The Connection Warren-Watchung Edition April/May 2018

Dining Out PAGE 58 www.theconnectionsnj.com % % " & % $ ! % & * ! ('' ,'+#))(#''(* % ! & % & ! # " " " ! & " " # # " We call it Vine Dining! " $ # MAKE IT INTERACTIVE By: Carolyn Hanson Carolyn Hanson is a local knitting and crochet designer, teacher and fiber artist. She can be contacted at cchanson3@gmail.com . I love giving books as gifts, especially for young children. Children cannot have too many books. The visual, the audio and a warm lap, it’s perfect and makes lasting connections. You never know what will spark their interest. When choosing children’s books, it’s always easy to go with what you know, think back to your children’s’ favorites, or your own, or look for Caldecott Award Winners for good choices. My favorite childhood book was The Color Kittens by Margaret Wise Brown. I remember my paternal grandmother reading the book to us in broken English. I loved that book. Hmm. It may have been my spark for creating and working with color. Recently, I came across the book Itty Bitty Toys by Susan B. Anderson. It’s a treasure trove of soft toys for children from felted balls and boxes, to clas- sic stuffed animals and reversibles. Flipping through the book I instantly started thinking that these toys would pair so well with some of my favorite children’s stories. For expectant or new moms and dads, I like to give Are You My Mother? By P.D. Eastman for Mother’s Day, and Hop on Pop by Dr. Seuss for Father’s Day. Are You My Mother? Is about a new hatchling in search of his mother. The knitted toy is a small nest with an egg that turns inside out to become a baby bird. It is just adorable. For Hop on Pop, the book also has 2 koala bears, one large and one small, which can be made to look like the father and child characters in the book. The koalas have long arms that connect with Velcro for wrapping around one another in an embrace. The book also includes a giraffe, a monkey, sleepy dogs with blankets (next on my list), princess and the pea, and other reversible toys like an elephant and lion, and a frog and turtle. I love the idea of now adding a toy to go along with the books. Additional ideas for some of my favorite books are: • The Great Big Car and Truck Book by Richard Scarry – Include a few small cars and trucks • The Mitten by Jan Brett – Make a large red mitten from an old red sweater or knit the Giant Christmas Mitten by Janet Mysse, free on Ravelry • Chica Chica Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr. – Include plastic letters and then dance them into a bowl to reenact the story. • Green Eggs and Ham by Dr Seuss – An easy crochet project of a few green sunny-side-up eggs and green ham. • Angelina Ballerina by Katharine Holabird – See knitted pattern of Mouse Ballerina by ViolaSueknits or crochet Ballerina Mouse by Julie Erskine both on Ravelry.com Enjoy. Promote your Local Business In Print Connectionsnj@gmail.com www.theconnectionsnj.com Print + Digital + Social Media = Your Success! Reach over 95,000 Residences by Direct Mail 908-903-1799 THE CONNECTION C Bernardsville,BaskingRidge,Bedminster,Mendham, m l Bas n , m FarHills, Peapack/Gladstone, Chester,Morristown e a H P ac Gl t e e r Connectwithus forgreatLOCALdeals! Go t o www.theconnectionsnj.com APRIL/MAY 2018 Bernards-Ridge Edition Be ar Ri g E i n i VOLUME LXIV R B F APRIL/MAY 2018 THE CONNECTION Bridgewater-Somerville Edition t r-So e vi e E it R B F Connectw ithus forgreatLOCALdeals! Go t o www.theconnectionsnj.com Bridgewater,Branchburg,Hillsborough, Martinsville,Raritan, Somerville B aer B b i i sv ia vi VOLUMEXXXIX THE CONNECTION Warren,Watchung,Martinsville, Stirling,Millington,Gillette, GreenBrook,BaskingRidge,BerkeleyHeights,New Providence i rn t s e i lli g G r e H , e o C onnectwithus forgreatLOCALdeals! Go t o www.theconnectionsnj.com APRIL/MAY 2018 Warren-Watchung Edition t r t u d VOLUME LXIX R B F & Online!