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Marshmallows are one of the earliest candy confections. Originally, marshmallows were made from the sap of the marsh mallow plant which is native to swampy areas in Europe, North Africa and Asia. The marsh mallow is related to the common mallow, but it looks more like a hollyhock because it is a tall plant with large pink flowers. The plant’s roots would be collected in the fall, then scraped and squeezed to collect the gooey substance. Marsh mallow sap is said to be a good cough suppressant, and a tea made from powdered marsh mallow root soothes and relaxes the bronchial tubes.

As long ago as 2000 BC, ancient Egyptians enjoyed eating marshmallow sap mixed with honey. The French popularized marshmallows (Pate de guimauve) in the mid-1800’s by whipping the sap with egg whites and sugar. Cornstarch was added so they could mold them into shape. Candy makers had a hard time keeping up with demand and they looked into other ways of making the soft spongy confection. This is when they discovered that gelatin could be substituted for the mallow sap.

Marshmallows were introduced to America in the early 1900’s, dispensed as penny candy at general stores. Campfire brand marshmallows were sold in cellophane-wrapped boxes. Alex Doumak revolutionized marshmallow production in 1948 by extruding marshmallows through tubes and cutting them into cylindrical pieces. Jet-Puffed marshmallows were introduced by Kraft Foods in the 1950’s. The Jet-Puffed name was coined to describe a manufacturing process that infuses air into marshmallows giving them a light, fluffy texture. Shaped marshmallows are formed by a special nozzle that moves back and forth.

The marshmallows that we eat today are made from gelatin with sweeteners, flavorings, and colorings added. (I’ve never figured out why FD&C Blue #2 is found in white marshmallows!) Through clever marketing and connections with other favorite foods, marshmallows have become a staple ingredient at campouts, parties, potlucks, and family get-togethers. Marshmallows are used in hot chocolate, on top of candied sweet potatoes at Thanksgiving, in Rice Krispie treats, Jell-O desserts, and Rocky Road ice cream. There is marshmallow fluff, marshmallow creme, marshmallow frosting, marshmallow icing, and marshmallow fudge.

No one really knows who started the classic tradition of toasting marshmallows over an open fire. However, the 1927 Girl Scout Handbook was the first documented source of the S’mores recipe combining marshmallows with chocolate and graham crackers. Even though marshmallows are popularly associated with summer camp fires, the majority of marshmallows are actually sold between October and December. (Source: National Confectioners Association.)

There are other uses for marshmallows, too. Ice cream won’t leak through the bottom of a cone if you place a large marshmallow at the bottom. You can keep candle wax from dripping onto birthday cakes by sticking each candle through a marshmallow first. When baking cupcakes, never mind the icing – just put a marshmallow on top of each one and let it melt for a couple of minutes in the oven.

Did You Know…? In the “Ghostbusters” movie, the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man was a parody of the real-life Pillsbury Doughboy, and the fictitious Stay Puft company name was a pun on the Jet-Puffed marshmallow brand. (From Wikipedia)

Marshmallow Snowman

Push a thin pretzel stick through the center of a stack of three large marshmallows to create a snowman’s body. Stick two more pretzels into the sides of middle marshmallow to form arms. Tie on a fruit leather scarf and fashion a hat out of gumdrops. Press on small candy pieces for facial features and buttons. Place the marshmallow snowman in the front yard of a gingerbread house.

Marsh Mallow Treats

Try this old-fashioned, all natural confection!

2 egg whites
1 teaspoon vanilla
½ cup raw cane sugar
1 tablespoon powdered Marsh Mallow Root (available from some herb shops)

Whip egg whites until almost stiff. Add vanilla and whip until stiff. Whip in the sugar, a little at a time. Add Marsh Mallow and whip again. Place by teaspoonful on cookie sheet. Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour.

Additional Recipes

www.candyusa.org/Recipes/Favorites/marshmallows.asp

www.cookingforengineers.com/recipe.php?id=106&title=Marshmallows  

http://coconutlime.blogspot.com/2005/12/peppermint-marshmallows.html  

www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_1590,00.html

Thanksgiving is a festive holiday that involves a rich tradition of long get-togethers with family and friends, both old and young. Thanksgiving also focuses on the historic religious roots of our nation, the importance of family and savoring our abundant blessings.

Some families like to sit down together and watch a classic, heartwarming movie after everyone is stuffed with turkey. Good movies with Thanksgiving themes are few and far between, and the older ones may be hard to find, but this article lists some appropriate movies that the whole family can enjoy.

Mouse On The Mayflower (1969) – This animated fantasy tells the story of a brave little mouse who helped the Pilgrims survive both the dangerous sea voyage and the cold New England winter, while staying on peaceful terms with their Indian neighbors.

A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (1973) – This holiday special with the Peanuts gang is an Emmy-award winning cartoon. Charlie Brown is planning on going to his grandmother's house for Thanksgiving dinner, but then Peppermint Patty and her friends show up. Charlie, Linus, Snoopy and Woodstock concoct a quick feast of popcorn, toast, jellybeans, and pretzels. In the end, all of the kids go to Grandma’s house singing “Over the river and through the woods…”

Rocky (1976, PG) – This classic story won a Best Picture award. It’s a tough and tender portrait of a loser who becomes a winner in the things that matter. It includes a memorable exchange of lines in which Adrian says to her brother: “Paulie, it’s Thanksgiving. I got a turkey in the oven.” Paulie says, “Oh, a turkey in the oven!” He opens up the oven, grabs the turkey, and throws it out the door. “You want the bird?” he hollers, “Go out in the alley and eat the bird!”

A Day for Thanks on Walton’s Mountain (1982) – The Walton household has begun to go their separate ways, and Elizabeth takes action to see them all reunited to celebrate Thanksgiving. Based on the Emmy-award winning TV series.

Hoboken Chicken Emergency (1984) – Mr. and Mrs. Bobowicz ask their son to pick up a bird for Thanksgiving dinner, and he brings home a 266-pound live chicken named Henrietta. Based on the novel by Daniel M. Pinkwater.

Molly's Pilgrim (1985) – A Russian Jewish immigrant girl is given a class assignment to create a doll based on a Thanksgiving character. She makes a Russian immigrant doll because Russian Jews are Pilgrims too, having come to America for religious freedom. Based on the book “Molly's Pilgrim,” by Barbara Cohen.

Avalon (1990, PG) – A family drama spanning several generations, from the arrival of immigrant Sam Krichinsky to a suburb of Baltimore, down through his children and grandchildren. The Thanksgiving holiday plays a crucial role throughout the film.

Squanto: A Warrior's Tale (1994, PG) – Disney version of the classic Thanksgiving story of Squanto, a young Indian warrior who befriended the Plymouth Pilgrims, as told from his perspective.

Miracle on 34th Street (1947) – This is technically a Christmas movie, but it’s a great way to kick off the holiday season since it starts out with the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Homemade Family Videos

Thanksgiving is a good opportunity to gather the family together to make a video as a gift to send to faraway relatives and friends. You can write an original script in which everyone has a part, or just follow people around like in reality TV. Another option would be to have a talent show in which one person sings, another recites a poem, etc. You might even dress up in costume. It’s a fun and easy way to spend quality family time while sharing the holidays with distant relatives. If you can, edit the footage on your computer, burn it onto a DVD, and design a personalized label for it. Be sure to mail the DVD in a padded envelope so it won’t get broken. You might also want to have a home video party starring your family. We never laugh so hard as when we’re watching our own movies!

Veterans Day is observed annually on November 11 to honor all who have served in the armed forces, particularly during wartime. Most of these men and women are ordinary people who do not expect to achieve fame or reap huge rewards from military service. Their motives are simple – love of country, a sense of duty, and a willingness to serve our nation in times of crisis.

In the words of Frederic Remington, “Soldiers, like other men, found more hard work than glory in their calling.” Over the years, military personnel deployed around the globe have had to endure many hardships. Nevertheless, wherever and whenever our soldiers, sailors, marines, and airmen are called to duty, they do not hesitate to go.

George Orwell once stated, “People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf.” Freedom is never free. It depends on the vigilance of those brave patriots who have been safeguarding our liberties ever since the American Revolution, in both peacetime and wartime.

Patriotic Pins

It’s a tradition to honor brave soldiers with medals, pins, and ribbons. You can make some colorful pins for awarding to cherished veterans in appreciation for their sacrifices, dedication, and service. Make one for yourself, too, and wear it on your shirt for Veterans Day. You will need: large safety pins, colored beads (red, white, blue), thin yellow ribbon, white glue, waxed paper, scissors. Directions: Thread a pattern of red, white, and blue colored beads onto the pin side of a large safety pin. Glue the beads onto the pin. Let them dry on waxed paper. Tie a little yellow ribbon onto the other arm of each pin, so that when you are wearing it the beads are on top and the ribbon hangs down. The yellow ribbon is a remembrance for prisoners of war, soldiers missing in action, and all military men and women who are far away from home.

Veterans Day Activities

Attend a Veterans Day ceremony or other presentation. Many veterans are able to relate personal stories of what defending liberty really means. This is an opportunity for children to experience living history. Make cards, cookies, etc. to give to the veterans. Shake their hand and say “Thank you for keeping our country and our family safe.”

Display some old fashioned patriotism and fly the American flag with gratitude and pride. Wear red, white, and blue. Sing patriotic songs. Visit the National Memorial Cemetery, a veteran’s memorial, or attend a Veterans Day parade.

Do some research to find out about your relatives and ancestors who served in the armed forces. Read a wartime historical novel or a history book about war. Watch a movie such as “Gettysburg” or “Gods and Generals.” 

Send notes or cards to hospitalized veterans or those living in veteran homes. Make cards, placemats, bookmarks, or other appropriate gifts for distribution at a veteran’s hospital. Donate to veterans organizations such as the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, and Disabled American Veterans.

Support our troops. Families, groups, and individuals can do their part by participating in a patriotic service project to show soldiers how much we appreciate them. You can send a letter, e-mail, care package, or Christmas card to a soldier overseas. Many military units are living in primitive conditions in Iraq and your gift may be all they receive this Christmas. The following websites offer specific ways in which you can help:

www.americasupportsyou.mil/americasupportsyou/help.html  

www.packagesfromhome.org  

www.operationmilitarypride.org/packages.html  

www.adoptaplatoon.org  

www.soldiersangels.com  

www.amillionthanks.org  

www.usocares.org  

www.presidentialprayerteam.org/troopsadopt.php  

www.networkforgood.org/topics/international/iraq/troops.aspx  

Additional Resources

www.loc.gov/vets  (The Veterans History Project from the Library of Congress relies on volunteers to collect and preserve first-hand accounts of 20^th-century wars and current conflicts.)

www.legion.org  (The American Legion provides information on veterans issues, Veterans Day e-cards, sample speeches, flag FAQ's, and more.)

www.va.gov/vetsday/index.cfm  (Veteran's Day history, customs, observances, symbols, patriotic fact sheets, links, teacher's guide, school resources, a play, and a kid's page from the Department of Veteran's Affairs.)

http://www1.va.gov/opa/feature/celebrate/index.asp  (Celebrating America's Freedoms: 14 essays about the country's most familiar symbols, customs, and observances.)

Coyotes are mostly solitary, although they sometimes travel in a group called a pack. The coyote stays with a single mate for life. Coyote pups are born in the spring. The father delivers food to the den entrance, which may be a burrow underground, in a hill of dirt, or a hollow tree. By autumn the young leave to find food and territories of their own. Coyotes mainly eat small animals such as rabbits, squirrels, and rodents of all kinds. They help to control rats and other crop-destroying pests. Coyotes will also eat birds, fish, insects, dead animals, berries, and whatever else they can find.

The coyote’s best known trait is its distinctive cry of one long mournful howl, which has become identified as the song of the American West. However, as anyone who has heard their evening “concert” will tell you, coyote calls can also consist of a series of howls and sharp barks, a sequence of high-pitched yips and yelps, as well as a combination of huffs, growls, shrieks, squeals, wails, whines and whimpers. Sometimes the coyote vocalizations sound eerie and disturbing, while other times they are quite beautiful.

Primarily nocturnal, coyotes are commonly heard between sunset and sunrise, especially at dusk. They are also more active in the spring and fall. If more than one coyote is in the same vicinity, the howling of one triggers that of the others. Two coyotes howling in unison can create the illusion of a dozen or more. They have strong voices, and humans can hear their howl up to ten miles away. But the coyote’s howl can be deceiving due to the way the sound carries. It may seem as though it’s coming from one direction, when the coyote is actually somewhere else. The coyote’s call may also sound closer or farther away than it really is.

Coyotes are common figures in American Indian myths and legends. The coyote’s personality traits include cleverness, mischievousness, and trickiness, although in some stories he is the butt of jokes, in a few stories he actually proves to be helpful (or even heroic), and on the rare occasion he represents evil. The coyote also appears in “just so stories” that attempt to explain natural animal characteristics, such as why rabbits have long ears.

Roadrunner vs. Coyote

This is a fun game for inline skaters to play. You will need a whistle, chalk, inline skates, and safety gear (helmet, wrist guards, knee and elbow pads). On a smooth flat surface, draw a long chalk line to represent the edge of a cliff. Skaters take turns going as fast as they can toward the line. When you blow the whistle, they have to stop. If they can do so before going over the cliff, they are the Roadrunner. If they go over, they are the Coyote. As the skaters get better at stopping, blow the whistle closer and closer to the line.

Books

“Coyote: A Trickster Tale from the American Southwest,” by Gerald McDermott.

“Borreguita and the Coyote,” by Verna Aardema and Petra Mathers.

“The Tale of Rabbit and Coyote,” by Tony Johnston.

“Coyote Goes Walking,” by Tom Pohrt.

“Coyote Places the Stars,” by Harriet Peck Taylor.

“Coyote and the Grasshoppers,” by Dominic.

“Navajo Coyote Tales,” by Father Berard Haile.

“Coyote Autumn,” by Bill Wallace.

“Watchdog and the Coyotes,” by Bill Wallace.

Web Sites

www.extremezone.com/~swref/sounds/coyotevocal.htm (A chart of coyote vocalizations and what they mean, from the Southwest Wildlife Rehabilitation and Educational Foundation.)

www.wellpinit.wednet.edu/sal-myths/myths.php (Native American myths and legends, many of which feature the coyote.)

www.angelfire.com/trek/archaeology/coyote.html (The coyote in rock art.)