Month: January 2014

History, Mardi Gras

Queen Punxsutawney Phyllis, Krewe of Marmotte

Punxsutawney Phyllis knows that girl groundhogs can do anything boy groundhogs can do. And she proves it to her Uncle Punxsutawney Phil when she is able to make an accurate prediction on Groundhogs Day.

And you know what else Phyllis knows? Girl Groundhogs rule! That’s right, Phyllis went down to New Orleans this month during Carnival, ate a piece of King Cake and got the baby. Now Phyllis is the Queen of the Krewe of Marmotte (that’s groundhog in French)!

You go girl!

Laissez les bon temps roulez!

IMAG2388

Punxsutawney Phyllis by Susan Leonard Hill, Illustrated by Jeffrey Ebbeler

Diverse Books, Holidays, Louisiana, Mardi Gras, Picture books

Louisiana culture celebrated on Multicultural Children’s Book Day

In celebration of the first annual Multicultural Children’s Book Day, I choose to highlight Fat Tuesday Mardi Gras La Chatte Noire written by Todd-Michael St. Pierre and illustrated by Diane Millsap. The book is about a cat who lives in Jackson Square in the Vieux Carré (French Quarter) neighborhood of New Orleans. The cat searches for a friend and visits many historical spots in the quarter and around the city. The book is written in English and French. What a lovely tribute to the city of New Orleans!

Happy reading y’all!

Diverse Books, Picture books

Multicultural Book Day is January 27, 2014

One day there may no longer be a need to have a ”day” to remind people to read books about the diversity within our own country and the world. But until that day comes, I invite you to celebrate Multicultural Book Day. Yay!

Why you ask? Meera Sriram lists 10 reasons in her blog post. http://www.incultureparent.com/2012/07/10-reasons-to-read-multicultural-books-to-your-kids/

And who can argue with what Mahatma Gandhi said, No culture can live if it attempts to be exclusive. Diversity is all around us to embrace.

Anyone looking for titles can check out the sites below. Some of my favorite books are about different cultures found here in the USA and around the world. Read a few, or read a lot, and maybe some will become favorites of yours too.

http://www.pragmaticmom.com/multicultural-books-for-children/

http://www.rif.org/us/literacy-resources/booklists/multicultural-books.htm

http://www.reading.org/General/Publications/blog/BlogSinglePost/rty/2013/04/17/multicultural-books#.UuBfff0o6os

Multicultural Book Day

History, Mardi Gras

The 1st King Cake Festival

What do you need in the most festive city in the USA? Another festival! The 1st Annual King Cake Festival coming this February. It’s a family friendly festival too. Live performances, kid’s games, stroller fun run and of course a King Cake competition. And it’s FREE.

Wish I could be there with y’all. Have fun! Eat King Cake. AND DON’T FORGET THE BABY!  http://www.ochsner.org/king-cake-festival/

KC festival