A Great Nephew and a Great Aunt: Liam and Penny

Posted on by Penny Parker Klostermann

poetry friday buttonThanks to Lisa at Steps and Staircases for hosting the Poetry Friday Roundup today. If you’d like to know more about Poetry Friday, click HERE for an explanation by Renee LaTulippe.

Ants may rule the hill, but they don’t rule here! Art by Landon

Hello Friends! Just In case you haven’t visited before, let me tell you a little about A Great Nephew and A Great Aunt. My great nephew, Landon (now an eighth-grader) and I (his great aunt) collaborate. I write a poem which he illustrates. We started this collaboration in the fall of 2014 and had so much fun with it that we decided to invite others along. Landon and I will continue to have a new episode on one Friday of each month. The other Fridays are filling up quickly with guests sharing poetry and art in beautiful collaborations. I have created a page on my website to view all the episodes of A Great Nephew and a Great Aunt. Click HERE to visit the page and enjoy past episodes.

Today Landon’s younger brother, Liam, is collaborating with me. This is the first time for Liam and I to collaborate. Liam sent me a special request…via snail mail! As you can imagine, I was very impressed and excited when I received his letter expressing his interest in illustrating a poem. Liam did join in on a post that included all of my great nieces and nephews in October...thus the reference to the pumpkin pie/jack-o-lantern. But he’d never been the “feature” artist. When I received his letter, the November post had already been solidified and so I moved on to December. I’d already written a poem. In reading Liam’s request, I decided that he could interpret my poem without any trouble. Just the mention of cartoons and a funny twist seemed to imply that Liam would read my words and come up with a creative spin. And he did just that! I’m super impressed with his interpretation and his artwork! He did an amazing job! And the funny twist had me giggling!

Enjoy our collaboration!

Penny’s Poem

Liam’s Art

100% Cotton Candy Underpants! Ho! Ho! Ho! Very funny! And how I love that Santa wears polka dots! It was delightful to get a peek at his wardrobe.

Thanks to all of you for joining us today. I appreciate you coming by to read A Great Nephew and a Great Aunt! Come back next week when I’ll have guest collaborators.

46 thoughts on “A Great Nephew and a Great Aunt: Liam and Penny”

  4. “100% cotton candy underpants!” –> Liam, you have me laughing with your depiction! Penny, your collaboration is brilliant — the “Claus-it” wordplay. I’m not a Poetry Friday regular, so your space is new to me. I have signed-up for future posts from you. Love how you bring your relationships and creative work together.

    Liked by 1 person

  6. Oh, this is priceless. What amazing talents you have in your family, Penny. I love those polka dots with their puffy necks and the cotton candy underpants with the odor lines above them. LOL And the giant elf foot, as if the illustrator were a tiny mouse peeking from a mouse hole, nearly squashed by an enormous elf. I’m still chuckling.

    Liked by 1 person

  8. Such a sweet and formal letter. I like Liam’s style and all of the tiny detail. “Cotton candy” underpants — very clever. Two brother’s with different styles. And I love your poem. Can’t believe you so many greats in your family with a lot of talent!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thanks, Pat. I loved the details, too! I’m so lacking in art skills that it blows me away that he made it look like the hangers are on the rod and that the rod goes through the belt holder. I wouldn’t be able to figure that out! As far as so many greats with a lot of talent…they are talented for sure. But I think they really rise to the occasion when asked to collaborate with an adult on a project. This seems to matter a lot to them.
      The letter will be a keepsake for sure!

      Like

  10. Liam’s art fits your fun poem beautifully, Penny. I love that added ‘elf leg’ on the right and like others, the ‘cotton candy underpants’! Your word play is so clever: “Claus-it” – Love-it!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Ha! Cotton candy underpants is one of those punchlines that will have everyone Ho-ho-ho-ing right along with Santa! And love your lines because…
      of course he’ll never, never share
      his cotton candy underwear!

      Like

  20. Love love love this!! Adorable poem and awesome art by Liam. Polka dots are my favorite, and of course, the cotton candy underpants are too much. What a kick to finally see Santa’s closet. What a tidy man :)!

    Liked by 1 person

  21. oh man…. Liam’s letter is a heart wrencher!!

    On Fri, Dec 8, 2017 at 4:01 AM, Penny Parker Klostermann wrote:

    > Penny Parker Klostermann posted: “Thanks to Lisa at Steps and Staircases > for hosting the Poetry Friday Roundup today. If you’d like to know more > about Poetry Friday, click HERE for an explanation by Renee LaTulippe. > Hello Friends! Just In case you haven’t visited before, let me tel” >

    Liked by 1 person

Comments are closed.