Ok, I just had a blast reading my friend Jackie’s blog.
She borrowed something she loved from another blog:
A heart to heart sort of post about life,
as if we were sitting down to have coffee together and just chatting.
Um, I LOVE THAT!
Except I can’t drink coffee.
I mean, I CAN,
but the world is not ready for that.
It would be like this:
So instead I’m going with donut.
I used to be a paper carrier, and we would get donuts EVERY Sunday!
So I’ve sort of been conditioned.
I’ve even got a nice little donut shop within walking distance!
So, imagine that we meet at my house, walk down to get donuts, walk back (chatting the whole while!) and then sit in my kitchen, chatting some more and snacking. 
If we were having a donut, I’d tell you that I didn’t think these real life things would take so long. Real life as in: getting married, honeymoon, moving into a house, organizing. Most of July was spent getting ready for the wedding and moving in/shopping for things for our new apartment. THANK GOODNESS those two things happened in the same month; we were lucky to have enough money to fund everything without going into debt. I’m still in the organize-the-office phase.
I’m not upset that these things take time; I just didn’t plan for it. I thought I’d have all this time to work on my side projects. I’m finding I WILL have that time; I just need to take it slow.
If we were having a donut, I’d tell you that I had an AMAZING #LA15SCBWI conference. Going there is always like a reunion for me. I got to see great friends, made new friends, got books signed by my friends!, got a great critique on a picture book manuscript that is near ready, learned SO MUCH, and left lots of free art around.
Here’s some photographic evidence!
I had a bag of them and when I met someone, I pulled one out randomly to give to them.
I hid them under coffee mugs, in the tea, on chairs, in the bookstore, really, ANYWHERE! It was fun to have people come up to me and say, “You’re the girl who’s been doing this!” or, “I found one yesterday!”
People were really encouraged by them, and, when I gave thank you notes (in the same style) to some authors/illustrators, they recognized them too.
That was probably the best part of the conference for me.
If we were having a donut, I’d tell you that I’m LOVING the Get To Work Book by Elise Joy. She is one of my favorite bloggers, and I love this planner. I plan on sharing how I used it for July and August once the month ends. She’s sold out of the academic year one (July-June) but has a January one coming out in the fall.
If we were having a donut, I’d tell you that Danny and I are sort of addicted to drive-ins. We went to one for our CA honeymoon in San Luis Obispo, then the other day went to one in San Jose. I’m not a big movie watcher, but we found out that I’m down if it’s a drive-in. It is just SO MUCH FUN! And the popcorn is cheaper!
Movies watched:
Mission Impossible, Rogue Nation (awesome!)
Terminator, Genysis (decent)
Vacation (not good)
Spy (awesome!)
If we were having a donut, I’d tell you that I’m excited to head to Madison, WI in a few days. I’m going for the batizado; capoeira graduation ceremony. I haven’t been playing capoeira for a while because of being on the East Coast and giving myself time to move in, but I’m happy to get back into it and support my friends over there. Also, I’m taking a TRAIN back to California. 52 hours. We’ll see how that goes!
If we were having a donut, I’d tell you that I plan on blogging about the wedding prep, the apartment, what I’m reading, some LA15SCBWI stuff…and I also plan on writing about whatever I want to write about. I’ve spent way too long thinking about what my niche should be. I just want to write and share stuff that’s going on in my life. My blog will be a place for that. Sharing about notes of cheer and mail stuff will be another blog soon…and maybe an etsy store? We’ll see!
Thanks for having a donut with me.
Now let me know what’s going on with you!
What are you up to? What’s making your heart sing?
and most importantly, what kind of donut are you eating?
See you again soon!
Bye for now,
KE
I’m eating one of those long johns with the chocolate frosting on top ad the vanilla pudding inside. OH MAN. First of all, I’d let you do all the talking while that bad boy was on my plate.
Once it was gone and I’d licked my fingers, I’d tell you how amazed I am at all that you did for your wedding. I loved everything I saw on Instagram, and I’m so impressed that you did it all yourself. But I’m not SURPRISED. It wouldn’t have been quite right without a whole bunch of handmade Kathy Ellen stuff!
Then I’d start to get sad that my donut was already gone and think, “Hmm. Next time we do this, I’m getting two.”
I’d tell you that I busted my butt writing all of July and then took a much-needed break this past week. Looking back, I can see that I needed that, but I wish I could have viewed it as a productive time of re-energizing instead of feeling like a bum.
I spent MOST of yesterday in bed, and now I’m ready to rock.
How was your donut?
Jackie!
That donut sounds amazing!
I have to admit that I don’t like those filled ones, but I can respect them for the donuts they are.
And yes, two is always better than one.
My donut was great, thanks for asking.
Thank you for the kind wedding words. I’m working on writing up a whole bunch of posts about the stuff I made, mostly so I can remember it, but also because I have people who are dying to find out more than the little Instagram picture showed them! And I agree, it had to be homemade!
I’m glad you got a break.
Isn’t it interesting that, even though we KNOW it’s an important part of the creative process, us creatives feel guilty about taking breaks? There’s some psychology there. And maybe a future blogpost.
I am so excited for your book! Working on a post that should be up soon!
And I did not forget about your little book about what I LOVED about Truest, chapter by chapter.
It’s going out THIS Monday 🙂
It is probably a good thing that I cannot walk to a donut shop, although there was a period of several years where I didn’t eat donuts at all (that story would probably interest you, but not now). But if I were eating a donut, it would probably be a chocolate old fashioned from the Donut Man in Glendora (they are known for their strawberry and peach filled donuts, and since it is peach season, I would probably share one of those with you).
I am happy to report that I completed (actually surpassed) my reading goal of 150 books for the year! Of course my husband got bitten by the Caldecott Honor Bug, and is quickly catching up to me. Not that it is a competition with prizes or anything. LOL! [Also his jokes about his “outstanding holds” at the library are getting old — ah, married life!]
I am also just about finished with my 25 reviews for the LA County Public Library Summer Reading Program challenge. I won a ceramic mug. They spelled my last name wrong on the box that they shipped it to my local library in — first time my last name has been spelled wrong in the 6.5 years that I have had it.
We just finished “The Amazing Bone” by William Steig. This had to be the “it” book of 1977 as it picked up honors across the awards board (New York Times, Boston Globe and Caldecott). It is a pretty crazy story: A pig named Pearl dilly dallies on her way home from school, and finds a talking bone in the grass. Not only can the bone talk in any language, but it can also make just about any sound. It was previously owned by a witch, so I guess it picked up a few tricks.
As if all that wasn’t hard enough to believe, you won’t believe what happens when Pearl and the bone meet up with a bunch of masked (and armed) robbers or a clever fox. Even after you read it, you probably still won’t believe it. Only William Steig!
It was interesting to read this after reading “What This Books Needs is a Pig in a Wig”. This is a new easy reader series in the same format as Mo Willems Elephant and Piggy series. In fact, the similarities do not stop there! But it made me wondered if I happened upon another inspiration perhaps?! Check it out if your library has it. I saw only one other review that shares my concern over on Goodreads. Moving on.
LA had a wicked rain storm in July! This truly is an oddity. In fact, it may have been too much for the patio covering here at the Lake Cabin. The part attached to the house came unattached (well, one side at least), so now you take out the trash at your peril. There is supposed to be a guy finally coming out Wednesday to give us an estimate. I think the Outlaws got blacklisted at the local Home Depot as they gave us quite the run around. Ugh!
Oh, and remember how I won a copy of “Interstellar Cinderella”? I kind of ended up with two copies. Perhaps we could do a giveaway? Maybe we can talk on your 52 hour train ride? I think you can get to the moon more quickly. I’ll double check with the cows. Also, Princess Molly suggests you fire your travel agent (she has fired hers several times over much less).
P.S. August 25th is a HUGE release date. I have pre-ordered a bunch of them. What to read first? Oh my! I may need help. Where will you be?
Chris!
Great comment!
Sadly I am seeing it now, after my 52 hour train ride!
It would have been fun to talk!
Most of the time we did not have reception though 🙁
I love the Amazing Bone, even though it certainly is a bit terrifying. My mom had all the William Steig books and read them to us often. Still has them I bet.
What have you pre-ordered? I am out of the loop for all these new releases. I’ve been traveling so much that it feels like my head is spinning and I’ve finally come in for a landing. Let me know which ones I should read!
Lastly, sorry they spelled your last name wrong.
As a person who is very sensitive about her own name, I feel for you.
And another lastly, great donut choice!
Tuesday is a crazy day of new releases. Kate DiCamillo’s back with another tale from Deckawoo Drive. Get the buttered toast ready! I picked this one up for $5.93.
“The Queen’s Hat” by Anthony Steve of “Please Mr. Panda” fame. I saw some pictures of the art (as it was released in the UK already) and when I noticed the Queen’s corgi’s make an appearance had to have it! I keep teasing B that I want 3 like the Queen has (along with a moat). No one would mess with me. Those dogs look all cute and innocent, but they are Killers!! $7.76
“Leo: a Ghost Story” by Mac Barnett. Need I say more? He and the illustrator are going to be in Berkeley next weekend at Mrs. Dalloway’s. I really really want to go, but it sort of depends on if the patio covering (which detached from the house in July during a rain storm) gets fixed by then. $7.76
“The Wolf Wilder” by Katherine Rundell. She is the author of the Horn Book winner, “Cartwheeling in Thunderstorms” which I felt hit grief on the nose with a rolled up newspaper. $8.12
Book 3 of Frank Einstein. $6.67
“Bug in a Vacuum” by Melanie Watt. While I was hoping for a new Chester the Cat book, I am sort of glad it isn’t another Squirrel book. I love her writing, so was willing to fork over $10.99.
“George”. This is the book that is going to get a lot of attention because it is about transgender youth. $8.12
Yes, I pre-ordered from what appears to be the most hellish place on earth to work, but in my defense, I only have rich people problems (as opposed to being an actual rich person).
I basically put upcoming books on my wishlist (well, it is actually Zero’s wishlist, because at one point he had a credit card and B thought it would be funny if a cow had an Amazon account.) . I watch the prices and then pre-order when they drop below 40% off. I also use the list to try and get them at the library first. This has worked pretty well. I know there are a few books that I have been the first to read at the LA County Library.