As the school grows, so do we! The next time you come in to drop your child or children off at school, check out the newly remodeled toddler and advanced toddler rooms. Taller walls and room dividers have been installed to create more individual room environments and increase wall space for art, learning tools, etc. We have also added an additional toddler room in the old Spruce Room to accommodate the increasing need for this age group.  We are so proud of the progress that Little Green Tree House has made in its first two years of business and are happy to continue sharing our success with you!

Congratulations to Courtney Kearney who is Little Green Tree House's October Employee of the Month.  Courtney graduated from the University of Oregon with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Theater Arts. Courtney has been a part of the Little Green Tree House family for six months now and works in the Maple and the Holly Classrooms.  Courtney has been recognized for her dedication to Little Green Tree House by working extra shifts in the Holly classroom on top of her regular afternoon shift in the Maple classroom.

When asked what has made her teaching experience unique Courtney said, "I'm lucky in that I get to spend my day with both infants and two-year-olds! I love that I get to spend time each day teaching so many very different individuals. "As we all know, teaching is valued all over the world.  Courtney values the way that, "the students gain confidence in their abilities and also in what they uniquely contribute."  Courtney is devoted and enthusiastic about teaching and hopes "that [her] role as a teacher aids the students in making kind, honest, and heart-felt decisions as they move forward in life." Courtney says that she is, "so grateful that [she] works with such relaxed, intelligent, and kind-hearted teachers," and that, "[she is] constantly learning from them." 

Halloween is a fun time for children and adults alike!  What better a time to throw a spooky party and let your little one help out! Below are some ideas to make your spook spectacular an eco-friendly success. This will benefit the little "goblins" in your house and they will learn at a very early age the pluses of going earth friendly and healthy for Halloween!

1.       Serve high quality sweets. Try and serve a variety of organic chocolates. Skip the wasteful bags and mini candies. Those bags produce more waste than you can even imagine. Instead, fill bowls with organic and homemade sweet treats.

2.       Skip on the processed junk food. Make cookies with high quality ingredients like local eggs, raw sugar, nuts, and organic chocolate rather than picking up highly processed cookies made of refined sugar and high fructose corn syrup.

3.       Make it spooky with soy candles. Skip on the petroleum based candles and add glow with high quality, eco-friendly soy candles.

4.       Skip the plastic decorations and go natural. Use tons of local gourds and pumpkins to spruce your place up rather than tacky plastic pumpkins and orange streamers. Reuse old sheets and stuff with old newspaper to make ghosts. Make it rustic rather than cheesy.

5.       Skip the paper invite and send a ghostly Evite.

6.       Serve seasonal treats like apple pies, pumpkin risotto, and pumpkin ravioli. Make a side with tons of seasonal roasted root veggies like turnips, parsnips, and sweet potatoes.

Courtesy of: http://planetgreen.discovery.com/home-garden/spooky-green-halloween-party.html