Cinderella Days

Cinderella Days!  Spa Day Fun!

Just like their mother when she was growing up, I love that my granddaughters are both a good mix of “play ball” sports girls and “dress-up” princess girls! 

(This is Marli’s version of “Punzel” from Tangled, complete with scarf hair!)

A few of weeks ago, I decided it would be fun to pamper the more “girlie” side of Makena and Marli’s personalities and have a Spa Day!  I just have to tell you that this was perhaps one of the easiest Cinderella Day activities I’ve ever prepared for, but definitely one of the most fun that the girls and I have had together! 

My grandma used to say that some nail polish and a little make-up always made everything so much more fun!  In this case, I whole heartedly agree–what little girl isn’t enamoured with pink and purple fingernail polish!

I got the colored bandana scarfs and the little night gowns on sale at a local department store.  Makena and Marli were so thrilled…they twirled around in their spa day attire all afternoon!  (My hope is that my granddaughters will always remember our special spa day together every time they wear these nightgowns to bed at home!)  

Is there anything as cute as little girl’s brightly painted nails!

 

 Waiting for the polish to dry is always the hardest part!

 It’s funny to me, but one of the things the girls loved the most was when I dabbed on some “special” pink lotion and then told them to rub it in carefully–it’s never too late to get a jump start on preventing those annoying “crows feet”!  However, I say bring on the smile and laugh lines!  Ha!

Another delightful Cinderella Day with my sweet granddaughters!  My cup runneth over!

I would love some ideas from you on future Cinderella Day activities I could plan that you’ve done with your children or grandchildren!

–Mary

 

Cinderella Days!  An Extraordinary Story Time!

I think the usual scene that most often comes to mind when we think of story time with our grandchildren, is one of being all cuddled up on the sofa with a pile of books to read before bedtime or whenever there’s a need to take a little breather from other types of play.

Like most children, my granddaughters love story time!  I especially love that we’ve read some of their favorite books often enough now that the girls will interject some of the lines in the stories before I can say them!  Another fun thing I’ll do on occasion during story time, while I’m tickling the girls backs, is make up stories where they play the main characters–if you want to see a child’s eyes truly light up, just tell them a story about how brave and daring they were during some make-believe adventure!

On our latest Cinderella Day, Makena and Marli helped me bring story time to a whole new creative level!  I have a few “Family Fun” magazines around my house that I’ll browse through to give me some fun ideas for new activities to do with the girls–they love looking through these magazines as well!  In fact, some of the issues have been reviewed often enough that many of the children and animals featured have even been given names and character traits!  That got me thinking, why not let my granddaughters cut out some of these pictures so they could really use them to tell the funny stories they like to make up!

Along with the magazines and scissors, I gathered a few sheets of scrap-book paper I thought might be good to use at background scenery! 

After selecting their favorite pictures, the girls got to work cutting them out and gluing them on card stock paper. 

Much like the card board stands on the paper dolls I used to play with in the day, I made similar stands to hold all the pictures that were soon to become the characters in our stories!  (You just make a couple of small cuts on the bottom of the picture and slide in a strip of folded card stock paper to anchor it.  Makena and Marli thought I was an Einstein crafting genius when I did this–there’s nothing in this world that beats the unconditional love of grandchildren!)  I also left some of the pictures plain for use on a magnet board!  

I can’t begin to tell you how much fun this activity was–we actually lost track of time…   

…two hours later, the girls were still going strong, telling the most hilarious stories you can ever imagine!

When I got a turn to tell a story–I had such a cute little audience!

In an attempt to share with you a cherished moment on this particular Cinderella Day, I’ve captured a clip from one of Marli’s funny stories!  Let me also say that at age two and a half, Marli talks very well, but when she is trying to mimic what adults must sound like to her, this is the hilarious results–she also does this when she’s talking on a pretend cell phone!  It’s absolutely the best–enjoy!

httpv://youtu.be/VegIiaID7Ro

“Tell Tale” by Blue Orange, is another fun story game!  You make up a story determined by the pictures on cards you pick.  The stories are random and silly–so fun!  

What are some of the fun things you do to put a twist on story time?  I’m sure that all parents and grandparents alike, would love hearing about them!  Who doesn’t need a few more laughs and silly times?

–Mary