06/01/2026
When people ask me which of my stories is my favorite, I usually tell them that's like asking me to choose a favorite child.
But Daisy the Daisy will always hold a special place in my heart.
When I first began telling these stories to my granddaughters, I wasn't an author. I was working in real estate and making up bedtime stories because two little girls asked me to "tell a story from your mouth."
Daisy's dream was simple. She wanted to be part of a beautiful bouquet. She believed that was her purpose.
But life had other plans.
What I love most about Daisy is that she discovers something many of us learn eventually: sometimes what we think we want isn't the whole story. Sometimes our greatest impact comes in ways we never expected.
Years later, when it came time to publish the story, a talented young artist named Quinn Kilburn brought Daisy's world to life. Quinn was only ten years old when she illustrated the book and her drawings captured the sweetness and innocence I imagined when I first told the story.
Together, Daisy the Daisy went on to earn recognition as a semi-finalist by the Florida Writer's Conference, something neither Daisy nor I could have imagined when the story began as a bedtime tale.
That's the funny thing about stories. All of my books are available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Walmart, Powells, Indigo and many other stores.
Just like flowers, they sometimes bloom in unexpected places.
– Lauren
