Pixie Dust

Pamela was sick with a cold Friday and was kind enough to pass hers onto me, which is my excuse for not blogging much this week!

She felt much better on Sunday, so we kept our promise of going shopping to a large city about an hour and a half from home (we live in the boonies). We picked up two pairs of shoes for her and browsed the DVD and toys section at Target. We ate a nice dinner and headed home. She was in rare form with her humor and verbal skills!

Pamela: "Where are we going?"
Us: "We're going home."
Pamela: "I want to go home."
Us: "Yes, Boss!"
Pamela: "I'm not a boss! I'm a worker!"
Us: "If you were a bee, would you be a queen bee or a worker bee?"
Pamela: "I'm a worker bee."


We made a quick stop at the Starbucks closest to home (an hour drive), and Pamela and I sat in the car waiting for Steve to pick up some liquid gold. I complained to Pamela about catching her cold, and suddenly I heard a noise like the sound effect for magic in cartoons. When I turned to locate the source, I saw Pamela flicking her finger at me. She announced, "I have a magic finger. Fix the cold." I smiled because she was so sweet and insistent that she had found the cure for the common cold.

I seized the opportunity to introduce a new activity I had planned to use for RDI. I asked her, "Pamela, how would you like to make a fairy wand tomorrow?" She flashed a brilliant smile and looked as if I had offered her a trip to the moon. She exhaled an excited "Yes!" I am sure the wheels in her head were spinning, trying to figure out how I was going to accomplish that trick.

On Monday, I printed out the pdf files for the fairy wand. Pamela's cutting skills need work, and The Toymaker will provide many opportunities to practice cutting in a fun, imaginative way. I bought a new pair of scissors that works for both lefties and righties. Pamela did fairly well. She handed the paper to me in spots she found too difficult (like the inner corners). She had very little patience for the tips and cut them to be blunt (not pointed). I did a little bit of touch up cutting.

I guided Pamela in the folding and had to correct many of her folds when she was not looking. We rolled up the handle around a pencil as a team. I held the roll while she taped. Then came the dreaded gluing. Like my friend Jennifer, I am a handicraft reject. Anything having to do with glue makes me cry. I do not mind the feel of it, but nothing ever turns out right. As usual, it was a huge mess. Undaunted, I grabbed some clear tape and patched up my botched-up job.

Pamela loved it, except for one minor detail. She told me, "Something is missing!" When I asked what, she replied, "Sprinkles." We searched for some glitter glue and she decorated her fairy wand. The final product turned out beautiful, even with the tape.

On Tuesday, when the wand was dry and I had a horrid sinus headache and nausea caused by congestion, I asked Pamela to help me feel better. She grabbed her wand and made her magic sound effect. Physically, nothing changed, but she made me smile.

Today, I spotlighted it further. When my dad visited, she greeted him. Then, I said, "I wonder what you could do if Opa feels bad." At first, she tried the magic finger. Then, I said, "But, what about your fairy wand?" She ran off to find it and cured her Opa properly. He thought she was precious.

In case, you no longer believe in fairies, keep in mind what C.S. Lewis wrote: "Some say you will be old enough to start reading fairy stories again."

Thanks to AmblesideOnline, I reached that age earlier than most adults! If you think you are ready, here are some books for the fairy-minded.

Blue Fairy Book
Red Fairy Book
Yellow Fairy Book
Green Fairy Book
English Fairy Tales
Pinocchio
Peter Pan
Mary Poppins
Five Children and It
Chronicles of Narnia
Little White Horse
At the Back of the North Wind
Princess and the Goblin
Princess and Curdie
The Light Princess
Secret Garden
Little Princess
Puck of Pook's Hill
Midsummer Night's Dream