So much chocolate; so little time!

Chocolate Festival at CDM on Saturday

Chocolate lovers of all ages may want to drop by the Creative Discovery Museum on Saturday afternoon, Sept. 15, when the seventh annual Chocolate Festival is held.

The Chocolate Festival celebrates chocolate’s history, science and appeal. This year’s event will focus on the roots of chocolate and the cultural ties between chocolate production and Guatemala.

Between noon and 4 p.m. on Saturday, the museum will have several stations for hands- on activities. Children can make their own cocoa butter lotion, sample different types of chocolate, take part in kitchen lessons using chocolate as the main ingredient and discover, through a simulated environment, how chocolate pods are picked, fermented, dried, roasted and blended to make different forms of chocolate.

In addition, a Guatemalan folklore dance team will perform.

“Chocolate is a universal joy for children and adults. What better way to enjoy chocolate than through an event completely devoted to its lore and decadence?” asks Liza Blair, CDM arts manager.

All Chocolate Festival activities are included with regular admission to the museum.

› Also on Saturday between noon and 4 p.m., the museum will hold its Teddy Bear Clinic. The clinic is designed to take the fear out of a hospital visit for little ones. Led by Child Life Specialists from Children’s Hospital at Erlanger, it allows children to play they are doctors and nurses as they take their bear (the patient) through the necessary steps to complete an operation.

When children sign in, they will receive their sur- gical costumes, bears and name their bears. They will see a triage procedure, take vitals and assess their patients. Then they will learn operation prep, surgery procedures and patient recovery before turning their bears back in to the museum staff.

“This event plays a very important role in demystifying in-hospital procedures for children and their parents,” says Jayne Griffin, CDM director of education.

For more information: 423-648-6054.

CONTRIBUTED PHOTO FROM CDM Children at Saturday’s Chocolate Festival will learn how chocolate is made and take part in kitchen lessons using chocolate.