The Lion, the Unicorn, and the Baby

I found out last week, that a recent picture book I illustrated has just won an award. THE MOON IS LA LUNA, written by author Jay Harris, is a book of poems that combine (with rhymey fun) both English and Spanish language. The award is the 2008 Lion and the Unicorn Award for Excellence in North American Poetry. And the award is the "honor" award, which is a nice way of saying "runner-up". This is really excellent! The top prize went to the well known Linda Sue Park and her book Tap Dancing on the Roof: Sijo (Poems), Pictures by Istvan Banyai. (Banyai, incidentally, is a keen, keen illustrator. Very nice to be in the same place, same time.) I might also add that since this is a poetry award, my part is that of support player. But I'll certainly take any "by association" praise. Congratulations to Jay Harris!

This weekend, a lot was done to prepare for the arrival of Julie's and my babe girl. We secured orders on furniture (crib, dresser, etc). Who knew the whole crib thing could be so complicated? It was a major accomplishment. And we also did a tour of the hospital where the birth will take action. We saw the labor/delivery rooms, as well as the nursery, as well as the rooms where you decompress and recoup after the birth. Wow. It's almost here. There were some newborns in the nursery, hot out of the oven. Man they were awesome. I never looked at a baby like I do now. It's real different, knowing you'll be holding one of your own soon. Those babes were wrapped up so tight, only their heads could move. Man. Cool.