Summer Break is Over

OK, I admit. I've taken a loooong summer break from my blog.

But that doesn't mean I haven't been reading and writing--just doing a lot of babysitting with my adorable grandson. :)

In the meantime, I've had one of my favorite short stories, "Picnic Guests," published in LADYBUG magazine--in their July/August issue. You should be able to find a copy at your local library, hopefully.  Of course, my grandson Sam loves it because it features a dog, Buddy. Sam's first word this summer was "dog." Or more precisely "daw-daw." Yes, he said "dog" before even "Mommy" or "Daddy." But I'm not surprised. His daddy, my son Dan, said his first word quite early at nine months, and it was not "Mommy" or "Daddy" either. It was "Inky," our dog's name.

I'm also teaching Sam sign language, and his first sign was "dog" as well. And already we read books and learn new vocabulary each day at Grammy's. This is such an important tool for children, to be exposed to books and reading at the very youngest age. Sam already has a great attention span with his books--especially books with animals and vehicles in them. He loves anything with wheels.

Well, you get the idea of what I've been doing--besides writing this summer. And I must say, Sam has reminded me that I write for the most amazing readers in the world--KIDS! Hope you had a chance to do some reading this summer. Next post I'll talk about some great books I've been reading.

Let me know any favorite stories you've found this summer.