Eric Carle’s “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” is celebrating it's 3rd Annual Very Hungry Caterpillar Day today! This year, the Very Hungry Caterpillar has partnered with Pottery Barn Kids for some very special mommy and me time. Today from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. all Pottery Barn Kids stores will be hosting a series of free activities for families. This will include story time and a reading of the Very Hungry Caterpillar and his adventures into becoming a butterfly.
They are also hosting a giveaway on my blog. You can win a copy of the Very Hungry Caterpillar book. Also, I wanted to inform you with GREAT news! In addition to winning a copy of the Very Hungry Caterpillar book, you will also be able to add a combo pack including the Very Hungry Caterpillar bath mitt and the Very Hungry Caterpillar bubble set.
It is easy enough to win. Just leave me a comment telling me of your favorite childhood stories to read to the kiddos along with a way to contact you (aka an email). That counts as one entry. If you wish extra entries you may get an extra for following me on GFC, Twitter or Facebook. Please leave a comment for each that you do along with a way to contact you. Also, this giveaway is currently only available to residents of the U.S.
Hannah and the Talking Tree by Elke Weiss is my picked for a Christmas gift to my BFF daughter. We (my BFF) have been friends since we were 10 years old. Yes, a very long time. She has a adorable young daughter that sees life as an exploration. I love that about her. A toy is not just a toy, it is an expression of herself. She paints beautiful pictures to put up in her hall gallery. And being the eco lil self she is...each painting can be used on both sides of the paper.
One of the things I love that my BFF has taught her daughter is to be ecologically minded. We learned this when I was in junior high. It was not being green or frugal or trendy. It was told to us that we needed to learn to recycle and reuse to save our earth. To just make it a way of life. And we took it to heart. Well my gift this year helps follow that process. (Oh and I always give books to her daughter.) Hannah and the Talking Tree is described as: “This is a charming book for your youngsters about being different, learning to listen and the importance of saving the trees on our planet. It is a cute and colorful story about a little girl named Hannah who is different than others because of her big ears but those ears can hear things that most can not. Hannah learns how she should help save the trees and how to get others to help. This is an environmental story that your children will love to hear. The Dove "Family-Approved" seal for all ages is awarded to this wonderful children's book.” It is also a GOLD MEDAL WINNER of the 2010 Moonbeam Children's Book Award. I also like that it is printed on recycled paper. This will make my BFF happy too!
DISCLOSURE: I received a complimentary copy of this book to facilitate this review. No other compensation was provided.
I have Princess Emma with me today. And since I am not feeling too well I need a break. Thankfully Emma loves stories and will have me read one book right after another. You know how that goes. But today I can not read like that.
So, instead we are heading over to Story Time for Me. It is a great place that has children's stories that are read for you. Interactive too! You not only see the words, they are highlighted as they are read. And the pictures are not still, not instead they also move with the story. With 3 different story lines and over 50 children’s books to be read, this is an answer to my prayers today.
Now I can have Princess Emma entertained and learning while I lay here half dead. Sorry to say that, but some days we are not up to our full potential. Would you like this same option? You can try it out. FREE!
Yeah the magic word was just spoken. All of my readers......here that? ALL OF MY READERS, can have 2 FREE stories from Story Time for Me. Easy peasy! Andrew was so kind to also let me have free stories for sharing with you. So, go get yours. Yeah, this is one of those great days when all is going right.
To receive your two free stories and see the benefits for yourself, you have two options. In the first option, you receive two free stories to enjoy with your children. The second options gives you the opportunity to receive 10 additional free stories.
Option 1: To receive 2 free stories: Email Andrew@StoryTimeForMe.com with the following in the subject line: "2 Books: Referred by Crazed Mind @ theysayimnuts.blogspot.com.
Then in the body of the email add your first and last name, email address, your child's first name and birth date (if you have more than one child, send the name/birthday of the child most likely to use the stories the most). You will receive an email confirmation from info@StoryTimeForMe.com within one business day. Please be sure to add the email to your address book so that you will be sure to receive the code for your two free children's storybooks.
That's all there is to it, and nothing to buy! Just pick out the two free stories you would like and start enjoying!
Option 2: Refer 5 of your friends or relatives that have children ages 1-8 who would like to receive two free stories. Then:
1. "like" Story Time For Me on facebook here:
2. Make a facebook post on your wall encouraging your friends to check out Story Time For Me and to take advantage of the 2 free stories.
3. In order to count for the 5 referrals, the five friends/relatives must actually sign up for the 2 free stories following the rules in Option 1 (at no cost to them).
4. Send Andrew a private message on his facebook here:
telling him the names and email addresses of the five friends/relatives who signed up, as well as your full name and email address to receive your extra 10 free stories.
Remember, this is not a contest to enter and see if you win. ALL of you automatically "win" the two free stories!
Have y'all heard about this weather we are having in Texas? Now snow is not that common here. And this is our 3rd snow storm this winter. Quite uncommon for us. I am going stir crazy here myself. I miss the warmth and sunshine and being outdoors and and and and....you know what I mean.
Well, the lil ladies that I help care for feel the same way. We have been experiencing the kiddie 5000 in my living room and dining room. Where they run in circles over and over again. I let them so they can get their energy level out....kid energy is everlasting I think. But we need some quiet time. Especially when the youngest lil lady has to take her nap. Thankfully I have 3 new children's books for us to enjoy. You may wanna look them up too. "I' Up in a Tree" by Mark Alden Johnson has the brightest pictures. The ladies loved the stimulation of the greens, blues, reds and all. I enjoyed how it helped the figure out a solution to a problem. There is a great sing song to the words that makes the book sing to the girls. And it was nice to help them decide how to listen for the right decisions. I am so glad that currently we are not "Up in a Tree" too! Next we moved on to a Texas writer, Rima H. Corral. She was a teacher who saw the for children to have help at home recognizing simple words. So she wrote "How Lil' Eddie Learns to Read". It all started with his 3rd birthday, when he received a book as one of his gifts. I loved seeing how this sparked his desire to read and to share til there was a neighborhood reading club. I feel that Rima allowed us to see how our children can grow through books. I am sure this helps her with the Houston PBS television show "Rima, Fuego and the Children". Rima is the creator, producer and host of this show. I then was able to finish up our reading time with "Feeding Penny Pig". Now you may think this would be a good ol' farm story, but you would be in error. Instead this is a wonderful way to teach the lil ladies about saving money. I sure remember feeding my piggy bank when I was a lil child. Jeannie Fox, a grandmother from Magnolia, Texas (yes another lady from my home state) is a strong believer of hands-on grand parenting. I so agree and wish my own grand babes lived much closer. When we finished "Feeding Penny Pig" the girls were happy to help clean the house to earn some pennies of their own. I know I will be investing in piggy banks for all my lil ladies this weekend.
I want to thank all three of these authors for letting me review their books. And also Maia at Phenix & Phenix literary publicists for sending me these 3 books. They sure came in handy in creating a quiet time on this cold dreary day. If you would like to have help creating quiet time then please comment. For today we are hosting a giveaway of "I'm Up in a Tree" and "Feeding Penny Pig". I will pick one reader to receive both books. Just leave a comment here. Extra comments for blog followers, twitter and facebook friends will also be used as entries. I hope y'all enjoy these books as well as my lil ladies did.
College Girl stealing mom's blog again to tell y'all about a book that, in exchange for this review, became my early birthday present. : ) As soon as I heard about it, I knew this was the book for me. Of course, I'm getting a little ahead of myself. I haven't even told you the title yet, have I? Whoops. Let me try this again. ;)
How to Write and Publish a Successful Children's Book: Everything You Needed to Know Explained Simply - sure, the title's a little long, but Cynthia Reeser has done most of the heavy lifting for any authors hoping to break into the young writer's market. As promised in the forward written by Lisa J. Michaels, an author and illustrator in her own right, ""Reeser has done your homework for you...[this] book gives back years that you otherwise would've spent researching, questioning, and floundering through the process..." Beginning with a history of children's books in the forward, the book delivers what it promises.
Reeser's book goes through the entire process, beginning with an explanation of the children's book market. From picture books to educational texts to juvenile fiction, it all has its own little subdivision, each with its own rules and dos and don'ts. Chapter 2, which focuses on writing for children, walks the prospective author through the process of developing an idea. One recommended and easy exercise is to return to your own childhood and examine your own memories to help with story development or ideas. In addition to discussing the needs of a younger audience, sources are scattered throughout the book. From publishing houses to resource mailing lists to personal experiences re-told by other children's authors, the various sources give multiple starting points. Two appendices that include sample manuscripts, cover letters, and press releases as well as lists of organizations for writers and illustrators give this book even more resources to assist the hopeful or already published author at every stage of the game. There is even a chapter dedicated to e-publishing and another for self-publishing.
For all the information and spectacular resources in this book, How to Write and Publish a Successful Children's Book is, perhaps, most successful in its simple language and thorough explanations of each aspect of the process, from publishing to agents to authors that are their own illustrators. I didn't grow bored while reading it & loved the ease with which the information flowed, smoothly from one chapter to the next. Another big selling point, for me, was when I opened the front cover and saw the small paragraph dedicated to Bear, the rescue dog owned by a family at the publishing company. Having recently lost Bear, his owners decided that a portion of the profits from Reeser's book would go towards the Humane Society of the United States. As an animal lover myself, one who has owned a few rescue pets through the years, I loved seeing the dedication in the front of this book. It was the icing on the cake!
We wish to thank Cynthia Reeser, Atlantic Publishing and Meredith Wynn for sending this book on to us. As College Girl stated, this became her early birthday present. And was quite well received.
Eric Carle’s “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” is celebrating it's 3rd Annual Very Hungry Caterpillar Day today! This year, the Very Hungry Caterpillar has partnered with Pottery Barn Kids for some very special mommy and me time. Today from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. all Pottery Barn Kids stores will be hosting a series of free activities for families. This will include story time and a reading of the Very Hungry Caterpillar and his adventures into becoming a butterfly.
Image via Wikipedia
They are also hosting a giveaway on my blog. You can win a copy of the Very Hungry Caterpillar book. Also, I wanted to inform you with GREAT news! In addition to winning a copy of the Very Hungry Caterpillar book, you will also be able to add a combo pack including the Very Hungry Caterpillar bath mitt and the Very Hungry Caterpillar bubble set.
