 Ready or not, summer is just around the corner! And with it comes the library’s annual Summer Reading Program. This year, we will be having activities starting in late May, and throughout both June and July! The theme for kids this year is “On Your Mark, Get Set… Read!” There will be lots of fun guests and activities here at the library, including an obstacle course, life-sized board games, the Kansas Cosmosphere, Rattlesnake Andy, a Curious George presentation, and former KU Basketball player Scott Novosel! Summer reading kicks off on Monday, May 23! Kids and teens can earn prizes by reading and coming to library activities this summer.
Sign up your child on our website at: http://lmlibrary.org/summer-reading-signup-kids
Teens can sign up at: http://lmlibrary.org/summer-reading-signup-teens
The library has entertaining activities to tide you over until Summer Reading gets here:
- Tuesdays at 6 pm and Thursdays at 11:15 am: Storytime! Join us for stories, songs, and a craft.
- Wednesdays at 4 pm: Lego day! Come build with us.
- Wednesday, May 18 at noon & Thursday, May 19 at 6 pm: Coffee and coloring! Enjoy a variety of coffee and tea flavors as you snack and converse and enjoy the relaxing world of adult coloring! Adults and teens welcome.
- Thursday, May 19 and Friday, May 20: Kids and teens can join us for a craft and games at 1 pm, followed by a movie at 2 pm! Popcorn and lemonade will be served during the movie.
Then Summer Reading Program starts, and there will be lots of fun stuff happening:
- Monday, May 23rd at 6 pm: Summer Reading Kickoff, featuring Poppa D. Clown!
- Tuesday, May 24 at 6:30 pm: Recipe swap! Join us this month for a Barbeque cookout. Bring something to share or just taste all the great recipes people have.
- Tuesdays at 11:15 am: Storytime for Wee Ones & Toddlers (0 – 36 months) – If you have children in different age brackets, you are welcome to bring all of them to the storytime that works best for your schedule.
- Tuesdays at 2 pm: Storytime for kids entering 3rd – 5th grades – This summer, we’ll be reading about sports, exercise, and eating healthy.
- Tuesdays at 4 pm: Teen movie & coloring in YA area. Enjoy some summer films and color from our adult coloring books. We have everything from owls to Doctor Who and Marvel’s Civil War! Refreshments provided.
- Wednesday, May 25th at 2 pm – Scavenger Hunt – We provide the clues, can you find the prizes? For all ages.
- Wednesdays at 4 pm: Lego day! Come build with us.
- Thursdays at 11:15 am: Storytime for Preschoolers & Kindergarteners – Stories, crafts, and songs.
- Thursdays at 2 pm: Storytime for kids entering 1st & 2nd grade – Quote the adult theme for this year, “Exercise your mind: Read!”
- Thursdays at 4 pm: Videogame & Tabletop game club for teens – We have Playstation 4, Wii, and Xbox One, not to mention every tabletop game you can think of! Play some Madden or Apples to Apples, or challenge yourself with Settlers of Catan!
- Fridays: Crafts & games at 1 pm, movie at 2 pm! Popcorn and lemonade will be served during the movie.
- Saturday, May 28th at 1 pm: Open Mic Day! Singing, music, acting, poetry, and ending with a karaoke singalong! Participate or watch the show! Talk to Tammy (tammyg@lmlibrary.org) if you would like to perform!
- Monday, May 30th: The library will be closed for Memorial Day.
Please join us for lots of fun as we read, play, exercise, and learn how to eat healthy this summer!
Happy National Poetry Month! Look for poems around the library while you’re here checking out books, movies, playing with toys and puppets, or participating in one of our many activities. Our April calendar is chock full of fun activities for all ages!
 The Friends of the Library are holding their Annual Spring Book Sale Apr. 12 – 14 (Tues. – Thurs.) There will be an opening reception for all members of the Friends of the Library and LML Board Members on Monday night April 11th, 6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. The reception is open only to members of the Friends and Board members so we encourage all of you to spread the word of this benefit of becoming a Friend of the Memorial Library – information can be found on our website at http://lmlibrary.org/friends/
Funds from the Book Sale go to the Friends to help support library programs including Baby’s Bookshelf, Summer Reading Program, etc.
- Tuesday, April 12th at Noon: Library & Lunch – Bring your lunch and join us to discuss The Kitchen House by Kathleen Grissom.[raw]
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 Tuesday, April 12th at 4 pm: Alien Poetry Party! Kids and teens are invited to write out-of-this-world poetry, do alien crafts, and play games! Snacks provided.[raw]
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- Tuesdays at 6 pm: Evening Storytime! Join us for stories, songs, and crafts.[raw]
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- Wednesday, April 13th, 20th, & 27th at 4 pm: Lego Challenge! Join us in our weekly building challenge![raw]
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- Thursdays at 11:15 am: Storytime! Join us for stories, songs, and crafts.[raw]
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- Thursday, April 14th at 6 pm: Poetry storytime! Join us as we celebrate National Poetry Month with rhyming stories by some of our favorite children’s poets.[raw]
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 Friday, April 15th at 6 pm: Open Mic Night with the cast of SCCC’s Hairspray! Join us when the library reopens at 6 for songs, stories, poems, and more! Email Tammy, tammyg@lmlibrary.org, if you would like to share your talents with us that night.[raw]
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- Thursday, April 21st at 4 pm: Earth Day Celebration! Kids and teens can join us to paint their ideal planet, eat earthy snacks, and learn how to take care of our Earth!
- Thursday, April 21st at 6 pm: Bilingual Storytime – Join us for stories and songs in English and Spanish, followed by a craft.[raw]
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- Monday, April 25th at 6:30 pm: Recipe Swap – This month’s theme is “light and fresh foods” for summer. Bring something to share and taste everyone else’s recipes before you try them out at home.[raw]
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- Tuesday, April 26th at 4 pm: DNA Day! Party with the building blocks of life! We are making DNA and building mutant monsters. Board games, crafts, and snacks for everyone![raw]
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 Wednesday, April 27th at Noon: Coffee & Faux Stained Glass – In this crafting session for adults, we are making fake stained glass that is so easy, you’ll be trying it again at home! We will also have coffee and dunkable snacks on hand to go with our chatting and crafting![raw]
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- Thursday, April 28th at 6 pm: Sensory Storytime – A special storytime for children with learning and communicative disorders, such as autism. Children will play and learn in a calming environment through all of their senses.[raw]
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- Friday, April 29th – No school day! Crafts & games at 1 pm, followed by a movie at 2 pm! Popcorn and lemonade will be served during the movie.[raw][/raw]
- Saturday, April 30th at 11:00 am – El día de los niños/El día de los libros – Come celebrate Children’s Day/ Book Day!
 Coming Events this Week
On Tuesday at 4 p.m. we are going to ring in Spring with a children’s party filled with snacks, crafts and… catapults! We are testing our skills to see who can fling their objects the furthest.
Afterwards we will have our regularly scheduled evening story time at 6 p.m. There will be stories, crafts, and songs. Story times are open to children of all ages.
On Thursday at 6:00 p.m. we will get together in the Cooper Clark room to have a special quiet and gentle story time for children who need a safe environment in which to explore. In Sensory Story time, we will move at a slower pace and focus on experiences with the five senses. All children are invited, but those with special needs are especially encouraged to attend.
Easter related book display
In keeping with the Easter holiday, we’ve set up a book display loaded with Easter, egg, and bunny related books. Here are a few.
 Great Book of Egg Decorating
by Grazia Buttafuoco
From the Book Description
Make beautifully decorated eggs…The techniques are described in detail and are the most treasured the world over.
- Wax embossing on natural shells
- Wax embossing on colored shells
- Drilling
- Decoupage
 The Rabbit Handbook
by K. Gendron
From the Book Description
The information you need to raise healthy rabbits. Facts, advice, and fascinating insights tell you all you need to know about
- Purchase
- Nutrition
- Health Care
- Housing
- And much more
 Scorched eggs
by Laura Childs
From the Book Description
In Laura Childs’s New York Times bestselling mystery series, Suzanne, Petra, and Toni—co-owners of the Cackleberry Club café—are equally good at serving up breakfast and serving up justice. This time they turn up the heat on a deadly firebug.
As Suzanne is getting her hair colored at Root 66, she’s stunned to witness the County Services Building next door suddenly go up in flames. Concerned neighbors throng the streets, and the fire department does their best. Unfortunately their best isn’t enough to save long time civil service worker—and friend to the Cackleberry Club—Hannah Venable.
Soon enough, it’s discovered that an accelerant was used to fan the flames. Someone set the fire on purpose — was Hannah the intended victim? Suzanne, Petra, and Toni vow to smoke out the culprit.
 Easter Blessings: The Lily Field\The Butterfly Garden
by Lenora Worth and Gail Gaymer Martin
From the Book Description
“The Lily Field” by Lenora Worth
World-weary Mariel Evans comes home to soak up the simple life, never expecting to fall in love with Heath Whitaker, a man of strong faith-or to come to believe that God watches over her, each and every day. But can Mariel let go of her fears and take a chance on love…?
“The Butterfly Garden” by Gail Gaymer Martin
After an accident leaves Emily Casale paralyzed, she abandons God and the hope of ever leaving her wheelchair. When Greg Zimmerman sets his sights on her, Emily starts to rebuild her faith and believe in herself again. With a little help from the heavens above, will Emily find the courage to take a walk down the aisle?
It’s been a busy week at the library. We have had activities and movies every day for kids, and a special St. Patrick’s Day Party in our new downstairs activity center area. It gave us a place to spread out and have multiple activities going on at once, with kids and teens doing puzzles for prizes, making crafts and playing board games. The movies had stellar attendance, and everyone got movie theater style popcorn from our popcorn machine to help with the movie atmosphere.
That is how I, Elizabeth, the Children’s Librarian, and many of our staff members spent our week, and it was exhausting, but great! We had familiar faces at the library, and new ones, trying out activities they might not have experienced before.
 Now we’re looking forward to new things happening at the library, like our adult candle and coffee party on Wednesday, the 23rd, where we will decorate and ‘Jazz up’ candle holders and candles, with most of the materials being easy dollar store finds, so they can be replicated at home. We will also be enjoying a variety of coffee, thanks to the magical power of Keurig and flavors like Cinnabon Cinnarolls and Toffee to Churro-flavored coffee. All materials are provided, including the cream and sugar!
We also have our Spring Fling on Tuesday the 29th, just after Easter. We’ll be celebrating the official start of Spring, which happens on the 20th, by making catapults and seeing who can fling objects the furthest. Refreshments, crafts and games will also be on-hand to help us kick off the new season. Hopefully the weather improves!
Next month is going to be National Poetry Month, so look out for great adult, kid and teen activities that involve words, art, and music.We’ll also be having our monthly Bunko game, and our lunchtime book club.
We will also be running our bilingual storytime and our new Sensory Storytime for all children, but especially for those with developmental and communicative disorders, such as Autism Spectrum Disorder. The last Thursday of the month, we will tell stories and play, using all five senses in a safe, quiet and calm environment in our Cooper Clark room.
Lastly, I want to remind everyone of our upcoming Comicon! May 7th is the date, and we will start bright and early at 9 am, with costumes, discussion panels, games, prizes, and importantly, comics for attendees! All fandoms are welcome, so dust off your My Little Pony ears, your Stormtrooper helmet and your Batman cape for our costume contest, or just for the fun of it. We will be spread out throughout the library, including the new downstairs activity area, and if weather permits, outside the library as well.
I hope that we will see all of our old friends, and some new ones too, at our programs in the upcoming months. If you would like more details about any of our programs, please call the library, or check out our website at www.lmlibrary.org
 Before I tell you about the Children’s Healthy Fun Fair, let’s take a look at what else is coming up at the library this week!
Tues. Mar. 1, 10 am – noon: The LifeStory Institute Presents: Memoir and Family History Writing Workshop – Charley Kempthorne, writer and teacher, will conduct this workshop, which is free and open to all. Registration is required as space is limited! Register by calling 620-626-0180 or going to our website: http://lmlibrary.libcal.com/event/2490233
Tues. Mar. 1 at 6 pm and Thurs. Mar. 4 at 11:15 am: Storytime! We’re reading some classic Dr. Seuss stories in honor of his birthday and doing a Seussian craft.
Thurs. Mar. 3 at 6 pm: A special evening Dr. Seuss Storytime! Enjoy some favorite Seuss books and make a Seuss-inspired craft!
Thurs. Mar. 3 at 6 pm: A special evening Dr. Seuss Storytime! Enjoy some favorite Seuss books and make a Seuss-inspired craft!
Now, let’s talk about the Thirteenth Annual Children’s Healthy Fun Fair! This year’s fair will be held on Saturday, March 5, from 10 am – 1 pm in the Agriculture Building at Seward County Fairgrounds. It’s FREE and it’s a lot of fun for the whole family! Children ages birth to sixth grade and their parents are especially invited to the fair, as are women who are pregnant.
This year, we have a lot of great things lined up for the Fair! New this year, United Healthcare is bringing a “Community Baby Shower” to the fair. Pregnant mothers will be able to learn about prenatal, post-partum, and well-baby checkups. They will also be able to learn about services available to their children, once they are born. United will also be giving gifts and a snack for pregnant mothers.
Russell Child Development Center will be handing out some fun things for the kids! This includes rubber ducks and various other items.
The Health Dept. and Safety Council will be giving out information on car seat safety and they will raffle 4 booster seats for children 4 – 8 years old.
Seward County Fire will have a fire truck display outside, weather permitting. They will also be handing out coloring books and badges.
Seward County Emergency Management will be handing out coloring books, the new revised disaster response guides for adults, and other items dealing with how to react to both natural and manmade disasters. They will also have pictures of recent storms in our area.
USD 480 will have their alphabet fishing booth, where children can fish for the letters of the alphabet, and get a piece of sidewalk chalk with suggested motor activities for children. They will also be giving away books for kids! They will also have The Newcomers Center taking pictures of the children, and kids can decorate a frame for it.
Also new this year, Southwest Kansas Diaper Bank will be displaying and handing out information about diaper need, how to help with that need, and how people can receive help with getting diapers.
Genesis Family Health together with Life Time Smile will be performing oral screenings.
Southwest Medical Center will have information about X-Rays, a demonstration of the effects of smoking on the lungs, a hands-on hand hygiene activity, and a general information booth.
Kansas Talking Books will have a booth highlighting the service, which provides free audiobooks to borrow to patrons with vision issues and children with certain reading disabilities. They will also have some fun give-a-way items for kids!
The Library will have some tabletop games to play and free books for kids, plus information for parents!
We hope that all pregnant mothers along with children ages birth – sixth grade and their parents will join us on March 5, between 10 am and 1 pm at the Ag Building on the Seward County Fairgrounds for a fun time of exhibits, demonstrations, activities, give-a-ways, and more!
 The Library will be closed Thursday and Friday for the Thanksgiving holiday, but there will still be plenty going on the rest of the week.
Afternoons at the library
Our afterschool program, Afternoons at the library, will be held Monday through Wednesday from 4 pm to 6 pm. During the month of November we will be playing games with words in honor of National Novel Writing Month, making up tall tales, and creating poetry with pictures!
Girl Scouts
Girl Scout troop 60559 will meet at the Library at their usual time on Monday at 5:15 pm in the Learning Center.
Movie Night
Movie Night for Adults Tuesday at 6 pm – Join us to see the new movie adaption of a 1960’s classic. This movie features actor Henry Cavill (who recently starred as Superman) as a CIA agent who teams up with a KGB operative in the cold war era 1960’s to stop a private criminal organization from building their own nuclear bomb.
Story Time
And finally, there will be a holiday themed story time on Tuesday at 11:15 am and again at 6 pm for children of all ages featuring stories, crafts, and songs.
Holiday Meal Planning
It’s still not too late to check-out a few cookbooks from the library’s cookbook display to help with your Thanksgiving dinner planning.
 A Bird in the Hand: Chicken Recipes for Every Day and Every Mood
by Diana Henry
From the Book Description
Chicken is one of the most popular foods we love to cook and eat: comforting, quick, celebratory and casual. Plundering the globe, there is no shortage of brilliant ways to cook it, whether you need a quick supper on the table after work, something for a lazy summer barbecue or a feast to nourish family and friends…In A Bird in the Hand, Diana Henry offers a host of new, easy and not-so-very-well-known dishes, starring the bird we all love.
 Better homes and gardens
Biggest Book of Casseroles
From the Book Description
Nearly a year’s worth of clever and comforting casserole recipes are snuggled inside the Biggest Book of Casseroles.
• More than 380 delectable recipes for any time of the day – and any occasion
• Discover the real beauty of casseroles – make-ahead cooking, reheating, and freeze
• Secrets revealed! How to stock your pantry to solve those need-it-not dinner dilemmas
 Mom’s best desserts: 100 classic treats that taste as good now as they did then
by Andrea Chesman & Fran Raboff.
From the Book Description
In Mom’s Best Desserts, you’ll find 100 foolproof recipes for the desserts you’ve loved all your life. Devil’s Food Cake. Creamy Rice Pudding. Fresh Berry Cobbler. And scattered among the recipes are practical tips on everything from how to make the best frosting to what to do when you don’t have the right size cake pan.
 Apple pie perfect: 100 delicious and decidedly different recipes for America’s favorite pie
by Ken Haedrich.
From the Book Description
Whether you’re a veteran pie maker or a slightly nervous beginner, and whether you’re an apple pie purist or you’re looking to try something new and different, apple pie baker extraordinaire Ken Haedrich has the apple for you—and then some:
• Classics that stand the test of time
• Festive holiday pies
• Summery pies
• Creative approaches to traditional combinations
• Sit-by-the-fire-with-a-good-book pies
• Easy pies for those with pastry crust-phobia
What’s happening this week at the library
 Break out those crock pot recipes and join us tomorrow for Recipe swap. On the third Monday of every month at 6:30 p.m., we have our Recipe swap, which is a chance to show off your favorite recipes and bring in a sample of the finished product. Every month is a different theme and this month’s theme is crock pot recipes.
On Tuesday between 4 and 6 p.m., kids can come to our afterschool club and learn how to solve crimes using a forensic science kit. The Afterschool Learning Club meets Monday through Thursday from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. with different activities each day of the week.
Wizards, Magicians, and Sorcerers
J.K. Rowling brought wizards and magic to the world’s attention in the late 90’s, but she’s not the only bestselling author to give us stories of wizards, magicians, or sorcerers. Here are a few of the adult books on the subject that the library has showcased in this month’s book display.
 Uprooted
by Naomi Novik
From the book description
Naomi Novik, author of the New York Times bestselling and critically acclaimed Temeraire novels, introduces a bold new world rooted in folk stories and legends, as elemental as a Grimm fairy tale.
“Our Dragon doesn’t eat the girls he takes, no matter what stories they tell outside our valley. We hear them sometimes, from travelers passing through. They talk as though we were doing human sacrifice, and he were a real dragon. Of course that’s not true: he may be a wizard and immortal, but he’s still a man, and our fathers would band together and kill him if he wanted to eat one of us every ten years. He protects us against the Wood, and we’re grateful, but not that grateful.”
Agnieszka loves her valley home, her quiet village, the forests and the bright shining river. But the corrupted Wood stands on the border, full of malevolent power, and its shadow lies over her life.
Her people rely on the cold, driven wizard known only as the Dragon to keep its powers at bay. But he demands a terrible price for his help: one young woman handed over to serve him for ten years, a fate almost as terrible as falling to the Wood.
 The sword of the south
by David Weber
From the book description
Know thyself. It’s always good to know who you are, but sometimes that’s a little difficult.
Kenhodan has no last name, because he has no past . . . or not one he remembers, anyway. What he does have are a lot of scars and a lot of skills some exhilarating and some terrifying and a purpose. Now if he only knew where he’d gotten them and what that purpose was . . . .
Wencit of Rm, the most powerful wizard in the world, knows the answers to Kenhodan’s questions, but he can’t or won’t share them with him. Except to inform him that he’s a critical part of Wencit’s millennium-long battle to protect Norfressa from conquest by dark sorcery.
But in the far northern port city of Belhadan, an eleven-year-old girl with a heart of harp music knows the answers to all of Kenhodan’s questions. . . and dares not share them with anyone, even the ancient wild wizard who loves her more dearly than life itself.
It’s not easy to face the future when you can’t even remember your own past, but if saving an entire world from evil sorcerers, demons, devils, and dark gods was easy, anyone could do it.
 The house of shattered wings
by Aliette de Bodard
From the book description
In the late twentieth century, the streets of Paris are lined with haunted ruins, the aftermath of a Great War between arcane powers. The Grand Magasins have been reduced to piles of debris, Notre-Dame is a burnt-out shell, and the Seine has turned black with ashes and rubble and the remnants of the spells that tore the city apart. But those that survived still retain their irrepressible appetite for novelty and distraction, and The Great Houses still vie for dominion over France’s once grand capital.
Once the most powerful and formidable, House Silverspires now lies in disarray. Its magic is ailing; its founder, Morningstar, has been missing for decades; and now something from the shadows stalks its people inside their very own walls.
Within the House, three very different people must come together: a naive but powerful Fallen angel; an alchemist with a self-destructive addiction; and a resentful young man wielding spells of unknown origin. They may be Silverspires’ salvation—or the architects of its last, irreversible fall. And if Silverspires falls, so may the city itself.
Our Afternoons @ the Library program is in full swing for school-age kids. We’ve had a lot of game play, building of things, and creativity expressed by everyone who has shown up.
Having a weekly door-prize drawing does help, of course. From 4-6pm, Monday through Thursday, the Learning Center and the rest of the library is buzzing with children and young adults. On Thursdays, we let the young adults have a special area away from the other kids, where we can do slightly older stuff. It’s nice to hear the children playing and learning, and to talk to them. Boy do we talk. I know absolutely everything there is to know about the town’s water park, thanks to one girl, and about one young man’s frustrations with Ant Man not being part of the Avengers yet, in the movie universe. We play, we experiment, and sometimes the craft project actually comes out the way we intend. Apparently that tiny triangle piece goes on the owl’s head. It only took us two hours to figure it out, the other day.
I know the kids enjoy it; they wouldn’t keep coming back. But I enjoy it too. I get to hear their ideas, watch them have fun and discover things, and maybe have an impact on their growing and learning.
I’m getting another chance to do that, starting tomorrow, the 21st. Monday at 5pm, the library is hosting it’s first Girl Scout meeting. Troop #690559 is about to start a year of discovery for girls in grades kindergarten through third. It will be my first time as a volunteer, and not as a scout, so I have as much learning to do as the girls! It should be fun for all of us. (If your child is interested, there is still time to register either at the meeting, or online at kansasgirlscouts.org)
We’ve also discovered adult coloring books. It seems that we’re a bit on the back end of this trend; people all over the Internet are enjoying these intricate pages, meant to reduce stress while inspiring creativity. We’ve been passing around a book at the library, so everyone that works here can color a page. And next month we’ll be having two coloring play dates for adults. Thursday, October 15th at noon, and Thursday the 22nd at 6:30 pm, we’ll be hosting an adult color-in, so we can all enjoy this new hobby together.
Lastly, my major learning experience for next month is going to be all of our makeup and costuming classes. I’ll be working with the younger kids on Tuesdays, and the older kids on Thursdays, and a professional artist will be coming into the library on a Thursday night and Saturday. We’ll be making animal ears and tails, painting faces like creepy dolls, making hoods out of pillowcases, and working on the occasional obligatory zombie face. I have a theater background, but it’s sure to be an interesting time, doing so many makeup and costume programs in such short succession. I’m hoping to be a red fairy for Halloween, so I’d better get my practice in, now!
I know we often use this space to tell everyone what is happening with the library. We have a lot to tell you. Something is always happening.
Tomorrow, our After School Learning Club (ASLC) begins for all school age kids, and it will run 4-6 pm, Monday through Thursday. Our children’s story times are in full swing, and this month we are having a special Doctor Who party, on Saturday, September 19th at 10 am, to celebrate the return of Doctor Who on BBC America. And this party is going to be great. We have Doctor Who crafts you can make, like your very own tiny TARDIS. There’ll be Doctor Who snacks, Doctor Who costumes (wear yours!), episodes to watch, and discussions about your favorite characters.
I’m still working with young adults, and we want all of them to visit us on their special After School day on Thursdays. We’ve even gotten a new PS4, to make even more multi-player games available. We’re also starting a Girl Scout troop (register at www.kansasgirlscouts.org) and are looking forward to bringing guests into our after school club.
Something is always happening with the kids and the young adults. We have lapsit for 0-18 months, and we have game days for teens. There is one thing that sometimes flies under the radar, though. Our adult programs. Yes, programming isn’t just story times, and hands-on learning for school-age kids. We have learning, enrichment and relaxation opportunities for adults.
Our most popular adult program is Recipe Swap (last Monday of every month, 6:30 pm). I know what you’re thinking–it sounds like something your grandmother would do. But the secret part of recipe swap is that we all bring a sample of that recipe for everyone to taste. It ends up being a tiny buffet table every weeks. I’m sure you can see why a lot of people come. Last month’s theme was ice cream, and September’s is crock pot foods. We’re a fun, easy-going bunch.
The Library and Lunch book club meets the second Tuesday of every month at noon, and is an opportunity to discuss a new book, and relax with fellow readers. We also have a non-fiction book club on the last Tuesday of every month (6:30 pm), for people who like factual books with strong narratives by intelligent and thoughtful writers.
Rounding out the group is our Third Tuesday Adult Crafts evening (6:30 pm). It’s an opportunity to learn how to make something new, and be creative in a relaxing and friendly environment. If you talk to kids all day, enjoy some time talking to us grownups. If you talk to grownups all day, enjoy a conversation with some new friends while we release stress and learn some new skills. I like to think we are a calming, happy bunch. Join us and let us know for sure!
Like I said, we talk so much about what’s going on at the library, which we like. And we are very good at. But we’d also like to hear from you! What else do you think we should do? We’ve had ideas for Doctor Who and Anime clubs, coloring nights for adults, dedicated video console and computer game play, crocheting, lectures with experts and community members with stories to share, writing groups, and daytime adult programs for parents and others who have time in the mornings.
What should we do? Do you have more ideas? Have questions about the programs we already have, for any age group? Do you want to help? Come visit us at the library, and let us know! Or email tammyg@lmlibrary.org and shoot us some ideas!
 This week is a little bittersweet at the library. As kids go back to school, a calm now settles over the library during the day. We will of course miss the kids, but we are also excited to get extra time during the day to plan new activities, programs, and get the library back together after a busy summer.
We learned quite a bit over the summer about what activities get the kids and adults excited about the library and those activities that just fell flat. With that knowledge in hand we have some good ideas on how to enhance current programming offered to children and young adults and what new programming will hopefully hit the mark. We are excited to get these rolled out during these first few weeks of the school year.
Starting August 31st at the Library is our Afterschool Program from 4pm-6pm, Monday through Thursday. Last year when we did the Afterschool Program we had different activities for each day. We will continue with this idea, but will broaden our scope to include more activities and crafts and to also include things for the kids to do that are independent of that day’s plan. Hopefully this will allow us to provide something that will be exciting for every kid that walks through our door. Different this year than last is that we will switch from calling it the Afterschool Program and start calling it the Afterschool Club. (Yes. The first thing we need to do in Afterschool Club is come up with a new name.) We are going to a sign up process for the club that will allow kids to gain points from Club related activities. Kids who join the club (which is free) will also get points for reading, community activities, and other library related programs. At the end of each month, the kids who have gained a certain amount of points will get to partake in a special party just for them. We are making the list of ways to get points pretty extensive, so my hope is that all kids will find they qualify for the party. If you know of any kids that want to join: call, email, or stop by the library for more information.
Now for you adults that may start to feel left out at this point, don’t worry. We have something for you as well. During the Adult Summer Reading Program we tried out a variety of activities to see which ones would get the most traction with our adult patrons. Sadly, trivia wasn’t a favorite. But we did learn that adults appreciate the opportunity to interact with area professionals about topics that relate to health and wellness. With that in mind we will be rolling out in September a once a month program where we will touch upon a topic related to health and wellness.
 Another thing that we learned about our adult users this summer is their interest in local history. With that in mind we will also focus on making those materials easier to find for our patrons and work on bringing in local and area speakers to talk about historical topics relating to Liberal, Seward County, and Southwest Kansas. Recently we were contacted by author Stew Magnuson who wrote the book “The Last American Highway: A Journey through time down U.S. Route 83: Nebraska Kansas Oklahoma.” He will be at the library on Wednesday, September 23rd at 6:30 pm for an hour long program that uncovers stories found along the road that bisects the United States from North to South.
These are just a few of the things we have on the agenda for the library this fall.
See you at your library.
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