Santa Duck

Santa Duck
by David Milgrim
Putnam
ISBN: 978-0399250187

Worried about "another year of socks and underwear" under the tree, Nicholas Duck sets off to find Santa so he can tell him what he really wants for Christmas this year. But on his way out the door, he finds a surprise: someone has left him a Santa hat. Pleased by the gift, he dons the cozy warm hat and sallies forth, until he's stopped by a persistent chicken (bock!), who starts to tell "Santa Duck" what he would like for Chistmas. Soon after, a cat, turtle, squirrel, rabbit and a gang of other excited animals rattle off their (hilariously detailed and extravagant) Christmas wish lists. Duck thinks they've all gone bonkers and runs far away, straight into the real Santa Claus. "No way!" Duck says. "Way," says Santa. Duck tells Santa what all the other animals want, but forgets to tell him about his own list. Poor Duck! Will it be another year of socks and undies for him? Check out this perfect holiday read-aloud to find out!

p.s. The final illustration shows all the animals cheerfully enjoying their gifts from Santa, who has given each of them something they wanted, although not everything they wanted. Thank you, David Milgrim, for ending this charming book in the true spirit of the season -- parents everywhere will appreciate this small yet important detail!

Honorary Silly Chick - Heather Frederick

There are few things we enjoy more than clown(fishing) around with the marvelous and talented Heather Frederick. Besides being a super-talented children's author and new blogger, Heather possesses a mad skill which makes us oddly envious. She can cross one eye!

That's something we could watch all day if we had a good snack at hand. Fortunately, Heather is bringing one to the Coop! It's a snack with literary roots – they’re from the late, lamented, and fabulous novelist Laurie Colwin’s “Home Cooking”:

Thanks for your generosity and the snacks you Silly Chick!

SPICED ROSEMARY WALNUTS

Ingredients
2 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 teaspoons dried rosemary, crumbled
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
2 cups walnuts
Directions
Melt 2 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter with 2 teaspoons dried rosemary, crumbled, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon cayenne. Pour this mixture over 2 cups walnuts, tossing to coat them. Bake the nuts on a cookie sheet at 350 degrees for 10 minutes

Honorary Silly Chick - Jenny Meyerhoff

Hey Jenny Meyerhoff! We are so glad to welcome you to the Coop as an Honorary Silly Chick. Nice beanie, btw!

Jenny Meyerhoff is a children's author who loves silly books. Her favorites are the George and Martha books by James Marshall.
Jenny's mad skill is planning kids’ birthday parties. Her kids have had a Captains Underpants party, a Medieval Tournament party, an I Love Reading Party, a bouncing party, an Improv party, a Transformers party and more. You name it, she can make a party out of it!

Jenny is bringing apple crisp to the coop and here's here recipe. Thanks, Jenny for your generosity and bringing food plus your mad skills to the Coop! We're sure you'll jazz up our parties!


Jenny's Apple Crisp

Peel and core five apples. Cut into pieces. Put in baking or pie dish.
In a bowl mix 3 tbsp white sugar, ½ cup rolled oats, ½ cup brown sugar, ¼ cup flower, ½ tsp cinnamon, and ¼ cup butter until crumbly.
Sprinkle dry mix over apples and bake at 375 degrees for 40 minutes.

Devour!!!

Honorary Silly Chicks - Jenn Knoblock!

Hey Jenn Knoblock! Welcome to the Coop. We are so glad you have joined us as an Honorary Silly Chick. And we share your love of the fabulous Adam Rex's THE TRUE MEANING OF SMEKDAY. Atsa funny book!

Jenn's most useful mad skill is being a walking dictionary for her oldest daughter and her snack would have to be chips and mango-peach salsa, or any kind of cheesecake.

Yum! And thank you for your generosity!

Honorary Silly Chicks - Jo Knowles and the Mystery Pirate!

We know a great many silly people. And a great number of kind ones. And don't you know it? They are the same people! Such is the case with our lovely friend (and faboo YA author) Jo Knowles.

Jo always gives freely of her time and energy and talents to help others. We were not surprised when Jo and her friend, the Mystery Pirate, bought 2 flocks of chicks. They are in honor of Mystery Pirate's grandparents which is very, very cool!

The Mystery Pirate is also very generous and has shared his recipe for a great snack. One that we shall enjoy with them in the Coop!

His favorite book is Harry Potter and he possesses the mad skill of doing belly rolls! We possess mad bellies and enjoy rolls, but do not possess the talent of doing belly rolls. Perhaps one day you can teach us!

Thanks Mystery Pirate and Jo "Mad Hatter" Knowles! You rock!

Chocolate-covered pretzels with your favorite sprinkles.

All you have to do is melt some chocolate chips, then dip pretzel sticks in the chocolate. Then when the chocolate starts to get hard, dip it in your favorite type of sprinkles, like red sprinkles, colored dots, or chocolate sprinkles. Then you put the sticks in the refrigerator until the chocolate gets hard. Or you can eat it fresh. It's really good.

Honorary Silly Chick - Terry Golson!

Wow! We are so thrilled that Terry Golson is coming to the coop. AND, she's even got her own chickens!!!! Plus, since two of her hens are still laying, she's bringing deviled eggs. YUM!!!!

Terry says that asking her for a favorite kid's book is like asking which of her chickens she loves the most - not fair! (We hadn't thought of that!) But, since no one has mentioned David McPhail recently, she'll choose anything by him. Smart thinking!

Welcome, Terry and chickens and thanks for your generosity!

Honorary Silly Chick - Brenda Ferber!

We are most honored to welcome children's author, Brenda Ferber to the coop! Brenda is a wonderfully silly chick. And a stylin' one, too. Not many can pull of the full Carmen Miranda head gear!

Brenda doesn't have just one favorite funny children's book, but she will say that The Dumb Bunnies gave her kids and her belly laughs for many years.

Brenda's mad skill for the coop is that she loves to hear people's dreams, and is very good at interpreting them. She's like a combination of Mrs. Piggle Wiggle and Joseph.
As for snacks, Brenday says that you can never go wrong with chocolate chip cookies! We couldn't agree more! Thanks, Brenda!

Honorary Silly Chick - Kenn Nesbitt!

Hey Kenn Nesbitt! Watch out! There's a shark on your head! Oh wait! It's a good shark. The kind that says, "Thanks for your generosity and becoming an Honorary Silly Chick!"

Kenn is a poet with several collections of funny children's poetry and more on the way. His favorite funny kids' book is currently M.T. Anderson's Whales on Stilts. Kenn possesses many mad skillz include using Jedi mind tricks on computers to bend them to his will. He also makes pizza so good it has caused marriage proposals. Yikes! That's some serious pizza!

For coop snacks, Kenn is bringing a 30 oz. tin of Cougar Gold; Mmmmmm... it's yummylicious. Thanks, Kenn!

Honoray Silly Chick - Lisa Yee

Welcome Lisa Yee! Of course, we've known Lisa a long time. We often read her blog to learn about the sexy Colin Firth as Mr. Darcy. We even interviewed her in the Coop, once!

But we didn't know that her favorite funny kids' book is RAMONA THE PEST. We are equally impressed by her mad skill. Evidentally, Lisa once willed a Dairy Queen to appear. Having often willed Haagen Daaz into our freezers, we know how handy a mad skill like that can be.

Lisa is bringing some Jalapeno chips and Diet Pepsi to share. Yum!
Thanks, Lisa for your generosity!

Honorary Silly Chick - Julie Bowe

Welcome children's author, Julie Bowe, Honorary Silly Chick Deluxe! We say, deluxe, because Julie brought her own heifer! How cool is that?

We share Julie's love of funny kids' book TRACTION MAN IS HERE! by Mini Grey. Oh that Mini Grey!

Julie's mad skill is foosball, but we suspect that she also has mad baking skills because she's bringing Andes Mints Cookies to share! AND she brought the recipe!

Thanks for your generosity, Julie! (And the cookies!)

Andes Mints Cookies
¾ C butter
1 ½ C brown sugar
2 Tbls water
2 C semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 eggs
2 ½ C flour
1 ½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
3 boxes Andes Mints

Melt first 3 ingredients over low heat. Remove from heat and mix in chocolate chips. Put the mixture in a bowl and cool for 10 minutes. Add eggs and beat at high speed. Add flour, soda and salt. Chill for 1 hour. Roll into balls and place on cookie sheet. Bake 8-9 minutes in preheated 350 degree oven. Do not over bake. Cookies will appear soft. Remove from oven and place one mint on top of each cookie while still hot. When mint melts, spread like frosting. Remove cookies from pan.

Hint: Have mints unwrapped ahead of time (a good job for the kids!) Makes about 6 dozen cookies.

Dinosaur Vs. Bedtime

Written and illustrated by Bob Shea
Hyperion Books for Children
ISBN 978 1 4231 1335 5

We love a good dinosaur book. We love a good bedtime story. We love it especially when the two are combined, as in this book. And if the word "ROAR!" is used repeatedly, well, we're in Triassic Heaven.
Bob Shea has created a feisty little character here, filled with bravado and verve. Nothing stops this guy! Not talking grown-ups. Not a bowl of spaghetti. Not even bathtime and toothbrushing! But what will happen when our fearless fellow faces his biggest challenge--bedtime? Will he win, or will bedtime prevail?

Shea uses just a few squiggly lines and a bold dash of color to make his dinosaur come alive. Fans of Mo Willems will love Bob Shea's work, too. We think this book would go nicely with Franny Billingsley's Big Bad Bunny and a big bowl of spaghetti. Buon Appetito!

Honorary Silly Chick - Peggy Reiff Miller

Hurray for our new Honorary Silly Chick, Peggy Reiff Miller. Peggy has an especially interesting connection to Heifer International. She has researched the start of the Heifer Project, written a book and produced a DVD about the Seagoing Cowboys who were the men who helped deliver animals to Europe after World War II, including some chicks!(Part of the profits from the DVD go to Heifer International!)

Peggy likes Skippyjon Jones by Judy Schachner and is bringing some home-dried fruit (as sweet as candy) to share in the coop!

As for mad skills? Peggy has mad researching/documenting skills when it comes to the Seagoing Cowboys!


We want to thank Peggy for also bringing two new children's books to our attention. Both are about Heifer International and how this great organization can make a difference! Thanks Peggy for becoming an Honorary Silly Chick and bringing these great stories to our attention!

Beatrice's Goat by Page McBrier about a girl in Africa who receives a goat from Heifer and how it changes her world.








Give a Goat by Heifer founder Dan West's daughter Jan West Schrock about a fifth grade class that raises money for a goat and makes a difference.

Honorary Silly Chick - Kelly Milner Halls!

Welcome Kelly Milner Halls, a children's author and all around Silly Chick! Kelly writes fun nonfiction books about topics that she describes as a little weird and a lot of fun on topics from Dinosaur Mummies to Albino Animals to Tales of the Cryptids.

Kelly's favorite silly book (by another author) is IS YOUR MAMA A LLAMA? by Deborah Guarino, illustrated by Steven Kellogg.

Thanks, Kelly!! Welcome to the Coop!

Honorary Silly Chicks - The Greider Gang!

Larry and Susan Greider from Davenport, Iowa, have purchased two flocks of chicks in honor of their very silly grandkids (L to R: Hillary, Chad, Natalie, Ryan, Kyle). They are bringing Granny's world-famous orange salad to snack on. :-)

Honorary Silly Chick - Jo Kittinger!

Welcome Jo Kittinger, our newest Honorary Silly Chick! Jo is a children’s book writer and is also the Co-Regional Advisor for the Southern Breeze SCBWI. Hurray for SCBWI!

To go along with this promotion she’d have to say one of her favorite fun books is I BOUGHT A BABY CHICKEN, by Kelly Milner Halls, illustrated by Karen Stormer Brooks. This fun picture book has every member of a family buying up baby chickens, until the house is running over with chicks. Kids will love this rollicking counting book in rhyme and darling illustrations.
Jo possesses the mad skill of seeing both sides to any situation. While that helps her be a peace maker, it can also frustrate the stew out of her husband!

We are very pleased that Jo is bringing scrumptious gingersnaps to the Coop and here's the recipe. Thanks, Jo!

Jo’s Gingersnaps
Nothing smells quite as wonderful as Gingersnaps hot from the oven!

¾ Cup shortening
1 Cup Brown Sugar
¼ Cup molasses
1 egg

2 ¼ Cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon ginger,
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground cloves.

Cream shortening, brown sugar, molasses and eggy in mixer until fluffy.
Stir together other ingredients, then mix everything together.
Roll dough into one inch balls and roll the balls in granulated sugar.
Place on ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 375 degrees approx 8-10 minutes or until the tops begin to crack.

Honorary Silly Chick - Corey Schwartz!

Hurray for Corey Schwartz! She's an Honorary Silly Chick! Thank you, Corey, for helping others through your gift to Heifer International.

Corey is a children's book author and blogger at Thing1 and Thing2. Corey’s mad skill is not breathing very much which is very handy when scuba diving. Corey can dive for over an hour and still come up with over 2000 lbs of air in her tank which is a lot. Her favorite kids' book is Knuffle Bunny. (What's not to love about Mo Willems?) While Corey's favorite food is Thai chicken pizza she is very thoughtfully leaving it at home and bringing some watermelon for us to share at the Coop. She's lovely, generous, talented AND has watermelon! What a Silly Chick!

Honorary Silly Chick - Toni Buzzeo!

Look who just joined the Coop! It's our friend, Toni Buzzeo, author of many wonderful picture books. Many know Toni from her wonderful kids' books and her tireless work on behalf of educators everywhere. Toni is the authority on school visits.



Thanks Toni! And what a swell chapeau you are sporting!

Honorary Silly Chick - Hester Bass!

Hello Hester Bass! And thank you for donating to Heifer International and becoming an Honorary Silly Chick!

Hester is a children's author who finds it difficult to choose just one favorite funny book, but for sheer silliness, she'd pick one that she and her kids howled over when they were little, and still do years later: "Earth Tigerlets, as Explained by Professor Xargle" by Jeanne Willis, illustrated by Tony Ross.

Hester possesses mad skill as a Finger Knitter, First Class. Ropes galore at her house! Perfect for the cat who has everything.

And best of all, she's bringing Congo Bars to share in the coop. We don't know what Congo Bars are, but we suspect they make you dance and we love that! Hester was kind enough to send us the recipe! Thanks, Hester!

CONGO BARS
Recipe from Hester Bass, Children’s Author
www.hesterbass.com

Preheat oven to 350°. Grease an 8-inch square pan.

In a saucepan, melt ¼ cup butter (use the real stuff) over low heat.
Take pan off the stove and stir in 1 cup (packed) light brown sugar.
Set aside to cool.

Into the cooled butter-brown sugar mixture, stir in one large (unbeaten) egg.
Then add:
¾ cup flour (whole grain works just as well as refined white)
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
Blend well.

Then add to this mixture:
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
½ cup chocolate chips (Ghiradelli 60% cocoa bittersweet chips are awesome!)
Mix well.

Spread mixture in baking pan and bake for 25 minutes, more or less – only until
a toothpick stuck in the center comes out clean. Caution: Do not overbake or
they will become not Congo Bars but Congo Bricks.

Cool in the pan and cut in squares.

Honorary Silly Chick - Katie Llamapeep

It's Katie's Birthday and an anonymously silly person has given her a gift of chicks! Welcome to the Coop, Katie! You are now an Honorary Silly Chick!

We are very glad to hear this because Katie is bringing cupcakes to share in the Coop. Oh how we lurves the cupcakes! AND since Katie reads more than just about any Silly Chick anywhere, she'll probably bring along a whole trunk of her favorite books including The Warriors Series and, of course, Harry Potter. We can learn a lot from this Silly Chick because she possesses mad napping skills. ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ . . .
Happy Birthday Silly Chick!

Honorary Silly Chicks - The Runnels Family of Auburn, Maine!

We must give one great big shout out to all the Silly Chicks of the Runnels family of Auburn, Maine who passed the hat at Thanksgiving Dinner and came up with $80.18 for Heifer International! That's 4 flocks of chicks and a couple of Tootsie Rolls to boot!

Thank you all!