Several years ago, I moved from the house where my late husband and I had raised our three children---two girls and a boy. It had three bedrooms so that meant the two girls shared a room in our suburban home. My husband died young of colon cancer at the age of fifty-two. Thus, unfortunately, he … Continue reading Discovering Nuggets of Gold — A Poem Reflecting on Life and What Remains After I’m Gone
When I was growing up, I had a Michigan cousin whose family visited my Kentucky Aunt Genie on her rural Shepherdsville plot of land usually twice a year for a Carlisle Reunion. Most of my other Carlisle aunts and uncles lived in Greater Louisville or about an hour and a half away in Lexington. And … Continue reading Our Playtime Turtles
Maybe you have heard of the movie and television fictitious “Walton Family” living their everyday challenges and joys on their rural Walton’s Mountain in Virginia. If you have, let me do a little review. If you haven’t, let me introduce you. Events are set during the time of 1933 to 1946 which include the Great … Continue reading Journeying with the Twists and Turns of TV’s “The Waltons”
When I was an elementary school child living a stone’s throw from my maternal grandparents, for a time my normal morning routine was to walk to Mom and Pop’s house, eat breakfast, and be walked to school by Pop. The thing I remember most about breakfast was what Mom (that's what I called my grandmother) … Continue reading Is Your Jelly Sweet Enough?
As I was video-chatting with one of my grandsons, our conversation drifted to a time in my marriage before my husband and I had children. I told this grandson that my first full-time teaching position was in the adjacent community of Jeffersontown, known to most of us as J-town. My husband Edgar was working as … Continue reading Special Delivery: Good Doughnuts and Good Memories
Like all of Nonny’s children’s books, Play Clay Hooray! includes activity instructions and Nonny’s Nurturing Tips. This particular book features a recipe for homemade play clay from everyday kitchen ingredients. Reading a book, making & playing with some play clay… makes for a great day! You can view Play Clay Hooray! and all my children’s … Continue reading Holiday Cheer: Discover Fun Activities in Nonny’s New Book!
Hello, Blog Readers! Thank you for being along with me on the journey to the publication of my most recent children’s book, Play Clay Hooray! As the holiday season approaches, I invite you to consider my books as delightful and educational gifts for the little ones in your life. I appreciate greatly your sharing of … Continue reading Gift the Joy of Language, Learning, and Life: Exploring My Children’s Book Series
My new book is out! If you have children ages 3-8 on your shopping list for this holiday season, this might just be the perfect gift for them. It’s also great for their parents or other caregivers, too. PLAY CLAY HOORAY! is not only beautifully illustrated and fun to read, but also includes activities and … Continue reading Unwrap Joy This Holiday Season: My New Children’s Book, PLAY CLAY HOORAY!
Hello, faithful readers! There are just 5 days left until the release of my latest children's book, PLAY CLAY HOORAY! Your support means the world to me, and I’d be grateful if you would like, comment, review, and share this excitement with your friends and family. It truly makes a difference. You can share this … Continue reading Count Down to PLAY CLAY HOORAY: Your Likes, Comments, Shares, and Reviews Requested!
We’re thrilled to announce that my latest children’s book PLAY CLAY HOORAY! will be released on November 27th. We’ve been fine-tuning the promotional text and would love for you to take a look at our current book description. Your feedback is always welcome as we get closer to this exciting launch! Discover the Joy of … Continue reading Get Ready to Celebrate: Release of ‘Play Clay Hooray!’ on November 27
Building a book is like building a house. For me, first comes the story I'm going to narrate—the basic framework of my house, those pieces of wood nailed in place. Next, I share my story with my artist collaborator, Courtney Coriell Williams, and tell her the illustrations I have in my mind. When she delivers … Continue reading Building a Book
Another update about my soon-to-be-published children's book... All of the books in my Nonny Day Series include activities that relate to the story. In Play Clay Hooray! the activity is two-fold: 1) Making Homemade Play Clay, and (of course) 2) Playing With It! Included in the book is an easy recipe for play clay, along … Continue reading Reading + Activity = Language, Learning, and Life!
Delightful news! Another book in my Nonny Day Series is about to be published. Like all books in the series, this book is designed for early readers (ages 5-8), and contains nurturing tips and activity instructions. Great for homeschoolers, public or private school teachers, parents, and all adults who are interested in fostering a child’s … Continue reading Fostering Bright Futures for Children through Reading: New Book Coming Soon!
My hometown of Louisville, Kentucky is all abuzz this week getting ready for our Churchill Downs 150th Run for the Roses. Three weeks of Derby events kick off every year with Thunder Over Louisville. In times past, my family would join hundreds of thousands to crane our necks toward the sky to see a dazzling … Continue reading And They’re Off! Racing to the Finish Line!
We all love a good story. And I've got one for you! It's about my son, the oldest of three siblings—the other two being girls—who was always attracted to music and technology. I fostered his love for music. And because of the influence of his engineer dad, even as a child our son would take … Continue reading Still Eager to Jump Back into Music Performance
The seasons of Christmas and Easter are intimately related. Below you will find a video of my song of praise for all seasons, "Sing Hallelujah, Give Him Your Heart." It tells the story of the birth and life of Jesus in a way that is understandable to children as well as adults. Along with the … Continue reading A Song for All Seasons: Sing Hallelujah, Give Him Your Heart
One day Nonny showed Timmy A picture on the wall. She said next to his Daddy Was a man she called Popaw.* “There used to be a Popaw Who played with your sister Sue. But since your Popaw died, There’s just me and you.” A tear rolled down Nonny’s cheek As she held Timmy up … Continue reading Holding Popaw In My Heart (a new poem)
As a working mom whose first two children (a boy and then a girl) were born 21 months apart, by the time “Child Number Three” came along—4 ¾ years after her sister—I didn’t always do things the traditional way. One example is how “Number Three” became a Santa’s Helper in what many of you might … Continue reading A Delightful Santa’s Helper
Some of you may be thinking, “What in the world is a house for Toddler Jesus?” Let me give you some background information before I jump into telling you how my two school age granddaughters and I recently made a little cardboard and popsicle stick house. We are going to use it at Christmastime alongside … Continue reading A House for Toddler Jesus (craft project)
We see a wide-eyed little girl, maybe six or so, in a church worship service. She’s standing next to her mother in a pew at the left side of the sanctuary, very close to the pianist whose fingers move adroitly over the keys of the ebony baby grand piano. The child’s eyes shift from the … Continue reading Vibrant Vibes — A Musical Phenomenon
I remember a game passed along in the Carlisle family, now still finding interest down to the fourth generation---passing from my father to me, to my children, and to my grandchildren. My son says he has done research trying to find an earlier origin of the game, or to see if there is another family … Continue reading Carlisle Family Christmas Eve Gift Game
Some of you may be thinking, “What in the world is a house for Toddler Jesus?” Let me give you some background information before I jump into telling you how my two school age granddaughters and I recently made a little cardboard and popsicle stick house. We are going to use it at Christmastime alongside … Continue reading A House for Toddler Jesus (craft project)
We see a wide-eyed little girl, maybe six or so, in a church worship service. She’s standing next to her mother in a pew at the left side of the sanctuary, very close to the pianist whose fingers move adroitly over the keys of the ebony baby grand piano. The child’s eyes shift from the … Continue reading Vibrant Vibes: A Musical Phenomenon
As I was video-chatting with one of my grandsons recently, my casual conversation drifted to a time in my marriage before children. I told him I had had my first full-time teaching position in the adjacent community of Jeffersontown, or known by most of us as J-town. And my husband was working as a machinist … Continue reading Special Delivery
As days are getting cooler, I begin to want to use the last of the green tomatoes which are growing right outside my kitchen door. But, if you haven’t grown them yourself, you may have a neighbor who has some and would be happy to share. Or check out your food market. My children loved … Continue reading Nonny’s Favorite Holiday Recipes – Fried Green Tomatoes
It’s not too early to start thinking about meaningful and educational holiday gifts for the youngsters in your life! If you haven’t purchased Volume 3 in my Nonny Day Series, Alphabet Excursion and Higgledy-Piggledy (perhaps because you didn’t find sample pages to view on Amazon--a story for another day!), below is what its delightful art … Continue reading The Holiday Season is Closer than You think – Shop Early for the Kids in Your Life (and their Caregivers!)
It has always been true that the world has a way of catching us off guard. Many of us like to think we have our life in control. Especially if we were fortunate enough to be born into a comfortable middle-class family, we have been taught to work hard and life will reward you. Pestilence, … Continue reading Sabbatical Series: Music’s Magic Healing Place
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