The ABC's of Mel Rae

My first born child turned 24 today!  (How does that even happen?  I mean my children get older but I don't!  Weird!  )


Anyway, Melissa has reached another milestone in her live.  24!!!  I could take this entire blog to tell you over and over again but, I'm not going to...


Okay, just joking.  I'm sharing a couple of pictures as well as a few adjectives to remind us all why we adore her.   And, since I teach 1st grade, I thought I'd go with an alphabet theme.

A bsolutely stunning!
B rainy!
C aptivating personality.
D aring
E xtraordinary!
F riend to many, many, many a friend!
G racious
H uge personality PLUS!
I ntelligent (You know she's a marketing whiz??)
J eans...man, she looks good in her jeans.  (that isn't creepy is it?)
K issable (right Danny?)
L ovely 
M arvelous
N ice (I know that sounds trite but...it is just so true about her.
O ptomistic
P ure  (Deep within her soul she is full of purity)
Q ueen of everything!
R eally good Reader
S stylish
T rue
U nique
V ivacious
W onderful
X tra great sister!  (Right Erika?  Right Abbie?  Right Melissa?  Right Erin?  Right Mia?
Y oung...youthful!
Z ealous

Everything I Know About Hanukkah, I learned from Children's Books and Adam Sandler

If I were not a member of The LDS church, I would want to be Jewish.  Seriously.  I'm the first to admit that I don't know a whole lot about this religion.  As a matter of fact, I met my first Jew (Unless you count my Jewish penpal from NYC when I was in sixth through tenth grade.  We thought we had a lot in common since we both went to "temple") when I visited NYC  in 2007 and I loved/love her and we were friends at first sight over a plate of Indian food!   I think I was the first legitimate Mormon that she had met as well.  Together we called ourselves "MoMoJews".  She is a brilliant woman and has a very entertaining blog.  Find her at magicjewball.com.  I love Becca and admire her beyond measure.  Since she's Jewish, it stands to reason that ALL Jewish people are also wonderful and admirable as she...just like ALL Mormons are perfect like me!   BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!  

Okay, enough of that.  Now, for the real reason I would convert.  It is for the mere fact that I love, love, LOVE Hanukkah.  I love everything about it.  The gelt, the latkes, the goblins, the menorah, the candles, blue, white, Judas and the Maccabees, the star of David...all of it.  I have the same magical feeling inside that I get with Christmas.  There is a story.  A very special story at the very root of the holiday.  I relish the idea of lighting a candle on each of the eight days.  Of using the shamash candle to light the others.  Instead of one day of presents they have eight crazy nights! (that's the part I learned from Adam Sandler)
Any special day set aside to celebrate and remember a miraculous bit of history is well worth my time in celebrating it.  Such is the story of the Festival of Lights.  A miracle of having enough oil in the temple to last for eight days instead of one after pleading with God to make it so, is a story I can really get behind.


How did this love of all things Hanukkah begin?  It was on the streets of Portland, Oregon.  My new husband and I were there on a business trip.  While he was in meetings, I roamed the streets.  I slipped into a small little shop that sold all things Jewish, in particular, Hanukkah.  I was smitten right away.  I purchased my own little brass menorah with a box of 144 blue and white candles.  I bought chocolate Hanukkah gelt and a bunch of dreidels...like at least 20.  Then I headed down to Powell's Bookstore  (Most amazing bookstore in the universe) and bought up as many children's Hanukkah books as I could afford, and maybe even some that I couldn't  (wink wink).

I brought everything home and have been obsessed ever since.  I haven't missed a single year of reading books about Hanukkah and trying to expose my students to as much about other annual celebrations, in addition to Christmas, this time of year.  I remember one year I invited my next door neighbor, Eric Huntsman, to be our special guest.  Eric was/is  a professor of ancient history at Brigham Young University.  He speaks about 8000 different languages (not really but he does speak several that I wouldn't ever even think of learning...Hebrew doesn't really come in all that handy these dayd) and he was able to come and share some things about Hanukkah.  Then, he gave us a sense of how Hebrew sounds by reciting a couple of the blessings said at Hanukkah time.  If you would like to know more about Eric, he is currently living in Jerusalem teaching for BYU in the study abroad program and has a family blog.




After Eric presented, and most years since, I served up some delicious latkes with sour cream and we played the Dreidel game.  This has been my tradition ever since...minus Eric, of course!  It is my favorite week of the year.  The children usually don't know anything about Hanukkah and are just as mesmerized about it as I am.  




 If none of this makes sense to you and you are thinking to yourself how crazy and far-fetched my ideas about religion are, just know that it's okay.  I didn't write this to "make sense" but, rather, to put in words the feeling that have so often been rattling around inside me.  I am transfixed when it comes to the topic of religion and love to understand what others believe.  It really does build love and understanding rather than forcing us all to misjudge others by being misguided and ignorant.


So...when I hear the greeting "Happy Holidays!" I don't think of it as leaving Christ out of Christmas but, rather, celebrating the religious beliefs of others' who may be different than mine.  Give me Christmas and I will always remember and love my savior, Jesus Christ and love him for his life and sacrifice.  Plus, the thought of Him being born in a stable to his beautiful mother Mary and stalwart and strong step-father, Joseph will forever make my heart sing at Christmastime.  But I think it can sing too for my friends who believe something perhaps a little different than I do.  That is just fine.  Love, acceptance, understanding, and friendship are what these here holidays are all about.


So, to my Jewish friends a very Happy Hanukkah (beginning December 20th)!  I hope you will make room for me at your holiday table and even save me a latke or two!

This is a beautiful and tender story about two little friends, one Jewish (named Becca) and one Christian (named Tami)
Who think of each other at the holiday season and work to make each
life happy and fulfilled.


The Trees of the Dancing Goats
Oh how I LOVE this author, Patricia Polacco, whom I have met a couple of times.
She is a dear, dear lady.  Read her books (especially this one and also Pink and Say) if you haven't.
She is amazing. The story is amazing.
Even if she really didn't name her characters
Becca and Tami!!

Books featured in this post:

1. Hanukkah   By:  Roni Schotler  I love the illustrations in this book.  It also is written with a rhyme and rhythm that children love and appreciate!

2.  The Chanukkah Guest  By Eric A. Kimmel  This is a cute story about an older woman who makes the best latkes in the village.  Her eyesight is failing and when she thinks she is serving latkes to her rabbi, she is really serving to a real, live BEAR!  The children love this and think it is hysterical!

3.  The Magic Dreidel  By:  Eric A. Kimmel  (this guy writes a lot of Jewish literature)  This book is really cute.  It has all of the necessary characters (Fruma Sarah, goblins, gelt, dreidels, latkes, etc. etc.)  The children really enjoy this book as well.  They love to hear how a regular little boy can get into cahoots with a silly goblin to teach the crochity old busy body neighbor a valuable lesson.

4.  Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins  By:  Eric A Kimmel  (See what I mean about Eric A. Kimmel?) This is probably my very favorite Hanukkah story.  Hersel goes into a village...there are many villages in Jewish folklore...where they haven't celebrated Hanukkah for many years because of the goblins who have overrun the synagogue.  When I read this book to my class, they always put forth every sound available to their wonder!  "Oooohhhhhh!"  "Uhhh  Ohhhh!"  "Oh no!!!"  "Aweee!"  And I LOVE it.  The illustrations are awesome.  Read this one if you get the chance.)

5.  Dreidel, Dreidel, Dreidel!   By: ?   You've heard the song..."Dreidel, dreidel, dreidel.  I made you out of clay..."  Well, this book takes the traditional words of that song and puts illustrations to go along with each line.  PLUS (are you ready for this?) see that round button up there on the book?  Well you push it and it plays the Dreidel song.  Have you ever heard first graders fighting over a book during free-reading time???  Well I have.  And it's every year over the Dreidel book.  :0

6.  See above.

In the Spirit of Thanksgiving

It's a tradition around here that I post this Thanksgiving video.

It makes me happy.  I feel like I claim it as my own even though I had 

nothing to do with the making of it.

So if you have followed my blog for a long time, 

enjoy it again!

If you're new around here,

enjoy it for the first time.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

My El

Do you think she likes this bow??

Me Neither!

(sorry about the blurry cell phone pictures!  I need a new phone.)

An Awesome Friday Spent With Heros!

 

Have you ever had the great pleasure of making plans, organizing, rehearsing, and hard work, then seeing it all come to fruition?  Every now and then it happens to me.  This past week

I was the right-hand-man (so to speak) to Diane (the facilitator of our school) as we planned the 

Veteran's Day assembly. 

Let me just tell you that it was one of the best assemblies that our school has ever had.

And by "best" I mean that it was meaningful, well-thought out, 

and memorable.

Not because of anything we did but because the reason we were having it in the first place...

to honor our veterans.

We had invited any families with veterans to come to school to be honored 

on November 11, 2011.

We had 17 in all!!

It was a beautiful sight.

The sweetest thing of all was when the children stood with their "veteran" and introduced him/her.

It had been my job to work with the students and then to prompt

them during the assembly.  What remarkable children they were.  So sweet and so proud

of their guest. I was getting choked up just in the practice.

Their little introductions went something like this:

My name is _____________.

I'd like to introduce you to my grandpa (dad, uncle, neighbor) _____________.

He/She served our country in the _______________.

And was a member of the ________________.

We had valiant men who served in Vietnam, Operation Iraqi Freedom (all years), The Korean War,

The Cuban Missile Crisis, and a woman who spent a year on (in??) a submarine

during the Iraqi conflict.  We had a representative from every branch of the Armed Forces.

But, perhaps the most amazing of all was a 93 year old veteran who served in WWII.

He was among the first to liberate the concentration camp at Dachu, Germany. I got to handle his authentic swastika flag he torn down from a German post office and touch his Purple Heart and Bronze Star. I could've listened to his stories all day -- one of the last of an amazing generation.

I felt a shiver down my spine as I touched that flag and then his purple heart. He told about his buddy dying on his lap--still knew his name--a soldier from New York. Then how the Russians just all of a sudden released him from the POW camp, helping the liberated prisoners at Dachu, amazing!

He spoke for about 10 minutes and showed us several artifacts.  

One of which was his actual helmet he wore. 

Lucky Leah, from my class, was chosen to come up and put it on.

 When he was finished speaking, he received a standing ovation.  There truly was not an adult dry eye in the place.  I also believe that the children also felt "something" in their hearts as they listened and watched all of the clapping going on around them.  It was just a very special and proud moment.

I'm so glad I was able to be a part of the entire program.  

Yes, this lowly Canadian is proud to be living in this great country.

Thanks for letting me stay.

 

 This little sweetie was born when her daddy was serving in Iraq, 2006-2007.

She actually told me that...including the years!

Smarty Pants!

We had two lovely musical numbers.

Even the babies were dressed in camo!  :)

Water Problems

 Water...

How can something so good for me

be so hard to drink every single day?

I can't figure out how to do both...

Is it so wrong that I don't really WANT to figure it out?

(By the way, Diet Coke is on sale RIGHT NOW at Macey's grocery store AND 

Fresh Market for 

4 packs/$11!!!  Go buy three for you and bring one to me!  :))  )

First Halloween For My Little Pumpkin Eloise!

  Who knew that Halloween could be so magical (in it's own way) just

like Christmas??

This year I channelled my High School sewing teacher, Ms. Kopitzki, to make my little grand daughter a Halloween costume.  Ms. Kopitzki taught me how to 

alter patterns, sew darts, put in a lining, stay stitch, slip stitch, put in a zipper,

and many more sewing skills.

I definitely called on those skills

(30 years ago...THIRTY YEARS!  WHAT???)

as I sewed Ellee's Snow White costume.

It turned out looking mighty adorable and fit her like a glove.

If Halloween had been even one day later, it wouldn't have fit her.

Take a look at the most fun I've had since she was born...

 Erika dressed as the wicked witch to match 

sweet little El.

(Notice the piping on the front in the top photo compared to the one below?? 

It got a little wet with Eloise's "teething drool" and came loose!  I KNEW

I should have tacked it down with a needle and thread!)

If you look really closely, you can see that Eloise's daddy was 

dressed as Uncle Sam which had nothing to do with Snow White.

I wish I had thought of making Tyler a dwarf costume but...I didn't.

Peeking over Grami's shoulder!
Look at those cheeks!

This girl KNOWS how to wear a hat!!

AND, how to carve a pumpkin!

We definitely had a wonderful Halloween

around my house.

Just don't ask me about the nasty 

looking mummy wrapped wieners!