RE-POST: Christmas Book Advent Calendar

This is a post from last year, but it's been so popular that I wanted to post it again in case any of you need ideas for an advent Calendar this year! You will most likely have everything you need....so you can start today! Here's the link to the original post from 2010.

I've been wanting to do this advent calendar for years...and I finally get to do it!  This will be our first Christmas home since having children, and I've wanted to have this be a family tradition of ours since I saw this idea from a neighbor of mine years back.

Children's Picture Book Advent Calendar: What is it?

24 Christmas Picture Books, all wrapped up and marked for each day leading up until Christmas. This way, we will be reading one Christmas story a night!

Now don't panic...getting 24 Christmas Books isn't as hard as it looks. When you can check out Christmas books from the Library for 3 weeks at a time, it makes it rather simple....you may need to renew one time in there, but it still makes for a lovely tradition! And inexpensive too!

And Book #24......is the Bible, so that lessens the load a bit. But you'd be surprised how many Christmas books you already have.  Really, I am sure you have more than you think you do. I think books on winter can even count too... And don't forget any Christmas Anthologies with short stories in there too.

Here's a list of a few of mine in there:

A Christmas Goodnight

How the Grinch Stole Christmas

I'll Be Home For Christmas

The Polar Express

The 12 Prayers of Christmas

Christmas In the Manger

Christmas is Here

Christmas Day in the Morning

Snowmen at Christmas

A Wish to be a Christmas Tree

God Gave us Christmas

Who is Coming to Our House?

Olive, the Other Reindeer

Oh there are SO many Christmas books that I want to get my hands on....I have so many favorites that I don't even have own yet! But this year, most of the books in our Advent Calender we DO own (thanks to the need to have a few books for "research" when working on my book) but even still....to the children, these books will be like new since they are all wrapped up.

These books are now in our open bookcase in the basement (thus the really lousy photo...sorry!) But this way, they are in plain visibility. Another good place is the hearth of the fireplace...or in your child's bedroom.

Anyways...I wanted to share in case anyone needed a good idea for an advent calendar this year. And the best part? It's either "rented" or a good reason to add to your already established Christmas collection.

Have any of you ever tried this one? It's a new tradition for us this year, and I think this one is here to stay!

Happy Christmas!

xo

sarah

Sarah Jane Studios

Hello!

Well, today is the big day. SO big in fact, that the web decided to explode on me and leave me without being able to access visibility to my blog! I had to have a friend (who also stays up in the night to make things!) to post this for me. Crazy world. I'm sure I'll have access later today....but I couldn't launch this site without giving you a formal introduction!

So, say "Hello!" to this new little space! 

It's saying "Hello" back. Just so you know.

There is so much to share, that I can't really do it all in one post. So, I'm going to let you play the "I spy with my little eye" game, and tell me what you see that is NEW! New product, new options...it's all there. I'd love to hear what you think!

I'll be posting about all the new features and goodies over the next few days!

Now just for reference, cause I know you'll ask, the shop on my website is in addition to my ETSY shop, which I love and care for deeply. This new shop can just offer more things that I think you'll be happy with!

And...dun dun dun...we're launching this party with a big fat 15% sale on your whole order! Just this week. Enter code "SJGRAND15" and you'll be all set!

So...I'm signing off to let you play around. You'll notice a few little links that may not work, but like I said. Minor explosion. Men at work.

Have fun looking around!  xo sarah

Simple.

Hello!

Well, where did this week go? I've been crouching in front of a computer this week madly uploading, designing, and finishing up a website for Sarah Jane Studios. It's really wonderful to finally have a "space" for everything...all in one place. But wow....there are details that I had no idea about. Kinda like building a house.

"You mean I have 26 choices of light switch covers?"

Kinda like that. I just want white light switch covers. Just plain white.

Also kinda like when I went to get lunch boxes at Target for my kids the week before school. We've never done lunch at school before. I was loftily thinking there would be a few pails, some girl and some boy. Maybe I'd get lucky and find Shinzi Katoh at Target. I get hopeful like that.

But then I walked down to the school section and found an ENTIRE ISLE of all these soft, insulated, hard, colorful, strapped, velcroed, snapped, zippered, vertical, horizontal, super-hero, princess, gender neutral, animal shaped, mountain hiker, posh, cheap, comes with a thermos, comes without a thermos, looks-like-Mom-chose-this, looks-like-my kid-chose-this  choices and I was frozen in the the middle of the isle. Paper bag lunches were looking pretty good at this point.

Keeping it simple can sometimes be hard. Cause there is a lot of "fluff" you have to wade through to get there. That's where I've been all week. Trying to keep thing clean and simple.

When some of the pears were picked this week and laid on the table, it was like a breath of fresh air. Picking your own pears off the tree. That's simple. I hope this site does just that. Keeps things happy, inspiring and simply simple.

I'm not there yet. The blog is still messy, and well....my site isn't live yet.

But I promise it will be wonderful. Kinda like a really great weekend.

Happy Weekend!!!

xo

sarah

A little shop update

shipping rates
shipping rates

This news is so important to me, I thought it merited a blog post!

I've been shifting around my pricing and shipping rates for my shop a lot this past summer, all with the intention to help us both out! I need to make money, and you need to save money! We're all in this together.

I think I've settled on a good deal. And I hope this is something to your liking! Cards and small items will always be less than $5.95 in shipping, but you'll never have to pay more than that.

(Please note...this is only for orders within the USA. We're currently working on making all international orders as economical as possible, so bear with us!)

Happy Weekend, and happy October! I'm off to making more art...there's always a brewing project around here, and this weather makes me wildly creative! You?

Signing off...

xo

sarah

Upstate NY Library needs our help!

I was totally engrossed in the Hurricane Irene play by play, even though I wasn't even in it. My parents were actually visiting me and completely missed the earthquake and the hurricane, but I found myself being so concerned for the people and places I love so much. Our family has lived in DC and Boston, and I've had many favorite memories from North Carolina to Maine. Happy that the hurricane didn't turn out to be as bad as predicted, but the losses are still awful.

One in particular post that I saw on Facebook was this sweet little library, that lost it's entire children's book collection due to the flooding. The water in Upper Jay, NY came in at more 6 feet high, and damaged so much of the town.  So many homes and businesses are having to start all over. The Wells Memorial Library (such a charming library!)  lost so many books, but mostly the children's books because they were all on the lower level shelves. Can you imagine? No more picture books to check out. This little library, and the community it serves, could use your help!

They have tried to save what they could, but the only picture books untouched were the 5 books on the re-shelving cart.

I'm going to be sending them some, but I wanted to give a shout out to all my friends, knowing that if everyone just sent one book...they would be in a place to start really offering hope (especially for the children!)  to their now devistated community.

And if you know of any other libraries that need our help, comment below! I'd love to see these little libraries stand up again fast! Kate Messner is a children's book illustrator, and she was able to photograph and blog about this library yesterday, and I'm so glad she did! This town hasn't had much news coverage, and I would love to see some hope restored.

UPDATE: West Hartford Public Library in Vermont also lost it's children's book section. I'll update information as I get it, but I am sure they would appreciate donations:

The West Hartford Public Library

5133 Route 14 West Hartford, VT05084

(802) 295-7992

Here's how you can help:

1. Send a donation. Checks may be made payable to the Wells Memorial Library.

2. Send a new, hardcover children’s book. Picture books are needed most. They were all destroyed except the five waiting to be re-shelved and those that were signed out to homes that didn’t get flooded. I hear that they might be getting an AMAZON wishlist started, But in hopes to support small bookstores, they'd ask that you purchase from an indie bookstore if at all possible! And if you know of any other libraries that need our help, comment below! I'd love to see these little libraries stand up again fast!

Here’s the postal address for donations:

Wells Memorial Library

P.O. Box 57

Upper Jay, NY 12987

If you are sending via UPS, use this address:

Wells Memorial Library

12230 State Route 9N

Upper Jay, NY 12987

More influences from my childhood.

I'm wanting to keep sharing some of the influential books from my childhood, and to do that I can't leave out songbooks!

I grew up with music, books, pictures, and art all around me as a child.  My mother was a passionate picture book lover, and to this day won't let me keep some of my favorites as a child. But this book (probably because she doesn't play the piano any more) is one she did hand down.

The Great Song Book edited by Timothy John and illustrated by the legendary Tomi Ungerer.

Gorgeous art. I think I was 12 before I realized that Bethlehem didn't actually look like that magical snow covered German village. That's how much I believed in these illustration!

I love that this is a song book with the music right there to play for your children. We use this book all the time, and I love teaching them these old forgotten songs.

Do you have books that have been passed down from your childhood? What are you favorites?

**And on the news front, check out this fun award mentioned on Babble. I guess according to their ranks, I'm one of the top 50 ETSY moms this year, placing 2nd in the Artist category! Check it out here.  So flattering as I know there are so many amazing moms on ETSY. Thank you Babble.com!**

Small and big.

I've been thinking of small things lately. Small little people. Small acts of kindness. Small carrots and other not-so-ready-to-be-picked items from our garden occasionally make it inside the house. All with the "Oops! Sorry, Mom" look on my kids faces.

Giveaway entries however were NOT so small! Thanks so much for spreading the word about the new things in the shop....really. It means so much! And since there are so many facebookers and tweets to collect, I'll be posting winners tomorrow.

Love to you all! Happy Monday!