March, 2026 Author Update
Whispers Across the Prairie
My first middle-grade novel is coming along nicely.
After feedback from two of the teachers at The Kansas School for the Deaf, plus several of their students, I’ve fine-tuned the story a bit. After I listen to it one last time, I’ll submit it for formatting with Rebecca Brown, of Author Elevator.
I did get some of the images from Claudia Gadotti. She’s busy finishing the rest of them before her return to Italy. Last month, we had a coloring page, which was the sketch for this cover. (No one entered, so, no winners.) The first image is Claudia’s cover illustration.
Cover Reveal!
Kansas School for the Deaf
So grateful for my visit to the Kansas School for the Deaf!
The students shared such thoughtful feedback on Whispers Across the Prairie — from favorite characters and chapters to noticing the descriptive details. They’re even using the book in class to study story elements like “showing vs. telling.”
As a former teacher, that means the world to me. Thank you, KSD students, for your insight, your honesty, and for reminding me why stories matter.
photo used with parents’ permission
🌷 Spring on the Prairie
I’ve added three new Spring pages to the Prairie Activity Pack.
If you’ve already downloaded the Winter Edition, you can add these pages to your binder or folder and swap them in for the season.
👉 [Download the Spring Pages Here]
As always, these are meant to be used slowly—even just one page at a time.
Upcoming Events
Summit View Adventist School Visit - 3/2/26 (Three different awesome presentations.) Thank you for this opportunity. You have a lovely school. :)
Midwest Parent Educators Annual Conference - KCI Expo Center - 3/6 & 3/7/2026 (If you’re attending, please come by and say hello.)
Chickadee Cheer Giveaway Winner
Congratulations to Laura V.! Your email was randomly chosen to win my March giveaway. Please visit my shop and choose a title. I’ll send you an email. You’ve only to let me know which book you’d like and provide your address for shipping. Enjoy, and thanks for subscribing and reading my blogs.
Creature Feature: The African Elephant
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Life Span: African 70 yrs / Asian 60 yrs
Weight: African 5-14,000 lbs. / Asian 2-5,500 lbs.
Height: African: up to 13’ / Asian 10’
Head anatomy: African - flat top, ears look like Africa, trunk has 2 fingers
Asian - two bumps on top, ears smaller, trunk has 1 finger
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Did you know elephants can suck up to 10 gallons of water per minute and can hold up to two gallons of water at a time?
An elephant’s trunk has an incredible sense of smell. They can smell predators several miles away.
Their trunk also serves as an arm, a hand, their voice, a snorkel, and a straw!
The trunk weighs about 300 pounds with lots of muscles that control its up, down, and sideways movements. It can also change the size of its nostrils.
The trunk of an elephant can lift over 600 pounds or pick up a dime from a flat surface.
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God designed their ears for air conditioning. All of their blood circulates through the blood vessels in their ears in only 20 minutes. So, waving them cools them off quickly.
Also, each ear is uniquely different—like our fingerprints.
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Each foot is about the size of a welcome mat. They walk on their toes, much like wearing high-heeled platform shoes.
At the base of their heels is a large pad of fat that makes it look like they're standing flat-footed. This allows them to walk quietly on solid ground and trudge through mud without getting stuck.
The sole of each foot has ridges, designed for walking on smooth surfaces, including ice, and not slipping, which would be quite a problem being that big!
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The elephant is from the same family as mammoths and mastodons of the past.
Creature Feature is a new addition to my Author Update each month and is inspired by the books by Reasons for Hope. The Cheetah is from the book called A Pocket Guide to the Zoo: Fascinating Facts, Volume 1: Africa. If you’re interested in learning more about God’s design in animals, please check them out. (Next month: the giraffe!)
Image by Unsplash
