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Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Writing Thank-you Notes by Peggy Gifford (Schwartz & Wade, 2008).

How I love a book with plenty of white space, BIG chapter names but very short chapters, and at least a sprinkling of funny illustrations, and I think I'm not alone. Those who share my proclivities will embrace the new Moxy Maxwell book (following 2007's Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Stuart Little).

All the action takes place within about an hour or so as 9-year-old Moxy struggles to write 13 thank-you notes, which she must accomplish (so her mother says) before she will be allowed to visit her long-absent dad in Hollywood. Being Moxy, nothing is simple, and soon her stepdad's favorite recliner is broken, his new copier has spewed out 473 identical fill-in-the-blanks thank-you notes, and the words "HANK YOU" have been spray painted in gold paint across the living room wall (the "T" ends up on young Sam's sweater). Luckily, Moxy's twin brother Mark captures the whole thing with his still camera, and we readers get to see the excellent photographs, all thoughtfully captioned for us.

All this does not faze Moxy for long (although it takes her mom and stepdad a bit longer to recover their equilibrium), and even the falling-through of her New Year's plans fail to keep her spirits down. Kids will love Moxy's resilience and her absolute resistance to doing things the easy or obvious (or sensible) way.

Grades 2 - 4.

Good Morning:

It's been such a very long time since I've added an entry to my blog. I want to thank all of you who continue to check and read my blog.

Things are hectic around here right now, to say the least, but I still intend to put forth an effort to blog once a week or so. I miss blogging on a daily basis, but currently, my life just doesn't allow for that luxury of time.

I do have a few spare moments this morning, so I thought I would quickly share a little bit of the holidays with you. (And show you my newest collage print).

We had a very nice and quiet Thanksgiving. Each year sort of blends into the previous and will blend into the next. Our Thanksgivings are always enjoyable, but ultimately predictible. Although, I must say, our turkey was better than usual, as Ava (my daughter) prepared it this year. She added a few tasty items inside the bird and stuffed butter under the skin. It truly did make a difference....



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Now, we've just about finished putting our Christmas decorations up indoors and out. Mind you, it's taken over a week!! My main Christmas tree in the formal living room is huge. It measures 9 ft. high by 6 ft. wide. Being that I am only
5 feet 4-1/2", decorating the tree is quite a task. Obviously there is a ladder involved!! I will admit, the task is more difficult than it need be, considering the technique that I choose to use for the lights. Instead of roping the lights around the tree like so many sane folks do, I insist on wrapping each limb up, then twist the strand around the tip and back down the limb, twist around the limb base and over to the next. I'm not sure if that makes sense, but basically it gives such a big tree a lot of depth when the lights are on. There are lights all through the tree instead of just on the outside. Once the lights are done, it's on to the decorating. I really love my tree AFTER it's decorated, and I wish I could get a better picture, so you could really see the colors....



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Last Sunday, we went to the Orange County Fair Grounds to see Cirque Du Soleil's newest show "Corteo". We bought the tickets almost a year ago, and have been waiting patiently to see the show. We were fortunate to have been able to purchase front row tickets at the time. The show was fabulous, as always, and it's the first time that my daughter Ava has come with us to a Cirque show. She really had a great time, and was so intrigued by the fact that we were in the front row. The performers make eye contact with you and talk to you. Unfortunately, my two teen-age sons have never had any interest in seeing Cirque Du Soleil. As a matter of fact, they are entirely repulsed by them!! I suppose that's fairly common. Not too many teen boys are fans of Cirque. They just don't know what they're missing!! Here's a picture of the "Grand Chapiteau"...



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And....one last bit. Here's my newest 5" x 7" collage print freshly listed in My Etsy Shop.

George Takes Safari


Obviously, the little boy in the original vintage photo was named George. I think he just looks ready for any adventure that may come his way. This collage has also been made into a greeting card in my Greeting Card Universe shop.

And...one more brutal sales pitch before signing off, if you don't mind !! With Christmas quickly approaching, lots of people are shopping online to avoid the crowds. Here's the address to our online shopping mall: All Around The Mall.com
Each evening, Gary (my husband) posts some of the great deals and special sales on the Mall blog, which can be found HERE...

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Thanks ever so much for your continued curiosity with my blog.

Until Next Time:
Kim
Garden Painter Art