Our Last Friday Drawing Winner...

Image courtesy of Clker.com

Congratulations to our latest winner...

Melissa K!  

(To see the video of the drawing, please click on the link: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10152993001630515)

We will be drawing for the Grand Prize Winner on July 8th, when I return from vacation.  Even though I won't be here in the meantime to post new content, please feel free to comment on any older posts and earn more entries for the "Blue..." is Two Birthday Contest!

(Psst... if you haven't heard about the "Blue..." is Two! Birthday Contest yet, you can find all the details here.)

This Week's Friday Drawing Winner...

Image courtesy of wpclipart.com

Drumroll please...

The winner of this week's "Blue..." is Two Birthday Contest Friday Drawing is...

Karen R.!

More details are posted at this blog's Facebook page.

Congratulations, Karen!  Enjoy your Barnes & Noble e-gift card, and happy reading! :)

(Psst... if you haven't heard about the "Blue..." is Two! Birthday Contest yet, you can find all the details here.)

Reading: Summer

Emmalie at the beach, summer 2012

Reading: Summer

Summer is with it
                       she's wild,
                       she likes
                       bare legs and cutoffs
                       and camping
                       and hikes;
                       she dives in deep water,
                       she wades in a stream,
                       she guzzles cold drinks
                       and she drowns in ice cream;
                       she runs barefoot,
                       she picnics,
                       she fishes,
                       digs bait,
                       she pitches a tent
                       and she stays up too late
                       while she counts the stars,
                       swats mosquitoes and flies,
                       hears crickets,
                       smells pine trees,
                       spies night-creature eyes;
                       she rides bareback,
                       goes sailing,
                       plays tennis,
                       climbs trees;
                       she soaks in the sunshine;
                       she gulps in a breeze;
                       she tastes the warm air
                       on the end of her tongue,

                       and she falls asleep
                       reading
                       alone
                       in the sun.

~ Myra Cohn Livingston

Happy First Day of Summer, everyone! :)

(Psst... if you haven't heard about the "Blue..." is Two! Birthday Contest yet, you can find all the details here.)

The stories her father told her...

Image courtesy of NYPL Digital Gallery

An excerpt:

     What kept Minli from becoming dull and brown like the rest of the village were the stories her father told her every night at dinner.  She glowed with such wonder and excitement that even Ma would smile, though she would shake her head at the same time.  Ba seemed to drop his gray and work weariness -- his black eyes sparkled like raindrops in the sun when he began a story.

~ from Where the Mountain Meets the Moon,

written by Grace Lin

I've been out of town for a few days, spending time with my parents, sister, and other family, and I didn't get a chance to post anything new while I was gone.  I'd like to wish a belated Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there!  I decided to post this excerpt (from a book I read on my trip) because it reminds me of my own dad who used to always tell me stories at bedtime.  His eyes would sparkle just like Ba's, and I'm sure that I glowed like Minli as I listened. :)

(Psst... if you haven't heard about the "Blue..." is Two! Birthday Contest yet, you can find all the details here.)

Listen...

Photo courtesy of
PublicDomainPictures.net

"The poet doesn't invent.  

He listens."  

~ Jean Cocteau

I think this quote works for other writers, as well.  Listen, listen, listen, write, write, write. :)

(Psst... if you haven't heard about the "Blue..." is Two! Birthday Contest yet, you can find all the details here.)

A New Friday Winner!

CONGRATS!

Congratulations to Lois N., this week's winner of the  "Blue..." is Two Birthday Contest!  She has won a $10 e-gift card from Barnes & Noble.  Happy Reading, Lois! :)

Here is a link to the video of the drawing, posted on this blog's Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10152946189040515

(Psst... if you haven't heard about the "Blue..." is Two! Birthday Contest yet, you can find all the details here.)

Happy Birthday to Me?

Photo courtesy of PublicDomainPictures.net

Happy Birthday to Me?

I was born in May.
Or June, perhaps.
It might have been
November.
The truth is,
I was very young;
I simply
don't remember.

~ Alan Katz

This poem makes me laugh!  I thought it was a perfect one to share on my birthday.  Hope you all have a wonderful day!  (Hope I do, too.)

(Psst... if you haven't heard about the "Blue..." is Two! Birthday Contest yet, you can find all the details here.)

Cerulean

Photo courtesy of
PublicDomainPictures.net

I love the word cerulean [suh-roo-lee-uh n] for two reasons: the way it sounds, cool and peaceful, and also its meaning.  Cerulean is an adjective that means "deep blue; sky blue; azure".  Blue (any shade, really, but especially a deep sky blue) just happens to be my very favorite color. :) Here are some examples of the word in a sentence:

Digging her toes in the sand, 

she gazed out at the cerulean sea.

I painted my bedroom cerulean, 

a serene color to remind me of sunny, summer days.

The child's kite resembled a big, colorful bird 

against the cerulean sky.

How would you use the word cerulean?  What else can you think of that can be described that way?

(Psst... if you haven't heard about the "Blue..." is Two! Birthday Contest yet, you can find all the details here.)

Nothing like a dream...

Photo courtesy of PublicDomainPictures.net

"There is nothing 

like a dream 

to create the future." 

~Victor Hugo

Dreams are like the dandelion in the picture above.  They start out as little seeds, but with the right "push" and nurturing, they will eventually take root and sprout, growing into something truly amazing....

A Happy Birthday

Image courtesy of PublicDomainPictures.net

An excerpt:

     "You ought to write 'A Happy Birthday' on it."

     "That was what I wanted to ask you," said Pooh.  "Because my spelling is Wobbly.  It's good spelling but it Wobbles and the letters get in the wrong places.  Would you write 'A Happy Birthday' on it for me?"

[...]

     So Owl wrote... and this is what he wrote:

HIPY PAPY BTHUTHDTH THUTHDA BTHUTHDY.

     Pooh looked on admiringly.

     "I'm just saying 'A Happy Birthday,'" said Owl carelessly.

     "It's a nice long one," said Pooh, very much impressed by it.

     "Well, actually, of course, I'm saying 'A Very Happy Birthday with love from Pooh.'  Naturally it takes a good deal of pencil to say a long thing like that."

     "Oh, I see," said Pooh.

~ from Winnie-the-Pooh,

written by A. A. Milne

It's birthday week at our house -- my husband's birthday tomorrow and mine on Thursday.  (And then Blue Sky, Big Dreams's next Monday!)  In honor of all these birthdays, I thought I'd share this passage from Pooh.  It always makes me smile -- hope it will do the same for you! :)

(Psst... if you haven't heard about the "Blue..." is Two! Birthday Contest yet, you can find all the details here.)