The lighting of the Christmas tree at the ‘V Zoo’

Boy! Did we have a great Christmas lighting party. Everyone came. Margot Finke was here as were Donna Shepherd, Jennifer Gladen, Kevin Collier, Barbara Techel, Kim Chatel, Sue Thurman, Shari Lyel-Soffe, Dianne Sagan and Lanaia Lee. My boss Joy got us a beautiful tree and along with all her friends and zookeepers, they decorated the tree.

But, as this is a zoo, animals do unpredictable things. First Billy got into the act. He wanted to put the star on top of the tree. Well, Star thought she should, after all it is her name. Star had it in her mouth ready to place it when Billy climbed up her neck, grabbed it and took off. He almost knocked the tree down in the process. It took Jabira to stop him. Ever since Billy woke him up that night by jumping on him in his exhibit, Billy’s been afraid he’ll do something to him. So, when he approached Billy, Billy dropped the star and slinked away back to his mother.
When that was all settled, then Fred and Elvis started arguing about who should turn on the lights. Well, I guess you could say it was a total ZOO!

Thanks for all who came and for those who read and follow our, um, my blog.

Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas! See you Sunday with more zoo news from around the world. I’m taking Christmas day off.

7 random facts about . . .who?

Good morning everyone in Bloggerville! Zebee here. Well, last week was fun with Jennifer Gladen. We al look forward to her visiting us again when A Star in the Night published.

So, one of the comments left last week by Lori Calabrese tagged us to give 7 random facts about us.

Since several of us wanted to participate, we decided to each give seven random facts.

Here’s mine
1 I like to listen in when humans walk by, never know what you might hear.
2 I think (but don’t let the others know) that zebras are the most beautiful animals in the world.
3 I love to travel the world zoos.
4 I like to play hide and seek.
5 I have a great smile, don’t you think?
6 I wonder what this food humans eat called pizza is like.
7 I don’t like getting wet.

Okay, my turn. Hi I’m Mori.
1 I like the fact that my friends here at the ‘V Zoo’ gave me a surprise party.
2 Even though I’m at the end of the zoo, I get lots of visitors.
3 I can lick my ears with my tongue! Bet you can’t do that.
4 If you could touch me, I’d feel like velvet.
5 I like to play hide and seek too. I guess Zebee and I are good at it because of our stripes.
6 I get scared at night. It’s dark.
7 Zebee wonders what pizza’s like, I wonder about the stuff you call ice cream. Is it good?

our boss Joy
1 I live on a sailboat.
2 I love to snorkel and take pictures underwater.
3 I don’t like the cold, maybe for a day. Give me warm sunshine any day.
4 I speak English and Spanish and can understand French and Italian.
5 I have two sisters, one older and one younger. We are all totally different.
6 I have a daughter, son, step daughter and two grand children.
7 I like watching Spanish ‘telenovelas’. (Spanish soap operas/mini series)

Hey Zebee, do the rest of us get a turn?

Some other time, I promise. We’ve got to go for now. Our boss Joy is going to be on Suzanne Lieurance’s “Book Bites for Kids” today at 3 pm Eastern time. Hope all of you people out there in Bloggerville will tune in and listen to her. She’s going to talk about “Zooprise Party / Fiesta Zoorpresa”. You can catch the show at
Blog Talk Radio

By for now. Thursday we’re going to read about a professor somebody or other. See you then.

Discussion with Jennifer Gladen about her book and magazine

Welcome back Jennifer and all you people out there in Bloggerville. Zebee here.

Hi Zebee. I’m really glad to be back today. This has been tons of fun. I really like the ‘V Zoo’ animals. They are very friendly.

So, Jennifer, tell us about your book A Star in the Night.

Sure. A Star in the Night is a Christmas story about David, my Main character. We meet David on a starry Christmas Eve night. He’s making his way home from the shopping mall after buying himself a new blanket. He also has cookies and hot chocolate on his mind.

On the way home, David has three encounters which will change his view of Christmas forever. After spending his last five dollars on special Christmas cookies at Mr. Renetti’s Bakery, David meets a hungry, mysterious, bearded man dressed in white. Next he finds a church in need of warm blankets for newborns. Finally, he runs into a girl in the park who has lost her coat. All the while, it seems a bright star is following him.

David finds himself making tough decisions. What will he choose? Why is that bright star following him? Learn more about David and his wondrous journey home.


I can’t wait for it to come out. Do you think when it does you can come back and read it to us?

Of course Zebee. I’d love to.

Now tell me, us about your magazine, “My Light Magazine.” I think it’s something our readers might be real interested in. How often do you publish it? Where can they go to read it?

"My Light Magazine" is a free online Catholic magazine for children. Our goal is to help children learn more about their faith and to develop a relationship with God. I think the earlier one connects with God and His teachings, the happier one’s life will be.

I do hope your readers get a chance to visit the magazine. You can find it at "My Light Magazine".We also offer a PDF version. If you’d prefer to have this version mailed to you, just send a message with SUBSCRIBE in the subject line to: subscribe@mylightmagazine.com .

I'm going to check it out today. Sounds like a great magazine. So, what if they want to send you a story or picture, how would they do that?

My Light is published once a month. To send in stories, articles or anything else,
See our Submission Guidelines located on our site.

You can follow Jen at:
My Space
My Light on My Space
Facebook
Twitter
Author’s Den

Well, that’s it for this week. Jennifer it’s been great having you as a guest here at the ‘V Zoo’.

Thanks Zebee, I look forward to coming back when A Star in the Night is published.

A visit with Jennifer Gladen

Good morning everyone in Bloggerville. Zebee here. As promised, Jennifer Gladen is back with us today. We are participating in a Virtual Book Tour. What’s that? Well, we will be having guests visiting with us every other week. Sundays the guest of the week will travel with me to all the world zoos and on Tuesdays and Thursdays we’ll talk with them about all kinds of things like their books and their lives. So, let’s get started.

Hi Jen. As I’m mascot and roving reporter for this blog, I’d like to ask you a few questions. See, we here at the ‘V Zoo’ are very curious about the things that humans do. We’ve met a number of author friends of our boss Joy, and are glad to have the chance to meet you too.
So here goes. Are you ready?

Z: Where do you live? What’s it like there? I’m the only one who gets out of the ‘V Zoo’ and the rest of the gang is always asking what different places are like.

J: Hi Zebee. Thanks for the warm welcome. I’m from Philadelphia, PA. There’s many people and buildings here. Some places seem very busy, but there’s nice, quiet places too such as a nearby park.

Z: Tell us a bit more about your family. Do you have any pets?

J: Well, actually our home is over run by pets. We have a dog, three cats, and a turtle. The dog is a mixed breed— Chihuahua and Rat Terrier. He’s an intelligent, fun and loyal dog.

The cats are another story. I may eventually do a blog about this.
There are two females (Mickey and Mittens) and a male ( Sunny).

Mickey has lived here the longest, and is the self-proclaimed queen of the house. When we took in Mittens off the street, Mickey was not happy. And things only got worse when Sunny came along. Everyone gets along pretty well for the most part. But every once in a while, Mickey wants to remind everyone that she is the queen!

Z: I think I like Mickey’s attitude.

Z: Tell us about your children. I know you have three. They must keep you pretty busy.

J: Absolutely! The girls (Caitlin and Jacqueline) are 8 and 6, and my son (Anthony) just turned 4. They have a ton of energy! Jacqueline and Anthony have chronic medical problems , so I monitor that as well. But you’d never know it. Those two are the ones with the most energy. Caitlin can get energetic as well, but also likes her times of pease and quiet.


Z: With so much going on as a mom, how do you find time to write?

J: That is a great question. Sometimes I think I invent a few more hours in the day. Really, though, it takes plenty of time management. The best time to write is in the morning when all three are at school.

Z: Thanks Jen for spending some time with me here at the ‘V Zoo’. Stick around and take a walk on the Air Walk. The new stuff over at the lion exhibit is really cool. I’ll see you again on Thursday with more on Jen’s book “A Star in the Night” and her online magazine “My Light Magazine”.

If you want to get a sneak peek at some of Jen’s stuff, check her out at:
Jen’s Blog
My Light Magazine
My Light’s Blog
Gap Blog

J: Bye Zebee. I look forward to sharing more with your visitors on Thursday.

Zoo News Sunday: rhinos, whales and Jennifer Gladen as our guest for the week!

Hello Bloggerville fans. It’s Sunday again here at the ‘V Zoo’ and time for more of my roving reports from the world zoos.

Joining me today is Jennifer Gladen. She's going to be our guest for the week as we participate in a Virtual Book Tour. More about that on Tuesday. Hi Jennifer.

Hi Zebee, and everyone out there in Bloggerville. I’ve visited the ‘V Zoo’ online before, but now I get to actually be here. I think this is going to be a fun week.

We are really excited that you’ve come, for the whole week. So, should we get going?

Yes. I can’t wait to see how you travel all over the world in one day and get all this interesting news out to your viewers.

Okay, here we go!

New attractions lure more Chaffee Zoo visitors
What new attractions do they have at the Chaffe Zoo in Fresno, CA?

Mexican zoo offers interactive experience
Neat video. Check it out.

Big Day at Zoo – annual SPH event aims to reach out more to primary school readers
What a fun event. Such creative children and great costumes.

New Zoo Residents
What animals did the Dakota Zoo get? Where did they come from?

Patna Zoo world No 2 in rhino count
The Panta Zoo in India had lots to be proud of. Read about it here.

Tamarin twins born at zoo
Which are the babies and which is the mother? Look at this picture and let me know what you think.

Attend the Blessing of the Beluga Whales at Mystic Aquarium
This is a cool place. If you’re in the area, stop by and visit.

Taipei City Zoo ready to receive giant pandas from China
More giant pandas for people to love. Cool!

Irwin zoo opens animal hospital
This is really great. They are going to be able to take care of lots of sick animals. Read all about it.

Oklahoma City zoo’s Cat Forest debuts newest baby
What pretty cats ocelots are. Here is a picture of mom and baby.

Wildlights Presented By American Electric Power
See all the cool things that are going on at the Columbus Zoo for the holidays.

Wow! Zebee, that sure was fun. I can’t wait to come back on Tuesday and share more with everyone about my book A Star in the Night and my family.

Jennifer I’m glad you had as much fun as I did today. I’ll see you back here on Tuesday.

Bye Zebee and the rest of the gang. Have fun the rest of the day.

Bye for now. Zebee out.