The chickens have landed.

On the moon that is!  

That is to say, the website is finished and is live for you to discover and enjoy and shop! I think putting actual chickens on the actual moon may have been easier! This was a process that stretched my brain beyond what I knew it could do at the tender age of fifty. FIFTY y’all! What a time to start a new career and learn new skills but here we are, nearly two years after Mr. McKluskie’s Mars Travel Agency landed on my doorstep in the form of a beautiful full color hardback. The poem was written in 2014 or so? My memory fails me. It was one of about ten stories and poems I was pondering turning into a book. And of all them Mr. M shouted “pick me, pick me!” when my dream of writing children’s books for real would not relent.  In April of 2021 I found an amazing illustrator with nearly NO children’s book experience, but I knew Izabella Lessa had what it took to bring Mr. McKluskie and the blue dog Arbuckle and all the space travelers to life.

But how to start from (chicken) scratch? Kickstarter was the answer and my little company has over 200 angels ALL OVER THE WORLD to thank for allowing it to “blast off” with Mr. M. And I was off to the races with just one book and a zillion ideas. Never one to just sit and wait, while Izabella got busy on two more books for me, the Becky Barnes Series, I put my two worlds – photography and writing – together in Africa Dreaming.  I so love this book. I wish it had been around when my daughter was little, as it’s the perfect little before-nap read. 

 

Now, what about Becky? Where is she?? Is she lost in space with her brothers? Did she fall asleep reading Charlotte’s Web and forgot to wake up? No, no, she is just fine, sitting at her vanity putting on her favorite pinky shade of her very own moon-sparkle makeup before heading to the rodeo in her hometown of Boise, Idaho.  It’s just that as Izabella and I have been working on her, we decided to publish the first two books at the same time. Ohhhhh how my heart is excited for our readers to get to know Becky and her oh-so-busy big brothers! But alas, these things take time. She is coming soon though, I promise! And there may or may not be chickens on the moon amongst her pages.

Here is a sneak peek:

And in the mean time, because it seems in my world of writing for children there is a lot of that, I wanted to share more of my nature photography. But in a way that it didn’t cost the buyers the usual pile of cash it takes to buy original art. And also, in a way that educated my fellow nature lovers about those animals. The answer to me was simple: puzzles. Puzzles with collector cards that share fun and amazing facts that the whole family will enjoy learning. And thus, Jambo Jennifer Puzzles was born. In five months I’ve developed a line of wildlife puzzles for every age and ability. Jambo means “hello” in Swahili – a word that is beloved in Africa and one I came to love too. 

 

And so, jambo, rafikis! Lion King lovers – did you know rafiki means friend? You are indeed friends of mine since you are here reading this. I thank you for stopping by and browsing and for adding a bit of unplugged fun to your home or classroom. Please reach out if you need anything – I’m here and I can’t wait to hear from you!

Jennifer