Storybook Quilts Rocks!

Your caption?

Nancy — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 13:38:25 +0000

We’re down to just a week for the caption contest! What are those two (male) finches up to? Did they sneak out for a drink and get found out? Is there a finch babe up there in a bikini? Did a giant bag of thistle seed suddenly appear? Are they asking for a little lemon in their water? Are they watching to see if the outdoor thermometer will hit 100 degrees?

To enter, just leave your caption in a comment. We can’t wait to read them!

Hot Summer Days Contest

Nancy — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 21:21:48 +0000

Take your mind off the heat of the summer day and think up a caption for this photo! We caught these two talking outside our workshop one hot day . . . What do you think they were saying?

To enter, just type in your caption in a comment on this blog post.

The winner may choose between two prizes: a framed copy of the photo, with his/her caption, or a $50 Storybook Quilts gift certificate. Please enter by August 1, 2010.

We look forward to your entries!

Watermelon!

Nancy — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 20:04:45 +0000

In the Northeast, at least, this has been a very hot summer so far. What could be more appealing than a nice, cold slice of watermelon? And more nutritious? AND low in calories?

No wonder July is National Watermelon Month!

What do you know about this delicious treat?

Where they came from
Watermelons are thought to have come from the Kalahari Desert in Africa (down near the southern tip; mostly in Botswana).

This is an old favorite!
Watermelon seeds were found in the tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamen. The Chinese were cultivating watermelons as early as the 9th century AD. The Moors, from northern Africa, introduced them to Europe (Spain) in the 13th century. The word “watermelon” was in English dictionaries as early as 1615.

When did watermelons arrive in the US?
Ah, there’s a debate about that. Some say the Spaniards brought them in the 1500s; others say watermelons arrived in the early 1600s, in New England.

Hey! What happened to the seeds?!
Good question! The full explanation is pretty technical, but the advantages include watermelons that are sweeter and have firmer flesh than the seeded varieties. We have Warren Barham to thank for this treat; he began working on a seedless variety in 1949.

Our big, long-loved seeded watermelons are becoming increasingly difficult to find: about 85% of watermelons grown now in the US are seedless. For a number of reasons, they are more profitable.

Watermelon seeds themselves still have a following. Spitting contests continue. And, roasted, they are a favorite snack in the Middle East. In the US, watermelon seed oil is used in baby formulations, creams, lotions, soaps, and eye creams.

How much watermelon do Americans eat?
Per capita fresh watermelon consumption in 2008 was 15.4 pounds. A round, seedless watermelon weights between 10 and 15 pounds – so, it’s really just a big one of those. Not enough, I’d say!

How are watermelons good for your health?
It’s amazing how healthy watermelons are. And how low in calories. A two- cup serving of diced watermelon (10 oz) only has about 80 calories, according to the National Watermelon Promotion Board. Watermelon is full of nutrition. Those same two cups have 20% of daily requirements for Vitamin A, 25% for Vitamin C and 7% for potassium. No fat, of course, but 8% of daily fiber requirements and even some calcium and iron!

Watermelon ranks first among fresh fruits and vegetables (beating out tomatoes) in lycopene content, a cancer fighting antioxidant.

Luna the Turtle’s watermelon
It’s no surprise that watermelon is full of water – 92% water – which is why Aunt Jen took some to the beach with Adia. And it was one thing Adia was very happy to see after Luna and Stitch rescued her from the pirates. Eating watermelon is a great way to stay hydrated on a hot day!

Oooh, Say Can You See?

Nancy — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 12:47:59 +0000

HAPPY 4th OF JULY! Does the Star Spangled Banner give you a patriotic feeling? What do you know about it? Below are a few fun facts.
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1. The song wasn’t around on the first Independence Day, in 1776. In fact, it wasn’t until the second war with Britain, decades later, that it was written.

2. The words of the song were written near the end of the War of 1812 — in September 1814, to be exact, by Frances Scott Key. The British had just burned Washington, DC, and were headed to Baltimore to bombard Ft. McHenry. Key was on a British ship seeking the release of another American and was kept on the fleet to prevent him from warning about the British plans.

3. Key wrote a poem, “Defense of Ft. McHenry,” in honor of the huge American flag that hung after the successful American defense of Ft. McHenry. The poem later was set to the music of a popular tune at the time, “The Anacreontic Song.” Ironically, that song had been written by a Brit, probably John Stafford Smith.

4. The stirring song was unofficially adopted as the national anthem and played at 4th of July celebrations throughout the 1800s. In 1889, it was officially adopted by the Navy as the song to be played when the flag is raised. (Click on the link below to hear the Navy Band play it.)

In 1897, it was played at the opening day baseball game in Philadelphia. In 1916, President Wilson ordered it played at military and other patriotic occassions. The song became even more popular when it was sung at the 1918 World Series of Baseball, in honor of the armed forces fighting in World War I.

5. On March 3, 1931, Congress proclaimed the Star Spangled Banner as the national anthem.

6. In our Storybook Quilt, Emily and Maurice the Cat hear the band playing the Star Spangled Banneras their runaway balloon soars above the park.

7. The song is very difficult to sing! In 2009, the National Museum of American History at the Smithsonian held a national singing contest that anyone could enter. See the results here.

Star Spangled Banner by the Navy Band

Butterflies, Magic Boots and the Contest

Nancy — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 05:00:08 +0000

Have you been checking out the daily contest clues on our Facebook Page? If so, you know that our fascination with butterflies has shown up as characters in our stories and fabrics in our matching quilts.

If you’ve lived in an area with Monarch butterflies, perhaps you know how fascinating they are. Each year, they migrate thousands of miles — to warmth for the winter and back again in the spring. What makes this even more amazing is that it takes several generations for these migrations to be completed. And the female butterfly must find milkweed plant as a place to lay her eggs — the caterpillar is a fussy eater and that is all it will eat!

This is a hauntingly beautiful video of the Monarch.

What kind is the talking butterfly in Magic Boots and Wild Horses? (Opps. We just gave away the answer to #8!) Well, you’ll have to make up your own mind about that. We haven’t named the butterfly yet — any suggestions?.

What keeps you in your grandchild’s thoughts?

Nancy — Sun, 27 Jun 2010 16:47:32 +0000

In today’s world, grandparents and grandchildren all too often live quite a distance from one another. Is this true of you? How can that distance be overcome?

If you’re reading this, chances are you’re keeping in contact using e-mail and possibly also Facebook. Maybe you have a webcam and mic so that you can see and hear one another “live”! Maybe you send things back and forth in the mail – cards or gifts or photos.

Is there something very special that you share that keeps you in your grandchild’s thoughts? Is it something that your grandchild will still have when he or she is a grandparent?

A Storybook Quilt can be the tie — and last for a lifetime. The quilt can be customized with a short message, names and dates.

The book can include a longer message from you and a photo – and even be specially rewritten to include family details in the story itself.

To make this even more special, your grandchild can help make the choices, so that it’s not just a surprise, it’s a special project and a lifelong connection.

Until July 4th, we are offering a chance to win a discount on any of our Storybook Quilt themes. Enter to create a wonderful summer memory for you and your grandchild!

Celebrate the 4th of July with us!

Nancy — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 17:43:58 +0000

Storybook Quilts is celebrating the 4th of July with a contest. Did you know that the Declaration of Independence had 56 signators? In honor of those brave and visionary men, we are offering a prize of 56% off any of our Keepsake Storybook Quilts. To enter to win, answer 10 simple questions about our Storybook Quilts. Clues are posted each day on our Facebook Page.

Up, Up and Away!

Nancy — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 22:34:51 +0000

Summer. Hot air balloons. Seeing colorful balloons floating through the air on a sunny summer day is relaxing and exciting at the same time!

Did you know that hot air balloons have been around just about as long as the United States? The first unmanned flight was 227 years ago today — June 4, 1983 — in France. The first manned flight was later that year in Paris – Benjamin Franklin was there to see that. In the US, George Washington watched the first flight here in 1793.

If you want to watch the beauty of hot air balloons yourself, visit one of the many hot air balloon festivals that take place around the world every year. To find out when there is one near you, check out this excellent list. There is one near us in just two weeks – we’ll be there!

The romance of hot air balloons has crept into our own stories here at Storybook Quilts. It’s a ride in a runaway hot air balloon that creates such an adventure for Emily in our Maurice the Cat Storybook Quilt. In our red sportscar Storybook Quilt, a hot air balloon helps Dad warn David about the dangers on his exciting drive to the game with the star player.

Of course, you don’t have to be a character in one of our Storybook Quilts to take a hot air balloon ride. HotAirBallooning.com lists dozens of companies in the US that offer rides.

Have already ridden a hot air balloon? Tell us about it!

Ice Cream, Anyone?

Nancy — Tue, 25 May 2010 21:04:27 +0000

This weekend is Memorial Day, the unofficial start of summer. And what food is more summer than ice cream? But where did it come from?

The answer to that would take a lot longer to explain that it would take to make ice cream from scratch – including milking the cow and skimming off the cream! Basically, nobody’s certain. The ancients had their versions – Alexander the Great, the Romans, and the Chinese; the Italians probably had gelato fairly early on. In the 1600s, the European nobility liked iced cream so much that the recipe was a secret carefully guarded by kings! By George Washington’s day, though, people were eating it in the US, including George himself, who supposedly identified it as his favorite food. (Smart man!)

According to whatscookingamerica.net, Philadelphia was the ice cream capital of the US by the early 1800s. Large quantities of ice cream were produced there and its public ice cream “houses” were famous. A much-loved vanilla-and-egg flavor was named “Philadelphia.”

The “father of ice cream” is Augustus Jackson, an African-American cook/chef at the White House, who is credited with developing the modern method of making ice cream in around 1832. He used ice mixed with salt to lower and control the temperature of his special mix of ingredients. He later moved to Philadelphia where he distributed his popular flavors in tin cans to Philadelphia’s many ice cream parlors.

It took a woman named Nancy (Johnson), though, to invent the first hand-cranked ice cream maker. Her basic design, still used today, made it possible for anyone to make ice cream at home. (I remember my father doing that – hand cranking as we watched the fireflies on the 4th of July. Was that good ice cream!)

A continuing argument is who made the first ice cream cone. Rumor has it that the first ice cream cone was created at the St. Louis Exposition of 1904 when an ice cream vendor ran out of bowls and a pastry maker then put the ice cream in crisp wafers. This may have been the first cone in the US (or not), but it wasn’t the first in the world.

We found almost as many facts about ice cream as there are ice cream lovers, so we’ll stop here (and go get some ice cream!).

What’s your favorite ice cream? Or your favorite ice cream concoction?

Ice cream features in our Storybook Quilt about Emily and Maurice the Cat. Emily shares the end of her cone with Maurice just before they go off on a very unexpected balloon adventure! Of course, the quilt includes an ice cream cone fabric – our stories are written around the fabrics in the quilt.

A PS: We do know that Memorial Day has a very serious and important side to it. Children do need learn about it and we hope that parents make a point of that.

How Did You Learn to Bike?

Nancy — Wed, 19 May 2010 15:12:43 +0000

Do you remember your first bike? Was it a trike or a bike with training wheels? What color was it? Who taught you to ride on just two wheels? Did you teach your own children the same way? Where did you ride? Do you still ride?

Learning to ride a bike has to be one of the most thrilling experiences of childhood – well, after the falls are over. I remember my father holding the back of the seat to steady my blue two-wheeler as I wobbled down a dirt driveway. (I trusted him to keep me from falling – perhaps that trust is the serious lesson from learning to ride.) Then, suddenly, I could DO IT! And a whole new world opened up.

This is one experience that hasn’t changed much. Now we make sure our children are wearing helmets (a very good idea), but biking is pretty much the same. It still takes balance and two in-line wheels.

These websites include some great tips on teaching a child — or an adult! — to ride.
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/teachride.html
http://www.ibike.org/education/teaching-kids.htm#Mistakes
http://www.biketas.org.au/bikeed.php

Family biking can be a great way to share fun time together and to stay fit. Get really good at it and compete in mountain biking competitions, like my nephew and his family!

Tell us your experiences. It’s American Bike Month!