my first flannel friday!!

Seriously? Participating in #flannelfriday is a major reason I started this blog. The *first* flannel I made was inspired by the "5 Little Owls" that so many awesome librarians had already put together. These owls are ridiculous cute and so. easy. to make. The kids loved them.

I was so happy with my experience with the owls (both making them and sharing them with the kids) that I decided to make my own flannel for our Halloween-themed storytimes this week. So fun!

There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Bat (Scholastic, 2002)

I made flies like these when I shared There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly during a Bugs storytime. We used a sorta creepy looking old lady puppet and the kids stuffed what she was swallowing right down into her gullet. It was a hoot.

I didn't know about the old lady who swallowed a bat (or the cold one who swallowed some snow for that matter) until I went looking for songs for our Halloween storytime. I figured that if I created a pretty generic looking old lady, I could use her in the future for swallowing flies, bats, AND snow (with the addition of some layers for the "cold lady" angle). Yay, multitasking flannels, amiright? :D

I am super proud of the finished project:

(Over the course of the story, she swallows a bat, an owl, a cat, a ghost, a goblin, some bones, AND a wizard. Sheesh, sister... take it easy!)

I thought the eyebrows added to the agony that would no doubt be associated with swallowing that amount of things.

This wizard cracked me up because he pretty much came together from scraps. His gesture there is because he eventually casts a spell on the old lady.

Am I the only person who is not quite sure what a goblin looks like? I went with a green guy with yellow teeth and ragged clothes. (Patch added to emphasize raggy-ness.)

This little owl is my homage to Leah's adorable owls who kicked off my flannel journey. :)

I had so much fun making this - which I did when I had some free time away from the desk on Tuesday. I am already considering putting together my own flannel kit and hope to add many more fun multitasking flannels to my meager collection!


You can find the rest of this week's round up with Tracey at 1234 More Storytimes, view past round ups with Anne at So Tomorrow, or click the Flannel Friday button to the right to view the page on Pinterest.

Thanks for checking this out and Happy Friday!