Sheri Watkins

Driving Lessons

Posted by: swatkins on February 6, 2009

Ace Town & Country Driving School
90 Lake
Delaware, Ohio 43015
Phone: 740-361-5134
Phone: 740-362-2320
 
They charge $45 for 1 hour of training. If you have checked with any of the other driving schools, you know this is a pretty reasonable rate.
The instructors are Dave and Derrick. So when you call you will speak with one of them. Dave is an ex-police officer.
If you call to schedule lessons, you can give my name and refer to Cultural Care Au Pair. I spoke with Dave today, and he said that they schedule your first lesson about a week from the time you call. He said the least busiest time is in the morning during the week, since most of their students are in school at that time.

Not Sure what to do with the Kids when you are stuck indoors because of bad weather?

Posted by: swatkins on February 6, 2009

Snowy or Rainy Day Fun!

Try these fun indoor games when bad weather hits.

The weather’s terrible and you and your child are stuck indoors. How can you make the day fun without resorting to that old standby, the TV? Here are some fun activities you can enjoy together until the sun comes out.

Puppet showtime

You can create your very own puppets with items your parents already have around the house. First, you’ll need some old socks or lunch-size brown paper bags. Then, get busy decorating them with markers, crayons, glitter, sequins, string, ribbons, yarn, buttons - even dry macaroni! Give your puppets names and funny voices. You might want to think up a special story for them. Maybe one puppet is lost and can’t find his way home. Maybe another puppet has superhuman powers. To make your show even better, use a cardboard box as a stage.

Build a fort

Ask your parent for some old sheets, blankets, or comforters. Spread them over chairs or other furniture to create a top-secret hideout. Bring a flashlight, a good book to read, and maybe even a snack. And don’t forget to think of a secret password!

Dress-up time!

Both boys and girls can have fun trying on old clothes. Ask your parent to let you try on old scarves, hats, jewelry, shoes, and clothes. Do you want to be a doctor? You can pretend an old white shirt is a lab coat. Or maybe you see yourself as a movie star. Ask your mom for her old prom dresses or bridesmaid dresses. Don’t forget the earrings and high heels!

Rainy Day Babysitting Activities

Babysitting can be at its hardest when it is raining outside. Children become restless easily when there is no sunshine or room to run around and play. Although TV and computer games are often an option for entertainment, parents will generally ask you to limit how much their children engage in those activities. When rainy days happen, it is important to keep the children busy to the best of your ability. If children are kept occupied and distracted, their crankiness will be alleviated and you will end up having a much more pleasant babysitting experience. With this in mind, here are a few ideas for rainy day babysitting activities:

• Play indoor games. Have a treasure hunt, make silly faces in the mirror, put on a talent show, play hide and seek, or place objects in a paper bag and have the kids guess what is inside.
• Make fun crafts. Mold zoo animals with playdough, create facemasks with paper plates and popsicle sticks, or use thumbprints to make spiders and bugs on colored paper.
• Offer quiet, low-key activities. Draw pictures, make puzzles, build legos or read stories.
• Make sure to switch activities often so the children will not become bored or restless.

Wintertime Babysitting Activities

When the weather is really cold or snowy outside, activities to do with the children you are babysitting can seem limited. There are, however, many wintertime activities that can provide hours of fun for both you and the children you are looking after. Begin with crafts to keep their idle hands busy. Use cotton-balls and glue or marshmallows and toothpicks to make snowmen. Create paper snowflakes—have the children color and decorate a piece of paper, fold it several times, cut pieces of the folded edge off, and then unfold the paper to reveal the snowflake shape. If you attach yarn or string to the snowflakes, the children can hang them around the house or near a window where light will shine through.

After craft time, play games with the children like “hide and seek” and boardgames. Additionally, have a snack time and allow the children to help you fix it. For example, let them spoon ingredients for cookies, spread peanut butter and raisins on celery sticks, and place pieces of cheese on crackers. Consider allowing the children to watch a short movie while they eat their snack. Finally, instead of shunning the cold weather and snow, take advantage of it. Bundle everyone up and go out for a snowy adventure. Build snowmen, go sledding, and have a contest to see who can hit a tree with the most snowballs. When you bring the children back in, make sure they warm up properly. Have them change out of wet and cold clothes, and offer them hot cider or cocoa with marshmallows.

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1. Instant Story

Tell your child that you’re going to create a story about anything he wants — and he can make it as outrageous or funny as he wishes. One of you then provides the opening line, and you take turns adding new sentences. Write the sentences on paper so you can read the story out loud afterward. You can also create instant stories while riding in the car or preparing dinner.

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2. Videography

Have your child write a video script and then videotape it. Play whatever characters she needs and enlist the help of other family members (including the dog!) and friends. The video could be a mini movie, a commercial, or even a music video.

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3. Mini Museum

Give your child a space in the basement or garage where he can create an exhibit. Let him choose the theme and have him change it often. The display could either hang from the ceiling or be on a table. It could be all about school and include test papers and artwork, or it could be about dinosaurs, cars, jungle animals — whatever he’s interested in. When he’s done creating each exhibit, have a “show” where he presents his creation to you.

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4. Pretend Play

Let your child pretend to be whomever she wants to be. Fill a box with a variety of clothing and accessories. Let her change outfits as many times as she wants, and put on some makeup and do her hair by herself. After she dresses up, ask her to play the part. You can extend the activities by suggesting she put on a backyard performance or a play in the garage. Help set the stage with props and a background.

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5. Scavenger Hunt

Make a list of items for your child to find throughout the house. Or make a list of simple questions that he needs to answer by either researching them online, in books or magazines, or by talking to other family members. When your child has completed a hunt, present him with a small prize.

Toddler Newspaper -
All toddlers want to be like mom and dad, or any adult. So here’s a chance for them to pretend like they are adults. Take an old section of the newspaper, penny pincher or local newspaper and tape pictures of animals to the pages. Now sit down on the floor with your toddler and start to pretend to read the newspaper. Surely he’ll want to see what you are doing. Have him flip the next page and act surprised when you see the animals. He’ll get excited. Review the names of the animals and ask him if he thinks there are more. Continue to look through the paper and talk about the animals or any other pictures that you see in the newspaper (car ads, people, kids, objects). Its a great way to get your toddler familiar with this reading material and learn animals at the same time!