Some of you may know that I have a God-squirrel named Willow. Willow fell from a tree as a four week old baby five years ago. Thankfully he ended up with a licensed animal rehabber who took him in and nursed him back to health. Circumstances did not allow him to be re-released as usual, and he lives in her home, cage-free to this day. He is adorable, and active, and smart as a whip...and he wreaks havoc on her home daily. He thrives because he is with a professional rehabber. I would not suggest trying to raise one or keep one for a pet yourself. They live about 20 years in the wild, and only 5 years in cage. :( Willow has run of the house, and has chewed endless cords, molding, furniture, cabinets, and a few potentially dangerous items. Take my word--leave it to the pros.
That being said, Willow inspires me all the time. He is a beautiful thing, partially due to genetics, and partially, I am sure, due to his perfect diet. As Willow's mama says, he is the Brad Pitt of squirrels. He is going to appear on my Etsy site soon, as an original graphite drawing, then as a limited edition of reproductions.
Happy November everyone! Here is a video tutorial, How to Draw and Color Realistic Water Droplets. Hope you like it.
If you would like to download an image an image to color from Etsy ($.99) click HERE .
The entire book, COLORING DREAMS is also downloadable on Etsy right HERE On Sundays at 3pm EST please pop over to my FACEBOOK page for weekly color alongs. Bring colored pencils, a fine line marker or pen, and and eraser. Hope to see you there. xo
If you ask any kid in the world what he wants for his or her birthday there is probably a 90% chance they will say A PUPPY!
Or a kitten, bird, fish, hamster, gerbil, ferret, mouse, or pot bellied pig.
Even if there are pets in the house--they will want more pets. Especially the young version of any animal they may choose. It seems kids just know they are on the same level. (CLICK HERE to see a few pix that drive that point home just a bit ;) ).
Kids and puppies just go together. If you have one or the other you are already stuck feeding them and keeping them clean--so why not just get the other?
They also like being around each other. They both have endless energy to play and can help with your already greatly diminished energy level.
I think this is also the reason kids love books with animals. They have a natural love for the outdoors and nature, and animals in books, whether anthropomorphic or real capture their attention. Even the Cat in the Hat, who bears only the most faint resemblance to a feline, (I think he kind of looks like Jack Benny), grabs their attention.
It's a mutual admiration society, kids love animals and animals love kids.
They truly love animals, and love the books they are in. From Clifford the Big Red Puppy to Peter Rabbit, kids feel warm, safe, and familiar when they read about animals.
Even my favorite book as a child, Where the Wild Things Are, has animals in it--kind of...
Some scientists warn that kids could get confused if reading about animals that have human traits. I think
(I'm not a doctor) that we do not give kids enough credit. I do not think Winnie the Pooh, Dory the fish, or Snoopy did me or any other kid any harm.
Has it been done already? Yep. But kids love it, and it will be done again. I'll do it in my next book in fact. And I'm pretty certain all the kids will be fine even after they see the main character in the book is a mouse, and he wears a vest. I think they will be just fine. :)
Today is a great day to get out the paints and make a beautiful picture with FINGERPRINTS!
All you need is watercolor or acrylic paint--and fingers :) Just dip you finger into the paint and press onto paper. You can do just one or dozens. Make bugs, animals, monsters, or anything else you can dream of.
Contact me when you are done and I will post them HERE.
