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QUEEN CAFFEINE’S CASTLE DISPATCH Issue 5; November 6, 2006
Welcome to another issue of fun and interesting topics. As we evolve, we are finding all kinds of new things to
include now and then along with your usual newsletter things. Just keep reading and you’ll see a few in this issue. Mainly, though, this issue features Thanksgiving crafts for those that wish to get a head start on them (or at least get a head start on buying supplies). First, here is a short history of Thanksgiving.
 Origins of American Thanksgiving
Following a nineteenth century tradition, most Americans believe that the first American Thanksgiving was a feast that took place on an unremembered date, sometime in the autumn of 1621, at Plymouth Plantation, Massachusetts. In 1620, a group led by separatists from the Church of England, heading for Virginia, instead landed at modern-day Plymouth, Massachusetts. In the autumn of 1621, they celebrated a three-day Harvest festival with the native Wampanoag people, without whom they would not have survived the winter of 1620. This event was not viewed
as a thanksgiving celebration at the time; the colony would not have a Thanksgiving observance until 1623 — and that was a religious observance rather than a feast. The nineteenth century reinterpretation of the 1621 festival has since become a model for the U.S. version of Thanksgiving, but it was an established tradition before the popularization of the Pilgrim mythology.The tradition of thanking God for the year's harvest at autumn was already a well developed practice in Europe during medieval times.
In some countries a part of this practice included lighting up bonfires, dancing and eating so as to be fit for the winter to come.
KIDS, CRAFTS, ETC.From Crayola.com, there are several fall/Thanksgiving projects to choose from. The main site is at http://www.crayola.com/index.cfm and registration is free. A few of the ideas offered:
Some other ideas:
Make Your Own Holiday Cloth Napkins The holidays are fast approaching and it's that time of year to plan for the festivities. If you are the host of this year's feast, why not make your own holiday cloth napkins? They are easy to make and quite beautiful sitting next to your good china. You will need: 1
yard 36" fabric (cotton or a cotton blend is best)
(Note: makes 4 napkins)
Fabric Scissors
Coordinating Thread
Sewing Machine
Iron (if you do not have a serger)
What you do: The best size is an 18" square. Out of a yard of 36" fabric you can make 4 napkins.
1. First, cut down the fold line for 2 halves. Then fold these 2 pieces of fabric in half again and cut. Now you have 4 pieces of fabric, 18 inches each.
2. On each napkin, fold and press each edge 1/8" and then fold and press again 1/8". The selvage is
now covered.
3. Sew close to the inside folded edge with matching thread.
Note: If you have a serger, you can just go around each edge without folding and pressing.
Pinecone Turkey This is a simple craft that even little ones can do with a bit of help. Supplies are
inexpensive and easy to find, and instructions are easy. Stand him on a shelf or hang him from a string, either way he makes a cute display your youngster can be proud of!
You will need
Pinecone
3-4 each foam leaves in orange, red, yellow, green and tan
Tan "bump" chenille stem cut in half (head)
Brown "bump" chenille stem (wings)
craft or white glue
InstructionsThis step you can do ahead of time, especially if you are doing this craft with a classroom or group of children. Place all pinecones on a foil-lined baking sheet and cook
for 45 minutes at 200 degrees F. This process will kill any insects or spider mites that may have been living in them.
Lay pinecone on its side and drip some glue into the bottom layer, then insert foam leaves into the glue. Repeat this process for 2-4 layers, depending on the size of your pinecone (ours had three layers). Put some glue close to the front of the pinecone then stretch the brown bump chenille stem so that it is straight. Center it over the top of the pinecone and insert it into the glue so that "arms" are sticking out both sides. Bend the ends of the stem so that they look like wings. Insert the tan bump chenille stem in front or in the same slot as the brown stem. Bend the end of the tan stem to look like a head. You can stand this as is or if your pinecone is too wobbly, you may choose to hot glue it to a piece of cardboard for stability. You can also tie a string around the body and hang it from the ceiling.
Turkey Hands Here's a place card that's edible and fun to make.Cookies 1/2 cup margarine
or butter 1/2 cup sugar 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves 1/4 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 cup molasses 1 tablespoon lemon juice 1/2 teaspoon vanilla 1 egg yolk 2 cups all-purpose flour Small candies such as red hots, candy corn, miniature candy-coated semisweet chocolate pieces 1 recipe Icing (recipe follows)
1. In a small mixer, bowl beat margarine or butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed
for 30 seconds. 2. Add sugar, spices, and soda; beat till combined. 3. Add molasses, lemon juice, vanilla, and egg yolk; beat till combined. Beat in as much of the flour as you can with the mixer. Stir in any remaining flour with a wooden spoon. 4. Wrap dough and chill 3 hours or till firm. 5. On a lightly floured surface, roll half of the dough 1/8-inch to 1/4-inch thick. 6. Cut out cookies using a 5-inch hand-shaped cookie cutter. Or, make a cardboard pattern of a hand and cut around pattern using a sharp knife. 7. Place cookies 2 inches apart on a greased cookie sheet. 8. Bake in a 375 degree F oven for 6 to 8 minutes or till edges are lightly browned. 9. Cook on cookie sheet for 1 minute. Remove and cool completely on a wire rack. 10. For each
cookie, also cut out a triangle (2 x 3 x 3 1/2 inches) from the dough and bake as above. 11. When cookies are cooked, use icing to pipe names onto bodies of turkeys. Let dry for several hours. Turn cookies facedown. 12. With icing, attach triangles (place-card stands) to back of hand. 13. Let dry completely before standing up. Use icing to attach decorative candies as desired. Makes 10 cookie place cards. Icing * 2 tablespoon meringue powder * 1/4 cup warm water * 3 cups sifted powdered sugar * 1/4 teaspoon vanilla * 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar * Food coloring 1. In a small mixing bowl, combine meringue powder, water, powdered sugar, vanilla, and cream of tartar. 2. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed till combined, then on high speed for 7 to 10 minutes or till very stiff. Use at once or cover with plastic wrap to prevent drying. 3. Tint with food coloring as desired. When not using icing, keep it covered with clear plastic wrap to prevent it from drying out. 4. Place icing in pastry bag fitted with a round writing tip. Makes 1-1/2 cups.  Thanksgiving
Coloring Pages:
http://www.familycorner.com/dir/Family/Kids/Coloring_Pages/Holidays/Thanksgiving/
http://www.coloring.ws/thanksgiving.html
http://www.artistshelpingchildren.org/coloringprintouts.html (alphabetized listing, scroll waaay down to the T’s for Thanksgiving—they have a bunch of different topics for coloring pages if you’re looking for anything else, too)
http://www.kidprintables.com/coloring/thanksgiving/
http://www.billybear4kids.com/holidays/thanksgiving/print.htm (coloring pages and mazes)
 Thanksgiving Games:
http://familyfun.go.com/games/indoor-outdoor-games/specialfeature/thanksgiving_games_ms/
http://www.theholidayspot.com/thanksgiving/games/index.htm
http://akidsheart.com/holidays/thanks/temcard.htm
http://www.vocabulary.com/turkeydayWF.html (Thanksgiving word
search)
http://www.billybear4kids.com/holidays/thanksgiving/games.htm
A FEW NOTES: Remember, freebies are posted at Queen Caffeine’s Castle at http://excoboard.com/exco/index.php?boardid=20852
The new Thanksgiving section as been started there, also; be sure to check frequently for new postings.
SPECIAL FEATURE THIS WEEK Little Known Facts about the American Revolutionary War
What follows are a few little known facts about the American Revolutionary War era. Information has been drawn from multiple sources for this report. The main source was information compiled by Mr. Thomas Fleming, a noted historian.
The Americans of 1776 had the highest standard of living and the lowest taxes in the Western World! Farmers, lawyers and business owners in the Colonies were thriving, with some plantation owners and merchants making the equivalent of $500,000 a year. Times were good for many others too. The British wanted a slice of the cash flow and tried to tax the Colonists. They
resisted violently, convinced that their prosperity and their liberty were at stake. Virginia's Patrick Henry summed up their stance with his cry: "Give me liberty or give me death!"
There were two Boston tea parties! Everyone knows how 50 or 60 "Sons of Liberty," disguised as Mohawks, protested the 3 cents per pound British tax on tea by dumping chests of the popular drink into Boston Harbor on December 16, 1773. Fewer know that the improper Bostonians repeated the performance on March 7, 1774. The two tea parties cost the British around $3 million in modern money.
Benjamin Franklin wrote the first Declaration of Independence! In 1775, Franklin, disgusted with the arrogance of the British and appalled by the bloodshed at Lexington and Concord, wrote a Declaration of Independence. Thomas Jefferson was enthusiastic. But, he noted, many other delegates to the Continental Congress were
"revolted at it." It would take another year of bitter conflict to persuade the Congress to vote for the Declaration of Independence written by Jefferson -- with some astute editorial suggestions by Franklin.
John Adams defended the British Soldiers after the Boston Massacre! Captain Thomas Preston led some British Soldiers to aid another British Soldier who was having things thrown at him and was also hit several times with a board. After their arrival, the people continued to pelt the soldiers and finally shots were fired and the infamous "Boston Massacre" was over. Captain Thomas Preston and eight soldiers were charged with murder. Future President John Adams took up the defense of the soldiers. He, along with Joshua Quincy, was able to get all but two acquitted by a local jury. Those two were found guilty of manslaughter, but claimed benefit of clergy. This means that they were allowed to make penance instead of being
executed. To insure that they never could use benefit of clergy again they were both branded on the thumbs.
History's first submarine attack took place in New York Harbor in 1776! The Connecticut inventor David Bushnell called his submarine the Turtle because it resembled two large tortoise shells of equal size joined together. The watertight hull was made of 6-inch-thick oak timbers coated with tar. On September 6, 1776, the Turtle targeted the HMS Eagle, flagship of the British fleet. The submarine was supposed to secure a cask of gunpowder to the hull of the Eagle and sneak away before it exploded. Unfortunately, the Turtle got entangled with the Eagle's rudder bar, lost ballast and surfaced before the gunpowder could be planted.
Benedict Arnold was the best general in the Continental Army! "Without Benedict Arnold in the first three years of the war," says the historian George Neumann, "we would probably have lost the Revolution." In 1775, the future traitor came within a whisker of conquering Canada. In 1776, he built a fleet and fought a bigger British fleet to a standstill on Lake Champlain. At Saratoga in 1777, his brilliant battlefield leadership forced the British army to surrender. The victory persuaded the French to join the war on the American side. Ironically, Arnold switched sides in 1780 partly because he disapproved of the French alliance.
By
1779, as many as one in seven Americans in Washington's army was black! At first Washington was hesitant about enlisting blacks. But when he heard they had fought well at Bunker Hill, he changed his mind. The all-black First Rhode Island Regiment -- composed of 33 freedmen and 92 slaves who were promised freedom if they served until the end of the war -- distinguished itself in the Battle of Newport.
Later, they were all but wiped out in a British attack.
There were women in the Continental Army, even a few who saw combat! Probably the best known is Mary Ludwig Hays, nicknamed "Molly Pitcher." She replaced her wounded husband at his cannon
during the Battle of Monmouth in 1778. Another wife of an artilleryman, Margaret Corbin, was badly wounded serving in her husband's gun crew at the Battle of Harlem Heights in 1776. Thousands of other women served in Washington's army as cooks and nurses.
George Washington was the best spymaster in American History! He ran dozens of espionage rings in British-held New York and Philadelphia, and the man who supposedly could not tell a lie was a genius at disinformation. He constantly befuddled the British by leaking, through double agents, inflated reports on the strength of his army.
By 1779, there were more Americans
fighting with the British than with Washington! There were no less than 21 regiments (estimated to total 6,500 to 8,000 men) of loyalists in the British army. Washington reported a field army of 3,468. About a third of Americans opposed the Revolution.
At Yorktown, the victory that won the war, Frenchman outnumbered Americans almost three to one! Washington had 11,000 men engaged in the battle, while the French had at least 29,000 soldiers and sailors. The 37 French ships-of-the-line played a crucial role in trapping the 8,700 strong British army and winning the engagement.
King George almost abdicated the throne when the British lost! After Yorktown, George III vowed to keep fighting. When parliament demurred, the King wrote a letter of abdication -- then withdrew it. He tried to console himself with the thought that
Washington would become a dictator and make the Americans long for royal rule. When he was told that Washington planned to resign his commission, the monarch gasped: "If he does that, sir, he will be the greatest man in the world."
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