2, 4, 6, 8, who do we appreciate? Philip, it's Phiilip,! Gooooo Philip!

Talk about a mathlete! Thursday afternoon's Explorers Club looked more like a kindergarten class than a group of toddlers. As Gayla looked on, holding Baby Shelton, who has been dealing with the trials of teething this week, Brittany held the room in rapt engagement with a lesson on patterns. Using the kids' socks and shoes (P.U.!) the tykes' creative teacher led the group in discovering patterns she made using a row of footwear. Sock, shoe, sock, shoe... What's that, Philip? Yes, sock!
While Philip was the most enthusiastic participant, Liliana and Haven joined him in shouting out guesses too. Too bad Simone missed out on the fun; she was home sick while her sister Lili enjoyed the company of friends at Schermerhorn. We're sure that spending the whole day with her dad sweetened to deal, though!
While this past week was filled with new friends, next week our Explorers will be missing some of their old friends. With Haven and Shelton heading to South Carolina with their mama for a three week vacation to visit with family and friends, and Amy out for the second half of the week to celebrate her wedding, classes will be just a little bit, well, quieter!
Twelve days ago today, Haiti was rocked by the most devastating earthquake the island of Hispaniola has seen in over 200 years. The need for medical care, food, water and shelter is huge and immediate. If you are able to contribute, bring the receipt from your donation to yele.org to either NY City Explorers location to receive one free day of play and a gift certificate worth 25% of your total donation, up to $100.
Good luck today to the symbolic heroes of another disaster-ravaged city, the New Orleans Saints, who are poised to earn a spot in the Super Bowl if they defeat the Minnesota Vikings. The Saints will play in the Louisiana Superdome, which only five years ago served as the last point of refuge for survivors of Hurricane Katrina, and have vowed to be as strong today as their fans were five years ago!

Come together...

Monday's holiday celebrated not only the life of a great Civil Rights leader, but also for the kids in Explorers Club, a vacation from the norm. Rather than spend the day at our Schermerhorn play space, which was closed for the holiday, seven little Explorers and their teachers spent the day in Prospect Heights at our Underhill location.
In addition to the smells of fresh-brewed coffee and locally baked muffins wafting in from our roommate, Blue Marble's, side of the building, Underhill had the added benefit of new toys! Giant Duplo blocks, brightly colored play dough and farm animal figures entertained the excited tiny tots for the early part of the morning, before Gayla and Brittany directed the crew out the door and to the beautiful and spacious Underhill play ground.
While not crawling with the Explorers' neighborhood friends like the play grounds in BoCoCa, the Underhill play ground has a charm all its own. With separate areas for swinging, playing in the grass and running around, by far the best feature of this Brooklyn treasure is the multitude of communal toys that have been left in the park over the years!
The only thing better than new toys? New friends! Brooklyn's cutest had plenty of both as they were joined by Amy, Yamileth and the crew from 2: Cool for school for the morning. Amy's tots were delighted to have the extra company, especially our newest Explorer, Anderson, whose happiness of spirit has been radiating through the play space since he joined in the morning fun two weeks ago, and we couldn't be more glad to have him!

If you give a mouse a cookie...

Luckily the kitchen at Schermerhorn is spic 'n' span and critter-free, so we didn't have to find out what happens in that event. If you give a Vino a cookie, however, you're sure to be treated to a big smile and a southern gentleman's thank you! The Explorers Club crew had the kind of morning yesterday that makes adults and older students alike yearn for the days of nursery school gone by. After a spirited round of "ABCs" and "If all the Raindrops were Lemon Drops and Gum Drops," out came the finger paints!
In a rare moment of quiet, Brooklyn's cutest rolled up their sleeves, donned their smocks and let the creative juices flow, painting houses, faces, or just leaving colorful fingerprints on the paper. Even our youngest tot of the day, Reza, joined in the creative process, dipping his fingers from paint to paper in quiet concentration.
Little fingers could just barely be washed in time for Vino's Kid Fitness class. It's a good thing aerobics were on the agenda for the Explorers, because the rest of the morning before nap time was spent gobbling---first homemade cookies measured and mixed by Haven, Shayna, Simone and Liliana, and then a lunch of roasted cauliflower, salmon and whole wheat pasta. Yum!

2 Cool Kids!

There were two cool new faces at 2: Cool for School this morning: 2-year-old Anderson and 18-month-old Alexi, whose mommy is due to give him a little brother or sister in a couple of months! Tommy, Thelonius and the rest of the group will be sure to give him a taste of life with other tots!
In this age group, we have Explorers with verbal skills at every level. With the adorable Alexi exposed to four languages at his young age, that holds truer than ever before. How to bridge the communication gap? With music, the universal language! From the moment the morning song circle started until the last musical chair held its victor, Kiera, Anderson, Jackson, Tommy and Alexi were grooving to the music. If Yamileth and Amy have been neglectful of their workouts in this chilly weather, they certainly made up for it today, finishing the morning with a round of freeze dance to the Cupid Shuffle.
As crafty as our tots at Schermerhorn are, it an be easy to forget that the most artistic member of Explorers Club isn't a toddler at all! The always energetic Gayla, who has been a New York City Exploprers employee for nearly two years, takes loving care of Laudan, Anton and the rest of the crew by day, but her off-duty passion is art. Congratulations to the lovely and talented painter, who recently secured a part-time internship with a Manhattan-based professional artist.
Whose artwork has been missed lately? Lev's and Shayna's! The twin tykes have spent the last week fighting a bug that we hope resolves itself soon. Those giggles are irreplaceable!

Coley's party was on fire!

Saturday morning at Underhill saw the celebration of Cole's 3rd birthday, for which our cuter-than-pie Explorer requested a dance party! Who better to assist Amy with the festivities than Natalie, Explorers Club's Lordess of the Dance? With Michael Jackson and Beyonce pumping out of the speakers and the disco ball spinning, Cole and her cousins danced their way around the play space with friends Ella, Lucy, Haven and Shelton along for the fun. With friends and family coming from as far away as Boston, Cole's party saw guests arriving until the very end.
When the tots had tired themselves out, and washed the glue from the disco ball craft off of their hands, it was time to move on to the one things Cole enjoys more than dancing---eating! This little piggy went to market and back, gobbling salad, grilled cheese on sour dough, fresh berries and fresh brownies! The cherry on top? Homemade spiced cupcakes with cream cheese frosting. There's no yummier way than cupcakes to refuel after a morning of dancing and playing, but no party goer earned the treat more than Haven, who learned the hard way not to let her hair get too close to the birthday candles! Luckily momma Kisha's hands were quick enough to prevent the flames from doing anymore damage than a superficial singe to Haven's hair. Lesson of the day? If you play with fire...
When it was time for all of the Explorers to head home for naps, Mercedes sent them off in style with a few of Cole's favorite things. Cole's friends were able to take the groove home with them, with perosnalized CDs and disco ball ornaments. The topper? giant-sized packets of Tic Tacs, Cole's must-have breath-freshener, and, if she had her way, breakfast of choice ;)

...with a buzz buzz here, and a buzz buzz there!

Jackson is more than half way through his first week back at 2: Cool for School after his two week break during which he spent the holidays with relatives in Florida. He rejoined his fellow Explorers very refreshed, with a big smile on his face and rosy cheeks to match his jolly spirit! It's always wonderful to see family and friends over the holidays, and even more wonderful still to seve some of those visits for after the New Year, spreading the holiday cheer out a little bit longer. In one of the best post-Christmas gifts ever, Theonius' dad, JC, gifted to the Underhill play space a copy of his album, Underneath a Brooklyn Moon. Check him out at www.jchopkins.com!
Some new toys have brought renewed spirits to the tots at Underhill. Jackson was delighted to discover that if he straddles the new car-shaped cushions and stretches out his legs just so, he can inch his way around the play space with his feet, Fred Flintstone-style! He may not move as quickly as his favorite red race car, but he's far cuter! Tommy, meanwhile, has found delight in the new toy dinosaurs and barnyard animals that Amy set out for the group. He is particularly enamoured of the cows, spending as long as his teachers will allow setting them up in size order and then knocking them down. Tommy is one smart cookie to adore cows so much. He has the scoop on where milk comes from, and without milk Tommy wouldn't be able to enjoy his favorite treat, day or night---ice cream!
Kiera, Thelonius and their friends were having such fun with the animal toys on Wednesday that Amy thought it would be a shame if the had to leave them all behind. What better animal craft to make than can flight right home with our tiny tots? It may not be the most beloved of creatures on the farm, but the paper tube bumble bees that our explorers made had them all buzzing with delight! To make your own, visit: http://www.dltk-kids.com/animals/mbee.html

Happy 2010, Brooklyn!

After closing early at our play spaces on Thursday afternoon, most of us enjoyed the evening with friends and loved ones, but our Bag of Tricks Babysitters are available come rain, sleet, or, well, New Year's Eve! Claytie spent the evening sitting for 2: Cool for School's Tommy at his cousin's New Jersey home, and while Amy rang in 2010 with a more adult crowd, she completed the first sitting job of the new year yesterday evening for 7-month-old Emil!
A late night on Thursday followed by a lazy Friday indoors for most city dwellers meant more than a few cases of cabin fever by the time the Underhill play space turned on its lights this morning. Familiar faces and new Explorers alike flocked to the warmth and delight of our cozy space in Prospect Heights. From morning 'til eve, the sounds of little voices and little feet jumping, singing and playing, filled the ears of Amy and the girls working at Blue Marble. The time for Christmas carols may have passed, but the sound of giggling tots is a tune that's in season all year long!