What I Do When I'm Not Teaching

I've always been interested in writing and illustrating a children's book, but writing something unique and creative enough to get published doesn't seem feasible in the near future. But, my niece turned 1 this week, so I wrote her a book for her birthday. I drew all of the illustrations by hand, scanned them, and uploaded them to Blurb. Blurb has lots of nice publishing options, with paperback books at reasonable prices, and lots of size options to choose from. I chose a smaller book (8" x 8"), but I did choose a hardcover with "image wrap" (the cover design is printed on the hardcover, instead of on a removable slipcover) which is a more expensive option. But, I was very happy with the results, and my niece received a one-of-a-kind gift with a few inside jokes in it she couldn't get elsewhere.

This is my sister reading the book to my niece:

And here is the whole book, including the front and back cover. The best way to read it would probably be to click on the first image and then use the arrow keys to "turn" the pages.