The Joy of Sharing

There is nothing more nobler than the act of sharing.  Sharing is a basic act of letting the other person know you care.  Young children learn about sharing by watching the adults around them.  Actions certainly speak louder than words.  Growing up with two wonderful sisters made it easier for me to learn the value of sharing.  What I learned from them made me into the adult I am today. 

I am very thankful my older sisters taught me this important lesson.   It brings great joy to my heart because I have been able to pass on that important value to my three children.   They learned early on to share everything. 

I think sharing goes beyond material things.  My sisters and friends helped me shoulder the pain of my son’s illness.  They shared my pain by praying for me.  Now, they are sharing the joy of my son getting well again.  Life is so fragile, but having people around you to share joy makes life worth living.

Compassionate Children Become Compassionate Adults

 Earlier this week I wrote a post about sisters are special.  Today I want to write about friends are special too.  Since my son’s illness, many of the parents of Luc’s friends have been dropping off meals every night.  They know that I have been spending an entire day at my son’s bedside in the hospital.  I am very moved by their kindness.   Their actions remind me that compassionate children become compassionate adults.

Regarded as one of the greatest human virtues, compassion is an emotional response and attitude toward others that is deeply empathetic. It enables us to connect to human suffering with care and understanding, acting in ways that brings comfort to those around us. Research shows that compassion plays a key role in helping children develop into engaged, caring, and optimistic adults.

The old adage that says: Charity begins at home is so true. I think one of the best things we can do as parents is to encourage children to treat their siblings with love and respect. A child that learns early on to be a friend to a sibling can transfer that friendship to others. When my kids were young, I made sure they understood the importance of treating their siblings with respect and love. I helped my children figure out how to be a friend to each other. This strong belief is what led me to write My Sister Is My Best Friend as sisters that got along with one another.

 
I love what one reviewer wrote about the book:

“I like this book because it portrays sisters who get along and enjoy each others' company instead of being yet another one about sibling rivalry.”

Even in the face of a major illness, I was able to draw some positives to help my son understand and appreciate what true compassion is all about. He will be writing thank you cards for all who lovingly made meals. The blue cooler pictured below was filled with his favorite food.  upon our arrival from the hospital  on Saturday, we sat and ate a very healthy and robust lunch.  The families insisted on providing us meals until Tuesday .   I am abundantly blessed to live in a community with such compassionate individuals.

 

Sisters are Special

Do you have sisters? Are they as special as mine are?  I am sure they are.  I find great comfort knowing my sisters are there for me.  I am the youngest.  In good and bad times, my sisters are always there to support me.  Last month my sisters Danielle and Rose flew to Malibu, California to attend my daughter’s college graduation from Pepperdine University.

 My two sisters Rose and Danielle with my daughter Michele at her college graduation

The past two weeks have been very difficult as my youngest have been very sick.  Again, my sisters came to my support.  As I sit here in my son’s hospital room, I got inspired to write this post to share my thoughts on how thankful I am to have such great sisters. 

Yesterday my sister Rose brought me my favorite meal for lunch.  It gets very boring eating the same cafeteria food for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I usually arrive at hospital by 6AM and leave by 8PM, so I do not have time to cook or even go to the store.  I want to spend as much time with my son as possible.

My sister Danielle lives in Long Island, New York.  She calls every day to give moral support and well wishes.

Feel free to share your sister story by leaving a comment. Thanks in advance for sharing your thoughts.

I consider myself very blessed to be part of Guardian Angel Publishing.  My publisher Lynda Burch, publishes quality children's books for ages 0-12 and it is with great pleasure I share with you the media release  below.  Hope you have time to stop by and check out the new Ezine format.  Thank you for your interest and support.


M E D I A R E L E A S E

CONTACT: Donna McDine, Editor-in-Chief, Guardian Angel Kids Ezine
Email: submissions@guardian-angel-kids.com
Website: http://guardian-angel-kids.com


For Immediate Release

Children’s Ezine Guardian Angel Kids: Growing Up – June 2012 Issue

The Guardian Angel Kids creative crew is pleased to announce the new Ezine format. The inviting visual will take the reader on a turn page style adventure with the click of the mouse accompanied with the sound of turning a page in your hand. Without further ado, we present the Guardian Angel Kids Growing Up June 2012 issue…

The carefree days of childhood invokes memories of lazy days of summer vacation filled with days of swimming at the town pool. It was the central social point of the neighborhood and the excitement of the day would then flow onto our cul-de-sac (after the children of the neighborhood ate their respective suppers) where there was always a stick ball game going on until the single street light flickered on. Quickly we would change gears and switch to playing flashlight tag. My mother, always an avid reader, made sure her children read each and every day and to this day we all have instilled the same love of reading with our own children. Without lapsing in our reading skills throughout the summer we were always well prepared with our studies. The days appeared endless and before you knew it, it was time for back to school shopping.

The love of reading has led me to the path of writing for children and Editor-in-Chief of Guardian Angel Publishing, for which I’m joyful for and proud to present the Guardian Angel Kids June 2012 issue of Growing Up www.guardian-angel-kids.com.

We hope you enjoy our issue of Growing Up as much the Guardian Angel Kid staff did reminiscing about our childhoods and selecting the wonderful poetry, stories, articles, and activities.


LETTER FROM THE EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Donna M. McDine

FEATURED BOOKS:

Growing Up Dreams by Susan Berger and illustrated by Samantha Bell

The Odd Chick by Mary Esparza-Vela and illustrated by Kevin Collier

CHILDREN’S POETRY, ACTIVITIES, SHORT STORIES, AND ARTICLES:

“I’m Growing Up,” poetry by Guy Belleranti – how quickly the time passes by.
“Is It Friday Yet?” poetry by Alicia Z. Klepeis – The excitement of the approaching end of the week.
“Activities to Make Reading Fun,” by Kathy Stemke – having fun with language is the key to unlocking the world of reading to your child.
“Too Much Trouble,” by Juliana M. Jones and illustrated by Nancy Miller – the growing responsibility of getting older.
“Maid for Make Believe,” by Caroline Yu and illustrated by Clara Batton Smith – the magic of pretend brings to friends closer together.
“Read Aloud Tips for Preschoolers: Put Some Pizzazz in Reading Aloud,” by Dorit Sasson – how to connect to the story by acting it out.
“Encouraging Your Reader,” by Vanessa Fortenberry – tips on how to encourage and instill the love of reading.

Visit Guardian Angel Kid today and www.guardian-angel-kids.com and enjoy a child safe and ad free Ezine.

We also invite you to stay connected with Guardian Angel Kids through our Facebook Fan Pagehttp://www.facebook.com/pages/Guardian-Angel-Kids-Ezine/163785080346247.

Please feel free to drop Editor-in-Chief, Donna McDine an email at submissions@guardian-angel-kids.comand let them know what you think of Guardian Angel Kids and what you'd like to see in the future. They aim to please.

The Guardian Angel Kids Ezine staff and contributors look forward to your visit. Thank you for your time and interest.

Day Seven-Celebrating Children’s Book Week Final Day 

Nurture a Child with a Book

As mother’s we have a huge responsibility to nourish our children with food, and make sure, they are brought up in a safe environment. Our responsibilities as mothers should extend beyond providing nutritional nourishment; it should also include providing our children with all types of books that can enable the child to develop a thirst for knowledge. 

We are the richest country in the world; however, there are millions of children who are never given a chance to acquire a thirst for knowledge. These children fall way behind in school. Research has shown if a child can’t read at-grade level by 3rd grade, that child will most likely drop out before completing high school.

I believe it is cheaper to make interventions early on in contrast to waiting until it is too late. Every year I get a few high-school students who are several years below a grade level in reading. I am always baffled, and I ask myself how in the world did a student make it all the way to the 9th grade reading at a 3rd grade level? I do not have an answer to that question, but what I do have are plausible ways to help a child develop a genuine desire for reading.

          Here are a few suggestions:

• Allow kids to read books that are of interest to them
• Take kids to the library to attend reading programs
• Take kids to local book fairs so they can purchase books that are of interest to them
• Create a special space where you and your kids can spend time reading together (when my three children were younger we sat in a special area in the family room to read

Kids emulate their parents, if they see their parents reading; they too will want to do the same.

Perhaps school districts should make classes available to teach parents the best way to promote kids and reading is to provide them with books that they enjoy and want to read-or have read to them-over and over again.
So glad I had a chance to participate and celebrate children's book week.  As we celebrate Mother's Day, let's remember the best gift we can give to any child is the gift of knowledge through reading.

In celebration of the final day of children’s book week, I encourage all to Nurture a child with a book and perhaps that child will develop an unquenchable thirst for knowledge.

 This is the number one reason I have taken the time to become a writer.  I hope all of my books will help enrich the lives of all children who read them.

I invite you to visit with my fellow Guardian Angel Publishing authors at their blogs during Children’s Book Week 2012 and beyond:

Mayra Calvani -  www.mayrassecretbookcase.blogspot.com

Margo Dill - www.margodill.com/blog

Margot Finke – www.hookkidsonreading.blogspot.com

Nancy Stewart - www.nancystewartbooks.blogspot.com

Kai Strand - www.kaistrand.blogspot.com

Don’t forget to enter our contest:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Day Six: Children's Book Week Celebration

Welcome to day Six of Children’s Book Week Celebration

Library Visits

Doing library visits is one way an author can get more exposure for his/her book. I did a series of library visits to promote my first book.   I was amazed at how many French-speaking children that came to my book reading.   It is a great way to make contact with potential buyers for future books.  I have several readings set up for the month of June and July to promote my newest book: My Sister Is My Best Friend.  I am looking forward to the readings because some of the same families that attended my other readings will be there.

Many good things can come out of these visits.  Parents who attend the readings usually go home and tell their friends and family about it.  That free promotion can open many doors. People in general love meeting a local author.
 

Last month, I attended an author event sponsored by my local library.   I did not sell many books, but I met many great authors, and together we plan to do cross promotion.   Below is a brief interview on the event.   Deb Parker is the Executive Assistant/Events and Program Director at my local library.

1) How do you find authors to participate in the event? Do you advertise in the local newspapers?

To find our authors I sent out emails to all formerly attending authors and invite them. I also ask them to share the invitation with all of their author friends, writers groups, publishers, etc.
As far as advertising, we have each author advertise on their blogs, websites, Facebook, etc., And I advertise in the Englewood Herald, YourHub, my Facebook, City website, I have some contacts at other libraries that hang up information for us, local business gets the word out for us, I have some contacts with authors and radio hosts who will put in plugs for us leading up to the event.

Unfortunately, this year was warm and beautiful, and I think people were enjoying the Colorado Spring too much and forgot to come see us. For example, one of our regulars (all previous 12 years) missed this year because he started trimming his bushes and was having so much fun in his yard that he didn’t even think of us until 6:30 pm. It happens.

2) What must an author do in order to do a book reading in your library?

Authors contact me, and I see what we can do to have a reading for them in our library.

3) On the average how many books can an author sell at MEET THE FACES BEHIND THE BOOKS yearly event.

Our average so far has been 6 until the last three or four years. With the drop in the economy, and the emergence of E-book technologies, we have seen a decline in book sales. At this year’s event, the average sales were 4. We did have quite a few of our patrons comment on how much fun they had buying the books for their Kindle or Nook while talking to the authors.
I would add that with Social Media and all the writers groups that are out there, it is refreshing to see new people contacting us all the time. We have found authors through all sorts of different avenues than in years past. I love that authors, though competitive to sell their own works, are also willing to encourage other authors to join them whenever possible. It makes for fun and diverse groups of authors. It seems that the mix of authors gets better every year.

 

In celebration of Children’s Book week, let’s make every effort to get our books in the hands of kids.

I invite you to visit with my fellow Guardian Angel Publishing authors at their blogs during Children’s Book Week 2012 and beyond:

Mayra Calvani - www.mayrassecretbookcase.blogspot.com

Margo Dill - www.margodill.com/blog

Margot Finke – www.hookkidsonreading.blogspot.com

Nancy Stewart - www.nancystewartbooks.blogspot.com

Kai Strand - www.kaistrand.blogspot.com

Nicole Weaver - www.mysisterismybestfriend.blogspot.com
Don’t forget to enter our contest:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Welcome to day five of Children’s Book week Celebration

 Free Book Promotion

 Your book is published, what do you do next? You have many options. One option is to promote your book with an online book tour company or you can start building an online presence by writing articles. Even though I have done an online book tour, but for me writing articles has proven to be the most lucrative way to promote my books. My goal is to set myself as an expert in the field of foreign languages. Writing articles relating to foreign language acquisition afforded me the opportunity to brand myself as an expert.

 Read  two articles I wrote Here and Here
 Potential customers will most likely buy my books because they trust me.

Since making a concerted effort with article writing, my book sales for my first book Marie and Her Friend the Sea Turtle has gone up. On average, I sell 10 books a month. Book sales are great, but what is more important is to have my target audience read and appreciate the message in my book. I get great satisfaction knowing that children that read my books have an opportunity to be exposed to French and Spanish.

Perhaps, reading my trilingual books will spark interest in helping the child decide to take foreign language study more seriously. Every book is unique and I believe a child can learn many valuable lessons from reading a variety of books. In celebration of children’s book week, I encourage you to take a few moments to ponder upon what you can do to get your book into the hands of many children as possible. You never know how your book may change a child’s life forever.

I invite you to visit with my fellow Guardian Angel Publishing authors at their blogs during Children’s Book Week 2012 and beyond:

Mayra Calvani - www.mayrassecretbookcase.blogspot.com
Margo Dill - www.margodill.com/blog
Margot Finke – www.hookkidsonreading.blogspot.com
Nancy Stewart - www.nancystewartbooks.blogspot.com
Kai Strand - www.kaistrand.blogspot.com
Nicole Weaver - www.mysisterismybestfriend.blogspot.com
Don’t forget to enter our contest:
a Rafflecopter giveaway