Category Archives: coloring book for kids

Tony Funderburk Posted on by

Yeah, I’ve got a sneaky way of saying things. Not every word or sentence I write. But certainly in some key places. Including places like books and music for kids. There are others who use this tactic for more sinister reasons?

The difference between me and them is I just told you about my sneaky way.

And actually, the sinister crowd is getting bolder these days. They realize there’s no real reason to hide or disguise their despicable deeds. Because even the Christian community has decided that you’re not supposed to judge.

That’s not only non-biblical, it’s a nonsensical destructive message/mantra.

I’ll tell you right now that if you’re a “judge not” person, either from a Christian or secular perspective, you should probably avoid buying any of my books and/or music. Especially the ones for kids. Because I can’t imagine you’d like the way I encourage kids to use their brains the good Lord gave them. And that’s because I encourage them to ask God (and trust Him) to help them make better choices, decisions, and judgments.

I’ll include the lyrics to one of the songs in my Bedtime Buckaroos lullaby songs collection that has a very subtle example of my sneaky way. See if you can figure out what and where it is in these lines:

The Silver Horse

In a night where colors drifted
Through the air on threads of light,
And the sounds of darkness shifted…
Came an incandescent sight.
All the creatures of the prairie
Were as still as they could be,
But it wasn’t something scary
As they all would clearly see…

The Silver Horse with diamond eyes…
It flew across the turquoise skies
And landed with a mighty force
And stars shined on the Silver Horse.

There were whispers in the gold wheat
And some rumors in the rye,
But the creatures all got cold feet
When it came to asking why…
Any horse with such a shimmer
Would be in this humble place.
But their hope began to glimmer
Just by gazing at the face…

Of The Silver Horse with diamond eyes…
That flew across the turquoise skies
And landed with a mighty force
And stars shined on the Silver Horse.

Then a tiny prairie sparrow
Flew up on the horse’s head.
It was nervous to the marrow,
But still here is what it said…
“Why would such a stunning creature
Choose to grace us with its light?
We don’t have one glowing feature.”
And the horse said “Cause it’s right.”  © 2012

Get the book with the secret link to the songs when you click or tap the link below:(https://www.amazon.com/Bedtime-Buckaroos-Sing-along-color/dp/B0898WLZ5L)

If you’re not ready to buy anything, you should subscribe to my Tony’s Rhyme and Reason Daily Devotional. Because the flashes of light I share on my website come directly to your inbox. So you can spend your valuable time reading instead of searching. And, to show my sincere appreciation for your time and attention, I’ll send you download links to books and music, right away. Kids from 3 to 103 can enjoy these fun goodies.

Daily Devotional

Stay tuned,

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Tony Funderburk Posted on by

Oliver Treze was born to write bright. And that was his answer when anyone asked what he did for a living. He’d smile a quarter smile and reply, “I write bright.”

So, every morning, he sat in the shade of olive trees to write bright words.

Words to wake the whimsy. Words to wake the joy.
All for flights of fancy. Words he could employ
To work his own magic, filled with opal light.
Nothing dark and tragic. No, he must write bright!

Maybe you noticed a kohwinkydink already. Did you catch it? Here’s a hint.

When Oliver Treze did his bright writing, he sat in the shade of olive trees.

Get it? Oliver Treze under the olive trees.

Yeah, ain’t it grand how kohwinkydinks pop up a lot of times when you least expect them? And ain’t it grand when they can give you a sort of magical aura brain massage? Yeah, those things are grand. Too bad most adults don’t even pick up on ’em.

Because if they could tune in to kohwinkydinks and dilly dally for even a few minutes, they might get to enjoy a whole ‘nother world. And I’m talkin’ about a world where trees talk to the stars. And where daydreams play Red Rover with Night Dreams.

But Oliver Treze never worried about what adults might or might not see.

Because he had millions of ideas swirling around in his head. And he knew if he worried about what anybody could or couldn’t see, that took away from bright writing time.

And that was time he was NOT willing to waste.

So, Oliver wrote. And wrote. And sometimes he’d stop to eat or sleep. But after that he wrote some more. And anyone who walked by would never imagine all the wondrous words that flowed out of his head into his pen. Or sometimes he’d take his trusty techie tablet and type a tapestry or two or three. Or thirty-three.

That’s how it was when, in one day, he wrote about two hundred pages. It was a ginormous, humongous, tremendous amount of poems. I happened to be sitting nearby just as he finished for the day. And the oddest thing happened. Oliver started to fade away.

I started to ask if there was something I could do to help. But he held up his hand to motion for me to come closer. So, I did.

And in a faint voice he said,

“I had to write bright.
But I wrote out my own light.
So, I know it’s right
That you take these words tonight.
Add them to the book
That I have here. Take a look.
Turn it into fun.
Do this for me. I…am…done.”

And, with those last three words, he faded away completely. With a quarter smile on his face.

So, I looked down at the last bright writing he did. And here’s what I saw…

Woods Of Wonder

Walking in the woods of wonder…
Leaping off a limb of lights…
Slipping down a secret Scots pine…
Kiwi trees are flying kites.
All around are dancing Aspens…
With their white and wondrous wings…
Bristling branches and sweet breezes…
Where a speckled sparrow sings.

There’s more to the poem. But to see Oliver’s very last lines, you’ll need to beam over to the Rhyme and Reason Bookshop and get your own downloadable copy of:

Ginormous Humongous Tremendous Book of Poems and Bedtime Stories for Kids

© 2003-2024

Stay tuned…

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Tony Funderburk Posted on by

Theo loved drawing and coloring from the moment he could hold a crayon. And his bedroom walls were papered with creations straight out of his wild imagination. Just about every other day he’d ask his mom or dad to get him some more drawing paper, crayons, and pencils.

His parents chose to encourage his drawing and coloring.

So, more often than not, they’d be sure to provide Theo with his supplies. After all, since it obviously wasn’t a passing phase, they knew the supplies could help train him up in the way he should go. Of course, they knew they’d have to show Theo how to stay within a budget and make his supplies last. Thankfully he understood that his mom and dad loved him. So, he never whined when they had to say no. Which wasn’t often.

Early one sunny Saturday morning, Theo showed his latest art to his tech-savvy older sister, Lena.

“Hey, Lena. Check it out. What do you think of my drawing of this city built into a mountain side? Pretty cool, huh?” And he handed her the paper. Lena look up from her iPad and sort of nodded, “Uh-huh.”

“You didn’t even really look. C’mon. I’d like to know what you think,” Theo pleaded.

So, Lena knew that tone in his voice. And she knew he wouldn’t let up until she really looked at his drawing.

“OK, give it here,” she said.

And she saw it was really good. She liked it. Yeah, Theo was most definitely good at drawing and coloring.

But then, Lena had an idea.

“Hey, you know what? You should try something really different. And I think you’ll like it a lot. Wanna know what it is?”

“Uh, yeah. I guess so. What is it?” Theo asked.

And Lena showed him a drawing and coloring app on her iPad.

“Oh, yuck,” he said. “I don’t wanna draw on some slick screen with a fake pencil.”

But Lena showed him a screen cover she used when she took notes for school. And it made the slick surface of the iPad screen feel more like paper.

“Here. Feel it,” she insisted.

At first, Theo thought it just felt weird. Not at all like the texture of his sketch paper. But then Lena handed him her digital pencil and let him try it out. After just a few stroked he started to get the hang of it. Then Lena showed him how he could work with layers, tons of digital brushes, and colors that never ran out.

Theo was hooked.

So, I’m sure you can guess what he asked his parents for next. Right? Yep. His own iPad. But they worked out a deal with him to be sure he eventually paid for it himself. That way he’d appreciate the value of ownership.

Once he got his hands on his own iPad, it almost became a part of him. Everywhere he went, the tablet was always with him. Because he didn’t want anything to stop him from drawing and coloring at a moment’s notice.

Then, Lena showed Theo where he could watch online lessons. And where he could learn even way more about the world of digital art. He soaked it up. And little by little he figured out more and more of the almost unlimited possibilities of creating art on a tablet. He loved how he could wipe out mistakes with a tap, blend colors and undo them if they weren’t right, and experiment without ever running out of paper.

And, sure, I could tell you more about the story of Theo and his digital art. But I’m sure you’d like to work on your own. Or, if you’re the parent or grandparent of kids like Theo, you’d like to be encouraging like his parents.

So, start ’em off right.

With a big bang at the Rhyme and Reason Bookshop. And I’ll let you in a little secret. I just added a book so big, so full of pages for drawing and coloring, that you’d have to spend a bunch of dough to get in a paperback. But if you’ve got access to an iPad, boy oh boy can you save a TON!

Go to the Rhyme and Reason Bookshop and look for the book with the long title and lots of colorful pictures. Click on that picture and you can download over 200 pages of drawing and coloring and rhymes. And forget about paying those crazy prices on that site named after a Brazilian river.

Stick with me and we’ll enjoy the pure river of water of Life.

Stay tuned,

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Tony Funderburk Posted on by

If you’ve never met the Icle family, you’e certainly missed out on a special treat. First, there’s Grandpa Icle. But most people know him as Pops. Then there’s Uncle Bice Icle. And cousin Trice Icle. Then, there’s King Lear Icle. At least that’s what the rest of the family call Leero. Because he walks around the house quoting Shakespeare at the oddest times. But my favorite of them all is Auntie Whims Icle. I absolutely LUV her whimsical art. And she paints something new literally every day.

And her whimsical art flies from her whimsical heart.

That’s just the who she is.

For example, you notice I said her whimsical art “flies” from her heart. Right? Well, most people would probably say it flows from her heart. But Auntie Whims Icle would just say, “That’s not how I’m made.”

And I remember, on more than one occasion, how she’d say she could no more hold her paintings inside her than you and I could defy gravity. She’d say her art flew out of her heart, into the paint, swirled around, leaped onto her brush, and lifted her hand to the canvas. And she became its willing accomplice to the process.

Yeah, I found myself thinking about the Icle family this morning. And I wasn’t quite sure why. Then, I realized it’s Wednesday. And you know what Wednesday is. No, silly, not the dreadful “hump day.” It’s Whimsical.

So, naturally I thought about the poem, Whimsical Wednesday, I wrote a few years ago. And I thought about how it’s included in a jam-packed book of rhymes and stories. Here’s a sample:

Whimsical Wednesday tickles the tongue,
Lilting and loving, keeping us young.

Now, don’t be a negative Nancy Not Icle. Just jump on over to the Rhyme and Reason Bookshop  and watch for the release of the “Ginormous Humongous Tremendous Book of Poems and Short Bedtime Stories for Kids.” It’s enormous I tell ya. With tons of words and whimsical art. And tons of space for drawing.

And, for the first time, it’ll be a much more affordable downloadable book. You should see what the physical book costs on Amazon. Yikes! On second thought, no you shouldn’t. So, don’t go to this LINK. Instead, go to the following link and download a copy in the Rhyme and Reason Bookshop ASAP. (that means right away)

Stay tuned…

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