Category: Fun for kids

Fun for kids, middle grade, new release, ornaments

Make a Cheerful Llama Ornament

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I am teaming up this week with three other Chicken Scratch authors for a fun event we are calling “AUTHORS & ORNAMENTS.”

Make a Llama Ornament: A Connection Activity for the book SOLEDAD AND THE CURSE OF THE PHOENIX by Mindy Baker

One of my characters in the novel SOLEDAD AND THE CURSE OF THE PHOENIX is a llama named Suri. Why not make this cute little llama ornament with your middle grade child?

You will need:

  1. Felt of two different colors (one for the body and one for the saddle)
  2. Llama pattern to trace (I used this one). I found it online by a creator named Tutitati Tati.
  3. Small amount of batting to stuff the ornament.
  4. Embroidery thread and needle.
  5. Hot glue gun.
  6. Beads and small pom poms for the embellishments.
  7. Sharpie

DIRECTIONS:

  1. Trace and cut two llama bodies and one saddle.
  2. With the embroidery thread and needle, use a whip stitch to sew the two pieces of felt together. Here is a video to demonstrate.
  3. Make sure to leave a small opening for the batting. Stuff the llama with the batting and stitch it the rest of the way.
  4. Create a hanging loop with the embroidery thread by pulling your needle through the top of the ornament and tying the ends in a knot.
  5. Draw the face with a sharpie marker. (Option: cut out a face from the pattern, color it, and glue onto the felt. Googly eyes are also an option if you want the ornament to have a more playful look.
  6. Use the glue gun to attach the saddle.
  7. Use the glue gun to add the embellishments and tail.
  8. Hang on the tree!

Simpler version: Trace one llama shape and one saddle shape. Skip the sewing and stuffing. Glue on the saddle, embellishments and tail. Consider attaching the felt shape to a cardboard shape to make a more sturdy ornament. Add a hanger.

Interested in making more ornaments?

Here are the websites for the other authors where you can find out how to make their ornaments!

SUSAN REIMER: She’s making a horse ornament to accompany her book THE SPACE BETWEEN.

www.susanreimer.com

ROBIN KOLB: She’s making gingerbread horse cookie ornaments to accompany her book GALLOPING AWAY.

www.robinkolbauthor.com

ABBI LEE: She is making a “hidden box” ornament to accompany her book entitled GHOST TOWN TREASURE HUNG about geocaching.

www.abbileebooks.com

All of our books can be found on the Chicken Scratch Books website! In addition, our books are available wherever books are sold!

Which ornament would you like to try? If you make an ornament, I’d love to see a photo of your finished product!

#ornamentsforkids #authorsandornaments #chickenscratchbooks #middlegradefiction #bookishfun #homeschooling #familyfun

Author life, Fun for kids, middle grade, new book, new release, Parent and Child Connection, Promoting Literacy

Soledad and the Curse of the Phoenix

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Big announcement!

The moment I have been waiting for has finally arrived! I am so excited and very overjoyed to announce that I will have a middle grade novel published by Chicken Scratch Books on November 4, 2025.

Here is the cover art created by a talented artist named Timothy James Hantula. I Absolutely love how he depicted the main character!

It is a lower middle grade fantasy adventure story based in a Mesoamerican-like imaginative world of my own creation that builds hope and courage rising from destruction. I can’t wait to share more about his upcoming release in the weeks ahead.

Here is the back cover blurb:

Soledad is a victim of the Phoenix’s evil plagues, just like the rest of her former village. But she’s also different. She’s hiding with her mother’s flute, which the Phoenix is determined to find.

After a friend’s betrayal, she flees along a new path, high into the mountains, where she discovers the truth about what has really happened to her people. She realizes her knowledge, together with the power of the water and the magic of the flute, can help them all.

But this realization brings a whole new danger. Before she can unite her people and face the Phoenix, Soledad will have to find the strength to forgive and learn again how to trust.

——————————————————————————–

Look for the book at this site. I think you can even pre-order it!

Will you celebrate with me today? I’m definitely counting down the days until its launch. If you would like to help me on my launch team, don’t hesitate to contact me!

Book Review and Author Interviews, Fun for kids, Giveaway, Prize winner

And the winner of the Sassi Book Bundle is…

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Angela Degroot is the winner!

Congratulations! I know you will love having these books in your home library.

Thank you to everyone who entered! Congratulations to Laura once again on this beautiful book.

And thank you to Worthy Books for donating a copy of Faithful Feet.

(I’m hoping to have several more giveaways in the coming months).

Stay tuned, and keep spending quality time with your kids. Books are great discussion starters and a wonderful way to build together time!

See you next time!

#mindybakerbooks #giveawaywinner #faithfulfeet #worthybooks #laurasassi #christianbooks #kidlit

Book Review and Author Interviews, Fun for kids, Giveaway, Kid Ministry, My Faith

Five Fun Facts about FAITHFUL FEET with Author Laura Sassi

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Today I have a treat for you! Author Laura Sassi has stopped by to share Five Fun Facts about her new release from Worthy Kids entitled Faithful Feet! Thanks for being here, Laura. What are your facts?

Thanks for having me on your blog, Mindy! Here are the facts I thought of to share with your readers.

Fact One: This is my first book with Worthy Kids and my eleventh book overall. It’s the 10th that rhymes, the 5th to include references to specific Bible verses, and the first to be illustrated by an Italian ( and beautifully)!  You can learn more about illustrator Emanuel Di Donna here.  (https://thebrightagency.com/uk/childrens-illustration/artists/emanuela-di-donna)

Fact Two: Faithful Feet is inspired by a favorite Bible verse of mine from the Old Testament.  From Isaiah 52:7, it reads, “How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news…”  That image of feet running to tell of God’s amazing grace captured my imagination and I ran with it! 

Fact Three: The opening of the book which begins “Feet are funny don’t you think?” was originally just a silly poem I wrote as a warm-up exercise to get my ideas flowing one morning several years ago. It remained unexplored in my writer’s notebook until one day, as I was looking through that old notebook, I spotted it. With the verse above (see Fact Two) already on my heart, I knew when I saw the poem that I had the opening for my book. 

Fact Four: I had fun brainstorming which Bible characters’ feet to include in this rhyming narrative. I was striving to get a mix of male, female, young, old etc. I also wanted the feet to be hairy, smooth, dusty and so on, in keeping with that opening verse. Whose feet did I finally pick? Noah’s, Daniel’s, David’s, Mary’s and, of course, Jesus’s feet!  I also included the feet of those who followed Jesus to listen and be healed, as well as the feet of the women who ran to tell the good news of Jesus’ resurrection that first Easter morning.

Fact Five: This book isn’t really about feet! As I explain in the “Author’s Note” at the beginning of the book, I think feet are a wonderful visual reminder and metaphor for what God desires most from us—that we actively trust, love, and walk with Him spiritually. So even though I use feet to tell this story, the book is really about actively loving and trusting God and letting His love flow through us to others.

Learn more about the book, including how to get the free activity kit, over at my website:  https://laurasassitales.wordpress.com/books/faithful-feet/

I loved hearing these facts! In case you didn’t know I am hosting a SASSI BOOK BUNDLE GIVEAWAY over the next few days (January 9-11). You can enter to win Faithful Feet, and two of my favorite of Laura’s other titles. I will announce the winners on my blog and Instagram account on January 12th.

Here is the link to enter!

Thank you for having me as your guest, Mindy!

It is always a treat to have you visit my blog! Best wishes on a wonderful new title.

Buy the book Faithful Feet

CONTEST DETAILS:

This giveaway is running from January 9-11, 2025.

To enter, click the link above and provide your first name and email.

This contest is open to residents in the continental United States with a USA postal mailing address.

One winner will be announced on Instagram and my website on January 12, 2025.

There is ONE PRIZE BUNDLE valued at $36.

Worthy Books will mail you the book Faithful Feet. Mindy Baker will mail you the other two books (My Tender Heart Devotions and Bunny Finds Easter).

By entering, you are consenting to receive occasional content from Mindy Baker. You may unsubscribe at any time.




Book Review and Author Interviews, Fun for kids, Kid Ministry, My Faith, Parent and Child Connection

A Chat With Laura Sassi About Her New Book

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Today I’m highlighting Bunny Finds Easter, the latest board book from author Laura Sassi. I invited Laura here today because I wanted to discuss how much the role of the illustrations play in bringing a picture book story to life. I’m so thrilled that she accepted my request!

MINDY: First of all, Laura, thank you so much for stopping by! What a treat for you to be here!

LAURA: I’m happy to join you, Mindy. I love to discuss picture books!

MINDY: I have to tell you, Laura, how much I have enjoyed my advance copy! I really love that Jesus is highlighted so prominently as the reason we celebrate Easter. That is so dear to my heart and my faith! I also adore the illustrations in this book and wanted to discuss that topic with you a little bit. I know that once you turn your manuscript in, the artist job begins. It is always amazing to me how much charm illustrators are able to add to the text. My first question for you is, what is your favorite page spread in this book? 

LAURA: Truly, I love them all but I’m going to pick the spread that reads “She hops to town. Cheep. Chirp. Who’s there?  Babies, babies, everywhere!” because I think it captures beautifully the amplified way that the illustrations add heart and depth to the story in board books. 

MINDY: What do you love about it?

LAURA: At first glance, this spread seems simple enough. But if you look carefully, there are oodles of picture clues and story elements for littlest ones and their parents to notice and enjoy. 

First, the text says simply “Babies, babies, everywhere.” The illustrations fill that out with adorable chicks sliding down a hay stack while a mother hen (with matching Easter bonnet and purse) looks one. But there are other babies, too. Can you spot the tadpoles?  

MINDY: I do spot them! So adorable!

LAURA: Second, observant little ones might notice that Mama is now carrying a bouquet of lilies. These are the lilies that Bunny clipped on the previous spread. Now we know why she clipped them. For Mama!

MINDY: I love how the story connects from page to page. Brilliant!

LAURA: Third, look what’s peeking through in the background. It’s the church!  If you are observant, you will notice that from this spread on, Bunny keeps hopping closer and closer to church.  I like to think of this as the board book version of foreshadowing because guess where Bunny will discover what Easter is all about?  If you guessed that the will find the final clue in that little chapel, you are right!

MINDY: I am so intrigued by this! What else?

LAURA: Other details to notice on the spread. The houses. Where is everybody? On their way to church, maybe? And is Bunny holding a basket? Why might that be? (Hint: It’s a clue to the activity on the next page.)

MINDY: Wow, Laura! The illustrator truly did a fabulous job bringing your words to life! I have loved taking this deeper look at some of the treasures on each page.

LAURA: Yes, the illustrations are so important in picture books!

MINDY: One other thing I wanted to ask, I have heard you mentioning on social media about some fantastic freebies that accompany this book. Can you tell us how we can take advantage of these opportunities?

LAURA: Yes, Zonderkidz has created two great resources for BUNNY FINDS EASTER. The first is an activity kit that includes coloring pages, a maze, a printable Easter card and more. Here’s the link for that: https://laurasassitales.wordpress.com/2022/02/03/parents-teachers-kidmin-download-your-free-activity-kit-for-bunny-finds-easter-2/

The second is an instruction sheet for a BUNNY FINDS EASTER book walk, an intergenerational event in which participants walk from station to station to read spreads from the story and have an activity at the end. Here’s the link for that: https://laurasassitales.wordpress.com/2022/01/24/host-a-bunny-finds-easter-book-walk-free-printable-resource/

MINDY: Both of these resources look fantastic and fun. I truly can’t recommend it your new book enough, especially as the perfect gift to be tucked into an Easter basket! Thank you so much for joining me today, Laura! I wish you all the best in your future writing endeavors. I know you have a book coming out this fall for the Christmas season. I will be following your blog to hear more details about that one, too!

LAURA: Thanks for having me! It has been a delight to chat together.

MINDY: Thank you, Laura! It has been a treat!

And, for all of you readers, if you are interested in buying the book, here is a link.

Also, to find out more about Laura and her other books, check out her website or follower her on social media. I also recommend following her blog. She posts regularly with fantastic content!

Did you know?? Laura and I work together with several other authors including Rebecca Gomez, Tina Cho, and Trine Grillo on a new website called www.readdiscussdo.com. I will be doing another interview with Laura there later this month.

Watch for more details and thanks for joining us today!