I Spy…The Start of a New School Year!
Ready, set…school! I’ve been getting up to go to school every day for most of my life, and so the last two years have been…well…tricky. How…
Where’s My T-R-U-C-K?
We have loved Where’s My T-R-U-C-K by Karen Beaumont, with pictures by David Catrow (Dial Books for Young Readers, 2011) for long a time. It is…
Seeds, Chicks, Birthday, An Agent and BLUE SOCKS
April is one of the busiest months in the Picture Book House. It is the month that we start our seeds, and this year, we got…
We Got a Dog + How to Hide a Lion
One look at my new niece and I knew that we were getting a dog. We’d done the research, owned the training books, made the lists—pro…
Ox-Cart Man, And Much More to be Thankful For
I’m stuffed. We are wrapping up a weekend of incredible food and family fun and kicking off Christmas with a super-sized tree and thousands of twinkle…
A Perfect Picture Book on a Not So Perfect Morning: Baby Bear Counts One by Ashley Wolff
Occasionally there is a bit of bickering over breakfast, when my son’s in the mood for cereal to be shared with The Very Hungry Caterpillar but…
Throwback Thursday: Halloween Books from the 80s
When we are visiting at my parent’s house, my kids play with Micro Machines, Polly Pocket and Rainbow Bright while I sneak over to the bookshelf…
PBH Short Story: Memories of Mossy, Our Turtle for a Week
(Our Mossy. More photos of Mossy’s week with us, and her release, at the end of this post) When introduced to one of my daughter’s dolls,…
Truckin’
On Wednesday morning we went to story hour at the library. Our children’s librarian is everything I love about Meg Ryan as the Storybook Lady in…
Literacy 101: Making Connections with Dog Goes to Nursery School
My job as a reading teacher and literacy coach was to help students become active readers, which means I was helping them do things to better…
Duck on a Bike: It’s Impossible to Resist this Ride
There are some books best read at bedtime. Others in the morning, over breakfast. There are books for thunderstorms, books for sick days, books for reading…
A Short Story: Finding I Am Bunny
About a year ago, an older man pulled up to our driveway while I was outside playing with my kids and said, “Excuse me. Do you…
The (Breakfast) Table is Turned in Monster, Be Good! Monsters, Part II
Speaking of monsters… We’ve invited them to breakfast! Monster, Be Good!, by Natalie Marshall (Blue Apple Books, 2013) is short, interactive, and fun; the perfect addition…
if you want to see a whale, ride your bike to the park
If you want to see a whale, it is better not to pack a lunch, a picnic blanket, some books and the kids in the bike…
Meet Illustrator Rebecca Hirsch
Thank you, Rebecca Hirsch, for giving such detailed, inspiring and funny answers to my long list of questions about you and your work. In the interview…
The Art of Tibor Gergely in The Little Red Caboose
Milestone alert: my son sits for full-length picture books. He sits for book after book after book at bedtime in our reading chair, books that he…
Building Our House/Building Our Home
In July, we will have lived in our house for two years. I believe in the power of place, and there is no place other…
I JUST CAN’T WAIT: Brand New Stead/Fogliano and Fancy Nancy
Have I mentioned that I am a HUGE fan of Philip and Erin Stead? And of Julie Fogliano? Why yes I have, here: and then it’s…
Wisconsin Women Write for Children; We Read Their Books
Last night, instead of reading picture books to my kids, I settled into a seat in the second floor ballroom at The Women’s Club of Wisconsin…
Little Blue Truck
“Horn went ‘Beep!’ Engine purred. Friendliest sounds You ever heard.” …begins Little Blue Truck by Alice Schertle, illustrated by Jill McElmurry (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2008) AND…
Picture Book House 