It’s that time of year again! Remember the old Staples commercials? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XOuzsk36vjM “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!” The dad is literally dancing through the aisles of the store tossing a plethora of school supplies into the cart, with the kids, listless, trailing behind. We all loved it! But, did we? That commercial,
Back to School Jitters! Read More »
Life in coastal Carolina is paralyzing this summer. Temps ranged from 79 at 6:30 AM to 103 degrees at 1:30 most of last week. So, we travel wherever the sun is not…early mornings later in the evenings as well. We seek ways to entertain ourselves indoors. I think of the many moms and dads, daycare
Mid-summer Adventures! Read More »
Well, I sure have been to a lot of rock concerts in my life and have loved nothing better than to sit back and enjoy the music, watching the performers take center stage. In my teaching career, I used to taking a much smaller stage but always mindful that the show was not about me,
Ivy Leigh Ever After on Tour! Read More »
As I was writing Ivy Leigh, I didn’t think too much about specific topics or themes, especially at first. I let myself experience Ivy’s story each time a new situation or character cropped up. It’s kind of like sitting on a moving train, stopping at different stations, checking out the view and watching as the
Ivy Leigh Meets Mental Health Month Read More »
A Wee Bit of Irish Literature Well, what would the month of March be like without a wee bit of storytelling…by strong Irish writers? Immersed in a strong culture of storytelling as a young girl, I’ve always been told I too have the ‘gift of gab’! But that is the ‘gift’ (much to my teachers’
A Wee Bit of Irish Literature Read More »
Kathleen’s Irish Soda Bread Recipe For more information and pics: https://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/irish_soda_bread/ The story goes that good Irish cooks never measure, so when I took down this recipe at Kathleen’s table many, many years ago (on the back of an envelope), I was given that disclaimer. It took me many a try to get it all straight. You can find
How Irish is Irish? Read More »
A Wee Taste of Ireland On any given March 17th, one thing in the Murphy household was certain. Kathleen Vokes would sneak by, leaving a warm loaf of Irish soda bread on the front doorstep. My brother and two sisters and I would fight for the chance to be the one to find it
The Sweet Taste of Sugar Read More »
After many years of work and revision…too many really, Ivy Leigh Ever After, my debut novel made it into the hands of a group of eager readers on Saturday! There’s nothing like a full room of jazzed up people with ultra kind hearts to make my own heart soar! There’s been a ton of book
Book Launch Day! Ivy for REAL! Read More »
I just love working alongside another author, especially when that author is half my height! I also love that title. ‘Author.’ I’ve worked so hard for so many years to meet that mark. But I also spent my years sprinkling that word around, congratulating all the young authors I worked with in my classroom from
How Sweet It Is: A Pair of Authors at Work Read More »
It’s currently 28 degrees here in coastal North Carolina, the fire’s on, there are cookies in the oven, and I’m snug in a heavy sweater, slippers and woolen socks! Where am I? I moved south to be warm in winters, well, reasonably warm, to write, enjoy evenings of great music and to be close to
Baby, It’s Cold Outside! Suggestions for a Middle Grade Reader Read More »