ivory soap experiment (ptoe- oxygen)

Do you know what this is?????? Nope, it’s not shaving cream.



It’s a bar of Ivory soap after being cooked in the microwave for a couple of minutes! It’s a very cool experiment that you must try with your little ones! I developed a little booklet to guide this experiment. This is also a great experiment to do with the PTOE when discussing Oxygen. READ MORE......

giveaway winner

The giveaway winner of “Making Flower Children” by Sybille Adolphi is Jacque B. I sent you an email, now all I need is an address. Thanks to all who entered and the nice comments. I really wish I could give one to everyone!
Lisa

felt leaves and autumn!

We’ve been a busy bunch the last few days! I’ve been sewing felt leaves to make all kinds of Autumn goodies! READ MORE......

book giveaway- making flower children by sybille adolphi

This little fairy doll was inspired by the book, Making Flower Children,by Sybille Adolphi. My fairy doll is not in the book, but the book taught me how to put her together. It’s a lovely little book with patterns and instructions to make many little dollhouse-sized dolls that reflect flowers and insects that we see in our gardens. With the holidays right around the corner and knowing a lot of my crafty friends might be interested in this book- I’m giving one away. READ MORE

shakespeare and kids (shakespeare herbal globe)

Many, many years ago I had a dream that my sister Katrina and I owned a little terrarium shop full of hanging glass spheres full of green life. This dream will always be in my mind and it inspired me to do this little Shakespeare activity with the girls. Shakespeare was a country boy and knew.....READ MORE.

happy autumn!

Happy Autumn everyone! We are having lots and lots of rain to wash away the summer. Haven’t seen the sun for a few days now! I’ve been busy cooking, teaching, researching, and hand-sewing some felt leaves for a little autumn.......READ MORE.

little ladies WIP

There has been A LOT of hand sewing going on over here (especially by Araina)!.....READ MORE

"feel better" herbal wreath

Sunday was a rainy cold and wet kind of day; an indoor activity was needed. After being so sick last week Araina thought it would be a great idea to make a ”Feel Better Wreath.” A wreath full of herbs that “make you feel better.” We went outside.......READ MORE.

goldenrod history and medicine

Happy Autumn! Our field is ablaze with gold from the tall goldenrod (Solidago canadensis) growing everywhere. I love the golden color of this plant and it has an interesting history in the USA. After the Boston Tea Party.....READ MORE.

pokeweed painting

We have this lovely misplaced plant growing in our gardens to make a beautiful bright pink dye for wool, cotton and paper; but we have never painted with it (duh!). I did a little research and learned that Pokeweed (Phytolacca americana) is also referred to as “inkberry.” It turns out that the Declaration of Independence....READ MORE.

tea, rest and an owl

Thank you EVERYONE for the wonderful get well wishes to Rainy! Fauna and I read everyone of them to her and they really made her smile! We didn’t make it to Georgia today; Rainy was still spiking high temps last night....READ MORE.

tea, toast and popsicles

My poor babe is sick. Toast+tea+popsicles is all she wants. She just stares off in a daze.......READ MORE.

yellow wood sorrel (ptoe-oxalic acid)

Yellow wood sorrel (Oxalis stricta) is another backyard edible. The leaves, flowers and unripe fruits are edible, with a sour, tart, lemony flavor; it’s sometimes referred to as “sour grass” because of the sour taste. Wood sorrel can be added to salads, soups......READ MORE.

red clover tea (nitrogen)

One of our favorite teas from our yard is red clover tea. Not only are the blossoms tasty to munch but they make a wonderful cleansing tea. We are studying the many benefits of clover to our gardens..........READ MORE.

vintage paper dolls

My sister Katrina made these paper dolls for our sister Robin about 25 years ago. It is a set of our family from when we were kids! Katrina (12 years old at the time) was inspired by a Little House on the Prairie set that she owned and 6yo Robin.......READ MORE.

pics of us

My sister Robin came by today and brought some old pics of us as little ones. Here we are with my grandaddy (outside his house in Virginia) in 1981…I’m in the light pink short shorts, Grandaddy is holding.....READ MORE.

Shakespeare and fairy brooms

We are really enjoying the tales of Shakespeare! So far we have read The Tempest and A Midsummer Night’s Dream and are so wrapped up in their enchanted worlds. In the end of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Oberon tells Puck and the other fairies to clean the royal castle. Fauna’s idea of fairy cleaning is little brooms and mops made from........READ ME.

felt fairy house

This little felt house is not a WIP exactly, because it’s already done. However, I will be making a couple more for the Little Ladies come holiday time. I made this fairy house 5 years ago for Fauna’s wee folk. I LOVED making.......READ MORE.

Cardboard Book Making

I LOVE cardboard! It’s very hard for me to throw it into the recycle bin. This bunny book is an exact copy of a cardboard book I saw in Target for $6. I couldn’t believe the price of it! No kidding, the book was made the same way I made this one here- recycled.....READ MORE

Photo Editing

What you see is what you get when it comes to my photos. I am a realist and I have never edited a single photo that I have shared on this site….until today. I like the challenge of using the natural light to enhance my photos, not a computer generated program. I had no idea how much fun it is to play with your photos until.....READ MORE.

Free Amazing Clipart

I must share this AMAZING free clipart site from Florida’s Educational Technology Clearinghouse.....READ MORE of post.

5 Orange Potatoes

This is just a little note to make sure that my Blogspot friends know that my main site is now http://5orangepotatoes.com/blog. I have been posting short snippits of the main site here because I have noticed that a lot of people are still reading this blog first. The full posts are on the other site. The other site is organized into categories: sewing, nature study, nature activities, herbs and a fun about page. There is also a friends' follow box if you like getting updates that way. Click HERE to visit the new 5 Orange Potatoes! Thank you all for your support, comments and emails!

Praying Mantis

This fascinating creature and I had quite a conversation this evening. She had a lot of wisdom to share......READ MORE.

Classic Little Girls!

This week we were quite simply girly! The Little Ladies had a ball adding some Autumn accessories to Auntie Robin’s hair. The items stayed......READ MORE.

Singing Cicadas

Yesterday we observed our annual cicadas and got a little crafty by making our own singing cicadas. Cicadas come in many different colors....READ MORE.

WIP- owl potholder and breast cancer ribbon felty

For Work In Progress Wednesday, I thought I’d share two of my projects that fill my evening creative time right now. First is this owl hot pad holder. I know the button eyes might interfere with the pans.......READ MORE.

Plantain Insect Sting and Bite Remedy

Romeo: Your plantain leaf is excellent for that.
Benvolio: For what, I pray thee?
Romeo: For your broken (cut) shin.
-William Shakespeare

Plantain (Plantago major and Plantago lanceolata) is easy to find and easy to use (there are over 200 species). It is FANTASTIC for bug bites and stings because it’s an astringent that creates a soothing and cooling effect. Plantain.......READ MORE.