Community Coordinated Child Care

February 2nd.

Kerri Baxter — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 13:38:02 +0000

February 2nd. This is the day each year when a groundhog emerges and, depending on whether or not he sees his shadow, supposedly predicts how many weeks of winter are left. Many communities have week-long festivities in anticipation of the emergence. The most famous, of course, is Punxatawney Phil. He lives in Pennsylvania but all across the country, people wait for his fearless prognostication.

Color groundhogs, find a spot outside where any animal, such as a squirrel, is likely to make an appearance, and see if he sees his shadow. Make it a fun day in what is usually a cold mid-winter time. It is also a perfect time to talk about the seasons, especially the Spring which is around the corner. What are some signs of Spring that are noticeable? Are there buds on the trees? Are there tall clumps of grass all over your yard? Are birds chirping? Do you see violets?

Let’s hope we have a short Winter, although so far it has been tame. May it continue!

Celebrate National Wear Red Day on Friday, February 3, 2012

DeLinda-Taylor — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 18:36:03 +0000

Heart disease is still the No. 1 killer of women, causing 1 in 3 deaths each year. This means women just like you – mothers, sisters, friends – are dying at the rate of one per minute. In fact, in the time it takes to read this, another woman will die from heart disease. It simply does not have to be that way. At the American Heart Association, we work every day to fund research and fight this killer so more women can be saved. www.GoRedForWomen.org/WearRedDay.

“Here is an “Oh so true” Top Ten list of perks of being a child care program Director as published in Child Care Exchange.

Kerri Baxter — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 17:30:21 +0000

Perks of Being a Director
December 29, 2011

10. Having beautiful, young children in your life Monday through Friday, but your evenings and weekends are free.

9. The first to know the current children’s fever/cold/flu symptoms.

8. Your ECE administrative abilities include junior plumbing skills — i.e. you’ve never met a toilet you couldn’t unclog.

7. Having at your ready a repertoire that includes over 100 children’s stories, songs, and finger plays.

6. Experience in setting-up and hosting staff ‘wedding,’ ‘baby,’ and ‘good-bye’ parties.

5. When insomnia strikes, you alone can recite pages of state licensing regs until you nod off from sheer boredom.

4. If you live near your work, you’ll know the future generations of school cheerleaders, newspaper deliverers, Girl Scout cookie sellers, drug store and fast-food cashiers, etc.

3. After retirement, at the nursing home, you will know over 300 craft projects to make from empty toilet tissue rolls.

2. Knowing you are helping to get the next generation off to a great start.

1. Unlimited snacks and hugs.

100 days of School

Kerri Baxter — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 12:29:16 +0000

In most school systems, the 100th day of school occurs during January. This can be a reason to celebrate for teachers and children alike. It’s fairly common to think of January being the beginning of the end of the school year. Some children and teachers even begin counting how many days left. So, when you make snowflakes for an art activity, why not add 100th activities, as well. Kids can use cheerios to glue on papers, make funny looking faces out of the number 100 by adding hair, glasses, nose, mouth. Have each child bring in a picture of their favorite thing and see if they can make them add up to 100. Counting beads is a good activity and making necklaces with 100 Cheerios, Fruit Loops, pieces of pasta helps develop fine motor skills. You may have many, many more ways to celebrate the 100th day of the school year. Just remember to have fun! Children learn by playing!!

Pat

Frost Paint

Robin Schotter — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 20:08:25 +0000

Want to add a little science to your art? Try making Frost Paint! The recipe is simple –water and Epsom salt- but the result is amazing. Crystals will form right before your eyes!

Add ½ cup Epsom Salt (found in the pharmacy section) to ½ cup boiling water. That’s it! Boiling the water is the key to make sure the salt dissolves completely in the water.

Draw a picture on a piece of colored construction paper.
Paint over it with your Frost Paint.
When it dries, the water will evaporate and leave the long, thin Epsom salt crystals. It will look like frost on your drawing.
Do some experimenting. Try it with a larger amount of salt in the water. How is the result different?
Try adding food coloring to the water. Do you think it will make colored crystals?
What do you think would happen with table salt or rock salt? Try it!

Earned Income Tax Credit Can Put Money in Your Pocket

Kerri Baxter — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 12:20:05 +0000

You could be eligible to get more money back from the IRS – as much as $5,751. If you earned less than $49,078 from wages, self-employment, or farming last year, you may qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit – or EITC.

EITC is a financial boost for working people in a recovering economy. You may be among the millions who will qualify for the first time because your financial, marital or parental status changed in 2011.

Eligibility is based on several factors, including the amount of earned and other types of income, or combined income if married, whether you have qualifying children and how many. Workers without children may also qualify.

Four of five eligible people claim and get their EITC. Use IRS’s online EITC Assistant to see if you qualify. If so, you must file and claim the credit to get it.

Free help is available at volunteer income tax assistance sites. Locate a volunteer site by calling your community’s 211 or 311 number for local services or call the IRS at 1-800-906-9887.

Get back even more if your state also has an EITC.

EITC. You earned it. Now file, claim it and get it.

Dr Martin Luther King Jr.

Kerri Baxter — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 12:17:40 +0000

I had the opportunity to read the book, The Help, recently. January is when the country celebrates the birth of Dr Martin Luther King, JR, so it seems fitting to talk about where we were, where we are, where we still need to go. Needless to say, this book brought back terrible memories of a much darker era in the history of our country. It is thanks to Dr King that we have made significant progress in how we treat others. I vividly recall going to Sears at 8th and Broadway with my parents and seeing two water fountains and two bathrooms, one marked colored, the other white. It’s difficult to believe now that it was a reality then. A Parish bingo hall where I worked sent all of the minorities up a long flight of stairs and kept the “whites” downstairs. (Wonder if they patted themselves on the back for being integrated)? Yes, every bit of it is in my conscious memory, and it bothers me that it happened. Thanks to Dr King’s “I Have a Dream Speech”, the countless marches attended by people of many races, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, things are better now. Our children and grandchildren may not have any sense of the injustices suffered by minorities and that is a good thing. Discuss it. Talk about how it feels to not be included. How many times have our children told us they feel like outsiders, especially when it comes to sports or birthday parties they aren’t invited to? Talk about Dr Martin Luther King Jr. and how one man’s resolve, refusal to quit, can change the world for the better.

Pat

Ice Explorations

Robin Schotter — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 21:30:03 +0000

Ice explorations are wonderful science experiments for children. Watching something change through freezing and thawing, adding salt to alter the way it melts, and dripping colored water on it to see the path the drips take, all provide engaging ways for children to play with science. Try freezing small objects in ice cubes and give children tools to free them (be sure to use goggles!). Try freezing water in large containers such as an orange juice carton or water balloon so children can see the air bubbles trapped in the middle, or try freezing water in unusual shapes by using a rubber glove or other plastic molds. By adding droppers for children to transfer colored water, you are also providing an activity that strengthens fine motor skills.

Come be a part of the largest rally for kids in Kentucky!

Kerri Baxter — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 16:27:30 +0000

Children’s Advocacy Day at the Capitol is the opportunity to show legislators that Kentucky cares about its children and youth, and talk with them about the most pressing issues Kentucky’s kids are facing today. Join us for the 8th Annual Children’s Advocacy Day at the Capitol on Thursday, February 16, 2012. Any and all are welcome to take a stand and raise their voice. Elected officials, social workers, teachers, law enforcement officers, judges, doctors, public health experts, therapists, members of the military, seniors, and kids will all come together to rally on children’s issues at the Capitol Rotunda and talk to legislators about the Blueprint for Kentucky’s Children agenda.

New Year

Kerri Baxter — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 16:26:45 +0000

Happy New Year to everyone. In many ways, a new year brings hope for brighter days. For some, it’s the beginning of the end. How, you may ask? Gone are the days of rich foods, parties, feasts, and unreasonable resolutions begin to fill the brain. There is a tendency to start out like gangbusters, making mental lists of all the improvements desired. The reality of implementing every single one sets one up for defeat. It is very difficult to try to change too much at the same time. Yes, the good intentions are there, but we are humans and can only do so much. You may wish to make one or two resolutions and stick to them. Good luck to all who opt for this plan. One thing that works for me is to make a one day resolution. My self-control needs help in the worst way, and by making this for a single day, I can more easily do that. The next day, I re-up for the same plan and so on. Before too long, three or four weeks pass and it is becoming a habit. If it becomes routine after a couple of months, I add another resolution and do that one a day at a time.

It is pretty much a universal trait that when we fail, we beat ourselves up and feel terrible for being a “loser”. By streamlining changes and/or introducing them a day at a time, there is a whole lot less to beat about our shortcomings.

Good luck with your hopes for the New Year, regardless of what they are. Maybe you will try to get more sleep, speak in a softer tone, eat a fruit a day, take a walk. Be positive when everything seems like it is overwhelming, enlist a support system for like-minded friends or family etc, and remember, if you fall off the today’s wagon, tomorrow is another opportunity.

Pat