News & Notes

TREEHOUSE MUSEUM, OGDEN UTAH  | OCTOBER 11 & 12, 2024

Tales at Treehouse Festival

Join me at Treehouse Museum this October for a celebration of children’s books!

Aspiring authors, teachers, librarians and book lovers are invited to attend an inspiring 2-day workshop with me and 5 other award-winning authors. We’ll share our personal inspirations and stories of our journey to becoming published authors.

Or join us at a free Family Author Party to hear book readings, stroll the Art Garden and participate in special activities throughout the museum. 

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JUST PUBLISHED!

New Book: My Towering Tree

There is much to do and so much to see beneath the branches of a towering tree! Step inside a leafy backyard world where squirrels are zipping, bees are buzzing, the sun is shining, and a curious, creative child is noticing and absorbing it all. This tribute to the wonderful worlds that exist in a backyard invites readers to stop, take a breath, and appreciate the natural world around them.

Author Janna Matthies and I collaborated on this luscious picture book that explores the interconnectivity between the human spirit and nature, especially as found in a child’s own backyard.

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TREEHOUSE MUSEUM  |  March 2024

Step into a Story Mural

In March 2024 I was invited to paint an amazing mural. Treehouse Museum in Ogden, Utah commissioned me to paint the centerpiece for a new exhibit dedicated to storytelling. Stations around the mural will allow visitors to write, illustrate, design characters and even animate their creations.

The museum’s director, Lynne Goodwin, and I made a long list of the story book characters that shaped us a children and then invited the staff and visitors to suggest their favorites. We ended up with quite a crew!

The mural was finally complete with the words “Step Into A Story” and a Louisa May Alcott quote “ Some books are so familiar that reading them is like being home again” lettering was added.

See more mural commissions here.

HIGHLIGHTS FOUNDATION RETREAT |  April 14-17 2024

Working (Playing) Retreat

Writers and illustrators need time and space to accomplish their goals and to explore art for the pure fun of creativity.

Join me, along with fellow author/illustrator Denise Fleming and special guests Merrill Rainey and Rofa Shuhratzoda for a working retreat that centers creative play and exploration. The retreat is lightly structured and includes generative activities, optional consultations with faculty and plenty of time to to work on your own projects in the comfort and care of the Highlights Foundation retreat center. 

Creativity will be front-and-center at this all-inclusive workshop at the Highlights Foundation Retreat Center in the beautiful wooded hills of the Pennsylvania Poconos.

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ONLINE CLASS  | March 26 – June 4, 2024

Kitchen Table Printmaking

Linoleum printing without a press. Join me for a 6-session online workshop offered through the Falmouth Art Center. You’ll learn my favorite blockprinting technique for art prints, greeting cards, bookplates and more with just a few simple tools —and without a printing press.

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NOW AVAILABLE ONLINE & IN STORES

New! Board book edition of "Who Took the Cookies from the Cookie Jar".

Perfect for read-alongs. A board book edition of the classic children’s rhyme “Who Took the Cookies from the Cookie Jar” with a western twang! The tiniest “readers” will delight in helping to solve the mystery of the missing cookies as Skunk travels the desert and asks each of his animal friends, Mouse, Raven, Squirrel, Rabbit, Turtle, Raccoon, Beaver, and Frog: “Who took the cookies from the cookie jar?!”

Board Book |  Baby – 3 years

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