APRIL 2010 - MOTHER'S FLOWER GARDEN

• Pass around garden/flower magazines. Ask: Do you like to garden? Did you grow flowers? Tell us about the charm of a classic flower garden. Did you get inspiration from your mother's or grandmother's garden? Which flower do you most associate with your mother?
• Sing some songs related to flowers: "Tiptoe Through the Tulips," "Jeannine, I Dream of Lilac Time," "I Never Promised You a Rose Garden," "Yellow Rose of Texas," "When You Wore a Tulip," or "Daisy Bell."
• Cut out pictures of some classic flowers (petunias, geraniums, begonias, morning glories, pansies, daisies) and ask participants to name each one. Write a poem about a favorite flower.
• Make some simple flower-related crafts - a felt flower mobile, clothespin butterfly, bird plant picks, or coffee filter flowers. (Use the ElderSong resource Crafts Through the Year for detailed instructions on these crafts.)
• Plan a visit to a local greenhouse, nursery, or botanical garden.
• Make a simple silk floral arrangement, with a specific color scheme. Talk about the perfect palette for a flower garden. Example: How would you color your garden if your starter color was yellow?
• List people who are named after flowers - Daisy, Lily, Rose. Ask: Did you know someone who had a "flower" name? Did the person's name match her personality?
• Show pictures of the vintage quilt pattern, Grandmother's Flower Garden, which became popular in the 1920s and 30s. Or, locate an old quilt with a floral pattern. Ask: Do you like to quilt? Did you learn the art of quilting from your mother or grandmother? Do you remember seeing family quilts in an old attic trunk? Tell us about some of your favorite quilts.
• In honor of Mother's Day on May 9: Host an intergenerational garden tea party (indoors). Decorate with fresh flowers. Don old hats with floral accents or put flowers in hair. Wear a floral scarf. Sip jasmine or rose-flavored teas in old china cups with floral designs. Serve petits fours decorated with flowers.
• Invite a speaker from the local Garden Club to talk about community beautification projects or a favorite event, like a flower show. Design a garden club hat, using silk or paper flowers.
• Celebrate National Wildflower Week, May 2-9. Hang wildflower art posters. Reminisce about the simple pleasures of picking a bouquet of wildflowers. Name favorite spring wildflowers.
• Make sachet bags (using potpourri from dried rose flower petals or lavender). Ask: Do you remember your mother or grandmother keeping sachets in bureau drawers? Which scents were her favorite?
• Discuss the meaning of the proverb: "Stop and smell the roses." List some practical ways that a busy mother can apply this proverb to her life.
• Bring in samples of different varieties/colors of roses (minus the thorns). Talk about cultivating a rose garden. Show photos of prize-winning roses. Pass around a bowl of rose petals for participants to touch.
• Pass around bridal magazines and look at bridal bouquets. Ask participants to talk about their wedding flowers. Reminisce about flowers for other special occasions and holidays. (Show your group an old book with pressed flowers in it.)

• Mother's Flower Garden Resources
• Flower Parks Trivia Quiz
• Featured Products for April
• Thought for the April





MOTHER'S FLOWER GARDEN RESOURCES

Soak up the sights, sounds, and smells of a beautiful garden in the making. The Enrichment Sensory Program: Second Edition will provide your group with over 50 different sensory activities related to the seasons. Each activity uses simple, everyday objects related to the seasons and a ready-to-read monologue to provide sensory stimulation in a relaxed format. Special features for the newly revised edition include shopping lists for seasonal sensory items and a guide to developing personalized sensory kits for participants. Use these spring monologues to plan some garden activities: Seed Packet, Garden Trowel, Roses - Hand Lotion, Essential Oil, or Natural/Silk Flowers, Silk Flower Blossoms. Stimulate pleasant memories as you explore familiar sights, sounds, and tastes.

Memories of flowers will surface with the help of a little music and some beautiful scenery. Share pictures of state flowers and talk about travel experiences across the nation. Pay a tribute to America's diverse landscapes, landmarks, and people with the DVD America the Beautiful: A Tribute to God & Country. This uplifting music video will take your group on a 3,000- mile journey across the heartland of America. Encourage your seniors to sing along with 33 inspirational songs as you view scenes of nature from east to west. Songs include "America, the Beautiful," "Chicago," "My Old Kentucky Home," "The Yellow Rose of Texas," "Oklahoma," "This Land Is Your Land," and "Rocky Mountain High."

Ask participants to describe a beautiful spring garden in full bloom, complete with butterflies and birds. Take a nostalgic stroll through the garden as you hum some favorite songs, like "When You Wore a Tulip." The CD and lyrics book set, Sing-Along with ElderSong, Volume 1, features 30 old songs in low, singable keys with vocals. Each song is led by 1-3 singers with simple piano accompaniment. Enjoy favorites such as "My Wild Irish Rose," "America, the Beautiful," "Red River Valley," "Home on the Range," "America," "Bicycle Built for Two," and more.

Also, check out last month's featured product: Ambient Flowers.




FLOWER TRIVIA QUIZ


1. Name some flowers that begin with the letter 'p'. Peony, pansy, petunia, primrose, poppy, periwinkle (Other answers are possible.)
2. What kind of colorful spring flower is Holland famous for? Tulips
3. What is a perennial? Plant that lives more than two years
4. The bluebonnet is the official flower of which large Southern state? Texas
5. Which flower is most associated with Valentine's Day? Rose
6. What do daffodils and jonquils have in common? Different names for the same flower
7. Finish the following proverb: April showers bring... May flowers
8. Which flower is worn on Veterans Day as a tribute to veterans of war? Red poppy
9. Finish this song title: "Red Roses for a... Blue Lady"
10. What is the name of the New Year's Day parade in Pasadena, California, that features floats covered in fresh flowers? Tournament of Roses Parade





FEATURED PRODUCTS FOR THE MONTH - 15% off

The Enrichment Sensory Program: Second Edition - 80-page softcover book. Regularly $26.95.

America the Beautiful: A Tribute to God & Country - 120-minute DVD - Regularly $14.95.

Sing-Along with ElderSong, Volume 1 - 50-minute DVD plus lyrics book. Regularly $15.95.




THOUGHT FOR THE MONTH

"The Amen! of Nature is always a flower." ~ Oliver Wendell Holmes






---


Send your comments or requests about this page just [Click Here] .


The ElderSong online newsletter is written by Sue Hansen.
Copyright © 2009, ElderSong Publications, Inc. All rights reserved.