Potato Blueberry Stamps

I know, I should be starting on apple and pumpkin crafts, but I'm not quite ready to say goodbye to summer. Between random earthquakes and impending hurricanes, we're managing to enjoy our last few days of summer break. Last week my husband and I celebrated our 10 year anniversary by taking a road trip up to Acadia National Park in Maine.

 On the way up, it seemed there were "Wild Maine Blueberry" signs and stands at every corner. We didn't buy any blueberries, but I did pick up One Morning in Maine for my girls and was inspired to do this little craft when I got home.

You're supposed to use a cork for this project, but I didn't have any on hand, so I grabbed a fingerling potato instead. I simply trimmed each end and notched an X into the potato flesh. The girls then dipped either end of their potato stamp into some blue paint to create their blueberries.

When it had dried,  they glued on popsicle sticks to create a simple basket shape. Such a fun and simple end of summer artwork!

One Morning in Maine by Robert McCloskey

Written by the author of Blueberries for Sal, this sequel follows an older Sal through an average Maine morning. Blueberries do not feature in this book, but it does chronicle the loss of Sal's first tooth and her trip into town with her father and little sister. This time the plot takes a back seat to the beautiful monochromatic illustrations of little Sal and the Maine coast. Having just returned from there, I could fully appreciate the accuracy of the beautiful depiction of the New England coastline. Although it's a little long for early preschoolers, older children will enjoy the quiet chronicle of a child's morning, and kids of all ages are bound to love the artwork.

One Little Blueberry by Tammi Salzano

If you're looking for a blueberry-themed book for younger children, check out this cute little story from Tiger Tales. A simple counting book, the story follows the journey of one runaway blueberry while two ants, three ladybugs, four caterpillars, etc. all try to catch the blueberry for their own. Sweet illustrations and rhyming text make this a great read-aloud for classrooms or at home.


Disclaimer: One Little Blueberry was provided to me courtesy of Tiger Tales Books free of charge in exchange for a review. This does not in any way influence my review.

We're ready to ring in the New Year!

... if we can stay up that long. Our friends sent us an evite for a New Years Eve party they are throwing. The invitation was titled: "Did you hear? 8 is the new 12!" Ain't that the truth! The baby's double ear infection - which we thought she had nearly conquered - reared its ugly, pussy head this week, and I've had my hands full with grumpy days and restless nights. We're hopeful the antibiotics will kick in by tomorrow evening, so we spent this morning preparing for the party.

Pulling out nearly every craft supply I could find, I folded a hat out of newsprint and gave it to E. to decorate with stickers, paper, glue, and stamps. (I don't do glitter.)


A. decided to take a break from being snotty and miserable to try her hand at markers and fingerpaints.


For a blissful 30 minutes both children were happy and content. Thank goodness markers are non-toxic! They are... right?


When she declared her hat a masterpiece - actually, her exact words were "Mom, I'm too tired to do this anymore" - E. proudly placed it on her head along with some 2010 glasses I so brilliantly crafted.

To make the glasses, I simply printed out 2010 in large, bold print and cut out the numbers. Then I taped them together and tied a pipe cleaner cut in half to the 0's. Took me all of 3 minutes, but E. was thrilled.

As you may have noticed, I'm playing around with the layout and design of this blog. It's a work in progress (see earlier mention of time-hogging, ear-infected baby), so please be patient as I work out the kinks. In the meantime, all of us Little Page Turners wish you a very...

Happy Halloween!

I hope yours was full of sweet treats and no tricks! My little fairies had a wonderful time!

Autumn! Failing Leaves

My craft for the day was a dismal failure. I'm hoping you find that refreshing from this world of amazingly creative, often seemingly perfect mommy bloggers. I'm not even close to perfect and my brilliantly conceived craft fell apart, literally. But I'm getting ahead of myself... first the book!

The Book - Autumn Walk by Ann Burg

The language in this little board book is fantastic! Just listen to this:

"A whiff of apples and cinnamon toast,
air that is corduroy cold.
The street is ablaze in crimson and brown,
and the sun shines pumpkin-gold."

How wonderful is that?!? The story is in first person and describes, well, an "autumn walk" through the outdoors. Burg is a former English teacher and it shows through language as crisp as autumn leaves. She describes the wonders of nature and the change of seasons in rich, descriptive words rare for books written for toddlers. I'm thrilled to find a board book that is an actual joy to read!

I'm less thrilled with the illustrations. They're not bad, but I wish Harper Collins had matched Burg with a more sophisticated artist. The images are very cartoony with a dog-boy as the main character. The colors are bright and engaging for babies, but I would have loved to have seen something more in the line of My Many Colored Days.

The Craft - Pressed Leaves


Yes, I successfully pressed a bunch of leaves. So creative, I know. What I wanted to do was press, seal, and hang the leaves in a window as sun-catchers, but I didn't have contact paper. So I tried ironing wax paper together. It didn't work. Still, it's not a total loss. I'm pressing the leaves in my Webster's Unabridged Dictionary. In two weeks they'll be able to tell me the definition of a slew of P words and will be ready for a very cool Thanksgiving project. Check back!

In the meantime, here are a few other leaf-themed crafts I found...

• Decorate a glass door with Homespun Light
• Create a leaf butterfly with No Time for Flashcards
• Salt dough leaf prints from That Artist Woman
  

Autumn! Why they call it "Fall"...

Our week devoted to autumn continues! I've noticed that so many of you have toddlers at home, so today I'm focusing on a book and activity that's great for the 2 crowd...

The Book - Time to Sleep by Denise Fleming

There's a chill in the air, the leaves are changing colors, and the days are growing shorter. Each animal in the forest notices that winter is on its way and it's time to go to sleep. But before they can sleep, each animal wants to pass on the news to their friends. Bear tells Snail, Snail tells Skunk, Skunk tells Turtle... on and on until finally the news comes back to Bear, waking him up!

This book is great for toddlers. Not only does it contain several different animals and introduce the changing of seasons, but it tells the story in a predictable rhythm. The illustrations are colored, cotton rag fiber, creating a visually interesting and stylized scene. Fleming uses fiery reds, oranges, and yellows with large, angular shapes composing the animals. Such a nice change from the parade of cartoony illustrations we're usually faced with.

The Craft - Coffee Filter Leaves

The trees around our house are putting on a show this week, with flashes of red and orange and yellow. I can't wait for our Japanese maple to adorn herself in red! I had planned on taking Little Page for a nature walk today to collect leaves, but it's been drizzly and miserable here. Instead, we created our own!

What you'll need:

• Coffee filters
• eye dropper
• scissors
• red & yellow food coloring

The steps

1. Fold the coffee filters in half and cut out a leaf shape. I freehanded it and tried a bunch of different shapes.
   
   
2. Crumple and pinch the filters.
   
   
3. Mix yellow and red food dye with a small amount of water in individual containers. (I keep my YoBaby yogurt dinner containers for this sort of thing.) You could probably try to throw green in there as well - if you do, let me know how it turns out.
   
4. Have your child fill the medicine dropper with the colored water and drip it onto the crumpled coffee filter. This is a great exercise for fine motor skills!
   
   
   
5. Once the filter is saturated (it won't take long), carefully unfold it and set on an old towel to dry. Warning for those of you who moonlight as hand models... you may want to wear gloves.
   
   
   
6. Proudly display your fall leaves! (I'm not sure I like how they look on our playroom curtains, but Little Page was thrilled. "Oh, mommy, they are so bea-U-ti-ful!!!" How could I argue with that?)
   
   
   

Autumn! Miss Suzy's Acorn Cupcakes

I know that Halloween is Saturday and I should be doing a Halloween theme this week, but to tell you the truth I'm sick of bats and spiders, and I will be thrilled when our neighbor takes down the dementor she has hanging from her front porch, terrifying my children each time we drive by. Instead, I thought I'd get a jump start on my favorite holiday (Thanksgiving!) and do some fall-themed books and activities that will take us into November.

The Book - Miss Suzy by Miriam Young

Okay, so technically this isn't a fall book, but it has oak trees, acorns, and squirrels, all of which remind me of autumn. It's another classic, having survived forty years and still going strong. My mother read it to me as a child and she still has that copy. When she refused to part with it, I ordered our own and it's now a favorite of Little Page.

Miss Suzy is a little gray squirrel who makes her home in a tall oak tree. She lives a simple and industrious life and is happy in her little house until a band of red squirrels destroy her things and chase her out. She seeks shelter in an old dollhouse nearby where she meets a group of toy soldiers. She cares for them like a mother and one day tells them about her old home in the oak. The soldiers march off to seek justice for their friend, and in the end all is restored.

It's a quiet, gentle story of friendship, justice, and harmonious living. You'll enjoy telling it as much as your child enjoys the telling. So snuggle up in the covers, crack open the story, and delight in an old classic about a little squirrel!

The Recipe - Pumpkin Acorn Cupcakes with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting


Remember those awesome pumpkin cupcakes we made a couple weeks ago? I got the directions from my eldest sister who is an amazing artist. When Kim traded in her paintbrushes to raise her four (yes, four!) children, she turned to the medium of frosting. Her cakes and cupcakes are spectacular. My other sister Beth and I usually con her into make our kids' birthday cakes as well.

Because Kim doesn't blog, I get to steal her ideas and share them with you! Beth already beat me to the punch this time (the brat!), but I thought it was too good not to put out there again. As I've warned before, Kim is an artist so her definition of "easy" is not the same as mine. Still, these look do-able, and I know how fabulously talented you all are because I've seen your own blogs! So, without further ado.... here's Kim!

This is my adaption from a recipe I found on allrecipes.com (great site btw).

Mix the following 4 ingredients in a med. sized bowl:
2 1/4 c. flour
1 Tbl. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt

Mix the following ingredients in a large bowl: (tip- I mix with wisk after each ingredient is added)
4 eggs beaten
1 can of canned pureed pumpkin
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 c. oil
3/4 c milk

Add half of the dry ingredients in your med bowl to the large bowl and mix, then add the rest and mix to only combine (don't over mix or you'll have hockey pucks).

Spoon into 24 paper lined cupcake pans 3/4 full.
Preheat oven to 375 and bake for 25 min.
Frost when completely cool.

Cinnamon Creamcheese Frosting:
1 (8oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened
1/4 c. butter, softened
4 cups confectioners sugar (add more if needed)
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon

With Electric beater mix cream cheese and butter until smooth and fluffy, add vanilla and cinnamon, and one cup of sugar at a time until desired consistancy is reached. Place frosting into a freezer quart size bag, twist air out of top of bag, snip off a small amount off of a corner and pipe onto cooled cupcakes.

Caramel Acorns:
24 Brachs caramels
handful of chocolate chips, melted in microwave
chocolate jimmies

Microwave 2 unwrapped caramels at a time for about 8 seconds. Roll into a ball and shape into an acorn shape. Set aside. When all are shaped, dip caramel top into melted chocolate chips and then immediately into a pile of chocolate jimmies. Set onto plate. Voila! Acorns.

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Pumpkins! Five Little Pumpkins

The Book - Five Little Pumpkins

If you're not familiar with this poem, let me introduce you! Since it's public domain, I'll just go ahead and write it out for you.

Five little pumpkins sitting on a gate;
The first one said, "Oh my it's getting late."
The second one said, "There are witches in the air."
The third one said, "But I don't care."
The fourth one said, "I'm ready for some fun!"
The fifth one said, "Let's run and run and run."

"Wooooooo" went the wind,
And out went the lights.
And the five little pumpkins rolled out of sight.

There are numerous books based on this poem, so you have your pick of illustrators. This means that you, too, can make your own book using the poem. Let your child illustrate the story or take pictures to make it come to life. Littlest Page has a cold this week, so I wasn't quite so ambitious.

The Craft - Pumpkin Faces

For a simple craft, pick up some miniature pumpkins and make them come to life! We used what we had on hand: googly eyes, colorful puffs, and sharpies. I provided the hot glue and Little Page provided the inspiration!

For more 5 pumpkin fun, check out this little finger play... perfect for the littlest ones. To hear my adorable little girl reading the poem, check it out below:

Pumpkins! Pumpkin Soup (and cupcakes)

In case you were wondering, we're not big into Halloween here. I'm not opposed to the day, it's just as a Christian I find it hard to want to throw myself into a holiday that celebrates all things scary. There are Halloween books galore, but most are either too creepy for my taste or too stupid. That's why I'm focusing on pumpkins this week... and very cute pumpkin-themed books.

The Book - Pumpkin Soup by Helen Cooper

I chose this book, not simply because it has charming illustrations and fits our theme, but because it teaches children that true friends are tolerant of each other. Preschoolers are hardly known for placing friendship above personal desires, but it's an important lesson even adults need to be reminded of time and again.

Cat, Squirrel, and Duck live harmoniously together in their pumpkin-shaped home. Their lives have a certain rhythm and each have their own role in making their favorite pumpkin soup. One day Duck wants to stir instead of add the salt. When a fight breaks out among the three friends, Duck runs away and the others decide to make the soup without his help. Of course, it doesn't taste the same and when Duck returns they make up and let him stir. He splashes soup everywhere, but the others don't mind. They realize that the friendship is more important.

The Menu - Pumpkin Soup and Pumpkin Cupcakes


Let's do dessert first! My big sister made these cupcakes for her kids last week and she swore they were "easy." She happens to be an artist and excels in the medium of frosting, so I knew our definitions of the word "easy" are very different. But I can honestly say that if I can make these, anyone can.

What you'll need:

• cake mix
• orange frosting (please do yourself a favor and make it from scratch)
• orange sugar sprinkles
  
• rainbow twizzlers

Make your cupcakes, allow to cool and frost.


Pour the orange sugar into a small bowl. I used a large measuring cup, which worked really well. Dip the cupcakes into the sugar to completely cover the frosting.


To add a stem, snip a green twizzler into pieces and push into the top of the cupcake. You can trim "strings" of the twizzler and roll out with your fingers to be vines. Flatten a twizzler with a rolling pin and trim to make leaves.


For the final touch create indentations into the cupcake. Take the back of a knife and press lightly into the frosting, starting at the top and rocking towards the bottom. Now they're ready to enjoy! Who wouldn't want a piece of this scrumptious pumpkin patch?


Speaking of scrumptious... you have to try pumpkin soup. It's easy and so delicious.

Ingredients:

• 1 baking pumpkin
• 1 apple
• 1 onion
• chicken stock
• 1/2 cup half & half
• 2 t curry
• 1 t cinnamon
• salt and pepper to taste
  

The Steps:

1. To bake the pumpkin, cut it in half and scoop out the seeds. Place in a baking dish and cover with tin foil. Bake at 350 for 1 hour or until flesh is soft. Set aside.
   
2. Core the apple, place in a microwaveable bowl, and cover with seran wrap. Microwave for three minutes. Set aside.
   
3. Dice the onion and cook with a little butter in a pan until translucent and soft. Set aside.
4. Scoop out the flesh of the pumpkin and apple and put into a blender. Add whatever apple juice may be in the bowl. Add the cooked onion. Turn the blender on and slowly add chicken stock until it becomes a smooth but thick consistency.
5. Pour the pumpkin puree into a pot and warm over medium heat. Add the half & half, stir. Add chicken stock until the soup reaches desired consistency.
   
6. Add seasonings to taste.
   
7. Serve with a dollop of sour cream.

The soup is so fabulous on a cool autumn evening! The measurements are only suggestions, as it's going to depend on how large a pumpkin you used. I know it's a burden, but you'll just have to taste-test the soup often. BTW - if you don't have a pumpkin available, you can also use butternut squash. Enjoy!

Pumpkins! Ugly (and Cute!) Pumpkins

You knew it was coming. Even if you didn't read Friday's post, you had to know I'd follow up my apple week with one on pumpkins. It's October, so how could I not? Little Page's pre-K is getting their pumpkins in this week, so I'll have plenty to pick from for our upcoming crafts. First things first, however...

The Book - The Ugly Pumpkin by Dave Horowitz

Think The Ugly Duckling, pumpkin edition. A pumpkin wanders around being rejected by Halloween-themed creatures until he discovers he's not a pumpkin at all. The pictures are bright and cheerful (making some of the scarier creatures not so much) and the rhymes are well-written. To be honest, however, it was a single line that sold me on this book: "Oh my gosh! I'm a squash!" I laughed out loud when I read that for the first time. Pure genius and alone worth a LPT recommendation.

The Craft - A Not-So-Ugly Pumpkin


Isn't it adorable! I'm quite the proud mama. I think this would look so cute decorating your child's nightstand or bringing a touch of fall to their play table. Maybe it wants to sit quietly with the other stuffed animals on the bed. Regardless, I guarantee your little girl will love it and your little boy will probably love to toss it, jump on it, tackle it, or whatever destructive thing little boys like to do! ;)

I'm going to be totally honest with you and admit that I had planned on making 5 of these babies and matching them up with a different book. Unfortunately, I'm a sewing novice and even simple projects are time-consuming. I had the opportunity this afternoon to spend the day with my folks and sister's family on the beach. My dad has stage 4 cancer, so I figured enjoying the gorgeous fall weather with family was a better use of my time then wrestling with my sewing machine!

I was able to finish this adorable little pumpkin before the girls woke up from their naps. I've been seeing these make their way around the blogosphere, but as far as I know, they originate with Holly @ Sunshine in My Soul. She gives a detailed, picture tutorial on her site, so I'll let you go there for the details. If I may add... you'll really want to round out the corners at the top when you're sewing the pieces together, and you want to leave quite a bit of seam on the stem so it doesn't flop around. It's a great sewing project for those like me who hate patterns and prefer to dive into a project with little or no planning.

And of course, if it doesn't turn out quite right, you can always claim it's the "ugly pumpkin"!

Happy 4th!

I went to our local Barnes & Noble to find a book that explained America's birthday in terms a preschooler could understand and enjoy. Can you believe out of the dozen books on display, I didn't see one that fit the bill? Half the books were stories about parades and picnics. The other half read like history textbooks. Frustrated, I purchased one of the "parade and picnic" books and left the store.

That night I vented to my husband. Why couldn't I find a good history story? What's up with all these silly picnic stories for Independence Day? But as I thought more about it, an Erma Bombeck quote came to mind. Maybe all those silly picnic stories truly epitomize the spirit of Independence Day. Who cares if my four year old doesn't have a good grasp on the historical significance of the Declaration of Independence? Maybe it's more important that she associate the birth of our nation with good food, time with family, and fun outdoors: the stuff of a blessed childhood. As Erma once said:

You have to love a nation that celebrates its independence every July 4, not with a parade of guns, tanks, and soldiers who file by the White House in a show of strength and muscle, but with family picnics where kids throw Frisbees, the potato salad gets iffy, and the flies die from happiness. You may think you have overeaten, but it is patriotism.

- Erma Bombeck

I also ended up very pleased with the picnic story I chose. McDuff Saves the Day by Rosemary Wells is one of the "McDuff books," stories about a little white terrier and the family that loves him. I wasn't familiar with these books, but I'm so glad I found them! They are simply adorable. McDuff Saves the Day tells how McDuff leads his family to a lonely man who can share his picnic with them after theirs is carried away by ants. The author does a great job capturing the banter between a young married couple with a baby (the baby cries the whole way home - love that!) and the artist makes McDuff so cute, I want to take him home myself.


We plan on spending tomorrow with my family, letting the Little Pages play on the beach with their cousins, aunts, and uncles. I hope you have a very happy 4th of July, full of picnics, potato salad, and patriotism!

Strawberry Picking Pick

It's May, which means strawberries are ripe around here. Every year I head out to the country with Little Page in tow to pick strawberries for strawberry jelly. It's become a tradition we both enjoy. This year, I packed a picnic lunch and brought our favorite strawberry-picking book. Okay, it's our only strawberry picking book, but that doesn't mean we love it any less.


The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry and the Big Hungry Bear is a fabulous book for kids of all ages. It's full-color illustrations are adorable and the story, though short enough to hold the attention of a 2 year old, is engaging enough for older kids. One of the things I love about this book is that the reader is actually speaking to the main character, Little Mouse, who responds in each picture. You, as the reader, attempt to convince Little Mouse that his strawberry is in danger from the Big Hungry Bear. Little Mouse does his best to protect his strawberry, but in the end only you can help him save it!

Now that she's 4 - and an incredible reading machine - Little Page was able to read the book to me while we ate our sandwiches and munched on freshly picked strawberries.