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April Book Events & a Giveaway
- Author Darci Hannah
- Apr 7
- 3 min read
Happy April! Easter has come and gone, and if you celebrate the holiday, I hope you had a lovely Easter with your family. It’s very different for my husband and me now that our kids are grown, especially with our two older sons living on opposite coasts. Our youngest son, who lives in Michigan, is in his late twenties. When I asked him if he’d like to go on an Easter basket hunt this year, (I didn’t even bother asking him to color eggs with me) he looked at me and said, “You don’t need to go to the trouble.” A little part of me was sad, just as a little part of me was relieved. The cost of a well-stocked Easter basket is rising, and really, at his age, a good meal and a gift card is the preferred way to celebrate. I know that by next year I’ll be making at least one Easter basket, because my little grandson will be old enough to find and enjoy one!
Speaking of Easter, something odd happened to me. As we’ve established, I’m a grown woman with grown children, and yet I somehow found myself unable to resist purchasing this adorable, stuffed white rabbit. I don’t really understand how it happened, but here’s my best guess. I was online, and this adorable little guy popped into view, and suddenly I wanted to buy it. I should back up here and tell you that my dear mother, when she passed, left us a little surprise in the way of Beanie Babies. We all knew that she liked them, and collected them, but what we didn’t know was that she had squirreled away nearly 400 of them—all in pristine condition! No grandchild had ever touched the ones we found.
My brother and I looked at each other and said, “Whoa! Mom was nuts!” We had so many Beanie Babies and had no idea what to do with them all. It was a real dilemma. So, when I realized that I was looking at an original TY Beanie from 1993 on eBay, and that I was considering buying it, I had the feeling that my mother was right there with me, urging me on with a big grin, and saying things like, “Oh, isn’t he cute! We don’t have that one. Don’t you have a story about a white rabbit?” And then I found myself agreeing. Yes, he is cute. No. we don’t have this one. Yes, I do have a white rabbit in my story. It was like I was possessed for a moment as my finger clicked the purchase button, and then a moment later, I realized I had just added to the crazy, useless collection, bringing the count to 401! Oh no!
When Nibbles came, (Nibbles is its name) my husband saw the bunny and questioned my sanity. I didn’t even try to back-peddle my way out of it. I simply told him, “My mom possessed me for a moment, and this happened.” He understood. And I did too, because for the space of a moment I really felt that my mother was beside me, and it was a blessing to feel that love and joy once again.
Announcement!
I’m coming to Downers Grove, Illinois, Kenosha, WI, and Milwaukee! If you live near one of these towns, I’d love to see you! I’ll be talking about my new release, A Spirited Supper at Dundoon Castle. At each bookstore I’ll also be giving away copies of my Very Cherry Mystery Series to one lucky winner. Must be present to win! Come join me if you can. It’s going to be fun!
Come to one of my book events for a chance to win these two out of print books! They're the first cozy mysteries I wrote, set in Door County WI!
On Saturday, April 25 I'll be at the lovely Fenton's Open Book bookstore in Fenton MI, from noon to 3 pm signing books for Independent Bookstore Day!
Hurray! I'm giving away a copy of A FATAL FEAST AT BRAMSFORD MANOR--the one with the cute bunny on the cover!
To enter to win, go to the comment section and tell me about a crazy purchase you made, or a time when you felt the presence of a departed loved one near you.
*Be sure to leave your email address in the comments!
*Continental U.S. only please.
*Winner will be chosen at random
As always, happy reading & happy baking!
I can really realte to this! My mother often shows up when there are odd old cookbooks and teapots. I am also often haunted by my inner child and she and my mother would have been in cahoots about that little bunny. They are obviously kindred spirits with your mom. 🥰 thegreenwoman76(at)gmail(dot)com
Wow! LOVED THIS!! Your grandson is so cute! Wow! 401 counts! Phew! I didn't grow up with stuffed toys; however, I'm kinda obsessed with slime because of my students. I started out with buying 12-pack of scented slime a few times a year at Target. Then, whenever Amazon has its crazy sales, I got some more! Hubby even reminds me of that! So, my classroom cabinet is nowfull of slimes. Good thing is that we use that as incentives for my students' learning and progress.
cwkuen(at)yahoo(dot)com
Mom loved the beanie babies and both of my children loved them. A impulse buy I make is to buy used books at the thrift store. Thank you for the chance. Deborah. deborahortega229@yahoo.com
Even as an adult I still love a cute, soft stuffed toy- especially the bunnies this time of year- and have bought some for myself. We didn't have a lot of Beanie Babies as kids (they were expensive), most of what we had were gifts. Hoppity the bunny from Grandma, Bernie the St Bernard dog from my favorite uncles. We didn't collect, just liked the cute ones. For whatever reason I always wanted Jake the duck. One night out shopping with my roommate in college I saw a bin full of Beanie Babies with the duck right on top. Needless to say I couldn't pass up getting him.
kozo8989@hotmail.com
When I was a child, I received two gifts one Christmas: A big, plastic dump truck and a baby doll. I knew then that my Dad had to convince my Mom to get it because she believed that little girls should not play with toys meant for little boys. I have no idea whatever happened to the doll, but kept that truck on a shelf through the years. The day of my Dad's funeral, when I returned home, that truck, for the first and only time, rolled off the shelf and bumped into me.