Meeting Arthur's Author

This evening we had the opportunity to meet the author of the beloved Arthur series, Marc Brown.  An area library held the event and we couldn't pass it up.  How often do you get a chance to meet a writer of a beloved children's series?  While we were a few minutes late to the program (getting out of school/work and getting where we need to be takes time), we were still able to learn some interesting things about Marc Brown and his characters.  What a neat experience for our family to catch a glimpse at the people who inspired DW, Buster, and the rest of the gang.  By listening to this famous author speak, my boys discovered how the people, places, and activities around you can become part of a great story.

After Mr. Brown finished speaking, he generously offered to autograph books and take photos with everyone at the event.  The line was long, but we've waiting in line for Toy Story Mania, so this was a piece of cake.  Super dad (aka my wonderful husband) bought an Arthur book for each of our boys as we didn't bring any with us.  My kids showed great patience as we waited our turn.  Their reward was a kind comment in regards to their waiting skills from Marc Brown, 2 autographed books, a photo opportunity, and a special memory to last through their years.

Thank you Mr. Brown for taking the time to meet all of the children and their parents & grandparents.  Your kindness, patience, sharing, & gift of writing is greatly admired and appreciated!

My boys are greatly impressed!

Almost Wordless Wednesday: Photo, Snap, Shot

During the library reading challenge this past Winter, I discovered the Kiki Lowenstein Scrap-N-Craft Mystery books by Joanna Campbell Slan.  The series quickly made it to my favorite reads list.  As soon as book number 3 became available in the library's system, I placed my hold.  Monday,  "Photo, Snap, Shot" was placed upon that glorious hold cart just for me.  I could swear brilliant light shone upon this brand new unread copy as I approached.  The yet uncreased cover of the the book made me feel as though I'd won a prize.  My selection was checked out and I was on my way home in no time, hoping for some free time to read.  There is much happening around me at the moment, unfinished projects, incomplete chores, and general every day activities to accomplish, yet I simply cannot fully apply my focus to the aforementioned thoughts and tasks.  No, I'm distracted by the need to absorb the latest mystery in the life of Kiki Lowenstein and her fellow cast of characters!  

Where does the local Book Addicts Anonymous group meet?

Are you reading any good books right now?  What's your favorite old/new book series?  Have I tempted anyone into checking out this book series yet?  If so, check out the author's website for more details...  http://www.joannacampbellslan.com/

My week hasn't gone as planned so far, so I'm hoping to catch up on the blogs I read this afternoon!

Happy Wednesday!

Meet Me On Monday: Greetings From The Public Library

Today is not my normal Meet Me On Monday blog.  Why?  Because I'm at my local public library, having grabbed my partially charged laptop before walking out the door, as my youngest son enjoys a fabulous first story time of the Fall season!  My day is sure to be busy and I wanted to take this time to post a quick blog.  Of course, this really is the real Mindy.  A busy Mom & public library addict!  I will even be back here later this evening for the first scrapbooking group of the Fall season.

M and I have been out since early this morning, when we dropped his brother off at school, and only made a brief stop home to drop off the eggs we purchased.  When we get home from story time today, we'll be making lunch, prepping for my scrapbook event this evening, and working out with Wii Active for the 2nd time.  Before I know it, it'll be time to head to school and pick up my oldest son. 

Have your days gotten busier with the start of school and oncoming Fall season?

Back to the public library, I wanted to bring this to the attention of Michigan residents:
Save Michigan Libraries
Michigan Libraries For The Future
Take the time to check these out please!

*I promise to post better blogs Wednesday & Friday!  Have a great week!!!

Simple Scrapbooking

Before getting into today's topic, I must first apologize. My updated blog design will not post today. The details are still being worked out before it can make it's debut. I can't promise, but I sincerely hope it will be unveiled on Monday. That should be just perfect for a "Meet Me On Monday" blog I'd say!

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A little over a month ago, I spotted a book in Hobby Lobby that I considered buying. Before I did however, I wanted to check it out from the local library so I could look more closely at the book before making the purchase. This seemed to be the best choice for a lady who doesn't like to spend money. A few days later, I logged on to the library's website, and placed a hold on "Real. Life. Scrapbooking." by Rebecca Cooper. It didn't take long before it was in my hands.

We made a library stop, while on our way to get groceries, just so I could pick up the book. Sadly, I get carsick when I'm not keeping my eyes on the road so I tried very very hard not to peruse the book that was on my lap and singing to me. Alas, I could not resist skimming the siren song full of words, photos, & layouts. By the time we got from the library to the store, I was feeling slightly ill. That was all the looking I would be able to do for days, due to a busy weekend.

Just a little bit of perusing pictures and layouts of this book brought me an epiphany. You see, it's all about scrapbooking your real life simply, hence the title. My idea was sparked when I spotted a page showcasing a notebook with paper removed and photos placed into it. How much fun would it be to take a regular journal and turn it into a personal scrapbook? However, my idea was not really to scrap it in the traditional sense, but to use it to record "a year in the life" through the eyes of my kids. Evan & Jaron, a brother singing duo, recently did a project called "52 Sundays." Each Sunday, they released a new song to be downloaded. Remembering that inspired me to set this "scrapbook" up in that same way.

The Scrapbook Journal Project:

*What you need- a journal or notebook of your choice, pen or pencil, & photos/drawings/mementos collected throughout the year.

*Personalize your cover page, or the inside cover of your journal, to include your name and the date you start your journal scrapbook, you can include the end date or add it later.

*Use your first solo page as an "about me" page. Include your likes, dislikes, favorites, etc. This will be repeated at the end of the year on the final solo page of your journal. It's nice to compare and see how you've changed over the course of the year. When you get older you may have many laughs over these, along with comment such as, "I can't believe I loved that movie so much!"

*Once a week (52 Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, or any day of the week- try to stick with the same day) write about the week you've just experienced. Use the paper on the right hand side of your notebook for journaling. Maybe it's just a simple week, or maybe you had a big event, record it just the same. The page on the left hand side should be used to place a photo, drawing, or memento (ticket stubs, postcard, etc) from the week. Be sure to record the date on one of the pages as well.

*This can be done as a "year in the life" or "my year of school: grade X 2009-2010." You can start the project in January, on a birthday, beginning of the school year, or Summer vacation. It can be changed into a daily account of your road trip or Christmas break. The possibilities are endless.

*Encourage your children to keep this kind of scrapbooking journal. If you have a child that cannot write, record what they have to say about the week (or day) in their words or let them draw a picture. For kids too young to express themselves with words, try to capture their reactions or funny faces.

I truly believe these types of things will be precious to our children when they grow up. That's one of the reasons I scrapbook. My children will also be starting a journal like this when school starts in a few weeks, starting with the open house and meeting the new teacher. My hope is that my children will continue this as they grow up and in the process learn to appreciate the little things in life.

For the record, I finally had time to sit down and go through "Real. Life. Scrapbooking." and loved it! I even discovered a few more alternatives to the project that I came up with. Rebecca Cooper captures great ways to keep your scrapbooking simple and remembering that it's about the memories rather than fancy embellishments. Her ideas and layouts were exactly what I was looking for. A brand new copy of her book now resides in my scrapbooking center.

As I said, Rebecca Cooper has variations of this idea in her book. If you are considering tackling some simple scrapbooking, head to the library like I did. You will be able to find her book, as well as many other books with the same theme.

How do you capture your memories? Your child's memories? If you scrapbook, do you journal your pages? Do you include the point of view of different family members or just your own? If you don't scrapbook, is it because it's too overwhelming or you don't feel you have the time? Do you think the scrapbook journal project would solve that problem?

Meet Me On Monday: Two Loves Meet

Meet Me On Monday:

This Monday, and random Monday's here after, my blog will reveal something about me. All meet me on Monday blogs will be clearly labeled.

Warning: Caution! Extreme crafty book nerd, with a strong love of the public library... Continue reading at your own risk!

As you may have previously read, I love books. Since learning to read as a kid, I was rarely seen without one in my possession. My Mom told me recently that she spoke with some former customers (of the family business) and they asked how her daughter was doing. To clarify, they said "the book worm, the one who was always reading." It's true, I'm a book nerd... and simply proud of it.

After having my children I found less and less time to read. In fact, at times it felt as though I was thirsty and the water was in reach, but I was unable to drink it. My kids however, kept me busy and fulfilled so I didn't often have time to think about how much I truly missed reading.

This past winter, while on the website for my local public library, I noticed a posting for a reading club. It was set up specifically for adults. The library had cleverly set it up as a BINGO card to be filled out. Every space held a different category, for instance mystery, a book from a series, craft/hobby fiction or non fiction, etc. There were prizes as incentive, but filling out the card was goal enough for me. Choosing a book in each category was my biggest challenge. The library had once again ignited my love of reading! *I will list the categories and books I read at the end of my blog.

While filling out my BINGO card, I decided to choose a scrapbooking themed fiction title to read for the crafty/hobby fiction box. I looked at some suggestions made by the library and came across a familiar sounding book. It was Coming Unglued: A Sister's Ink Novel by Rebeca Seitz. I had seen the first book in this series while browsing in a bookstore one day. I had put it on my "to read" list at the time, but not yet had the opportunity to actually read the book. I decided that now was the time to do so. I checked out the first available book in the series, which was the second, Coming Unglued. Long story short, I loved it and have since read all four of the Sister's Ink series novels by Rebeca Seitz, as well as a 5th book titled Prints Charming.

While reading these wonderful books, I began to wish I had a group to scrapbook with, just as the sisters (and friends) do in the novels. I wanted a chance to get together and bond with other women without having to pay a scrapbooking store to use their space. The more I thought about this, the more I wanted to make it happen. My big question was... "but where?" Most people don't have enough room in their homes to have a group event. Then my thoughts went to the local library, where in a sense this desire all began. Our public library already has a knitting club, so starting one for scrapbooking made sense to me. I decided to take a chance and contact the library, via the website, about my idea. A short time later, I received an email in which interest was expressed. I was told to speak with the librarians at my local branch. I did just that, and they full embraced the start of a scrapbooking group!

Today is my second ever monthly scrapbook group evening at the local library's community room. Not only did the library help me get back into my reading habit, but it also gave me the opportunity to start a group that will hopefully involve making new friends, while enjoying one of my favorite hobbies. I certainly do love the library!

Yes, I scrapbook and I'm a book nerd... and I wouldn't change it for a second!

Winter Reading Club Books

International Theme or Author Atonement Ian McEwan

Pet/Animal Fiction or Non Fiction Anyone But You Jennifer Crusie

County Program Book/Readalike Plainsong Kent Haruf

Your Choice Sisters Ink Rebeca Seitz

Book to Movie Nights In Rodanthe Nicholas Sparks

Mystery or Thriller The Spy Who Came For Christmas David Morrell

Your Choice Where Are You Now? Mary Higgins Clark

Hobby Fiction or Non Fiction Coming Unglued: A Sister's Ink Novel Rebeca Seitz

Biography Fiction or Nonfiction Three Weeks With My Brother Nicholas Sparks

Your Choice Confessions of a Shopaholic Sophie Kinsella

NY Times Bestseller or Award Winner The Lucky One Nicholas Sparks

Green Book (by color or topic) Edge of Winter LuAnn Rice

Your Choice Anne of Ingleside LM Montgomery

Book in a Series Women's Murder Club Series: 7th Heaven James Patterson

Historical Fiction or Nonfiction One Thousand White Women: The Journals of May Dodd Jim Fergus

Staff Picks Home: A Memoir of my Early Years Julie Andrews