Airdrie and Area is truly blessed by some wonderful business folks. Take Monty s Plumbing for instance. Throughout the month of December, ten dollars from every service call is being directed to the Airdrie Food Bank. It s that kind of special relationship between local business owners and the community that make Airdrie such a wonderful place to raise a family. On behalf of all of the local business people like Monty and his staff, we wish you the very Merriest of Christmases and the happiest of New Years. Pictured left to right: Melissa, Monty, Lori & Debbie Hair Treatment Trying to control my dry hair, I treated my scalp with olive oil before washing it. Worried that the oil might leave an odor, I washed my hair several times. That night when I went to bed, I leaned over to my husband and asked, "Do I smell like olive oil?" "No," he said, sniffing me. "Do I smell like Popeye?" Family Dinner Christmas dinner was an enjoyable time for us. Although my Mother was in her late 80's she certainly still had the ability to clearly say what was on her mind. This was the first dinner on my sister's beautiful new dining room furniture. As we all sat enjoying good food and conversation Mom kept squirming in her chair. Finally, my sister asked, "Are you alright? Are you uncomfortable?" Without looking up from her dinner Mom replied, "No, the chair is." Snowflakes by Linda A. Copp Snowflakes spill from heaven's hand Lovely and chaste like smooth white sand. A veil of wonder laced in light Falling gently on a winters night. Graceful beauty raining down Giving magic to the lifeless ground. Each snowflake like a falling star Smiling beauty that's spun afar. Till earth is dressed in a robe of white Unspoken poem the hush of night. Page 9
OPEN WEEKENDS! Call for more information and schedule. (403) 948-3404 FROM THE BOOK LIVE AND LEARN AND PASS IT ON I ve learned that the best way to cheer up yourself is to cheer up someone else. - Age 13 Darren DePagie www.depagie.com (403) 615-5511 Snow Family Finger Puppets By: Amanda Formaro Source: www.kaboose.com This adorable snow family will give your kids hours of puppet time fun! All you need are some inexpensive knit gloves and a few simple supplies to put together this cute project. What you'll need: 1 white knit glove Hot glue gun 4 tiny orange pom poms Small pom poms for ear muffs and hat Chenille stem pieces Scrap material Scrap felt for scarves Black acrylic paint Paint brush White felt Scissors Plastic wrap How to make it: Fill fingers of glove with plastic wrap. This will keep the glove from sticking to itself from the glue and will act as a filled finger which allows for a good fit when done. Glue on chenille stems and pom poms for ear muffs. Use a triangle shaped scrap of felt to form a simple hat. Wrap the wide piece around the bottom and fold down the point to the back, then glue in place. Glue a pom pom on top. Use scrap material to make a wrap around shawl. Simply glue the center of a long strip of material to the top of the head, then wrap around and glue in place. Trim ends if needed. Make scarves from felt strips, fringing the ends with scissors. Glue in place. Glue orange pom poms on for noses. Dip the handle end of a small paint brush into black acrylic paint. Carefully dot on eyes and mouths. (Practice this step on the thumb first if you plan to discard it the way that we did. Allow everything to dry, then trim off the bottom of the glove and the thumb. Glue a 1 wide strip of white felt around the bottom to keep it from fraying. Carefully remove the plastic wrap from the fingers. Put on hand and have a fun puppet show! Tips: Knit gloves are inexpensive (sometimes as low as 50 cents per pair) and can be found at dollar stores, drug stores, grocery stores and discount department stores. If you have tiny black pom poms they can be used in place of paint for the eyes and mouths. You can also practice with a black Sharpie marker. Be careful when using hot glue guns because the hot glue can hurt little hands. Always supervise or handle the gun yourself while children position the materials. White craft glue can be used instead, but takes a lot longer to dry. Page 10
Fast, Reliable & Professional ~ Commercial & Residential Loading & Clean-Up (inc. home, office, yard) Old Appliance & Furniture Removal Construction & Reno Debris Removal ~ 24/7, 7 Days/Week. Locally Owned & Operated. What do you get when you cross a snowman with a wolf? Frostbite! At the Hockey Game I was at a hockey game in the Pengrowth Saddledome, when I decided to get myself a hot dog. As I stood up, my husband asked me to buy him a beer. The young clerk at the concession stand asked to see verification of age. "You've got to be kidding," I said. "I'm almost 40 years old." He apologized, but he said he had to see some ID, it was policy. When I showed him my driver's license, the clerk served me the beer. "That will be $6.25, please." he said. I gave him $10.00 and told him to keep the change. "The tip's for carding me," I said. He put the change into his tip cup and replied, "Thanks." And as I walked away, I heard him add, "Works every time." Page 11
Blind River Construction Inc. - Siding - Soffit - Facia - Cladding ANDY MADSEN Owner Airdrie, AB Ph: 403-510-3132 a.madsen@shaw.ca Including those produced for hatching, Canada's farms produce around 7 billion eggs each year. Penny s Tip of the Week I can't believe Christmas is here already. This week is full of get-togethers with friends and family, which of course involves lots of rich meals; Christmas baking, chocolates and possibly a cocktail or two. So have fun, enjoy yourself and indulge a bit, and I'll see you at the gym or out jogging a couple extra times next week to make up for it. MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!! Remembrance, like a candle, burns brightest at Christmas Time. - Charles Dickens The 4th annual "Simply Extreme Big Bear's Lifestyle Challenge" is just around the corner. This year we are looking for twoperson teams. You can pick-up applications January 3-10 at Here's The Scoop, Extreme Pita, Simply for Life or Big Bear's Fitness. Email your question for Penny to: heresthescoop@shaw.ca For your complete fitness centre, check out Big Bear s. Call Penny at 912-9300 for a consultation. Expires Dec. 31/08 Page 12
CARL RUSSELL AIRDRIE, AB (403) 420-1995 Stay tuned for all of Here s the Scoop staff s favourite holiday treats! Chocolate Chunk Caramilk Cookies Submitted by: Verna Wheeler, Advance Distribution Carrier Directions Ingredients 1/3 cup shortening 1 cup butter (cold) 1 cup granulated sugar (white) 1 cup packed brown sugar 2 eggs 4 tsp. vanilla 3-1/2 cups flour 1 tsp. baking soda 1 tsp salt 2 100 g Caramilk bars (in square chunks not leaking caramilk) 3 100 g milk chocolate bars (chunks) Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Mix first 6 ingredients. Stir in remaining ingredients EXCEPT CHOCOLATE. Then stir in chocolate. Drop onto ungreased baking sheet. Bake 8-10 minutes until lightly brown. Cool on sheet slightly before transferring to cooling racks. THESE COOKIES ARE REALLY, REALLY YUMMY!!!!! Page 13
Christmas is a bridge. We need bridges as the river of time flows past. Today's Christmas should mean creating happy hours for tomorrow and reliving those of yesterday. - Gladys Taber Mom's Letter to Santa Dear Santa, I've been a good mom all year. I've fed, cleaned, and cuddled my two children on demand, visited the doctor's office more than my doctor, sold sixty-two cases of candy bars to raise money to plant a shade tree on the school playground and figured out how to attach nine patches onto my daughter's girl scout sash with staples and a glue gun. I was hoping you could spread my list out over several Christmases, since I had to write this letter with my son's red crayon, on the back of a receipt in the laundry room between cycles, and who knows when I'll find anymore free time in the next 18 years. Here are my Christmas wishes: I'd like a pair of legs that don't ache after a day of chasing kids (in (Continued on page 15) You don't stop laughing because you grow old, You grow old because you stop laughing! Page 14
(Continued from page 14) any color, except purple, which I already have) and arms that don't flap in the breeze, but are strong enough to carry a screaming toddler out of the candy aisle in the grocery store. I'd also like a waist, since I lost mine somewhere in the seventh month of my last pregnancy. If you're hauling big ticket items this year, I'd like a car with fingerprint resistant windows and a radio that only plays adult music; a television that doesn't broadcast any programs containing talking animals, and a refrigerator with a secret compartment behind the crisper where I can hide to talk on the phone. On the practical side, I could use a talking daughter doll that says, "Yes, Mommy" to boost my parental confidence, along with one potty-trained toddler, two kids who don't fight, and three pairs of jeans that will zip all the way up without the use of power tools. I could also use a recording of Tibetan monks chanting, "Don't eat in the living room" and "Take your hands off your brother", because my voice seems to be just out of my children's hearing range and can only be heard by the dog. (Continued on page 16) Page 15
I sometimes think we expect too much of Christmas Day. We try to crowd into it the long arrears of kindliness and humanity of the whole year. As for me, I like to take my Christmas a little at a time, all through the year. - David Grayson (Continued from page 15) And please don't forget the Playdoh Travel Pak, the hottest stocking stuffer this year for mothers of preschoolers. It comes in three fluorescent colors and is guaranteed to crumble on any carpet making the In-law's house seem just like mine. If it's too late to find any of these products, I'd settle for enough time to brush my teeth and comb my hair in the same morning, or the luxury of eating food warmer than room temperature without it being served in a Styrofoam container. If you don't mind I could also use a few Christmas miracles to brighten the holiday season. Would it be too much trouble to declare ketchup a vegetable? It will clear my conscience immensely. It would be helpful if you could coerce my children to help around the house without demanding payment as if they were the bosses of an organized crime family; or if my toddler didn't look so cute sneaking downstairs to eat contraband ice cream in his pajamas at midnight. Well, Santa, the buzzer on the dryer is ringing and my son saw my feet under the laundry room door. I think he wants his crayon back. Have a safe trip and remember to leave your wet boots by the chimney and come in and dry off by the fire so you don't catch cold. Help yourself to cookies on the table, but don't eat too many or leave crumbs on the carpet. Yours always... Mom PS: One more thing...you can cancel all my requests if you can keep my children young enough to believe in Santa. Page 16