I can't wait for...

Fresh Flowers from the Farmer's Market

Strawberry Picking

Jumping in the Canoe with Karl!

Today it is snowy and cold, and all I can think about is how great the sunshine is going to feel in a few months. Come on, summer!

Newbery Mania

Seems like everyone's talking about the award winner and honor books... even Stephen Colbert! Check out the video clip here.

A Sweet Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day is my favorite holiday. I love all the hearts, flowers, doilies, and of course the combination of my two favorite colors, pink and red. To celebrate this year, Karl allowed me to drag him to a partner yoga/Thai massage workshop. He also gave me a beautiful mini rose bush, a handmade valentine, and a box of gourmet chocolates. What a thoughtful husband!

Sushi, please!

This week at the library, I did an afterschool book club all about Asia. For a snack, I made two kinds of sushi-- no raw fish, though! Just marshmallows, Fruit by the Foot, rice krispie treats, Swedish fish... all the good stuff. Authentic? Maybe not. Culturally sensitive? I doubt it. Delicious? Yes! Here is one of the types of sushi. Can you smell the sugar?

That's Amore

Last weekend was my annual Valentine-making party. I just love Valentine's Day, and it is a great excuse to make pink and red things with hearts on them. Not that you need an excuse, of course! We had a card-making station in the dining room, complete with glitter, stickers, and lots of fun paper, and a cookie decorating station in the kitchen (yum!), and general playing going on in the living room. Here are some card makers hard at work:



And here are some scenes from the "general playing" area:

Don, reading aloud to three eager listeners. Guests got to take home as many books as they wanted from our exploding bookshelves (thanks to the Newbery Committee!).

Henry, playing with the Fisher Price castle.

Ride 'Em, Cowboy!

I got to spend some time with my friend Caitrin and her sweet daughter, Macie, in Denver. We went to the National Stock Show and Rodeo. I've always thought rodeos were a myth, like Paul Bunyan, but they're actually real. Here's Macie with one of the cows:




I also got to go to the Denver Zoo. It was so fun! I got to see the elephants being bathed and the gorillas being fed. I also got to get really close to a tapir. Check it out!

One Berry, Two Berry, Pick Me A Newbery

In January, I went to Denver for the American Library Association's Midwinter Conference. This year's conference was extra special because I was on the 2009 Newbery Award Committee! All year long during 2008, I read and read and read, along with the 14 other members of the committee. We got together in Denver for hours of discussion and deliberation. On our final day together, we called the authors of the winning book and the honor books at 6:30 in the morning, just before the ALA's press conference where the awards were officially announced. Here is a picture of our committee chair, Rose, calling one of the authors:

And here are some committee members, crowded around the phone to hear the authors' reactions:

And the winner was... Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book! We visited the publisher in the exhibit hall after the press conference to wish them congratulations.

The Graveyard Book is really really good! If you haven't read it yet, I recommend it!