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August Pick of the Month
 Silly Locker: Silly Dilly School Songs by Alan Katz
The uproarious creators of Take Me Out of the Bathtub and Other Silly Dilly Songs and Are You Quite Polite? Silly Dilly Manners Songs are at it again, this time causing a silly dilly ruckus all over school! The snappy new lyrics to familiar songs touch on everything that goes on at school -- from backbreaking backpacks and troublesome tests to antics in the lunchroom, at recess, and more. You might just need a hall pass to go out and laugh or giggle yourself silly when you sing along to these brand-new hits! Labels: books
manaScene: humanatee at play
 ...also, manateens, schools of mana- pre's/ manapreschoolers, momatees, dadatees... We've recently discovered a plethora of orphan manatee drawings in the decafe. We've decided to compile these into a collection--a manatee shelter of sorts. Each month we'll post our newest "poster manatee" for all to see. We encourage you to sign them so we can feature the manatee owner as well. August "poster manatee" by Clo See more from the manatee gallery!Labels: manaScene
Meet the Family
 The Proust QuestionnaireIn the back pages of Vanity Fair each month, readers find The Proust Questionnaire, a series of questions posed to famous subjects about their lives, thoughts, values and experience. We thought that it would be fun to feature this same questionnaire in Meet the Family each month. The young Marcel Proust was asked to fill out questionnaires at two social events: one when he was 13, another when he was 20. Proust did not invent this party game; he is simply the most extraordinary person to respond to them...until now! ...meet artist, mother, and blue manatee fan Laura Herman. * What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery? Physical or severe mental illness
* Where would you like to live? Seattle or on Lake Michigan
* What is your idea of earthly happiness? Watching my son wake up from his nap and being the first thing he sees.
* Who are your favorite heroes of fiction? Nancy Drew and Trixie Belden
* Who are your favorite characters in history? Charles Lindberg
* Who are your favorite heroines in real life? My Mother, my Aunt Ruth and my Aunt Annie
* Who are your favorite heroines of fiction? Elizabeth Bennett
* Your favorite musician? Her Space Holiday
* The quality you most admire in a man? Intelligence
* The quality you most admire in a woman? compassion
* Who would you have liked to be? Sinatra, can you imagine what you could get away with?
* Your most marked characteristic? Is sugar intake a characteristic?
* What do you most value in your friends? Their forgiveness
* What is your principle defect? lateness
* What is your dream of happiness? To live on a lake with my beautiful son, my husband, our dogs and a giant Scrooge McDuck pile of money
* What to your mind would be the greatest of misfortunes? Losing the my memories of my life
* What would you like to be? A successful screenwriter
* In what country would you like to live? The Virgin Islands
* Who are your favorite prose writers? Douglas Coupland, A. M. Holmes
* Who are your favorite poets? e. e. cummings
* What are your favorite names? Desmond Sparks Vivianne
* What is it you most dislike? Repetitive clicking noises, bug bites, dirty hair smell
* What historical figures do you most despise? Evil Dictators and their puppetmasters
* What natural gift would you most like to possess? I'd love to be a better swimmer/diver
* What is your present state of mind? Antsy-pants
* To what faults do you feel most indulgent? My obsession with perfume comes to mind. Also sugar - big problem there.
* What is your motto? Dessert please.Labels: meet the family
From the decafe
 The decafe is happy to announce that we now carry muffins and cookies from Donna's Delights. Native New Yorker and owner of Donna's Delights started catering 4 years ago when her daughter revealed that neither her nor any of her classmates ate the challah on Fridays at their Jewish day school because it was "gross". She thought it was such a shame that she took it up with the school and offered to start making the challah herself. That's all it took, in 3 months she was not only baking it for the school but for the families of the students. There were families that didn't observe Shabbat in the past that began to do so because of her delicious challah. From that point on, she started catering with the motto, "This is what fresh tastes like" and vows that no matter how big the business gets they will always be a small batch business that bakes and delivers daily. She believes that you should be able to pronounce everything in your food, and this could not be more evident than with their peanut butter cookies. They contain no oil, no butter, no flour, and very little sugar; they're all about the peanut. I can truly say that these are the best peanut butter cookies I' ve ever tasted. The Mango Castaway muffins are also to die for. Donna would rather sacrifice profit rather than taste so she uses the more expensive baby mangoes because they are sweeter. She said that baking is her way of giving back to Cincinnati, a city that has become her second home. We are certainly happy her goodies have found a home at blue manatee's decafe! Stop in and taste for yourself! Labels: decafe
We're Celebrating Thomas in August!
 Children ages 3-7 and their grownups are invited to join us for a snack, a story, and a craft in honor of Thomas' arrival to the Cincinnati area. Choose from one of our two party dates:
August 30th, from 3:00-4:00pm or August 31st, from 11:00am-12:00pm
Labels: events
Are you ready to party?
 Don't miss your chance to give a moose a muffin this Sunday, July 27th from 1 PM to 2 PM at our "If You Give a Moose a Muffin" party! We'll read the story "If You Give a Moose a Muffin" by Laura Nemeroff, make a special craft to take home, and--of course--eat some muffins. All this fun is only $10 for any child between 3 and 6 years of age (children must be accompanied by a parent, please!). Space is limited, so sign up today before all the slots are filled! Labels: moose, muffins, party
Manatee Movie Night Apology
Blue Manatee was unable to show Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel... and 3 More Stories about Trucks at Manatee Movie Night on July 10 and we would like to apologize for any inconvenience it caused. Mark your calendars because we will be showing it on August 7. Thank you for your understanding. The Blue Manatee Family
New Sabuda and Reinhart Book!
 Check out Fairies and Magical Creatures, the new book by Matthew Reinhart and Robert Sabuda. It is spectacular! Sabuda and Reinhart have worked together on many amazing books such as: Castle and Sharks. Be sure to check this new book out!
MONARCH WAYSTATION Update!
 Well, Black Swallowtail Waystation.
The monarchs are still on their way but the Eastern Black
Swallowtails found us and we have 2 caterpillars ready to become
butterflies. As I was leaving today, one looked as if he/ she was
ready for her 2 week nap to become a butterfly. They eat and eat and
EAT some more then rest. You remember the Very Hungry Caterpillar,
Right? (substitute Bronze Fennel for Ice Cream). I will keep you
posted. If you stop by, they are on the Bronze Fennel (their host
plant) by the garbage cans. Please look at them ONLY with your
eyes. They are very busy EATING. Labels: events
Spring Featured Books
 Big Plansby Bob Shea, Illustrated by Lane Smith "I've got big plans, BIG PLANS I say!"
A little boy sits in the corner of a classroom, plotting his future. He's got plans...and have you heard? They're BIG. With the help of a mynah bird and lucky stinky hat, he'll find a quarter...boss around some muckety-mucks...become the mayor--or even the president! And while he's at it...fly to the moon! This exuberant story is perfect for any child who is ready to dream BIG. Are you in?
 Grump Groan & Growlby Bell Hooks, Illustrated by Chris Raschka
GRUMP GROAN GROWL
Bad mood on the prowl
Some days the grumpies just take over. So don't let that anger build up--embrace your feelings, overcome your aggression, and be your best self.
In other words:
Just let those feelings be
Just let them pass
Just go inside
And let it slide
bell hooks honest text radiates positivity while Chris Raschka's dynamic art adds humor to a book that is perfect for all ages.  Clementine's Letterby Sara Pennypacker
Clementine can't believe her ears - her beloved teacher, Mr. D'Matz, might be leaving them for the rest of the year to go on a research trip to Egypt! No other teacher has ever understood her impulsiveness, her itch to draw constantly, or her need to play "Beat the Clock" when the day feels too long. And in his place, he's left a substitute with a whole new set of rules that Clementine just can't figure out. The only solution, she decides, is to hatch a plan to get Mr. D'Matz back. If it means ruining her teacher's once-in-a-lifetime chance -- well, it's worth it. Isn't it?
 Allie Finkle's Rules for Girls #1: Moving Day by Meg Cabot When nine-year-old Allie Finkle's parents announce that they are moving her and her brothers from their suburban split-level into an ancient Victorian in town, Allie's sure her life is over. She's not at all happy about having to give up her pretty pink wall-to-wall carpeting for creaky floorboards and creepy secret passageways-not to mention leaving her modern, state-of-the-art suburban school for a rundown, old-fashioned school just two blocks from her new house.
With a room she's half-scared to go into, the burden of being "the new girl," and her old friends all a half-hour car ride away, how will Allie ever learn to fit in?
 Dear Dumb Diary #7: Never Underestimate Your Dumbness by Jamie Kelly The wedding Dear Dumb Diary readers have been anxiously anticipating is about to become a reality: Jamie's aunt and Angeline's uncle joined together until death do they part -- or until the divorce Jamie has been feverishly wishing for since they started dating finally happens. Now, three of Jamie's most dreaded nightmares are about to be combined into one unbearable event: 1) Very VERY poofy brown dresses 2) Wedding clogs 3) A lifetime of being related to Angeline, a.k.a. Blondewad Jamie has just one word for this kind of horror: "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
 The Calder Gameby Blue Balliett
When Calder Pillay travels with his father to a remote village in England, he finds a mix of mazes and mystery . . . including an unexpected Alexander Calder sculpture in the town square. Calder is strangely drawn to the sculpture, while other people have less-than-friendly feelings towards it. Both the boy and the sculpture seem to be out of place . . . and then, on the same night, they disappear! Calder's friends Petra and Tommy must fly out to help his father find him. But this mystery has more twists and turns than a Calder mobile . . . with more at stake than first meets the eye.  Fly High, Fly Guy! by Tedd Arnold Mom and Dad won't let Fly Guy go along on the family road trip. They're afraid he'll get lost. But when Dad accidentally shuts him in the trunk, Fly Guy goes along for the ride!
First, Fly Guy gets lost at the picnic site--but he shows up in the garbage can. Then he gets lost at the art museum, but he shows up as part of a modern painting. At the beach, he turns up in a shell, and at he amusement park, on Buzz's hot dog (yuck!).
Zany illustrations and easy-to-read text make this a fun reading adventure for the beginner. The first book in the Fly Guy series is a Theodor Geisel honor book. Labels: books
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Silly Locker: Silly Dilly School Songs by Alan Katz
