The Best of the Best: Indie Excellence In Books Awards

Posted on June 9, 2011 by viviankirkfield

They say good things come in threes.

The first good thing: I just had the best four days with my daughter, son-in-law and grandson. Spending “quality” time with a two and a half year-old is such fun. We planted flowers, went fishing in one of Colorado’s most beautiful areas, played with puzzles, read stories, made teddy-bear pancakes and crafted a Clifford the Big Red Dog paper plate…one of the crafts I will be doing with the children at the PBS Kids Fun Fest at Acacia Park in downtown Colorado Springs on Saturday from 10am to 2pm. And that’s the second good thing: I’m really excited to be part of this great PBS event and I hope everyone who is local to Colorado Springs will stop by and say hello at the Show Me How! booth.

The third good thing: I wanted to share a recent press release from the Indie Excellence in Books Awards. Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Esteem Through Reading, Crafting and Cooking was a finalist in the Parenting/Family category!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: MoneyPenny Press, Ltd.

moneypennypress@q.com

719-237-3111

Vivian Kirkfield Honored by National Indie Excellence Awards

Contest recognizes outstanding independently published books

Show Me How! Captures Parenting/Family Finalist Award

Colorado Springs, CO – SHOW ME HOW! BUILD YOUR CHILD’S SELF-ESTEEM THROUGH READING, CRAFTING AND COOKING by Vivian Kirkfield has been selected as a Finalist of the 2011 Indie Excellence Award in the Parenting category.

The Indie Excellence Awards are reserved for the “best of the best” in books published in various genres. The criteria for recognition are stringent and include overall excellence in presentation. This award celebrates the highest achievements in independent press and self-publishing.

Winners and finalists were announced on Sunday, May 15. For a complete list of the honorees visit: http://www.indieexcellence.com/indie-results-2011.htm.

SHOW ME HOW! BUILD YOUR CHILD’S SELF-ESTEEM THROUGH READING, CRAFTING AND COOKING, a unique resource for busy parents and teachers of preschoolers, pinpoints 100 picture books every young child should hear and provides a story summary, parenting tip, eco-friendly craft project and child-friendly recipe for each recommended title. Parents gain confidence in their own parenting abilities as they help their children build self-esteem, develop pre-literacy skills and create a life-long parent-child bond using the simple fun-filled activities.

Kirkfield, a kindergarten and Head Start teacher for many years, developed a program that uses picture books to help young children deal with the many challenges they face. Her Show-Me-How Story-time presentations entertain and educate local school children and she speaks to mom groups and teacher organizations about building self-esteem with positive parental participation and picture books. Endorsed by educators and self-esteem experts, Show Me How! has also won the coveted Kidlutions Preferred Product Award.

Why not head over to my website: http://www.positiveparentalparticipation.com and buy a copy of this unique resource during the Jump Into Summer Sale. For only $22.50 which is 50% off the cover price, you will not be wondering what to do with your preschooler this summer…simple fun-filled activities galore…inexpensive and educational entertainment for the entire family!

Cinema Sunday: My Picks of Great Flicks: The Ten Commandments

Posted on April 24, 2011 by viviankirkfield

Image via Wikipedia

Cinema Sunday: My Picks of Great Flicks: The Ten Commandments

This past week was filled with holidays, for people of both the Christian and Jewish faiths. Today is Easter Sunday and tomorrow will be the last night of Passover.

Have you seen The Ten Commandments lately?

The networks usually air it during these holidays and it was on TV last night…ALL NIGHT…it’s such a long movie, but, in my opinion, well worth the time invested.

Of course, I had to watch it…although I’ve seen it many time before and actually own a copy that my dad had purchased and then had sent it to me as a gift. My dad LOVED watching movies and had an enormous collection of VCR tapes. He was very eclectic in his movie viewing and enjoyed comedies, action/adventures, westerns, romances and thrillers. He’d worked, in an office on the distribution side of the movie industry, for Warner Brothers and other motion picture companies ever since he was a teenager and so movies had always been part of his life.

As a young child, I would watch television on Saturday mornings with my father…this was before Saturday mornings were flooded with cartoons for kids and cooking shows for adults. There was always a movie…The Thief of Baghdad, a 1940 film starring the Indian child-star Sabu, was one of our favorites. Perhaps it was the idea of having three wishes or maybe it was the fact that Sabu was such a little boy and the genie was SO HUGE…my dad was only 5’4” tall and quite sensitive about his lack of height. It must have made him feel better about himself to see this tiny person triumph. My dad also loved James Cagney movies…perhaps for the same reason, as the famous actor was only about 5’5” tall.

I’m always encouraging parents to spend “quality” time with their young children – reading, crafting and cooking – because participating positively with a child in these activities really does build self-esteem, develops their pre-reading skills, and creates a life-long parent-child bond. I don’t remember ever reading, crafting or cooking with my dad (my mom was the one who did those things with me)…but the time my dad spent with me, watching old movies on the television, was his way of participating positively…and it certainly worked!

I know this was going to be a review and recommendation of The Ten Commandments…it became a post on how my dad found a way to spend “quality” time with me. Perhaps The Ten Commandments doesn’t need any help from me. If you are looking for a movie that kind of explains the Jewish holiday of Passover and you love epic movie productions with a cast of thousands, and you like watching films with Charlton Heston and Yul Brenner and a host of other icons of Hollywood…get a copy and a BIG bowl of popcorn (or maybe two) and enjoy!

Just a reminder – tomorrow is the last day of the Hoppy Easter Eggstravaganza Blog Hop and Giveaway. The giveaway of a copy of Show Me How! ends at 11:59pm on Monday night. Just click on the Blog Hop link above and leave a comment telling me you have subscribed to this blog. You can get extra entries by grabbing my button, posting the giveaway on your blog or facebook or tweeting about it.

Healthy Habit Thursday: THE VITAMIN BAND

Posted on April 21, 2011 by viviankirkfield

Image via Wikipedia

THE VITAMIN BAND

Is it a pill?

Is it a collection of musical instruments?

Is it a bracelet?

The answer to the above questions is NO!

The Vitamin Band is actually a unique children’s book by author and PhD. Olena Burda Lassen.

Ms. Lassen has developed a simple yet innovative technique that helps young children learn to play the piano while they learn about healthy eating and have lots of fun at the same time!

What could be better than that!

I met this amazing woman at a book fair and book signing a couple of weeks ago. Her book cover (a piano keyboard) was so engaging, I had to pick up the book and flip through it. And, once I had it in my hands, I knew I had to buy a copy to give to my two 5½ year old twin grandchildren. The book is so appealing and such a great resource, I plan on purchasing another copy to keep on my library shelves for reference.

Her website is a magical place and you will find information about how you can purchase the book, as well as free fun-filled activities for your children. You’ll also find her schedule of upcoming appearances and events. Each event is sure to provide an entertaining and educationally enriching time for your children.

The book is perfection itself…printed on eco-friendly paper using soy-based inks, this is a treasure you will cherish and utilize for many years to come.

Please stop by tomorrow for Follow-Me-Fridays: Where’s Miss Vivian. I visited the children at Trailblazer School this morning and I want to tell you all about it.

Also, don’t forget, the Hoppy Easter Eggstravaganza Blog Hop and Giveaway is going on right now until April 25^th and you can enter and win a FREE copy of my book, Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Esteem Through Reading, Crafting and Cooking. Just click on the above link and it will take you to the post that explains how to enter! Good luck, everyone!