july is national blueberry month! taste the love...

"Kuplink, kuplank, kuplunk!" 

Sal and her mother decide to pick blueberries to can for the winter. But when Sal wanders off to the other side of Blueberry Hill, she discovers a Mama Bear preparing for her own long winter. Meanwhile Sal's mother is being followed by a small bear who also has a big appetite for berries! Will each mother go home with the right little one?

Don't get left behind!  This is a perfect read for July, National Blueberry Month. If you haven't read it, run out and find this cute book, by Robert McCloskey, first published in 1948!

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Oh, and about those blueberries. They aren't just good tasting, they're healthy!  According to the North American Blueberry Council, out of 40 different fruits, juices, and vegetables, the blueberry has the highest antioxidant level.  And just three and a half ounces of blueberries are equivalent to over 1700 International Units of Vitamin E!

(Find some snack recipes with blueberries for kids HERE).

BLUEBERRIES AND ICE CREAM

Well, I guess July is National Blueberry Month as well as National Ice Cream Month (and boy, do they taste yummy together!)  Did you know that ice cream dates dates back to the 2nd century B.C.? Alexander the Great liked snow and ice flavored with honey and nectar. (You can read more about the history of ice cream HERE.)

BLUEBERRIES aren't just good tasting, they're healthy...according to the North American Blueberry Council (yes, there is such an organization): out of 40 different fruits, juices and vegetables, the blueberry has the highest antioxidant level.  And just three and a half ounces of blueberries are equivalent to over 1700 International Units of vitamin E. (Find some snack recipes with blueberries HERE for kids).

And while you and your kids enjoy a bowl of ice cream (topped with blueberries of course!), take the opportunity to read them one of my favorite picture books, BLUEBERRIES FOR SAL by Robert McCloskey. Your children are bound to love his (now retro) illustrations and the "kerplunk, kerplunk" of the blueberries hitting the bottom of Sal's pail -- well, they're at the bottom until she eats them!

In the story, Sal and her mother decide to go out and search for blueberries at the same time as a mother bear and her cub. This story is sweetly and humorously told, as Sal and the cub wander off and absentmindedly trail behind the wrong mothers!

Don't worry - it all turns out okay in the end!