Last weekend, Julia and I were lucky to get tickets to a real honest to goodness bigtime Movie Premiere! And we didn't have to go to Hollywood - all we had to do was drive to Dedham, Massachusetts. Julia entered a contest at the Blue Bunny - a great kids bookstore run by the Reynolds Family - and amazingly she won! Off we went early Saturday morning with cousin Lillian and Uncle Bruce to see Judy Moody and the Not So Bummer Summer. The movie opens in theatres across the US today. Produced by the same company who did "Precious", it was a fun, no holds barred celebration of a kids summer full of wild imaginings and the spirit of Judy Moody. (If you don't know who Judy Moody is, she is a character created by Megan McDonald, a kids book author that has turned into a multi-book series wildly popular with the 6 to 10 year old kids - boys and girls. Judy is illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds, author/illustrator of The Dot and Ish along with many, many other kids books.)
Hosted by Peter H. Reynolds and his family and their Blue Bunny Bookstore, Fablevision (their media and learning complany), Candlewick Press, and Smokewood Entertainment, this was the very first showing of the movie in the U.S. Complete with security guards, it was quite something in the little old-fashioned theatre in Dedham's town center. Kids were dressed as Judy Moody. It was a festive atmostphere to be sure! What a great day. If you have kids or grandkids, take them to see Judy Moody and the Not So Bummer Summer. Lots of great kids lessons (and adult for that matter) presented in a fun and spirited way.
After the movie, there was a party at the Blue Bunny complete with kids dressed as Judy....
a Judy Moody Cake.......
and a "Double-Rare" book signing with Peter H. Reynolds. I'll admit, Julia is a bit of a stalker. Not really, she is just a really enthusiastic reader and she has been waiting for a Judy Moody Movie ever since she began reading these books a few years ago. Peter has been incredibly kind to her. His whole family welcomes her to the store. It was a great day.
To celebrate the launch of Judy Moody's Movie and the beginning of summer, Julia and I are hosting a kids giveaway here on the blog. We picked up extra swag from the premiere, had Peter sign it for the lucky winner. We bought the first Judy Moody Book which he signed and drew an illustration on.
Here's what Julia and I have for you.
"Peter H. Reynolds" Signed Judy Moody Movie Poster
"Peter H. Reynolds" autographed copy of the first Judy Moody book
Judy Moody pencils
Judy Moody activity book
And to make the prize package even sweeter (and a little more appropriate for this blog!) I'm throwing in
a signed copy of my Kids Embroidery
a signed copy of Kids Knitting
a signed copy of Kids Knitting
embroidery floss and needles
some other rare bits to get a kid crafting this summer!
Here's how you enter...
Answer the following question in the Comments section of this post.....
Ahhhh, summer vacation as a kid. Remember them? What's your fondest memory of your "not so bummer summers." Did you read incessantly? Craft? Learn to cook? Build tree forts? Swim until your fingers turned into prunes? Go to camp?
Remember to leave an easy way to get a hold of you.
Contest ends next Wednesday June 15th at midnight.
And take your kids, grandkids, little friends or just yourself to see the Judy Moody Movie. You'll remember what it is like to be a kid on summer vacation again. I think that feeling can never be replicated - the last day of school - watching the clock tick down, the bell ring, and the doors open - free for a whole summer of nothing.... I hope you and your kids, your grandkids, or just your plain old self have a really great summer learning, being outdoors and genuinely enjoying life.
62 comments:
ahhh summer memories as a kids.....hours and hours of time in the ocean, planning island discovery explorations with the cousins, night hikes, sleeping on beaches.....bike riding....freedom!
I will take zoe to see this movie! thanks for the reccommendation!
OOOH! I want this prize!!! I swam through my summers. My local pool was my second home, and my "swim team friends" were some of the most influential in my childhood.
lindsaywise79@verizon.net
Memories of summers long ago - camping, swimming, pajama parties, beach going and the list goes on. But my favorite? The summer that I learned to knit (around 4th grade). My mom would bring me back to work with her in the afternoon and I would sit in the lobby at the City of Hope hospital where one of the resident patients there taught me to knit. She had terminal cancer and we happily filled those summer hours together.
tehachapisockcompany@gmail.com
My favorite? Going with my beloved Aunt Gabe to her trailer in the deep woods of Gilmanton, New Hampshire. I played with my small Indian doll by the stream in back and made doll furniture out of leaves and grass. At night we ate hotdogs and beans and I held my aunt's hand as we walked down to the lake in the dark. My aunt had only finished ninth grade, but was a truly great lady. Those summers gave me my life. Ann (darragh722@gmail.com) Thanks for your blog--so sweet re your daughter!
Must enter since my niece would love this prize (both parts!). I grew up in Western Massachusetts, back before kids had to be watched every second, in a neighborhood with tons of kids. We went on day-long bike rides, we played in the rivers and creeks, we slept out on upstairs porches or in tents in the yard, rode horses, etc. And yes, read lots of books on bad weather days to get the prize at the library for reading a certain number of books. I feel sorry that most kids don't know the utter freedom summer brought for us.
I have many summer memories. We made our own fun (no video games). Watching Grandpa's sheep shearing; playing in the barn on the rope swing; learning to knit, crochet, and embroider with Mom and Grandma; and twice weekly reading our bikes to the library ( with a side trip to Bell Bakery for a donut). What a fun, generous giveaway.
As much as I complained at the time, one of my favorite memories now is helping my mom with our garden. We picked corn and beans and I helped her can vegetables. Of course, playing outside with my friends until dark every night was awesome too!
This is a great giveaway that my daughter would love to have.
Thanks, Karen
lemontart5kb at gmail dot com
We love Judy Moody! My daughter has all the books, and I've read them too- so much fun:-) I guess I'm not eligible for the draw since I live in Norway, but we have summer memories here too-LOL! I grew up on a small farm, and we always had to help out with the garden, haymaking, learning to drive the tractor was a lot of fun, and we went swimming, both in the ocean and in a tiny lake. And I would read...lots and lots of books. My aunt was working at the library, so we borrowed lots of books- or dug into the shelves at home- with Gwen Bristow, Alastair McLean, Desmond Bagley, Nancy Drew, the Hardy boys...and not worrying about anything:-)
Have a great summer! School is out in less than a week-yeah!
Thanks for the tip about Judy Moody. I have 3 grands, 2 in that age range & the little one will be soon. Wears going to visit them for a week. Maybe becan take them tosee the movie. My strongest memory of summer is just lying about - I'm a voracious reader but that's such an integral part of EVERY day that I don't associate it with summer. My strongest summer sense memory is lying in the grass with my cousin identifying "pictures" in the clouds as they sailed by overhead.
Dtritz@me.com
Looks like such a wonderful event. I went to Girl Scout camp at a very young age where I think I got the first exposure to crafts. I remember embroidering hankerchiefs,sewing sit-upons, plaques with macaroni letters, macrame. I cherish those memories and love to share crafting with my niece who is the one who would get this fabulous gift!
lifeinsarahland AT yahoo dot com
My summer memories revolve around swimming, riding bikes and reading: biking to swim practice in the early morning, over to the library to check out 12 books at a time, then to the pool in the afternoon, and finally on to evening swim practice. There are songs (e.g., In the Year 2525) that can transport me back to those summers.
Stephanie
We lived 1/2 mile from dad's vet clinic, which was right next to the pool. During the summer my brother and I lived on our bikes, going back and forth constantly. I don't know how my parents kept track of us!
I went to girl scout camp. One year, I got the funniest person award. The rest of the summer, I would dig in the ditches for salamanders.
ahandmadeprincess@hotmail.com
I had great kid-summers. I did all those things you mentioned--crafted, read, swam went to camp, built forts, and one summer my friend and I made taffy! I learned to knit when I was 5, so that was in there too, although I didn't make anything but squares until I was in high school. Now I have granddaughters to teach all my fun crafty stuff to. They would go nuts for these books!
marcydoane@yahoo.com
I live in a small town most summers consist of swimming, library visits, and sitting on my best friends porch swing. carej1994@gmail.com
I used to read in front of the fan for hours, blowing on high, right in my face! No air conditioning at my house so the hot, humid, sultry afternoons were hard to move around in. I would read to escape and had marvelous adventures in my imagination. It is my fondest memory of long summer afternoons.
Wow! Summer vacations... I wish I still had them. I would spend them riding bikes all over town. My parents had no idea how far we went. Also, swimming, tennis, crafting, and here in Texas, eating lots of popsicles. It was sooo fun. I wish my kiddos could have the same kind of summers I had. My 8 year old can't wait for the movie. She LOVES Judy Moody and crafts. Thanks for this opportunity! grantsmom11@gmail.com
My parents have a cottage at a lake so summers were spent swimming mostly and playing in the sand.
I used to read like a mad woman (or girl). My mom would take me to the library and I would get a stack of books and have them all read before the 2 weeks checkout period was over.
And my daughter would *love* this prize! She's been a huge Judy Moody fan for a few years now. (Plus she's just learning to knit!)
Wow! Your post brought back memories. I went to high school with Peter (and his twin brother, Paul!) and he was just as creative back then as he is now. He did all of the illustration for our school newspaper.
It's exciting to see how successful he has been with his artwork.
I loved to read my summer away! I look forward to introducing my eight year old, Helen, to judy moody. Thanks.
Hbergstrom at yahoo dot com
Summers for me were all about swimming, slurpees and reading (Babysitters Club and Sweet Valley books in particular).
My 9 year old daughter would love these books! I remember spending my summers reading (A LOT), playing tennis and making dollhouse rooms for a set of 7 little dolls my grandmother gave me.
Tricia
thefankells@mesanetworks.net
My favorite time every summer was the week that I spent at my great aunt Helen's. She was a mom to 2 boys (10 & 12 years older than me) so going to her house was like being the only girl in the world :) She taught me so much...like how to shoot walnuts out of the tree with the 22, I learned to crochet with her-my favorite was the hot pink Dazzle yarn that became a vest & skirt one summer, going into town to eat out & get a treat at the GC Murphy store. I know we did a lot of things together but those 2 things are what first comes to mind when I think of her. She was a courageous woman, a 50 year breast cancer survivor when she quietly went to be with the Lord...oh how I miss my aunt.
I try to be that aunt to my little nieces,you see, I am mom to 3 boys (20 years older) we spend a lot of girly time together crafting, painting our nails, watching movies & reading. I treasure our time together - can't wait to take them to see the movie.
sorry to ramble Kristin...this really touched my heart & this is a wonderful give away...thanks for the opportunity :)
my favorite summer memories are of when I was a bit older . . . I remember being a teenager in southeastern Ohio and just how good it felt to be out on hot nights, passing the time with friends. that feeling of summer air on bare skin. swimming and walking in the woods and driving in parents' cars. definitely a taste of adult freedom. makes me wistful. nancywalters44@hotmail.com
Ah summer memories.... I would say my best summer was the summer of 93 when I got stuck in PA with my grandparents while the mid ewst flooded.... definately not planned... but now looking back it was treasured time iwth my grandma who is slowly slipping away to dementia....it's funny how we see things differently as adults huh?
I would LOVE to win this for my girls!! They want to see that movie so bad but I told them we have to read the book first! :)
our summers were hours of roller skating (with a key!) and 2 weeks at the Cape in a house with my parents, 7 siblings, the dog, and our rabbit! imagine the car ride from Rochester NY! My parents were saints! My Grandmother would stay down the beach with her cousins! Smart woman.
pclark204@comcast.net
My best summer days were spent at my aunt and uncle's cabin on Wampler's Lake in Michigan. I'm 54 now and can still remember the smell of the lake and the sound of the bullfrogs at night. I've never been much of a swimmer and one summer I " almost drowned" or so I thought. I was wading in water and looking under the water and got some water under my goggles. I held my breath and ran to my mom. She pulled the mask away from my face to let the water which was up to my nose in the mask, drain away. She "saved my life" or so I thought! Ahhhhhh those summer days ;o)
billicummings@gmail.comeu
I remember riding my "big wheel" around the neighborhood, while summertime songs from groups like "Chicago" played on transistor radios outside! Back in my youth, the kids would be playing outside from morning until sunset, with only a break for a quick lunch in bewtween. If only my children could experience the same type of freedom I had back in the day.
Bare feet. That's what I remember most about my summers as a kid. The shoes would come off the day school ended, and wouldn't go back on until the Tuesday after Labor Day. Sneaking rides on the ponies that lived down the street when their family was away (no helmet!); watching the neighborhood Labrador chase his tail in the middle of the pond (seriously! swimming circles around himself, yelping all the while); lawnmower races; blueberry pie eating contests.
I let my kids go barefoot as much as I can. No ponies down the street, but we eat a lot of blueberries. Summertime is sweet...and all too short...
Megan
mmhollinger@yahoo.com
We had a great front porch with a swing. I would sit on the swing with a table pulled up to it and work on my latch hook rug! It was huge and I worked on it for hours a time. Also, Riding bikes every where, no matter how hot it was, staying at the pool all day with no sunscreen, and reading under our huge front yard tree! Ah, Summer! My daughter loves Judy Moody! jwandpjc@yahoo.com
I will enter this giveaway, for my little Pixie!
Summers were spent at my grandpa's beautiful farm in the Berkshires.
When our chores were done, we were free to play in the woods, brook, and farm pond until Mom rang the supper bell. Grandpa used to scoop us up with the tractor's bucket and dump us in the pond (such screaming fun!). We'd catch trout and catfish for supper in Silver Brook which ran through the farm, and sometimes find crayfish too.
Sometimes we'd pick lowbush blueberries in a neighboring farmer's fields, or buckets of wild strawberries at the town cemetery. A tornado came through one summer and lifted the cowbarn off the cows waiting to be milked at the farm next door--that was scary, but every cow lived because the stanchions kept them anchored. The barn landed 1/4 mile away, reduced to toothpicks.
Jumping from the loft into two-story high mounds of sweet hay, following wild animals through the woods, helping Grandpa while he fixed the farm equipment, finding a white horse named Shenandoah in the marsh one day and riding her around bareback with a rope halter for a week until her owners were tracked down, helping harvest all the crops, riding in the back of the rickety pickup truck to the General Store to get cheddar cheese and penny candy--it was a great time and place to be a kid in summer.
I had the most fabulous summers. I'd spend them with my cousins in Wisconsin, swimming in the Mississippi River, reading books, riding bikes with my friends to the lake to float around and camping with my family.
Now, as a teacher, I look forward to summers filled with visiting my family in Wisconsin, riding bikes with my husband, traveling and reading. Last summer I read 46 books.
Dawnm89us@yahoo.com
We lived between mt 2 sets of grandparents so each vacation included a car trip. What did we do during the hours in the car? Craft, cross-stitch, READ like crazy, craft some more... Once we got there we spent most of our time in the water - the beach with my Florida grandparents, the lake with my Oklahoma ones ( they lived at the lake, complete with paddle boats, etc.!) Wow. Really miss being a kid!
~ My Best Summer Ever was going to visit a friend who lived walking distance to the ocean in Maine !!
Each day we collected wonderful ocean treasures and made things like shell mobiles & homes for faeries & we were 13 years old !! Very innocent, artsy-craftsy, loving nature. I still have my collection of shells, seaglass, stones and a lobster claw more than 40 years later. Reading, telling stories out loud, writing and drawing was also a big part of our days. It was magical ~ The sound of the ocean was amazing to me. I have lived by the ocean for a year and hope to do so again. I often play ocean sounds music when I have knitting students. If its not on when they come, children ask me to "turn on the ocean."
~ Happy Summer Kristin, Julia & Mark ~
p.s. loVed the kitties photos.
Shell ~
YarnSoup@yahoo.com
Hi there,
may most memorable summer was the one when I was around 6 and my mom and I where in the garden digging in plants.. she hacked a worm in two pieces and I cried and cried until my dad told me it was not a problem at all since both of those pieces could life. Well the next day he found me happily chopping up a worm in 5 pieces.. he neglected to tell me those center pieces could not live.. I never divided worms again from than on.. and to this day when I see a worm in the summer rain puddles I think foundly back of a summer with my mom and dad. (both passed on a while ago)
Thanks for that wonderful movie review and the giveaway - both my 6 and 12 year old would enjoy winning! ~Karin
KCMDesigns on ravelry.com or
kcmccandless @ hotmail . com
My favorite summer memory is biking with my friends all over the neighborhood until the sun went down. One summer, my bike hit something on the ground and I went flying over the handlebars onto the gravel. My chin and hands got pretty scraped up, but I was back up on my bike the next day with my friends again. Ahhh, those were the days!
tiphanie@gmail.com
My favorite summer memories are from camping with a group in Bridgeton, Maine. Waterskiing all day, reading a book by the calm waters at 6pm, Diary Queen and campfires at night. Now we take our kids camping on Cape Cod for the whole summer. THe days haven't changed. In or on the water all day, a little quiet at dinner time, and then ice cream and campfires at night. They love it as much as I did.
I'm glad your daughter enjoyed the movie. I live right near there!!
kristinfitzgerald Rav ID
It has been so long it is hard to remember. lots of trips to my grandparents farm and their big garden. also everyday playing with my best friend Mary. built lots of forts out of appliance boxes we dragged home form downtown. and there was bikes. Never a dull moment. lindagerig@sbcglobal.net
The Judy Moody movie sounds good--hoping to take my 9 year old DD to it. My summers weren't like my kids' summers now, not at all. We went to the beach every day, rode bikes to the library for books, got fierce peeling sunburns. My mother used to knit on the beach to pass the hours. I hated being programmed into day camps; one summer I spent every afternoon in my room threading micro beads onto elastic for bracelets and rings. Still have them!
My kids would be so excited if we were selected for the prizes. My youngest is a huge fan of Judy Moody (and Stink) and my eldest wants to learn to craft this summer.
My fondest summers were spent in rural Michigan at my grandparents. We were free to roam and you could trade in old bottles for enough pocket change to buy some penny candy. My grandma is the one who taught me to crochet and craft. I loved exploring her "craft" room and making new toys. Staying up reading was also a HUGE highlight of the freedom of summer.
I went to camp twice, but mostly we roller skated, rode bikes, jumped rope, climbed trees, played tag, and sprawled out on the grass and watched the clouds drift by. There were 22 kids on the block within a 5 year age range. There was always someone around to play with.
For me, music camp! I had some incredible summers surrounded by kids who loved classical music as much as I, and where it was cool to be a good flute plyer!
My niece would so love this!
Summers were spent mostly hangin out at the timeshare resort my mom worked at. Not bad really as it was in the heart of the white mtns. I spent days scooping leaves from pools, mucking horse stalls, taking folks on trail rides, hiking, swimming (both pools and off the big rock in the river) bike rides, laying tennis, camping out... summers were fantastic! One big adventure!
What a great giveaway!
The summers I remember most were spent at the city pool and then a week at Lake of the Ozarks with my family, aunts and uncles and friends. That is when I learned to ski, cliff jump and fell in love with cornmeal breaded crappie!
My favorite memories are of reading on our lawn swing (one of those with two benches and a base on a frame). I would go out there with a stack of books and a few apples and read for hours. Our public library was just around the corner from my house, so I had a continually renewable supply of great books. I would spend so much time on that swing that it would feel like my bed was swaying when I layed down at night!
If I win, I'll be sharing these with my niece. It has been my tradition to send kids I know packages when they are at camp, and she'll be in Maine for two weeks at Camp Bishopswood this summer. This would be a great "care package!"
-- Cate in Maine
Wow, my daughter would love this prize! Thanks for offering it. My favorite summer memories are just of endless time to play--in the yard, up the street, reading books for hours and hours--just time to do whatever I wanted for days and days. Awesome!
bren7na on ravelry
If it weren’t for my best friend’s family I wouldn’t have had the childhood I did. They took me in; I was just another kid in their already large family. Our summers were spent in the woods, swimming in cold rivers, tanning and putting lemon in our hair. Riding the back roads in an old jeep. Reading, running and romping, crafting, cooking and camping. We were never bored and spending lots of money just wasn’t an option so we made our own fun and loved every moment of it. Those summer memories for me return to me each year when the sun warms our beautiful state of Michigan.
The summer I turned 13 was the best ever. I got my first kiss at a little league game. Then I spent weeks at camp with my Gram with other cousins my age. Ahh, to be so carefree again!
I used to hole up in our family camper, parked in the back yard, and read for hours on end. Pure bliss...
I used to read on my window seat for hours in the summer. One time I was reading The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder. Her description of the blizzard and the cold and fear of starvation were so real to me, that I was completely startled when I looked outside and realized it was another Oklahoma summer 99degree day.
I'm jkinkc (no spaces) on Ravelry.
Oh, what a special time you had at the Opening! Thanks for the opportunity to think about childhood summers. My best memories? Laying on the swing positioned in a forest of trees reading voraciously. Teaching myself to knit when I was 7 years old and passionate about it before I could even cast on. Still am! And camping on the weekends. Thanks mom and dad! And there was the work...yard work and cleaning and helping with chores at home. Today I appreciate all of that 'training,' because it has made my life as an adult much easier.
I never went camping, or to summer camp. Don't feel sorry for me but we traveled to visit family in other locations so I did have fun.
Best summer memories involve catching lightening bugs - which my kids have not been able to master. Catch, admire, release. Easy peasy stuff. Jump rope. Swimming in the lake. I don't remember when I crafted but I learned as a child to embroider and knit from my mother. I have a daughter that would enjoy this giveaway. She is a reader, like me, loves to draw and write. I am so behind in teaching her to knit - soon. Looks like you and Julia had a great time.
So nice to seek out anyone with some authentic thoughts on this subject. really thanks for starting this up. this website is one thing that is needed on the internet, I will suggest this website to my friends!
Peter Hamilton Reynolds is an author and illustrator of children's books and is the Founder of the educational media company FableVision.
Oh, what a special time you had at the Opening! Thanks for the opportunity to think about childhood summers.
You'll remember what it is like to be a kid on summer vacation again.
I never went camping, or to summer camp. Don't feel sorry for me but we traveled to visit family in other locations so I did have fun.
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