BFF Adventures: American Snow Girl

"Wow Emily look at all this snow! It's so deep and fluffy!"

"Yes and difficult to walk in! My feet keep getting stuck!"

With her feet deep in the snow Emily teetered until she lost her balance and plunked down in the snow.

"My goodness!" Emily exclaimed. 

"Are you okay Emily?" Molly asked as she positioned herself next to Emily.

"Indeed! It's a good thing snow is soft!" Emily chuckled.

"Soft and sparkly!" Added Molly. "Let's make snow angels in the fresh snow!"

The girls waved their arms and legs up and down and back and forth in the snow then sat up and admired their pretty snow angels.

"Now let's go swing!"

Emily and Molly laid out on their tummies so they could pretend they were birds flying over the beautiful white snow.

"Now let's make a snowman!"

They gathered up spare hat, scarf, mittens, buttons, carrots, and sticks.

They built three sturdy snow balls added the facial features and arms.

Lastly they added the accessories.

"Brilliant! She looks so cheeky in her smart matching winter accessories!"

"She?" inquired Molly.

"Yes, well she is wearing the pink American Girl accessories."

"Oh yeah, I guess your right. It's not a snowman but a snow girl."

"Right! An American Snow Girl!"

The girls danced and played around their new little snow friend until the sun was setting then headed inside to warm themselves in front of the fire with hot chocolate.

Snow Day!!

Molly tiptoed into Felicity's room and reached up to gently jostle her awake. 

"Felicity. Felicity. Wake up."

Felicity mumbled some silly gibberish but didn't wake up. 

Molly tried again giggling quietly. 

"Felicity wake up I have something very exciting to tell you."

Molly climbed the little ladder up into Felicity's loft bed and hovered over her nudging Felicity until she finally rose up. 

"What is it Molly?" Felicity yawned sleepily. 

With wide excited eyes Molly whispered "We don't have school, it's a snow day!!"

"REALLY!?" Felicity jumped up very awake and alert now.

"Yes, really! Look here on the television. All schools in the area are closed. Even shopping malls, doctors offices, libraries, and major roads and highways are closed because we are in a really big snow storm!"

"Wow! This is so exciting!"

The girls ran to the window to see how bad the storm really was. Much to their surprise they could barely see to the pond for the snow was coming down so thick and heavy.

We truly were in a marshmallow world!

"Burr it looks cold out there!" Exclaimed Felicity.

"I didn't think we would really have a snow day. We even laid out our clothes last night for school and everything. Should we get dressed?" Asked Molly.

"Are you kidding me? The best part about snow days is that you can lounge around inside in your pajamas all day!" Replied Felicity.

"Your right! Let's get cozy in front of the T.V. and watch a movie!"

"YEAH!"

The girls spent the morning curled up in their warm PJs as the snow continued to fall and fall and fall.

"Felicity I'm getting a little bored of watching movies. Wanna play some games?"

"Sure! Hey let's make a fort first and play games in our fort!"

Molly and Felicity worked very hard to get the sheets and props just right making a fun little fortress. Their minds went wild thinking of fun stories to pretend inside their fort. At one point they were Eskimos in an igloo. Then they were archeologists hiding from wild beasts in their tent. Then they were princesses from a far away land in their tree bungalow high about a tropical jungle. 

"Hey Molly and Felicity."

The "princesses" were pulled out of their imaginary world at the sound of Rebecca calling them back to reality.

"Wow! Nice fort girls!" Exclaimed Samantha. "This looks fun!"

"It is! Do you wanna come in and play go fish with us?" Asked Felicity.

"No thank you. We were actually going to ask you if you wanted to go play in the snow with us." Replied Rebecca.

Felicity and Molly looked at each other searching for an answer. They both shrugged continent in their cozy "bungalow" and not whiling to subject themselves to the blustery cold winds.

"No thank you, it's too cold, but have fun!" said Molly.

Samantha and Rebecca went out and braved the cold.

A while later they came back inside to find Felicity and Molly still in their PJs cleaning up the fort.

"How was it?" Asked Felicity.

"So fun it's like a magical white wonderland out there!" Cried out Rebecca twirling around like a falling snowflake.

Samantha giggled and added, "We had a great time but now we are chilled to the bone! I'm going to make some hot chocolate, would you like some?"

"MMMM! Yes please!" Shouted both Molly and Felicity.

"Would you guys like to play Apples to Apples?" Asked Molly.

"Sure! I'll ask Kirsten and Addy if they want to play too." Said Rebbeca as she danced off the the other part of the house.

Just as Samantha and Rebecca left Felicity's room Molly and Felicity tuned into hear the T.V. say that schools were going to be closed again tomorrow!

"YIPPY WE GET TO STAY HOME IN OUR PAJAMAS ALL OVER AGAIN!

SNOW DAYS ARE AWESOME!!!"

Have you been hit by these recent big winter storms?

Here in the Midwest we have been hit hard twice in the past week. Both storms laid out about a foot of snow each! It's been really fun and beautiful having the snow since last year we got no snow days and practically no snow either.

Lessons with Miss Walker: President's Day

"Good morning students."

"Good morning Miss Walker."

"Today is February 18th and it is Presidents Day. To begin today I'd like you to make an entry in your writing journal answering who your favorite president is and why. Once you have done that close your journals to show me you are ready to begin today's lesson."

"In honor of this special day we have been learning about the great presidents of the United States and today we will discuss my personal favorite President Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln was born in 1809 and was the president from 1861 to 1865. He was assassinated shortly after being reelected  into his second term of presidency. Your assignment is to research him then make a report of what you've learned in any fashion you chose."

"Yes Kirsten."

"Miss Walker I lived before Abraham was president how will I be able to research him?" asked Kirsten nervously in her soft sweet voice.

"Excuse me Miss Walker but I think I have a good idea. With your permission I could use my time traveling machine to help Kirsten with her research. We could even do a partner report."

"I think that is a fine idea, Felicity. May I suggest you create some sort of a timeline as you travel through time."

[HOURS LATER]

"Alright students it's time to give your reports on Abraham Lincoln. I'm so anxious to hear what you have discovered!"

"Miss Walker we are ready to report our findings," piped up Felicity bravely. "We started our journey all the way back in my time period 1774...which happened to be an over shot because George Washington wasn't even president until 1789. Any ways, we then traveled forward throughout all the years seeing all the presidents up through and just after Lincoln's death."

"We made a timeline of all of the presidents before Lincoln's term," added Kirsten gaining confidence with Felicity beside her. "We spent some time in my time period of 1854 when Franklin Pierce was president from1853 to 1857. At that point we learned that he supported the Kansas-Nebraska Act and also his wife hated Washington D.C. so much that she  fainted when she found out he got elected!"
The girls giggled.

"Yeah and before that we found out that James Madison (the fourth president) became president the same year Abraham was born in 1809."

"We didn't record this on the timeline but we also found out that Andrew Johnson became president after Lincoln died and Johnson served until 1869."

"Very good girls. This is a very well made timeline, we will definitely need to hang that in the classroom. Who would like to share next?"

"I will," Samantha said as she gracefully pulled out her sketchbook and walked to the front of the class room.

 "I learned that an eleven-year-old girl named Grace Bedell wrote to Abraham Lincoln suggesting he grow whiskers to hide his skinny face and that perhaps he would gain more votes that way. Being a humble man, Lincoln thought people would think he was vain if he grew a beard but he he took Grace's suggestion and grew the beard and that is why he has a beard. I happen to think he has a charming and kind face which inspired me to create a charcoal portrait of him in my sketchbook." 

"My goodness! Samantha you are talented! You definitely captured his gentle spirit."

Samantha grinned and blushed humbly then walked back to her seat as Molly stood up.

"I'll share next Miss Walker. I'd like to give an oral report about what I've learned."

"You may proceed Molly."

"Abraham Lincoln was born in Kentucky in a dirt floor log cabin.  His mother died when he was nine years old. His father remarried a year later. Lincoln's new step-mother encouraged him to read often. Lincoln didn't get very much schooling so he read all the time because he loved learning. When he grew up he continued his passion of reading, he also enjoyed debates, and practiced law with a friend. Eventually he was able to take and pass the law exams in 1836 and became a part of the legislator for four years. Lincoln meet Mary Todd at a dance and they got married in 1842. They had four boys but sadly only one lived past his teens. In 1846 he ran for the U.S. House of Representatives and won so the family moved to Washington D.C. In 1858 Lincoln ran for U.S. Senate but this time he lost against Stephan Douglas! When Douglas and Lincoln faced each other for a second time in 1860 Lincoln won and the Republican Party picked Lincoln as their candidate for president. Abraham Lincoln became the 16th president in 1861! Just as he was coming into office the Southern states were trying to become their own separate nation which they called the Confederate States of America. On April 12, 1861 the Southern soldiers fired cannons on the Northern troops on duty at Fort Sumter, South Carolina. Lincoln felt that they would have to fight in order to keep the country united. He didn't realize the war would last four years. The Civil War ended up being the worst war in American history with over 600,000 deaths! January 1, 1863 he decided the only way to end the war was to announce the Emancipation Proclamation freeing all the slaves in the South! Finally, on April 9, 1865 the Confederate General, Robert E. Lee, surrendered to the Union General, Ulysses S. Grant. It was only five days after the war ended that a Southerner who hated Lincoln shot him at a play. Abraham Lincoln tragically died on April 15th 1865 but he will be remembered and admired forever."

"Wow, Molly, that was very well spoken and so much valuable information! Thank you for sharing. Miss Rebecca it looks like you are up last."

"I know Miss Walker you were saving the best for last right!?" Rebecca remarked confidentially. "I learned that President Lincoln was a story teller and he came by it naturally as his father also was a good story teller. Everyone loved to listen to Lincoln's great stories. He often told stories with deep meaning but sometimes they were just for fun or to make people laugh. I really like that about him. So I am going to entertain you with a little puppet show of Lincoln's great and memorable quotes."

Rebecca took the "stage" behind Miss Walker's desk with her Abraham Lincoln puppet. She set him on the desk/ "stage", made a serious face turning her eye brows downward, and standing tall she said in her deepest manliest voice:

• “We can complain because rose bushes have thorns, or rejoice because thorn bushes have roses.”
• “Character is like a tree and reputation its shadow. The shadow is what we think it is and the tree is the real thing.”
• “You have to do your own growing no matter how tall your grandfather was.”
• “I can see how it might be possible for a man to look down upon the earth and be an atheist, but I cannot conceive how a man could look up into the heavens and say there is no God.”
• “Be sure you put your feet in the right place, then stand firm.” 
• “I don't like that man. I must get to know him better.”
• “Those who look for the bad in people will surely find it.”
• “I'm a success today because I had a friend who believed in me and I didn't have the heart to let him down.”
• “My concern is not whether God is on our side; my greatest concern is to be on God's side, for God is always right.”
• “I have always found that mercy bears richer fruits than strict justice.”
• “Every man's happiness is his own responsibility.”

Rebecca came in front of the "stage" and took a dramatic bow with the flare that only Rebecca could pull off. The girls applauded her wildly as she continued to take bow after bow blowing kisses to her fans.


"Alright Rebecca you defiantly to have a knack for entertainment, I will give you that! And those quotes were beautiful. He was a wise man who said and did many thought provoking things.
Excellent job girls, your reports were fantastic!"

"I'd like to take a moment now to share with you the reason I admire President Lincoln the most of all the great presidents." 

Miss Walker unrolled a small scroll and attached it to the white board. "Abraham Lincoln is the reason my family and I get to be together. If he hadn't announced the Emancipation Proclamation Mama and  I may not have been reunited with the rest of my family. I admire him for sacrificing so much and standing firm in what he believed in. He was a good man and used his power for good and believed in the good of all people and for all people. He faced many struggles and hardships but persevered and rose above them." Addy went on to recite the Emancipation Proclamation to the girls.

The room was silent as they all thought contemplatively about what a great man he was. Miss Walker gave the girls a chance to let it all soak in. She saw in each of their faces a glimmer of hope for greatness. She knew in that moment they were being inspired to impact the world in some way and be a light of love as Lincoln was.

"Well thank you for joining our lesson today. I hope that you have gained some valuable knowledge. Lincoln said it best when he said 'Whatever you are, be a good one.' That is my hope for you."

My information was found from these rescources:

Osborne, Mary Pope, and Natalie Pope Boyce. Magic Tree House Fact Tracker- Abraham Lincoln. New York: Random House,  Inc. 2011.

Getting to Know Abraham Lincoln. Mike Venezia. Kurt Johns. Getting to Know, Inc, 2011. Video.

GoodReads. 2013 Goodreads Inc. February 18, 2013. <http://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/229.Abraham_Lincoln>

Scholastics. 2013 Scholastic Inc. February 16, 2013<http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/timeline-guide-all-presidents>

Victorian Valentines with Samantha

Samantha: Hi Felicity what are you doing?

Felicity: Whoa, Sam! How did you get here...in...in the future?

Samantha: I used your time traveling machine of course.

Felicity: I didn't know you knew how to use it!

Samantha: Eh, it wasn't that hard to figure out. Any ways looks like you were really focused on something. What are these?

Felicity: [Sigh] Oh yeah, these are my Valentines. I've been working on them for hours. There are so many students in my class this year, plus I'm making one for each of my teachers, and my family members. I've been drinking Mountain Dew all evening to keep me awake, but it's getting late and I really need to finish and go to bed. I still have so many to do before the Valentine's party at school! I'm kind of freaking out and I'm feeling really jittery from all the caffeine! 

Samantha: Yeah you probably shouldn't have drank all that soda, it's not good for you. I can help you if you want. These are really cute, I know how you love Hello Kitty! What's this on here?

Felicity: Oh that's a little tattoo.

Samantha: WHAT! A tattoo!?!

Felicity: No no they are temporary, pretend, just for fun Sam.

Samantha: I see, so kids wear them and parents are ok with that? Huh, I'm sure Grandmary would not approve! Valentines sure have changed since my time!

Felicity: I know I love Victorian Valentines, they are so beautiful!

Samantha: Well how about this; I'll help you finish these really quickly then we can time travel back to the beginning of the 20th century and we can make a Victorian Valentine.

Felicity: Great idea! Here we goooooo....

2012.2011.2010.2009.2008.2007.2006.2005.2004.2003.2002.2001.2000............

.......1950.1949.1948.1947.1946.1945.1944

"Hi Molly!"........

.....1920.1919.1918.1917.1916.1915.1914

"Hi Rebecca!"......

.....1910.1909.1908.1907.1906.1905.1904.

Samantha: Here we are, 1904, my time period! Now I can show you how to make a Victorian Valentine! 

Let's get started!

American girl use to make a Valentine kit in my collection. Lissy and I use to have a lot of fun with it. We made that little Valentine with the key pendant on it when she was little! 

We still have a few pieces left over. We keep them in this little red box with my paper dolls that came in the set. 

But you don't have to use my specific kit there are lots of other supplies you can use to make your Valentines look old fashioned. 

Here are a few things that girls in my time period would have used to make their Valentines... Lace, dried and pressed flowers, ribbons, and scrappies. We collected these scrappies and pasted them on all kinds of things to decorate since we didn't have stickers then.

When making your Valentine start by deciding on a motif, or theme, for it. You could make your motif be hearts, cupids, bows, doves, a specific color or pattern, flowers, and so on. When you pick a motif that doesn't mean it can only be that one thing. It's just the main object that ties it all together so that your Valentine has unity. Victorian women liked lots of elaborate fancy decorations and trimmings so we don't want the card to be too busy. A motif keeps it from looking over the top. I've chosen to make my card in a floral motif and use my pressed flowers.

I'm going to use these pressed flowers that I made during the Summer on my card. You can press flowers with an actual flower press or in a large heavy book such as the Bible to flatten them. Since pressing flowers is a long process you can use flower stickers, scrappies, or silk flowers instead. 

I've also chosen these extra embellishments: flowery lace and scrappies cut from an old calendar that feature cupids holding flowers.

It's a good idea to roughly decide on your arrangement before you begin pasting.

Now that I've decided on my arrangement I can begin assembling everything. I started by pasting lace on all four sides of the front of my card. The card I'm using is just a cream colored heavy weight card stock folded in half. 

Then I pasted on the rose petals in an attractive pattern.

Next I layered on the scrappies and a few more small flower petals.

Let it dry then begin on the inside.

On the inside I added more lace to the edges and also through the middle where my sentiment scrappie was pasted. Your sentiment is especially important. Before you chose it decide who you are making the Valentine for so that it will be appropriate for the receiver. You can write it by hand or do something like I did which was to cut it out from an old calendar.

Mine says "My Love is Thine" which is an old fashioned expression which basically means I love you. Victorians used fancy woulds like "thine" :) 

Be sure to leave some space for you to sign your Valentine and maybe even enough space to write a little personal note.

 Don't forget the back of your Valentine is just as important as the front because your receiver will look at both sides.

The lace on the inside wrapped around from the back and I added this pretty little floral scrappie in the center for an extra little touch of color.

Lastly, the most important step to any crafting is clean up! When there is a place for everything and everything is in its place it makes your next project more enjoyable :) 

Felicity: Wow Sam, that looks beautiful! Do you make something that elaborate for all of the students in your class at school?

Samantha: Not necessarily. This would be more something I would make for someone special like Uncle Gard or Aunt Cornelia. But actually I think Grandmary would really love the flowers on this Valentine so I will give it to her!

So whether you like your Valentines awesomely antique or marvelously modern we hope you are having fun making your Valentines this year.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!! xo