Survival

Well, we survived the blizzard and the polar vortex that followed. We burnt a lot of wood in the process, but we were toasty warm. Thankfully we now seem to be on our way to warmer temperatures. I just hope they arrive gradually so not to cause flooding.

All this indoor time has left plenty of room for reading. Emily has been reading the second book in a  dystopian series, The Girl Who Dared To Stand, which she is loving as much as the Maze Runner Series. Now for anyone who knows Emily, this is a lot of book love. All her friends who have never read Maze Runner, intimately know the characters thanks to her. And the best part, there are seven books in the series, so she will be happy for a while!

The big surprise, however, came last week when my husband, Bobby, asked me to get the old classic, Papillon, from he library. In the fifteen years we've been married, he's read the Bible, newspapers, magazines, and online articles, but he's never asked me to get him a book. I know he read books before we married, I've just never seen him read one since.

And last but not least, I read a beginning reader titled A Cub in the Tub and a beginning chapter book titled Houndsley and Catina and Cousin Wagster. Don't you just love those funny, punny cat and dog names?

A Cub in the Tub is just what it sounds like, a sight word rhyming book like the kind I bought Emily when she was learning to read. So not only will your 3 to 5 year old enjoy seeing bear go from being dirty to clean, they will also be gaining those critical building blocks that will launch them into reading on their own.

And once they've started reading and want to move onto that I am so grown up chapter book reading phase, Houndsley and Catina and Cousin Wagster will be a perfect place to start. I mean come on, who doesn't love dog and cat stories with happy endings and subtle messages about friendship! And the really fun thing is that there are multiple Houndsley and Catina books from which to choose.

Well, that about wraps it up for this week. Join me next week, same crazy time, same crazy channel. Also be sure to drop by my personal website Fun With Aileen where you will find more on reading, writing, and my very own chapter and picture books. And finally, you can find me on twitter if you want an extremely brief glimpse into my days.

Backyard Camping

Spring has finally sprung here in Ohio and my giant crocus and daffodils are in full bloom. Spring also means a trip to the Southern Kentucky Book Festival in Bowling Green. This time, Bobby and Emily will be joining me and will be seeing the sites as I sign books and present to a room full of children.

 

Although there are still a few days before we leave, I have been getting things ready. The snack box is filling up with items like sweet potato chips, Triscuits, apples, my favorite tea, and some Oreos because traveling just wouldn't be as much fun without a special treat. I'm also making my list of what to take so I don't forget anything, and I am making sure all the batteries for our assorted electronics are charged.

All of this packing makes me reminiscent of  my childhood vacations. Every year my father would take our family camping for a week. I mean the old fashioned canvas tent type of camping. The kind of camping where we were able to drink soda every day and roast marshmallows over the camp fire because it only happened once a year. The kind of camping where you had to make sure your coolers were locked up for the night so the raccoons didn't have a midnight feast.

And speaking of midnight feasting and camping, leads me right into the book I happened to review for this week. It is called Billie B. Brown - The Midnight Feast, and it is a story about what I just described___ tent camping and feasting.

Written for the very beginning chapter book readers, it is the story of Billie and her best friend Jack who are going to camp out in Jack's back yard in his brand new tent. Billie brings lots of treats, including marshmallows, so they can have a feast at midnight. But midnight is so far away, that the snacks start getting eaten. As their adventure continued and the darkness of night began to settle in, Billie and Jack heard noises and imagined large scary monsters. They were scared, but didn't want to give up their camping trip. The solution to their problem was a simple change of location.

I loved this book for many reasons. First because it took me back to my own childhood and camping, which also included backyard adventures. strange noises, and location changes, although the location change in my case was due to rain. So if you and your children love camping or even if you have never been camping, I think you will enjoy this adventure with Billie and Jack.

Well, that about wraps it up for this week. Join me next week for another exciting episode, same crazy time, same crazy channel. And feel free to drop by my personal website, Fun With Aileen, any day of the week for even more on reading, writing, my very own early grade chapter book, Fern Valley, the sequel, Return To Fern Valley, and the soon to be released Cooking In Fern Valley (fall 2015)! I'm also on twitter @AileenWStewart if you want an extremely brief glimpse into my days.