MERRY CHRISTMAS!

As a devoted fan of the works of Dr. Seuss, I wanted to post an exerpt from the infamous Christmas story he created, "The Grinch." Toward the end of the story, the Grinch is contemplating the meaning of Christmas:
"It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags. And he puzzled and puzzled 'till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn't before. What if Christmas, he thought, doesn't come from a store? What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more?"
Christmas DOES mean "a little bit more" than presents. In fact, it means A LOT more, and we know that it doesn't come from a store, but from heaven. Celebrating God's gift of his son to us in the form of a human baby is the reason we celebrate. It is the greatest gift that has ever been given and ever will be given. There is no price tag that can be assigned to it. It is love given in its purest form, and something only God - a loving heavenly father - is capable of giving. Now what can we give Him?? Our lives . . . our love . . . our time . . . our obedience . . . but all year round . . . not just at Christmas.

KID'S MEALTIME PRAYER

I thought it would be appropriate to post the prayer that started it all! I mentioned in my "About Me" description that the simple prayer I composed for my oldest son to recite at mealtime when he was a toddler was the catalyst that sparked my interest in composing rhymes for children. We're still reciting it today, now with his younger brothers, and almost eight years later!

Thank you, Jesus, for this day.
Help me listen and obey.
Thank you that you love me so,
and for this food to help me grow.
In Jesus name, Amen.

ILLUSTRATOR!

I am blessed to be partnering with a talented artist who is making illustrations for my poems. His name is David Storhaug, and he also lives in the Lancaster area. He has already drawn some wonderful pictures for a few of my poems which I will be scanning and posting in the near future. They greatly enhance the poems' stories by helping to bring them to life! Thank you, David, for being willing to work off the same budget that I do!

KID'S COOKIE BREAK POEM

I read this poem on the air when I was a guest on The Kid's Cookie Break radio show. I have written a poem series that renames the days of the week with fun silly names. For example, Monday is Funday, Tuesday is Snoozeday, Wednesday is Friendsday, etc. In honor of Kid's Cookie Break, I rewrote Saturday as Cookiebatterday. I thought I'd post it as a sample of my style of writing. So, here it is . . . hope you enjoy!

(Saturday) Cookiebatterday
by Tammy Pringle

Today is Saturday, yummy Cookiebatterday!
I'll create my recipe for tasty small cakes
A sweet cookie batter I mix up then bake.
I start with a bowl as big as a sink
It holds five pounds of batter I think.
Flour, sugar and a dash of salt
Eggs, peanut butter, a teaspoon of malt.
One mashed banana and a stick of butter
A fist full of sprinkles, and then another.
A bag of chocolate chips - gotta have those,
And one secret ingredient I cannot disclose.

I turn on the hand mixer, but uh-oh, look out!
Cookie batter is shooting and flying about!
The mixer is spinning out of control.
I hang on with both hands to keep it inside the bowl.
Batter splatters the cabinets, the counter, the wall
Then shoots even farther down into the hall.
It frost my puppy, my cat and my dad
Who appears to be too surprised to be mad.
He tries to come help me, but slips through the door.
The batter has nearly covered the floor.
At last this appliance I'm able to stop,
My cookie batter mixing has turned out a flop!

I run to the mirror and I'm pleased to see
A cookie batter monster smiling at me.
I have a cookie batter mustache and a cookie batter beard.
I look kind of cool, but look kind of weird.
I have globs of cookie batter stuck in my hair
On my shirt and my pants (but not my underwear).
There are bits of batter inside my ears
And in my belly button some of it appears.
It hangs from my eyebrows and drips from my nose.
It's under my fingernails and between my toes.

It's only right that I clean up my mess.
And getting grounded is justice, I guess.
I accept that I won't bake cookies today.
And the fact that I must take a bath is okay.
But there's one thing I must question, it's hard to accept
It just doesn't seem fair and makes me upset.
It's something I'm EXTREMELY bothered about -
Why didn't cookie batter get inside my mouth??