El Diá de los Muertos (Video & Resources)

THE DAY OF THE DEAD (OCT. 31st – NOV. 2nd)
DISCOVERING RICH MEXICAN TRADITIONS

In this short low-fi video documentary, Professor José Flores offers his insights about the traditions and mythologies of the Day of the Dead (Diá de los Muertos) celebration in Mexico. This video was filmed at the Rancho La Puerta Spa in Baja, Mexico last year by Stephen Brown, and is a great educational resources for parents and students.

Web Review: National School Lunch Week

National School Lunch Week

Website for this mid-October event, which recognizes the importance of school lunches in providing America’s children with access to nutritious meals. Features recipes for five suggested meals (including a wrap with dip, a burger with potatoes, and a rice bowl), and an opportunity to vote for your favorite meal. Includes printable material about health and nutrition aspects of each meal. From the School Nutrition Association. [c.LLI]

Web Review: The History of Fitness

The History of Fitness

Article on the history of physical fitness from primitive times through the 20th century. Includes discussion of exercise and fitness in ancient China, India, the ancient Near East, Greece and Rome, Europe, and the U.S. The U.S. sections cover President Theodore Roosevelt’s physical fitness ideologies, physical education in public schools, fitness pioneer Jack LaLanne, Dr. Kenneth Cooper, and other exercise-related trends and people. Written by exercise science professors.  [(c) LII]

Web Review: Recipes From Provençe

Recipes From Provençe

Collection of recipes for dishes from the Provençe region of southern France. Includes recipes for ratatouille, basil and cheese flan, grilled red mullet, and Provençales bean soup with basil (soupe au pistou). Additional recipes are available to subscribers. Part of CultureKiosque. [LII]

Web Review: Food in the Arts

Food in the Arts

This site provides a survey of the arts in connection with food. Themes include food in movies, music, literature, and art. Includes short essays on topics such as the movie “Like Water for Chocolate,” food in Puccini’s opera “La Bohème,” Hemingway and food, poverty, and still life paintings of food. From the London Food Film Fiesta. [LII]

Fairy Tea in Shelburne Falls

Fairy Festival at the Children’s Art Museum

Bring your children to join together in celebration of all things faere. Come dressed in your faerie finery. All elves, pixie, gnomes, fairies and sprites are welcomed! There will be a Fairy Tea Party, dancing in a Fairy Ring and making Fairy Art. A Sunday afternoon mythical celebration.

• Fairy Festival
• Sunday, July 15th, 2007
• 2:30-4:30pm
• Children’s Art Museum
• Shelburne Falls, MA
• $15 per child
• Contacts: Tony(a) Lemos (413) 625-6826
• Pre-registration a must to guarentee your child’s spot in Fairyland!

Web Review: Food for Bastille Day

BBC Food: Bastille Day

“Why not celebrate Bastille Day on 14 July by taking the chance to explore the history and influence of French cuisine?” Topics include the beginnings of French cuisine, French chefs and fashion, and French chefs in Britain. Also includes links to related material such as an essay about regional French cookery and how to design a French-inspired kitchen. From the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). [LII]

Web Review: Brief History of French Food

A Brief History of French Food

This 2002 article provides background about the development of French cuisine, such as “the origins of the restaurant, haute cuisine and Champagne, and the sorry case of the tardy lobster.” Covers French cookery as influenced by Moorish cuisine in the 1400s, royal patronage in the 1600s, and Auguste Escoffier’s founding of the “grand hotel style” of cuisine in the 1900s. From a British grocery store chain. [LII]

Web Review: Complementary and Alternative Medicine Index

Complementary and Alternative Medicine Index (CAM)

Collection of material about different types of CAM, such as acupuncture, biofeedback, herbal medicine, hypnotherapy, massage, and yoga. Includes discussions of conditions (by organ and symptoms), and drug, herb, and supplement interactions and uses. From the University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC). [LII]

Breastmilk Banking in Western Mass

Got (breast) Milk?

In 1911 the very first milk bank in the country was established in Boston. Many more were established from then, later to be closed in the 80’s due to concerns of HIV contamination. Today we have 10 non-profit breastmilk banks in the U.S. The nearest location for parent’s in Western Massachusetts to attain a supply of breastmilk is North Carolina or Ohio … until now!

Our friend Tanya Lieberman over at Motherwear Breastfeeding Blog is part of a breastfeeding coalition working to establish a collection point in our area for breastmilk donations. These donations will become part of the Mother’s Milk Bank of New England, scheduled to open in Boston in a year of so.