Monday afternoon, the girls and Janet and i came back late from sledding out in the country down crazy steep hills at a friend's house with their three-legged dog in tow. The girls sat down to watch "The Sound of Music." I stunk too bad from hauling kids and sleds around all day, so got in the shower. Janet interrupted to tell me that there was a message for me from the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. I figured they were trying to sell me a magazine, so stayed in the shower. Janet came back after a few more minutes to tell me I had to get out right away and return the call, that it was from Lin Oliver, the executive director, and sounded like something important. So I got out, grabbed a towel and wrapped it around me, went back to the laundry room which doubles as the office, and, still dripping wet, called the number in California. Ms. Oliver gave me the news right away--that my YA novel Down Sand Mountain had won the 2008 Golden Kite Award for Fiction.
Janet and Claire and Lili started doing a Golden Kite dance all around the house, which freaked out our poor little dog Greer, and his buddy from next door, Ozzie, who'd been at our house for a weeklong sleepover. Greer pooped on the rug later that night. Twice. Ozzie threw up on the carpet. OK, so that's an exaggeration. Greer did his double rug poop the night before, and Ozzie barfed the night before that. But maybe it was in anticipation of being freaked out by the Golden Kite Dance. Anyway, I called my editor at Candlewick Press, Kaylan Adair, to share the news. Kaylan gets a share of the award, and deserves that and more. And I called my agent, Kelly Sonnack, who has been brilliant and wonderful, and deserves a piece of the award as well. Janet and the girls and I are already making our plans for L.A. in August, for the SCBWI awards ceremony and conference, and hope to see everybody there.
