To all of the American JrSoc members celebrating the country’s 233rd birthday this weekend, I want to extend my wishes for a very happy 4th of July! Millions of us will be dragging out the BBQ, hauling the family to the beach and spending the evening looking at the sky. In the event you’re unable to see fireworks in your area, I thought I’d share some with you…

1. Fireworks and the Bay Bridge, 2. Boston 4th of July Fireworks 2007-26, 3. Fireworks Festival 2, 4. A display of Fireworks 2007, 5. DC Fireworks, 6. Wonder Wheel with Fireworks, 7. St. Louis 4th of July Fireworks, 8. fireworks, 9. NYC 4th of July Fireworks, 2007, 10. Capitol Fireworks 7.4.2008

SuperVillain Name: The Terrible Two

Caped crusaders beware! We’ve just embarked upon the Summer of the SuperVillain - or so it’s been dubbed by Ohio based artist/illustrator Len Peralta. Thanks to the lovely ladies at Rare Bird Finds for turning me onto Len’s fantastic custom monster service.

It’s simple, you provide the name of your super villain and Len will draw him/her. For $25. you’ll receive the full color, 4″ x 6″ Monster-by-Mail AND for an extra ten smackers Len will create a video of your villain being drawn and post it on YouTube. I highly recommend this second option - as it’s crazy cool to see your drawing come to life. See more here.

Top: The Milk Monster, Bottom: Little Zillas

Or for some horrific instant gratification try Len’s Spelling with Zombies and have your kiddo’s name transformed by the un-dead (for free!)

Soil is a small batch and one-of a kind, line of clothing and accessories designed and sewn by Colorado based Ramona Danso.  I am head over heels for this kids clothing “reminiscent of storybooks, nursery rhymes and clothing styles from (her) own childhood.”

And the names!  Oh the names…Library Day Dress, Pinocchio Suspenders, Chimneysweep Shorts, Sandbox Knickerbockers and Timmy Jeans (as in, “What’s that Lassie, who fell down the well?”)  Sizing ranges from 6 months up to a childs 8 and custom orders are available.  Go shop.

This week another amazing photographer who utilizes miniatures in his work. New York based Micah Beree opened his own studio in 2003 and after a fortuitous meeting with a photo editor in 2006 he switched from portraits of people to portraits of food. Below are a few images from his series entitled Constructing Lunch - see more here.

“I spent most of my childhood in the tree tops around the neighborhood, that is, when I wasn’t helping out in my father’s garden. I was given a camera at 14 and have rarely put it down since.”

Yo, ho, ho! Looking to throw a great looking pirate-worthy party without spending every doubloon in your treasure chest? Check out the Printable Pirate Party from Paper & Cake. They’ve designed all of the great details - you just print, cut and assemble. The special edition package comes with:

• Invitations
• Front Door Sign
• Pennant Banner
• Cupcake Picks
• “Ship” Cake Decorations
• Favor Bag Tags
• Cone Party Hats
• Jar Labels
• Party Food Labels
• Treasure Map Craft Activity
• Birthday Boy Pirate Crown
• Cupcake Wrappers
• Photo Frame
• Gift Log
• Skull and Ship artwork saved as .png files for you to apply to extra printables as needed

How amazing is that? And! Best part - it’s only $8.! Seriously.

Browse the shop and check out all of Paper & Cake’s printable partyware.

A new round of alphabet posters, this time from our pals at L’Affiche Moderne - a French fine art print e-shop presenting the works of young photographers, graphic designers and children’s illustrators. Their posters are high quality digital prints and are all limited editions of 300 each.

• De la A à la Z!, Silvia Portella (aka Bukubuku)

• ABCD métiers, Gwénola (occupations in French!)

• Technicolour Alphabet, Imeus Design

• Animalphabet, Sigrid Martinez

In the early 1970s there were a series of public service announcements that ran on ABC during Saturday morning cartoons. They were called Time for Timer, Timer being the animated host who somewhat resembled a cheese puff with skinny little limbs. His mission was to encourage healthy eating and good hygiene and perhaps his most well known episode included the song “I Hanker for Hunk of Cheese!” Anyone?

Well the episode I remember most vividly is Sunshine on a Stick in which Timer shows us how to create orange juice pops in a an ice cube tray with cellophane and toothpicks - a recipe/method I followed repeatedly until my mother began selling Tupperware and we upgraded to these (updated version here).

There are, of course, much fancier popsicle mold options now - I’ve taken the liberty of sharing a few favorites.

The company Tovola makes a great range of molds including:

• Star Pops
• Rocket Pops
• Jewel Pops (edible bling!)

I like the Volcano Ice Pop molds by Prepara - they have a little lip on the base to help with spills and the mold creates an indented reservoir at the top of the popsicle, perfect for berries of maybe a little dollop of whipped cream. Cuispro’s Sailboat Pops are super cute and the boat is meant to help catch drips as well.

None of the mold options I’ve listed require a wooden stick, so no waste! But if you’d rather forego any type of stick base altogether check out the Lekue Silicone Ice Mold - once the liquid is frozen, remove the cap and squeeze from the bottom to eat!

Alright, it’s a special occasion - Father’s Day. And a once a year, a modest stash of sweets to be squirreled away and consumed at his leisure is absolutely permissible. Will the kids ransack the house while he’s at work and eat most of it? Probably. But it’s the thought that counts.

I know it’s a little late to be ordering treats online, given that Sunday’s the big day - so you’ll either need to surprise him belatedly or whip up your own versions. Here’s a little inspiration for either option.

What’s this? Can it be? Holy sweet and salty Batman Candyman, it’s Cocoa Chips! Ruffle cut potato chips individually dipped in milk chocolate. Route 29 Caramels and Sweets makes these miracles, along with Peanut Butter Sticks, Mini-Snappers and a whole lot more.

And now for the home version of the game show! Here are recipes for Chocolate Covered Potato Chips, a crazy version of Peanut Butter Sticks (whose main ingredient is white bread) and a variation on the Snapper theme - Chocolate Turtle Cheesecake.

Buttery rice crispy treats fresh from the pan are a thing of beauty. Combine chocolate cookies, caramel or s’mores and Pop’s eyes will glaze over. All hail the Crispery. (Via Daily Candy)

For your own version, this recipe for Peanut Butter Cup Rice Krispie Bars looks amazing. Gather your little Snap, Crackle and Pop to assist in the kitchen and get busy! Wishing you a happy Father’s Day and a great weekend.

You might remember a video I posted a couple months back featuring a surprisingly well orchestrated song and dance performance of Do-Re-Mi in Antwerp’s Central Station. Well, last week LA fell victim to a similar dance invasion…Hammer Dance that is. Not unlike its European counterpart, this too was a promotional stunt…although the Los Angeles version is a bit more humorous than inspirational.

Apparently A&E is gearing up for MC Hammer’s reality show Hammertime. I think it’s only a matter of time before your kids will be asking for shiny pair of Hammer pants.

Now I ask you, have you ever seen a girls t-shirt that celebrates the accomplishments of Eleanor Roosevelt?!

I think the concept behind this vintage styled, new line of kids tees is brilliant. 1st Heroes Tees (boys and girls) from Peek…Aren’t You Curious? introduce your kids to the likes of Olympian Wilma Rudolph, Astronaut John Glenn and baseball great Jackie Robinson among others. A nice spring board to learning more about amazing historical role models.