A Feast of Fun!

A sneaky snow storm snuck in last night and continued this morning, but many braved the weather to attend the MLK breakfast in Portland. We had about 50 in my group, and more than 100 in Annie's. The kids seemed to have a grand time! We couldn't have done it without the help of tremendously awesome volunteers. Dr. King would have been impressed with the great cooperation, friendship, and fun. For more photos, click HERE.

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

"I have the audacity to believe that people everywhere can have three meals a day for their bodies, education and culture for their minds, and dignity, equality and freedom for their spirits"

--Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

The Portland, Maine, branch of the NAACP will hold their annual MLK celebration breakfast on Monday, Jan.18th. Click HERE for more information and to make reservations. The keynote speaker is the dynamic and wonderful Dr. Melissa Harris-Lacewell! Concurrently, there will be two programs for youth. Anne Sibley O'Brien will present a terrific interactive program for kids 9-12. Her book, After Gandhi, will be the springboard for group brainstorming, poster-making, and plans for an exciting service project. And for kids 4 - 8, I will be running an activity-filled program based on my book, Feast for 10. Various activity stations will engage children in games, arts & crafts, and active play with a focus on healthy bodies & healthy minds. We'll have Fruits & Veggies Bingo, jump roping, collage-making, bean-bag tosses, a garden mural, story time and more.

Here are some of the games I've been making for this event!

A large board game, a bean-bag toss board, and a Fruits & Veggies version of an old 60's floor game.

All attendees (both programs) will receive a free book.

For more information,

call the amazing Pious Ali at 207-807-4283.

Happy New Year

Looking back on 2009.... Highlights are great times with family and friends. Another wonderful memory was my good fortune of participating in a loon survey with the BioDiversity Research Institute in July, and watching the loon chicks grow on No Name Pond through the summer.

My hopes for the new year are good health, happiness, and creative dreams for my my family and friends. And for me? Working on a loon book would be grand!

Greetings

LOVE! JOY! PEACE!

Warm wishes to all for the Solstice Season!

Fairy Follow up

The fairy house arrived in Oregon! Genevieve quickly found a steed for the fairy princess to ride.

Fairy for a four-year-old

I've been playing with fabric scraps while waiting to begin a new book project. Here's a little fairy and her tree stump house I made for my cousin's four-year-old daughter, Genevieve. It's soft and tough, and will take real playing. She can fill it with her own imagination and creativity.

If you happen to be a magical moment person, you'll enjoy this: I took the little house outside to photograph it (a strangely warm day for December in Maine) and just before I picked up the camera, a red dragonfly landed oh-so-briefly on the fairy's skirt---only to dart away before I could take a picture.

Fun for kids

I started a new blog, which will have simple, creative ideas for kids. I'll try to focus on recycled materials, and imaginative art projects that focus on process. It's called ARTFUL ACTS for kids. Please check it out, and let me know what you think! Thanks.