Coloring Page Tuesday - Loving Lizards

     I love lizards. Lizards love lizards!
     I know Valentine's Day is a ways away, but it is never too soon for love. CLICK HERE for more coloring pages
     Remember, I create my coloring pages to draw your attention to my books! Especially... Merbaby's Lullaby! Click the cover to learn about this sweet lullaby board book written by New York Times Best-selling author, Jane Yolen! Makes a GREAT baby shower gift!
     I create my coloring pages for teachers, librarians, booksellers, and parents to enjoy for free with their children, but you can also purchase rights to an image for commercial use, please contact me. If you have questions about usage, please visit my Angel Policy page.


Sign up for KidLit News (formerly e's news)!

Natasha Trethewey at the Taubman Museum of Art!

Pulitzer Prize-winner and Hollins University alumna Natasha Trethewey did a reading at the Taubman Museum of Art in downtown Roanoke, Virginia on Friday, in celebration of the new edition of the Artemis Journal. Trethewey served two terms as the 19th Poet Laureate of the United States under Barack Obama from 2012-2014. Meanwhile, the Artemis Journal has been publishing since 1977. Begun as an advocate of civil rights and in defense of domestic abuse victims, Artemis "highlights the voices of artists and writers who uphold the values of the Greek lunar goddess for which the journal was named." The journal brings together an annual showcase of exceptional writing and art primarly from creators in the Blue Ridge Mountains.      While Trethewey has offered one of her poems for the publication every year, she rarely makes it to town to do an actual reading. Luckily, this year she did! It was part of her celebrating her forthcoming release, The House of Being (Why I Write) (April 2025).
     I had the pleasure of having lunch with librarian Sheila Umberger, the director of our Roanoke libraries, and Jeri Rogers, the founder and editor of the journal, a few months ago when the idea of inviting Trethewey to town was first being discussed. What a pleasure it was to be around such dynamic women who make such powerful things happen in the community. Because truly, this was a magical event. First, the Taubman is such a lovely and welcoming space, and the area where Trethewey spoke was filled with gold chairs, color-lit walls, and smiling faces as she read poem after breathtaking poem.      I attended with several neighborhood friends, Julie, Don, and new neighbors Allan, Ginger, and Laurie; however, I somehow didn't get a photo of us, but did get a photo of Emily and James, our Hollins Registrar and my boss, the currently-titled director of graduate studies. They've become good friends. In all, there were tons of people I knew at the event from Hollins and the neighborhood; so, me being me, I had fun flitting around like a social butterfly saying 'hi' to everyone.      You can purchase a copy of this year's Artemis Journal by clicking HERE.

Sign up for KidLit News (formerly e's news)!

Creative Writing Parties and Dunk-a-Dean

I have landed in such a marvelous place here at Hollins University. I'm constantly reminded by how lucky I am to be here. A good example was this past Friday. The Creative Writing department threw a party for undergraduate and graduate students to let them meet the faculty and learn more about the program. Since my office is on the main floor in the English building, I joined in and had wonderful conversations with the brilliant students studying here. Many didn't know about our graduate studies in children's literature and illustration, so I got to tell them about it. But mostly, I just enjoyed catching up with my colleagues after everyones' busy summers, and meeting these bright new minds.
     So, I was already smiling as I headed to lunch - yes, I get a lovely lunch in our Moody Dining Hall every day - when I came across this. My friend Chanelle (not shown) had set up a fundraiser for our on-campus food pantry to help students in need, by bringing in a dunking booth! It cost $5 for three balls to throw at the red dot. The Moody cashier, Tammy, dunked Chanelle on her first try! So funny!
     I've already established that I have a crap throwing arm, so I purchased three balls and handed them out to eager students. That, and it would feel a bit weird to dunk a friend with evil glee!
     Needless to say, I had a big smile on my face as I left the dining hall and they were still at it. I hope they raised scads of money (I'm pretty sure they did). And this was all before 1:00pm on a gorgeous, sunny day at beautiful Hollins! And then there was the Natasha Trethewey reading that evening (that I talk about in another post). What a happy day!

Sign up for KidLit News (formerly e's news)!

Convocation Fall 2024!

Some days are just better than others, and Tuesday was simply one of those days! It began with a "State of the University" lecture by our always inspiring President Hinton (we're doing well!), followed by break-out sessions on specific topics concerning the university. Those ended just in time for a white table-cloth barbeque lunch on The Quad at the center of campus. (Sadly, I didn't get any photos of that!) It was a perfect day in the 70s and not a dark cloud in the sky and I was feeling every bit of that "Hollins magic" I talk so much about.
     Back at my office I was thrilled, thrilled, thrilled to be greeted by our now year-round students in our MFA in Children's Book Writing and Illustrating - the very first year-round class! I am so giddy to have our students on campus with me year-round, I can't even tell you! My inner Mama Bear is all fuzzy happy. But I couldn't talk long, because there was more! We had to get ready for convocation!
     I love putting on my academic robes, it makes me so happy. We all line up on the quad (already cleaned up from lunch). Here I am with (from the left) our new Biology Professor Shaun Davis; our retiring Museum Director Jenine Culligan; Librarian Maryke Barber; me; and Economics Professor Pablo Hernandez. Hollins seniors get to don their own hand-crafted robes for convocation and we all line up in front of the Cocke (administration) building to head over to the chapel. The chapel is gorgeous inside and has great acoustics for the chorus led by Shelbie Wahl-Fouts. They sang twice in between more inspiring talks given by President Hinton, the Student-body President, and others. I always walk away from these events standing a little bit taller.
     From there we headed back to the Quad where the seniors celebrate another annual ritual, the spraying of the champagne to kick off the new academic year! They paint their bottles to go with their colorful robes, shake them up, and on the count of three, POP!!! (I'm pretty sure this isn't the kind of champagne you would want to drink.) There's lots of screaming and laughing and faculty make sure not to stand too close. But there is not a frown in sight during this joyous affair!! And that was the day as a wrap - a very good day!!!

Sign up to receive my KidLit Newsletter!

Honoring the Hollins U Mission

President Hinton is a ROCK STAR and we are so lucky to have her leading us! Every talk she gives is equally as inspiring and uplifting as this one. I'm so proud to be working with her at Hollins U!

Washington, DC! Part 2

I had to go see what the Eastern Market turns into on a Saturday, and by golly they weren't kidding! Remember the "before" view from my last post? Well, check out the transformation a day makes! Inside, was a full-time market full of fish-mongers, butchers, delis,and wonderful things to purchase that I wish I could get where I live!
Julie and I set out to explore and went all over the place, and after seeing this masterpiece by Henry Moore, we headed to the official Sculpture Garden (I love sculpture gardens.)There, I found a Lichtenstein almost identical to the one that sits outside the High Museum of Art in Atlanta. It felt like a sign. So Stan is now in the sculpture garden near the Lichtenstein, so he got to enjoy my DC adventure too. We stopped to enjoy a spot o' tea in the café there by the fountain before moving on.      DC is a very walkable town, but I have to admit, despite walking/working out every day, I am not in as good shape as I would like. So the pure excitement and adrenalin of this beautiful city kept me going! Truly, I think the word "awesome" was created for DC specifically. I'm used to European cities with their tight pathways and ancient architecture. Well, DC has its own thing going on. It is newer, yet GRAND,breathtaking, clean, well-cared for, and it made me feel patriotic just to be there. This is OUR capital, and it is IMPRESSIVE. I'm jealous that France gets to ride her bike all over this city every day. (Here are France and Julie.)      Since the trip was all about researching books, it felt appropriate to go to the Library of Congress, a place I'd never been. How inspiring that it is just behind the Capital Building - it reflects the importance literacy, education, and intelligent contemplation had on the formation and foundation of this country.      I have to say, I was completely blown away when we walked into the Library of Congress.I literally got chill bumps and tears in my eyes.What an awe-inspiring place!Not one inch of the building hadn't been made beautiful in its construction. This was the ceiling.And there were lovely quotes inset everywhere.As a student, France used to do her research at the LoC, and you can still reserve a spot today (if you don't mind folks staring at you from above).It was very humbling to think that my books are most likely available here, being stored deep in the bowels of this amazing edifice. France, Julie and I were so impressed, we agreed to take a picture from below (something women rarely do for obvious reasons) just to show the grandeur above us.       They were hosting a show of Thomas Jefferson's personal library. It was so interesting to see the books he'd read. He was not a perfect man, by any means, but he was certainly a well-read man! There was even a Scottish connection in his collection with the philosopher HUME, whose house and sculpture I used to pass all the time in Edinburgh.      What a wonderful trip to pair with the Building Stories exhibit. This is what I'll do with my students when they join me later this year.
     Afterwards, we decided to visit my parent's old stomping grounds. My mom spent a semester at Georgetown University when she was in college. Wow.
And she and my dad used to eat burgers at The Tombs.Here's to you, Mom and Dad!      From there it was time to catch the train back to Roanoke from Union Station. It was a very quick trip, but so worth it! And now I know how to help my students make the most of it as well. I can't wait to return with them!

To follow our adventures when we go, sign up for our KidLit News (formerly e's news)!

Washington, DC! Part 1

I'm hoping to take my students on a field trip to Washington, DC to see the Building Stories exhibit at the National Builders Museum; but I hadn't been to DC since my early 20s and I hadn't taken Amtrak to DC yet, even though it's a fairly common thing for folks to do from Roanoke. So, I wanted to do a dry run of the trip to learn the route before I have students in my care.
     Happily, my friend Julie was not only up for the adventure, she also has a close friend who lives in DC and was happy to host us. So we packed up our weekend bags and arrived at the train platform much earlier than we needed to (lesson #1). It was SO GOOD to be on a train again! It reminded me of being on the train between Edinburgh and Glasgow and just made me silly happy. I had heard that whereas UK trains run along coastlines and through beautiful scenery, US trains tend to run through ugly industrial areas. Well, that turned out to be a myth. Most of the ride was absolutely gorgeous. The seats were comfortable, the bathrooms were clean, the food in the cafe car was decent. Trains are such a civilized way to travel!
     We arrived at Union Station in the rain where Julie's friend France picked us up. We headed to her place and fell over. The forecast was rain for the whole weekend, but we lucked out and it was mostly only overcast. Turned out France lives on the sweetest street in Captial Hill where townhouses line up like the most charming doll houses. And joyful things pop up around every corner.
We were staying not far from Eastern Market, I was told it would transform on Saturday, but on Friday, it was still rather quiet. Here's Julie in front. Meanwhile, the point of our visit was to head to the National Builders Museum. This required taking the Metro (lesson #2!) and seeing some very cool things. What a building! The inside was equally as stunning.After getting our tickets, I noticed these tiny chairs on display - all mid-century modern - so cute! Then we made our way to the exhibit.The show was curated by the esteemed academic and children's book expert, Leonard Marcus, in conjunction with award-winning author/illustrator David Macaulay. The first exhibit you see when inside is a wall of books representing the alphabet. That was nice enough, but following that was examples of some of the finest works-of picture book art ever created. Among them, Margaret Wise Brown,; The Slant Book by Peter Newell,a book dummy by Sophie Blackall of her book Lighthouse. . And a book called Migrant that I'd never seen before but will be purchasing for our Margaret Wise Brown Reading Room! Seeing these books will help students understand that picture books aren't just about getting published, they can be about creating masterpieces.
     But the main part of the exhibit I really want students to see is the work by David Macaulay. Not only did he cover the walls of the exhibit with custom drawings... there is an entire room dedicated to the work he did for just one of his books, Rome Antics. The book took him years to complete, and the walls are covered with his sketches. So many creators believe that one, two, or three drafts is enough to reach a finished result. But David created hundreds of sketches during his process. Hundreds. It was humbling, overwhelming, and inspiring. Yeah, I definitely want my students to see THAT!
     That evening we had dinner at a lovely restaurant near France's place called Pacci's. We started with a beet salad to share. Being so close to the Chesapeake, I had to get the softshell crab pasta special. OMG, it was so good, and it came with three softshell crabs - three!!! One of these days I'll tell you about my history with crabbing on the Chesapeake and in the bay at Destin. They're fun stories. At any rate, it was a good day and there was more to come!