The Unplugged Family Activity Book: 60+ Simple Crafts and Recipes for Year-Round Fun

by Rachel Jepson Wolf

Overview

Get ready for kid-approved ideas that celebrate the great outdoors year round! Whether you’re building forts or making fresh cider, there’s something for every kid and every season.

What might unfold if we put away our devices for an hour, a day, or even longer? What adventures await, when we press pause on technology? The Unplugged Family Activity Book invites you and your loved ones to connect, create, and celebrate all year long.

With more than 50 projects, crafts, and recipes, plus ideas for seasonal celebrations to share with family and friends, there’s fun to be had, all through the year.

Host a springtime tea party, where you’ll nibble shortbread cookies and make a mossy teacup fairy garden. Or gather with friends for a summer potluck party. Blow giant bubbles, race leaf-and-bark boats, or camp out in your own backyard. In the fall, enjoy a harvest party with your friends! Create a fall leaf rainbow, sip mulled cider, and bake bread over a campfire. When winter comes, celebrate the longest night of the year with twinkling ice lanterns. Try your hand at candle dipping and pen your wishes for the coming year. 

You’ll find instruction and recipes for:

• Candied violets
• Herbal first aid balm
• Rose petal tea
• Infused honey
• Homemade ice cream
• Summer flower bunting
• Homemade dragonfly wings
• Felted acorn necklaces
• Autumn gratitude tree
• Decorative lanterns
• Baked apples
• Winter stargazing
• Maple lollipops
• Dried citrus garland
• Plus dozens more crafts, projects, and recipes!  

In The Unplugged Family Activity Book, you’ll fall in love with every season—wherever you call home. So grab your family and friends, and get ready for an adventure that will last all through the year!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781592339433
Publisher:	Fair Winds Press
Publication date:	06/23/2020
Pages:	144
Sales rank:	908,298
Product dimensions:	8.60(w) x 11.00(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Rachel Jepson Wolf loves nothing more than bringing people and plants together. With a degree in environmental education and biology, Rachel spent years helping kids and adults fall in love with the natural world. In 2002 she founded LüSa Organics, a botanical body care company, and more recently began leading in-person herbal retreats for adults and children. She is also the author of Herbal Adventures, a family-friendly exploration of herbs and the wonderful things you can make with them. Today Rachel lives with her husband, Pete, and their two children, Lupine and Sage, on a wonderfully weedy homestead in rural Wisconsin. Her days are spent writing, foraging, playing with plants, and homeschooling her kids. Find Rachel online at rachelwolfclean.com, where she blogs about herbs, farm, and family; or explore her herbal body care line at lusaorganics.com.

Table of Contents

Introduction 7

Spring 15

Spring Equinox: The World Awakens! 15

Branches in Bloom 17

Signs of Spring Scavenger Hunt 18

Bedding for the Birds 19

Lilac Soda Syrup 21

Neighborhood Bouquet Surprises 23

Herbal First-Aid Balm 25

Planting Trees 29

Candied Violets 30

Wild Spring Salad with Honey Balsamic Vinaigrette 33

Rose and Cardamom Herbal Tea 35

A Springtime Flower Festival 36

Wild and Tame Tea Sandwiches 38

Violet Shortbread Cookies 41

Weaving Flower Crowns 43

Teacup Fairy Gardens 44

Summer 47

Summer Solstice: Season of Plenty 47

Rose Petal Honey 48

Dragonfly Wings 49

Lemon Balm Ice Pops 53

Backyard Campout 54

Homemade Ice Cream with Summer Berries 55

Nature Exploration Pack 58

Build a Mud Kitchen 61

Waterside Potluck Party 62

Summer Flower Bunting 64

Rain Painting 66

Local Food Potluck 67

Bark-and-Leaf Boat Regatta 68

Giant Bubbles 69

Autumn 73

Autumn Equinox: Preparing for Winter 73

Mulled Cider 75

Spiced Honey 76

Homemade Applesauce 79

Planting Bulbs 80

Create an Autumn Rainbow 82

Felted Acorn Necklaces 83

Waxed Leaf Garland 86

Gratitude Tree 88

Bountiful Harvest Exchange 90

Decorative Lanterns and Candle-Lit Lantern Walk 92

Bonfire Bread 95

Baked Apples 98

Autumn Abundance Exchange 100

Winter 103

Autumn Equinox: Lean Days or a Long Rest 103

Winter Stargazing 105

Pinecone Bird Feeders 106

Beeswax Candles 108

Night Vision Flashlight 111

Scented Play Dough 112

Homemade Eggnog 114

Maple Lollipops 116

Ice Lanterns 118

Build a Snow Fort 121

Maple Snow 124

Folded Window Stars 126

Dried Citrus Garland 128

A Celebration of Light 130

Moonlit Night Walk 132

A Winter Bonfire 134

Wishes for the Coming Year 136

Resources 137

Recommended Reading 138

Gratitude 139

About the Author 140

Index 141

Editorial Reviews

Praise for Rachel Jepson Wolf and Herbal Adventures:

Herbal Adventures has everything I appreciate in a good herb book: sound practical information and great remedies and recipes, all enhanced by personal stories and insights. This may be my new favorite!
- Rosemary Gladstar, herbalist and author

The beauty on each page of Herbal Adventures makes me desperate to create! Rachel keeps the projects accessible and the photographs are stunning. This book is sure to be well-used and well-loved.
- Jamie C. Martin, editor of SimpleHomeschool.net and author of Give Your Child the World

Like stumbling upon a hidden brook on a bright summer’s day, this book is a refreshing treasure for the earth-curious child and the young-at-heart of every age. Rachel shows us how the natural world is the real fairy tale, and how much closer we are to that magic than we think.
- Asia Suler, Creator and Concoctress of One Willow Apothecaries

If you’ve ever wanted a friendly guide to connecting your family to the plants that sustain and heal us, look no further.
- Ben Hewitt, author of Home Grown and The Nourishing Homestead

Herbal Adventures is the perfect guidebook to plant-based fun for families with children.
- Samuel Thayer, author of The Forager's Harvest, Nature's Garden, and Incredible Wild Edibles
 

From the Publisher