I just can't keep up...

Admittedly, I have been majorly slacking on my blog posts. I cannot recall the last time I was here to post. I apologize for that. Life sometimes sneaks in and gets in the way of keeping up with everything I should be doing. However, I have been working. Clark has been, too.

We will start with Clark. He has been working with Indian Ink. Trying out new things for the upcoming Adventures of Bear B. & Stone. Here is one of the things he has accomplished. 

Bear B. in Indian Ink

Clark has said that he believes this image will grace the cover of the first Adventures book. Of course, he will add an image of Stone to it, so it will not be this exact image. He has also been working on the new picture book, Monster Beneath my Bed, which we are aiming to release near the end of the summer. 

As for me, I have been writing as much as I can manage. I am pleased with the way Adventures is unfolding. I wasn't planning, or expecting, to write a story about bullying. I didn't expect these 2 bullies to pop up, but when they did I knew that this was what the story was meant to entail. So, every time Bear B. & Stone run into the bullies, things get a little more intense. The bullies are getting physical. Stone was injured (fortunately it was just a few bruises and they healed nicely). However, the boys are now afraid to go outside. As often is the case with bullying, the bullied become afraid to live their lives. They must learn to overcome this fear. They must find a way to "beat" the bully without becoming a bully themselves. It is my hope that this is the story I will tell. The story of overcoming the fear and the trepidation that comes with bullying and overcoming the bullies themselves. I have an idea for the end of the book. But of course I won't be revealing that to anyone. Guess you'll just have to wait for the book's release. 

I will try to get on here more often and keep up with my posting. 

Review of a Product...

Ordinarily, I do not review products. If I like something, I may tell a few people about it, and if I don't like something I may speak up when asked, or if I hear that someone else is considering purchasing the product. However, I feel that this product deserves to be reviewed, not because it is a good product, but because it is an epic failure. That product is the Lysol Healthy Touch No-Touch Hand Soap System.

When we first purchased this product, I would have given it 5 beautiful stars. It was great. No contamination on the soap dispensers, no yucky goo from our hands getting on them either. The product was easy to use, and dispensed a perfect amount of soap for my (then) 5 year old daughter to not be left in charge of judging on her own. 

Now, I would give this product a sad single star. I am not sure it is even worthy of the 1 star. After a couple months of use, the bathroom dispenser began to bubble and take on water. How did this happen? The best we can come up with is that it could not handle the steam of the shower. We changed the batteries when the light started flashing, and it quit altogether. Perhaps the battery compartment got wet as well? 

So, we moved the kitchen dispenser into the bathroom and set the one from the bathroom to air dry. Almost immediately, this second dispenser began asking for new batteries (it has a red light that flashes to indicate dying batteries). So, we changed the batteries. That is when this dispenser began making funny clicking noises. I went into the bathroom to investigate the noise. The dispenser was grinding away and dispensing copious amounts of soap onto the counter top.  Not only did it drain an almost full soap refill, but it was also filled with water. 

What an utter disappointment this (not cheap) product has been. I attempted to post my review on Lysol.com. I even registered for an account so I could do so. It refuses to let me log in after I click write a review. Out of curiosity, I scrolled through the reviews. Many of the 4 & 5 star reviews that I have read sound like how we originally felt about the product. The 1 & 2 star reviews all bear similar complaints to the one that I am posting here. 

I wanted to share this because I figure that many of you, like us, have young children and think what a great thing a no touch dispenser would be. I do hope that this review has been helpful. Thank you for taking the time to read my product review.

Bear B. & Stone are adventuring along...

Bear B. & Stone are working their way through this first Adventure. I wasn't expecting to write a story about bullying, and I really didn't plan on either of our babies to end up hurt. That's what happened today. Stone has been injured by the mean bullies. Now, I have to figure out how hurt he is. I have to decide what's going to happen next.

The bullies aren't the only new characters to make an appearance in this story. There is the girl down the street that pops up from time to time. Not really sure what her purpose is yet, but I'm sure she will reveal it to me in time. Then there is Cupcake and Danger. They are fast becoming a couple of my favorite friends. Bear B. is enjoying getting to know them, as well. I hope that they establish themselves to appear in many more Adventure books in the future.

There is of course the humans, Bear B.'s humans. There is one to represent each of the four of us. I suppose they bear some resemblance to the real humans in our household, but they are only background in the story. Bear B.'s humans play an important roll in his life, and I want to show how much he loves each and every one of them, but I do not want them to overpower the story.

I really wasn't expecting to end up as far as I have. For a while there, I was suffering from writer's block that I thought I would never break through. Then, the fog in my brain cleared, and the story began flowing once again. I have now completed chapter five. There is still a long way to go before their first story is complete, but I am thoroughly enjoying the Adventure already.

On a side note, my 14 year old son even said he enjoyed hearing what part of the story I had to tell already. I take this as a good sign!

Bullying...

As I watch the news and see all these stories about bullying and anti-bullying, I am so sad. Initially, the biggest problem that Bear B. was going to have to deal with was moving. He was going to deal with being the new dog in town, and also there is a missing toy that must be packed in one of these boxes somewhere.

I am still sticking with the initial story line. Bear B. And Stone have moved into a new home with their humans. Everything is slowly being unpacked and put away. Bear B's favorite toy is still missing. However, as they go exploring the neighborhood, they have encountered a couple of bullies. 

They are not who you would expect to be bullies. I wanted to break away from traditional stereotyping. As a matter of fact, the "big, mean" dogs that you would expect to be the bullies will be making an appearance, with an opportunity to show off the sweeter side of these mean breeds. I thought anti-stereotype would be a good lesson to learn along with an anti-bullying theme.

I want to help give children something they can relate to. Something innocent that perhaps can help them to express their feelings and to be able to talk about bullying. For example, while reading with their parents, parents can ask how their children feel about what is happening and ask them if they've ever had any similar experiences. 

Don't worry, I still intend to keep Bear B. & Stone fun. I don't want to write a story that will bring everybody down. I will show how they overcome the bullies, and who helps them. You can't lick bullying on your own. This is a lesson I have struggled to teach my children over the years. I figure I am probably not the only parent who searches for ways to help my children understand bullying and how to overcome it without losing themselves. 

It is going to be a harder story to write. I am going to have to go deep back in my memory. Back to when I was the new girl, in a new town, in a new school, and I wasn't very welcome. Back when I was the chubby girl that needed a bra long before my classmates did, and dealt with ridicule and downright meanness. Then, I have to turn all of that into what happens when doggies and kitties are being bullied (or doing the bullying). 

I only pray that I can do this story justice. I want to tell an entertaining story, but I also don't want to make light of the epidemic that is plaguing our schools. 

In the future, I would also like to make a book for the younger crowd about bullying and seeking help. The schools teach about tattle-tailing, and then the students become fearful of being a tattle-tale and therefore do not want to tell on the bully. We must find this line for our children and draw it. 

Congratulations!!!

Wow! We had 477 entries in our Goodreads Giveaway! Thank you all for your interest in our newest book, I Love the Changing Seasons.

Congratulations to the winners, Sara Lloyd and Angie Nielsen! Your books will arrive in the mail soon. We would love to hear from you after you've read I Love the Changing Seasons. Please post your review to Goodreads, Amazon, or Barnes and Noble. Thank you.

For those of you that did not win, but were still interested in reading I Love the Changing Seasons it is available for purchase in a few places:

Directly through the publisher's website
At Barnes and Noble
Or you can purchase on Amazon (where it is available in both print and Kindle formats)





Thank you all again for your interest and congratulations once again to the winners!

Bear B. & Stone adventure on...

Today, I think I broke the writer's block. Bear B. has been out exploring, and there is some sort of tension developing. I am not yet sure where it will lead, but I am enjoying the unfolding of this particular story. I was unsure what I would do when it came to writing a children's chapter book. It is not anything I had every thought to do before, but after a few little fans brought it up, I had to explore the idea. I am so glad that I did. It is really a lot of fun.

Meanwhile, the real Bear & Stone are being incredibly boring as of late. They aren't providing any inspiration. I guess I will just have to write on without them and hope that they catch up.