we could all just be friends?

:}                                                                                                                                                                                580

in the world this very minute…

A mama who reads to her baby birds just before naptime.

What’s right in your world this very minute?

Happy Weekend my friends!

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Please come enter our EASY “Melissa & Doug Summer Toys”  giveaway! We need 200 entries to award the prizes. Please,  please–spread the word!

Happy Birthday Shannon!

Woke up to all this–at last, at last!

Finally, Mother Nature actually listened to my chanting and begging for snow—and turned Mr. Frost loose in our neck of the woods. Yee haw!

Of course, you know, my dream is to be totally and completely snowed in–when my whole family is home, of course. That way, we’d just sit around and play games, and cook ridiculously yummy things and goof around and be together.

You know, like the early readers always talked about in grade school.

“One very snowy day, Dick and Jane looked out the window. The ground was white. The sky was white. Everything, everywhere was white. There was snow, snow, SNOW! They could not go out. They had to stay in. There was too, too, too much snow!”

The perfect day for reading the new books in the basket,

doing a bit of old-fashioned Christmas card writing,

and especially dreaming of the jolly fellow with that big bag of toys.

so to speak.

Look at this photo very carefully. What’s wrong with this picture? Well, other than the fact that it’s a bit blurry–what else is really, REally wrong here? Hmmmm?

Ha! There now. That’s much better.

Daney-boy has told me many times that his favorite memory in the world was when he was little and and came home from school to find the house all decorated for Halloween…just like magic! He missed it even when he was far, far away in Lithuania.

Oh, but now look this direction. Tsk…tsk. Positively dreadful.

Just a few subtle changes…here and there. Would you like to see them up close? Okkkk…try not to be too frightened. {snicker, snicker}

Oh, yeah…

Halloween, Andersonian style…

…the Next Generation.

What about you? Are you decorating for Halloween? Tell us about it or–better yet–send us a link. We’d love to see your spookiness!

In the summertime–there’s one thing you don’t want to be sitting around the pool, or the beach or laying back in the hammock without—and that, darlings, is…a really good book.

Speaking of which—the four books–pictured here–are just a few of the titles that we’ve been reading at our place, and positively loving.

Now everybody knows that the next best thing to experiencing a fabulous book, is sharing it with a friend. So that’s what we’re going to do…

share.

And since:

A) it’s been a while since we’ve had a giveaway, and

B) we totally have good books on our mind, and

C) we have a new Google Friend counter–on the right sidebar over there——>

we’ve decide to take this opportunity to…ahhhh…multi-task, let’s just say.

So, if you’d like to have our little Summer Readathon Collection for your very own–and who wouldn’t?–here’s what you need to do…

1) Go to the Google Friend Connect box on the right

2) Become a “friend” of Gracious Rain by clicking “join this site.” It’s quick and painless…I promise.

3) Come back here and leave a comment with the title(s) of your favorite book(s).

Simple as that. You’ll be entered in the giveaway and may just walk away with a Summer Readathon of your very own.

We’ll announce the winner on Friday July 16, 2010 at 10 am–one week from today.

Go. Run. Fly. Be our friend.

May the force be with you.

“You know you’ve read a good book…

when you turn the last page…

and feel a little as if…

you have lost a friend.”

Paul Sweeney

Look what the family Book Group is reading now…Dracula. Yikes.

If you haven’t read this chilly little novel–and who in their right mind would?–then you don’t know. It is incredibly creepy for a ancient classic, so of course the bald kid picked it.

Seriously, while read this–I was shaky before the original bat-man even came on the scene–so how will I ever survive long enough to get allll the way…

to…

Chapter Two?

Makes one want to run…

for the cover…

of…

Twilight.

heh, heh…that was a good one.

Some of my favorite books in the whole wide world…

written by one of my favorite authors in the whole wide world—-

were missing one, vital thing…

until this weekend.

April and I went to the Children’s Book Festival in Provo–and met a new writer friend.

We are now official members of Newberry Award winner Shannon Hale’s fan club…or so it seems. She was kind and generous with her autograph and talked to us for more than our fair share of time–even with a line of people going right out the ballroom door. If you aren’t familiar with her books–go promptly HERE to redeem yourself.

You won’t be sorry. Her books are incredible—

and we know now—so is she.

Rick Walton has a new picture book coming out this summer. As always–it’s clever and witty and sweet and wise. I hope you’ll view the book trailer and clap like mad. Seriously, did you know they made trailers for books? I had no idea.
At any rate, every time he has a new book, I just want to shout, “Hey, I know that guy!”

Congratulations again Rick!

Check out some of Rick’s other stuff.

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Please tell us your favorite Comfort Foods~~click HERE

A Saturday ritual. A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week.

A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember~via Soulemama.

If you’re inspired to do the same, leave a link to your ‘moment’ in the comments for us.