Happy New Year!

color
Originally uploaded by Witkowski Photography

Happy New Years young Pomonans! For the new year I wish all the best to you and your families. Have a peaceful, safe and happy new year.

I refuse to come back to work until next year!!

New years joke: Did you hear about the New Year's party in the basement?
Answer: It made the Best Cellar List. :)

Happy New Year my friends!

We're Back!!

Wow! You all just blew us away today. We had a huge line waiting to come into the library. We love that! I would say we were missed. Actually, I am sooooo glad to be back. I enjoy the holidays and all but I love being here.

The day after Christmas I was driving around and couldn't believe how beautiful the mountains were. I just had to pull over and take pictures. We are so lucky to be near such beauty.

Just before the holidays someone ran into my car in a parking lot. I was so very lucky that the other driver was honest and left me her name and phone number. It is so important to be honest, young Pomonans. The insurance company said about 1 in 15 people will actually leave a note. 1 in 15!! Being honest and kind to people makes you feel good. So go out young Pomonans and take care of each other!

Sorry that we don't have any activities this week. But keep coming in because we are here for you!

Joke of the day: What happened when the knife and spoon took a hike?
Answer: They found a fork in the road! :)

A Story of Pumpkin PIe

Steve's Homemade Pumpkin Pie
Originally uploaded by MilliMoMo

It is Christmas young Pomonans! I trust your day was happy and safe.

Every year I make the pumpkin pie and every year something goes wrong. If you have never made one, it is really easy.

All you have to do is mix the dry ingredients together, mix the wet ingredients together, mix them together and pour it into a pie shell. Put in in the oven at 425 degrees and 15 minutes later lower the oven to 350 degrees, wait 40 to 50 minutes and take it out of the oven. Simple!

The truth is very few things for me are simple. One year I forgot to put in the eggs. That left a goopy mess that wouldn't gel. My family went without pumkin pie that year. The next year I messed up the crust. My family went without pumpkin pie that year as well. I got smart after that and bought the frozen pie crust. It really is good and you don't have to worry about messing it up.

My co-workers have said to me, "If you were in my family, Lois, I would assign you to bring the drinks." It does make sense. However I believe my family knows that I really do try and that they don't have the heart to tell me to stop.

This year I paid close attention to what I was doing. I understand that this just isn't an easy thing for me to do. I thought things were going well and I was pretty happy. I put the pie in the oven and went about the task of cleaing up. There right in front of me, mocking me in my own kitchen, was the bowl of dry ingredients. 'NOOOOOOOO!!!!!!" I screamed. I'm surprised my neighbors didn't come over to see who died. I threw open the oven door and retrieved the pie. I poured the liquid back into a bowl, stirred the dry ingredients in, got a new pie crust (thank goodness they come two in a package) and put the pie back into the oven.

Close call dudes. I nearly ruined the pie again. I took the pie to my parents house smiling from ear to ear. For the first time in several years I didn't have to endure my family rolling their eyes when I told them what went wrong. I served the pie and kept my mouth shut!

No Joke: Merry Christmas!

Happy Holidays All of Pomona Young and Old!

It has been a great holiday season here at the Pomona Public Library. Absolute wonderful people live here in Pomona and I am privileged to be part of it all. Your cards and well wishes are from the heart and I love that!

This is a picture of a card given to me today by some of my former kids from preschool story time. They are 16 and 18 now!! How did that happen? The oldest could be a stand up comedian. He had me laughing so hard I cried. Twice!!

Another former preschooler was here today and he is learning how to read himself. How cool is that? That is what it is all about, folks. Watching children read to themselves when you used to read to them -- priceless.

Have a very, very happy time this holiday season. We will be open next week Monday through Wednesday. On Wednesday we will close at 6:00pm

Last holiday joke: Mom can I have a dog for Christmas?
Answer: No. You'll have turkey like everyone else. :)

Dumbledore and Harry

dumbledore and harry
Originally uploaded by eco-photography

Isn't this great? Harry looks pretty good but Dumbledore? I don't want to seem picky but isn't he dead? I guess for a dead guy he looks pretty good. I found this picture on flickr under "Christmas, shopping, and children." I guess they did this for a holiday event.

It is really strange to be here on a Monday and not have any weekly activities to report. The truth is we are only here today and tomorrow and have a five day weekend. Not bad!

Tomorrow is going to be terrible for me because there is no story time. If you have time during your day please come in and cheer me up. I really can't stand it when we don't have story time.

Joke of the day: Why did Santa Claus take his Christmas tree to the dentist?
Answer: To get a root canal! :)

Happy Holiday Shopping!

Grotto....
Originally uploaded by ylind ypind

Christmas is almost here young Pomonans! You have one more weekend to get your shopping done. This picture was taken in England. What fun it would be to shop there!

Next week we will be open Monday and Tuesday only from 12:00pm to 8:30pm. Grandma Sue and I will be here as Ms. Nissa is taking two weeks off.

Come in and see us. We miss you when you aren't in school!

Joke of the day: What is green, covered with tinsel and goes "ribbit ribbit?
Answer: A mistle-"toad"! :)

Cal Poly Homework Assistance Party a HUGE Success!

Our homework center party rocked! Again, I didn't get everyone's picture because I didn't have parental consent, but I did get quite a few for you to see how much fun and food we had!

As you can see we had a celebrity appearance by Billy, the Bronco, mascot of Cal Poly Pomona. What a treat! He was very polite and didn't scarf down all of the pizza!

Jonathon, who is holding his reading achievement certificate, shared with everyone how much the homework center has helped him. That was FANTASTIC!!! Honestly, I don't want to say things a million times over but this Homework Center is a winning situation for all involved. The Cal Poly students relate so well to the children and the children love it! We all love it!

The homework center is open to all children in first through sixth grade. If you need help, help is here. If you just don't want to do your homework by yourself, come on in and you'll have plenty of company. The center will be closed for the holidays but will open up Tuesday January 6th from 4:00-6:00pm.

Hooray for Cal Poly and the Homework Assistance Center!

Another joke of the day: What do you get if Santa goes down the chimney when a fire is lit?
Answer: Crisp Kringle! :)

Party!

Remember that today our wonderful Homework Assistance Center is having a holiday party for all of you.

Date: Today
Time: 4:00-6:00pm
Where: Pomona Public Library's Homework Assistance Center.

See you here!!

Joke of the day: Father Christmas wins a saucepan in a competition.
Now that's what you call pot luck! :)

We Were Small But Mighty!

Grandma Sue said we were small but mighty. She was right! It was pouring down rain so we knew that would dampen some spirits. (Pun intended.) We did have more that attended the craft but their Parents weren't around for me to ask if I could post their picture on the blog.

And yet another joke of the day:
Knock, knock
Who's there?
Donut.
Donut who?
Donut open 'till Christmas! :)

A Cool Early Christmas Present

Ms. Nissa gave me this t-shirt for our holiday gift exchange. Isn't it cool? I really
like what Ms. Sue gave me as well but I didn't want to take a picture of a gift card!

So now you all can feel assured that when coming to story time anything you say and do cannot be held against you in a court of law. :)

See you here!

Joke of the day: Why does Father Christmas go down the chimney?
Answer: Because it soots him! :)

Holiday Craft Today!

Don't forget to come in today at 3:00pm for our craft. I know it's raining and all that but that just means your snowman won't melt when you take him home! :)

Joke of the day: What did Adam say the day before Christmas?
Answer: It's Christmas, Eve! :)

Pomona Public Library Staff Holiday Party

Hello young Pomonans! These are pictures of the staff holiday party here at the library. I bet you think library people don't have a lot of fun. HA! I beg to differ. First of all, we like to eat. If someone puts anything edible in the staff room without labeling it, it's fair game! I took pictures after we ate to prove this point. Look at all the empty or near empty dishes!

This year we had our party at 11:00am because we don't open until noon. In the past we had to alternate lunches so the other half could work the public desks. This time we were all together and we didn't have to keep our voices down. What fun!

Joke of the day: What would a reindeer do it it lost its tail?
Answer: Go to a re-tail shop for a new one! :)

Wednesday's Holiday Craft!

Isn't this a cute snowman? Grandma Sue will be leading this craft this Wednesday, December 17th at 3:00pm. Come and join the fun!

Another joke of the day: What did the elf say was the first step in using a Christmas computer?
Answer: First, YULE LOGon! :)

A Child's Christmas Curiosity

A Child's Christmas Curiosity
Originally uploaded by jasonraddin

This is another great picture I found on flickr. I wonder what is going through her mind. Maybe: Wow, I have such cool parents. They brought a tree inside the house! Whatever her thoughts, it looks like she's having a great time.

This is our last full week before Christmas. Can you believe that? Or maybe for you it is taking f-o-r-e-v-e-r for the holidays to come. At any rate, here is our weekly schedule:

Monday: 12:00-2:00pm Elf

Tuesday: 12:15pm Preschool story time
3:00pm After school story time
4:00-6:00pm Homework Assistance Center

Wednesday: 3:00pm Holiday craft
4:00-6:00pm Homework Assistance Center
(Grandparents and Books will resume in January)

Thursday: 12:15pm Infant story time
(Oh no! Grandma Sue is on vacation. Ms. Lois
will be filling in.)
4:00-6:00pm HOMEWORK ASSISTANCE CENTER
PARTY!!

The Homework Assistance Center is throwing all of you a party for working so hard and caring about your homework. Come on down!

Joke of the day: How do elves greet each other?
Answer: "Small world, isn't it?" :)

Homework Assistance Center Holiday Party

Our friends at Cal Poly are planning a holiday party for all of you who come to our homework center! How cool is that?

The party will be next Thursday, December 18th from 4:00-6:00pm. I would make a point of being there if I were you. There are some nice people over at Cal Poly and I'm sure they know how to plan a party!

See you here!

Another joke of the day: What do you get when you cross an apple with a Christmas tree?
Answer: A pineapple! :)

Dollhouse Furniture and Dolls

Hello Young Pomonans! We seem to have a mystery on our hands. We have this dollhouse furniture and dolls that have been on display for over eighteen years that I know of. Our library director, Greg Shapton, doesn't know their story and I'm curious about them. I've assumed all these years that they belonged to Miss Webber but I don't think anyone ever told me that.

Okay, mystery solved. Grandma Sue said they were indeed Miss Webber's and she gave them to the library. There are also more down in storage. It would be great if we could put them on display, I just don't know where we would put them.

Miss Webber was the first children's librarian here at Pomona Public Library. She was instrumental in getting the children's room named after Laura Ingalls Wilder.

Come on in and check them out! (Well, not literally.)

Joke of the day: Which of Santa's reindeer has bad manners?
Answer: RUDE-olph! :)

A Child's Christmas Dream

A Child's Christmas Dream
Originally uploaded by Karlstrom Photography

Hello young Pomonans! I found this picture on flickr and I really like it. I hope you do too.

Here is our schedule for the week:

Monday: 12:00-2:00pm ELF

Tuesday: 12:15pm Preschool Story time
3:00pm After school story time
4:00-6:00pm Homework Assistance Center

Wednesday: 3:30-4:30pm Grandparents and Books
4:00-6:00pm Homework Assistance Center

Thursday: 12:15pm Infant story time
4:00-6:00pm Homework Assistance Center

Remember our Homework Assistance Center is staffed by our friends at Cal Poly Pomona. It is very nice of them to volunteer to help you with your homework. Come on in and take advantage of their service!

Joke of the day: What do reindeer hang on their Christmas trees?
Answer: HORN-aments! :)

My All Time Favorite Christmas Book

If you like a funny story and a story that makes you see things a bit differently, this book is for you. The first sentence is: "The Herdmans were absolutely the worst kids in the history of the world." How is that for a beginning? The Herdmans always were in trouble. They bullied everyone and that is how the got all of the main parts in the Christmas pageant.

Come on in and check this out. We have several copies and you can choose your favorite Christmas color (red or green)for the covers!

Joke of the day: What do reindeer always say before telling you a joke?
Answer: This one will sleigh you! :)

Christmas Books

It's Christmas young Pomonans! These two titles are ones that I really like right now. Claude the Dog gives a wonderful message in very few words. Claude's owner (a little boy) gives him his Christmas presents. He got a warm blanket, a warm bed, and a toy. One of Claude's friends comes along who doesn't have a home (his name is Bummer) :) Claude ends up giving all of his presents to Bummer because he feels that he has a wonderful home and that is the best present of all. Wouldn't the world be a better place if we all were like Claude?

The other book is my favorite of all the "Night Before Christmas" books. This one is illustrated by Jan Brett and the pictures are gorgeous! When you look at them you feel like you're right there in the middle of it all.

Come on in and check these out. There are TONS of Christmas books with multiple copies of the favorites. Yes, we have multiple copies of "The Grinch Who Stole Christmas."

Joke of the day: What did the bald man say when he got a comb for Christmas?
Answer: Thanks, I'll never part with it! :)

We Are Decorated!

We did it! The food bribe worked (it always does!) We had a great time putting up the tree. We listen to KOST103.5 for the Christmas music. You all should be out of school soon so come on in.

Remember that we have Grandparents and Books from 3:30-4:30pm and also the homework center will be open from 4:00-6:00pm.

See you here!

Another joke of the day: Why did the police photograph the cup of coffee?
Answer: To get its mug shot. :)