Spelling Bee Tonight!Il

Ilderton Optimist Club Spelling Bee Tonight at Oxbow P.S.

Come out tonight for the Optimist Spelling Bee 

It begins at 6pm at Oxbow Public School.

Happy parenting,

Jean

Tobogganing Party!

On Saturday February 25th there will be a Tobogganing party at Coldstream Conservation Area. 

Come for tobogganing fun, a bonfire and hot chocolate.  This hill is suitable for preschoolers! 

The event will run from 10:30am to 11:30am.  Enter at Quaker Lane at the Campground Entrance.

Dress for the weather and bring your toboggan and helmet.  If there is not enough snow, a snow date has been set for March 3rd.

This is sponsored by the Ilderton Lions Club and Ilderton Optimist Club and brought to you by the Perth Middlesex Ontario Early Years Centre.

Register by calling 519-666-3227.

Happy parenting,

Jean

Monkey Pancakes

Since it was Shrove Tuesday today, we decided to make pancakes as a fun "crafty" meal.  So I went to the web to find some ideas and a recipe.

A friend of mine recently introduced me to a new site called Pintrest and I am absolutely addicted.  It is basically a bookmarking site where you bookmark images and other websites you have found on the web in a public place where others can see what you have bookmarked.  You store these images in categorized 'boards' that others can view.

Since being introduced to the site I have spent hours and hours of enjoyment as I endlessly creeped other people's 'boards' for ideas.  This is where I found our monkey pancakes.  I came across this great blog - Kitchen Fun with My 3 Sons .  What a great site!  A mom makes different meal ideas with her kids in mind.  They are always creative and I'm sure will induce a picky eater to try new things.

Above you can see my rendition of her Monkey Pancakes and below, check out her version:

I obviously have not had as much practice as she has.............  ;)  I'm sure I will get better with some effort.

Please share if you have found any amazing blogs or sites out there that are a hit with kids.

You can find the boards I have pinned on Pintrest here: http://pinterest.com/jeancoles/

Happy parenting,

Jean

Pancake Day - February 21st

Happy Family Day Everyone!

Pancake day is Tuesday Februrary 21st.

Also known as Shrove Tuesday it precedes Ash Wednesday or the first day of Lent.

So why do we eat pancakes?

Lent is a time for fasting and pancakes were a way to use up food that could not be eaten during the 40 days of Lent.  Foods such as eggs, sugar and milk were not to be enjoyed. 

Even if you do not celebrate or practice Lent, it can be a time to enjoy a family meal together and teach your children about the practice of Lent and what sacrifice means.

To celebrate, head over to the Ilderton Community Centre from 5-7pm. 

Adults are $10 in advance or $12 at the door.

Children 5-12 are $5

Kids under 5 are free

This is put on by the Grace Anglican Church and tickets can be purchased at the Excel Pharmacy.

Pancakes, Ham, Salads, and Homemade pie and Desserts will be served.

Happy Parenting,

Jean

Register for Ilderton Soccer

Ilderton Soccer Registration is currently online.  

Have you signed your kids up yet?  Soccer is a great sport for your little ones to learn teamwork, to get fit and have fun.  

Kids born in 2007 and older can register online.  Go to: http://ildertonsoccer.com/ 

The cost ranges between $75 and $95 for the season.

Happy parenting,

Jean

Cash Calendars

Have you seen the sign for the Cash Calendars and wondered what that was all about?

The Cash Calendars are a fundraiser for the Optimist Club sold at the price of $20 and there is a prize board of $8600.00 to be won!

There are daily winners based on the Ontario Pick 3 Lottery results.  If your number is picked you will win anywhere between $50 and $300!

You can also win more than once!

The funds raised will be going toward playground equipment for young children at Heritage Park.

For tickets for this great cause, contact Brian Hanlon at 519-666-2130 or email bjhanlon@sympatico.ca

You can find the winners here and get more information:
http://www.ilderton.optimistcanada.ca/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=16:cash-calendar&catid=2:dernieres-nouvelles

Family Day in Ilderton

Wondering what to do for Family Day in Ilderton?

There are a few things going on this Monday, February 20th that you can do with your kids:

1. The Ilderton Arena is having a public skate from 12pm to 1:20pm.  The cost is $1.50 per person.
2. The Library is open from 10-3pm with a special Family Day Storytime at 10:30am. This is a free event.
3. Filadelfia Restaurant is offering a free kids brunch with every adult meal from 8am-1pm

If you know of any other activities, please feel free to share.

Happy parenting,
Jean

Free Car Seat Clinic - Feb 16th

Did You Know?

Using a child car seat properly will reduce your child's risk of injury in a motor vehicle collision by 75%.  

Attend the Free Car Seat Clinic in Ilderton to make sure your children are safe.Thursday Feb. 16, 2012
From 6:30-8:30 pm
To make an appointment call 519-666-3227

Notes:

Please bring: the child who will be using the seat, your vehicle owner’s manual and car seat instructions, if possible.

Please do your best to install the car seat prior to coming to the clinic.  If you arrive with the seat not installed, we will ask you to install it before we check it. Checkers will support you in making any changes necessary for the correct and safe installation of your child’s car seat.

Since 80% of child restraints are used incorrectly, it is really a great thing to attend this clinic.  You must make an appointment to have your car seats checked.

Happy parenting,

Jean

Happy Valentine's Day

Valentines Day can be a great time for some teachable moments for your kids.

It can be a time to teach about love and appreciation.  Adults tend to think about "romantic love" when they think about V-day but with kids, think about the platonic "friend love" or "family love".

Today can be a time to talk to your kids about the people in their lives that they really care about and to send them a message, give them a call or send them a card to show them how much they mean to them.

"A heart is not judged by how much you love, but by how much you are loved by others" - Frank Morgan

Happy parenting,
Jean

 

Did You Remember to Sign Up for Kindergarten?

The Junior and Senior Kindergarten Registration just ended on Friday, Feb. 10, 2012.  If your child was born in 2008 or 2007 it's time to send them off to school.  Here are the requirements and the numbers to call if you missed it!
  
Eligibility requirements for September 2012:

• Your child must be four years old by December 31, 2012 for Junior Kindergarten enrollment.
• Your child must be five years old by December 31, 2012 for Senior Kindergarten enrollment.
• When registering your child, you must produce proof of age and address. (birth or baptismal certificate, registration of birth or passport, copy of lease agreement or utility bill).

Just call your school to make an appointment if you missed it:

Oxbow Public School - 519-666-0310 

Centennial Central Public School - 519-660-8193

St. Patrick Catholic School - 519-227-4726

Valleyview Public School - 519-666-1417

Visit the Thames Valley School board's Website for more info:  http://www.tvdsb.ca/parents.cfm?subpage=78914

 
 

I hope that you didn't miss the deadline with all the other things you have on your to-do list :)

Happy parenting,

Jean

Valentines Day Activity with the Kids

Thinking about something to do on this snowy day with your kids?

Why don't you make Valentines Day cookies?

Here is an easy recipe that I use all the time from allrecipes.com:

*Remember that you are going to need a rolling pin and some cookie cutters.

The Best Rolled Sugar Cookies

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups butter, softened
• 2 cups white sugar
• 4 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 5 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cover, and chill dough for at least one hour (or overnight).
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Roll out dough on floured surface 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Cut into shapes with any cookie cutter. Place cookies 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets.
3. Bake 6 to 8 minutes in preheated oven. Cool completely.

Find the recipe here:

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/the-best-rolled-sugar-cookies/detail.aspx

Photo courtesy of Trishicat from allrecipes.com

If you are going to add icing to the cookies, here is another great recipe from the same site:

Butter Icing for Cookies

Ingredients

• 2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 2 1/2 tablespoons cream
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. In a saucepan, over medium heat, heat cream and butter until butter is melted. Stir in the vanilla and confectioners' sugar. Remove from heat, and beat with an electric mixer until thick and smooth.

You can find the entire recipe here:
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/butter-icing-for-cookies/detail.aspx

I hope you enjoy these recipes, they are a staple in my kitchen.

Happy parenting,

Jean

 

Welcome!

Hi There and Welcome to the Ilderton Parents Resource Blog!

With this inaugural post, I'll introduce myself.  I'm Jean, a thirty-something married parent of two beautiful girls - Hannah and Abby. My husband and I moved to the wonderful town of Ilderton in December 2010 during Snowmageddon (we couldn't have picked a better time to arrive here).  We spent the next few months cooped up in our house since the snow was so high. Once we thawed out and could see out the windows again, we started meeting our neighbours and getting to know the neighbourhood.

I've started this blog as a central place for the parents of Ilderton to meet up virtually. It was something that I noticed was missing about this great town. So I started this blog and hopefully you will like it and contribute.

Happy parenting,
Jean