As a little girl my favourite book was an Enid Blyton fairy chapter book, I loved the magic within and would often make my own fairy gardens to match the stories. I also loved Bamboozled by David Legge. Set in a land so far away the only way to access it was through your imagination. Ive enjoyed the same all my life! It was their relationship with their pony that really made me want a horse (even more than I already did). I also liked big heavy books, whatever the topic as I would use them to press flowers in. I was the youngest kid in town to get my own library card and the librarian have me a gold locket necklace that I still have. Although nowadays I have less time to read as much as I would like, I have gained the ability to seek peace and wellbeing in my imagination no matter where I am. The day I discovered shelf after shelf of books, and not just any books, but horse books! As a kid, my mom would let me choose piles of books from the scholastic order forms sent home from school. I too am a photographer and artist, though not a flower farmer yet, these images from the book feed my soul that longs for color. I loved reading rhyming books with my kids, and we loved the I Spy series for sure and Eric Carles colorful picture books! As an adult, I have read it again several times. Zoes book looks to be a similar experience and has heightened my desire to visit her country. I have now retired from my full time job at the university and in the last year have worked part time at a local flower farm and taken a bee keeping course and started my first hive. Definitely going to add to my Amazon wishlist. I read all the nature books, I wanted to know everything about all the animals lol! I would check out 20 or so at a time, as many as I could carry. My moms old biology textbooks, it opened my mind to wonder. A love for reading to me inspires us to live life to its fullest. So beautiful! I had the world at my fingertips! Story, to be seen and to be heard is what we all long for at the end of the day. I must have it!!! The photos are out of this world. Near rhymes (words that almost rhyme) with alexis: cathexis, sexist, sepsis, antisepsis. I grew up with the precious little book The teenie weenies about tiny people sleeping in thimbles surrounded by gardens and riding grasshoppers! I enrolled in your first year of the online course and havent looked back. I have been hooked on reading ever since. One favorite I remember very clearly was The Quiltmakers Gift because it was so beautifully illustrated and a wonderful story. lost birth certificate near berlin; food that rhymes with alexis. I have one granddaughter that is very keen on learning about gardens and all things natural. It helped to encourage my walk with the Lord from a young age and as an adult reminds me of the child like joy and adventure of doing life with Him. It helped me picture the story and allowed for better reading. All of the Golden Books. During tonights episode, viewers learned that Alexis Sky has just signed a major record deal with rapper 6ix9ines label, Treyway. They were a loving family and always were taught to approach things with kindness and loved their prairie livingI long to live somewhere with rolling hills and landand taught my children to always be kind! I loved The Little Bear sries and later The Little Prince, which features a rose! I can not remember a time when I was not reading. Candy is good, but chocolate is better, Theres nothing quite like a Hersheys Kiss, Ill take a Snickers bar over a lollipop any day, You make me feel happy when Im feeling low. I think what I loved most about it was the sense of adventure and the power of teamwork two traits I carry to this day. Jessies illustrations were so dreamy. I read it over and over; it sparked an incredible imaginative side of my brain that I credit a lot of my creativity to! It is titled Favorite Poems Old and New. It is a large collection of poetry and short essays Selected for Boys and Girls by Helen Ferris. I loved books as a child, and still do! I still have them. If I wanted to enjoy the flowers that I loved so much, I needed to venture out into the neighborhood to investigate. The characters in these stories, particularly the females, showed me that my quiet confidence could lead me to so many places. I read Nancy Drew, Golden Books(including The Golden Encyclopedia), Beauty & The Beast, all the Winnie- THE POOH books, Walt Disneys Secrets of Life, and Alice in Wonderland! Truthfully its the art work that really captured me. I still love books that contain beautiful photos or illustrations of things found in nature! I can still taste the intense sweetness of the wild strawberries growing in our field on the edge of the forest. Heaven! Am now enjoying sharing them with my grandchildren. I still own a large collection of those books today, and I have passed the love on to my daughter who is now 11. Quand jtais petite mon premier livre que jai aim tais mon livre de franais de premires anne .il y avait limage de la phrase qui tait crite et cela me fascinais ,car je navais jamais vu de livre avant il ny en avais pas chez moi, mais quand jai eu mes enfants (4) nos livres prfrs taient ceux de Beatrix Porter avec des desseins magnifiques pour accompagner de jolies histoires. It influenced me to learn about and honor other times, other cultures, other stories and the enduring human desire to surround yourself with beauty. I loved Golden Books, Dr. Seuss, and then on to Nancy Drew and Charlottes Webb. This looks like a gorgeous book! Showing you just have to walk through that door to a different world full of adventure, not always safe and secure but definitely satisfying. There were be battles to be won, riddles to solve, and characters to save. I was always in love with animals and the natural world, but as an eight-year-old, that story really opened up my imagination, even more so with animals as sentient beings. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again. My life has been filled with the loss of loved ones but I push forward, trying to find the beauty in the day! I could identify with her love of nature and beauty, coming up with creative names for things and places, being often misunderstood, her longing for friendship and achievement, and her passionate outbursts. Thanks so much for a glimpse into your secret gardens and life in New Zeland.Kare. I continue to love visual puzzles and paired with flowers is just brilliant! Fortunately for them (and me), they were older folks who did a bit of gardening in the morning and then spent the rest of their day in the house (or somewhereI wasnt a very good spy) away from my snooping. Im still a horse nerd and love to share the books with my kids. When I was young, The Secret Garden was such an inspiration & continues to be. But I get my rejuvenation through the sheer beauty of flowers. It has totally inspired me to have my home be a sanctuary away from the stresses of the world. Her love of flowers & nature & imagination drew me right in. Now I learned 1st hand that the wanting & having had no relation to the responsibility and commitment. I am grateful to share this, it was a nice little trip down memory lane. They feel free to laugh, pretend, and get stronger. Both books show the importance of caring, loving, friendship and supporting the ones you love. I have been a backyard gardener for many years and have passed along that love to my children. And give me a good princess story anytime. Amazing! I could not wait for another chapter of Charlottes Web to be read. I never realized how The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett, read when I was 11 years old has touched me throughout my life (now age 65). I was a Nancy Drew series reader, and having the set next to my bed made for easy access at bedtime. I love books and reading so much that I became a librarian and have been for 20+ years. I also loved the ISPY books growing up! (Winnie the Pooh, Peter Rabbit, Corduroy, Little Bear, etc. As an adult I see how many of these stories glossed over or twisted the crucial fact so that theses adventures were at the expense of cultures being displaced, mostly indigenous cultures. I loved staying up late into the night reading The Boxcar Children, A to Z Mysteries, and The Magic Treehouse. I loved the Little House On The Prairie books. I loved going over and over all of Richard Scarrys books as a child. Like you, I liked the search pages in Highlights magazines at the Doctors office-we didnt get the magazine so it made going to the dr.s office a little less painful. It shaped me into liking vintage things and learning about them. The perfect way to start my day with this post and a cup of coffee! Misty of Chincoteague, Black Beauty, King of the Wind I just loved all books and reading in general. Will keep NZ, Zos family and farm in our prayers. She was always a bit anxious, very curious and getting herself into trouble at times attributes that I definitely possess. I think he was banned a bit- a shame. Pickles has stuck with me all these years through the memory of this story. It was the first time, in first grade , that my mother allowed me to purchase a book from the Scholastic Book Order form! The only way my parents could get me to put them on at bedtime was to buy me a new Little Golden Book every day, which theyd read to me as they strapped the braces on. I can remember as a little girl, I loved to collect things. I would go on to read every story in the series and then every horse adventure I could find. Funny thing is that I really didnt like reading as a child, I couldnt sit still and would rather be outside immersed in imaginative play creating Daisy and dandelion flower chains . Shes a woman that loved and understood children. 171 Likes, 5 Comments - Alexis Atlamazoglu (@alexisatlamazoglu) on Instagram: "Sometimes food is so easy.but meanwhile so complicated and powerful. The photography sends me into dreams of creating . As a child, I was drawn to stories of nature and animals. Imagination. That whimsical, playful, and sweet view of life weaves through many things I do, floral design, painting, writing, journaling, and gardening! Especially love Eric Carle as a child. As a very little cold, I loved Hop On Pop by Dr Seuss. This book is gorgeous!!!! We had a lovely Yorkshire terrier named Ziggy and this summer I hope to have a special garden blooming for her. Will look for Zes book in Gisbourne ( NZ) tomorrow. I loved everything by Roald Dahl and read them voraciously! They allowed me to escape a not-so-magical reality, and let my imagination roam free. I loved fantasy books with great world building and they are still my favorite! I loved all of the Little House on the Prairie books and now I have a little homestead and *trying* to raise and grow all of our food! Ive always felt like I was born in the wrong decade, and as a kid in the suburbs, I loved reading books with farm animals, hard work, and everything homemade and homegrown. I love the Laura Ingalls series! my favorite- John Bauer. I still love putting the pieces together and identifying the problem (diagnosis) as an adult. If youre a songwriter, a quick search online will throw up thousands of different words and expressions that rhyme, In fact, people have been publishing rhyming dictionaries for more than a hundred years, But are these the best rhymes for songwriters? My Mom was a teacher there and she worked it out with the librarian to get the old copy for my daughter- who also loved the book. Anne of Green Gables from my childhood was hugely influential for me! I was most interested in books about horses as a child. They had beautiful illustrations. I saw on Instagram that you teamed up with Flora Forms for a Spring Urn Workshop that looked pretty magical! I still have this book and smile to think back to the time I couldnt read by myself but loved being read to. 5. Oh how I dreamed about having a garden like that! It truly shaped my world view and it sounds as though you experience something similar working so closely with your parents on the flower farm. kill. I loved the whole family aspect of them weathering every storm together and living a hard, but more simple life. Ive spent most of my life trying to become them. Always on an adventureoutside which resonated deeply. We often talk about Miss Rumphius for being courageous, independent, a life learner, interested in others and inspiring us to make our world more beautiful. Little house on the prairie by Laura ingalls wilder. Anyhow Zos farm looks like a fabulous place and her book is truly gorgeous with all of those phenomenal photographs. I love the way flowers offer that same intrigue. It opened my eyes to a vast universe of other peoples and cultures, as well as profound suffering and injustice. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. I would want Zoes book just because I may never get to NZ . I have already purchased Zoes book as I imagine reading it with several of my grand babies who love flowers and gardening. I still have trouble putting a book down! Im especially interested to hear if there are any new rose varieties you cant live without! Understanding animals and the landscape is the hallmark of my life. It was always fun to imagine stories about the items or people in those books. Still love them, but no longer have one in my back field. A book that stands out to me from my childhood was Misty of Chincoteague. If you dont stay away from them, we see. You brought back lovely moments of memory through your own inspiration. The mystery behind every novel was just thrilling. As a child I loved The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgsen Burnett. I was drawn to the beautiful illustrations and the sweet fun story of a boy who lost his mitten in the snow and these woodland creatures who find it and all start to pile in to the freshly knitted mitten. Its the story of the power of beauty and how it brings people together and spreads joy. As an adult I have created quite a library of illustrated picture books and photography collections for my children as I still believe a picture is worth a thousand words, maybe even more. My grandmother had a book all about colors and color palettes. Starting at a young age she shared her books, her knowledge and love for anything handmade or hand touched. The pages have envelopes glued in with removable letters so the book invites the reader to engage in a whole new way. It was the only chapter book I personally owned so was so very special to me, I still have it today Angela. Those are some seriously dreamy photos! While their experience is more wormy and dirty than I remember mine being, I love sharing it and seeing the natural world through their eyes! I loved the little house on the prairie series when I was a little girl. I would pour over books all through my life and still think of her. Now, years later, I am encouraging my grandchildren to read these memorable books by Beverly Cleary. Regards, Beata. Anne of Green Gables. For 36 years, I taught special needs students, giving them the skills they needed to succeed in this world while encouraging them to take advantage of and focus on all of the wonderful things they could do, not what they couldnt do. As a little girl, my parents would send me to stay with my grandparents every summer. When I was little, I LOVED fairytales, and anything with an adventure. The animal stories developed a sympathy in me and a desire to understand life from anothers point of view. I dont know about you, but if Im going to choose between thieve and breach (which do not rhyme), Ill always choose thieve, Why? I loved the Bobbsey Twins series (showing my age!). I read about adventure and hard work and how horses were good for girls. My mom also got us an amazing book full of short stories. As for our farm, we count ourselves lucky, our family is safe as is our flower field perched on the top of a hill, however, the river flats of our property were hit by flood waters. I will give a big shout-out to Sarah Hawkless of, Over the winter, we pulled out lots of roses that were underperforming. I loved books that personified bugs and animals and even plants. I would say my favorite book when I was about seven was Mr. Bells Fix-it shop. Adventure books were my favorite. Ham/jeans? Always attracted to anybody named Zoe. Twiddle dee, While I wasnt blessed as a child with much reading. . So when my husband and I and our 3 children moved from town to 10 acres and an old farmhouse, we were ready to begin our own adventure. They were beautifully illustrated. I think that reading and playing as a child that way helped develop my sense of empathy for others. I loved most books but especially biographies. I later became a photographer very much inspired by those books. I still love mysteries, both books and TV series (but also a multitude of other genres). Fast forward 60 years, I care for my sweet 34 year old black mare, Misty, and the upper pasture is now the location of my flower farm. I absolutely loved books as a child and still do as an adult. Ive always loved gardening and I am sure this is one of many books that planted those first seeds of botanical wonder. I loved being able to re-read each story and have a few different endings. When I was a child my mom would take us to the library and let us pick out any books we wanted. Such a lovely conversation! Especially the humorous and clever poems by Shel Silverstein. To this day, I find myself noticing colors, patterns, and textures within nature, and amongst animals and people to see hidden, and yet, conspicuous beauty. Love flowers and thank you Floret for sharing . All beautiful .. As a child we had a set of encyclopedias (Ive just dated myself), I loved paging them to find obscure facts. Rudabeckia, nasturtium, zinnias, roses, peonies were always present.. we were also book readers and TV was limited in our house.. I would spend hours pouring all my attention into all the minute details and his artistry, allowing my imagination to follow the stories and cast off animal characters. My favorite author/illustrator is Patricia Polacco. My favorite book series as a child would have been Anne of Green Gables so many life lessons and learning to observe and appreciate nature. I, too, have a love of gardening that I was able to tap into upon my retirement a few years ago, when I went through the studies to become a Master Gardener. This helped me to understand how much our world has changed, yet basic human emotions, needs, and wants have not. My favorites was my dads collection of National Geographic Magazines. The only connection I can see with what Ive been doing for 40 plus years is that if a plant shows a sign of a problem, I solve the mystery by following the clues and investigate through much research. I lived on a farm and I spent most of my time out doors and with my horses. Ive been passionate about books, especially those with beautiful illustrations, ever since I can remember. I loved those dreams adventures limited only by imagination. It taught me to think about giving and receiving as well as humans impact on nature. I will be honest, there were so many books my Mom read to me as a child. When I was 7 or 8, I remember grabbing The Secret Garden off the library shelf. The beauty we see in art flowers and nature what a gift! When I think of the books I enjoyed as a child I realize they all were stories rooted in the outdoors and contained the wonders and beauty of wild places and insects and animals. Dreams do come true! My favorite books were the little doctor seuss books. I loved a book that was an about Jesus. Old English nursery rhyme about making tea. Thanks for putting beauty into the world! Now, my job involves protecting native vegetation and I get to hike in the mountains a lot! I have loved reading since I was a child and still adore books. Absolutely LOVE what you do Erin! I know its a Christmas book, but my grandpa gave it to me when I was eight and told me he still hears the bell every Christmas. Also, I loved The Secret Garden story and how it depicted a transformation of nature and its effects on people, thus my joy of sharing flowers began. I also remember reading a religious book as a child that I loved that had assorted stories about characters and animals in it. I knew it would be our retirement home the minute I saw it. Flowers AND a similar format? I also loved those I Spy books so this is a perfect combination of the two books I loved as a child! What I realized as I had not been picking books that were interesting to me. One of my favorite picture books as a child, was Caldecott winner, A Tree is Nice by Janice May Udry. Each evening was a new adventure. Maybe that is where love for gardening started. This is the best time to dream. I would say its starting to become easier with more seed suppliers and nurseries catching onto the trends. I needed her fresh eyes on it as we made the final adjustments. I feel so blessed! This rhyming game is a free printable, so click on that link below to get your own. My earliest series book was the Little House on the Prairie books. My childhood fave was the book Gnomes by Wil Huygen. I loved big, oversized art coffee table books I still do! Now that I have a daughter, and with my sons Im excited to share these classic imaginative stories with them. I loved science books of every kind growing up, physics, botany, zoology, weather.. Just beautiful. They definitely had a seek and find component, and I realize now that they presented the world as being full of sort of mundane but simultaneously magical things and pursuits. Currently my 5 year old is really into Wheres Waldo and I Spy books! Now I read plant books and gain information on different varieties and a glimpse into that world. The closeness and relationship that formed was wonderful. My Father had a couple of semi-custom books made for me as a cold. I loved yet feared Maurice Sendaks Where the Wild Things Are. In third or fourth grade we were allowed to go to the bookshelves after wed completed our assignment. I read every Nancy Drew book and moved to Agatha Christie as I got older. I think the intrigue of the now-simplistic Nancy Drew mysteries were a favorite. When the Jackson movies came out I had a pair of boys who loved to read and a husband who didnt. Such a unique idea! With my petals full of dew, As a child, I was interested in getting muddy in the garden with my mom. I suppose my interest in discovering clues and figuring out who did it carried through to my life as an adult because I eventually became a medical detective, an epidemiologist! He loved pigs and so do I! So why not combine the two and have some fun? Thanks for the interview and this opportunity! Also have a beautiful rose given to me by and elderly neighbour that smells so delicious your nose gets lots in it. Oh my goodness, I absolutely adore the the pictures on the interview! Even as a child, I was drawn to the world of historical and strong women. This book looks amazing, congrats on all the hard work!! Shed weed, plant and till, Id make sprinkler rainbows and earthworm motels. The bravery to run away from an abusive situation and take off on a raft with a runaway slave was fascinating to me! My grandparents garden became my playground for imagining I was someplace from those books and let me live out my adventures. I still love to read and usually finish my day with a good book. I have the book that was in my elementary schools library-obtained through the proper channels of course. My kids adored the I Spy books. As a small child I loved the Berenstein Bear books. What can possibly be better than that?! As a photographer and flower lover embarking on our new flower farming adventure thanks to our Floret class, I can simply just stare at the pages of this book and the Floret books. Also books on horses or dogs. I loved a book called Over and Over which was a little girls learning about the seasons. Of course, we would always beg for more! Use it for writing poetry, composing lyrics for your song or coming up with rap verses. And the other two had no idea what they were for. Recently, that inspired me to start my own flower garden. A fabulously bountiful inspiration to grow more varieties of flowers when the gardening season begins. Its title alone has lit something in my spirit. LOTR followed, I think I read that series when I was 12. My two favorites were HEIDI and THE SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON. I adored the Narnia books. By: Robert Lopshire. This book has helped me to value myself, who never fit in, and others even if we dont see eye to eye, theres something unique and special about everyone to appreciate. Owl at Home, Frog and Toad, and the rest. pearl, earl and whirl all rhyme with girl in my book BaskerviIle. I collect all sorts of books and certainly about gardening and flowers makes up quite a large part as I am always researching plants and everything about the needs of my garden. Looking at the characters as an adult, I can see how much meaning A.A Milne put into each one. Love this interview! Its my favourite hobby to read books about flowers, gardening, painted arts with flowers, photography and landscape Art with flowers and gardening. Im always attracted to any floral book with lots of pictures so I can envision where I would like to start my next garden. by Lois Hobart, Martha Alexander (Illustrator). As a child one of my favorite books was The Story of Ferdinand, about a little bull who refused to fight like the other bulls and preferred to sit in a field and smell the flowers. Lewis books I remember our teacher reading The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe to us each day my favorite part of the day. If it had talking animals that only the protagonist could hear, the more it intrigued me! . I plant more and more every year on our small farm in Oregon. Seek and find for flowers? I still have a hardbound 3 volume from 1985. I think it has helped me to remember to enjoy the little things, have fun with my kids, and find ways to bring beauty into my home. My favorites were books about far away places, and I loved the details about life in an unfamiliar land. Only keep going if your group is engaged. Yes, this season we collaborated on some workshops with Rhonda of Flora Forms, who has a farm about 20 minutes from us. My favorite books were Enid Blytons The Magic Faraway Tree and the Enchanted Wood. I always loved scratch and sniff books as a child! I was the fifth of sixth children and still felt like I was so special because she made the time to read with me. Life lessons! She was so smart and creative. It was my way of escaping and adventuring as a child. Rhymes with 'FOOD' Can you name the one-syllable English words that rhyme with 'food'? As I learn to grow all the flowers, I truly enjoy reading and learning more. Horse stories and mysteries. I loved the mystery and suspense. John Scalzi is one of my current favorites. By Chenchilla. The idea of being a young inquisitive woman always appealed to me and I must say persists today.