When I met with my publisher, Angus Yuen-Killick at Red Comet Press, we kicked around ideas to promote all the Red Comet Press authors in the Boston area, who are also friends of mine. It seemed too ambitious to set up Storytimes or Author Visits. Angus suggested that we contact bookstores in advance to see…
Frank Owen Gehry was a Canadian and American architect and designer known for his postmodern designs and use of unconventional forms and materials. A number of his buildings, including his private residence in Santa Monica, California, have become attractions. My favorite part of the Guggenheim Museum is the architecture. A stunning design by the recently…
To fold an origami crane, you will need a square piece of paper. It does not have to be origami paper. Here are the instructions via a diagram from the U.S. Park Service, though personally, I find the diagrams to be confusing: This is an activity for Barbed Wire Between Us. …
I used the Boston Public Library’s children’s book lists for years when my children were young. We used to read ten picture books every night because picture books worked for all three ages, and my kids expected each book to be outstanding. This meant that I had to seek out award-winning books so as not…
During our Hawaii vacation, I purposely did not bring my computer. Instead, I packed a small watercolor kit with the intention of finishing a sketchbook during that trip. I had watched Taria of Taria’s Sketchy Adventures on YouTube create a beautiful memory book by urban sketching her vacation. I wasn’t able to paint every day,…
We probably made a mistake by going to the Smithsonian Museum of African American History first. It’s next door. I think it was the soul food meal that put my husband and me into a food coma. Still, we wandered through the museum in search of dinosaurs, and it did not disappoint. They also have…
In Japan, the crane (tsuru) is a symbol of peace, good fortune, and longevity. It is a bird of happiness and spreads good luck. It is believed that folding 1,000 paper cranes (senbazuru) will help to bring about hope, healing, and peace. These children’s books featuring origami cranes also send a message of hope and…