MommyCoddle

Show & Tell : Good reads from Chronicle Books

I have three great new books to share with you this morning, from Chronicle Books.

Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Jen Corace have teamed up again to create another amazing tale called, Little Oink It is the story of a tidy little pig who loves to clean. But his parents remind him that as a pig, he must learn to make a proper mess.

Amy and Jen are also the creative talents behind Little Pea and Little Hoot, and Little Oink follows right in line with these best-loved books. My children request a reading from these stories so often that I have them committed to memory.

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When I was an elementary school teacher, I remember how helpful it was to find a series of books that my students latched on to. It was a sure-fire way to encourage a reluctant reader and it gave others something to look forward to. I have a feeling that this new series from Chronicle Books, Horse Crazy , by Alison Lester, will be such a series for many children. The books are about two best friends, Bonnie and Samantha who live in a small town in the Australian bush and are crazy about horses. The books are sweet and fun and Emma has then tucked away in a drawer beside her bed--waiting for the day she can dive into them with a little more ease.

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The last book I want to share with you is called, Secrets of Simplicity : Learn to Live Better With Less, by Mary Carlomagno. The book is helpful resource that guides you through the journey of simplifying your life and bringing you to a healthier, more meaningful place. Secrets of Simplicity is a practical, interactive guide, but it also strives to get to the heart of the matter as to why our lives (and our closets) are overflowing with too many things. It is a book to move through slowly, taking in the ideas and wisdom that it offers.

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And thanks to Chronicle Books, I have one copy of each of these titles to share with you. Leave a comment and I'll pick three winners (one for each title) on Monday.

Happy Weekend, friends.

powerless

We've had two days of storms that left us in long stretches without electricity. Perfectly timed to disturb afternoon naps, keep my children up too late, and wake my children way too early. You'd probably think that someone like me would welcome the chance to rough-it, to get in touch with my inner pioneer. But this time, I just wasn't in the mood.

I think grumpy, tired, impossible children elevated my lack of patience. (Though I always think it is one of those which came first, the chicken or the egg? kinds of questions. Which came first the grumpy mama or the grumpy children?)

I tried to think of Melissa, who just went through six days without power. She says she's still recovering.

We lost a large branch from our Polonia tree and our Ash tree split in half, neatly falling between another large tree and an outbuilding. It was as if someone just laid it down between the two. For now, it makes for an amazing (tick infested) tree house. And in a few months, it will make for great firewood.

I'll be back tomorrow with another fun review and giveaway from Chronicle Books. In the meantime, I hope you'll take a moment to check out my new sponsors for July. There's some good stuff in that side bar!

Welcome July Sponsors!

The Pajama Squid

roPa

The Polka Dot Cottage

Lisa Leonard

Designer Digitals

Chronicle Books (who's having a great sale on Craft Books right now!)

a good 20 minutes

I stepped outside with my camera yesterday, while I waited for the grill to get hot. Within just a short window of time, maybe twenty minutes, I was able to capture little snapshots of our life. I love looking at them today, and realizing all the activity that can happen in just a short span of time. Sometimes, it's nice to capture it and hold it together all in one place....for me they tell a story. And they remind me of little benchmarks in time-- the ducklings daily excursion outside, the last chicken--who keeps close to the house, a new technique for swinging, an upgrade from nakedness to underwear, the agony that is sharing the swing with your little sister, a patient favorite kitten, a rare, still moment between two four-legged friends.....

What stories could you tell, if you captured a good twenty minutes today?

the ivy that is poison

I took one for the team last week. I attacked a fence row teeming with poison ivy.

My husband reacts violently to the littlest exposure, breaking out in red, oozing welts that usually land him in the walk-in clinic begging for a shot of steroids. So in one overly-productive day last week, I took on the project, saint that I am.

It is said that pride cometh before the fall, and I have to admit to being a teensy bit arrogant about my seeming immunity to poison ivy.

"I've touched it with my bare hands and never gotten a single bump."
"I just don't get poison ivy. Ever."
"I have no memories of ever having poison ivy anywhere."
"I don't need to wash up. I don't get poison ivy, remember??"

Hello, pride. Good to meet you.

I have poison ivy. 

In odd places.

On the underside of my nose.
Around my waist. (I guess I was wearing my falling down jeans that day?)
On the front sides of my shoulders. (was I hiking up my short sleeves?)
In the middle of my shins. (hmmm. i was wearing long pants)
Along the side of my neck.

And then of course, the typical forearm--elbow to wrist-- outbreak as well.

Emma looked at me yesterday and said, "Mom. You know you should really do something about all that poison ivy before the wedding on Friday."

Yeah, great, Emma. Thanks.

So while I'm not covered in oozing welts, I'm left with a body pocked with small bumps and patches of raised, itchy red skin. It could be worse. I'm telling myself how fun it is to discover where the next patch will break out.  And I'm seriously considering a wardrobe change for next weekend's big family wedding. Turtleneck and long pants, anyone?

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The winner of the Little Alouette Giveaway is:

Michelle who said:

I want to WIN! I live in Ohio as well.

Michelle: please send me an email (in the about molly page) with your shipping info, and I"ll pass it on to Amy!

Show & Tell : Little Alouette

 

Amy is one of those blogging friends who seems to have been part of my "neighborhood" for as long as I can remember. I couldn't put a finger on the point when she and I became blogging pals, but I'm so glad we have. Not only is she a complete sweetheart, she and her husband are the genius team behind one of my favorite shops, Little Alouette.

My children have the privilege of having a set of Little Alouette shakey blocks in our collection. They are one of those toys that are equally fun to play with and look at. There is something about the sweetness and beauty of wooden toys that can never be duplicated in the world of plastic. And LittleAlouette toys have a simplicity and style that I love. They are classics.

 

A few months ago, Little Alouette was one of etsy's featured sellers. As I was reading the article this morning to be sure I had all my facts straight about Amy :) , I had to share a few words from the write-up because it is a good story:

Over a decade ago a handsome British boy and an Ohio lass met and fell madly in love at first site in a sleepy university town. The boy was a classically trained master carpenter and the girl a writer with a bit of wanderlust. They worked together creatively through the years on many projects involving woodworking as they restored and remodeled homes together. The boy taught his love about trees on their land in the country and how to use power tools and the girl read poems to him while they worked. They started a journey of following their bliss and eventually brought two wee ones into the world and began creating wooden toys for them. They decided to share these wee wooden toys with the world and Little Alouette was born over hot steaming mugs of cocoa in the winter of 2007.

We are Joe and Amy Sharp of Worthington, Ohio.

And I love their words about their creative process:

Each product is made by hand and usually all the wood is surrounded by cups of tea, laughing children, and disco music so each product will come to you infused with love and bliss! We use locally sourced Ohio timber and only finish our products with certified organic flax seed oil.

Seriously. I've been telling my husband that if I can't have a bandsaw, then I'll just settle for a jigsaw. Reading about Joe and Amy's process makes me think I need to put it on my birthday list again this year. 

If you haven't been introduced to LittleAlouette be sure to take a few moments to check out their shop. And after my Lotta Jansdotter giveaway last week, I know a lot of you are shopping for baby gifts--for yourself or for people you know. And if you are "people I know" and you're having a baby soon...don't look, unless you want to spoil the surprise. 

And guess what? Amy has graciously offered to give one mommycoddle reader one of her Harper the Hippo teethers! yay. You know the drill, leave a comment to be entered in the giveaway. I'll announce the random winner on Sunday!

Happy Weekend, friends!