HELPING JEWISH FAMILIES GROW -

More Inside:

Family Album

Editor's Note

Photographs that will
make you smile.

Visiting the birds
at the lake.

Let It Snow!
Let It Snow!
Let It Snow!

in and out of the house.

Great ideas for winter fun

Elizabeth Applebaum
AppleTree Editor

I

sn't it just so absolutely exciting to think about the
upcoming winter days, especially when you have
small children with lots and lots of energy?
And to make it even more fun, imagine that school has
just been canceled, you can't find a baby sitter and your
television is broken! Gosh, life is good, isn't it?
All right. Enough whining. The question is: What can you
do for fun on such a seemingly dreadful day? Here are a
few ideas certain to delight your children — and you, too!

*How Does Your Garden Grow?
Plant a garden — either a real or an imaginary one.
For the real thing, visit your favorite nursery or discount
store and buy a seedling. Many trees do very well inside
your home, provided they have plenty of sunlight and
proper care. If the tree you buy is big enough, you can
decorate it with a bird's house and tiny fabric birds (from
craft stores). It will be like bringing a little spring in your
home — just when you need it most. If you long to see
flowers blooming, you can create them inside and then
"plant" them outside. You can make your daisies and
roses quite sturdy by using wood strips, atop which you
staple cardboard flowers your children have decorated
using crayons, fabric scraps and any other art supplies
around the house. (Please note: markers make bright,
beautiful colors, but if not waterproof, these will fade and
run in the snow.) When you're done, cover your front
lawn with your lovely collection.

Go Back In Time

This is a great project that offers something for family
members of all ages (except the tiniest). Begin by select-
ing an era — any era you find interesting. Let's say
you're working with the 1940s. First, assign some aspect
of the project to each family member. One person could
research historical aspects of the decade; another could
study food habits; a third could learn about arts and cul-
ture in the 1940s; a fourth could consider dress. Now,
plan a big get-together that evening to "live" in your
decade for a few hours — and everyone has to bring
something that makes the event a participatory one. The
history researcher might bring bits of news, with the fami-
ly creating a newspaper with headlines of 1942. The
culture expert could have everyone listen to the great
sounds of Glenn Miller and Benny Goodman, then teach
a popular dance. Decorate your home with war recruit-
ment posters, ask all the ladies to wear bright-red lipstick,
and serve up a 1940s meal complete with a diner menu
and one of the most popular drinks of the decade, an
egg cream (which actually has nothing to do with an
egg):
Combine 1/3 cup cold milk with 3 Tbs. chocolate
syrup. Quickly top with cream soda or seltzer water
(amount varies by taste).

A- Snowman

()

Of A Different Sort

If your children have moved beyond the "let's all go out-
side and build a snowman together" stage, don't underesti-
mate the pleasure that fluffy white guy can still provide. It's

LET IT SNOW on page 63