In our perfect world, my husband or myself set aside a chunk of time to sit with Pea (and now Coco, too) and work the site, but since we actually reside in reality most of the time, we are digging on the site because it’s something Pea can do by herself. And you know what? I have no guilt over that. What’s better? A half-hour in front of the boob tube? Or a half-hour learning to read? Because that’s what she’s doing. Learning to read. And that’s not an overstatement. I promise.   

Now, go write a children’s book! We need some fresh reads around here, come bedtime…

And? No idea where to even begin, right? Honestly, I have a few stories of my own that I’d like to get onto paper. And I, too, have no clue how to make that happen.

Well, Little Airplane can help you navigate the world of children’s book publishing. Not familiar with Little Airplane? But let me guess, you do know “The Wonder Pets!,” right? I think you’d have to be living under a rock not to know that it’s one of the most adorable kid’s shows around these days. Seriously. I think the whole premise is too incredible for words. From the names to the voices to the stories. Even the theme song, which is in current rotation on Pea’s most-sung kid tunes playlist. It’s right up there with “Free to Be You and Me.” I’d say that “The Wonder Pets!” are in good company.

Anyway, Little Airplane Productions has a staff with bios to make any parent of a young kid swoon. “Sesame Street.” “The Wonder Pets!” “Little Bill.” We’re talking the real deal here. Impressive. And they are offering a writer’s workshop called “The Little Airplane Children’s Book Academy,” which will take place this spring. Next month, actually. May 30th to June 1st, in New York City.

Take a poke around their website. You’ll get a good feeling about them. I did. Instantly. And I have a hunch that if you have a children’s book skipping around in that noggin of yours, these are just the folks to teach you the tools that you’ll need to get that idea out of your head and onto paper. Paper with a binding. And illustrations. And your name on the front cover.

It was serendipitous, that I found out about the workshop. I would love to attend. Might even twist my husband’s arm a bit too hard to get him to agree to send me. Happy Mother’s Day to me? But seriously, this is an opportunity here. A golden one. Look into it. Think about it. Come on, how many times have you read a book to your kid and thought to yourself, “self? I could totally do this!”

All of the information you need is on the page I’ve linked to above. Let me know if you’re thinking about it, I’d love to know…

Happy writing!

But now? Nesting. Big-time. No, huge time…

Some things I’m working on…

My second knitting lesson. My first was a smashing success. I learned the basics, and then for the next hour of the ninety minute session, I was officially in a ‘stitch ‘n bitch’ with my instructor. My next lesson? Reading patterns. And then I’m on my way. Thus far, I have two scarves under my belt and a pair of socks just calling my husband’s name. You can say I’m hooked. In fact, I’m so hooked that it’s all I think about all day long. So it goes without saying that I’m really into this website right now, Knit & Tonic. And I’m also into the author of the website’s book, “Custom Knits.” My first project will be the Drive-Thru sweater, for one of the girls. Well, my first real project. And my second project? The Somewhat Cowl sweater. The answer to my sweater dreams. Seriously, in this sweater, I’m going to be Miss Sweater Girl. I’m so excited, I can barely sleep at night. Seriously, there is nothing more incredible for the soul than a really satisfying hobby. And this? Knitting? It’s mine. It’s now mine. And I’m not letting it go. (And might I just add here that if I’d known sooner how simple knitting was? I’d have taken this craft up eons ago. Really. It is not difficult. Not by a long-shot.)

I’ve also pulled my sewing machine back out from the depths of the laundry room cabinets. The cabinets above the sink. I was mostly reeled back in by a blog that I stumbled onto on The Purl Beehive, a resting spot for the many incredible crafting websites out there. You don’t need a membership to peruse the many good reads. The one that caught my eye was “Katie Did.” She has a beautiful family and makes beautiful things for her beautiful family, and it was all so terrible inspiring to me that I can’t stop thinking about the beautiful things that I’m going to make for my own beautiful family. Beautiful. Beautiful. Beautiful. And did I mention beautiful? So, my husband gave me two books that I’m finding inspiring. One is “Sew U: The Built by Wendy Guide to Making Your Own Wardrobe,” and the other is “Sew U Home Stretch: The Built by Wendy Guide to Sewing Knit Fabrics.” Both books are for an advanced sewer, but as they say, practice makes perfect.

And then, there’s my stamping craze. I’m obsessed with Lena Corwin’s new book, “Printing by Hand: A Modern Guide to Printing with Handmade Stamps, Stencils, and Silk Screens.” I’m off to the art supply store tomorrow to stock up on printing supplies. And I have a long list of projects in my head, including hand-stamped onesies to give my friend who’s little girl is due next month – the one for whom I’m hosting the shower. Anyway, the book is gorgeous, and nothing, if not completely inspiring. I’ve been taking it to bed with me every night for a couple of months, dreaming of the projects I’m going to stamp and stencil. And then, this morning, I woke up, and I knew. I just knew. That tomorrow? Tomorrow was going to be the day.

I’m just feeling revitalized right now, at my newfound passion for making things with my own hands. It’s satisfying. Oh, so satisfying. There aren’t even words for me to describe just how very satisfying it is. Now, I’m writing lists for materials that I need. And projects that I’d like to try. Downloading knitting patterns and studying the patterns in my favorite sewing book. Which is in Japanese. But no matter. A pattern is a pattern is a pattern. And I’m going to get to sewing…

Just as soon as I return from the fabric store…

Shapes.

Colors.

Numbers.

Over-sized board books with vibrant and simple illustrations to accompany the text. The books are written in English, and translated into French, German, Italian and Spanish. And additionally, the words are then spelled out phonetically in their foreign language translation.

Coco has been asking me to read them to her, again and again, for the better part of the afternoon. And while I know my colors, numbers and shapes in 4 of the languages, I do not know any of those words in German, so I’m not rolling my eyes at the monotony of the same three books, over and over. On the contrary, I’m pointing out everything in the house that I can in German. Awesome. Well, except for the eye roll that I’m pretty sure I saw Coco give me, after the myriad of random requests I’d put out there for her, such as: “please bring me the blau plate in the shape of a quadrat with the zwei butterflies painted on it.”

I just hope that Coco doesn’t do to me what I do to her when she gets hung up on one book for weeks on end. That would be to hide it. In the far and dark reaches of our home. Never to be seen again. That would be a real bummer.

The girls received another incredible gift today, from my brother-in-law and his family. And they get us. The girls. What kind of children’s “entertainment” we like in our home. And before you roll your eyes, admit that you know what I’m talking about. Some parents like wooden toys. Some like toys with educational value. Some like toys that look good scattered across the coffee table as guests are arriving for dinner.

That would be me. Us. Our girls.

Anyway, it’s a wooden alphabet game that does look very charming perched atop our coffee table.

See? That’s me. Us. Our girls.

Happy Hanukkah. Merry Christmas. Happy Kwanzaa. Happy Holidays. To you and yours.

If you’ve never been to Germany, I will tell you this. There is no where else in the world that has toys like the Germans do. There were several toy shops in Heidelberg. I am fairly certain that we visited them all. And the thing that I am most struck with, beyond the toys, is that the Germans love their children. A lot. And it shows in the interesting craftsmanship of their wooden toys; the illustrations in their children’s books.

Things to check out:

Books by Lisbeth Zwerger. She is a phenomenal illustrator. Her artwork is just breathtaking. So beautiful, you have to take a deep breath when you see it. Just don’t forget to exhale. (And thank you to the person who left a comment, months ago, that I check out Lisbeth’s work.) If you can find her a book illustrated by her, chances are it will be in German. But don’t let that turn you off. Trust me when I tell you that you are not buying them for the stories. You are buying them for the chance to own a book with the most gorgeous and lush illustrations that you will ever see. We bought several, including “The Little Mermaid” and the ever-famous “Hansel & Gretel.” Both are going straight to the framer. They are too beautiful to leave in a book somewhere in the house, to be torn up and then forgotten about. They are frame-worthy. Art.

Artwork by a gentleman named Michael Hall. We stumbled across his work at a tiny little bookshop on a sweet cobblestone side street. The woman who owned it was just the most charming person I’ve ever met. So charming, in fact, that I went back to her shop every day that I was in Heidelberg. To buy children’s books, yes. But also to peruse the walls of her shop. They were covered with artwork from a very eclectic group of artists. You can call these works folk art. Or even outsider art. But it was Michael Hall’s pieces that I so coveted. He is a prolific artist. Has a view of the world that I find beautiful. Inspiring. Colorful. And optimistic. We came home with a pieced called, roughly translated, “The Flower King.” It was lovingly hand carried back to the states by myself. And it’s now the most precious piece of art that I own. And I have a lot of art.

Any toy by Haba. And those are easy, as they sell them here. On Amazon. Sometimes at a pretty good discount. Wooden. Educational. Pretty. And fantastically sensible. And of course, fun for the kids and still attractive enough for the grown-ups.

I admit that Germany was never high on my list of places to visit. But I am so glad that I went. Particularly to Heidelberg. It’s a great introduction to Germany. Noting too serious. A small city rich is history with a lot of interesting characters to be met. I highly recommend it. And I’m now adding German to the list of languages that I am studying. Or want to study. As easy as it is for me to follow Spanish and Italian, and that I am meant to be French and therefore do very well with that language, German is impossible to understand or make sense of. But I’m working on that.

So in light of the coming holiday season, these are some of my favorites:

Little tins, housing magnetic dress-up dolls. A modern take on the paper dolls of my youth. WIthout the disposable aspect. They are terrific for taking along on a long car ride. Or out to dinner at a restaurant. My oldest has almost all of them, and they are always in rotation. The World Traveler. The Ballerina. The Sporty Girls.

Automoblox cars. Any one of them. The larger ones (in pink, even), or the smaller set with 3 different styles of automobiles. These cars are awesome. The parts of all of them are interchangeable with the others. They look cool. They provide hours and hours of fun, and then become a conversation piece when left sitting out on the coffee table. Warning: grown-ups like them, too. Especially the guys.

Tea sets for the girls. We must have half a dozen of them, and they are constantly out and being played with. I cannot tell you how many tea parties I’ve been to lately. There are too many to count. And while the porcelain sets that come in baskets are lovely to look at, how impractical can they be? Even for the most careful of children? They break. They get glued back together. And then they break, again. So I have put them away, for later days. And we are now putting to good use the tin sets. Use them, abuse them. Eat real food off of them. That’s what we do at our tea parties.

Play kitchens and toy food! These are incredibly entertaining. Ours is from Pottery Barn and was a gift. But there are so many others, more modestly priced, just as good-looking and equally as much fun. There’s even an impressive knock-off of the retro kitchen from Pottery barn. My oldest is constantly inviting me to her “restaurant,” and supplying me with a menu. I then order up an interesting mix, just to see if she’ll get it right. Refried beans, a carton of milk and a croissant. She has a ball, and has no clue that she’s learning at the same time. Melissa & Doug make a fantastic assortment of foods, some of them that the kids can cut in half. And don’t forget the dishes.

Building blocks. We must have twelve different sets. And while I used to try to keep them separated in their own baskets, I’ve since given up and thrown them all into one big basket. We have a set from Babystyle that just looks so cute when it’s turned into a town. And although they’re not making that exact set any longer, the blocks that turn into a train are a great alternative. And then there’s another set from Melissa & Doug and even a set from Ikea that came in a little wooden wagon. Oh, and we cannot forget Haba blocks. Just about the coolest blocks around. The Coliseum. Skyscrapers. A mosque. Good times.

The gift of foreign languages! As in Muzzy language learning DVDs. To say that I am obsessed would be an understatement. This program, created by the BBC, is bar none the best of all of the foreign language programs for children. We have the Spanish program. And I just received the 20th Anniversary edition, which has Spanish, French, German, Italian, British English and American English. The best $200 I have ever spent. And while it looks like they don’t have the anniversary package available on their website just yet, I’m sure it will be listed soon. It’s worth the wait. The testimonials are impressive. And while these DVDs are technically not a toy, they are set up as “entertainment,” so you can have your children engaged in something fun, while knowing that they are learning in the process. And start early! It’s never too early! Catch the children while their minds are still sponges!

Alex Toys. Just about anything that they’ve created. My personal favorite? The finger crayons. These are perfect for little ones still mastering the fine art of hand-eye coordination.

If you have a doll collector to shop for, the Gotz “Sasha” dolls are lovely. They remind me so much of my childhood. I have this exact doll, and it’s one of the very few things that I have saved from my childhood. I was saddened to read that the company that produced them had gone out of business, thus making these dolls a little more difficult to find, and a lot more expensive. But… my gosh. These are incredibly special. And when I watch my own daughters play with my own Sasha doll, I get choked up. Worth the search if your little girl loves dolls and money is not an issue. But if you are looking for something a little easier to find and less expensive, then Karito dolls are worth a look. The dolls represent different countries, among them the USA, China and Italy. They are also interactive; each doll comes with a special code that you activate online, and your child can then learn about other cultures and give to charity, as well. How many wonderful lessons can you get from one small doll?

And last but not least… Books. Any and all books. My current favorite is “Amazing Peace,” by Maya Angelou. It has a holiday theme, but a timeless reminder to me of one of the most important aspects of life: tolerance.

Some thoughts on the topic…

For the reader, particularly of current-day mysteries, all five books in Patricia Highsmith’s “Ripley” series. Campiest read ever. A kind of retro mystery, surrounding a man of much manipulation. Yes, it’s the same series that spawned Matt Damon in the role of Ripley, but don’t let that throw you off. The Ripley of the books is a debonair cad who unapologetically enjoys the finer things in life. And will do anything to get them.

For the writer, Moleskine notebooks. I can never have enough of these. Never, ever, ever. Small ones in my bag, large ones on my desk at home. I use them for everything, and have never crossed paths with someone who either didn’t know what they are, or wasn’t interested in owning one. These are the penultimate books of the likes of Hemingway (Hemingway!) and Picasso (Picasso!).

For the proper lady with the to-die-for manners, I’d always go with monogrammed correspondence cards from iomoi. Preppy. Trendy. Classic Or just plain cool. They’re all here.

For the foodie in your life, just about anything from Zingerman’s is going to delight. I’ve sent many gifts from this Michigan “deli,” and get immediate calls asking where on earth did I find these amazing breads? Because they are the best ever.

For the chef, these adorable Matryoshka measuring cups are perfect. So much fun, perched on the countertop. And functional, as well. Add a shot of color to someone’s life, a bit of whimsy with these.

For someone into home design, or the lives of the young and fabulous, I highly recommend “Bright Young Things,” the American version (there is also an English version). It’s several years old, but still so pertinent in regards to home design (and fashion, as well). I still pull this book out of my own stack of design books to get inspiration from it’s pages. I even gave this book to my own mother a few years ago. She’s a designer who has a library of design books to rival no other. And she adores this book. Finds constant inspiration in it’s pages, as well.

For the beauty addict, a subscription to “New Beauty (my current obsession, and I promise it is not all about plastic surgery, not by a long-shot… an impressive list of ‘judges’ and beauty product recommendations that I’ve found to be quite helpful),” and this little gift pack by Nars, of their best-selling “Orgasm” shade of multiple stick (love these!) and coordinating gloss. This color is incredible for anyone. I’ve seen so many different skins wear the original blush, and it looks different, but natural on all. This has been a staple in my make-up bag, on and off, for years. And I always make my way back to it.

For those who have everything with kids who have everything: a membership to just about anywhere. A local museum. The zoo. The Discovery Center. It doesn’t really matter, as long as it’s a place that they can visit together. As a family.

More thoughts on the subject, as the holiday shopping days are slowly (and quickly) counting down.

Tomorrow? Gifts for kids.