New Life to an Old Series

Fall is finally here in Central Oregon. The leaves are turning and pumpkins are popping up everywhere. And my latest fall fav are pumpkin spice pancakes! Do you have a favorite fall

food or drink?

 

I've been hard at work on two new books, I’m Dreaming of a Snowside Christmas, the third book in the Vermont Christmas Romance—the Murphy Clan series, and From the Farm to the Table Alpacas, book seven in the From the Farm to the Table series. I hadn’t planned to write more books in the series, especially 10 years later, but it turns out that these books are doing well, so I decided it made sense to write book seven. 

 

And I'm so glad I did. Alpacas are the most adorable creatures, and I had so much fun photographing and writing about them. They are like big stuffed teddy bears, and I just wanted to cuddle them the whole time I was there. Plus, they're so cute with they’re little front teeth they showed me every time I turned around.

 

I learned a lot about alpacas. I had no idea they'd only been in the United States since 1982, that they prefer to be in packs, and they are native to South America. In South America they not only harvest the fleece, but they use them for meat. At Crescent Moon Ranch where the book is set, they only use the alpacas for show and for the fleece.

 

Another fun fact is Farmer Scott, owner of the ranch names all his alpacas. He sees them in the pasture and knows them by name. And he has over 200 alpacas on his ranch. I’m lucky to get my kids names in order, and I only have two!

 

Farmer Scott also has over 100 babies every year. If you think an adult alpaca is sweet their babies are absolutely adorable.

 

As I said, I’d planned on a six book series. But after I finished the alpacas I came up with several more ideas to give the series a new life. Other books could include: goats, chickens, sheep, herding dogs and possibly insects. There are so many crops in the agriculture field that I have endless options, so I thought, why not tap into that?

 

I guess the moral to this blog is, even when you think something is complete you might be surprised to discover it's not.

 

From the Farm to the Table Alpacas

Did you know when alpacas make a cluck or click sound they’re being friendly? Thirty-five-year veteran photojournalist Kathy Coatney (specializing in agriculture) introduces second and third-graders to the amazing world of alpacas. Children will learn about raising these lovable animals on Crescent Moon Ranch with photographs and easy-to-read text from Farmer Scott. 

 

The From the Farm to the Table series is designed for second and third grade readers, each book highlighting second grade vocabulary words. 

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