All American Summer Fun

When I was growing up I often heard the statement "As American As Baseball and Apple Pie." So it was exciting when we found out we had won four tickets to a Mud Hens' game this past week through the Northern Ohio Scholarship Fund. Bobby isn't that fond of sports, so Emily, her bestie Rachel, my sister, and I headed out for some all American summer fun!

The NOSF not only offered us tickets, but we were invited to share in a buffet which featured the most interesting cake for dessert that I have ever eaten. It turned out to be a sheet cake that was a yeast doughnut that had been frosted. The girls posed with the team mascots Muddy and Mudonna. And Rachel even ended up with a pop fly game ball.

The rest of our week included other all American past times like swimming, attending Farmers' Market where our friend Katie was a jr. chef for the day, and baking. I attempted my first ever loaf of Italian bread which I sliced, topped with home made garlic spread, and melted slices of mozzarella. The beautiful thing about America is that even Italian bread can be an American experience since our country is such a melting pot of people and cultures.

And of course, I read. I read Lottie's New Beach Towel which is a fun story of how Lottie the chicken makes great and multiple use of a beach towel her aunt sent her. The illustrations are done in little blocks with most pages having two blocks that help tell the story beautifully. This book was published some time back, but it is definitely worth checking to see if your local library has a copy. Or you can find a used copy online.

I also read Surfer Chick which is a totally awesome and gnarly surfer rhyming book about a chick who learns to surf from her amazing surfer dad. Definitely a fun read. I'm not sure how I ended up with two chicken books where the characters were at the beach, but there you have it.

Well, that about wraps it up for this week. Join me next week for another exciting episode, same crazy time, same crazy channel. Also be sure to drop by Literacy Musings Mondays for more great blogs as well as 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 @AileenWStewart if you want an extremely brief glimpse into my days.

Meeting Friends At The Library__ Sort Of__ Part Two

Last week I wrote a piece about finding books at the library written or illustrated by friends. I also shared my friend Dandi's good news. On that same trip to the library, I saw the name Ohi on the spines of two books.  At first I thought it might be works by my friend, Debbie Ohi, the illustrator who  delights me with her daily doodle drawings. She is also the illustrator who is illustrating the new covers for the soon to be re-released Judy Bloom books.

The books I pulled off of the shelf, however, were written and illustrated by her sister, Ruth Ohi. It's not often that you find two such talented people in the same family, so I grabbed The Couch Was A Castle and Chicken, Pig, Cow and added them to my stack.

The Couch Was A Castle is an adorable book that reminded me of my very own living room couch that so often turns into a fort. You just have to love the imagination of a child who creates fantastic dreams from an ordinary every day item. Be it a castle, a leaky boat, or a dark cave, a couch can be an incredible thing. Ruth's book is also an incredible thing with adorable illustrations and incredibly cute characters.

Chicken, Pig, Cow was also a fantastic book. I loved the characters, I loved the illustrations, I loved the drooly dog that solved the barn door problem. I loved the fact that cow passed out when the drooly dog cuddle up to him, but claimed he had made a new friend when he woke up. A very fun book for children four to eight.

Not only do I find being an author incredibly fun, but I find exploring the works of my friends to be incredibly fun and rewarding as well.

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, and my soon to be released sequel, Return To Fern Valley, coming summer of 2014! I'm also on twitter @AileenWStewart if you want an extremely brief glimpse into my days.


Waiting For Spring...

Now that we've entered March, we know that spring is just around the corner. March, however is an unpredictable month full of roller coaster temperatures. Take, for instance, this past week in my beautiful state of Ohio, sixty degrees one day and twenty the next. So as I sit here writing this blog post, I am grateful that the books I chose to review this week are books that gently remind us of what awaits. Books that will hopefully linger on our minds like the delicate beauty of newly blossomed violets.

The first book in my lineup is Chicken In The Kitchen by Tony Johnston. Told in rhyme and accompanied by deliciously cute illustrations, this book takes us on Dog's journey to make his chicken happy. Dog's chicken runs willy nilly about the kitchen until Dog finally figures out what his chicken wants. Once he figures it out, Chicken is not only happy, but Dog's ends up with an unexpected surprise. Pretty sure both your boys and girlies from ages four to eight will enjoy this happy book.

Next I read The Imaginary Garden by Andrew Larsen. Such a great book to read as I notice small growing things begin to emerge in my flower beds. In The Imaginary Garden, Theo and Poppa enjoy passing the time of day sitting in his garden underneath a beautiful tree. But one day Poppa moves and there is no room for a garden in his new apartment. All is not lost, however, as Poppa teaches Theo to use her greatest gift, a glorious imagination. Children and adults alike will enjoy the imaginary garden that Theo and Poppa create, and who knows, perhaps it will inspire you to create an imaginary garden of your own!

Wrong Way, by Danish author Mark Macleod, turned out to be a delightful book about a mother and her three baby ducks. Wrong Way isn't like his siblings, and doesn't do anything quite the way Momma tells him. But even Momma comes to recognize that doing things differently isn't necessarily wrong. You might have a harder time fining this book unless you find a used copy, but it's worth checking to see if your library carries a copy.

And last but certainly not least, I read Fluffy and Baron which was written and illustrated by Laura Rankin.  Baron is a gorgeous German Shepherd who makes friends with a small duckling named Fluffy who comes into his life. Soon they do everything together, that is, until some wild ducks show up. will this be the end of Baron and Fluffy's friendship, or will Fluffy come back to him?

This last book reminded me a bit of the Fluffy that came into our life. Our Fluffy is a cat and not a duck, but we love her none the less. She likes to hide among Emily's stuffed babies. Can you find her?

Where In The World Is Fluffy?

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, and my soon to be released sequel, Return To Fern Valley, coming summer of 2014! I'm also on twitter @AileenWStewart if you want an extremely brief glimpse into my days.