On My Leaf

A few weeks ago I received a copy of "On My Leaf" by Sara Gillingham and Lorena Siminovich.  It is a little board book with a puppet built in!  So cute!!!

I know this is not a great picture but you can get the idea.  The little lady bug is a little finger puppet.  My 8 month old LOVES this book.  Anyone who has every been around a child this age knows that EVERYTHING will go into her mouth!!!  Books are no exception.  What I like about this one is that the pages of the book don't go into her mouth....she goes after the ladybug.  It keeps her engaged and gives her something to "play" with while I'm reading to her.

Each page of the book is cute out, in this case, in the shape of a leaf and the ladybug sits in the middle.  The person reading the book places his/her finger in the puppet through the back of the book.  My 3 1/2 year old likes playing with it too....and "reads" to his little sister.  It's great!

There are many books in this series and they are available at any bookseller who deals with Raincoast Books.  After a brief search I discovered that most of the booksellers in my area carry the books in this series or can order them for you.  They are about $9.99 Canadian....very reasonable in my opinion.  

This is a great gift option for the little ones on your list....I, for one, am heading for more!

Details:  "On My Leaf" (and others) by Sara Gillingham and Lorena Siminovich, published by Chronicle Books, distributed in Canada by RainCoast Books.

Alligator Pie, Alligator Pie.....

...if I don't get some, I think I'm going to die."  So starts Dennis Lee's famous poem called "Alligator Pie".  As a child the collection of poems in the book of the same name was one of my favourites.  Published in 1974 it quickly became part of the Canadian children's literature canon.  Featuring local, Canadian, places and themes it is a whimsical compilation that appeals to children of all ages.

So, when my brother called me up to let me know that Soulpepper Theatre in Toronto had staged "Alligator Pie", a play based on Dennis Lee's poetry we jumped at the chance to go and see it.  This past Saturday morning at 7:30 am we packed the kids into the car and headed to Toronto for the day.  After a quick stop to drop my daughter off with some family we headed down the the Distillery District to catch an 11:00 am show....a perfect time for young children!

WOW!!!!  What a FANTASTIC show!!!!  My son (3 1/2) LOVED it and so did we!  I'm still getting chocked up when I think about it.  Not only did his face light up in delight it transported me back to my childhood.  What a gift! 

A small group of 5 actors, led by Mike Ross, brought us into Lee's childlike world and treated us to music, dancing and the spoken word.  The use of "found" objects to create music was just delightful as was the use of "real" instruments.  Highlights for me included a rendition of "Psychapoo" and a great hip hop version of "Tricking".....and the bubble wrap too! (When a package from Chronicle Books arrived full of bubble wrap on Monday we were pretty excited!!!).

Go to Soulpepper's homepage to see a trailer of the play and get to reserve your tickets.  Go see it before December 9th if you can.  You won't regret it!!!

It's a Jungle in There

A few weeks ago I was visiting Meghan and doing some shopping around the downtown of her city.  In one of the shops I found these FANTASTIC wall decals by Lorena Siminovich and put out by Chronicle Books.  I had been looking for something, anything, to decorate one of the wall of my daughter's bedroom.  Before she was born we had chosen to paint the room a pale yellow to match with a painting my husband had picked up in Uganda the summer before.  The painting is gorgeous and is a silhouette of two giraffes with yellows, oranges and reds create a "sunset" effect. 

Not knowing her gender at the time, we tried to keep it relatively neutral, but found a cool red shag carpet that had the same shades of orange and yellow in it.  After she was born it just didn't seem to work though.  So I was super excited when I found the decals.  They fit the colour scheme and the theme of the room which was African animals.

Needless to say, I was horribly disappointed when they didn't stay on the wall!  I contacted the Chronicle immediately.  They were aware of the problem and sent me a replacement package of decals AND some other goodies right away!  I was very impressed with the fantastic, personal service I received.  Stayed tuned for some of the other goodies I got from them!

Anyway, here's what I did....with Meg's help of course.

petitcollage wall decals....Chronicle Books

 Aren't they so cute!!!!  The hippo clock comes from another establishment but fits nicely I think.  My daughter, and son, have both enjoyed looking at the animals now that they are sticking properly.

A big "Thank You" goes out to Sandy Cooper at RainCoast books , the people who distribute for Chronicle in Canada, for helping me solve my problem.  Again, stayed tuned to see some of the other cool things Chronicle has to offer.

Cheers!

Welcome to our new blog....Magpie Sisters

Welcome to our brand new blog..."Magpie Sisters".  This blog is intended to be a venue for us to share some of our favourite things, new finds, and randomness in our lives...that's shiny!!

First, a little bit about us.  We are two sisters-in-law who share many similar interests but often express our creativity in different ways.  We both love to cook, read and geocache.  Meghan loves to knit and sew while Laura is very involved in papercrafting and is busy raising two young children. 

We are both teachers by profession but neither of us are in the classroom right now for various reasons.  We both enjoy travelling and have had many adventures all over the world....be sure to check out Meghan's blog,  Koiters' to Korea, to see what she was up to in South Korea.  Laura also runs a blog devoted to cardmaking and papercrafting.  Check out Idlewood Cards.

We hope that you enjoy our blog and will become faithful followers!

Cheers