Brynn Barineau

Tag: parenting

  • Surprise! I’m a podcast host!

    Surprise! I’m a podcast host!

    Get in losers! We’re preserving our creative identities.

    What do you do when you have a full time job, parenting, helping your husband move permanently to the US, and launching a novel? You start a podcast with two of your best friends! (Not Quite) Losing It is the podcast I wish I’d had when I was a new mom who felt completely erased by motherhood. We’re three friends and moms, at different stages of parenting, but all trying to find ways to keep our creative identity alive.

    Nurturing your own creative expression is incredibly important, even though the demands of motherhood make it feel impossible sometimes. We want to create resources and a community that help other women connect with each other and their own identities. We’re excited to welcome anyone who wants to be a part of a cozy, encouraging, judgement-free creative community, but we imagine our conversations will resonate primarily with mothers who have always valued their creative expression but who feel like they are in danger of losing it.

    Why are we doing this? That’s a great question, and one we’ve asked ourselves. We’re a busy crew. I work full time. Melissa works part-time and is raising four boys. Katie is has three kids and is keeping the youngest one alive with food produced from her own body. So none of us were like, sitting around bored and needing another project. Between work and parenting a total of eight kids between us, it actually seems kind of dumb for us to be taking something else on.

    Except: We all really wanted to. At some point, we’ve all felt on the verge of losing ourselves in the onslaught of maternal responsibilities. We’ve all had moments when tending to our creative spirits felt like just one more mouth to feed, and that it would be easier to just let that part of ourselves go dormant. But we’ve each fought through those moments and fed that extra mouth anyway, because we all believe our kids deserve a mom who is a whole, full, fulfilled person, and we think we deserve to be that kind of mom. We think all moms deserve to be that kind of mom.

    I’ve struggled to find time to write since going back to work full-time. I’ve struggled to muster the energy to even read in the evening. There’s so much advice saying “If you love it, you’ll make time for it.” What does it mean that I haven’t made the time in years? I’m bringing those fears and hope to reignite my spark in community with other creative moms. So join us as we raise children, find ways to be creative that are both sustainable and sustaining, and come together to share some inspiration, advice, lots of laughs and remind each other that, despite all appearances, we’re not quite losing it.

    You can listen to (Not Quite) Losing It on Substack, Apple podcasts and Spotify.

  • What I Learned From Querying Literary Agents

    What I Learned From Querying Literary Agents

    The other night my daughter and I died repeatedly in a lava lake. We were playing Yoshi’s Woolly World and trying to get a final daisy that would unlock a secret board but the lava was rising and covering the daisy and…well, we died a lot.

    After death number twenty-two give or take five, my daughter said, “Mommy, let’s just quit. We’re never going to get it.”

    “That’s only true if we quit,” I cried, frantically pounding the A button.

    Which is true. In Yoshi’s Wolly World and in life. Someday becomes never only when we quit.

    This is not a sentiment I would have slapped on a poster, covered in glitter, and waved over my head until very recently. I was much more a “Why would I waste my limited time and energy on something that’s basically impossible?” or put more honestly “Why would I try so hard to most likely fail?”

    Then I started querying agents for a novel, and I learned failing isn’t the end. Failing is a step.

    I remember the queasy feeling I had as I hit send on my first query. This was it. After three years of writing, revising and researching the fiction industry, I was as ready as I could be. I was NOT querying a first draft. I had revised and revised again. I researched agents and made a list tailored to the book I wrote. I sent my query to workshops and had ACTUAL literary agents critique it. I was ready, and with my hand shaking, I clicked send. Then I sent nine more.

    They all said no. So did the next ten agents. And the ten after that. All form rejections.

    Querying literary agents is a pretty good dry run for living with chronic reflux. Once those queries are out, checking your inbox triggers chest pains, difficulty breathing, and nausea. It didn’t matter if the query was sent six hours ago or six months ago. If I had an open query and that little red circle appeared over my inbox icon, my stomach flipped. My expectations rose.

    And then I’d read the rejection. It’s amazing that pixels on a screen can stimulate the physical sensation of being punched in the gut.

    The first few rejections hurt but weren’t devastating. I didn’t panic. There are varied tastes. Some agents just won’t be into a vigilante anti-hero no matter how well written. Although someone should have recognized my talent by query 20. Or 25. Certainly by 30. But the form rejections kept coming and feeding the self-doubt. Because I wouldn’t have queried a novel I didn’t think was good. So the agent rejections were a reflection not only my book but on my judgement as a writer, right?

    Eventually I went in search of data because that’s what people with social science degrees do. I wanted a number, so I googled “What’s the average number of rejections authors get before signing with an agent?” I found enough numbers that I know my total rejections over three projects isn’t even that high.

    But back then, I had no idea where my count would end. Would I be the author who got an agent on her 65th query for her sixth manuscript? Imagining the time and energy it would take to write and revise six novels left me breathless. Could my heart take a shot of adrenaline every time I checked my email for a decade? But giving up after one novel wasn’t even trying and I couldn’t quit without really trying.

    So I wrote another book. And I queried it. I got more form rejections. They caused heart palpitations and pain. But…and this was a revelation…not as much pain as that first batch.

    I realized as I neared that 100 rejections mark, that the more times I read “no”, the faster my heart rate returned to normal. By the time I was into three digit rejection numbers, the emails caused only a flutter of despair. I could tell my husband and family “Nope. Another pass” with merely a shrug. I seemed to have developed a high tolerance for “no”.

    Then project number three got me my first full manuscript request and first rejection of the entire manuscript. That one was bad. My query reflux flared up. I cried. But there were more full requests and I started thinking “At this rate, eventually someone will say yes.” I’d heard “no” 130 times, but somewhere along the line my thinking had shifted from “maybe not ever” to “eventually”.

    As long as I didn’t quit. I’d gone from form rejections to personalized rejections to a partial request to multiple full requests. If I kept going, one rejection at time, I’d eventually get to a yes and after four years, I did. After 138 rejections.

    So here’s what I hope to pass on my daughter.

    There will be some doors that never open no matter how hard a person tries. I will never be and could never have been a professional basketball player or super model. I do not have the body for either. Nor do I have the eyesight for fighter jet pilot. Some things are out of our control.

    And not everyone has the luxury of failing repeatedly. They don’t have time and energy to spare on ventures that might not bring any financial return. They don’t have family to support them during the trial and errors or bail them out after the crash and burn.

    Failing repeatedly is a priviledge. If you’ve got the safety net, take the leap.

    Do not let fear of hearing “no” or shame from having to admit rejection in front of family and friends be the only reasons you don’t try. Hearing “no” gets easier. It’ll always sting, but it will stop defining you. Every failed attempt teaches and makes you better. And you will get better.

    So tryout for the team. Audition for the roll. Submit the story. Send off the resume. The regret from never trying will be so much worse than the sting of failing. And if there answer is “no”, well, your life will go on exactly as it did before you tried. It won’t be worse and now you have the chance to learn something and try again.

    Take the step. Get a “no”. Reassess and try again. And again. Get 138 “no”s. Get 500 “no”s. You’ve only truly failed once you stop trying.

    That’s what I yelled while my Yoshi leapt over rising lava. And eventually we got that damn daisy.

  • Review of American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang

    Review of American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang

    It’s that time of year again! Time for Multicultural Kid Blogs’ Read Around the World Series 2018! I’m excited to be participating in this epic global round up of amazing children’s books for my fourth year. I’ve found many wonderful picture books for my own daughter through this series such as Tales Told in Tents, a collection of folk tales from Central Asia, and Pretty Salma, a Little Red Riding Hood tale set in Ghana. I’ve been able to recommend some of my personal favorite YA reads such as The Star Touched Queen and The Hate U Give.

    My first recommendation for this year is a Middle Grade graphic novel that can truly be enjoyed by any age: American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang.

    If you believe children Need Diverse Books #WNDB, then check out the series homepage at Multicultural Kid Blogs for recommendations ranging from picture book to YA! Or check out the Read Around the World Pinterest page with all the recs from the past five years.

  • 5 Amazing Brazilian Children’s Authors

    5 Amazing Brazilian Children’s Authors

    When I first began shopping for children’s books in Brazil, I had a hard time finding books by Brazilians. It was crazy. I was in Saraiva, one of the major chain bookstores in Brazil, and I noticed the books I’d picked were all translations from American authors. So I began hunting for books by Brazilians. I picked up one book after another. Published in France. Published in the UK. Published in Italy. I picked up one with a Macaw on the front. Macaws are from the Amazon. It had to be Brazilian. Nope. Published in Columbia.

    There are of course many amazing Brazilian authors writing for children, but despite amazing native authors and children’s lit community, I had to research and order books by Brazilians. My local chain bookstore in Vitoria was no help, which is just wrong.

    So I’d like to introduce five of my favorite Brazilian children’s book authors. I’ve included links for English translations when available. Based on what Spanish speaking friends have told me, a native Spanish speaker should have no trouble reading the Portuguese, but I’d love to get more Brazilian kid lit translated into English. I’ll add it to the list of life goals.

    ANA MARIA MACHADO

    Machado was born in Rio de Janeiro in 1941 and has written over 100 books for children. In 2000, Machado won the international Hans Cristian Andersen Award, which designated her one of the greatest children’s authors in the world. She began writing in 1969 and wrote specifically for children because during the military dictatorship in Brazil, children’s literature along with poetry and song, “were amongst the few literary forms with which, through the poetic and symbolic use of language, you could make the ideas of a joie de vivre, individual freedom and respect for human rights known.” Some of her most famous books include A Menina Bonita do Laço de Fita, about a white bunny who desperately wants to become a beautiful black like the little girl next door and the advice she gives him, and Bisa Bia, Bisa Bel, about a girl’s internal dialogue with her great-grandfather and her own great-granddaughter. A Menina Bonita do Laço de Fita is available in English on Amazon.

     

     

    CECILIA MEIRELES

    Born in Rio de Janeiro in 1901, Meirelles published her first work at the age of 18, and she was every bit the genius you’d assume based on that fact. She’s known in Brazil primarily as a poet, but she was also a professor, journalist, painter, playwright, and fiction author. There aren’t many types of writing she didn’t publish in. She could do it all. Meirelles was one of the first women in Brazil to be recognized as a great literary voice. Some of her most famous works for children are   “O Cavalinho Branco”, “Sonhos de Menina”, and “O Menino Azul”. The musicality of her lines is so strong, that “O Menino Azul” still sounded lovely when I read it aloud. (And as all adult learners of a second language know, nothing is harder to read aloud in a foreign language than poetry.) I haven’t been able to find any of her children’s works translated into English, but you can find many of her most famous poems translated in this anthology of Brazilian poets.

     

     

     

    EVA FURNARI

    Furnari is an Italian-Brazilian author-illustrator. I’ve been able to forgive her for hoarding so much talent (author-illustrators seem so unfairly awesome) because her characters are so delightfully quirky. Born in Rome in 1948, she moved to São Paulo at the age of two and has lived there ever since. She came to children’s books in the early 1980’s through art and initially worked exclusively an illustrator before creating her own characters and stories. One of her most famous characters is A Bruxinha Zuzu or Zuzu the Little Witch, who never quite seems to master the power of her magic wand.  Many of Funari’s books are textless, including our favorite A Bruxinha Zuzu e o Gato Miú, and can be enjoyed regardless of what languages you read. One of her most famous and award winning stories, Felpo Filva,  is available in English as Fuzz McFlops in both the US and UK.

     

     

    SONIA JUNQUEIRA

    Born in the state of Minas Gerais in 1945, Junqueira published her first book at the age of 37 and has gone on to write more than 100 children’s books. She worked as a professor and editor before becoming an author. My daughter and I discovered Junqueira through a book swap at school. My daughter, always the animal lover, picked up a book with a cute cat on the front porch. I was the first story in verse that was more poetry than story and I honestly wasn’t sure how well she’d like it. A Poesia na Varanda was a hit and inspired me to buy Where the Sidewalk Ends during our Christmas trip to the US. I haven’t found any English translations but many of her world are available outside Brazil in Portuguese through Kindle.

     

     

    VERONICA STIGGER

    Stigger is not really known as a children’s author. She’s a journalist, art critic, and writer primarily for adults known for challenging rules of genre and format in her work. Born in the state of Porto Alegre in 1973, Stigger began working as an essayist for radio and television. She then pursued a PhD in Art theory and Criticism and pursued research and various post-doctoral work before publishing her first collection of stories for adults in 2004. So not a career kid lit writer. However, one of her most recent books, Onde a Onça Bebe Água, Where the Jaguar Drinks Water, is one of the best books I’ve read for teaching empathy and seeing the world through a another’s eyes. In the story, Jaci is forced to consider the world from the perspective of the Jaguar he’s ends up dining with. Unfortunately, there isn’t an English translation of it or any of her books that I can find but several of her adults works do have Spanish versions available on Amazon.

  • Getting Our Yellow Fever Vaccines

    Getting Our Yellow Fever Vaccines

    This is public enemy #1!
    Aedes aegypti. It carries dengue, zika, & chikungunya.

    Mosquito born viruses did not cross my mind when considering what my daily life would be like in Brazil, but it turns out that repellent is right up there with sunscreen as a daily necessity.

    I certainly never lost sleep over a mosquito in the U.S., but here in Brazil, more than once we’ve turned the lights on in the middle of the night at the whine of a mosquito. Some people might think mosquito hunting at 2am is overreacting, but my husband has had dengue. The steely-eyed commitment with which he stalks every mosquito in our home makes me think the experience has stayed with him.

    Public health officials in Brazil take mosquitoes seriously too. They’ve been battling dengue for decades. Chikungunya and Zika became common place in the last few years, and this year, Espirito Santo and its neighbor, Minas Gerais, are combating the spread of yellow fever. My family and I got our yellow fever vaccines last week, and it was an impressive operation.

    If you know the monkey might have yellow fever, is it still as cute?

    Vaccine distribution is one public service Brazil has mastered. At the end of February, the city government confirmed a monkey found dead in Vitoria in January had died from yellow fever. This one dead monkey kicked public health services into Defcon 5. The city closed 11 parks in the metro area. The federal government sent 1 million more doses of yellow fever vaccine to Espirito Santo. Public Health posts’ hours and days of operation were expanded. Churches have been converted to vaccination centers. Firefighters and nurses from public hospitals have been enlisted to distribute and administer the vaccines. This past Saturday 98,904 people were vaccinated in the metro area bringing the total vaccinated to over 800,000 in a little over two weeks.

    This is public health at it’s most efficient and most militarized. I know from personal experience. We were assigned a specific vaccination center and time when my husband reserved our vaccines online. When we got to the church, we had to present IDs for everyone, including my daughter, before we could enter the building where people waited in rows of white plastic chairs. We’d been assigned numbers at the entrance, and in what has to be one of the shortest waits in the history of line waiting in Brazil, a woman in a white lab coat, clipboard in hand, called our numbers, and we entered the heart of the operation.

    Along one wall was a row of nurses and firefighters taking down people’s names, ID numbers, and stamping vaccine cards. Firefighters are militarized in Brazil, and their khaki green uniforms with ranks sewn on their shirts made the whole scene feel like something out of Contagion. Along the adjacent wall, was another group readying vaccines before passing them in a ceaseless stream to the one woman who administered vaccines. Needle in. Needle out. Hands off the old needle. Accepts freshly opened vaccine. Needle in. Needle out.

    It wasn’t frantic, but it was efficient. People were moved around the room and back out the door with a lack of pleasantries I have never witnessed in Brazil.

    We survived!

    My daughter did not like it. She’d been totally chill about it until we got inside the vaccination room. The tension and focus that permeated the air had her clinging to her dad and begging to go. And these people were not waiting for her to calm down. I don’t blame them. They’re trying to vaccinate a few million people. My husband and I went first, trying to teach by example. It had no effect. She just got more hysterical with every second, so my husband held her in his arms. I held her arm straight, and the vaccine lady jabbed the needle in.

    For the rest of the day, my daughter showed off the tiny, nearly invisible red dot left behind like the scars of a near-death shark attack.

    As of Friday, there were 20 confirmed yellow fever deaths in our state. That’s 20 deaths out of 80 confirmed cases. The math is simple. That’s a 25% fatality rate. In neighboring Minas Gerais, there have been 109 deaths out 288 confirmed cases. I’m getting my calculator…37.8%. Wow, I hadn’t realized until writing this how bad this outbreak is.

    So if you’re planning on visiting Brazil anytime soon, I’d check if you’re ecolodge is smack in the middle of a high risk zone, and then I’d pack lots and lots of repellent regardless.

  • Knocked Up Abroad Again is Now Available!

    Knocked Up Abroad Again is Now Available!

    creativity-is-intelligence-having-fun-2I’m thrilled to announce that after a successful Kickstarter campaign Knocked Up Abroad Again is available for purchase on Amazon!

    Hip, hip, hooray! Hip, hip…Dear god, I’m never doing another Kickstarter campaign again. I wasn’t even in charge of the thing. Our editor put in a billion more hours organizing and promoting the thing, but I still felt like a used car salesman begging people to donate their hard earned money and time on my words. Who am I kidding? How am I ever going to promote and sell my own books if I can’t promote a collaborative work on Kickstarter on my Facebook? Even if I get published I’m never going to sell a single book. Never! My promotional posts will read “If you don’t mind and happen to enjoy this particular type of book and maybe have ten extra dollars to spare I would greatly appreciate it if you wouldn’t mind buying my book and if you really, really liked it then perhaps tell a friend about it. If you have the time and it won’t be a huge inconvenience. That would be really great. Thanks so much. (And if you’re not into YA or not a huge reader I totally understand. No hard feelings.)” I’m never going to sell a single book. But how can I be an author if can’t ask people to buy my book? Aaaaaagh!

    Sorry about that. I got off track. What was I saying? Oh right, Knocked Up Abroad Again has been successfully funded and is now available for purchase on Amazon! It’s the perfect gift for expectant parents, travelers, and expectant travelers in your life. If you want. I don’t want to insist. Pretty please. But only if you like this sort of thing.

    In all seriousness, thank you to everyone who donated to the project, and I hope you enjoy the book!

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  • Our Walk to School

    Our Walk to School

    IMG_1405Our Walk to School   A one act play inspired by true events with a 5-year-old.

    Mom: (Shouted from front door) Ok, time to go. Do you have your shoes on, yet?

    Kiddo: (Shouted from bedroom) Not yet. I need to finish something.

    Mom: (Shouted as pleasantly as possible to avoid a last minute fight but forceful enough to convey annoyance at shoes still being on.) No, you don’t. I’ve already asked you several times to put your shoes on. Now, it’s time to go. We’re going to be late for swim class.

    Kiddo: (Shouted in complete indifference) I’m almost finished.

    Mom: (Marches into child’s bedroom.) What are you doing? Why are your shorts and undies around your ankles?

    Kiddo: I had to go pee pee.

    Mom: But why are your shorts still around your ankles?

    Kiddo: I’m trying to make the top spin.

    Mom: Why wouldn’t you pull up your pants first? And why are you playing with a top? Ok, stop. We need to go. Where are your shoes?

    Kiddo: (Leaving the top aside and picking up a book off the floor while still half naked.) I don’t know. Mommy, can we read The Book with No Pictures?

    Mom: No, not right now. We’re going to be late for swim class if we don’t leave right now! Please, pull your shorts up while I find your shoes.

    Mom leaves to find the shoes, one under the couch and one under the desk in the office. She returns to child’s room where Kiddo is now fully clothed but minus socks and looking at her calendar.

    Mom: What happened to your socks!

    Kiddo: I don’t like that pair. I want to wear my spider socks. Mommy, what day is Christmas?

    Mom: (Through gritted teeth.) A long time away but it won’t matter because if you’re late to swim class Santa won’t come. (Kiddo drops to floor and starts trying to put shoes on. Mom picks up and puts away unsatisfactory first pair of socks.)

    Kiddo: (Teary eyed and whimpering) It’s too tight! (Slams be-shoed foot on ground repeatedly.) Mommy, it’s too tight.

    Mom: (Exhales slowly) Because it’s on the wrong foot.

    Kiddo: Oh! (Giggles)

    Mom: Why are you only using one hand? You can’t put tennis shoes on with only one hand. We need to leave now!

    Kiddo: I pinched my finger in the drawer getting my spider socks and now it hurts. I can’t use it.

    Mom: (Muttering) For the love of… (Squats and puts child’s shoes on totally over trying to foster independence this morning) Ok, we’re ready! Yay! Let’s go. (Mom grabs school bag and purse and runs to door.)

    Kiddo: (Pulling on Mom’s shirt while she locks door)  Tell a story! Tell a story!

    Mom: I will when we get to the sidewalk, ok? Let’s start walking first.

    Kiddo: (Foot touches the sidewalk. Tugs Mom’s hand.) Ok, tell the story! Tell the story!

    Mom: (As they walk to school) Ok, where were we? So the Bowser kids decided they were going to play a trick on their Dad…

    Kiddo: Noooo. Not a Bowser kid story. I want a Mario story.

    P1000912Mom: Oh, ok. One day Mario was walking through the forest on his way to Princess Peach’s castle for tea when he heard a noise and Yoshi appeared.

    Kiddo: No, not Yoshi! It was a little Eevee. It was going “Eevee! Eevee!” (Jumps up and down and flails arms) Because it lost its family.

    Mom: So Mario heard a noise and saw a very strange creature by the river. Mario thought it looked like a Pokemon so he called his good friend Ash and asked “Do you know want this is?” Mario held up his phone so Ash could see Eevee and Ash said…

    Kiddo: (Yanking on Mom’s hand) That’s when Mario sees another Pokemon! A Squirtle!  It said “Squirtle! Squirtle!” and it was soooo adorable! And Mario took it to Princess Peach’s castle. And she thought it was so adorable. (Pause) C’mon Mommy! Tell the story! (Pulls on Mom’s arm)

    Mom: Mario thought Princess Peach could help the lost Pokemon get back to their world so he took them to Peach’s castle and…

    Kiddo: Then all the Pokemon appeared!!! There was a Charmeleon and a Bulbasaur and an Amaura, a Rhyhorn, a Leafeon! All the Pokemon!

    Mom: So when Mario got to Peach’s castle he was shocked to find it filled with Pokemon! There was a Lapras swimming in the fountain and Ponyta eating the roses in the garden. Inside the castle, there were Zubats and Pidgies and Fledglings flying around and pooping on everything!

    Kiddo: (Shrieks with laughter) They were pooping on the table, on the floor, on Luigi’s head.

    Mom: Oh, Luigi’s there?

    Kiddo: Yes, a Pidgey pooped right on his head!

    Mom: Luigi walked into the castle and felt a splat on top of his head. Fortunately, he was wearing a hat.

    Kiddo: But then he took it off and a Zubat pooped on his hair! (Hops up and down laughing and clapping her hands)

    Mom: Well, Princess Peach was very upset all these Pokemon were destroying her castle…

    Kiddo: So she called the Ghostbusters!

    Mom: The Ghostbusters? Why would she call the Ghostbusters?

    Kiddo: Because they catch Pokemon and ghosts.

    Mom: Ok…so Princess Peach calls the Ghostbusters. They bring their special…

    Kiddo: (Yanking on Mom’s hand) You have to sing the song!

    Mom: (Glances around to see how many people will get to enjoy this) Na,na,na,na,na,na. Na,na,na,na,na,na. There’s something strange in your neighborhood. Who ya gonna call?

    Mom & Kiddo: Ghostbusters!

    Mom: So the Ghostbusters show up at Peach’s castle and begin catching all the Pokemon. They had some trouble with Charizard though. It was perched on top of the tallest tower and refused to come down. Peach was very upset because it was going to be a major pain to replace the roof tiles on the highest tower. She asked the Ghostbusters…

    Kiddo: Then the little Eevee appeared and snuggled up to Princess Peach. And Princess Peach thought it was so adorable, she wanted to keep it forever. But the Eevee missed its family. So Peach decided to keep all the Eevees and Vaporeons and Leafeons and Sylveons. And then a cute, little Amaura appeared and licked Peach’s face and it was so cute. Peach decided to keep it and used her Harry Potter magic wand to create an ice cave in the yard for the Amaura to live in because it was too hot outside. Then Peach heard the Eevee crying “Eevee! Eevee!” because Team Rocket was trying to catch it!

    Long Pause. Kiddo looks up at Mom.

    Kiddo: C’mon Mommy! (Shakes Mom’s arm.) Tell the story!

    Mom: Why don’t you tell the story?

    Kiddo: Because I don’t know the story!

    Mom: But you do! You’ve been the one telling it for the last block and…

    Kiddo: I don’t KNOW the story! You have to tell it!

    Mom: (sighs) So Team Rocket captured Eevee in a net and was pulling it up to their hot air balloon.

    Kiddo: No, they were in a giant Meowth robot! That was electric proof so Pikachu couldn’t help Eevee escape.

    Mom: What Pikachu?

    Kiddo: Ash’s Pikachu.

    Mom: When did Ash and Pikachu show up?

    Kiddo: They came with the Ghostbusters.

    Mom: Oh, look! Here we are! And there’s your class headed to pool. Better hurry. Bye, love you! (Mom and Kiddo hug and kiss) Have a great day at school!

    Kiddo: And you can finish the story when we walk home! (Skips off, waving)

    Mom: (Sinks down onto a bench) Sure. Can’t wait.

    Lights fade to black.

    This play is based on every walk to school we’ve taken this past year. It is not an exaggeration. It is truth. And it is every single day.

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  • MKB Read Around the World Series: Under a Painted Sky

    MKB Read Around the World Series: Under a Painted Sky

    Today for MKB’s Read Around the World Series, I’m recommending a beautiful tale of friendship set during the Oregon Trail! It’s a beautiful book and a must read for any history or adventure lovers!

     

  • MKB Read Around the World Series: The Star-Touched Queen

    MKB Read Around the World Series: The Star-Touched Queen

    I’m posting another recommendation for MKB’s Read Around the World Series! Today it’s an amazing young adult fantasy set in India!