lit*chick

Greenfest 2012

 


If you are in the area (Columbia, MD) tomorrow stop by the Howard County Greenfest at Howard Community College. It's a local celebration of ways to be kind to our created world with gardening info, enviro friendly businesses, workshops and lots of recycling opportunities. I'll be there with my book prints and NEW notecards!  It should be a fun day (I hope I remember to take pictures!) - more info here: http://www.hcgreenfest.org

Have a lovely weekend! 

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Spring & Summer 2011 Recap

Well, I sort of fell out of blogging after the Gaithersburg Book Festival way back in May. (Truthfully it seems like a few weeks ago not a few months!) So here's a recap of the madness...

the Paper Pear news

1. Gaithersburg Book Festival - Not a booming business day, much to my disappointment. Good crowd, fun people in the neighboring tents (more on that later), tons of wonderful author events, but I think the festival layout didn't benefit the exhibitors. On the fence if I will return...but I think it has potential. And I also experimented with a new tablescape, utilitzing the tent and stringing up the prints with a jute clothesline worked out really well.

2. I mistakenly thought summer would be a very productive time as far as working on wholesale marketing. I was wrong. So this fall, my focus will be on getting the prints out to small local gift shops. I'd be interested in any suggestions you have, dear friends. My first customer is a fun little shop near the kids' school Sisters' Sandwiches.

3. Here is a sneak peek of the latest designs.

  Anne of Green Gables

    Schoolhouse

The plan is to add new stuff more regularly, as I am bursting with ideas. I'm also experimenting a bit more with original collage and paint...trying to see if I can teach myself to make what I see in my mind.

And as you already know there's a sale - use code PPSCHOOL for 25% off through September 20.

24 Classics

1. Ball dropped. Possibly stretching it to a 2 or 3 year plan. What can I say? I'm not a goal oriented girl apparently. I think I will stop making bold pronouncements and return to my comfort zone of doing whatever whenever when it comes to reading. But I am committed to reading those books!

Evie & her boys (and me)

  1.Travels  -  Evie and I went on a quick weekend girls' trip at the beginning of summer. Our family prefers non-summer vacations so we did a couple day trips. My mom had her knee replaced and is recovering nicely. My dad suffers from Alzheimers and her surgery provided the impetus for him to be  moved to a specialized memory care facility. It has been especially hard on her, so we covet your prayers for the continued transition. Even when you know something like this is coming, the arrival doesn't lessen the impact.  Just because something is a good decision doesn't mean it is easy.One of the few people he recognizes and knows by name is Evie, which I find to be a particular grace from God. I feel like I grew up this summer in many ways.

2. The boys went to many camps - baseball, soccer, VBS, and a neighborhood camp. It may look like a lot but trust me, they were home plenty!  And it worked well for us - we don't travel in the summer and they need lots of outside time.  LOTS. Particularly since we have no yard or driveway the  heavy camp schedule seemed necessary for everyone's sanity. Ahem.

(Evie on the first day of school - not her school, the boys' school. She packed her backpack with her plastic cell phone, plastic laptop, and blanket.)

3. Evie turned 2 quietly. Well, the celebration was quiet...she doesn't stop talking. We can't interpret all of what she says, but it includes demands, tattling, and the word yesh. All while standing with her hand on her hip or in her fockets (pockets). I can't imagine where that came from :).  She loves Baylub (Caleb), Owie, and Kaka (Karl)- she calls for Baylub first thing every morning since he gets her out of bed. And I am happy to report she is a mini bookworm. "Sit and read" or "sitta me" she'll say, and she stacks the to-be-read and the finished books in separate piles.  (There's also "helpa me", It is awesome to have 3 other available readers around during the day! She is still baby crazy, carrying dolls around and insisting we bring them everywhere. (I'm not used to worrying about my child's accessories - boys don't have them.) And will happily drink 40 juice boxes a day if we let her. Singing and dancing are also high on the list.

4. I had a minor skin cancer scare (thankfully just a scare).  Turns out I had a pyogenic granuloma - which grew quickly and bled daily for about 8 weeks until it was kindly removed by my Dr.  In the days before having a diagnosis, I unwisely consulted the internet which only convinced me it was something more serious, and I'm not typically an alarmist. So there is much relief here. Exhaling.

5. Our oldest son KWB continues to grow - he is now 5'7" wearing a size 10 shoe, and not quite 13 yet. I continue to be shocked with every upward lurch - he is my first baby! What is going on?! It also hits me hard while we search for a home....that he will potentially only be living with us another 6 years. Huh? Okay enough of that...I can't go there for long.  This would be a good place to put a picture of him, but as anyone else with a middle schooler can tell you, it's not happening.

6. And for those who have been around here for awhile, you may remember Owen and his trauma teeth. He lost both front teeth in two different incidents and had a toothless grin for five of his seven years. I am happy to report during the summer  - they're here!  Since there was a chance those teeth were harmed we wondered if he would get 'em - and he did in a BIG way. :)

I'm working on a Summer Book Highlights post inspired by the delightful Wendy Smedley. (Yes,I realize it's fall now.) But I'm interested in hearing about your last few months. I haven't caught up yet on all my normal blogs and blog friends, I blame Pinterest for taking most of my online time. (If you'd like to follow my boards I'm litchickcafe.) Do tell...

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PS: Everyone who commented with their favorite Paper Pear print will be getting one. Hooray!

 

 

 

 

The Paper Pear Shop Update and SALE

Now that the kiddos are back in school, I am celebrating with a 25% off SALE (coupon code: PPSCHOOL) and a bunch of new prints (here are a few):

 

To help me CELEBRATE, leave me a comment with your favorite print and you'll be entered to win it. :) And visit the shop too. http://www.thepaperpear.etsy.com

(stay tuned: Sherlock, Anne Shirley, and Scarlett O'Hara are coming next week!)

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FREE Online Inspiration from Big Picture Scrapbooking

Our good friends at BPS as part of their summer festival are offering this FREE 2 week class starting this MONDAY! You would do well to check it out (along with all the other good stuff they have going on)...here's more info:

Big Idea Festival: Words to Live by
http://www.bigpictureclasses.com/summerfun11.php

You are invited to a FREE festival packed full of big ideas at Big Picture Classes this August! Join us for 12 fun-filled days featuring 12 of our talented instructors. Each instructor will be giving you a word of the day, which we hope will inspire you, along with a downloadable template (in both printable and digital format) so that you can create a mini layout about that day's word and how you applied it in your life.

Scroll down to the bottom of the page to register, remember it is free and you will not see a charge in your account, but you do have to check out.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hooray!! See you there. :)

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The Paper Pear Update: Gaithersburg Book Festival

Lots going on around here as usual,I'm sure its no different at  your house. Currently preparing for the Gaithersburg Book Festival which will take place tomorrow from 10am-6pm. But I'm not going as a book blogger, rather I will have a table for my other passion.... The Paper Pear.  I am picking up prints of my collage pieces today and am giddy with excitement to have taken this next step. You can see the new designs and prints at my etsy shop. Here is a preview:

Jane Austen silhouette mounted on a P&P page...

 

Nancy Drew silhouette mounted on page from The Bungalow mystery...

cupcake

flip flops

handbag print sales to benefit  my friends at Change Purse

So much to do before tomorrow all while chasing Evie, picking up kids, errands - the stuff of real life. Thankful to see the weather looks promising since this is an outdoor event - hooray sunshine!

If you are in the area, I'd love to see you. Check out the GBF website for more details, schedules, parking, etc. Planning to be back post-festival with tons of book reviews, including the new Ann Patchett.

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Listening: Lori McKenna

She's one of my favorites and her new album "Lorraine" has been on repeat for weeks. She is brilliant at writing about everyday life. Here's my favorite song (for now)...

The Most

My life is a grocery store line
A “We’ll be just fine”
Don’t know how we survive, but we do

My life is an early spring snow
The last thread of hope
That I just keep hanging on to

My life is pieces of paper that I’ll get back to later
I’ll write you a story, how I ended up here
Why the little things make us and how long it takes us
To figure out what matters the most. . . . .

My life is a two dollar beer
Friday nights here
With friends that I’ve known since high school

My life is an order to go
A rainy car ride back home
And someone you love to lay next to

My Life is pieces of paper that I’ll get back to later
I’ll write you a story, how I ended up here
Why the little things make us and how long it takes us
To figure out what matters the most . . . . .

Someday well I’ll look back and wonder
Someday comes around quicker than they told you
Asking “Did I do, what I was suppose to”

In my Life
Don’t know Why the little things make us and sometimes it takes us
To damn long to figure what matters the most . . . .
My life is green grass through the snow
A sweet reckless hope

And baby I know...what matters the most.

Enjoy!

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10 on Tuesday: First Half of February

 
1. Smooching: belated Valentine's greetings from our Elmo lovin' Evie. (We are in pigtail training, it's not pretty and I fear she may go bald from pulling out clumps of hair with the clippies. Any advice?)

2. Winning:  the new Allison Pearson book, I THINK I LOVE YOU is Michelle from 1 More Chapter.  I loved reading who everyone's teen idol crush was and I recognized them all. Hee hee. I wonder who Evie's will be...ack!

3. Working on: the planning stages of the school cookbook...the winning company will most likely be the one that allows users to submit recipes online. Um, hello no brainer.

4. Reading: finished The Postmistress by Sarah Blake. Still working on The Winter of our Discontent. It always takes me a while to ramp up when I read Steinbeck and by the time I'm on board, the book is over. Beginning The Nine Tailors. And I guess I have to choose classics for March. Any suggestions?

5. Cooking: made Unstuffed Peppers from a Rachael Ray magazine reader. I changed it a little based on what I had on hand....and we always add more meat. We used:

• 1 cup basmati rice (it calls for long grain/wild)
• 1 pound mild Italian sausage, casings discarded (we used 2 lbs sweet)
• 1 green bell pepper (original called for 2 peppers)
• 1 10-ounce package white mushrooms, sliced (we used baby bellas)
• 1/2 red onion, chopped (it called for a whole one).

If you want more info, I'm happy to email you the instructions since I can't find a link. But you can probably figure out it involves boiling the rice, browning the sausage, cooking the veggies and combining :).

6. Bread making:  deserves it's own post. I took pictures. An overabundance of dough. And then it grew. And grew some more. And we ate a lot of bread. Every day.

7. Book clubbing: we met and selected our 2011 reads. The first is Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother by Amy Chua. We think it will provide some lively discussion. Roar.

8. Listening: since I still can't find my Ipod, ahem, I am settling for Owen singing his own words to the tune of Arcade Fire's Ready to Start.  O was onto them way before the Grammys, he doesn't know what Grammys are, but he knows what he likes.

9. Planning: our road trip to Nashville to visit dear friends. Do you have a family of besties? What do you call them? (besides their name of course) I think I'll borrow from Charlie & Lola - the Ls are our Favorite and Best.

10. Tomorrow: Trish's Review Trifecta. That's three people ;)

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Hello, Friends. Goodbye, Gall Bladder.

Here we are - not quite settled but progressing. It is good to be connected again. We finally have phone, internet, tv after two plus weeks without. Although I could do without the tv...and probably the phone.

The same week we said goodbye to our house I also parted ways with my gall bladder. After feeling unbelievably lousy in the wee morning hours and having chest pains, I ended up having emergency surgery. Thankfully, a wonderful group of family and friends took the kids, cleaned, unpacked, cooked meals, laundered, held Evie, shuttled children, and basically functioned as me for a whole week while I slept. What a tremendous blessing. And a humbling experience to be served in such a grand way. As soon as I locate the box that holds my stationary, I can tell you each how much I love you. But until then...thanks.

In lit*chick news - we have a new reviewer for teen/ya lit. Here is her story:

Colleen is Melanie’s favorite (and only) niece who works as a barista at the Little French Market Café , and is guilty of reading at dull times during her long shifts, singing along to the radio, and baking anything with chocolate. Her favorite genre is teen dystopian, but she also enjoys a good historical fiction novel, and the occasional autobiography/memoir.

Look for her work on My Name is Memory by Ann Brashares  and The Disreputable History of Frankie Laundau Banks by E. Lockhart coming very soon. 

We also have Trish's review of On Folly Beach by Karen White ready to go.

And my reviews for 

Admission by Jean Hanff Korelitz

The Stormchasers by Jenna Blum

Commuters by Emily Gray Tedrowe

The Blind Contessa's New Machine by Carey Wallace

Simply from Scratch by Alicia Bessette

The Doctor and the Diva by Adrienne McDonnell

The Tapestry of Love by Rosy Thornton

Indiana by NC Weyl

And tomorrow - a birthday party for Penguin Books  (Happy 75th!). What better way to celebrate than with a giveaway? Stay tuned.

Finally, I have to tell you all I LOVED Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson. I already know one of you didn't like it :), but I have to say it was the perfect read  while I convalesced. Major Pettrigrew is one of the most charming gentlemen characters I"ve read in some time. His dry wit and propriety had me alternately laughing (painful) and nodding my head. 

Sorry for the info dump. What's new with you? Do tell.

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Let the Games Begin: 2010 Winter Olympics

I love love love the Olympics. There is something fascinating and inspiring about watching commitment and determination on a grand scale.  In order to market these games, I'm sure extreme sports will be in the spotlight although I find it a little anti-climactic since the X games were just on.  I hope there is better coverage of sports we rarely (if ever) get to watch in the States like curling, biathlon, bobsled/luge/skeleton, and my favorite - skiing. Regardless of the programming, I will be tuned in - how about you?

And it's not too late to grab some books....

The Winter Olympics: An Insider's Guide to the Legends, Lore and Events of the Games Vancouver Edition by Ron C. Judd

The Complete Book of the Winter Olympics: 2010 Edition by David Wallechinsky and Jaime Loucky

also for kids:

olympic crafts @ kaboose

this nifty site - kathi mitchell

and my favorite downloadable worksheet site - enchanted learning

official website:  http://www.vancouver2010.com

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Happy New Year...Let's Look Ahead

The dudes are finally back at school and the hubs started a new job today. I'm planning to put away the Christmas decorations and Evie is planning to continue in cuteness.  I have a lot of plans for you and me too, but here is the month ahead on lit*chick...

• A new feature - see the Tidying Up the Stacks sidebar?  Those are books I am giving away...just request one (or all) and I'll be happy to send them to you. Some I've read, some I haven't but they are taking up valuable shelf space and need a new home.

• Blog Talk Radio - Nicole from Linus's Blanket will be interviewing me on February 2nd for That's How I Blog. Besides q&a, we'll be discussing The Unit - if you get a chance to read it, we can have a little audio bookclub. More details to follow...I'm really excited to participate in this fun book blogger interview series. 

• Reviews:

            When She Flew by Jennie Shortridge (and an interview, fingers crossed)

            Nanny Returns by Nicola Kraus & Emma McLaughlin

            The Glass Room by Simon Mawer

            They Found Him Dead by Georgette Heyer

• I plan to regularly participate in 10 on Tuesdays - I'm a listmaker at heart.

And a few other updates:

Congratulations to annechovie, friend to this blog and gifted artist - one of her fabulous chair prints can be seen (i saw it and shrieked in recognition)in the movie It's Complicated. Read more about it here.

My December Daily project totally bit the dust. I had no printer ink and lost steam after the first week...I don't think I'm capable of doing anything daily, except reading and drinking coffee.

I've started taking Elizabeth's Inspiration Defined class at Big Picture Scrapbooking - I think you can still sign up until midnight TONIGHT. And I am enjoying having a no pressure creative outlet. So what are you waiting for?

I am still thinking through my reading goals for this year...I read 110 books last year. Some great, most okay. So I'm definitely looking to improve the quality (my constant struggle). I'm also looking to streamline the review process so I can talk about everything I read, quickly. Because really, don't you just want to know if you should bother or not?

If you haven't already noticed, I am trying to respond to most of your comments in the comments section, in case you wondered why you haven't gotten emails lately....

Thanks to all who read and check in here - especially you regulars. I know it's easy to get lost online, and I always appreciate those who stop here.

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