Friends,

Button was persuaded to share his recipe for Belgian waffles after reading Acorn’s diary entry.

Button’s Belgian Waffles


​Ingredients

Dry
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 Tbs baking powder
2 Tbs sugar

Wet
2 eggs
6 Tbs butter (melted)
1 1/2 cups milk
2 tsp vanilla extract

To Fold In
4 oz fresh blueberries


Instructions

1. Preheat waffle iron.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients.
3. In a smaller bowl, whisk eggs, butter, milk and vanilla until we’ll combined
4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry, and mix until just combined. Mixture will be lumpy.
5. Fold in the blueberries.
6. Spray the waffle iron and cook waffles until light brown and crispy.
7. Serve with maple syrup.

​Enjoy!

Friends,
Acorn and Button recently visited a beautiful garden.
As they walked, Button pointed to a large, leafy plant. “That’s a hosta,” he said. “And over there is a coleus.”
“You know a lot about plants,” said Acorn.
“Indeed,” replied Button. “I’m an expert on horticulture.”

​“And this beautiful purple plant is known as Persian Shield,” continued Button.

Friends,
Here is step by step instruction on how to draw Acorn. This is a good activity for children. It not only teaches fine motor skills, but shapes as well. You can find past Acorn and Button activities by going to Acorn’s Corner.

​1. Draw the letter U.
​2. Draw an oval at the top of the letter U.
3. Draw the stem.
4. Draw 2 circles for eyes. Fill in the circles with a black marker.
5. Crisscross Acorn’s cap with lines. Draw eyebrows above Acorn’s eyes.
6. Draw Acorn’s arms with curved lines. Add small ovals for hands and fill in.
7. Draw straight lines for Acorn’s legs. Add small ovals for his feet and fill in.
There you have it! Have fun!

Friends,

This week Button wrote in his journal about an unfortunate event.

Friends,
 I was at a craft fair this past weekend in Clayton, Ga where I sold art and jewelry. I also brought a stack of Acorn and Button books. My goal was to sell at least 10. I sold 9 which is pretty close. I’m happy.

In my search for books on imagination, I came across a very unusual picture book titled The Mysteries of Harris Burdick, by Chris Van Allsburg. I found The Mysteries of Harris Burrdick to be both intriguing and a little unsettling.

The book was published in 1984 and is comprised of 14 illustrations with captions. Chris Van Allsburg gives his own account of discovering the illustrations in the book’s Introduction:
“I first saw the drawings in this book a year ago, in the house of a man named Peter Wenders. Though Mr. Wenders is retired now, he once worked for a children's book publisher, choosing the stories and pictures that would be turned into books.
Thirty years ago a man called at Peter Wenders' office, introducing himself as Harris Burdick. Mr. Burdick explained that he had written fourteen stories and had drawn many pictures for each one. He'd brought with him just one drawing from each story, to see if Wenders liked his work.
Peter Wenders was fascinated by the drawings. He told Burdick he would like to read the stories that went with them as soon as possible. The artist agreed to bring the stories the next morning. He left the fourteen drawings with Wenders. But he did not return the next day. Or the day after that. Harris Burdick was never heard from again. Over the years, Wenders tried to find out who Burdick was and what had happened to him, but he discovered nothing. To this day, Harris Burdick remains a complete mystery.”

Below are six out of the fourteen illustrations from the book. Over the years, teachers have used these as writing prompts for their students. The illustrations have a whimsical yet somber feel to them. Some feel slightly ominous. I think the paradoxical nature of the work makes it interesting. I find the captions brilliant. Talk about hooks! Suffice it to say the book is not intended for younger children. It’s a great resource for middle grade children on up.

In any case, here they are.

​Acorn and Button had definite reactions to some of the illustrations. Button found Another Place, Another Time fascinating. He thought the merging of railroad track and water ingenious. He wanted to pack his bags immediately and head out to that ‘land of answers.’

Acorn didn’t care for the Uninvited Guests with the turning doorknob, but he liked the spelling caterpillars in Oscar and Alphonse.

I’m interested in your thoughts. Have you heard of this book before? What kind of feelings do the illustrations provoke? Do the captions make you want to read more? Let me know.