• Cranberries Week •

Good Monday afternoon, my friends! I hope your week's off to a good start. :)

So, according to my "seasonal themes" outline, this is cranberry week! And "cranberries" tie in nicely with the holiday - they were, after all, served at the very first Thanksgiving! But it will also be a very busy week, as we prepare for dinner on Thursday, so I'm not expecting we'll do all of these things. Hopefully, though, we'll fit in a few of them (#s 1, 2 and 10 seem quite likely).

Here are a few ways to include cranberries in this week's learning and living ...

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1. As we make up our weekly marketing list we'll be sure to list cranberries. Now, this list is different from the one I write in my shopping notebook. This list is just for EB and me. When Earlybird and I have our marketing days, we work on a grocery list together. And as we do, we focus on spelling, printing, reading and pronunciation. We'll go to the market and look for cranberries ... we might even practice asking the produce manager for assistance. (A great way for EB to practice social skills.)

2. We'll buy extra bags to freeze because cranberries are only available at this time of year. (Great discussion prompts: What are seasonal foods? What are local foods?)

3. (And with some of those frozen cranberries, we'll make cranberry soap later this winter!)

4. At home, we'll wash our berries and set a few aside to observe. We'll sketch a cranberry for our nature journal - one whole, and one cut in half so we can see the very interesting insides. (Another discussion prompt: How does a cranberry grow? Here's a nice resource.)

5. We'll freeze a tray full of ice cubes with cranberries inside - they'll look lovely in our Thanksiving beverages, including ... A "Pilgrim Punch" just for the kids! We'll mix cranberry juice with ginger ale, scoops of lime sherbet and "berried" ice cubes. (I'll add a splash of apple juice if it's too tart.) It will look lovely in my grandmother's cranberry glass punch bowl.

6. We'll read some good books - like Cranberries: Fruit of the Bogs and Clarence the Cranberry Who Couldn't Bounce. We'll also watch a wonderful episode of Reading Rainbow called "Giving Thanks" in which Lavar visits a Massachusetts cranberry farm.

(Note: That vimeo site is wonderful for watching all those old Reading Rainbow episodes, which sadly are no longer shown. They're like virtual field trips ...)

7. And speaking of field trips, next year I'll plan one to a local bog. The last time we visited one - a gorgeous organic bog on Cape Cod - I was pregnant with Earlybird!

8. We'll make a string of cranberries and popcorn - and put them out on the big spruce tree outside the learning room windows. A small way to say thanks to the animals that visit our yard. They bring us so much entertainment and education! (The stringing is also excellent fine motor practice!)

9. We'll bake wonderful cranberry breads to pass out to community friends on Wednesday. (Our children's librarian, the post office ladies, the farmstand family, and the supermarket-bank ladies who are always so nice to EB when I'm checking out.)

10. On Wednesday afternoon, I'll make my special homemade cranberry relish for Thanksgiving dinner. It's made with berries, orange and spices and the kitchen will smell so good! And while it cooks, we'll try a cranberry fresh, and a cranberry dried - it's National Eat a Cranberry Day, after all. :)

 11. We'll make another graph chart by taking a "cranberry sauce" poll. (The poll will go up tomorrow morning - and we'd love to hear your response!)

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So there are some of my cranberry ideas ... I'd love to hear yours if you have some to share! And please check in later for my "cranberry poll." I bet you can guess what we're asking!

Have a wonderful day, everyone ... blessings to you and your loved ones!

:)

Comments

[Dawn]

Thank you, Raelene, for your very kind words! And "Welcome Back" ... I'm glad you "found" me again ... :D

Many blessings to you and your family!
~ Dawn

[Raelene]

Hi, Dawn. I have been a homeschooling mom for several years. I followed your blog a few years ago, but in the course of moves and new computers, I lost you. I've recently been talking with a young mom about homeschooling. Although I haven't been active in the online homeschool community for a few years, I remembered your blog as a rich and beautiful resource that I felt needed to be passed on.

I just want to take a moment to thank you for all the effort you have put into this blog over the years and for sharing the beautiful life you and your family have created.

My family is in the process of converting to the Roman Catholic faith, so I may be back often to check your archives. You live the faith beautifully.

Feel free to track back through my comment and reply by email.

Blessings to you and your family!

[Dawn]

Amy, I posted our cocktail in my "Turkey Day Recap." It was delicious! :D

Blessings, all ...
~ Dawn

[Lois Tschaepe]

Definitely jellied in the can! Although when it comes to muffins, it's got to be cranberry-orange with fresh cranberries.

[Amy]

Hi Dawn,
Did you decide on something with cranberries for your Thanksgiving cocktail?!

[RuskinDownunder]

Sounds great! The closest I'll get to cranberries are the dried variety in Costco, in twenty minutes from now! I also have my son help me with the shopping as a way of encouraging his social skills and learning about our community :)