One of the grands loves creating and spending time outside dinking around. This summer she asked permission to make a fairy house and garden in my potted lavender. I like fairy gardens, seeing kids use their imaginations, and watching them be involved outside, plus this is right where we would benefit from some nice garden decor! Yes, please, create away!
This is fairy house location number 1. Sadly, the lavender did not want a fairy house and/or garden in the pot. So, the grand had to relocate to a more fairy house friendly neighborhood.
Below is the artist at work at fairy house and garden location number 2. Sunflowers don’t care. They make excellent tall trees for fairy houses and gardens. And shade for the construction workers. Plus. Big leaves and strong stalks for walls and a roof!
Garden shears in hand, additional permission was granted to gather leaves and thick stems. Add rocks, water, dirt, and shells, and utilize existing cement blocks and nature protection from sunflowers and potted plants. Excellent ideas.
Et voila!
We were instructed to water carefully to avoid damaging the new location. We followed the instructions very well. But the leaves dried up, the wind blew, and the stalks fell over.
Never fear though. Miss Architect visited regularly to repair and rearrange the fairy house and garden.
She even established a bathing pool across the brick patio in the cement bird bath/waterer. I missed grabbing a photo of this when it was otherwise occupied by one of the fairy residents.
Imagination. Nature. Plenty of loose parts. Equals the best childhood!
I’m afraid to say that the fairy house might have to migrate south for the winter to escape snow and ice. But we shall see how mild or tough the winter is. Until then, we might consider charging a tiny bit of rent. ;0
Oh, I love me some picture books, especially when a trip to Paris is in order! With a friendly moose, no less! I’m excited to welcome back picture book author Candace Spizzirri! Candace is here to share about her newest picture book, FINLEY: A MOOSE IN CHARTREUSE!
Welcome, Candace! We can’t wait to hear more about that adorable moose, Finley!
Thanks so much, Angie, for having me on your blog again!
Hello picture book lovers, young and old! (Because picture books are perfect for ALL ages!)
Do you enjoy stories full of adventure? Ones about following your dreams? Are you partial to adorable animals?
Meet Finley, the friendliest moose!
I mean, how could anyone resist that face?
I know I can’t, thanks to Chantelle & Burgen Thorne, Finley’s fabulous illustrators!
Chantelle & Burgen Thorne did such a fabulous job illustrating Finley and his adventures! So much personality! I can’t resist that face either!
Candace, for those of us who are just hearing about Finley, before we get to the new book, can you tell us about your inspiration for the first book about this amazing moose?
In book 1: FINLEY: A MOOSE ON THE CABOOSE…
“Rules are rules” and wild animals aren’t allowed on trains…or so says Conductor Jones.
Young adventurers will fall in love with Finley, a friendly moose with a toothy grin who wants nothing more than to ride the rails across Alaska and beyond. Prepare for giggles when Finley finds a costume shop and tries to pass for anything but wild, only to have Conductor Jones see right through these disguises. Fortunately, Finley has something Conductor Jones doesn’t see coming – heart and determination – showing us all that there are some rules in life that are meant to be changed.
The idea for FINLEY: A MOOSE ON THE CABOOSE came to me a number of years ago on a trip to Alaska. I fell in love with the gorgeous scenery and while visiting the town of Talkeetna, a moose wandered about to the delight of tourists, then disappeared by the railroad tracks into the woods. In this quaint town, I happened upon a little shop called Once in a Blue Moose and the spark for Finley, a moose who longs to ride the rails, was born.
Thanks for introducing us to Finley! I love that he is so friendly. Now, on to your new book! Tell us MORE about Finley!!
In book 2: FINLEY: A MOOSE IN CHARTREUSE…
Finley, the beloved “moose on the caboose,” is back in this hilarious and heartfelt sequel full of fun and fashion!
Finley wants nothing more than to attend Fashion Week in Paris. He dreams of the sights, the sounds, the smells, and…the perfect suit. But when Finley arrives in the City of Love, the most famous designers refuse to work with a moose. Although feeling defeated, Finley never forgets who he truly is – a very friendly moose, and a helpful one, too! When Finley sees an accident in the making, he races to the rescue. His kindness and quick thinking help him make a new friend…and find his perfect color!
Shortly after the release of the first Finley book, I started thinking about where my adorable, friendly moose’s dreams might take him next.
A trip to the City of Love ended up sparking the perfect idea. I posted a photo on social media of myself holding FINLEY: A MOOSE ON THE CABOOSE in front of the Eiffel Tower, and the incredible award-winning illustrators, Chantelle and Burgen Thorne, commented, “Finley in Paris! A sequel?” At that moment, it clicked. Paris was absolutely the next stop for Finley.
I love hearing how Finley decided to travel to Paris, one of my most favorite cities! I love so much about this book – Finley, chartreuse, the French words sprinkled throughout, Paris, Magnifique!
Candace, what’s next? Do you have anything else in the works?
I have a book entitled AMBER MAE AND HER STRAYS coming out in fall 2027. It is being illustrated by uber-talented Carlos Velez Aguilera. I’m thrilled!
Here is a summary:
Prepare for a rollicking adventure as Amber Mae, a determined little girl with a soft spot for stray animals, brings home one zany pet after another. When her otherwise patient parents panic and are pushed over the edge, they have no choice but to send her pets packing.
Readers will root for clever Amber Mae as she finds the perfect place for each and every one of her beloved animal friends.
We are all dying to know, I mean we’ve met Finley in two books! Will Finley make another appearance?
Finley truly has my heart, and I already have more places and adventures in mind for this friendly, determined, and completely adorable moose (thank you, Chantelle and Burgen, for bringing that cuteness to life!). I can’t share yet but be on the lookout for more from Finley! 😊
Thanks so much for stopping by and sharing about FINLEY: A MOOSE IN CHARTREUSE. Congratulations! We look forward to reading more about Finley in all his books!
Friends, be sure to check out Finley in both of Candace’s books! You can catch up with Candace at the following places:
A dear friend recently gave me an old garden gate. Thank you, friend! It’s been sitting around for a month or two, waiting for inspiration.
Shortly after that, the back broke off this old wood bench. We thought we would have to repair the back, but were in no hurry to do so.
I looked at that bench for weeks, wondering. Sunflowers grow up and drape over the top of the back. More like they lean heavily against the back. But still. The window was quickly closing for doing anything with the bench until fall after the sunflowers were done.
Finally. An idea hit. What about the gate? My honey and I played with the idea, holding it up, problem solving how to make it work. After moving a sunflower elsewhere, he set in 2 short 4×4 posts for anchors. We attached the gate to the anchors and slid the bench into place. I love this garden gate backrest!
If you look a little bit further back, you can see I like gates. In nontraditional ways. It seems I am always bringing them home! I once picked up a gate at a free yard sale in north Seattle (fun with another dear friend). My little “truck” Mazda is game to whatever huge things I decide must come home with me. That gate (unlike the above 2) is in use as a gate into the fenced garden, complete now with an arbor and honeysuckle. It actually opens!
If you’d like to see the “working” gate leading into the fenced garden, go here.
Thanks to friends and helpful honeys!
The snapdragons are in full rioting bloom! Look at the top photo to see the crowding sunflowers. They are ready to take over. As a funny sidenote, the gate now blocks access under the bench. Before this, Monet the cat used the space beneath the bench as an easy way to jump out and attack the dog when she ran past. Poor Ginger! But we watched her last night snaking through the sunflowers to go under the bench. The confusion on her face when she was cut off by the gate was hysterical.
Do you have any gates in your garden? Working or decorative?
Happy book birthday to this adorable lift-the-flap board book by Janet Lawler and James Weston Lewis! My youngest grand is sure to enjoy turning the pages and lifting the flaps to discover hidden sea creatures. She’s a girl after Nana’s heart-she LOVES books. Congratulations Janet, James, and Phaidon Press!
Here’s more from Amazon:
Guess who’s hiding under the sea in this lushly illustrated, rhyming read-aloud guessing game, then lift the sturdy cardboard flaps to meet the ocean ’s most amazing creatures – both familiar and wonderfully weird!
There are six sea creatures hiding in the book: can you guess who’s hiding under the surface?
This playful lift-the-flap book takes toddlers on an underwater adventure, introducing them to the wonderfully weird creatures of the ocean – and shows how their unique features are what make them amazing. On each spread, a hidden sea creature is described with a lively read-aloud rhyme, while peek-through details give extra clues to the animal’s identity. Little hands can lift a satisfying, sturdy flap to reveal who’s hiding under the sea.
