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First, I’d like to thank Darlene for inviting me to her blog so I can talk about my book, And I Thought About You in honor of Mother’s day, and to touch upon the importance of establishing routines. 

Routines help us be present. They provide a sense of calm and comfort. But they also provide a space where magical things can happen.

I began this post discussing routines, because my book And I Thought About You was inspired by a bedtime routine my son and I created while we lived in Hong Kong. His bedtime routine was bath, books, and bed – not so out of the ordinary I’m sure – but inevitably between the books and bed we would discuss what we did throughout the day. One night, one of us – I can’t remember who – ended the discussion with “and I thought about you” (the magic).

At the time I was working full time, so this nightly routine was something I cherished, especially the “and I thought about you” aspect—it was so simple, yet so true.

When I was writing in my writing notebook (a routine that helps me develop my writing), it occurred to me how wonderfully our nightly routine might work as a picture book. After all, wondering what your child is doing when you’re not with them is a universally shared sentiment, one that all mothers feel. In addition, I believe that it is these small interactions that develop deep family connections and fuel childhood memories.

Surprisingly, as I wrote this post, I began to realize that the idea of setting routines to provide space for the magic to happen applies to writing too—since once the routine is established there is room for you to concentrate or focus on the perfect word choice, character description, or plot twist.

So in celebration of mothers, writers and the routines that nurture “the magic,” I hope you’ll take a moment to share some or your own family or writing routines.

What kind of rituals do you share with your child?  I’d love to hear about them.

Thanks again Darlene for inviting me to stop by. And Happy Mother’s Day!!

Rosanne Kurstedt has a Ph.D. in education and is the author of self-published book, And I thought About You (illustrated by Lisa Carletta-Vietes), an honorable mention recipient at the New England Book Festival and the New York Book Festival. She was also the recipient of a 2013 Barbara Karlin Grant Letter of Commendation. In addition, Rosanne writes professional books for teachers, including Teaching Writing With Picture Books as Models (Scholastic, 2000). You can visit Rosanne at http://www.rlkurstedt.com, or at her blog, http://rlkurstedt.wordpress.com, and on Facebook.

Roseanne would like to give away a free copy of And I Thought About You to two lucky followers of this blog.  Your name will be entered once for posting a comment, once for tweeting this post on Twitter, and twice for posting it on your Face Book page. Mention in an e-mail or by leaving a comment how many times your name should be entered.    I will then draw two names at random and announce the winners.  You have until 10PM on Mother’s Day 5-11-2014 to enter.