Another Book Signing

Got my picture taken with Julie Andrews last Thursday!

Ok, not really.  She doesn't allow photographs, but we did get to meet her!  She was signing her new children's book, A Very Fairy Princess at our local B&N.  I went with KT, TMax, Pipster, and LP.  It was very exciting since I've been a huge fan all my life.

I can't even tell you how many times I've watched The Sound of Music in my lifetime.  Singing along every time, much to the annoyance of my family.

My sister and I sang The Sound of Music for my grandparents' 60th anniversary party.  We were very young.  And it was not very good, I'm sure.  

Mary Poppins.  Victor Victoria.  Love them.

We had a long line to stand in when we got to the store.  An employee showed us to the end of the line, explaining the rules the whole time:

No photographs.

No personalization of books.

No more than one book signed.

Just a little "face time" with Ms. Andrews.

These are her rules.  Yada yada yada.

When she saw our copy of The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles that I had brought to read to the kids while we waited, she pointed out again that Ms. Andrews would not sign that!

It was very funny when KT took a little tour around the bookstore and heard Julie Andrews talking.  She came back and told me how wonderful she sounded.  So, I went with TMax to do some snooping and eavesdropping (which employees were trying very hard to discourage).  We also heard her talking!  Lol.  One lady who came out said Julie smelled the best of any woman she's ever smelled!  Lol, again.  Snooping finished, TMax and I went back to find KT in line and share what we heard.  Typical saps, KT and I both burst into tears!  We were just so excited to meet this woman we both have loved all our lives.

Did you know she has written books before?  We have 2 of her books:  Mandy (her first) and The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles (her second).  My mother bought Whangdoodles for me when it came out in 1974, and it was one of my favorite books ever.  I stumbled across it 10 or so years ago and bought it for KT.  It came in a volume that includes Mandy.  I bought it because I remembered loving it as a child, not for the author because she published it under the name Julie Edwards.  This new volume, however, had the name Julie Andrews Edwards, so I discovered just 10 years ago that it was by my musical heroine!

The line moved fairly quickly once she got started signing books.  Before we knew it, we were before Her Majesty.  She seemed to talk mostly to Meg and Pip because they were at her eye level and looking up at people standing all evening was sure to get tiring.  (Kicking myself for not getting down on her level!)  

We told her how much we loved her movies---or Meg did.  Ms. Andrews asked which was her favorite, to which she replied "The Princess Diaries."  I told her how much I loved the Whangdoodle and that I was reading it to the kids in line.  Pipster displayed it as if on cue, and she offered to sign it, too!  She asked the kids where we were in the story and if they were enjoying it.

Sigh.  She was just beautiful and gracious.  A lovely voice and very much the lady you'd expect her to be.  I didn't get a chance to ask her when the second half of her memoir would be out.  

That was really just the highlight of my summer.  

I don't think I'll ever be the same.  

And I didn't even get to touch her.

;-)