Auction #2: Portfolio Critique by Hazel Mitchell

KidLit for the Philippines is an online talent auction to benefit Mercy Corps and UNICEF relief efforts for Typhoon Haiyan (aka Yolanda). Agents, editors, authors, and illustrators have donated various services and items to be auctioned off to the highest bidder, with donations being made directly to Mercy Corps and UNICEF.

Description: Portfolio critique for a children's illustrator from Hazel Mitchell.

Estimated Value: $150

Minimum Bid: $40

Auction Ends: 12/1/2013 at 10:00 PM EST

Bio: Hazel Mitchell is an award winning illustrator. From an early age she drew on every thing she could get her hands on and still can’t be left safely alone with a pencil. Her most recent books include One Word Pearl, 1,2,3 by the Sea, How to Talk to an Autistic Kid (Foreword Reviews Gold Medal winner and Finalist in ‘Books for a Better Life’), Hidden New Jersey and the All-Star Cheerleaders series by Anastasia Suen. Originally from Yorkshire, England, she now lives and works from her studio in Central Maine, USA. She still misses fish and chips and mushy peas, but is learning to love lobster. She has a dog, a cat, two horses and several snow shovels. You can see more of her work at http://hazelmitchell.com/  or find her on Facebook and all those online places!

Donor Hazel Mitchell’s website: http://hazelmitchell.com/

Auction Instructions:
  •          Bid by posting a comment with your bid amount in U.S. dollars; no anonymous bidding.
  •          Do not bid unless you intend to pay that amount to Mercy Corps or UNICEF.
  •          To automatically receive updates on the latest bids, check the “Notify Me” box when you submit your comment.
  •          Highest bid before the end of the auction wins.
  •          A note about last-minute bidding: If you are used to online auctions that end at an exact, given second, please know that the KidLitPhil auctions don’t work quite that way. Each auction ends when I post the “Auction closed” comment. I do that when my computer turns to 10pm EST, but because I have multiple auctions to close at that time (also because I am human) it will not be precisely at 10pm EST. At any rate, the winning bid is the high bid before the Auction Closed comment, even if the time on your computer reads slightly after 10:00. Thanks for understanding!
  •          Winning bidder must donate the winning bid amount to a designated charity organization and provide a copy of the receipt within three days of notification.
  •          For physical items, unless otherwise noted, donor pays standard shipping within the U.S.; winning bidder pays for express shipping or for shipping outside the U.S.

Auction #3: Mermaid Tales Sparkling Collection from Author Debbie Dadey

KidLit for the Philippines is an online talent auction to benefit Mercy Corps and UNICEF relief efforts for Typhoon Haiyan (aka Yolanda). Agents, editors, authors, and illustrators have donated various services and items to be auctioned off to the highest bidder, with donations being made directly to Mercy Corps and UNICEF.

 Description: boxed set of the first five Mermaid Tales books, published by Simon and Schuster and illustrated by Tatevik Avaykan. The author, Debbie Dadey, will provide autographs.

Sparkling collection of the first five Mermaid Tales chapter books. If your favorite young girl loves mermaids, then this is for you. Together you'll have a great time getting to know four mermaids as they have adventures at Trident Academy.

Estimated Value: $30

Minimum Bid: $10

Auction Ends: 12/1/2013 at 10:00 PM EST

Donor Debbie Dadey’s website: http://www.debbiedadey.com/ 

Auction Instructions:
  •          Bid by posting a comment with your bid amount in U.S. dollars; no anonymous bidding.
  •          Do not bid unless you intend to pay that amount to Mercy Corps or UNICEF.
  •          To automatically receive updates on the latest bids, check the “Notify Me” box when you submit your comment.
  •          Highest bid before the end of the auction wins.
  •          A note about last-minute bidding: If you are used to online auctions that end at an exact, given second, please know that the KidLitPhil auctions don’t work quite that way. Each auction ends when I post the “Auction closed” comment. I do that when my computer turns to 10pm EST, but because I have multiple auctions to close at that time (also because I am human) it will not be precisely at 10pm EST. At any rate, the winning bid is the high bid before the Auction Closed comment, even if the time on your computer reads slightly after 10:00. Thanks for understanding!
  •          Winning bidder must donate the winning bid amount to a designated charity organization and provide a copy of the receipt within three days of notification.
  •          For physical items, unless otherwise noted, donor pays standard shipping within the U.S.; winning bidder pays for express shipping or for shipping outside the U.S.

Auction Item # 1: The Writing & Critique Group Survival Guide/Critique from Becky Levine

KidLit for the Philippines is an online talent auction to benefit Mercy Corps and UNICEF relief efforts for Typhoon Haiyan (aka Yolanda). Agents, editors, authors, and illustrators have donated various services and items to be auctioned off to the highest bidder, with donations being made directly to Mercy Corps and UNICEF.

Description: Becky will donate a signed copy of The Writing & Critique Group Survival Guide. She will also critique the first chapter of a middle-grade or YA novel or a complete picture book.

Estimated Value: $100

Minimum Bid: $30

Auction Ends: 12/1/2013 at 10:00 PM EST

Bio: Becky Levine is a writer and editor. She is the author of The Writing & Critique Group Survival Guide: How to Make Revisions. Self-Edit, and Give and Receive Feedback (Writer's Digest Books, 2010), as well as two children's nonfiction books for Capstone Press. Becky was a freelance editor for five years, working directly with authors and through Writer's Digest's Second Draft critique service.

Donor Becky Levine’s website: http://beckylevine.com/  

Auction Instructions:
  •          Bid by posting a comment with your bid amount in U.S. dollars; no anonymous bidding.
  •          Do not bid unless you intend to pay that amount to Mercy Corps or UNICEF.
  •          To automatically receive updates on the latest bids, check the “Notify Me” box when you submit your comment.
  •          Highest bid before the end of the auction wins.
  •          A note about last-minute bidding: If you are used to online auctions that end at an exact, given second, please know that the KidLitPhil auctions don’t work quite that way. Each auction ends when I post the “Auction closed” comment. I do that when my computer turns to 10pm EST, but because I have multiple auctions to close at that time (also because I am human) it will not be precisely at 10pm EST. At any rate, the winning bid is the high bid before the Auction Closed comment, even if the time on your computer reads slightly after 10:00. Thanks for understanding!
  •          Winning bidder must donate the winning bid amount to a designated charity organization and provide a copy of the receipt within three days of notification.
  •          For physical items, unless otherwise noted, donor pays standard shipping within the U.S.; winning bidder pays for express shipping or for shipping outside the U.S.

KidLit for the Philippines- Confirmed Donations

I'm getting excited! We have some amazing donations! (If you don't know about this fundraiser, yet, check out the announcement page).

Here's the list of the donors so far and their donations:
(Do not start bidding here. Detailed descriptions of each item will be posted starting Monday. Bidding begins then).

Becky Levine: Copy of her book and a critique.
Tara Lazar- PB Critique
Donna Earnhardt- Copy of her book plus PB or or chapter book  critique.
Hazel Mitchell- Portfolio critique
Kate Messner- Pb critique followed by "jump the slush pile" submission to her editor at Candlewick!
Sarah Tuttle- critique plus follow-up Skype session to discuss.
Nancy Tandon- 1 hour Twitter course for beginners
Leslie Bulion- Skype visit for large or small group.
Laura-Susan Thomas- Glicee art print
Adah Megged Nuchi (Associate Editor at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)-PB critique or critique of 1st 10 pages of MG/YA novel
Emma Walton Hamilton-Line-by-line edit of Query/Cover Letter for PB, MG or YA novel
Carol Gordon Ekster; 45- 60 minute classroom presentation on PB creation
Russ Cox original piece of art; on-line or email portfolio review followed by Skype/phone chat 
Debbie Dadey- boxed set of the first five Mermaid Tales books, published by Simon and Schuster.
Nicole Zoltack-critique/edit of first 3 chapters of Non-fiction or fiction.

 Confirmed 11/24
Paul Czajak- Signed copy of Monster Needs a Costume and Monster & Me T-Shirt
Carolyn Curtis- Autographed Copies of I Took the Moon for a Walk

Marlo Garnsworthy- Developmental Editing of one PB manuscript or 1 chapter of a novel

Several other illustrator and author friends will confirm donations soon, so check back. (Yes, I had a "deadline" but some folks have been in touch with ideas and will finalize them with me over the next day or so).

Please join me in offering these folks a HUGE thank you for their donations. And please visit their websites, buy their books, and otherwise support them.

KidLit for the Philippines, an on-line Auction/Fundraiser

When the earthquake and Tsunami hit Japan, I was impressed by the KidLit4Japan fundraising efforts spearheaded by Greg R. Fishbone in an on-line auction. Later, Kate Messner ran a highly successful online auction called Kid-Lit Cares to benefit victims of superstorm Sandy. To say the KidLit community is supportive of those in need would be an understatement. The donations and bids in both efforts were amazing.

As I watched news of the devastation in the Philippines, I knew I had to do more than just send a check and be done with it. The Philippines is a country near to my heart- I lived there for a year as an exchange student and still have friends and "family" there. In many ways, I "grew up" in the Philippines.

So I reached out to both Greg and Kate for guidance. Each has been gracious and supportive of my efforts. They've given me advice, shared tips, and helped with "back end" logistics. They even agreed to let me copy their guidelines to save me from having to reinvent the wheel.

And so began my journey of building an on-line fundraiser.

Next, I  messaged some illustrator friends to see if they might design a logo/button for the Facebook and Twitter pages and for participants to place on their blogs and websites. I had multiple responses within minutes. Some offered to submit button designs while others offered pieces for the auction.  Within a couple of hours of sharing my idea with a few people, I had more offers of donations coming in and I hadn't even set up my systems, yet.

KidLit peeps are amazing.

If you're not an author, illustrator, agent, or editor, etc, don't fret! You can help by bidding on items and spreading the word as widely as you can once this all goes live.

If you are a KidLit person and want to make a donation, PLEASE don't email me, yet. With Greg's help, I'm setting up an on-line form to streamline the process. I'll send out donation guidelines via SCBWI Yahoo! Groups, post them on Facebook, and make an announcement here once everything is in place.

ADDED 11/19. Want to donate? Read more on my donation page.

In the meantime, you can follow this blog (on the right sidebar enter your email address and click submit), "like" the Facebook page and follow the new Twitter account to get announcements. You can also use the hashtag, #KidLitPhil

Thank you, in advance, for your support. Stayed tuned for more information in the next day or two.

Have you run an on-line auction? Do you have advice to offer? If so, please leave a comment or email me. michelle(at)michellecusolito(dot) com. I look forward to hearing from you.

Again, the donation page.

The Kids' Outdoor Adventure Book

The Kids' Outdoor Adventure Book
by Stacy Tornio and Ken Keffer
I recently came across this book in my local library. It's packed with fun activities to get kids outside exploring and enjoying nature.

From Indie bound:

"Nature is a destination, but you don’t have to travel anywhere to find it. Just open the door and step outside. A fun, hands on approach to getting involved in nature, The Kids' Outdoor Adventure Book is a year-round how-to activity guidebook for getting kids outdoors and exploring nature, be it catching fireflies in the cool summer evenings; making birdfeeders in the fall from peanut butter, pine cones, and seed; building a snowman in 3 feet of fresh winter snow; or playing duck, duck, goose with friends in a meadow on a warm spring day."

The book includes checklists, challenges, projects, outdoor recipes and games. Organized by season, you can easily flip open to a random page a find something fun to do. It's a great addition to the many other books about sharing nature with childlren that I already highlighted on my Pinterest Board.

What other books would you recommend that focus on sharing nature with children?

 Related posts:
Loose Parts Play
Author Interview: April Pulley Sayre
Nature Walks with Toddlers
Play Outside!

Poison Ivy Identification #2

I've noticed an up-tick in the number of people visiting my post, Poison Ivy Identification. Written in the month of May, it provides descriptions and photos to help readers identify poison ivy. (Please hop over and read it to learn more). Now that we're into the month of October, that poison ivy looks very different, so I thought fresh photos might help you learn to identify it in the fall.

What follows is a collection of photos I took on October 11th.

Here's a typical example of Poison Ivy growing along the ground.

As it climbs a tree it may look like this:


Or this. Note that in this case, it climbed more than 20 feet in the air. All of the bright leaves you see are poison ivy.

Here's a close-up of the leaves:

And here are the berries. Yes, berries.  (Do not touch them either!) 


And here's what the vines look like when climbing the trees. Those little hairy bits help me identify it in the winter when there are no leaves. When I was a kid, I learned the hard way...you can get poison ivy in the winter from touching the vines.



If you live where poison ivy grows, learning to identify it is an important skill. Some people are lucky not to "catch" it but most of us are not so lucky. The rash is, at best, an annoyance, and at worst dangerous enough to warrant being put on steroids by a doctor. It's best to learn to avoid it altogether.

Do you have any tips for identifying/ avoiding poison ivy? Are there other plants you need to avoid where you live?

Related posts:
Poison Ivy Identification
Mystery Rash
Lyme Disease Prevention





Suggested Books

ADDED 3 February 2013: I'm building boards on Pinterest that list loads of resources for parents, teachers, homeschoolers, and unschoolers. Please hop over and check them out. On Pinterest I'm easily able to sort information into more meaningful groups (e.g. Favorite Recipes, Picture Book Biographies, Picture Books: Diverse U.S. etc.). I'll continue adding to these boards over time. My Pinterest Boards will replace this list.

If you have book suggestions, please email me. michelle(at)michellecusolito(dot)com

Note: I have read (and likely own) the books listed. Unless otherwise stated, no books were sent to me as review copies or free from an author. All are books I discovered on my own, by word of mouth, in the newspaper, on another blog, etc. I receive no compensation for listing them.

Nature
Picture Books
Big Night for Salamanders by Sarah Lamstein
Owl Moon by Jane Yolen
On the Day You Were Born by Debra Frasier
I'm in Charge of Celebrations by Byrd Baylor
The Way to Start a Day by Byrd Baylor
If You Were a Hunter of Fossils by Byrd Baylor
The Ugly Vegetables by Grace Lin (Also an introduction to Chines vegetables)
Ten Little Caterpillars by Bill Martin, Jr.
Waiting for Wings by Lois Ehlert
Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert
Honeybee Man by Lela Nargi and Kyrsten Brooker
Over and Under the Snow by Kate Messner

Non-Fiction Picture Books
Under the Snow by Melissa Stewart
A Seed is Sleepy by Dianna Hutts Aston
While a Tree Was Growing by Jane Bosveld
A Place for Birds by Melissa Stewart
A Place for Butterflies by Melissa Stewart
A Place for Frogs by Melissa Stewart
Vulture View by April Pullet Sayre
The Bumblebee Queen by April Pulley Sayre
The Secret World of Walter Anderson by Hester Bass
Swirl by Swirl by Joyce Sidman and Beth Krommes
The Boy Who Drew Birds: The Story of John James Audubon by Jacqueline Davies and Melissa Sweet

 Longer Non-Fiction books:
The Hive Detectives by Loree Griffin Burns
Citizen Scientists by Loree Griffin Burns (Especially great for homeschoolers and unschoolers).

Poetry
Red Sings from Treetops  by Joyce Sidman
Hey There, Stink Bug! by Leslie Bulion
At the Sea Floor Cafe: Odd Ocean Critter Poems by Leslie Bulion
Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices by Paul Fleischman

Culture
Picture Books
Hush! A Thai Lullaby by Minfong Ho
Everybody Cooks Rice by Norah Dooley
Goyangi Means Cat by Christine McDonnell (international adoption)
A New Year's Reunion by Yu Li-Qiong (Chinese New Year)
Cora Cooks Pancit by Dorina K. Lazo Gilmore
Yasmin's Hammer by Ann Malaspina and Doug Ghayka
Even Higher (a Rosh Hashanah story) by Eric A. Kimmel
Bee-bim Bop! by Linda Sue Park

Non-Fiction Picture Books
Faith by Maya Ajmera, Magda Nakassis, & Cynthia Pon
Beatrice's Goat by Page McBrier
Orani: My Father's Village by Claire A. Nivola
Balloons Over Broadway: The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy's Parade by Melissa Sweet
The Wall: Growing up Behind the Iron Curtain by Peter Sis (Note: A book for older readers)

Chapter Books/ Novels
Rickshaw Girl by Mitali Perkins
Bamboo People by Mitali Perkins
Climbing the Stairs by Padma Venkatraman
A Long Walk to Water by Lina Sue Park

Adoption
Sweet Moon Baby: An Adoption Tale by Karen Henry Clark and Patrice Barton

 Resources for Parents/ Teachers/ Homeschoolers/ Unschoolers
Last Child in the Woods by Richard Louv
Green Hour: A Daily Dose of Nature for Happier, Healthier, Smarter Kids by Todd Christopher
Hands-On Nature by Jenefer Lingelbach
Sharing Nature With Children by Joseph Cornell
Keeping A Nature Journal by Clare Walker Leslie
The Sense of Wonder by Rachel Carson

Travel Tuesdays: Growing Family

I've been absent from the blogging world for a while. First, I blogged irregularly during our failed RV trip. Then, I stopped blogging altogether when I flew to San Francisco unexpectedly to help with a family medical emergency.Once I returned from San Francisco, I blogged a few times but then I went silent again. There's just been too much going on in my life. Something had to give and I'm afraid this blog was it.

So what's my excuse this week? Well...my nephew.
Photo taken by my sister
Last Tuesday, I flew back to San Francisco to welcome this handsome boy to the family and help my sister with the transition. I mean, really... who wants to blog when you can snuggle this guy?

Photo taken 30 September 2013
As this post goes live, I'll be on a plane back home. I hope to get back into a regular blogging schedule soon but I also need to evaluate what my schedule should be.

If you have thoughts about what you'd like to see here or how often you'd like me to post, please leave a comment or shoot me an email. michelle(at)michellecusolito(dot)com

Travel Tuesdays: Self- Care During Difficult Times

I've been absent from blogging and Social Media lately. Thanks for sticking with me and coming back to read Polliwog.

I recently traveled to San Francisco unexpectedly due to a family emergency. I prefer not to share personal family medical details on the internet, so I'll just say that things are better-- the emergency has passed and now we're settling into life post-trauma. Thank you to those of you who sent me personal messages of support.

I feel like I need to learn certain life lessons over and over again. Does that happen to you? For example, I know that in times of stress, I need to take care of myself. I need to stop and breathe. I need to get physical activity. And I need to get out in nature, if possible.  Combining all three is especially helpful. If I can add a little writing time in there, all the better.

Yet, while I was away, I ignored my needs, to my detriment. A friend had even texted me and simply said, "Remember to breathe." Yet, I didn't do any of those things until I completely melted down.

Of course, I am so grateful that I was able to travel on short notice to support my sisters. I needed to be with them. I'm grateful my husband recognized and supported my need to go. I'm grateful my husband's work schedule allowed him to suddenly assume complete responsibility for our kids and home. I'm thankful for the many friends and relatives who stepped in to help care for our kids so my husband could work. And I'm thankful my family had the means to purchase an airline ticket.

But I'm no good to my sisters if I'm falling apart, and that's what happened five days into my trip. I had felt a desire to take a walk on the beach the night before, but ignored my needs to make myself available to my sister. By Friday afternoon, when I talked to my husband and kids on the phone, I was falling apart crying... On top of the stress and the Jet lag, I was missing my family.

Luckily, by brother-in-law was nearby. He came home and assumed responsibility for my niece so I could take a walk. From the moment my feet touched the sand at Ocean Beach, I felt better. Ten minutes into my walk things seemed less overwhelming. At the end of an hour, I was a new person.  Of course, I was. I practically smacked myself in the head and said, "Duh!"

I know I need to take care of myself before I can take care of others, so what the heck was I doing? Who knows. I do know that we all do it sometimes.

So today, a reminder to you...
Are you a teacher just back to school and feeling overwhelmed?
Are you feeling stressed in some other way?

Don't do what I did. Remember to take care of yourself. Stop and breathe deeply. Take a walk. Take a bath. Practice yoga. Write in your journal. Go for a run. Do whatever you need to do to take care of yourself today and always.

What is your favorite stress reliever? How do you take care of yourself in times of stress?

 Related Posts:
Parents: Make Time for Yourself