But back to the very cool point, which is naturally attached to a children's book. An absolutely riveting new picture/coffee table book avoids all the election controversy and talk of electoral colleges and political parties and gives us a tribute to the structure that has remained constant since John Adams first brought in his bags in 1800: The White House.

Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out, published just last month by the often innovative Candlewick Press, is a virtual who's who among the stars of the juvenile book world, big-name authors and illustrators including Katherine Paterson, David Macaulay, Eric Carle and Patricia and Fredrick McKissack. This collection of their offerings in the form of essays, artwork, personal accounts, and other creative contributions including poetry was gathered by the National Children's Book and Literary Alliance.

Taking us from the design stage to the lifestyles of presidential pets and children to wartime to the press room, the creators give us much more to chew on than you might even think one building, however historic, could offer. The roles of immigrants, African Americans, and Native Americans are explored as well.

A companion Web site, www.ourwhitehouse.org, includes many other resources on the White House and American history.

This is a much-needed book that won't fade away after the big election is over.

posted by Janie McQueen, author of The New Magic Bookshelf: Finding Great Books Your Child Will Treasure Forever

visit magicbookshelfonline.com

Possible Sights around the World is hot off the presses and already nearly 3,000 copies have been committed to preschoolers throughout Snohomish and King Counties. The book features animals worldwide and includes Spanish translations. It is the newest in a series of three “Possibility” books created by court involved youth participating in our Art Alternatives for Youth at Risk program.

Central to the success of the project are the program’s teaching artists, Henri Wilson and Sharon Dittenberger. Their vision for the book is multi-faceted. It involves engaging students at Denney Juvenile Justice Center and PASS in a project that serves the community, while producing a vibrant learning tool that stimulates creativity and learning in young children.

Possible Sights around the World, as well as the first two books in the series Possible Night of Dreams and A Possible Day on a Farm, are all available for purchase for $5 each in the Gallery Store.

Enjoy a few images and corresponding text from the newest book below...

Text:

A giraffe can reach high up in a tree.

Eating his favorite leaves for free.

Text:

Parrots in Peru,

Perched in Trees,

Talking to each other,

Saying "Look at pretty me!"

Text:

Monkeys, Monkeys,

Messing around,

Throwing bananas,

Acting like clowns.

Happy Reading!  

Written in conversational style as a series of letters, Carle’s book offers encouragement to young artists. Twenty-three illustrators weave together this collection of reminiscences, advice and distinctive art.

The highlight of this book is its artwork.  Each artist contributed sample illustrations, early drawings and a self-portrait, offering twenty-three diverse styles in one collection. The childhood photographs of the artists lend credibility to their words, proving to their pint-sized audience that they too were once children.

The artists in this child-centered book return to their roots, validating childhood experience and praising the honesty and clarity of a child’s vision.  While each artist’s background, method and advice are unique, some recurring themes in these letters are the importance of hard-work, practice, trying new things and learning from failures.

Written for young children (ages 9-12), this book offers artists of any age a window into process and leads the reader to the discovery that childhood dreams can transform into everyday life.

Review excerpts
Starred Review in Kirkus: “Fun to read and view, this anthology is a treasure trove of creative insight and inspiration.”

Review in VOYA: “Fledgling artists seeking encouragement need look no further.”

Starred review in Booklist: “This book is a treasure!”

Connections
All profits from the sale of this book go to the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art.  You can take a virtual tour of the museum at:
http://www.picturebookart.org/Visit/Virtual_Tour

The museum website also offers art activities for young artists.

This book would be a great addition to a genre study of picture books.  Students could try out various artistic styles, pairing them with writing, eventually self-publishing and sharing their text.

My thirteen-year-old artist nagged me until I let her borrow this book; she pored over all the illustrations, talking about the various styles she liked, confirming her own style and technique.  This book validates her own artistic journey.

The story teaches the life cycle of a butterfly, counting to 5, the names of the days of the week, and about different types of food. It is one of the best-selling books of all time.

Interesting fact: In 1999 George.W.Bush listed the book among his favorites as a child. Unfortunately for George he was twenty-three when the book was first published. He has also chosen The Very Hungry Caterpillar to read to elementary school classes, and we all know the magic he spins with a book in his hand.....

The invertebrates were one of our family favorites! Ronito's reaction was best when he went up to the hermit crabs and said: "Mommy! Daddy! This is a hermit crab just like A House for Hermit Crab! I wonder if they have to find him a new house too!" So sweet and what an awesome connection.

Rhi was fascinated with conservation geography and the interactive decision making centers. She especially liked the touch screens where she could see how her choices impacted the surrounding community and then see statistically how many of the visitors to the park agreed or disagreed with her.

Back to the Convention...What a pity that the major networks overlooked the "common folks" that spoke. How can you not love someone like Barney Smith? Oh PBS, how I love thee....

• The Biggest Bear
• Floss
• The Story of Ping
• Goodnight Moon
• Harold and the Purple Crayon
• Prayer for a Child (the original is beautifully illustrated)
• Caps For Sale
• The Story of Babar
• Crictor
• If You Give A Mouse A Cookie
• Mike Mulligan and the Steam Shovel
• The Little Engine That Could
• Blueberries For Sal
• One Morning in Maine
• Make Way for Ducklings
• The Story of Ferdinand
• The Important Book
• Madeline
• Madeline and the Bad Hat
• Madeline and the Gypsies
• Madeline's Rescue
• Madeline's Christmas
• Madeline In London
• Where the Wild Things Are
• Frederick
• Doctor De Soto
• Perfect the Pig
• The Little House
• Fritz and the Beautiful Horses
• White Snow Bright Snow
• The Dancing Bear
• Stone Soup
• The Runaway Bunny
• Pat the Bunny
• Farmer Duck
• Ox-Cart Man
• Curious George (complete series)
• Harry (complete series)
• Mittens (the original is the most beautifully illustrated)

Terrific authors:

• Dr. Seuss (Cat in the Hat etc.)
• Beatrix Potter ( The Tale of Peter Rabbit etc.)
• Eric Carle (The Grouchy Ladybug etc.)
• A.A. Milne (Winnie the Pooh)
• Richard Scarry (Smokey the Fireman etc.)
• Mercer Mayer ( All by Myself etc.)
• James Herriot ( terrific children's illustrated collection i.e. Moses the Kitten etc.)
• Ingri D'Aulaire
• Robert McCloskey

Some of my favorite Little Golden Books:

• Play With Me
• So Big
• The Boy With the Drum
• The Pokey Little Puppy
• Tootle
• My First Counting Book (I love Garth Williams' illustrations)
• The Saggy Baggy Elephant

Some of my favorite children's poets:

• Robert Louis Stevenson
• Margaret Wise Brown
• Rudyard Kipling

And of course:

• Hans Christian Anderson Fairy Tales
• Grimm's Fairy Tales
• Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes

"Children are made readers on the laps of their parents." -- Emilie Buchwald

The Grouchy Ladybug written and illustrated by Eric Carle

This is a really cute book that speaks not only to bullies, but to tantrums as well. The grouchy ladybug comes upon a leaf full of aphids that are already being eaten upon by a lady bug in a much better mood. Instead of being pleasant and sharing the leaf with the other ladybug, the grouchy ladybug wants to fight for it. When the happy ladybug unexpectedly agrees to the fight, the grouchy ladybug hedges and indicates that the other wasn't big enough to bother. Thus begins a trek to find another insect, animal, or mammal big enough to fight (i.e. that is intimidated).

While it's obvious that the moral of this story is that bullies expect their targets to back down. When the bully doesn't get the desired reaction, he or she will move on until it's found. As the mother of a child who used to throw marathon tantrums, I have to laugh at this grouchy little ladybug. My Ally was that grouchy little toddler who just wouldn't give up when her parents didn't capitulate to her tantrums. Often, it took her 30 or 40 minutes until she found the whale who batted her back to the leaf where she started. She has much better control over her emotions and I had almost forgot about those days until I read about that wonderful, grouchy ladybug.

This really is a delightful book with illustrations that live up to what one expects from Eric Carle. This book can encourage little children to be nice and stand up to those who are not. It also can encourage parents of those future grouchy little ladybugs. Eventually he or she will find the whale. Just hang on for the hug that's always there for you at the end.

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To buy this book, click here.

Perhaps the most poignant signal that the season is winding down sounded last night, when I realized the fireflies were starting to disappear. Flitting, delicate acrobats of the twilight, fireflies are a sweet treat of summer worth savoring, like a lime-flavored popsicle on a hot afternoon. They are also fleeting and easy to miss or take for granted, if you don't pay attention, especially in our busy, day-to-day adult lives.

Catching fireflies (or lightning bugs, as they are sometimes called) with bare hands is a ritual my kids and I like to perform every summer. After dinner, we head out to sit beneath a grove of trees or walk along the woods' edge and watch the fireflies rise from the grass, leaping up like green sparks from an unseen fire. Usually it's a catch-and-release activity, but sometimes a few unfortunates wind up in a glass jar on the bedside table. Then later, as the darkness settles in, we'll sit on the screened-in porch to watch the fireflies make their way up into the tree canopy. There they will socialize, or at least the ones that don't get eaten as the bats emerge, and twinkle like Christmas lights long into the night.

There is something quite magical about their little trick, what scientists call "bio-luminescence." It's a unique, cold-chemical reaction that causes their tail-ends to glow green, flashing on and off at will -- and it's an action that is repeated with heat in the heart of every child who catches one. Having caught hundreds, I'm sure, my kids still get giddy with excitement each time they cup a new one between their small palms.

The pedestrian truth is that fireflies are really just beetles, most about the size of a small paperclip. They don't last long, living only about 2 months in the summer, once they have matured. And, though they are quite simple to catch by hand, they (and especially their spirit) are hard to capture or illustrate on paper. In pictures on the Internet, for instance, fireflies just look like ordinary bugs. Or worse. Even at their glowing best, fireflies are not loved by the camera.

Dan Zanes does a good job of capturing the childish wonderment that fireflies engender in his song, "Firefly". I learned to play it on the guitar and sing it to my kids on occasion. But are there many other songs out there that do the same? Not that I could find. The Magnetic Fields recorded "100,000 Fireflies," a typically funny, cynical love song for them. Alan Jackson has a firefly love song, too, and even Faith Hill titled a recent LP "Fireflies," but none of these efforts really has anything to do with the eponymous insect.

The Japanese poet Issa wrote 100 or so haiku about his encounters with fireflies. Often joyful ("a flower big / as an umbrella-hat / fly there firefly!"), usually humorous ("blown away / by the horse's fart / a firefly"), sometimes sad ("do you think my sleeve / is your parent? / fleeing firefly"), Issa's poems, though written 200 years ago and half a world away, paint a vivid picture that anyone waking their summer lawn can appreciate. The Web site HaikuGuy has a nice collection that you can search. Eric Carle's book, "The Very Lonely Firefly," also captures the universal magic of the experience when a swarm of fireflies literally lights up at the end of the story.

To get to heart of the real firefly experience, then, you have to have your own close encounter. So go out tonight and watch the remaining fireflies rise up out of the grass or twinkle their way into the treetops. Don't wait another day. These seasonal tourists won't stick around much longer and they will not be back until next summer.

The Mixed-Up Chameleon written and illustrated by Eric Carle

This picture book tells the story of a chameleon who is no longer satisfied with himself when he ventures into a zoo and sees all of the other wonderful animals. After trying out parts of each animal, he discovers that he is happiest just being himself. The Mixed-Up Chameleon is a wonderful book that teaches children both about chameleons and about learning to love themselves for who they are. That lesson, when done well, cannot be over taught.

My daughters received this book as a gift from a dear friend. Because of Eric Carle's beautiful artistry, The Mixed-Up Chameleon is as fun to look at as it is to read. It's also a nice change of pace that it isn't geared toward girls alone. I would highly recommend this book as a gift for any young child. It's sure to be treasured.

*******

To buy this book, click here.

At our local branch of the library, there are two long shelves that are usually filled with board books (we only read board books because someone has a tendency to tear the pages of regular books - I won't name names here). Since the summer reading program began, the two shelves are only about a quarter filled. Which means Columbus is reading this summer! 

This got me thinking about pumpkin's favorite books...because I was wondering, can I count the same book more than once for the contest since she makes me read them ten times a day? (I decided to only count each book once, regardless of how many times I have read it that day.) Here is a list of some of her current favorites:

The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
Amazing Baby: Night-Night, Baby! by A. Wood 
Time for Bed by Mem Fox and Jane Dyer
Good Night Gorilla by Peggy Rathmann 
That's Not My Puppy: Its Coat Is Too Hairy by Fiona Watt and Rachel Wells
One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish by Dr. Seuss and Theodor Seuss Geisel 
The Going to Bed Book and Barnyard Dance by Sandra Boynton 
Ten Little Ladybugs by Melanie Gerth and Laura Huliska-Beith 
You're My Little Love Bug by Heidi R. Weimer 

What is your little one's favorite book?

[Photo Credit: Book]

Eric Carle's collage-style illustrations are always a treat. This is the classic story of a hungry little caterpillar, the unusual stuff he eats, and his transformation into a butterfly at the end. You'll read this over and over.

Gratitude—it’s a gift that small children still value, yet somewhere along the way consumerism seems to seep in corrupt this still pool of satisfaction. I noticed this while reading a selection of new Mother’s Day books from HarperCollins. They desperately addressed the same issue: Mom doesn’t really want something for Mother’s day. What she longed for the most was love and appreciation.

In Daine de Groat’s book, Mother, You’re the Best! (But Sister, You’re a Pest!), Gilbert the opossum searches for just the right Mother’s Day gift. In this hardback picture book designed for ages 3-8, Gilbert’s little sister Lola keeps upstaging him. In the end, his quest to keep his sister preoccupied turns out to be the perfect gift. This adorable book not only suggests that the best Mother’s Day gifts are free, but address sibling rivalry as well.

Another humorous Mother’s Day picture book, T. Rex and the Mother’s Day Hug by Lois G. Grambling, pokes fun at the bigger is better mentality that tends to get so many of us in trouble. As T. Rex considers his gift giving options, his mother assures him that a big hug is more than enough. But T. Rex wants to do MORE: a strategy that hasn’t really worked out for him in the past. Although T. Rex goes overboard yet again, in the end he manages to get it just right.

However, the mother themed picture book favored by my three-year-old daughter was a cherished classic: Does a Kangaroo Have a Mother Too? (Spanish Edition). This fabulous book features Eric Carle’s timeless illustrations and embraces the simple premise that everyone has a mother giving young readers a moment to reflect on what it means to have a mother.

And that’s all we really want—to be appreciated. As I was writing this post today, my daughter woke up and brought me a simple card and gave me a big hug and kiss. Jewelers will tell you we deserve diamonds, florists will recommend flowers, and connectionists will tell you we crave chocolates, but gratitude is the greatest gift of all—both for the giver and recipient. Although we do deserve diamonds (about 270,000 dollars worth each year), love is priceless.

Despite careful handling and regular polishing, silverware tends to tarnish very quickly. This is primarily due to the inherent propensity of silver to be oxidized when in contact with air. For repairs and restoration, Lunt is closely associated with Roger Jette Silversmiths in Massachusetts. With such careful handling of nuances, Lunt Silverware has managed to maintain its standing in the international market. Flatware being a very popular bridal gift, Lunt Patterns remains a favorite. Notwithstanding tough competition, Lunt silverware, inclusive of both sterling silver and stainless, remains a mark of excellence.

The Lunt group of companies includes several top designs and manufacturing units. With its headquarters at Greenfield, Massachusetts, it has many subsidiaries to manufacture international quality silverware. Couzon, USA, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Lunt. Couzon specializes in 18/10 stainless steel Flatware of traditional French design and size. Lunt Stainless flatware is designed with rich, multi-dimensional appointments. Made from the finest 18/10 stainless materials, our stainless patterns set new standards for contemporary metalsmithing and tabletop style. Please purchase on online http://www.etabletop.com/

My family and I are off for a long weekend in Western and Central Massachusetts. This trip will include stops at tons of places I find inspiring. Among them is the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art. I visited the museum just after it opened and I fell in love. I have been dying to share the museum with my husband and little girl. The exhibits are lovely and there is also "the studio" where children and adults can make their own art project based on one of the exhibits currently on display. Last time I was there it was creating a collage with Dutch imagery. This weekend we can "create a collage using positive and negative space."

I also plan to visit Essentials, various antique barns, and the home of Baba Reens and the egg dance. I am so excited I could plotz!

I have been promised home baked cookies and a craft night - woohoo!

As tempting as it is to bring my laptop in order to stay connected, I am refraining because we are bringing:

• One suitcase
• One of the extra-huge LL Bean Boat n' Tote bags
• One craft carrier
• One camera bag
• One Pack n' Play
• One stroller
• One car seat (we don't own a car so this counts as luggage because we have to install it in the rental before we go)

Besides, as much as I enjoy crafting and blogging, a girl has got to unplug every so often...

This is, by far, the coolest thing I've made for Sam. It's fun, educational, and really, really easy to make. The characters got a bit tedious, but it paid off in the end. Plus, you can find great pieces for different stories off of Ebay and Etsy too, I'm sure. In fact, we just ordered a "5 Little Monkeys Swinging From a Tree" set for 5 buckaroos.

Materials needed:

*Particle board - 99 cents at hardware store

*Felt - at Wal-Mart you can ALWAYS find felt and/or flannel (they both work well) material in the clearance bin. They also have very cheap pre-cut 8x10 pieces to get more color for cheap without having to buy a yard.

*Material scissors and paper scissors

*Hot glue gun w/extra glue

*Regluar kid's glue

*Crayons/markers/color printer

*Cardboard - I just used old boxes

*Paintbrush

*Fine sandpaper

******************************************

I literally, as you can see, just glued the felt onto the particle board with a glue gun and the board was done. Then I cut out a makeshift (though not perfect) alphabet, some shapes, a few flowers and trees, etc. I made sure that all of the letters in Samuel D were in one color to make it easier to find his name spelled out. And he was ready to play. Later on I printed out a bunch of templates found here and colored them in. You can also make up your own from a story you know and use a Google image search, but I'm less creative than some and need structured craft ideas. I colored the pages, cut them out, and then painted glue over every last inch of paper on the backand laid it out on cardboard. Once that was dry I cut out the cardboard as carefully as I could in order to retain the shape. Hot glue the sandpaper to the back and you have characters that stick to the board. I originally had planned to laminate the characters and pictures, but when I took the stuff to Kinko's it was $1.99 for just one sheet. And that's not frugal. I actually think I like this better, anyway, because Sam has something large and chunky to hold onto. *Note: If you use heavy sandpaper it will pill the felt on the board. I used super thin sandpaper.

To play with this sometimes Sam will do alone pretend play, sometimes we will do other fun things like have the animals/people be friends and do imagination play that way. Mostly I read a story, as in Brown Bear, Brown Bear by Eric Carle with all the animals laid out and have him find the animal we are talking about and put it on the board. Sam knows all of the colors and I think it's primarily due to this game.

Have fun. I LOVE bringing out the felt board. Especially on rainy days!

Lunt Silversmiths has longstanding partnerships with world-class metalsmiths, and the Lunt family of companies includes several top design and manufacturing companies. Our headquarters and home manufacturing facility is located in Greenfield, Massachusetts. Our subsidiaries represent the best in tableware and giftware manufacturing from around the world. etabletop currently have a first class products to the U.S. markets and beyond. Lunt present a wide range of product offerings to the marketplace, all supported with decades of fine design and manufacturing experience. Choose Lunt for great selections of sterling silver, silverplated, and mixed media Lunt babyware.

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Lunt Silversmiths has longstanding partnerships with world-class metalsmiths, and the Lunt family of companies includes several top design and manufacturing companies. Our headquarters and home manufacturing facility is located in Greenfield, Massachusetts. Our subsidiaries represent the best in tableware and giftware manufacturing from around the world. We currently have a wholly-owned that offers first class products to the U.S. markets and beyond. Both Lunt and Couzon present a wide range of product offerings to the marketplace, all supported with decades of fine design and manufacturing experience.

Choose Lunt for great selections of sterling silver, silverplated, and mixed media babyware. Fine design, unparalleled craftsmanship, and the highest quality materials create sterling baby gifts to be treasured for generations. The Lunt name began in 1900, and they have always been known for their high quality. It's also the only American silver manufacturer that is still run by family members, including James Lunt and Colby Lunt. Being privately held means that there isn't outside pressure to sacrifice on quality, and Lunt Silversmiths prides itself on maintaining very high standards of quality. Lunt sterling silver flatware is still manufactured in Greenfield, Massachusetts. Please purchase on online http://www.etabletop.com/

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