Engaging Young Readers One Book at a Time

Spring 2020 is Different, But We’re Still Going!

What a different start to spring we’ve had, right? I hope you all are well and enjoying the great out doors.

Bleeding hearts from Pixabay.
“Bleeding Hearts” from Pixabay

Topics you will see in this First Friday GR8Blog post:

*Happy 6 Years to Books by Rose

*Mother’s Day

*Honoring Our Mother and Crafts to Make

*Fun Crafting Things for Our Little Free Library

*Update on Book With Cat Michaels

Happy 6 Years to Books by Rose

It’s hard to believe 6 years ago I started Books by Rose.

I have learned so much along the way. I’m so thankful to all those that have supported my journey. With nine titles published, I’m looking forward to more to come.

Nine Books at Books by Rose.

Mother’s Day

A salute to all the mother’s out there. Mother’s Day can mean a lot of different things to different people. On this day, you may celebrate with your own children, your mother, your mother-in-law, aunts, grandmothers, or the mother figures in your life.

Our sons make me forever grateful to be called their mom. I hope this Mother’s Day I will be able to spend time with them and our Littles. We miss them so much!

Our sons at Field of Dreams.
Me with our sons

Honoring Our Mom and Crafts to Make

With our own mother, we honor her in many ways, remembering her in everything she was.

Our mom's trio in the 1930's.
Margaret, Irene, and Mary

One way I keep her memory alive, I include her in some of my stories. For those that have followed along, you know the story about how she was a singer in her younger days. Her trio was called, “Margret, Irene, and Mary.” Sound a tiny bit familiar? Yes, my triplet books and the“name of their titles” were fashioned as close to the name of her group as I could get. “Merrie” in the story is after our mom. Our niece spells her name the same way. I thought it was a perfect fit.

Last fall, I release the triplet’s final book of my, “Maggie, Millie, and Merrie” series. The art project in the story has been a huge hit. Our mom would have loved this one, as she was big into crafts of every kind.

Maggie, Millie, and Merrie's Mystery Mail
Maggie, Millie, and Merrie’s Mystery Mail

I recently made the art project for our neighbor for Easter. Here’s a sneak peek of part of it. It was fun to make. The possibilities for this project are endless.

Project made from, "Maggie, Millie, and Merrie's Mystery Mail."
Card made from, “Maggie, Millie, and Merrie’s Mystery Mail.”

If you are interested in a copy of this story, check it out on Amazon.

Fun Crafting Things for Our Little Free Library

Two years ago, my husband surprised me with the plans to make a “Little Free Library.” He’d work on it in the garage as weather permitted. He finished it a month ago around the time the world shut down. We plan to put it out soon, but want to do a weather proof run before adding books. We’ll have to wait to see how things go in the news so everyone is safe.

I had the pleasure of decorating the top part. Since I love dollhouses, this was a perfect time for me to play! Solar Lights were added to the little living room so it will be lit at night. (Fingers crossed.)

I spent very little money on the items for the room and used recycled materials. See photo below.

We are so excited to put it out and share books with our community.

The living room in the Little Free Library.
Living Room for our Little Free Library

This past few months have been trying for many. Keeping busy has saved me. I made sure to take part in a few free classes offered online. I hope you all found some great things to enjoy, as well.

Update on Book With Cat Michaels

I’m also looking forward to finishing up the book Cat Michaels and I have written. It’s finished! We are going through the revision process. (Thank you, Cat for all you’re doing with that!) We are so excited to share our story with all of you this coming year.

In case you missed it, our story is about:

Horse with book description.
Image Credit: Pixabay

How are you doing? How have you occupied your time these past few months? We’d love to hear from you in the comment section below.

Keep watching this coming week, as I will share my other author friend’s, “First Friday GR8Blog” posts. Have a great week, everyone!

GR8Blogs
GR8Blogs

Stay safe and stay well.

As always, Happy Reading!

~Rosie

*If you want to see more updates, sign up to subscribe to my page. We’d love to have you on board.*

14 Comments

  1. Julie

    Wow that is such a cool Little Free Library. Your local community is so lucky. Why not have a grand opening when quarantine lifts? I am sure people would love to come together to celebrate such a lovely act of kindness.

    • rosieadmin

      Thanks so much for your sweet note today, Julie.
      We have it all set to go. Cleaned books have been added with some rules attached. Our neighbors are very excited. We are slowly opening up businesses here. It will take awhile to get back to “normal, ” though.
      I hope you and your family are doing well. I also hope the businesses in your area will be able to resume as before. I think this all will change us in someway, hopefully for the better.
      PS. Love your “Daily Sparkles” videos and look forward to them everyday.
      Stay safe and stay well. 🙂

  2. Cat Michaels

    Love how you are buy with crafting and creating your Little Free Library. I hope you get to hug your family soon, Rosie. Yep, we are beavering away with our revisions all right. On to title and cover next!

    • rosieadmin

      Thanks, Cat! The crafts have been a life saver during this time.
      Yay! We are getting closer and closer with our book. Fun times ahead!
      Thanks again, Cat. 🙂

  3. Corrina Holyoake

    Wow 9 titles! You have been a busy bee. Happy 6th year anniversary and I’m itching to see the collaboration you and Cat have been working on. Love all the crafty things you have been doing, so lovely to connect with you again and to see you on the screen the other day 🙂

    • rosieadmin

      Thanks so much, Corrina! It is so good to see you back. How fun it was to finally meet you in person…almost! 🙂
      Cat and I are excited for you to see our book too. It will give you an idea what the country life is like in the Midwest, USA. We live in the suburbs, but have the country within driving distance. Cat and I have done lots of fun research for our story, too.
      Thanks for your note today, Corrina. 🙂 Take care.

  4. Sandra Bennett

    Hi Rosie, loved reading everything about this post, happy book anniversary. Your little book library is amazing, you are such a creative talent. It is sure to bring passers by to stop and look when you can eventually put it out. Enjoy your mothers day, hoping you can spend it with your beautiful boys. So looking forward to reading your collaboration with Cat. No post from me yet this month, I haven’t had time to write anything. Maybe next week. 😄

    • rosieadmin

      Thank you so much for your kind words, Sandra. We are putting our Little Free Library out today, but with no books. We want to see how it will hold up in the rain for a few days before adding anything. We will be adding signs for those donating books to take all the safe precautions for the future weeks ahead.
      You have been a busy bee working towards your pitch, so I completely understand about a recent post.
      Happy Mother’s Day to you and I know you will enjoy your day with your sweet family.
      I’m excited for you to read our book, too. It feels like it gets better everyday.
      Have a great weekend, Sandra. 🙂

  5. James Milson

    I love your blog posts, Rosie! For me, they read like a long-awaited letter updating from a good friend or family member, just lovely. Your crafts always amaze me and such wonderful news and work on the Little Free Library! good for you! Wishing the very best Health and Happiness for you and yours always! 🤠 🐻 ❤️

    • rosieadmin

      Awe, thank you so much for your kind words, James!
      My crafts have kept me busy and I have loved every minute of it. Thanks to our mom, she was always crafting and doing something. I think she used it to escape the stress and maybe, at times, I have done the same thing. 😉 It always good to have something to look forward to, even if you have to create it yourself, right?
      Wishing you the very best of health too, James.
      I hope you have a wonderful weekend. Treat yourself to something special. 🙂

  6. Jessica Adams

    Happy 6 years of books, Rosie!
    Love your cards and crafts for the little free library!
    Congrats on the new book with Cat! That’s so exciting!

    • rosieadmin

      Thank you so much for your note and kind words today, Jessica!
      I can’t wait for you to see our book. I think you and your girls will enjoy it a lot. Cat and I have had so much fun writing it.
      Keep watching!
      Have a wonderful weekend, Jessica and family. 🙂

  7. Julie Gorges

    Happy 6th anniversary, Rosie! Love miniatures and dollhouses, so enjoyed seeing your crafts for your free library. As a beta reader for you and Cat’s new book, I can wholeheartedly say, kids will love it! Can’t wait to see the final edition.

    • rosieadmin

      Thanks so much, Julie! 🙂
      I know you love miniatures and dollhouses, too. I had so much fun and had to make myself stop or I would have over crowded it, ha! I hope I can come up with some fun things to add to the Little Free Library for the holidays.
      Thank you so much for your input for our book. I can’t wait for you to see the final edition, too. Cat has been busy making some awesome changes. Keep watching!
      Have a wonderful weekend, Julie. I hope you find something special to do to celebrate your hard week of work. By the way, I loved the article you posted in the “Baby Boomers Cafe.” Awesome! 🙂

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