Short and Sweet

This week was full of busyness with orthodontist appointments, flooring estimates, farmers' market and the like, but this post is short and sweet like summer.

And while summer is nearly over and the farmers' market season is drawing to a close, Bobby, Emily, my sister, and I are still managing some weekend day trips. This past weekend we visited the Findlay, Ohio area where we stopped in at the Findlay Ghost Town. We saw old homes and buildings, listened to a live band, shopped some of the local vendors, and ate some kettle corn and cinnamon pecans.

We also did some geocaching both going and coming.

 

And, as usual, I managed to make a little time for some reading. This week I read Ellie in Concert which is  the newest book in Mike Wu's Ellie series. In the first book Ellie was an artist, but in this story, Ellie turns her talents to music in order to help a tired friend. Mike's soft and adorable illustrations, as well as his fun sense of story, makes this a wonderful read for children from four to eight.

Be sure to stop by again next week when I post about our trip to the Ohio Renaissance Festival. And if you are interested in a trip of your own, check out the following link for a discount! Get $4 off Adult and $2 off Child tickets by using Promo Code "queen17" when purchasing on the secure website at www.renfestival.com. Tickets valid any day of the 2017 season (Saturdays, Sundays, and Labor Day Sept 2 - Oct 29). Online discount only. Not good with any other offers.
http://usfamilycoupons.com/coupon.php… .@usfg

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.

Diving In...

Have you ever heard the old saying, "Dive Right In"? It means to start doing something with enthusiasm. This is pretty much my motto. Each week I dive into Farmers' Market. I post pictures of my vendors and their products like this one of my card vendor Linda's prizes from the fair. I dive into my baking. And I dive into taking care of my customers and vendors alike.

I also dive into my week, scratching each accomplishment off of my to-do list as I finish up.

And I certainly dive into reading picture books for review. So when I went to the library this week to change out the children's display case, you can imagine my delight when the librarian told me the book I was waiting for had arrived. Not long ago I ran into Jess Keating at Nerd Camp MI where we were both presenting and where I learned all about her latest book Shark Lady - The True Story of How Eugenie Clark Became the Ocean's Most Fearless Scientist.

I always want to support fellow authors, but I can't afford to buy every book by every person I know. So, I did the next best thing. I asked my librarian if she would order it. You can do that you know!

And when I began to read, I was really glad I did. Not only do I love biographical picture books, but Jess is a really, really splendid story teller. I adore the way she uses swimming or water related words like "diving" to convey Eugenie's excitement about the ocean, science,and sharks. Now it's your turn to dive into helping a great kidlit author__ go ask your librarian to order a copy too. You won't be sorry.

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.

Bedtime Is Canceled

This past week Bobby, Emily, and I took a day trip in effort to make the last days of summer memorable. And what we found was a rare gem in the Columbus/Dublin area called Hayden Falls. The boardwalk to the a small but beautiful falls was a surprise to find in the middle of the big city.

 

This past weekend I also did something I hardly ever do. I overslept. Yes, the woman who naturally wakes up at around six o'clock every day, overslept. Normally this wouldn't be a problem, but I overslept on Farmers' Market morning. And despite the extra forty minutes of sleep, I was still tired.

Emily and I were a little late. Some of my tables didn't get moved before my vendors set up. And I was a little forgetful. However, market still went pretty well, and the produce my vendors brought photographed beautifully.

I also stopped at my local library and grabbed a few books to read, and lo and behold, I found a book called Bedtime Is Canceled. Now anyone who has ever been a child can remember the efforts made to extend bedtime as far off as possible. And anyone who has ever been a child can probably remember their parents telling them they were not going to stay up all night.

It never kept us from trying though. And the incredibly funny thing about this story is how bedtime mistakenly did get canceled and the ensuing craziness the cancellation brought forth. This book had me laughing with every page turn and is definitely a book I recommend for kids from about five to ten.

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.

A Reunion And A Great AAA-OOO

This past week Emily, her friend, my sister, and I attended a Mud Hens game. This was our second game of the season and since it was the Mascot's birthday there were fireworks after. It's not often we get to enjoy fireworks twice in the same summer.

 

I also attended my thirtieth high school reunion. What can I say? Thirty years. How did thirty years go by so quickly? How can I possibly be pushing fifty when I still feel about twenty-five.
Well enough about my age, it was nice to see many of my classmates again. Especially some who I hadn't seen for thirty years.

 

And I wrapped the week up by reading a funny book by English author/illustrator Jonny Lambert titled The Great AAA-OOO. In this story there is a monster in the woods making horrible noises and all the frightened animals end up in the same tree. The hysterics that ensue are terribly funny and the discovery of the monster's identity might just surprise you.

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.

I'm Back...

As  you all know, I took most of the  month of July off, at least from blogging. However, I still managed, attended, and sold baked goods at the farmers' market. I took Emily to summer reading, swimming, bowling, and we went geo caching as a family.

I attended Nerd Camp Michigan with my friend Deb Boerema where I presented. I met the fabulous Debbie Ohi whom I stalked ( I mean visited with) for two days, and she loved my chocolate cookies. I met Josh Funk and caught up with Joan Ami Paquet.

 

 

 

I got lost in the halls with Kirby Larson, Met the adorable Emily Arrow, Met the oh so funny Chris Grabenstein, and caught up with friends, Kristin Tubb and Brooks Benjamin.
 

 

I watched fireworks with my family.

I attended my second Marvin Memorial Library Board of Trustees meeting where I was sworn in.  I even got a notarized certificate (how cool is that).

I also managed to get all five of my defunct books back on the market when I self published through Ingram Spark, and hosted a small backyard party for Emily.

But the fun didn't end there. I received a picture book in the mail from Susanna Leonard Hill called The Road That Trucks Built. I received this book as a review copy, and my five year old nephew just happened to be visiting that day, so I read it to him. He loved turning the dial on the cover to see the different trucks, and he enjoyed the story. We both particularly liked the little worker birds throughout the illustrations. This book is beautifully told in rhyme and gives kids a basic idea of how a road gets built. I recommend this book for all kids ages three to six!

I hope your summers have been going as splendidly a mine, even if it is going way too fast!

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.