It's not even Halloween yet, and I already have a stomachache!

We camped in one of my favorite places on Earth. So. Beautiful. A piece of Heaven in the Uintas. I, of course, was the family photographer. And to think we almost cancelled at the last minute when the little guy threw up!

Here are some pictures...














Sleeping there was, well, let's just say my hip is seriously bruised. But the smores were absolutely delicious. It was my first time eating a smore with dark chocolate. Mmmmmmm. I love the smell of the campfire. Not so much the smell of the fish, but still, catching them is exciting. Still, throw up is a much worse smell, and I was oh-so-relieved that the little guy felt well enough to enjoy himself and didn't throw up out there.


14 days left until TELL AN AUTHOR YOU CARE DAY! The countdown begins.

Last night I went to a book launch party for The Boy who was Raised by Librarians by Carla Morris, illustrated by Brad Sneed. Both Carla and Brad were there and signed my book.

If you are the kind of person who loves libraries like I do, you'll love this book.

CARLA MORRIS always wanted to write a book. As a children's librarian at the Provo City Library, she is surrounded by books and kids.

One particular boy, however, became the inspiration for The Boy who was Raised by Librarians. Ian Perkes helped at the library through a government program for disadvantaged youth. He started there when he was 16. He wrote a personal poem for Carla's birthday one year entitled "For my Librarian Mother". Carla began to think about children who grow up in libraries.

Carla first became a librarian at age 6. She had a bookshelf library over her bed from which she'd allow her siblings to check out books if they were being good to her. She later helped in school libraries, after begging librarians to let her stay in instead of playing outside for recess.

When she first wrote the story of Ian, it was much too old and serious. She workshopped it and had it critiqued.

Carla met a Peachtree editor, and knowing they had published Carmen Deedy's Library Dragon, she pitched the story. The editor liked Carla and the proposed book title. However, from that point, the book took 6 YEARS to become a reality!

In 2004, Peachtree booked Brad Sneed as the illustrator. Carla jumped up and down with excitement. She even sent flowers to Peachtree for getting him. But he was booked two years. He was worth the wait.

Carla did not have any contact with Brad until the book was complete. At that point, she found his email online and sent a thank-you note.

BRAD SNEED knew he wanted to illustrate The Boy who was Raised by Librarians after reading the first few paragraphs because it was very well-written. He knew book-people (like his daughter) and librarians would fall in love with the story.

Brad is from Kansas. He grew up there and now lives in the Kansas City area with his wife. Growing up, he had to use his imagination a lot because his friends lived too far away. He was an outside kid, didn't read much. If he was inside, he was drawing. Brad has always considered himself an artist.

He has been illustrating for 18 years (which is crazy because he looks very young). He studied illustration at Kansas University.

The librarians in this story are not modeled after real people. He hopes that they will be universal. Peachtree sent him the original ms along with the final one because it was more descriptive. In the original, there was a one-line description of each librarian. "Marge was tall and slender." "Betty was soft and round." "Leeola (named after Carla's mother) was short and frizzy."

He does not use the computer except for email. He's an old-fashioned artist. He loves the smell of paint and the feel of bristles against paper. If he did his art on the computer, he'd miss the tactile experience.

When Brad sent the mock-up to Peachtree, he was shocked when they responded, "There are no changes."

He really enjoyed working on this book.


After these two beautiful, talented people spoke, I jumped in line to get my book signed. And I'm glad I did, because the line was enormous and Brad, being a very generous person, took quite a bit of time drawing in all the books.



Carla Morris is everything a children's librarian should be. Just look at that smile.



And, in line, I happened across a suspiciously familiar, cute pregnant lady, who I recognized as eshakespear. And let me tell you, she is just as sweet and friendly in real life as she is online. She's here for an SCBWI conference. I can't wait to hear about it, Erin! And look, the picture turned out totally cute.

I'm having a fantastic time with my fam here. But I logged on for just a minute because:
1. I'm totally addicted to the internet, and 2. I want to share a poem for Poetry Friday.

DADDY FELL INTO THE POND
by Alfred Noyes
(Compliments of Caroline Kennedy's A FAMILY OF POEMS)

Everyone grumbled. The sky was gray.
We had nothing to do and nothing to say.
We were nearing the end of a dismal day,
And there seemed to be nothing beyond,
THEN
Daddy fell into the pond!

And everyone's face grew merry and bright,
And Timothy danced for sheer delight,
"Give me the camera, quick, oh quick!
He's crawling out of the duckweed." Click!

Then the gardener suddenly slapped his knee,
And doubled up, shaking silently,
And the ducks all quacked as if they were daft
And it sounded as if the old drake laughed.

O, there wasn't a thing that didn't respond
WHEN
Daddy fell into the pond!


I have to say, I feel for the dad in the poem. When my little boy was significantly littler than he is now, we affectionately nicknamed him "the Spit-up King".

This was not one of my most glamorous mothering moments. I yelled for my hubby to take the King and get me a towel, and what did he come back with? A camera. Click!

Ever since I got back from my trip, I've been getting tons of review copies of picture books for the Cybils Awards.

This is usually where the library books are kept, but right now it is overflowing with Cybils nominees. I'm lovin' it (even more than McDonald's :)

Keep reading to see a review of one of my favorites so far.

But first things first. Last night I met my future sister-in-law, and she is really adorable. AND I made my first apple pie. AND it was actually really good. Of course, I only had one bite because I'm dieting (yuck) but that one bite was deelish. Here's a pic. I look kinda loony. Maybe I'm a little too excited about my pie!


So here's what you've all been waiting for...without further ado, here's my long-overdue review.


Emily's Balloon is written and illustrated by Komako Sakai, a winner of the Japanese Picture Book Prize. In this book, little Emily gets a yellow balloon. After it floats to the ceiling a couple of times, her mom ties it to a spoon. Emily takes the balloon to the garden and makes a flower crown for it. But the wind blows the balloon into a tree. Emily is sad because she wanted to eat with it, put on its pajamas and brush its teeth. Emily looks out her window and sees her balloon. "It looked just like the moon." And she goes to sleep.

This picture book is beautiful in it's simplicity. Emily's imagination and concern for her precious balloon ring true. Emily's Balloon is a glimpse into the mind of a toddler. For the younger set, Sakai's book is a must. In a word, this picture book is PRECIOUS.

Ever wonder what I look like? I love to put a face to a blog. But before the picture, I'm posting a poem I wrote. It's very silly and LOL . . . you'll see that it would never see the light of day in the publishing world.

Body Colors

My eyes are teal.
My toes are pink.
My hair is mostly brown, I think.
My skin is light.
My lips are red.
My body colors I have said.

So, now you know what I look like, right?

All right. Here I am.

Don't be fooled, though. I like to fish and camp with my family, but I am 99.987% girly-girl. The baseball cap is very unusual.

Happy weekending!
Emily

I posted a few pictures of our first snowfall at tuesdaywalk. Go see.