Lisa Cohn's Blog, page 11
September 26, 2016
Love, Gratitude & Wonder for Guide Dogs for the Blind
Photo Courtesy Guide Dogs for the Blind
Love, Gratitude and Wonder for Guide Dogs for the Blind
By Lisa Cohn
At a tear-filled Guide Dogs for the Blind graduation ceremony Saturday in Boring, Oregon, human graduates of the program expressed love, gratitude and wonder for how their guide dogs can change their lives.
Michael and I attended the ceremony with friends, and we all were touched and inspired by the experience.
At Guide Dogs for the Blind, volunteer puppy raisers take puppies into their homes and socialize and help train then for a year, then say good-bye to their beloved friends so the dogs can begin their new lives providing support for a blind or visually impaired person.
For the blind, the dogs—provided at no cost—become best friends and life changers.
Said Bolo of his dog, Oslo, “The relationships with guide dogs are part magic, part formula and part intuition.”
His dog helps him connect with other people, he said. “As a blind person, you can’t smile across the room, but a dog helps break the ice and make a connection.”
Susan, a retired teacher, said that navigating a sidewalk of obstacles was terrifying—until she began working with her new guide dog, Helix.
During the past two weeks of training with Helix, the dog demonstrated how smoothly he could lead her past plants, people and chairs.
“He gave me a sense of freedom,” she said.
Eric, a software analyst, said that before he got his black lab, Romulus, he would walk to college classes and use the scent of coffee from a café as one of his markers for turning. “I kept bumping into tables and chairs,” he said. “Now with Romulus, we glide past tables and chairs.”
During the ceremony, the puppy raisers—one of whom had raised 48 puppies—told the audience that it’s heart-wrenching to give up the puppies after raising them for a year, but satisfying to know just how much they’ll benefit their new best friends.
Said Bolo, “When I got my first guide dog, it was love at first touch. As soon as I touched his head, I felt love.”
Guide Dogs for the Blind, funded by donors, trains dogs for blind and visually impaired people across North America. Learn more here: www.Guidedogs.com
Here at http://www.BashandLucy.com,part of our mission is to spread the word about what dogs do for humans. Our visit to Guide Dogs for the Blind reinforced our commitment to teaching kids all about the magical canine-human connection.
The post Love, Gratitude & Wonder for Guide Dogs for the Blind appeared first on Bash And Lucy.
September 13, 2016
Saying Good-Bye to the Big Sister who Inspired our Book Project
The Sister Who Inspired Our Book Project
By Lisa Cohn
Our “Bash and Lucy” book project began with a sad event–the death of our beloved dog, Lucy, about three years ago.
To help us overcome our grief, Michael, who was 5 at the time, and I decided to write a series of children’s books that starred Lucy. In March of 2013, we started writing our first book, “Bash and Lucy Fetch Confidence.”
With some trepidation, we presented our first draft to Ally, Michael’s big sister, who was 14 at the time.
Ally always has a book in hand, and has strong opinions about everything she reads.
In fact, she has strong opinions about everything. That’s why we call her “The Boss.”
When we handed her our draft, we held our breath while Ally paced our kitchen, flipping through the pages .
And then she gave her review. And made a request.
“Mom, Michael, I love this and really want you to follow through and publish this,” Ally said. “I’m going to make sure you do this.”
So we took the Boss’s feedback–and order–to heart.
The Sister Who Inspired our Book ProjectSo we took The Boss’s feedback–and her order–to heart.
We found an illustrator, shared our draft with many friends and family members, revised many times, and self-published our first book in September 2013.
Along the way, we appeared in many media outlets –including the Today Show, AM Northwest, The Oregonian and others. Ally was always by our side, prepping us for our appearances, helping write our press releases, organizing our book release parties, and even selling books at pet fairs and book fairs.
To acknowledge everything that Ally has done for us, we dedicated our second book, “Bash and Lucy Fetch Jealousy” to Ally, shortly after she read the draft and made critical changes to it.
The dedication reads: “For Ally, who blesses us every day with her enthusiasm, creativity, wisdom and love.”
We wrote that dedication with gratitude and sadness in our hearts. We knew that within a year, Ally would be going to college.
A few weeks ago, we accompanied Ally to college, helped move her books and clothing into her dorm room, attended her college’s “meet and greets” and convocation, then said good bye. Of course, we also said thank you.
While Ally is not available to attend pet fairs and book release parties and to prep us for appearances, her job isn’t done. We’re writing out third book, which features a feminist character inspired by Ally.
We’re sure Ally will have lots to say about the “girl power” theme, and expect that she’ll voice her strong and much valued opinions.
Ally, you may be in college but we’re still counting on you back at home.
The post Saying Good-Bye to the Big Sister who Inspired our Book Project appeared first on Bash And Lucy.
August 7, 2016
How Acupuncture Helps Dogs After Injuries: Our Dog Hudson
Our Dog, Hudson, Running too Much on the Beach
Acupuncture helps dogs after injuries! We learned this after our dog, Hudson, injured himself running on the beach Friday. Above, you can see he’s having a lot of fun romping on the beach.
But as soon as we got home, he started limping. In fact, he cried and whined.
We immediately took Hudson to our “natural vet.” She recommended an acupuncture treatment him to help relieve his pain. We couldn’t get a video of the acupuncture treatment itself because we were holding Hudson. But in the video below you can see the vet tech remove the needles.
During the treatment, Hudson resisted at first. But within moments, he became calm. He fell asleep on our laps, and when he woke up, he was able to walk without whining. Of course, he has to rest today and this week, which will be hard because he loves chasing balls and running through the forest behind our house with us.
During this experience, we learned just how much acupuncture helps dogs. We also learned that dogs shouldn’t run on dry sand. Just like it’s hard for humans to walk in dry sand because our feet sink in and we slog through the sand, it’s hard for dogs and can injure them. It’s better for them to run on wet sand.
The vet told us Hudson’s shoulders were sore and he may have a mild sprain in his leg.
On Friday, our dog was so happy and having so much fun romping on the beach; it was hard to believe he was hurt. But as soon as he stopped running and we headed to our car, he started limping.
We feel terrible that Hudson was injured and are going to be very careful next time we take him to the beach. We feel fortunate that our vet gives acupuncture treatments.
Today, Hudson is better–but not well enough yet to get back to his normal routine.
Why are we writing about Hudson? We want to share with our readers and all that we learn about our canine companions. In addition, Hudson is an important character in our next book–Book Three. We want you to get to know him.
Questions or comments? Email us at BashAndLucy@gmail.com or visit BashAndLucy.com
The post How Acupuncture Helps Dogs After Injuries: Our Dog Hudson appeared first on Bash And Lucy.
July 24, 2016
Kidlit Reviewer, age 8, Gives Bad News About this Series!
He makes a request of author Abby Klein, and gives the bad news about this series.
Watch Michael’s review here:
https://youtu.be/eQ17bUHaQ_w
Why do our Roving Reader Leaders review children’s books in parks, bookstores, libraries, and on playgrounds and at ranches? First of all, because it’s fun. Second, when we’re out and about, kids often ask what we’re doing–and we can spread our enthusiasm for children’s books. Michael and friends have reviewed books in a number of states, including Montana, Connecticut, Oregon and New York. They’ve reviewed books on city streets, in taxis, and in ski lodges.
Want to follow the Roving Reader Leaders while they’re out and about reviewing books–and also interviewing authors? Follow our KidLit Newsletter here: http://www.rovingreaderleaders.com/ki...
You can also subscribe to our YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTAx...
Email us with comments and suggestions at RovingReaderLeaders@gmail.com!
July 1, 2016
Summer Reading List From our Young Reader Leaders!
Kids Lead Kids’ Book Chats
Which KidLit Books are our Roving Reader Leaders excited about this summer?
Levko, age 8, and Lukyan, age 10, are visiting Switzerland for two months. They just got library cards and checked out some of the books in the “Wimpy Kid” series plus “Bad Kitty for President.”
Kerrigan, age 8, is reading the “Dragon Keepers” series and says the best book in that series is “How to Train Your Dragon.”
Wesley, age 10, is reading “Stick Dog Tries to Take the Donuts,” and his sister, Margot, age 8, just finished “Kiki: My Stylish Life.”
Michael, age 8, is reading the “Squish” and “Babymouse” graphic novels, plus the “Teddy Mars” and the “Galaxy Zack” series. He just finished a few of the books in the “Eeerie Elementary” series and is eagerly waiting for more “Rider Woofson” books to be published.
Be sure to subscribe to our KidLit Newsletter to get more updates like this one! http://www.rovingreaderleaders.com/kidlit-newsletter/
The post Summer Reading List From our Young Reader Leaders! appeared first on Bash And Lucy.
June 25, 2016
Kids’ Dog Book Reviewer, 8, Gives “Infinity” Star Rating!
Kids’ Dog Book Reviewer Gets Thank You from Illustrator
Michael, age 8, our kids’ dog book reviewer and dog lover, just discovered the Rider Woofson series, about a pack of detective dogs led by Rider Woofson.
Michael recently reviewed the first two books in the series–written by Walker Styles and illustrated by Ben Whitehouse–while vacationing in Hawaii. When we tweeted Michael’s review to the illustrator, he sent the wonderful thank you illustration that you see above. It makes us very happy to receive thank yous like this one!
Whitehouse also informed Michael that two of the books he referred to in the review are not yet out yet. But our kidlit lover already pre-ordered the books.
We split our review into two parts: The first is an introduction to the series, and the second is a review of Books One and Two.
In the reviews, Michael calls on Styles and Whitehouse to write “infinity” more books, and gives their books an infinity-star rating.
Here’s the introduction:
And here’s the infinity-star rating and review of the first two books, “Case of the Missing Tiger’s Eye,” and “Something Smells Fishy.”
People often ask: How did Michael start reviewing kids’ dog books? When our dog, Lucy, died three years ago, we were so sad we decided to write our own kids’ dog book series starring Lucy. To fill our blog with fun, we decided that book lover Michael (who had just turned five at the time), should review kids’ dog books on YouTube and provide fun dog facts for kids. That year, Michael appeared on the Today Show in a piece about his kids’ book reviews and love of books–which we hope is contagious!
We are now working on our own dog book series. Our third book will be a chapter book, and will include illustrations from Michael, along with our illustrator, Heather Nichols. We haven’t been blogging much because we’re busy writing! Be sure to follow us on twitter: @BashAndLucy. You can email us at BashAndLucy@gmail.com
The post Kids’ Dog Book Reviewer, 8, Gives “Infinity” Star Rating! appeared first on Bash And Lucy.
May 1, 2016
Scooby Author Grants 7-Year-Old’s Wish for a Monster
We’re excited that Scooby author Laurie Sutton granted 7-year-old Michael’s wish to include a spiky monster in her next book!
The Scooby-Doo! book, “Legend of the Gator Man” will be released by Capstone in October and features a monster that looks like this:
KidLit Author Grants Michael’s Wish
It all began more than a year ago. Michael and his friend, Levko, reviewed one of Laurie’s books on YouTube, giggling about the funny parts. They also gave the book a 7-million-star rating:
Michael then asked Laurie if she would be open to a Skype interview, and she generously agreed to be interviewed. Here’s what happened next:
During the interview, Michael asked Laurie to include a spiky monster in a future book, and she said she wouldn’t forget his request. This week, she tweeted us the book cover, saying she included the spiky monster for Michael.
Needless to say, Michael was thrilled and requested that we order the book right away (which we did).
Michael began reviewing books on YouTube when he was 5, and was even featured on the Today Show for his book reviews:
http://www.today.com/video/today/53985936
Last year, we decided it would be fun to interview some of Michael’s favorite authors. We also interviewed Cynthia Bardes, author of the Pansy the Poodle series. We’ve got a long list of authors we’d like to interview, so stay tuned!
Our Roving Reader Leaders review books in gyms, parks, museums and on city streets and playgrounds. Our aim is to share our love of reading and get kids actively involved in reading and analysis. Here in Portland, our enthusiastic team of book lovers meets regularly.
If you’d like to suggest a book for our team to review or an author to interview, email us at RovingReaderLeaders@gmail.com. Please keep in mind that we receive many requests and can’t honor all of them–but love receiving your books!
The post Scooby Author Grants 7-Year-Old’s Wish for a Monster appeared first on Bash And Lucy.
April 10, 2016
Don’t Love Dogs? Monsters May Chase You in Next Book!
Don’t Love Dogs? Monsters May Chase You!
Don’t love dogs? Monsters may chase you in our next book, Book Three of the “Bash and Lucy” series, about the adventures of a dog-loving boy and his wise but mischievous golden retriever.
Why include monsters? Because our 7-year-old co-author, Michael, enjoys drawing monsters, and we’re considering adding some of his colorful illustrations to our next book. His idea: characters in the book who don’t love dogs will get chased by monsters.
Don’t Love Dogs? Watch out for this monster!
Of course, our main illustrator will be the talented Heather Nichols of Portland, but she’s excited about possibly working Michael’s illustrations into the book.
Michael’s monsters are inspired in part by Scooby-Doo books, especially those written by Laurie Sutton. In fact, Michael loves Scooby-Doo books so much that he interviewed Laurie recently and made a special monster request.
In Laurie’s books, the monsters chase the gang. In our next book, Michael is considering casting his dog-loving sister, Ally, as a soccer coach who actually doesn’t like dogs and gets chased by monsters.
Watch out, Ally!
In our first two award-winning books, Coach Danny is not a dog lover. He doesn’t understand why the boys on his soccer team fuss so much over Lucy. But the boys are quick to point out that Lucy makes them laugh, soothes them when they’re upset, demonstrates the importance of sharing, and teaches them about helping kids with special needs.
Part of our aim, in our books, blog and author visits, is to teach kids all about what dogs do for kids. In fact, in this blog we’ve shared our stories about Autism Service Dogs of America and stories about diabetic service dogs .
Got an idea about how to incorporate Michael’s monsters into our next book? Please email us at BashAndLucy@gmail.com. Got an opinion about whether the monsters should chase characters who don’t love dogs? Let us know!
The post Don’t Love Dogs? Monsters May Chase You in Next Book! appeared first on Bash And Lucy.
March 27, 2016
Boy Meets Dog, Dog Kisses Boy, Boy Laughs
Boy Meets Dog, Dog Kisses Boy
By Lisa Cohn
Boy meets dog. Dog kisses boy.
When we leave the library or book store, when we’re walking in the forest near our house, when we’re shopping in Portland–one of the dog-friendliest cities in the country–the story is often the same.
Boy meets dog. Then there’s a spontaneous burst of kisses, hugs, and smiles.
Dog Kisses Boy
Lately, the boy, Michael, age 7, has taken to competing with me in a name-that-dog contest (after, of course, the kiss-and-hug moment). I’m sorry to report that I’m losing at this competition; he’s much quicker to come up with the names of the dogs’ breeds: Boston terrier, Australian shepherd, pug, French bulldog, doodle…
The conversation with the dog’s best friend always goes like this: “Your dog is so cute,” says Michael. “Isn’t that a French bulldog? Or is he or she a mix?”
Dog Kisses Boy
When I was a kid Michael’s age, I studied books about dogs to learn the names of their breeds, and until recently, I’ve always been the one to win the Name That Breed competition.
But I’m losing, happily, to the youngest dog lover in our home.
Along with learning the names of all the different dog breeds, we study service and therapy animals. We have friends with autism service dogs, a relative with an emotional support dog, and one of Michael’s friends who is just learning to read participates in a read-to-the-dog program. In this type of program, kids read to calm, patient, non-judgmental dogs to improve their literacy skills.
Hopefully, some day, our Hudson, a golden retriever, will be a read-to-the-dog hero.
In the near future, he’ll be a character in our next kids’ dog book.
In the meantime, however, he’s another source of kisses, hugs and love.
When Hudson meets a boy or girl on the street, in the forest, or in a store, he’s quick to ensure the child gets the kisses he or she deserves.
The post Boy Meets Dog, Dog Kisses Boy, Boy Laughs appeared first on Bash And Lucy.
March 14, 2016
Why do these KidLit Lovers, Age 7-13, Review Books in Gyms?
First of all, we want to give you an example. In this video, Michael, age 7, chief of the Roving Reader Leaders, reviews “The Case of the School Ghost,” a Buddy Files book, at an indoor playground. At the end of each of his reviews, the interviewer says she hopes he’ll be back soon for another kids’ book review. He always says, “Why don’t we do it now?” and in this case, he slides down a slide.
Watch the review here–but beware, there’s a spoiler!
Read the rest of the blog:http://www.rovingreaderleaders.com/20...
