Mary Smith – författare

Start signing with your baby today! This comprehensive book makes signing easy with photos of real kids using 100+ signs, plus expert advice on teaching your baby to communicate early.In Baby Sign Language, Mary Smith—ASL interpreter and founder of popular sign language education business Sign ’n Grow—shares everything you need for learning how to sign with your 0–3-year-old. Maybe you’ve seen it online or remember a friend and their baby signing MILK or MORE. No matter why you’re interested, what you’ve heard is true: signing is one of the best ways to kickstart communication. When your baby can sign, they'll get frustrated less—and you will be able to bond more closely. At the heart of the book are a broad array of photographed signs that are easy to understand thanks to the real kids signing them. You’ll find everything your baby wants to tell you, including: Mealtime Signs: Milk, Food, More, All Done, Drink, Water, Please, Thank You, Yes, No, Hungry, Thirsty Daytime Signs: Help, Open, Up, Pacifier, Light, Bath, Diaper, Blanket, Bed, Sleep, Morning, Night, Potty, Poop, and A Variety of Clothing Signs Playtime Signs: Again, Read, Book, Play, Toy, Dance, Music, Ball, Try, Friend, Take Turns, Gentle, Dog, Cat Family Signs: Love, Mommy, Daddy, Baby, Sister, Brother, Grandma, Grandpa, How Baby Feels Signs: Feel, Happy, Silly, Sad, Angry, Scared, Frustrated, Sleepy, Hurt Outdoors Signs: House, Walk, Outside, Playground, Grass, Tree, Car, Airplane, Sun, Moon, Stars, Rain, Snow …And many more! With songs, stories, and games to encourage learning, and insider tips to boost your baby's language development, this is truly an all-in-one guide for helping your baby tell you their wants and needs before they start to talk.

Dumfries, a market town in south-west Scotland known as the Queen of the South, is the administrative capital of the Dumfries and Galloway region and has a population of almost 32,000. Dumfries has a turbulent and sometimes bloody history with links to the Roman occupation of Britain, Bonnie Prince Charlie’s failed Jacobite uprising, the colonisation of America and imperialism. Most famously Scotland’s bard, Robert Burns, spent his final years in Dumfries with many places in the town having connections to the poet. Its thriving port trade is now a thing of the past and although once one of the largest tweed producers in the world, it has never been a major industrial centre.The photographs show that much has changed in Dumfries – not always for the better. Some of the photographs in this collection have special poignancy as many historical buildings have been demolished in the name of progress. Doonhamers are proud of their town and its history. Dumfries Through Time hopes to demonstrate the importance of the town’s built heritage and is essential reading for anyone interested in the history of Dumfries.

The market town of Castle Douglas, beside Carlingwark Loch in the southern Scottish region of Dumfries and Galloway, is relatively new, though the area has been inhabited from prehistoric times and the Romans had a military base close by. In the fourteenth century, Archibald the Grim, the 3rd Earl of Douglas, built Threave Castle nearby.The town came into being thanks to fertiliser found in the loch and wealthy merchant William Douglas, who laid out the present town in 1792. Though his dream of creating a cotton industry failed, Castle Douglas became a flourishing market town. The opening of the rail line to Dumfries in 1859 improved the town’s connections.Though the railway closed in 1965, the A75 trunk road ensured the town’s survival as a major stopping point for travellers. Today, it is a major tourist destination, with many visitors using it as a base for exploring this beautiful part of Scotland. All these changes are recorded in this unique and fascinating series of new and old photographs, making this book essential reading for anyone interested in the history of Castle Douglas.

Dumfries, in south-west Scotland, has a long history, much of it well recorded. However, as with most places there are more than a few secrets hidden away. First referred to as the Queen of the South by local poet David Dunbar in 1857, the name stuck and was later adopted by the local football team. Not many know that this makes it the only football team in the world mentioned in the Bible. Darker aspects of the town’s history include the burning of nine witches on the Whitesands in 1659 and the last public hanging of a woman in Scotland, Mary Timney, was held in Dumfries in 1862. There are tales of plague victims being exiled to Scabbit Isle, of murderers and grave robbers. Not all its secrets are so dark: there’s Patrick Miller and his introduction of turnips courtesy of King Gustav III of Sweden, and the exiled Norwegian Army making its home in Dumfries during the Second World War. And what is the significance of the finials depicting telescopes and anchors on the railings along the Whitesands?Local author Mary Smith and photographer Keith Kirk take the reader on a fascinating journey through the town’s past, unearthing tales of intrigue and grisly goings-on as they provide a glimpse into some of the lesser-known aspects of the town’s history.