More and More Snow

Weather forecasters predicted snow for the area last night and into the morning, so I was not surprised to see a few inches blanketing the ground and trees. The cardinal seemed to have a difficult time locating suitable seed in the feeder, and he did not return once after I took this photograph! But all day I have been thinking of Katy of Katy and the Big Snow fame, plowing the streets of the city of Geopolis. I'm wishing for a snow day tomorrow!

Tree Chopping

We have enjoyed MR. WILLOWBY'S CHRISTMAS TREE by Robert Barry for many years. I thought about that story today when we brought our freshly cut tree into the house and had to chop off the top. I wonder if any other creatures will use that for their own tree.

A wonderful new story by Birdie Black presents a similar idea. In JUST RIGHT FOR CHRISTMAS, a king purchases "a huge roll of beautiful bright-red cloth" to make a cloak for his daughter. When the sewing maids inquire about what should happen to the scraps, he tells them to place the bundle on the back steps. The kitchen maid discovers them and makes a warm jacket for her mother. The process continues with a badger who makes a hat for her father, a squirrel who makes a pair of gloves for his wife, and a mouse who makes a scarf for her son.

The mixed media illustrations include so many unique papers and textures and even a piece of a pattern. The last two pages show all the characters and all the red clothing articles that are just right and "just how Christmas should feel."

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Today my sweet mom was in my thoughts as I moved through my school activities. With books all around me, how could I not think of her? She, who loved THE STORY ABOUT PING as a child, now names TOPS AND BOTTOMS by Janet Stevens as her favorite picture book. She works every Thursday at the public library. She buys books for many children she knows. Her own shelves are filled with books for all ages.

Tonight we sat side by side holding hands at the base of the grand staircase in the James J. Hill House in St. Paul, rapt with emotion and interest in the performance of her favorite Christmas story: Truman Capote's "A Christmas Memory." What a gift for me to have a mom like her and to spend such wonderful time together!

Mill City Connection

One of my favorite things to do on Saturday mornings in Minneapolis is to visit the Mill City Farmers Market (http://millcityfarmersmarket.org/). I cannot resist photographing - and purchasing - the vegetables, fruits, breads, honey, candles, and other organic products for sale. I love the banter of growers, sellers, and buyers, the stories of what to do with various products, and the scents milling in the train shed and on the patio area between the Guthrie Theatre and the Mill City Museum. With a glance down to the Mississippi River, a visitor can see one of the incredible Stone Arch Bridge.

The market is the brain child of Brenda Langton, a local chef and restauranteer, whose Spoonriver is a cafe not to be missed. Its location alongside the Mill City Museum and across from the Guthrie, makes it a destination of choice for theatre-goers. Everything there is excellent! And so, I highly recommend Brenda Langton's latest publication: The Spoonriver Cookbook. The photographs that accompany the recipes bring the spirit of the market to the ingredients. Each recipe is prefaced by words that encourage the cook to try recreating it! Though right now I am using the library's copy, I need this book for my own library!

Waterboatmen

In Under the Snow, the hearty waterboatmen are shown mingling with the bluegills under the pond ice. My book brain immediately thought of my buddy Joyce Sidman's book Song of the Waterboatman & Other Pond Poems, winner of a Caldecott Honor Medal in 2006. I revisited it today to refresh my memory about the featured insect.

The waterboatman is similar to the backswimmer, and their bodies and legs do, indeed, look like boats and oars (see http://www.earthtimes.org/nature/minuscule-water-boatman-boasts-loudest-shout/1105/ for a detailed image). I like to imagine the bubbles they carry on the sides of their bodies to help them breathe. Joyce describes that better in verse:

"Of plunging deep, I have no fear.
To breathe, I keep some bubbles near,
trapped on my chest in a silver sphere
...on a sunny summer's morning."
- from "Song of the Water Boatman and Backswimmer's Refrain"

Under the Snow

Winter's presence has yet to be realized here. I, like many children, am waiting for snow. Until then, I can think about what the snow and ice mean for creatures in the winter. In Under the Snow, written by Melissa Stewart and illustrated by Constance R. Bergum, animal activities in a field, in a forest, on a pond, and in a wetland are given special attention. The young readers on the library's story steps are fascinated with the facts All have gasped when they hear this: 

"A wood frog nestles in scattered leaves on the forest floor. It can freeze solid and still survive."

My favorite response, though, came from this line:

"A carp rests quietly on the muddy bottom. It isn't even tempted by the water striders lying just a few inches away."

As we talked about water striders in the summer, one listener described them as "raindrops on the lake surface, making drops, circles, and ripples."

Christmas Quiet

"Christmas is a quiet time," begins Deborah Underwood's The Christmas Quiet Book. Her quiet examples (like those in The Quiet Book) are so creative and so wonderfully illustrated (by Renata Liwska) that I read this sweet book every day! Today was a quiet day, and as I moved through baking bread and cookies, assembling the holiday village, reading, and listening to holiday music, I contemplated the quiet things in her lovely book and the quiet things in our lives.

The author's "mistletoe quiet" reminds me of how I had to explain the significance of mistletoe to my four-year-old friend. Her "breathing clouds quiet" reminds me of the white clouds my walking friend and I made on our morning walk. I have experienced these quiet moments also today:

• watching birds at the feeder quiet
• remembering favorite people quiet
• keeping an eye on the cookies quiet
• wrapping gifts quiet

What quiet moments have others savored?