Posts Tagged ‘frog_theme’

Enjoy Frogs! April is National Frog Month

Tuesday, April 6th, 2010

Like frogs? We do! Although kissing a frog is a bit more than anyone here is willing to do, even for a handsome prince.

Have you ever raised a tadpole or a polliwog? We have! We found a great website about how to raise tadpoles. Of course, you have to find them first. This is JUST the right time of year. Find a local pond and you likely will find tadpoles. On the other hand, this may be something that’s better to read about or do at school.

What else do you know about frogs? Here are some fun facts:

1. Frogs drink water right through their skins! This isn’t surprising since they spend so much time in the water. But they also can breathe through their skins, which is amazing.

2. Some frogs shout so loudly that can be heard up to a mile away. But they make all that sound with their mouths closed – except when they are scared and then they open wide. You can listen to some frog calls here.

3. Frogs are the best jumpers it the world and can jump up to 20 times their own length. That would be like a human jumping the length of two and a half big yellow school buses!

4. In Japan, frogs are considered good luck.

In any country, our frog Storybook Quilt could be very good luck! Create the winning story about our froggy friend in the Tell a Story Contest — or use one of the other themes. You could win a Storybook Quilt or even a cash prize. What could be better than that?

Hurry, though. The contest ends in just two weeks.

Frog Fairy Tales

Wednesday, March 24th, 2010

Frogs are everywhere. Every country has frogs — and frog fairy tales. Below is a lively and imaginative telling of the Frog Prince fairy tale that children will enjoy.

Our frog, Winnie, has his own fairy tale, but he gets tired of living in the same story all the time. Winnie the Frog would like to try out a new story — a new fairy tale that you make up in the Tell a Story Contest!

Today is Tell a Fairy Tale Day!

Friday, February 26th, 2010

“If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales.” Albert Einstein supposedly said that. He evidently was read a LOT of fairy tales!

Just what is a “fairy tale”?
A fairy tale is a fictional story that usually centers on magical tests or quests and often involves spectacular imaginary beings (not just fairies, but also dragons, trolls, women with very long hair, mice that turn into horses, wolves that can blow down houses, and so on). Originally, fairy tales were passed on orally at a time when only a few people knew how to write. Many of the traditional ones we still tell are literally centuries — perhaps millennia — old.

Are fairy tales just stories or is there something else behind them?

Fairy tales are one way that cultures endure. They teach children about what the culture values and about acceptable behavior. Take Cinderella, for example. From this, children learn that people who are cruel lose in the end and that honest, humble people reap the greatest rewards. In Snow White, the seven dwarves (can you remember their names?!) all worked together cheerfully; each had his own thing to contribute to society. The Three Little Pigs also has a clear message: work hard and build a strong foundation or you will be in danger from evil creatures.

Do cultures share fairy tales?
Interestingly, the same fairy tale may appear in different cultures, but with slightly different twists. “Dr Jamie Tehrani, a cultural anthropologist at Durham University, studied 35 versions of Little Red Riding Hood from around the world. Whilst the European version tells the story of a little girl who is tricked by a wolf masquerading as her grandmother, in the Chinese version a tiger replaces the wolf. In Iran, where it would be considered odd for a young girl to roam alone, the story features a little boy,” according an English newspaper. Amazingly, it appears that the common ancestor of all these fairy tales is 2600 years old!

Are all fairy tales “old”?
No, new fairy tales appear constantly. One great resource I found in writing this post is another blog — “Once Upon a Blog . . . Fairy Tale News.” It’s a fun collection of ideas and information about fairy tales old and new.

Michael with the Winnie the Frog fairy tale Storybook Quilt


Does Storybook Quilts create fairy tales?
Oh, yes! Several of our stories involve quests. A good example is Winnie the Frog, whom Ryan accompanies on his quest to obtain fairy cakes from the fairies — supposedly to cure Winnie’s sick mother. Their adventure is a quest to find what the fairies demand as a price for their cakes and it takes them to magical places. In the end, Winnie disappears and leaves us all wondering whether he really was a frog or a little boy . . .

One wonderful thing about Storybook Quilts is that children make up their own fairy tales based on the fabrics in the quilt — just as I did when I designed them.

Wouldn’t your child or grandchild love a new fairy tale, complete with cozy quilt?

From the Customers of Storybook Quilts

Monday, November 9th, 2009

No matter what we write or say about our Storybook Quilts in this blog, on our website, on Facebook or Twitter, or anywhere else, it’s only our opinion. “Well, they would say that, wouldn’t they?!” often is any reader’s or viewer’s response to any company’s claims.

So, to make it a bit more real, below are just a few of the unsolicited comments Storybook Quilts owners have sent in. We’ll include others in subsequent posts.

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This mother’s two daughters each received an SQ for Christmas last year from their grandparents. The quilts were Amos the Bear and Maggie the Dog.

Amos_Book9-28-09

“I think the idea of the personalized quilt and book is a great one. The quilts themselves are really beautiful and obviously made meticulously by a talented artist. I absolutely love the different printed fabrics–really vivid, unique patterns and just so interesting to look at even without the story line to follow. A real feast for the eyes!

“About the stories: Chloe and Hannah loved that their names were in the stories. Their eyes lit up when they heard the stories were about them. They also really liked listening to the story and looking at the quilt so they could point out when I was reading a part that matched a quilt square. (We have both quilts hung up in the nursery so they are looking at the quilt on the wall as I read.)”

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An fully customized version of Winnie the Frog was made for a boy’s fifth birthday. In addition to the special square on the quilt, the story was revised to include family details and use his name for the main human character. It was a gift from his aunt and her family.

“I’ve been meaning to send you a note for weeks — Thank you for the beautiful quilt! It is really very lovely and Rafael enjoyed the story very much. I’ll remember to keep you in mind when friends ask about a special gift to give someone.”

Frog_Rafael3-21-09

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Most recently, we heard from Kelly, who won the contest this summer to name the turtle character in our Captured by Pirates Storybook Quilt.

“Nancy, I can’t tell you how fun it has been showing off your quilt and book to our friends and family. Everyone agrees that this is such a beautiful gift and we are so very fortunate to have this lasting representation of our summer with lunas. [The family raised luna moths, an experiment for their 4-year-old daughter.] Your book has been so fun! Our favorite part of the story is when the crabs come in to tell Adia a rescue is being planned. It might have *something* to do with the crazy whispery-voice-with-foreign-accent we’ve created just for them, but it sends the girls into giggles.

“I also love that you’ve ended the story with the question about whether it was a dream or real. This has been a fun discussion with Adia at each story’s end.”

TurtleAndBook10-25-09

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Don’t you think it’s time you ordered a Storybook Quilt for the child in your life?

Orders are being taking for Hanukkah until mid-November and for Christmas/Kwanzaa/New Year’s until early December. Order now to be sure your SQ is in the production queue.

Contact us through our website or on our Facebook Fan page or on Twitter @StorybookQuilts. We look forward to making your Storybook Quilt!

In Honor of Grandparent’s Day: Their Special Role

Friday, September 11th, 2009

Maggie the Dog Storybook Quilt

Maggie the Dog Storybook Quilt

One of the most wonderful things about today’s world is that people live longer. More children have a chance to fully enjoy their grandparents and more grandparents have a chance to enjoy and to guide their grandchildren. But no matter how determined we are to not fall behind on the latest technology, the latest vocabulary, the latest fashion or the latest animated film characters, we inevitably do. That’s not necessarily a bad thing!

Grandparents, I believe, have a special role in being living proof that one doesn’t have to always be involved in the latest latest to be valued or find satisfaction in life. Grandparents also provide a link to timeless traditions and activities that are both exciting and comforting.

It’s grandparents, often, who have the time that busy parents do not to dabble in such things with their granchildren — a little fingerpainting and papier mache creation, making (and “testing!”) a few cookies, helping fit together a puzzle, exploring the wondrous animals at the zoo, feeding the squirrels in the park, going fishing in the beaver pond, planting a garden and watching it grow, or reading stories together.

These are timeless pleasures that do much to restore one’s soul, at any age, and are the building blocks for a good set of coping skills that are invaluable throughout life.

At Storybook Quilts, the special bond between grandparents and grandchildren is one thing the spurs us on to create the quilts and write the matching stories. We imagine a grandparent cuddled with a grandchild under a quilt, reading a story that plays out in the fabrics in the quilt. The stories are adventures that keep one’s attention to the end; the quilts become companions that can help recollect that cozy, comforting feeling of being held and read to by grandma or grandpa. These are memories that always are precious; our unique quilts with matching stories help ensure that they remain strong for years to come.

We are continuously adding to our themes and now have eight available: DanZy the Rabbit, Amos the Bear, Maggie the Dog, Maurice the Cat, Dapper Dan the Snowman, Vroom Vroom the Red Sportscar, Winnie the Frog and the yet-to-be-named sea turtle. (The contest to name the turtle has just ended; the winners will be announced shortly.)

Happy Grandparent’s Day!

In Honor of Savvy Auntie’s Day: the Aunts and the Stories

Saturday, July 25th, 2009

Savvy Auntie’s Day is Sunday, July 26th. Celebrate your auntie, or celebrate being one!

My youngest nephew, in his toddler days, thought it was a huge waste of time to say the “N” at the beginning of my name, so “Aunt Nancy” became Aunt-Antsy. I’m still Aunt-Antsy, years later, sometimes and it is fun to say!

The Auntie in the [Turtle] story tells Sam tales of pirates. As for me, while I never could come close to matching my father’s storytelling art, I have encouraged the children in my life to begin to build their own skills.

My two grand-nephews now live in Japan, the youngest has been there since he was 2 years old (he’s now 9). I hadn’t thought of that when I started the “story game” last year — I started a story with a sentence, began the next, then left it hanging for him to finish. We went back and forth for a good 15 minutes, creating a rather strange but very interesting story while his mother looked on with some amazement. He did very well! It was only afterward that his mother mentioned, and I realized, just how great a challenge that must have been to someone who speaks mostly Japanese. I hope that game traveled with them back to Japan, where they teach English to toddlers on up.

Ryan and Winnie the Frog Look for the Fairies

Ryan and Winnie the Frog Look for the Fairies


The Storybook Quilt stories are bit like the story game. This is greatly aided by the fact that the events in the story are based on the fabrics in the quilt. After a few readings, the child will remember the story line — and embellish it as she looks at the squares in the quilt. I like to imagine aunties, uncles, parent, grandparents and all the rest encouraging their children to make up new stories based on the quilt fabrics. If they have, we sure would love to hear about the stories and the experience!

Hone your own skills, and those of the children in your life, and ENTER THE CONTEST TO NAME THE TURTLE.