It has been a wonderful spring! Family activities have kept me very busy–maybe too busy! Between soccer practice, shopping for the school dance, volunteer work in the classroom and dealing with pollen allergies, it has been a wild ride. I have managed, however, to do a few author events in the past year, although writing projects have definitely taken a backseat. This includes writing for the blog which I have most definitely and sadly neglected. I plan to hold tight to the steering wheel however, and get back on track, starting now. Hopefully, there are smooth roads ahead. Okay, enough of the driving metaphors!
First, I want to report on the wonderful author events I did manage to fit in. They are so much fun and I love meeting kids and talking to them about reading and the environment, which I am passionate about. In the Fall I met up with fellow author and friend Barbara Beck at the First Sunday Art Festival in Annapolis, Maryland. We had loads of fun meeting families at the festival on a beautiful Fall day in the historical town of Annapolis. The festival features artists, crafters, and musicians and is held on the first Sunday of every month from May to December. I am pictured with her on the left. She has two amazing books about architecture for kids.
Next, in October, I visited the Oyster Stroll in Westminster, Maryland. I read from my books at the Carroll County Public Library while children made fun stick puppets of the characters in my books
! Special thanks to Tony Eckard, Lisa Picker and Lynn Beard for organizing and putting together such a wonderful event. The Oyster Stroll is a community event in Westminster that raises awareness of the importance of oyster farms in the Chesapeake Bay. They will be having another event this Fall for 2017. This is from their website:
“The city Oyster Stroll festival is far more than oysters, music, food, and fun for the community. It is an event designed to raise awareness about and benefit Chesapeake farmed raised oyster aquaculture and how our local community is working to restore wild oysters back into the bay while creating new oyster reefs from recycled oyster shell and concrete reef balls. So join us on October 14th , 2017 and sample all the flavors of our Chesapeake bay while helping to support the CCA Living Reef Action Campaign.”
Finally, I visited Ilchester Elementary School in early spring of this year. I had a wonderful time presenting for Family Literacy night! I read from my books, demonstrated how oysters filter the water in the Chesapeake Bay and students made their own “oysters” out of coffee filters.
Special thanks to Jessica Legambi, Rachel Machesky (of the Children’s Bookstore), Dr. Joy Smith, Ellen Smith, the reading committee, and so many more! The teachers and staff were awesome and the students were so much fun! Here are a few pictures from the event which were posted on Facebook and Twitter by Howard County Executive Allan H. Kittleman.
As I get back in the saddle (new metaphor) I look forward to new writing projects and more author visits in the near future. I will be visiting Davidsonville Elementary next week and South County Reading Camp in Lothian, Maryland this Summer. Looking ahead in the Fall, I will be visiting the Children’s Bookstore in Baltimore, Maryland in September. Until next time, happy trails;)
Elaine
