A Children's Christmas Fair

This past Saturday morning, we braved the chilly weather, like we did last year, to attend the Vancouver Waldorf School's Christmas Fair. A most memorable activity at this wonderful fair from last year was visiting the "Cookie House" to select a decorated gingerbread cookie from amongst many all hung on curtains from ceiling to floor in a small, narrow, dimly-lit, ambient space. We waited in line to experience the wonderful Cookie House again this year, complete with an elf to guard the house, as well as a fairy, to assist with the cookie selection. As you can see, R knew his immediate plans for his cookie upon leaving the "house".

There were many beautiful wreaths and table centerpieces being created all around us.....
...and new experiences to be had.... candle dipping!!!

in another dimly-lit, but magical room decorated with winter scenes, lots of stars and tiny lights...

...and warm, nurturing teachers that made all the activities at this fair so meaningful. D really got into making and dipping his own candle, deciding on his own how many more times he wanted to walk around the table to dip his candle into the wax pots.

Other cool activities included puppet plays, silk painting, visiting a winter wonderland and woodland pond, woodworking, and a variety of musical offerings around the school. And what's a Christmas fair without a "Marketplace", which was so crowded that I barely looked for fear of losing the boys. I did, however, pick up my felt order from Natalie of Bear Dance Crafts who came down for the fair from Kaslo. She offers good quality wool felt in lots of great colours for those of you who are interested.


Here is D's beautifully fragrant candle finished and wrapped with paper tissue and a lovely poem. The poem should read as below, but with the last line, perhaps, intentionally and appropriately left out:

A candle is but a simple thing,
It starts with just a bit of string,
But dipped and dipped with patient hand,
It gathers wax upon the strand,
Until complete and snowy white,
It gives at last a lovely sight.

Life seems so like that bit of string,
Each deed we do a simple thing,
Yet day by day if on life's strand,
We work with patient heart and hand,
It gathers joy makes dark days bright,
And gives at last a lovely light.

How we love this fair for its wonderful, meaningful experiences that appeal to all our senses and the child within us!