As the calendar turns to the last two months of the year, did you know that the “fifth season” is about to begin?
November-December 2024
story and artwork by Anne M. Dellinger, Contributing Columnist
You won’t find this extra season included in the traditional winter-spring-summer-autumn lineup, but it is widely recognized and eagerly anticipated … especially by kids! (Can you guess what it is called?) This special period of time only lasts from late November to Jan. 1, but its 5-6 weeks are jam-packed with events, excitement, expectations and pure delight. This is when Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa and New Year’s Eve are all celebrated, so it is obviously called the Holiday Season! (Did you guess correctly?)
Even though the season itself is brief, the lead-into these five holidays starts early.
You probably noticed decorations for November and December celebrations already on the shelves when you picked up your school supplies back in August!
Despite the fact that it was still summer, your holiday spirit may have started stirring a bit. Just seeing the seasonal trimmings can quickly awaken fleeting thoughts of the year-end fun to come.
Now that the holiday season is almost here, those happy feelings will soon turn into actions.
Before long, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins and friends will join together to repeat holiday rituals and traditions. Along with sharing lots of good food and exchanging gifts, there will be hugging, good-natured teasing, and the recalling of old memories (even the embarrassing ones).
What is your favorite holiday memory? Do you have a holiday memory that you would like to forget?
As this year’s holiday season approaches, why not plan a few memory-making activities ahead of time for you and your cousins (and all the fun-loving relatives) to do together?
Look over these suggestions that are associated with Thanksgiving and Christmas. Then ask your mom or dad to help you get the items needed for each project.
Thanksgiving Spy Juice
Cranberries are a big part of the Thanksgiving meal. Remind your mom to pick up an extra bag for this fun activity.
By using cranberries and baking soda you can create an invisible, secret message to share with friendly, trusted eyes. The words will quickly disappear, so fast reading is required!
Items needed:
- half a bag of cranberries
- water
- baking soda
- printer paper, cut to size of cake pan
- cotton swabs, cut in half
Boil cranberries in 3 cups water for 15-20 minutes, keeping lid on pan as cranberries will pop and explode.
Crush the cooked berries and push them through a colander or sieve to collect the concentrated cranberry juice. Pour the juice into a cake pan, making sure that the paper that you’re writing a message on will fit. If the juice is really thick and syrupy, add about ½ cup of water. It has to have enough water so it can soak into the paper.
To make invisible ink, dissolve 2-3 teaspoons of baking soda in ⅓ cup warm water, stirring and dissolving it as best you can. Using the non-cotton end of the cut cotton swabs, dip it into the baking soda solution and use it to write your message on the paper. Let the message completely dry (use a hairdryer to speed things up).
To reveal your message, float your paper briefly on top of the juice and then gently submerge it. Read the message immediately because it will quickly disappear as the juice is absorbed into the paper.
Here is the science behind this project — the red pigment in cranberry juice is an acid. When it is added to a base (an alkaline substance), it will change color. Baking soda is a base, so when your baking soda message comes in contact with pigments in the cranberry juice, the message will change color and become visible.
But the message will be short lived. As soon as the cranberry juice dilutes the baking soda, the paper will become acidic again and the message will disappear. Pretty cool!
Candy Cane Creations
Bending hard, stiff candy canes into different shapes seems like an impossible task. But when they are heated, the sugar crystals are weakened and the once rigid candy becomes soft and flexible. As it cools, the sugar crystal bonds reform and the candy hardens into its new shape. To get started, you will need:
- several candy canes — cellophane can be left on individually wrapped candy canes. It adds support as the cane is being reshaped.
- oven
- parchment paper
- cookie sheet
- sheet of paper
- markers
Heat oven to 250 degrees. Place candy canes on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Put in oven for 4-5 minutes. Remove with oven mitts and gently twist into desired shapes after the candy cools. Lay the creations on a large sheet of paper, decorate the paper with markers (if desired) and admire your handiwork.
The holiday season holds many magical moments; however, nothing beats the cozy, comforting sense of belonging that happens when family members share good times together. It’s the best gift of all. Enjoy!
