momstown Victoria Reads "My Friend Henry" at Scholastic sponsored Tales for Tots

"Have you seen my best friend Henry?" This month Scholastic Canada sent us a delightful book to share with our momstown Victoria moms, babies and kids called "My Friend Henry," by Phillipe Béha. This story takes us on a little boy's search for his best friend, and in the end we learn that Henry is missing for a very good reason!

The book takes us to familiar places in the neighbourhood with a counting element built into the story. The bright artwork is a wonderful backdrop to the child's emotional journey as he searches for his best friend. In the end the young reader delights in the joyful reunion of the two best friends and the surprise of why Henry was missing. It is a great book to read aloud to children, and all of the listeners at our momstown Victoria Tales for Tots program were charmed by it!

Thank you to all the moms, babies and kids who came to our storytime drop-in at Chapters Victoria to share this book with us! For our craft, we made simple paper doll chains out of construction paper, which the children could then colour and name after their own friends.

Congratulations to our lucky winners of this month's book from Scholastic Canada! Our Scholastic sponsored Tales for Tots program at Chapters Victoria is a free monthly drop-in on the third Wednesday of every month from 10-11 am! Join us downstairs in the children's department for a free storytime, craft and book draw! 

momstown Victoria coordinates over 20 events each month to connect and support local moms, and our annual membership fee is only $45 per year! Not a member yet? Try us FREE by registering for your 4-week trial and start signing up for events today! Or contact info.victoria@momstown.ca for more info!

momstown Victoria makes Reindeer Antlers and Reads "Finding Christmas" at Scholastic sponsored Tales for Tots

This month at momstown Victoria's Scholastic sponsored Tales for Tots, we shared "Finding Christmas" by beloved Canadian children's author Robert Munsch and illustrator Michael Martchenko. In this story, a little girl is determined to find where her parents have hidden her Christmas presents. She soon discovers that the best surprise of all was in giving the gift of herself!

For our craft we made these easy and adorable reindeer antler headbands! This is a great craft for 3 years and up and a great keepsake with the handprint cutouts!

 

How to make a Reindeer Antler Headband

Materials:

brown craft foam cut into 2 - 3" x 12" strips

1 - 8 1/2" x 11" sheet of brown construction paper

2 large googly eyes

1 red pom pom

pen

white glue

staples and stapler

Instructions:

1. Glue the googly eyes and red pom pom nose onto one of the foam craft strips to make the face.

2. Trace hands on the construction paper and then cut them out to make the antlers.

3. Staple the strips of foam together to form the headband.

4. Staple on the antlers. Hello, Rudolph!

Congratulations to this month's winner of our Scholastic book prize draw! Join us on the 3rd Wednesday of every month from 10-11 am at Chapters Victoria for a storytime, craft and book prize draw with momstown! Looking forward to next month's theme,"That's silly!"

What to do with Leftover Wrapping Paper: Make a Rolled Wrapping Paper Christmas Tree

I had fun making this 'Rolled Wrapping Paper Christmas Tree' at a friend's craft party on the weekend! The inspiration was traced back to My Dream Sample Blox blog, but we created our own version of the craft:

Rolled Wrapping Paper Christmas Tree

Materials:

Assorted wrapping paper, 6 to 8 patterns cut into 20 5" x 8" rectangles

Buttons

Canvas or stiff construction paper 

Pen or Pencil

Scissors

Glue

Picture stand

Instructions:

1. Let's roll! Take a rectangle and turn the nice side down, so the back of the paper is facing up. Make the orientation a landscape (top and bottom are longer than the sides.) Lightly glue the top half of the back of the wrapping paper, and then carefully roll up the wrapping paper into a 1/2" tube. For a tighter and more uniform look, wrap the paper around a pen or pencil, sliding it out as the paper becomes held by the glue.
2. When you're done rolling all the rectangles into rolls, lay them side by side on the construction paper in your preferred pattern. Then take the scissors and start to trim the rolls, making each one slightly shorter than the last, to form the shape of the tree. 
3. Glue the rolls in place, then add buttons or other decorations. For a star, you can cut a shape from wrapping paper and place a button in the centre, or get creative with a bottle cap, etc. Take one of the ends that were trimmed, flatten and glue it to the bottom to make the trunk.

Ta da! What a great way to use up leftover wrapping paper! You could make this into a Christmas card or frame it as a gift. The results are lovely, and each tree is so unique! Now, what to do with all those old Christmas cards?