Friday Fruit Explorations: Strawberries

The other day Hazel decided we should go on a fruit exploration. She pulled out her magnifying glasses so we could look more closely at some of the fruit. We started our adventure with strawberries--one of our favorites. 

First we looked at the outside of the fruit to see what we could find.

We noticed the seeds which we knew were there. Did you know strawberries are the only fruit with seeds on the outside? After she was done looking at the outside, I cut one in half so we could look at the inside.

The white lines in the interior of the strawberry bring the nutrients to each seed. Of course to learn all these little facts, we got some books from the library.

Two books focus on the growing cycle of strawberries and the third shares a Cherokee legend on the first strawberries. I was hoping to find some information on the nutrition of strawberries, but have not found books with it. However I did find it on-line. A serving size of one cup has 49 calories. That cup of strawberries contains 12 grams of carbohydrates of which 7 gram are sugar and 3 are dietary fiber. There is also 1 gram of protein and gives you 149% of your vitamin C for the day. They also have a small amount of iron and calcium. The other minerals that strawberries provide are potassium and manganese. Strawberries also contain omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids. (Source) 

Strawberries have also been rated the 27th best among U.S. food, however due to the large serving size needed for the top foods, strawberries move to the 3rd position when considering of which foods you would eat the 3.5 ounces. Strawberries are fragile fruits that start to lose their nutrition after only two days and ideally they will be in 90-95% humidity (most refrigerators have less humidity). An interesting discovery is that when sugar is eaten with strawberries, the blood sugar spike caused by the sugar is reduced by the strawberries. Strawberries also have anti-inflammatory affects. (Source)

To go with our strawberry exploration, I wanted to do some crafts. Hazel and I have had a busy week, so she was not able to make any of them with me yet, but I thought I would share a few. The first two involve handprints and I found them on Pinterest. The first one is inspired by Activity Village: Handprint Strawberry. Theirs was done with paint, but I had some foam handprints and just used those to share it with you. The second  is from French Toasty: Strawberry Handprint Kid Craft. I did not add the seeds, but if I do it with Hazel we will. The third are needle felted strawberries. I will provide a tutorial below to make them. And finally are Strawberry Treat Box Printable from Oh Happy Day! I wanted Hazel to cut one out to make, but she was too tired after her busy day--she got her first filling/crown today at the dentist and then came home to a playdate. 

Now for our needle felting tutorial. The supplies you need are some red roving, green felt and the needle felting needle and mat. Roll or wrap the roving to be a basic strawberry shape and then needle it to firm it up. To cut the leaves, cut a small square of felt and fold it along the diagonal two to three times. Then cut a triangle from the sides. Open it up and trim how you want it. Then needle felt it to the top of your strawberry.

These are quick and easy to make.

For more ideas on strawberries (mostly recipes):

• Native American Strawberry Corn Bread
• Strawberry Shortcake at Strawberry Festival
• Strawberry Banana Muffins
• Strawberry Muffins
• Strawberry Jam
• Strawberry Cake
• Homemade Strawberry Ice Cream
• My Fruit Pinterest Board (with crafts of different fruits)

Join us next week for a different fruit exploration!!

Dreaming of Hawaii -- Luka's Quilt

With snowflakes flying again today and the arctic cold coming back, it is time to dream of Hawaii again. Last week I posted our first Dreaming of Hawaii and introduced pu'ili. Today I am going to share another wonderful book and look at Hawaiian quilts.

Book Review & Craft: The Woollyhoodwinks vs. the Dark Patch

Disclosure: I was sent this book digitally to review free of charge from Immedium. All opinions in this post are my own. I did not receive any other compensation for this review. I am including links to each item for your convenience but do not receive anything if you purchase them.

Today I get to share with you another fun book from Immedium. The book inspired me to be crafty and as a result Hazel and I did some hand sewing together. The book is The WoollyHoodwinks vs.The Dark Patch by Jeff Root, Scott Runcorn, Phil Dumesnil and Asa Sanchez. The woolylhoodwinks are five homemade characters that live in the North Black Forest in a pretty carefree way. Then one morning they awaken to a strange noise in their forest and they go off to investigate it. They find a strange black patch on the ground and wonder what it is. As they investigate the patch grows and some of the woollyhoodwinks and their dear forest get stitched into the black patch until the one who is afraid of the dark finally saves the day. 

The story uses such imagination, and the pictures are fun. Hazel and I really enjoyed reading it. The characters are similar to common animals, but not quite and are just basic enough for a child to love. 

To go with the book, we decided to make our own woollyhoodwinks or should I say feltyhoodwinks since we did not use wool. We used the pattern for finger puppets in Kata Golda's Hand-Stitched Felt. They are relatively simple. The body shape is a rectangle that is stitched in the back and then on top. You then add ears. The original pattern comes with mouse ears (outer and inner). 

We glued Hazel's inner ears to the outer ears so she would not have to sew as much. Then I quickly stitched them into one side of the rectangle. We also drew the faces on for simplicity. Sorry the lighting was not great to get the face details on hers. We left the tails off since the woollyhoodwinks do not have tails.

For mine I tried to make it a bit more like the woollyhoodwinks by using a different color for the body from the head. I also tried to make the longer ears and put them to the sides and I added feet. Since these are finger puppets, I did not make them so they could be stuffed. Mine required a bit more sewing to make the different colors in the body, but I'm happy with how it came out. Hazel wants to make the rest of the woollyhoodwinks too. We will see if we get to it.

So we loved The Woollyhoodwinks vs. The Dark Patch and I loved that it inspired us to sew and craft. The story itself requires some imagination and I was asking Hazel if different parts were really possible in real life. A perfect book to grow a child's imagination and inspire more! The hardcover book is available at the Immedium website for $15.95. It is also available at Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

Sharing Saturday 14-8

Before I get into our Sharing Saturday features and party, I want to share with you about an exciting giveaway over at Lee & Low Books. They are giving away a signed copy of Dear Mrs. Parks: A Dialogue with Today's Youth in honor of Black History Month. For more information and to enter visit here. (Lee and Low have sent me books as prizes and to review, so I wanted to help get the word out about this amazing giveaway.)

Dreaming of Hawaii with Pu'ili, Hawaiian Rhythm Sticks, Music and Stories

Now this winter has been harsh for most of North America. The past two weeks it seems it snows five to six inches every few days here. I am so over winter and cannot wait for spring!! My friend, Daria, invited me to make pu'ili with Hazel and tell you about her fabulous giveaways!! Daria is giving away a ukulele and a pair of pu'ili [POO' ee lee] which are Hawaiian rhythm sticks. Now she thought of us because she knows about Hazel's ukulele and knows how much Hazel loves to play it as well as any instrument really. We have even made our own ukulele. I should also add that Hawaii is my dream vacation. Steve has already been there, but it is the place I really want to go. One day I hope...