New! Video Games at Monrovia!

The Monrovia Branch has recently added video games to the collections at the branch.  We have a variety of games available for checkout for these gaming systems:  Nintendo Wii, Play Station, and Xbox.  Games check out for one week with one renewal.  There is a limit of one game per patron.  Come check out our selection today!  

Oh, and if you do not find the game you are looking for, use our library catalog to see what the main branch, in Martinsville, or our others branches have and put a game on hold.  Altogether, we have hundreds of video games from which you can choose!

 Video games at Morgan County Public Library

Where's Spring?

     Are you as ready for spring as I am? I am ready for warm weather and NO MORE SNOW!
I know that once we have a few days of warm weather I will be getting "dirt fever". I will be wanting to dig in my flower beds and plant some early garden such as radishes, green onions, spinach, and early peas. I am a farmer at heart as freshly turned soil smells wonderful to me.
     If you have never planted a garden or don't have enough space we have some great books at the library about container gardening and gardening in general. We even have some on how to garden from your patio or deck. There are also some great books on flower gardening if you don't do vegetables..
    My mother was an old school gardener. When I was a child everything we did in the garden centered around The Old Farmer's Almanac. We had to plant our root vegetables in the dark of the moon, and above ground vegetables during the light of the moon. Potatoes, at least one hill, were to be planted on St. Patrick's Day. That one I never really understood as we were not Irish. Those almanacs are filled with varied types information. My dad always tried to go fishing when the almanac said fishing was the best. So even if you don't garden they are worth the time to look through.
    As March has come in like a lion, I am really hoping it does go out like a lamb. Bring on SPRING!

The Game Truck is Coming to Martinsville and Waverly!

The Game Truck will be coming to the the Martinsville and Waverly Branch locations on March 12.

Main (Martinsville) - 4:00-5:30 - ages 9-17
Waverly - 6:30-8:00 - All ages/families

The truck will feature 4 stations, each with sofa and flat screen TV for a great gaming experience. The Game Truck carries over three dozen title of the most popular multiplayer video games. The titles include games for the Wii, XBox 360 and Playstation3.

Ensure your space for this awesome event by registering today!

https://in.evanced.info/morg/lib/eventcalendar.asp?lib=ALL

The Perfect Way to Make Spring Bloom in Your Heart (not to mention your yard)

The seed catalogs have been arriving in the mail; they are a surer sign than the robins that spring is on the way. Whether planting flowers around the house for colorful accents, creating butterfly or hummingbird gardens to attract some of natures most beautiful creatures, growing tomatoes in pots on the deck, or laying out a garden that will keep you fed through the winter, there are books in the library collection to help you map your way to horticultural success. Many of them are also delightful reading.


The following are only a brief starting point. You can try subject searches on composting,  greenhouses, and many other topics to find the perfect gardening book for you. You may hit the back arrow in your browser to return to this screen.


Everyday Garden Solutions


Wildlife Gardening


Vegetable Gardening in the Midwest


Garden Birds: How to Attract Birds to Your Garden


Planning your garden : the complete guide to designing and planting a beautiful garden / Peter McHoy.


Gardening basics : everything you need to know to get started.


Gardening with heirloom plants / David Stuart.


The kitchen garden / Sylvia Thompson.


American grown : the story of the White House kitchen garden and gardens across America / Michelle Obama.


Cultivating sacred space : gardening for the soul / Elizabeth Murray.


Growing food in small gardens / Barbara Segall.


The complete idiot's guide to seed saving and starting / by Sheri Ann Richerson.


Crops in pots : how to plan, plant, and grow vegetables, fruits, and herbs in easy- care containers / Bob Purnell ; photography by Freia Turland.


Container gardens : how to create beautiful gardens step by step in pots indoors and out / Peter McHoy & Stephanie Donaldson.




Hummingbird gardens : turning your yard into hummingbird heaven / Stephen W. Kress, guest editor ; Steve Buchanan, illustrator.


Butterflies in the backyard / Scott Shalaway.




The worm book : the complete guide to worms in your garden / by Loren Nancarrow and Janet Hogan Taylor.




I hope you're feeling warmer already.


Chuck

Let's Wrap up Winter and move on to Spring!

I'm sure that you have all had your fill of this crazy winter weather we've been experiencing!  I won't bore you with more talk about icy road conditions, frigid wind chill temperatures, or historic snow falls.  Instead, I'd like to tell you all about some awesome upcoming adult and family library programs.  We've got it all-- from Bigfoot to book club-- and so much more.

This Thursday, (February 20th at 7 p.m.) you can come to the library and Experience Bigfoot with the folks from the Indiana Bigfoot Research Organization.  They will present some of the facts and fiction surrounding Bigfoot, and will bring pictures, foot castings and other fascinating items of interest.  This will be an interesting evening for all, I am sure!

The dynamic duo that is Traveler's Dream will be on hand (Thursday, March 6th at 7 p.m.) to share some tunes that will bring a spring to your step!   With their powerful voices and a wide variety of traditional and modern instruments, Michael Lewis and Denise Wilson will captivate you with some spirited songs from the British Isles and French Canada along with some hard-driving Irish jigs and reels.  We can't to share this exciting musical event with you!

On Saturday, March 15th at our Monrovia Branch, artist Rick Wilson will be teaching a Still Life Painting Workshop for adults and teens over the age of 16.  Participants will learn the basics of still life composition along with tips and techniques for painting from real life along with information about the life and work of Indiana artist T.C. Steel.  Funding for this wonderful program is made possible by a grant from the Indiana Arts Commission.  Space is limited, and the workshop is currently full-- but you could add your name to the waiting list if you are interested.

If you would like to see all of the events we have planned for the months ahead, please visit our Event Calendar.

Happy Reading,

Jennifer

 

 

Hearts, Hats, Bears, and Mice – Oh, My!!!!!

Here's a special guest post from one of our Children's Staff Members, Ms. Janet!
 

What do these four words have in common?  Nothing you think!  Well, they will be the topics for the next four storytimes for ages 3 – 5 in February and March. 

    

Miss Bobbi will begin with reading stories about Valentine’s Day on February 13^th and making a heart wreath to hang on a door or wall.  Her stories will include Valentine Mice, A Circle is Not a Valentine, Mouse’s First Valentine, and more.  Come get your “Valentine” on!

     

For Hats on February 20th, Miss Janet will stylishly wear a variety of hats as she reads Jennie’s Hat, Big Pig’s Hat, This is the Hat, Brimsby’s Hats, and A Hat for Minerva Louise.  The craft you will be making is a winter hat and/or newspaper hat.  There will be a parade of hats and you’ll leave with a one of a kind chapeau!

         

                                                       

 Miss Joyce will then take the next 2 weeks and read stories about polar bears and mice.  On February 27^th, you’ll get to make a polar bear mask after listening to Because I Love You so Much, The Three Snow Bears, The Practically Perfect Pajamas, and I Love You with All my Heart.

Then on March 6^th, Miss Joyce will read Three Blind Mice, The Completed Hickory Dickory Dock, The Girl Who Wouldn’t Brush Her Hair, The Mouse and the Apple, Mouse Paint, and The Lion and the Mouse.  Then you will make a Hickory Dickory Dock clock with mice.

            

So come visit us on the next four Thursdays for Storytime at 10:30 AM. Bring your grandma, mom, or friends with you and learn all you can about hearts, hats, bears, and mice from the  Children’s Department.

Summer: So Close, Yet So Far!

It has been one crazy winter!  Almost everyone who has come in to the library recently has been longing for summer.  I'm ready for summer (just remember, I will be whining the first day it is over 85 degrees), and I'm already working on the Summer Reading Program

Yes, it's February, and the library been getting ready for Summer Reading since November. 

From scheduling programs, to ordering prizes, and creating advertisements and more, it takes several months of planning and plotting to get Summer Reading ready to go by June 1st.  In November, thanks to the Indiana State Library, we received a planning packet from the Collaborative Summer Library Program (CSLP), including a CD of some fabulous programming ideas and artwork.

Would you like to see the logos for this year?  Of course you would!

It's going to be a Summer full of Science, with "Fizz, Boom, READ!" for children, "Spark a Reaction" for teens, and "Literary Elements" for adults.  We're working on some great programs for everyone, including a kick-off event featuring WonderLab!  I don't want to reveal all of our secrets but I think we'll have a really great summer.

So as we prepare for (another) snowstorm, just remember that Summer Reading (and summer!) will be here soon!  I hope....

Stay warm and keep reading,
Alyssa