Just Flying By

A big THANKS to our volunteer Ty for creating our "Will Your Plane Survive?" program poster!

The program will be held in our community room at 3:00 pm on Saturday the 27th. That's tomorrow!! See you there. ;o)

And the Cow Says, What?

Mooo! Farm animals was the subject of yesterday's Stories for Young Children.* We read Dog's Noisy Day: A Story to Read Aloud by Emma Dodd and Let's Go Visiting by Sue Williams. Afterward, we created sheep out of a paper plate, construction paper, and some cotton balls. Everyone loved their creation so much that they decided to take their sheep home! So here's mine:

 If you would like to know how to create your own cotton ball sheep, you can find the instructions here.

Oh! By the way, we still have Chameleon Colors from last week on display if you haven't had the chance to stop by. ;o)


*Stories for Young Children is held every Wednesday at 11:00 am. This program is for children birth to 5 years with an adult caregiver. The program includes stories, books, finger plays, nursery rhymes, and songs that promote language development, vocabulary building, and comprehension. Attendance is limited.

Chameleon Colors

Last weeks' Stories for Young Children* we read Leon the Chameleon by Mélanie Watt and Lemons Are Not Red by Laura Vaccaro Seeger. After the stories and the songs, we made our own multicolored chameleons!

Don't forget to stop by and take a look! :o)

*Stories for Young Children is held every Wednesday at 11:00 am. This program is for children birth to 5 years with an adult caregiver. The program includes stories, books, finger plays, nursery rhymes, and songs that promote language development, vocabulary building, and comprehension. Attendance is limited.

The VERY Hungry Caterpillar

Last weeks' Stories for Young Children* was all about gardening and what you can find in garden. We read Bumpety Bump! by Pat Hutchins and The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle. Afterward, we made our own caterpillars. Stop by to take a look!

See you soon! ;o)

*Stories for Young Children is held every Wednesday at 11:00 am. This program is for children birth to 5 years with an adult caregiver. The program includes stories, books, finger plays, nursery rhymes, and songs that promote language development, vocabulary building, and comprehension. Attendance is limited.

Another Puppet Show

Yesterday afternoon, kids @ the WRL were treated to a puppet performance of everyone's favorite story about a cookie!  Yup, it was "The Gingerbread Man."

Afterwards, we got in the holiday spirit by decorating our own gingerbread men.

If you dare to make your own fiesty little gingerbread creatures, you might want to try this recipe.

Gingerbread Men

3 ½ cups all purpose flour

1 ½ teaspoons ground ginger

1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon salt

½ cup vegetable shortening

½ cup granulated sugar

1 large egg

1 cup molasses, warmed

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 ½ teaspoons warm water

1. Combine the flour, spices, and salt.
2. In a large bowl, cream the vegetable shortening and sugar.  Beat in the egg.  Beat in the molasses.
3. Dissolve the baking soda in the warm water and add to the molasses mixture, beating until smooth.
4. Gradually blend in the dry ingredients.
5. Cover and chill for 24 hours.
6. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
7. Lightly grease two baking sheets.
8. On a floured surface, roll out the dough to a thickness of ¼ inch.
9. Using cookie cutters, cut out gingerbread men and place 1 ½ inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.
10. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until dry looking and firm to touch.
11. Transfer to wire racks to cool.

What Else is Coming Up?

We have lots of fun stuff in store for you in the coming weeks, from Easter egg hunts to wonderful programs about wizardy. We'll keep you posted about these and other events, so be sure to check back.

Calling All Stuffed Animals, Dolls, and Action Figures!

You are cordially invited to a very special event just for you!

Where: West Regional Library
When: Monday, April 5th, 7:00 pm

The children's department is hosting a sleepover for toys!

Children can bring a stuffed animal, doll, or action figure--along with a blanket and pillow--to a special session of bedtime stories.

Then we will tuck the toys in for the night for their very own slumber party!  What will the toys do when the library lights go out? We will have hidden cameras set up to capture all of the action.  Children can find out what happened when they return the next morning to pick them up and enjoy a special breakfast. 

**Note: Children themselves will NOT be spending the night in the libary.

Having Some Fun @ the WRL

One of our favorite dolls turned 51 on March 9th and we had a blast honoring her with a birthday celebration.  We made birthday crowns, listened to her favorite birthday story--Mr. Rabbit and the Lovely Present by Charlotte Zolotow, played a dancing game, and decorated high fashion paper dolls.  We thought we'd share some photos with you.

 Can you guess who the birthday girl was? (Hint: Her name starts with B.)