Imagination & G-Paws Big, Big Door

by Angie Quantrell @AngieQuantrell

Donavyn playing with poker chips and making G-Paws big door.

"G-Paw has big, big doors." Said the boy who loves doors of all sorts.

Besides frequent discussions about doors, daily practice in opening and closing doors, making up silly songs about things that open, and drawing doors using various art materials, we have now added building doors with interesting manipulatives.

(For those who don't know about manipulatives, they are collections of junk or toys that can be used in play or learning - blocks, empty thread spools, lids, and so on.)

Donavyn pushing the button to open the garage door.

Mr. D recently had a day where he was quite creative about making G-Paws big, big door (garage door).

First, he wanted to make the door from plastic card chips (great manipulatives - they used to be tires during our play sessions - see how they transform?).

Do notice the white chips. They are the garage door opener switch. If you push those buttons, you have to make "Ehrrrrrrrrrrr" sounds as the door rolls up.

Next, Mr. D wanted to use magnetic letters on the refrigerator to make, yes, you guessed it, G-Paws big, big door.

Donavyn pushing the tiny switch button on the letters to open the garage door.

Again, buttons for controlling the opening and closing of the door were included. As an extra special treat, some of the letters had tiny little light switch looking shapes on them - perfect for button controls! Don't forget to say "Ehrrrrrrrrr" as the door opens.

We eventually moved on to using paint daubers (also known as Bingo daubers) to make doors and people. As long as doors and doorknobs were included, we were happy campers.

Isn't imagination a wonderful thing?


What creative ways have you seen children using their imagination? You might just have the next idea I need!

Teriyaki Salmon Salad Recipe

I was in the mood to cook, but not in the mood to shop for groceries. What's that saying? Necessity is the mother of invention? It was necessary that we had dinner, so I had to invent with what was on hand.

We were both very pleasantly surprised.

Teriyaki Salmon Salad

Salad:
thinly sliced green cabbage
thinly sliced green onions
2 lime wedges

Divide cabbage and green onions between 2 plates. Make a little nest in the center. Squeeze lime juice over each cabbage nest.

Quinoa:
about 1 cup of cooked quinoa (I had some frozen in the freezer)
1 cup chicken broth
a handful of chopped sundried tomatoes (I had some dehydrated from summer)
1/2 chopped onion
dash of garlic powder, black pepper, and cayenne

Mix all ingredients and warm in saucepan. After the salmon is done, put one scoop of quinoa on each plate beside the cabbage nest.

Green Beans:
frozen full-size green beans (we love the Costco frozen green beans)

Bring pan of water to boil. Add green beans. Cook until done to your liking. Drain. Place a serving on each plate beside the cabbage nest. Originally I was going to chop them into smaller pieces and mix them with the cabbage, but it looked prettier this way.

Salmon:
thawed salmon (we had one piece, so we split it)
thinly sliced onion
teriyaki sauce (we like Yoshida's, though it's a bit salty)
olive oil

Saute salmon in olive oil with onions. Saute until cooked through and crispy on the outside (we like a little crust). Add teriyaki sauce and bring to a bubbling boil. It doesn't take very long at all.

Place 1/2 of the salmon on each plate in the cabbage nest. Spoon onions and teriyaki sauce over salmon, cabbage, and green beans. Serve immediately.

This was so good! I can't wait to make it again.

Rubber Stamping Fun - Two Day Marathon = 113 Cards

I'm back from my weeklong hiatus.

Besides the dirty laundry, groceries from Trader Joe's (which we do not have in the Yakima Valley, so I stop in Issaquah whenever I can and race home with the cold stuff under the AC), business cards from new connections, piles of notes and information, and bags of stamping supplies, I also returned with a very special bag.

That bag contained 113 handmade rubber stamped cards. Two days worth of creativity, brainstorming, and tireless work (I might add that my tireless work now begins to run down about 10:00 PM, as opposed to midnight or later when I was younger) was carefully packed into a small bag.

What do we do? Eat, visit, listen to music, walk, eat, sleep a little, and stamp cards. Stamp, fold, cut, trim, glue, tape, glitter, color . . .

It makes me happy. Now I have plenty of new cards to mail to friends and family. And Kevin, compliments of Alyson, has his own box of specially made greeting cards that he can use for his own personal correspondence.

It wasn't long, but we made every minute count.

113 is a good number.

P.S. I will be posting the cards on my Pinterest page, so if you would like to see my creations and perhaps glean an idea or two, go check it out. My Pinterest handle is Angie Quantrell. Look for the Rubber Stamping board.

Chilling with Friends

Monet and Mabel are sisters as well as friends. And in the kitty world, they are also co-conspirators, hunters, fighters, sneakers, racers, destroyers, and makers of great messes.

But when their work is all said and done, as twin girls often do, they recline in similar positions. Most of the time, this is true. I've never seen two cats pose so identically.

Copycats.

This week I will be off running around with friends - eating and rubber stamping and chatting. I will also travel to the Pacific Northwest Writers Association Conference to see old friends and make new ones while learning more about the trade and career of writing. Due to all that gallivanting around, I will not be blogging.

Mostly I will be learning and listening and creating. A vacation and an academy for my mind, all at the same time.

May many blessings and wonderful times grace your home and family this week. Enjoy summer!

See you next week.

Rock Hunting (and Washing)

One of my all-time favorite activities is rock hunting and washing. Simple yet entertaining. Opportunities for descriptive language learning are abundant. Get rock hunting!
1. Go rock hunting with your child. Let him or her invite a friend. Check fields, river sides, beaches, or anyplace rocks grow. Wink, wink. (Make sure you are allowed to hunt rocks.) Place dirty rocks in a canvas bag or cardboard box.
2. Fill a large tub with water. Provide old toothbrushes and bar soap. Let your child and his/her friend soak the rocks, brush soap off of the bar, and then scrub the rocks clean. If you are concerned about dirt and stains, make sure the children wear old clothes or cover up with one of your work shirts. The rock hunters will have a ball by themselves. Or, you can play along and throw in comments like: Which rock is heavier? Oh, that rock is shaped like a square. Which rock do you think looks like a ladybug? This rock is so smooth. That one is bumpy and lumpy...Encourage the children to decide what rocks resemble - the sillier, the more fun.
3. Let the rocks and kids dry in the sun. :)
4. If you want decorated rocks, place newspaper on a table, squirt acrylic paints on a paper plate, and put paintbrushes next to dry, clean rocks. Invite the artists to create their masterpiece rocks. For more permanent designs, when paint is dry, spray a coat of clear acrylic sealer over the top and let it dry. If you don't need permanence, arrange the rocks in the garden and the paint will eventually fade and flake off of the rocks.
5. Repeat steps as necessary.
Before you know it, you will have rock fiends of your own.