Jennifer Greene-Sullivan April 13, 2021

I vowed to myself not to read or to write last week. I did just what I wanted to during Spring Break, which was not much of anything. I spent time visiting some old friends and colleagues. I enjoyed a day at the Beauty Shop (thank you Missy McDonald), I chatted at lunch with friends, and I spent a fun day enjoying my nieces. I slept late. I ate lots of ice cream. It was a glorious week to myself.

However, the grind has begun again. I did find a bright spot in the Manic Monday blues: a wrote another Adventures of Lee-Lee book. As Liam grows into a young man, I find myself marveling at his little turns of phrase and at his glorious imagination. His childlike wonder warms this old heart, and he inspired yet another story. I eked out a rough draft yesterday evening, and I have not done any final edits, but I LOVE this one. I am going to have this one as well as Jimmy Mac Reads about Tractors illustrated this year.

I must revisit my first character from 2019 and not leave him behind: after all it is a coming of age series. Lee-Lee must continue to grow in my mind and in my heart. I wanted to add a sneak peek of my rough draft. The ending is PRECIOUS. I think I may be getting better at this children’s book writing gig.

Adventures of Lee-Lee: Jesus and the Rooster Seat 

It is Lee-Lee’s last spring at daycare. When fall comes, he will be going to Pre-K.  All the four-year-old children before him were excited to start school, yet they were a little sad to leave behind friends. 

All the four-year-old boys and girls will miss their daycare teachers. Lee-Lee loves Ms. Wanda, especially. He will remember coming to Ms. Wanda’s little red brick house with the large playground in the backyard. He loves to throw rocks through the links in the fence that wraps around the playground, he loves to slide down the big slide, and he loves to play in the sandbox with his buddies. 

One Wednesday afternoon at daycare, Lee-Lee thinks to himself, “ I’m a big boy and will go to school next year, but I’m gonna play at Ms. Wanda’s until then!”  Suddenly, he looks up at Ms. Wanda, grabs her hand, and says, “I love you, Ms. Wanda!” 

She smiles warmly and takes the little boy’s outstretched hand. “I love you too, Lee-Lee” Ms. Wanda and he walks hand in hand to the playground in the backyard. 

She opens the gate to the fence and scolds her little beagle for trying to rush into the playground, “Not today, Trixie, you’ve got to stay out of the kid’s playground.” Trixie stays put outside the gate, and the two stroll into the playground. 

Lee-Lee runs over to his friend Tyler. Lee-Lee and Tyler climb up the slide and sit together for a few minutes at the very top. They pretend that the top of the slide is really a big deer stand, and they are brave hunters, waiting on a deer to come out of the woods. 

“Lee-Lee, do you see that big deer over there?” Tyler asks. 

“No, that’s Trixie. She doesn’t want to pretend to be a deer today.” Lee-Lee answers. 

“Who’s gonna be the deer then? We can’t hunt without that!” Tyler responds. 

“Let’s pretend that the slide is the inside of a truck. We can drive this truck all the way to the woods. We can find us a deer!”  Lee-Lee exclaimed. “All we need is our ROOSTER SEATS!” 

Tyler stops and looks at his friend and squints his eyes, “A ROOSTER SEAT?” he asks. 

“Yeah, we have to sit up high in a Rooster Seat to be able to see out of our truck. We are too short.”  Lee-Lee comments. 

Tyler laughs and adds, “oh, you mean a booster seat.” 

“Yeah, that’s what I said, Tyler.” Lee-Lee replies, looking sternly at Tyler.  

The two boys burst out laughing at the meaning of Rooster Seat, and they suddenly realize it’s time to go back inside because it’s parents’ pick up time. 

As the boys enter the large learning center, they run over to the coat rack and grab their jackets. Lee-Lee walks over to the cork board and pulls down his drawing for the letter “L.” Ms. Wanda walks over to congratulate him on his exceptional drawing of Llamas. Lee-Lee thanks her and says, “Llama starts with “L.”  I can’t wait to show my mama the llama, but I have to wait till later tonight.”

“Why will you have to wait?” she inquires. 

“Because Jesus is picking me up from your house today.”  he says so matter of fact. 

With a shocked expression, Ms. Wanda laughs and pats the four- year- old on his head and says, “Um, okay, Sir.”