February 2011 Blog Award

I'm late this month getting out the shout outs for all the wonderful blogs I am fortunate to have found. This month's award is an AWESOME award which goes to a group of bloggers who have inspired me to get off my toush and be more proactive in my writing goals.

Musings of a Novelista I love Karen's blog/website. She is so full of wonderful tips and insights. I love how she shares her experiences with us and is never short of encouragement! :) I am always inspired to get back to writing (or at least thinking) after reading her blog posts. Thank you Karen! I'm so glad to have met you (even if it is in cyberspace :D)

This next AWESOME blog is actually written by a group of wonderful writers, however, I follow Katrina L Lantz who is a member blogger of Operation Awesome. I really like this blog. They offer lots of fun contest for serious writers, blog/author interviews, great tips and advice and fun to read and think about post.

Heather's Odyssey Now this blogger is just wonderful. Not only does give excellent tips and heads up on agent/publisher related news (love her twitter Tuesday posts :D) but she is an awesome writer, just check out her Friday Feature Creature posts! :D I was inspired by Heather's awesome conference report and enthusiasm from what she learned at the conference she recently attended. I decided to take the first step in my writing career and register to attend my very first conference this coming April! :D

So, if you are looking for some wonderful blogs to follow, check out these wonderful ladies of the blogosphere.

Happy 3rd.....to me! :)

It is my 3 year anniversary at the childcare center where I work! :) It is amazing how fast time goes by. I was just recently reminiscing with a parent the other day just how big her son had gotten and how I have watched him grow over the years. When I first started, I worked as a float in the infant/toddler unit He was not more than 6 or seven months. Later, I was promoted to co-lead teacher in the young toddler room. I had him in my class for a year. We were very close as he remembered me from the infant room. Then he turned two. I continued to witness his development and growth as he went from the two's classroom to preschool. Now I have his baby sister and his cousin (yes, his auntie made sure her son came to my class when he turned one :D) in my classroom along with three other younger siblings of children who grew up and learned with me in Homebase B.

Another parent happen to see the large yellow congratulation sign posted outside my classroom and commented just how happy he was to have me as his children's teacher and congratulated me on my three years. I have to say, I was very pleased and honored, though honestly, it does not feel like it had been THAT long. Time did not seem to pass so quickly. But leave to Aaron, a funny teacher who likes to keep us all happy and laughing reminding me that I indeed had been there for a loooooong time. He said in a very calm, nonchalant, not trying to be funny way, "How does it feel to be the oldest teacher in the toddler unit?" "You are the senior toddler teacher, the toddler unit matriarch!" Bless his heart, he was trying to congratulate me and put me on a pedestal but all he did was remind me just how long it had been! :) But I would not change a thing and I hope and pray I have many more years to offer my love, care and professional abilities to many more generations of children to come!

Bookaholic I Am!

I have been on a book binge these past few weeks. The problem is I work one minute's walking distance from a Barnes and Noble. :D While my paycheck does not allow for me to shop till I drop but they have bargain prices, sales ( I have a B&N rewards card) and publisher remainder sales that make buying often affordable for me. My latest adventure into B&N came as I waited for my younger sister to get out of class and pick me up from work. It was a late class so I had a good hour kill. There are a ton of eateries in the shopping center but I was not hungry so naturally I found myself surrounded by books. I started off in the science fiction section, found a few interesting titles but decided to pass since I had just finished reading a SciFi book. I wanted to explore other genres. So, I went down stairs to the bargain shelves and spent almost forty minutes picking up books only to find something more interesting. Now, I am a bit weird when it comes to shopping for books. I actually have way more fun book cover shopping (as in window shopping but with book covers instead) then actually buying a book and taking it home to read! But tonight was not the night for book cover shopping! I found some interesting non-fiction books that peaked my curiosity. The first book caught my eye when I entered the store. It is called, "The Complete Illustrated Guide to Herbs." Now, I got this book because I love knowing what different herbs are good for whether for cooking or healing purposes. I love how this book is compact but has really nice illustrations. You also get little tid-bits of historical facts about herbs and natural medicines.


The second book I got was, "Children's Amazing Places Encyclopedia." I am a sucker for great photograph and quick facts about geography. I love learning about new places, people and cultures. The photographs in this book are just breathtaking. With each turning page I say, "I want to visit here next," "This is my next destination!" or, "I'm adding this to my Bucket List of places to go before I die."



The third book was another reference book. I live in the NorthWest and there are a lot of Native American Cultures here. I recently went to a Pow Wow and was wowwed! So when I saw this book, I really wanted to get it and learn more about not only just the tribes in this area but Native American History as a whole. The Historical Atlas of Native Americans fit the bill.


Now, a trip to B&N would not be complete if I did not find at least one fiction tale to tickle my imagination. I have had my eyes on this book for a while. "Among the Mad," is detective novel and the main character is a female psychologist/detective. So I am really excited to get into this story



So there you have it. I am a bookaholic and I am proud of it!

Happy Reading!!

Be thankful....

Black & History

We have come a long way as a people, but we have yet a long ways to go!