Did you know … Easter celebrates Jesus’ resurrection (rising from the dead) on Sunday morning after dying on a cross. Christians love this day because it reminds us that Jesus died to save us from our sins. The stone is rolled away Mary Magdalene and two other women went to …
Sandy Hart 
Eating a Special Food on New Year’s Day?
When I was a little girl, my dad insisted that I eat at least one spoonful of black-eyed peas on New Year’s Day. It was supposed to bring good luck. I didn’t like them. Eating even a spoonful seemed like a high price to pay for good luck in the …
First Children’s Christmas Party at the White House
by Sandra Merville Hart President John Adams and First Lady Abigail Adams didn’t have the warmest of homes at the White House in 1800. Their Pennsylvania Avenue home, built near a swamp, was drafty and cold. Large fires crackled in thirteen fireplaces to warm their home. In 1800, as Christmas …
The Cure for Grumpiness
Do you ever feel grumpy? Mona the monkey was feeling that way. She didn’t want to cuddle or let her mother pick itchy bugs out of her fur. She didn’t want to play catch-me -if you-can, or jump from tree to tree by the river. Mona was a miserable grump. …
Pirate Preacher 
I’ve Brought Some Corn for Popping
by Sandra Merville Hart This line from the beloved Christmas carol “Let it Snow” started me wondering when the tradition of popping corn began. People have known how to pop corn for thousands of years. Ears of popcorn were found in the Bat Cave in New Mexico that are about …