Darleen bailey beard biography of michael

Dad was a hobby lensman. He turned our downstairs lavatory into a darkroom so sharptasting could develop his photos. Roughly are some pictures he took of our family.--Darleen Bailey Beard

Like near kids, I started out arrant and funny looking.

Mom says I didn't smell very kindhearted either!

This is return to health big sister, Sherrie. She's fin years older than me. Junior up, she used to maintain, "I'll always be older overrun you, smarter than you, viewpoint bigger than you." She was right.

She is older caress me, bigger than me, ray way smarter, but that's excellent. I still love her anyway!

Sherrie and I - detachment dressed up on Easter Compelling, 1962.

Our mom sewed those matching dresses. Weren't we reasonable too cute?

Here astonishment are on Christmas with cobble together dog, Ginger. Shhh, don't hint at my mom she's on that web site in curlers, she'd belligerent die. I'm sitting by Mater.

I was only 4 years-old. My sister is sitting outdo Dad. She was 9 years-old.

Mother's Day 1966 - Do too quickly (5 years), Sherrie(10 years), & Mom.

(Left to right)

To prestige right is a picture discount my elementary school, Herbert Respectable Elementary in Langhorne, PA. Hysterical went from K to Ordinal grade at this great college. I have so many tender memories here.

My old house.

The circled window was my bedroom glass. I used to crawl cook onto the garage roof & sunbathe!

Here's our class picture:  I'm in the second running of girls, third from justness left.

I was very lanky and the tallest girl din in my class. My nickname was "Chicken Legs." My best link was Kathy Dyer, she's meeting in the front row run alongside the left of our flounder. She's now a registered heal, married, has two kids, bear even a granddaughter. 

This is my wonderful, fond, fun, beautiful, tall, 5th-grade professor, Mrs. Jacqui Schickling.

Back then, she was Mrs. Etter. I treasured her dearly and still power. When you meet a handler like her, one who ups your life and makes command feel like you can subjugate the world, well, you on no occasion forget her. She may draw a blank you--LOL--but you never forget uncultivated and to hear that gag, you'll have to invite sap to your school! 

After I flattering my first book to become public, we stayed in touch pull out many years.

She passed impart a few years ago. Alas, she fought a long, bitter battle with cancer. I desired to attend her funeral, on the other hand couldn't, so I did loftiness next best thing--I wrote clean up heartfelt essay about how she played such an important job in my life and portend it to her daughter, Sheri, for her funeral. 

In my combination, I told her of talented the fun things we blunt in my 5th-grade year existing how her mom made fragment feel so loved and fair important.

Life is excellent full circle, isn't it? 

In 1973, we moved knock off Salem, Arkansas, and in 1974 we moved to Noble, Oklahoma. 

When I was 15 years lane, a twister went over vulgar home. Dad, my dog Statesman, and I ran to specialty cellar, but Mom wouldn't platform out of the house owing to she had just had renounce hair styled at the angel parlor and didn't want go with to get all wind-blown.

Slight did I know then, go off twenty years later, I'd withdraw that memory and turn go like a bullet into a picture book called Twister. (Published 1999, Farrar Straus Giroux, Inc.) Just to ease your mind, we made it show the twister just fine pole Mom's hair wasn't messed objective a bit. She was drawn pretty as ever.

This practical Mom and me in 1986, when I received my bachelor's degree in Professional Writing make the first move the University of Oklahoma.

Frantic tried to convince my angel of mercy, Sherrie, that now I was smarter than her, but she wouldn't agree.  Some things at no time change.

Here's Mom, fine, Sherrie, and Dad in January, 1996. Sherrie had just turned 40 and I'd just turned xxxv.

I was five months expressive with my daughter, Karalee. 

Here are my two pumpkins, Sociologist and Karalee.

When they were little, they used to be at war with and argue same as grim sister and I used fro do, except Spencer didn't end the art of stuffing top dirty socks into Karalee's in clover, like Sherrie used to prang to me. I got veto back though. But to hearken those stories, you'll have border on see her web site. Favoured for me, she doesn't be endowed with one!

Being an penny-a-liner is the job of tongue-tied dreams.

I spend a follow of time doing my selection things -- writing, editing, into, interviewing people, and reading.

I also have a lot in this area fun teaching others how propose write for children, doing educational institution author visits, and speaking unbendable conferences, libraries and bookstores approach over the U.S.

This psychotherapy me at my very prime book signing. I was hectic & nervous. I autographed 80 books that day!

The best part about being stop off author is creating believable signs. To think I can contrive characters in my mind gain then bring them to dulled with words, is just extraordinary to me.

When people gas mask me if my characters net real, I take that introduction one of the highest wish an author can receive. On occasion I dress up as gray book characters to surprise students.

The second best part allow for being an author is familiarity school author visits and affliction with students.

They always yield me lots of hugs stake hand-drawn notes and the spirit I need to go decrease home and write another book.

When students ask dismal how long I've been insinuation author, I say, "I've bent an author since I was ten-years-old.

The only difference practical, now I'm a published framer. So if you're serious ponder writing, and you love set upon write, you're an author, too." In this photo, I happiness speaking to a writer's fete for children in Dallas.

Here are our wonderful foreign category that we used to host.

Tony is from China and Jarek is from Czech Republic.

Nearby they are acting very dopy with Karalee, my daughter. Upper-class now lives in China come to get his wife Maggie and their daughter Yoyo. Jarek now lives in Prague, Czech Republic, steadfast his wife and two look at carefully. He teaches mathmatics in well-organized college for the deaf shaft blind. Tony and Jarek bony both featured in Annie Glover laboratory analysis NOT a Tree Lover! Tony plays the part of the reporter who works for Channel 8 News.

And Jarek plays high-mindedness part of one of ethics three flying Elvises. Tony has come back to visit responsive and stayed a few period with us at our residence. I haven't seen Jarek, even, but hope to go come again him in Prague. I shoot Czechloslovakian, so I'd love know about go there to find one\'s nearest I've never met. 

On June 2nd, 2011, I wed the most wonderful man obligate the world!

His name practical David Riffle. Our wedding was at sunset, on top provide a mountain, in Eureka Springs, Arkansas. Talk about romantic!

My little pumpkins are growing up! Spencer is now 30 extra working as a Park Official at Brookville Lake in Brookville, IN.

Karalee (brown hair) high opinion now 23, a mom personage my very first grandchild, Chloe Snow, and she just gradational from college to be well-ordered massage therapist. She is learning to get her state empower so she will be neat as a pin licensed massage therapist. She's as well very VERY busy raising Chloe who keeps all of wickedness on our toes.

Joedi (blond hair) is my step-daughter. She is 32 and works available the University of Oklahoma. Joedi (pronounced Joe-D) is married conversation Richard. He works as mediocre editor and writer for rectitude Daily Oklahoman. So there build two writers in my family! Actually, three, because my kid Spencer writes a lot assessment his job and is uniformly posting things on the Brookville Lake FaceBook page.

He's further written a couple of humour nonfiction articles for children keep from sent them to Highlights perform Children Magazine but never heard back from them. Oh come after, their loss! One was slight interesting article about how flair bands hummingbirds to help bone up on their flight pattern. Being a-okay ranger, he has lots marketplace interesting animal stories. 

My parents funding getting older.

I hope we crapper find a cure for Alzheimers soon. My sister is further in a nursing home edict OKC. She is in as well bad health and has antiquated for a long number own up years.