Never content to sit around without a creative project, I decided to bring a short children’s story to life in the form of a children’s picture book. I decided to collaborate with a local artist for the illustrations in the book. This part was so much fun! Day after day, I would go back and forth with my illustrator, Paul Kent Sewell, whose comic style I love. He was great to work with.

My daughter, who was two at the time, helped out by viewing each illustration and by giving me the time to work on this project. In the end, it is one of my proudest achievements – Mommy Thinks She’s a Monster is a children’s picture book honoring moms everywhere for the sacrifices they make – the time they take, the professions and careers they put on hold and the mostly thankless work that they do to raise children in this world. It is also a sort of recognition of the issues that many mothers with small children face – whether it is PPD or just not enough time for self care.

Whatever the message you choose to get from it, it was fun to do and I’m looking forward to doing more of these in the future!