Celebrate the "Father of Fairy Tales" b-day with a giveaway! Enter to win book and print on 1/28

Today's Google Doodle commemorates the 388th birthday of Charles Perrault with 3 illustrations by Sophie Diao (above). An academic and author, Perrault was a member of Louix XIV's court and influenced the design /construction of the Louvre and the famous fountains of Versailles, among other things.

close up of Perrault by  Philippe Lallemand

His most interesting claim to fame, though, is as "The father of the modern fairy tale." Red Riding Hood, Sleeping Beauty, Bluebeard and others were already spoken of in oral folk tales, shared with children to teach them lessons on morality and act as warnings. 

Perrault, however, wrote them down. He gave these memorable characters (& more) life on the page, writing the tales in a way which entertained the upper class which he belonged to. His stories went on to influence the Grimm Brother's and others. For more info on Perrault and his stories, including where to read some online, check out the links at the end of this post.

Now, let's get this party started! 

On January 28th, one lucky winner will be selected from everyone who comments on my blog between now and then. This winner will receive an English translation of Perrault's Fairy Tales (Dover Children's Classics).

Plus a matted print of Red's Winter Walk. 

Red's Winter Walk by Stacey Merrill

To Enter The Random Drawing: Simply leave a comment on this blog before 1 a.m. EST on 1/28.  It is that easy! If your contact info is not in your profile, please leave an email address so that I can reach you if you are the winner. 

The winner will be announced at noon (EST) on 1/28/16. This drawing is open to all. The prizes have free world-wide shipping.

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Looking for more info about Charles Perrault and his stories? There is a lot to be found online. Here are a few links to get  you started:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Perrault

Who Was Charles Perrault? Why the fairy tales you know may not be as they seem.

Read some of his illustrious tales at Sur La Lune

Sunny days ahead

Sunflower

Hey there! Long time, no see. How have you all been?  I hope you are off to a promising 2016! 

Life has been in a kind of stasis for a while, which has been reaaally boring, so I'm jumping on the New Year/New You bandwagon. There's always room for 1 more, right? Tackling overdue projects, loads of decluttering and returning to pleasures missed are on the top of January's (& probably Feb/March's) to-do list. Plus this lonely blog has been calling to me for a while. It's good to be back! 

Reflecting on the past year, I missed too many simple moments. I forgot to find joy in the littlest things. Basically I spent a lot of 2015 stuck in my head.  When this happened a couple of years ago, I shook out the cobwebs by capturing them (& other natural wonders) in a fun 365 Days in a Garden instagram project. The series started as a whim, but I ended the year with increased awareness of my surroundings and learned to find something magical in every day.

I don't know about you, but I am overdue for a little magic. My new phone came in tonight (yeah)! The camera in my last one has been faulty forever. Even thinking of taking pics was depressing as, they would almost always come out blurry and poorly lit. Now that I have my new lifeline, I'm thinking about starting up another 365 days in photos gig.

Any thoughts? Gardens again? Or general eye candy? 

Care to join me? Could be fun. When you REALLY open your eyes, you might be surprised by what is right in front of you!