WRITE YOUR OWN BOOK…

This was the theme of my first school visit to my granddaughter Sophia’s school March 1, 2023 and boy was it a fun one!

Sophia and I began preparing for the visit weeks in advance.

After all, we did have 126 gift bags to fill!

And a felt board to make (which I left with Millennium Charter Academy). Hooray! It was a huge hit with the teachers and students.

The BIG day began with a sweet hug from Sophia. Talk about making this Nana’s heart full of joy!

These Kindergarten and First Graders were so well behaved as the teachers got them settled in.

Then the race was off for a fun-filled day of laughs, cheers, sharing, and learning!

First, there was the introduction!

Then, a quick test of how smart these students were… which they ACED!

Followed by me sharing the three elements of writing a book (CHARACTER, PROBLEM, SOLUTION)…

and a little surprise visitor! (Thank you to my husband, Ricky and daughter, Cherylenna for doing the big reveal!)

Afterwards it was time to share my books RACE CAR DREAMS. I am happy to say he was a WINNER!

Next the students participated in a fun game of True or False. (again, these students were so sharp! They answered every single one correct!)

(Thank you to my helpers! You did a great job!)

And then it was time for the students to put what they’d learned to work. We used the felt board and the voting process for choosing a character, a problem, and a solution for the students to write their own book later during class.

I can’t wait to learn about the cat who lost their toy and then found it!

Finally, it was time to say goodbye. But not before getting some amazing class photos!

Kindergarten Class

1st Grade Class

Thank you to the students and staff at Millennium Charter Academy for inviting me into your school! I had a wonderful time!

Thank you to my sweet granddaughter, Sophia and my wonderful husband, Ricky and daughter, Cherylenna for sharing this memorable day with me. I love you all SO much!

Fire Truck Dreams and his friends visited over 600 kids!

Fire Truck, Race Car, and Bulldozer had a fantastic 2018-2019 school year!

With visits to schools, daycares, a library, and a bookstore, they met over 600 book loving kids! And they loved every single second of it!!

Some highlights from our visits.

Now that summer is officially here, it’s time to focus on 2019-2020 visits! Vroom Vroom! We can’t wait to meet more adorable kiddos!

TEN CLEVER NINJAS by SARAH FLOYD COVER REVEAL!

SPECIAL ALERT!!!!

Picture Book Pick of the Month has a super amazing surprise this month! It’s the adorable and fabalous cover reveal for my bestie’s debut picture book, TEN CLEVER NINJAS that’s releasing soon for all of the little ninjas in the world to devour.

To learn all about it:

Click on the link above (Picture Book Pick of the Month) then TEN CLEVER NINJAS (SPECIAL COVER REVEAL!) for some fun info about the book and the author, as well as a picture of the cover, opening lines, and Sarah’s favorite page spread! And added for your convenience is some easy quick links so you can pre-order your very own copy of these awesome little ninjas!

KI-YA!!

VROOM! VROOOOOOMMMM!

As the last Nascar Race of 2018 gears up for a speedy fall day of racing, we took our very own little Nascar driver out for a spin in the RACE CAR DREAMS toy car.

On your mark!

Get set!

RACE!!!

Go, Sophia, go!!

And on to victory lane! Way to come in first place, Sophia!!

Nice racing Sophia! Race Car had so much fun with you behind the wheel.

YOU’RE in a book!

You’re little one that is . . .

I’m super excited to announce the release of my FIFTH (yay!) picture book!!

The title is (Your Child’s Name) Rainy Day Picnic and not only will your child’s name AND photo be placed on the cover. . .

How cute is my granddaughter, Sophia in this photo!! I love it!!

. . . they’ll also be throughout the entire book. And that’s not all! Along with your child’s photo you’ll get to include TWO family photos which will be displayed perfectly inside of the story. A true treasure keepsake!

A summary of the book:
Come along for an adventurous day of imaginative, indoor play when rain interrupts your child’s plans for an outdoor picnic.
…And discover that sometimes, even a rainy day can end with a bright, beautiful surprise!

Here’s a snapshot of the opening dedication page.

There’s also a place in the back where you can personalize a dedication to your child. It’s super cute! Be sure to look at the last page in the you tube video below where you can see (and read) the entire book before you order:
Rainy Day Picnic you tube video

A cute GIF showcasing different names and faces:

Where you can place your order for your very own child’s book:
Order (Your Child’s Name) Rainy Day Picnic here

While you’re on Read Your Story’s website be sure to look at all of their books, because each and every one of them are very special and adorable.

READ YOUR STORY website

Thank you, Donna Farrell and Jeanette Bahn, (co-creators of READ YOUR STORY) for creating such memorable treasures for us to be able to give to our little ones. And thank you for allowing me to be a part of it. I am truly honored!

One last thing, here’s a cute postcard (Click on the link below at the end) that you can print, copy, email, or hand out to anyone you know that may want to give one of these special books to a child in their lives. Feel free to share!

NOW, go order your kiddos a book! 😊

Sophia_Postcard_5x7_Rainy_Day

FIRE TRUCK DREAMS double visit day!

What’s the only thing better than a visit with preschoolers?

TWO visits with preschoolers!

Up first, was a super fun group of three-year-old’s!

After introducing myself, Fire Truck and I wasted no time digging into storytime.

These little ones were a fantastic audience.

With storytime wrapped up, it was time to bring out my special guest, Fire Truck Plushie! And boy did he set off the alarms of oohing and aahing preschoolers . . .
After all of the kids had a chance to touch the plushie,

. . .we dove right into singing I’M A LITTLE FIRE TRUCK.

Nice job kids! You all have such wonderful voices!

Then, each and every three-year-old got a goodie bag of their own to take home with them.

And it was time for Fire Truck and I to move on to round two . . .
The four-year-old’s!
As we entered the room, we were greeted with smiles from the kids already prepared and sitting crisscross applesauce on the storytime carpet waiting for us. Such a wonderful sight for an author to see!

These kids were sharp, too. They immediately saw my covered tote (Hint: Fire Truck Plushie is inside) and asked what was inside.

After a quick hint of a surprise coming soon, storytime began. And just like the three-year-old’s, these kids were fantastic! They had fun yawning with Fire Truck, finding the little doggie on the pages, and discovering that Fire Trucks love bedtime books as much as they do.

Then, it was time for the Plushie reveal! WOW! Were these kids fast to clamor around me for an up close look. Fire Truck Plushie had a blast!

With storytime and our song done for the day, it was time to hand out more goodie bags,

and snap a group photo! (So happy we got this one. I wish I had gotten one with the three-year-old group. Next time for sure.)

Looks like one kiddo is practicing for Halloween scary faces. Love it!
And awww! Fire Truck Dreams put little Sophia right on off to sleep in her great grandma’s arms. 😊

Once home, Sophia decided naptime wasn’t over and that Fire Truck Plushie made the best pillow.
Nighty night Sophia and Fire Truck Plushie. Sweet dreams.

Thank you, Mount Pilot Child Enrichment Center, for inviting us for a fun visit. We had a wonderful time!

And a special thank you to my mom, Charlotte and my granddaughter, Sophia for enjoying this fun day with me.

Stay tuned for Fire Truck’s preorder giveaway results which will be announced soon. Also, all bookplates and bookmarks for those who preordered will be mailed soon. Thank you again for your preorders!

Fire Truck’s Transformation Final Post and Reveal!

Fire Truck’s transformation is complete and toy reveal post is live! Click on the link (FIRE TRUCK’S TRANSFORMATION) above, then on the drop down menu, click on Fire Truck Dreams Transformation Final Post to see this adorable toy!!!!

Or click on this link here and it’ll take you straight to it.

FIRE TRUCK DREAMS blazes into Bookmarks Bookstore!

And boy does this awesome bookstore know how to welcome an author!

Check out that fire truck on the sign!

After some fun chatting with the super nice staff at Bookmarks, it was time to get a family photo.

Just one more, Sophia.

“Come on, Nana, let’s get this storytime started.”

Once the crowd arrived (and we had a nice crowd! YAY!) it was time to share FIRE TRUCK DREAMS! He was a big hit!!

To mark the occasion, my sweet granddaughter, Sophia came dressed for the part. She makes such a cute little Dalmatian!

With story time complete, it was time to dig in and make some fire trucks of their own! These kids were so talented! Possibly some future illustrators at work!

Thank you, Bookmarks Bookstore for a wonderful day!
And a special thank you to my husband, mom, daughter, and granddaughter for sharing this special day with me.
Next stop, Mount Pilot Child Enrichment Center to share FIRE TRUCK DREAMS with 44 adorable preschoolers! Fire Truck and I can’t wait!

FIRE TRUCK DREAMS rolls into Cameron Elementary!

Fire Truck, Ricky, and I left before dawn and traveled two hours to beautiful Cameron, NC.

And wow! Did we have FUN!!

But before the fun could begin with the kids, there was a lot of books to be signed. And by a lot, I do mean A LOT! Over 100 in all!!

Starting line!

Finish line!

With all of the kid’s books signed, it was time to introduce myself and talk with the kids a little about what authors do, where they can write, and the different kinds of words that go inside of books.

Then . . . it was time to share FIRE TRUCK DREAMS!

He was a blazing hit! The kids loved him and listened so well! Such a smart group of kids.

After we talked a bit more, it was time to play a fun game of TRUE OR FALSE. These kids continued to amaze me at how smart they are. They truly paid attention and got every single question right! GO CAMERON ELEMENTARY!

Also, a huge thank you to my two helpers. You both were fantastic!

With story time and the game complete, it was time to say goodbye, then line up for each and every one of the Kindergartens and First Graders to get their own signed copy of FIRE TRUCK DREAMS to take home with them, courtesy of this awesome school! How cool is that! Cameron Elementary definitely knows how to instill the love of reading in a kids hearts! The more excited kids are about books, the more they will love reading books.

But wait, the day wasn’t over yet!
Not only did the kids get to hear FIRE TRUCK DREAMS and get their own FIRE TRUCK DREAMS book, they also got to see a REAL fire truck!

Aren’t they adorable with their books in hand!

My day wasn’t over yet, either. Angie Tally from The Country Bookshop, my host for the day, invited us back to her amazing store which is in nearby Southern Pines. It is such a fantastic bookstore! I wish we lived closer so I could visit every day!

Here is where I got to leave my mark on The Country Bookshop’s author/illustrator table alongside of Shannon Hale, Loren Long, and many other amazing authors and illustrators! I feel so honored to be a part of something so wonderful!

A moment of thank you’s:
Thank you Cameron Elementary for inviting me to visit your terrific kids. Thank you Cameron Elementary kids for a wonderful visit. Thank you Angie Tally and The Country Bookshop for hosting my visit. Thank you Valerie Howlett (RPKids publicist) for arranging my visit. Thank you Julie Matysik (RPKids editor) for loving Fire Truck Dreams as much as I do. Thank you Jessica Sinsheimer (my awesome agent!) for your support, encouragement, guidance, and friendship. Thank you Sarah Floyd (my amazing friend) for always being there for me and helping me to prepare for my visit.
And a special thank you to Ricky (my super supportive husband) for traveling two hours each way with me and for always encouraging me to dream big.

SOUND THE ALARMS AND GRAB A SEAT!

There’s a new fire truck book that can’t be beat! (Well, at least this author sure hopes not! 😊)

Welcome to the world, FIRE TRUCK DREAMS! I hope you enjoy your journey into kids hearts everywhere.

Summary:
A fire truck has had a big day of putting out fires and saving kittens, and now it’s time to sleep. After making sure all is quiet and safe, he rolls back into the station for a shower, swishes and swigs a bedtime refreshment, and settles in with a bedtime story. But a hero’s job is never done, and the fire truck dreams of taming a ferocious campfire and celebrating the end of his exciting day with s’mores!

And as a birthday celebration surprise! Here’s a link to the adorable #KIDTIMESTORYTIME you tube channel reading of FIRE TRUCK DREAMS! Thank you, Running Press Kids for making this happen and thank you Eileen, the Story Teller for doing such an amazing job reading him. Fuchsia Fish and Olivia Ostrich are adorable!