Happy President's Day!

Today I want to celebrate the culmination of 6 years of hard work by Split Rock Studios and my very talented museum exhibit designer husband. One of his projects, redesigning the Ford's Theatre Museum and the Center for Education and Leadership, has been getting a lot of press lately. The project was featured most recently on "American Artifacts: Life, Death and Legacy of Abraham Lincoln," which aired on CSPAN3. Here's the preview which contains a glimpse of my husband installing the famed Tower of Books:

I'm so proud of him! The Center for Education and Leadership is celebrating President's Day with an Open House, at which my husband will be speaking, so if you're in the Washington, D.C. area today you should definitely stop by!

Memorial Day

I hope everyone will take a moment today to observe the traditional meaning of Memorial Day. It would mean a lot to those who serve this country, their families, and the loved ones of those who never made it home.

We remember with compassion those who have died serving their countries in the futility of combat. There is none of us but must come to bereavement and separation, when all the answers we are offered fail the question death asks of each of us.

Illustration from The Wishing Tree. 

Happy New Year!

First, one of my favorite quotes for the New Year from Edith Lovejoy Pierce:

We will open the book.  Its pages are blank.  We are going to put words on them ourselves.  The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year's Day.

Then, some good old-fashioned fun:

Happy New Year, everyone! I hope you're all excited for what 2011 will bring.

Happy Holidays!

Wishing you all a safe and fun holiday!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! I'm thankful for the bounty of illustration opportunities I've had this year in the children's book industry, the continued support and love of my husband, and all the small blessings I've received from friends and family.

Have a great weekend!