My cup runneth over

This little one, here. This little one making the face. Not even knowing that her overall strap can't keep up with her shoulders. This is Stella and she has taken my heart and I don't even want it back. She can have it.

This is Stella Thill. Her mom, Rachel, was my best friend in seventh grade almost 20 years ago. We met up again this past weekend and I'm glad to say she's still my best friend. Now I have one more, too.

The new look of summer

Next week, we'll have the new summer camp brochure ready for you. Available now are free photos, display ads, and banners you can use now to get started. One special note, though: At Home Materials in the Village camp includes a Cage Bell, not a scarf. We'll have that corrected on the Web site Tuesday.

Also of note: The woman and child in this picture is Kindermusik Educator Darcie Brown, and her son. You can read more about her and how she's using her blog, Web site, and more to help families learn more about Kindermusik and the Little Brown Music Studio in Abbotsford, British Columbia.

Come All You Playmates

Educators have been asking for the link to the video we put in the Family Time email yesterday. If you have Quick Time, you can watch the link here.

Forward families a link of their own: http://www.kindermusik.com/videos/QT6_256_ComeAll.mov

Next week, we'll post the Quick Time and Media Player versions for you, too.

My hands are small, I know

Strengthening the finer muscles in your child’s fingers do a lot more than help her hold a pencil—it can help her manage her mind, too. When your child uses her hands, she strengthens the frontal lobes in her brain, which is also responsible for fine motor skills, planning, focused attention, and the ability to think before she acts.

Play on little ones.

Educator and advocate

Kindermusik Educator Sarah Flack believes it never hurts to ask. So she recently invited everyone to the ribbon cutting ceremony of her second studio location in Laredo, Texas. Almost everyone showed up, too, including Richard Raymond from the Texas House of Representatives.

Learn more about the event when we talk with Sarah in the Educator Profile section on the Teacher’s Lounge next month.

“I sent out invitations to people that admittedly may have been out of my league, like my state representatives," writes Sarah. "It turns out that Richard Raymond is a music lover and a great proponent of early childhood education. He gave the welcoming speech at the ribbon cutting and presented me with a beautifully framed certificate of congratulations from the Texas House of Representatives.

“We held a 10-20 minute demonstration class, and I sprinkled FOLs and funny stories throughout. It was so incredibly awesome to see these serious business men and women let down their guard and experience being a child again.”

Dred violin

Hip-hop violinist Daniel Bernard Roumain.

A new era in visual animation

Disney and Pixar animations merge.

Punxsutawney Phil

Phil saw his shadow, that means six more weeks of winter coats for those on the cold side of the globe. Happy groundhog day.

Given the implications of a few more weeks of buttoning up, let's settle that old issue once and for all: "Put on a jacket or you'll catch a cold."