest, there are some pretty cool Scavenger Hunts for kids to do during these stay at home times. A couple of the outdoor ones are like pieces of art! Look at this one! I could frame it! she suggested twig pencils to complete this hunt. I found some here! This one is simple yet also beautiful. The kids could make the binoculars we talked about on this post and go out and do their hunt! But, what if you are on rainy day schedule? We've had a lot of rain this year here in Phoenix. How about you? Some of you still are in the midst of very cold weather! When I taught school, we always had to have things to do indoors during rainy days. Not only that, when I had school aged children at home, the house became cluttered quickly! That can be a real mood buster when everyone is stuck at home together. And finally, whether you are doing school work together or just having screen time and being bored, sometimes you just need a mental or physical break! So, because of all of that, I decided to come up with an Indoor Scavenger Hunt that would incorporate fun, learning, food, activity and clutter-busting all in one! I call it the Indoor Find and Do Scavenger Hunt. I had some of my grandchildren try the Scavenger Hunt out for me. It was fun to get the pictures of them doing something that grandma sent them to do. I sure do miss being with them! If you are a grandma missing your grandkids, It is really a blessing to have the ability to talk to them and do things with them over social media. Sending them a simple activity like this scavenger hunt is a gift they will remember. Directions: This isn't necessarily the kind of Scavenger Hunt that you would do all in one day and it isn't a race.
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Creators of Hot Cocoa Bombs! (copyrighted)
Author
Helen Reynolds: Mother of six children , grandmother to eleven! I love to cook, craft and create things and I especially love doing that with my family, So, when my lawyer daughter, Lindsey, my artist daughter, Madalynn, and I came up with the idea of Hot Cocoa Bombs, this blog was born. Then, one more daughter, with her technical and science skills, plus creativity has joined in to round us out! Read more about us here! Archives
May 2024
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