The Bub in the Belly

With us being so busy, it was only appropriate that Ryan's costume for his end-of-term Playclub party would be a bumble bee!

Err, no, not the one from Transformers. The one that goes "Bzz". Yes, I know most bumble bees (and most animals with wings) are usually portrayed by the feminine gender, but there was really very little alternative. I was actually racking my brain trying to think of an animal costume that did not require head gear as Ryan is not fond of anything on his head. I finally decided that I would make a spider costume and when I discussed it with Richard, he said we could also try a bumble bee. To which I told him that I had considered it but it would only work if Ryan would wear the antennae, and I was doubtful he would. So off to Spotlight I went to see what I could use to make a costume. Lo and behold, there was this wonderful bumble bee headband. I prayed and prayed that Ryan would take to it... and he did! Of course, I had to give him lots and lots of praise and compliments - "Wow! You look so nice!"! He was very amused by it and kept shaking his head to make the antennae bounce up and down!

So, from there it was easy. We only had to make the wings and dress him in something yellow and black. We did buy some wings but they were actually butterfly/fairy wings so I wasn't really happy with them. Also they were pink and Richard was quite firm that we had to paint out the pink. As it turned out, the butterfly/fairy wings were too big so we had to make a fresh pair of wings out of a clothes hanger and a laundry bag. I sewed a "pocket" onto the back of a romper to slot in the hanger and secured it with some ribbon round the arms and this was the result.

Parents were asked to come in animal costume or in Christmas-inspired gear. Richard and I turned up with reindeer headbands (bought from Daiso)

This being the last class of the year, Ryan received his certificate and we also got to celebrate Christmas. Yes, it's more than a month away but who would give up a chance for some good Christmas cheer?

Ryan getting his certificate and a big present from Santarina

Next term, one of the Mandarin teachers will not be with Ryan's class as she is being rotated to the class next door (that's the lady in the Christmas hat next to Santarina in the photo above). We will miss her, she is really great with the children.

So, that was the end of Playclub for this term. Ten weeks pass so quickly when you're having fun!