Holiday Greetings......

   I want to wish all of my friends and family a happy and joyous holiday season-It's a Merry Christmas day here in my world. My heart and home had been filled with the spirit of love and giving, thankfulness and groups of nativity sets that remind me of a special baby's birth- my 'reason'.
   I've been cooking all the seasonal sweety things for neighbors and friends and they've been doing the same for me.  And then, two days ago, Mother nature spread the royal icing on the Christmas cake and brought the snow miracle, just in time!

                                                                                   

Beautiful!

  Well of course I had to stop everything and go out and play. Some of you have seen this but continue on to see 'the rest of the story'!

   After I coaxed Santa to hang out hang around here, I got back to being busy: cooking, wrapping, delivering and sitting with neighbors for tea along the way. Last night niece Tiff and family came for supper, and the baby kept us entertained throughout the evening. Today, is a day to get together with the other kids (mine)...happy happy happy!!!!
         Here's my card for you. I hope you're all filled with this season's love and hope.

And speaking of hope, here's a wish to all of you, especially my writer friends - May all of our dreams come true in 2012.

Oh, and for  the rest of the story above, poor guy had a  busy busy night! He can hardly stand up!

    

     HO HO HO!!!!!!

What Does MAX Say and Lots of Surprises

When I grow up I want to be a writer just like...well it changes at least monthly but today it’s...Oh wait, I’ll tell you in a minute!

It’s December and Christmas is in the air filled with many traditions. But it’s unbelievably year’s end too though I’m not about to rush it. 

PiBoIdMo is sadly winding down after a November of intense jotting and filling pages and pages of of picture book ideas and chatting. I’m so excited about some of the ideas I came up with. I’ve actually completed a story from one of those sparks and will send it off to my critique friends for their ideas.

 Having completed the challenge made me a winner too, so went over and collected my badge. Looking at this really excites me to think that I have more than thirty picture book ideas to flesh out.

and...because my lucky # was drawn at the end of this little journey, I’ll be receiving a beautiful photo of my choice!  Tara Lazar kept us motivated for the month with all the posts and  guest presenters. I think that so much of what we know and learn is review and reinforcement. I met lots of new friends there too. I'm kind of sad it's over, but it's time to write!    

Speaking of winnings, I won another prize that I all I had to do was enter, at www.readerkidz.com . 
They're having a holiday giveaway and Stephanie Greene signed this and sent it quicker than a blink! How easy was that! It’s a delightful chapter book that I intend to pass on to a princess as soon as I finish “studying” it! 

A few more prizes that I received this week were

a home made rice pack

and hand crafted wreath

Beautiful surprises from beautiful friends.

Had the baby girl yesterday so the nieces could do a bit of shopping. She’s such a busy body,  so aware of what’s going on around her and here! I often read to her, but only have one board book that I leave out for us to “read” together. Yesterday, after her mom came home and we were sitting here chatting, my husband asked baby (she’s 14 months), “What does Max say?”

And she surprised all of us when she answered , “BANG!” 

The words and structure of the Max books by Rosemary Wells seem almost too simple. I wonder if maybe I try to write things too complicated and explanatory. I’ve studied all 58 words in Max’s First Word because our Marissa gave her uncle her first real answer to a question. A direct quote "right out of the book - "Bang!" 


And that takes me right back to the beginning. When I grow up, I want to be a writer like Rosemary Wells!   Now I guess I'd better get busy.