Rosie, a little girl with a curiosity as big as all outdoors, discovers the magic of the garden in this delightfully illustrated book for children from three to eight. Her world disrupted by a move to a new place, Rosie learns about choosing seeds, planting, fertilizing, and nurturing flowers and vegetables and, after the seeds have sprouted, she plays wonderful games using her imagination to turn the plants into her babies or her loyal subjects. When school time rolls around, Rosie finds comfort in her new friends, many of whom resemble the marvelous flowers she's grown in her summer garden. Children who read about Rosie's garden adventure can try their own hands at growing plants using the seed packets attached to the back cover of the book.

Travel beneath the Chesapeake Bay, where Spud, a feisty young blue crab, hates to nap. Waking his underwater friends, Spud launches a rollicking Christmas Eve party that is interrupted by an unexpected traveler in need of Spud's help. Can Spud help bring Christmas to the Bay?

The Chesapeake Bay is an amazing body of water-the largest estuary in North America. The first of its kind, this book stimulates elementary- and middle-school children's interest in the Bay by exposing them to the fascinating creatures and plants found in and around the Bay's 2,500 square miles. Concepts such as watershed, airshed, and food web are explained in concise, understandable terms. This is an effective means for children to discover the interesting traits of some of the plants, animals, birds, and fish they are likely to find in and around the Bay. A new "Citizen Science" guide to water quality empowers children and adults to monitor the health of local streams and creeks.