I'm so excited to announce our latest blog tour with Patricia Eckerman Ambas. Her children's book I Can't Wait to Love You Forever is perfect for a family about to welcome another baby. Read along as we share more information about her touching book, interview the author, and giveaway a copy to one lucky reader.
First, here's more about I Can't Wait to Love You Forever:
A new baby in the family is so exciting! But what do you do if YOU are the “baby” of the family? Will Benjamin be ready to be a big brother when it’s time?
Full of playful love, follow Benjamin on his daily adventures with Mommy, which just might prepare him to be a big brother.
Publisher: WordLife Press
ISBN-10: 1958497010
ISBN-13: 978-1958497012
ASIN: B09W69TT11
Print length: 36 pages
Purchase a copy of I Can't Wait to Love You Forever on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Bookshop.org. You can also add this to your GoodReads reading list.
About the Author, Patricia Eckerman Ambas
Patricia Eckerman Ambas loves sharing stories - everything is a story waiting to be told! Her interest in languages led her to become a teacher and she has been striving to instill her love for reading with youth for over fifteen years in that role. As a mom of three, bedtime and really, anytime-stories fill her world. She also shares stories with her community in Oshkosh, WI as she showcases the stories of her husband's family heritage while teaching guests at their family restaurant about Filipino food. Displaying beautiful multicultural families in her books' illustrations is at the forefront of her goals as an author in order to allow her own children, and others like them, a mirror of mixed families and a window for other children to see into a different lifestyle from their own. I Can't Wait to Love You Forever is her first children's book and she hopes you have as much fun with it as her second child had inventing the actual game played. Look for more heartfelt books coming soon.
Find her online:
---- Interview by Nicole Pyles
WOW: First of all, congratulations on your book! Can you share with us how this idea came to be?
Patricia: Thank you so much! I think this will be very relatable, but as we were all home during the pandemic, we began receiving more packages than usual. Ding Dong! At the same time, we were expecting a sweet little baby who was so lovingly awaited for. So a highly anticipated baby combined with packages arriving was the catalyst for my brilliant son to invent a game that helped him navigate the milestone he was going through, a transition that all older siblings must experience when welcoming a baby into the family. I Can’t Wait to Love You Forever is available as both A Big Brother Book and A Big Sister Book! The first book, highlighting the big brother, was well-received, but I immediately had requests for a sister book which just released at the end of April.
WOW: How awesome! And what a charming book origin story! I loved reading that you are a teacher. How much of your life as a teacher has influenced your stories?
Patricia: There are teacher stories on my heart that will someday be written, and those are directly influenced by my students or my experiences. This book is more about home life, and yet, being a teacher definitely had an impact on this book. The students that I mostly work with are multilingual and may not look like the traditional characters of children’s books. Just like my own children need mirrors of characters who look like them when reading, so do other students. This story revolves so much about navigating a life milestone that I created a 2nd grade lesson on it. I offer it for free and it can also be modified for grades k-4. With my own kids, I tend to weave a moral lesson into each story I tell them, but I’m not sure if that's the teacher in me or the mother in me.
WOW: I highly suspect it's both. :) What do your children think of their mom being a published author?
Patricia: I can’t help but smile on this topic. My children will often ask me to tell them a story. Sometimes they want one from my childhood, other times some beloved characters that we’ve created (who have yet to be in print), and other times they’re requesting something new. Being a teacher, telling stories, this is all normal to them so being a published author is just normal, too.
But the way my son will light up when he tells someone that my first book was inspired by him - that is special. Or how my daughter feigns mock indignation when she hears someone ask about the illustrations because SHE wanted to do them. So they like it in their own unique ways and I love that they freely talk about the books that they will write or illustrate some day. I love that this door is open to them and they know there isn’t anything holding them back because they’ve seen it done before.
WOW: You are true inspiration for your children and others. I love how much you display multicultural families in your book! Why is that so important for children to see?
Patricia: Multiculturalism is a part of this global society that we are a part of and for me, personally, it is also my own little world. My children are growing up with a fifth generation American of European descent as their mother and a first generation Filipino American father. They don’t see many books with characters who look like their family. I want my children, my students, and all children to be able to see themselves in books. There’s a metaphor by an American educator and researcher - that books either provide students with mirrors, like mine have in this book, or windows, where other children can take a peek through the window into the lives of others and get a taste of that life. I really hope this book can normalize multicultural families for those who are seeing it as a window into this life, and I know those whose families are mirrored appreciate it, and if they don't even realize the reflection happening, it is building an unconscious thought of: I belong.
WOW: That's so powerful to know you belong and to see it portrayed in books. I loved the imagery in this book. Did you work closely with the illustrator?
Patricia: Finding an illustrator who could capture my vision was very tricky. I screened everything from a caricature artist to some not very child-friendly portfolios. I shared images of children’s books’ art that I loved and it soon became apparent that I loved the very time-intensive detailed work that most illustrators I found are not into these days. Amira, the illustrator I worked with, sent me an initial sketch that absolutely captured the playfulness and love between the mother and child, and when we furthered our discussion I had to adjust my timeline for the art to accommodate the time that goes into adding in the lighting and the depth that you see in the pages. We did have a lot of back and forth and one page in particular, it was such a minor detail, but a massive one to me, was with the family bringing home the baby in the car. We discussed everything from rear-facing car seats, backseat, not front seat, and even what a baby carrier car seat cover looks like. She handled it all very well and I am so pleased with how the images turned out.
WOW: That's so amazing she worked so closely with you on the artwork. How do you manage handling your writing life, business life, and family life?
Patricia: It’s quite a juggle managing it all. And that’s what I do - I juggle. But I have been working towards a slow, purposeful juggle. I have learned that I can set things down, pick them up when I can, set something else down, and then pick it up, and it is all still within the fluid movement of juggling. It will get attended to, but just not perhaps when I would have liked and I am choosing to be okay with that. I figure it’s a small sacrifice to let things like laundry pile up while I get to live out this dream of being an author, teaching, creating educational resources, supporting our family restaurant, and being a mother to a 9, 7, and 2 year old. We can’t do it all, and I am okay with choosing to do the things that make me happiest - and no, laundry doesn’t make me happy, but seeing my children clothed for school does.
WOW: That's very true! What advice do you have for women who simply don't feel they have the time to write?
Patricia: The tough love answer to offering advice when we feel we don’t have time for something is that it just isn’t a priority…yet. And that’s okay, but we do have to be honest with ourselves. Perhaps we really do want to finish writing those final chapters of the book that we started two babies ago. But maybe, at the end of the day, you are turning to a movie because it’s easier to consume content than it is to create it. Instead of feeling guilty or continuing the narrative that you don’t have enough time for writing, change that voice in your head to say, “right now.” Right now, you are so tired that you just need to consume that movie. In a different season of life, you may be writing a lot with your newfound freedom while kids are in school or aren’t waking you all night. Even just being honest with yourself about your answer of priority will make you choose to change your priorities. But instead of saying we don’t have enough time, take a look at what you are filling your time with and then decide if all of those things deserve your time. Perhaps one gets the boot and writing can slide right into priority-ville.
WOW: Great advice! What are you working on now that you can tell us about?
Patricia: I just published my second book! I am working on making sure the world knows about it. It is that same story based on my little boy becoming a big brother, but instead its the sister! People asked about the big sister version and that gave me the idea to go with it. I am also working on a sweet Good Morning book. Some kiddos have a hard time waking up and this book helps with that transition. It’s another one based on my own family, so you’ll see multicultural characters and see lots of playful love. Look for that this summer!
WOW: I can't wait to see what you come out with next. Enjoy your tour!
---- Blog Tour Calendar
May 8th @ The Muffin
Join us at WOW! as we celebrate the launch of I Can't Wait to Love You Forever. Read an interview with the author Patricia Eckerman Ambas and enter to win a copy of the book.
May 8th @ Rockin' Book Reviews
Join Lu Ann for her review of I Can't Wait to Love You Forever. You also have the chance to win a copy of the book too!
May 9th @ The Mommies Review
Join Glenda for her review of I Can't Wait to Love You Forever.
May 9th @ From the TBR Pile
Join Kari as she shares an excerpt of I Can't Wait to Love You Forever.
May 10th @ The Mommies Review
Visit Glenda's blog for a guest post by author Patricia Eckerman Ambas about juggling mom-life and working life.
May 10th @ From the TBR Pile
Join Kari again for her review of I Can't Wait to Love You Forever.
May 12th @ A Storybook World
Visit Deirdra's blog for her feature of I Can't Wait to Love You Forever.
May 15th @ A Wonderful World of Books
Visit Joy's blog for a guest post by author Patricia Eckerman Ambas about welcoming a baby.
May 17th @ Words from the Heart
Join Linda as she reviews I Can't Wait to Love You Forever.
May 19th @ Pages and Paws
Join Kristine for her review of I Can't Wait to Love You Forever.
May 21st @ Word Magic
Join Fiona on her blog for a guest post by Patrica Eckerman Ambas about creating a book you love.
May 23rd @ Carpinello's Writing Pages
Visit Cheryl's blog for her spotlight of I Can't Wait to Love You Forever.
May 25th @ Jill Sheets' blog
Join Jill for her interview with author Patricia Eckerman Ambas about her book I Can't Wait to Love You Forever.
May 26th @ Love a Librarian
Join Zarah for her review of I Can't Wait to Love You Forever.
May 28th @ A Wonderful World of Books
Visit Joy's blog for her review of I Can't Wait to Love You Forever. You'll also have the opportunity to win a copy of the book for yourself.
May 31st @ Words from the Heart
Visit Linda's blog for a guest post by Patricia Eckerman Ambas about grandchildren connections.
May 31st @ Pen & Prosper
Visit Jennifer's blog for her review of I Can't Wait to Love You Forever.
June 1st @ Editor 911
Join Margo for her review of I Can't Wait to Love You Forever. You'll also have the chance to win a copy of the book, too.
June 5th @ World of My Imagination
Join Nicole's blog for her review of I Can't Wait to Love You Forever.
June 5th @ Choices
Join Madeline on her blog where she shares a guest post by Patricia Eckerman Ambas about her self-publishing journey.
June 7th @ Editor 911
Visit Margo's blog again for a guest post by Patricia Eckerman Ambas about seeking out illustrators.
June 11th @ Free to be Me
Join Leslie for her review of I Can't Wait to Love You Forever.
***** BOOK GIVEAWAY *****
Enter to win a copy of I Can't Wait to Love You Forever by Patricia Eckerman Ambas! Fill out the Rafflecopter form by May 21st at 11:59 pm CT for a chance to win. We will choose a winner randomly the next day and follow up via email. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteThe theme of this book resonates with me.My twin grandchildren just received a tiny little sister.
This would be such a sweet book for my little granddaughter.
ReplyDeleteThe miracle of life is always something to celebrate. Love the illustrations
ReplyDeleteA sweet tale for front porch reading.
ReplyDeleteThis is such a sweet theme and a great book to have to introduce the arrival of new family members.
ReplyDeleteThanks for writing such a lovely story!
ReplyDeleteMy granddaughter is pregnant and I think this book would be wonderful to include with her shower gifts.
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful book. This would make a great gift for any new mom & dad.
ReplyDelete"I Can't Wait to Love You Forever: A Big Sister Book" would make a perfect growing family or baby shower gift. This story can teach children about the exciting parts of becoming a big sibling.
ReplyDeleteThis is amazing! What a wonderful way to spring forward the new season! This book would be perfect since we're expecting a new addition to our family soon! Thanks for the chance and for doing such a fantastic giveaway! Wishing you an incredibly successful spring! Fingers crossed! Good luck everyone!
ReplyDelete