…as if you hadn’t guessed it, Christmas is almost upon us and I have finally succumbed. The shop is decorated and I have listened to ‘Fairytale of New York‘ enough to make me come to terms with the fact that even though it is not quite December, Santa Claus is most certainly in town. As I have said before, I do love Christmas, I just don’t love the fact that it has turned into a two month extravaganza.
Enough of my bah-humbugging, I shall now sprinkle good cheer wherever I may be. People are starting to ask us what we’re up to at Chicken and Frog during the hols, so I have updated our events page with the various activities that we are putting on. Please also check out Claire’s website for all of the wonderful crafty activities that she will be running.
There will be plenty to do to keep your angels occupied , as well as a huge range of gorgeous books and crafts just waiting to be given to a loved one as a present!
Sue Pavey will be in-store tomorrow, sharing her shiny new book ‘The Alphabet Friends and Their Animals’. She’ll be with us from 11.00-12.30, telling stories and encouraging all to draw some wonderful animals.
Sue’s illustrations are bold, brightly coloured delights, sure to capture the interest and imagination of your pre-schooler! So come on down tomorrow, pull up a fluffy cushion and join in the fun!
Usually my posts are full of terrible puns and light-hearted affairs. I make no apologies for this one being different.
There is a very special little boy called Sky Harrington-Ellis who needs your help. In 2011 Sky was was diagnosed with a Grade 3 Anapalastic Ependymoma(Brain Tumour). Since then he has undergone surgery multiple times with partial success in removing the tumour. He has been having high dose chemotherapy for 9 months with all the side effects this entails.
Our goal is to support Sky’s loving family by raising as much money as we possibly can.
If you can’t attend, but would like to make a donation, please follow the link below:
This morning we had a lovely story-time session with some mummies and their little boys. It all went swimmingly; they listened, then they had a bit of a roam around, wandered back to me again and left smiling and waving. Job done! I love the fact that when children come in to see us they feel comfortable enough to choose books for me to share with them and that they can go off to have a good old nosey at the books.
But that’s not what I’m egg-cited about (I know how much you enjoy my egg-related quips). As they were going out of the door, one of the mummies said ‘Oh, you have French Rhythm and Rhyme, you should do a Romanian one…’ Now, she was half-joking, but I ignored that and swiftly replied, ‘Are you offering?’ To my mild surprise she did not run away at top speed, but said that she may well be interested.
This is egg-actly (see, they just keep on coming) what we wanted when we started (er-hem) hatching plans for the shop. We want to create a sense of community, providing services that the families want and need and after just a couple of weeks we are already fulfilling our promise to the people of Brentwood and beyond.
Who knows what the future holds…if anyone has any ideas that they would like to share, please do get in touch, we’d love to hear from you!
For me, the October half term is a double-edged sword. I’m delighted to welcome it, as I am shattered after the first half term back at school; but at the same time, the weather is invariably rubbish and finding things to do is a nightmare!
To rectify this problem for families in Brentwood (and, selfishly, my own too), we are hosting a whole load of FREE events at Chicken and Frog. All of the details are on the ‘What’s On’ page.
Very excitingly, we have booked J.N.Paquet to come in on Tuesday 30th October at 11a.m. for a storytelling session. Jerome’s books are written in English and French and are beautifully illustrated with hand-drawn pictures, which capture children’s imaginations.
The only event which we are charging for is the Halloween Party, because we plan to ply your children with copious amounts of sugary treats and a little something to take home. To this end, we are asking parents to book a place for the party, in order for us to plan a successful night. Again, details can be found on the ‘What’s On’ page. Fancy dress is optional, but I will be very sad if we don’t get some of you joining in the ghoulish fun!
So, it’s fair to say that I have quite a lot of chutspa, for which I am most grateful. I don’t over use this streak of nerve, but on occasion it comes in handy.
On Tuesday evening I decided to send out a pleading tweet to some of the lovely authors that we follow/follow us on Twitter. I asked (ever so nicely) if anyone wanted to come along on Saturday 20th October, to join us in our grand opening of Chicken and Frog Bookshop. Mr Frog was dubious, but I was blindly optimistic as usual. My glass half full approach worked! We actually got some amazing offers.
And did we get just one author? Nope! Did we get two? Nope! We’ve only gone and got three. How cool is that? The wonderful Julie D Irwin will be with us from around 10 o’clock, reading stories and generally joining in the fun.
Lucy Coats will be with us from midday, reading from her stories
And, as if that wasn’t enough, Tamsyn Murray will also be in-store
during the day,
We may even have Pip and Posy with us to say hello to our younger guests, I am a very happy chicken! We’re very much looking forward to meeting everyone and sharing our dream with you.
The timing of the shop opening couldn’t be better as far as I’m concerned. Not because it’s near half term or because we’ll open before the Christmas rush; I have a far better reason than any of these. It’s almost Halloween, which means that I have an excuse to dress up. Any excuse is good enough for me, so this is perfect!
Throughout the day on the 31st we will be offering spooky stories and crafts (with Claire Mackaness) for the family to enjoy. In the middle of the day, I will be running a Halloween poetry workshop for all those budding Edgar Allan Poes out there. The session is free, but it would be handy if people could book in, just so that I can get organised for the event.
Edgar Allan Poe Museum (Richmond, Virginia) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
As if this wasn’t enough, there will then be a Halloween Party in the evening, for older children. It will be themed on Alfred Noyes‘ chilling narrative poem ‘The Highwayman‘, so the children can expect some spooky stories and lots of cake of course!
Fancy dress is optional throughout the day, but it is good fun, so come on, dust off your zombie costumes and join in the ghoulish fun!
*Credit for title: Nicholas Gordon, poemsforfree.com
Chicken and Frog Bookshop 
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