Authors #161 and #162 : From New Year's Peas to a New Year's Resolution (Piernas-Davenport and Miller)

 Gail Piernas-Davenport with illustrator Marion Eldridge shares a story of sharing in Shante Keys and the New Year's Peas and there's even a recipe for Grandma Louise's Hoppin John at the end.  Shante shares the new year with her neighbors in her quest for black-eyed peas.

 Ingredients for Hoppin' John include broth, celery, onion, garlic, bay leaf, blackeye peas, ham, and oil and cooked rice (not pictured)

Finished Hoppin' John over rice.  It was good with a definite southern flavor.

Squirrel's New Year's Resolution with pictures by Kathi Ember and text by Pat Miller gives us a look at squirrel who wants to make a resolution but isn't sure how to do so.  She helps her friends and finds the answer to her question as she goes through her day. See more of  Pat Miller's books at: http://www.patmillerbooks.com/books.html

Authors #157, #158, #159, and #160 Sawyer, Obed, Glaser, and Rose with humor and love for Hanukkah and Christmas

A simple tale by Ruth Sawyer and illustrated by Max Grafe is shared in The Wee Christmas Cabin of Carn-na-ween.  Where does one go when one has served others but has no place to call their own?  Ooona welcomes all who come to her bogland abode.

Nancy Cote's bright colors liven up this delightful tale of friendship and Hanukkah in The Borrowed Hanukkah Latkes by Linda Glaser.  Read more about Linda Glaser at her website: http://www.lindaglaserauthor.com/

Who Would Like a Christmas Tree takes the reader from January through December to see how a Christmas tree fills the needs of a variety of creatures in each month of the year.  Ellen Bryan Obed wrote a wonderful story with simple illustrations by Anne Hunter. 


 Nancy Rose has inquisitive squirrels in her backyard and she's learned how to capture some of the most enchanting squirrel/prop interactions.  She explains in her books how she gets some of the pictures which involve having a lot of patience.  Merry Christmas, Squirrels! is well worth the read as is the companion book, The Secret Life of Squirrels.

Sunday Randomness #43: Ellensburg, WA has a great little Mexican restaurant named El Caporal II

Beautiful tile work and hand painted walls along with enormous real plants made the interior of the restaurant a joy to behold.

Plus they had carved backboards on the booths.

Complimentary chips and salsa-good but nothing really out of the ordinary.  We also ordered horchata which was good because it was not too sweet.

Beef chimichanga that was properly fried with a crispy outside shell.  Rice was fine, beans were good.

And the fried ice cream?  Absolutely fantastic!  Of course, we would find good fried ice cream at somewhere that we'll probably never see again.  It came with a house made fresh strawberry sauce that was out of this world.  I did mention to our waitress to please give the chef compliments on our meal, especially the fresh strawberry sauce and the chimichanga.

Hedgehog and family in her teeny, tiny college dorm room.  She brought a small microwave to supplement the two burners and a small dorm fridge under the counter top that comprises part of the room furnishings that she shares with two other roommates.  

Authors #155 and #156 : Mem Fox, Wombats, Nativities, and Goldman with gifts for Christmas and Hanukkah

*******Congrats to Nia!*********  (I'll get your prize to you by January 10th. And thank you for commenting.  I was going to get a card for everyone who entered within a reasonable number because I believed so few would comment but they just all lose out on a Menchie's outing.) Win a $5 Menchie's Frozen Yogurt gift card!  Ms. Goldman based her story on an older story that has been adapted into a number of films, an opera, a musical, and incorporated into an episode of Rugrats, Studio C, My Little Pony, and Futurama.  The story came out in 1905 and was first published in a book anthology in 1906.  The story is also available to read for free as part of Project Gutenberg.  Leave me a comment naming the author (either pen name or real name) and/or story title by December 30, 2016.   I will randomly pick a winner on January 2, 2017 from the comments with a correct answer and edit this post naming the winner and instructions on how to get your prize.

Hanukkah starts on the evening of December 24th, sharing the date with Christmas Eve.  Dara Goldman shares a story with a slight incorporation of both holidays in Boris and Stella and the Perfect Gift.

Wombat just wants to be part of the Nativity.  What role will be the right fit for him?  Mem Fox brings us a touching story of how there is a place for everyone in Wombat Divine starring illustrations by Kerry Argent.  Mem Fox is an Australian writer with many books to her credit.  You can read more about her at: http://memfox.com/

Authors #153 and #154 crocodiles and christmas? with Becker and thoroughly tired with Thury

 Bonny Becker brings us a cute tale from 1998 with illustrations from David Small in The Christmas Crocodile.  "The Christmas Crocodile didn't mean to be bad, not really."  Read about the latest good news and updates at Ms.Becker's site: https://bonnybecker.com/2014/08/16/latest-news/   She's also written a number of other wonderful children's books that you can find at your independent neighborhood bookstore or library!

Vlasta van Kampen beautifully and with much detail illustrates The Last Straw by Frederick H. Thury.  Will the camel finally make it to his destination after all his boasting? You can see more beautiful illustrations at Ms. van Kampen's website: http://www.vlasta.ca/

Authors #151 and #152 Gill braves Outside and Wojciechowski carves a tale of Jonathan Toomey

Deidre Gill takes us Outside for a winter adventure with her imaginative illustrations.  You can find out what she doing currently on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/deirdregillstudio/

The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey by Susan Wojciechowski and illustrated by P.J. Lynch imparts the story of a village woodcarver and his interactions with a new widow and her son as she asks him to carve a Creche for Christmas.  You can read more about Susan and her work at: http://www.susanwoj.com/

Betsy Christensen of Orem, UT has an extensive Creche collection.  Read more about her and her collection and see pictures of the collection from The Daily Herald at: http://www.heraldextra.com/news/local/central/orem/orem-woman-s-numberless-creche-collection-features-art-from-around/article_8080bb85-f06e-5b30-b386-466f949828de.html