Nicole Abreu Drysdale grew up in California where her love of the ocean, sunshine, good books, and creativity began. She has a bachelor's degree from Brigham Young University where she studied early childhood development. She has been teaching in preschools for children of all abilities for over a decade. She is passionate about creativity and helping children use their imaginations. Nicole lives with her family near the mountains, where she has learned to embrace the cold and seek out the sunshine. Her favorite time is spent hiking, running, reading, and making creative messes with her husband and their five wildly imaginative children. Find out more at NicoleandShar.com. Shar Abreu Petersen's love of writing began when she received her first diary on her eighth birthday, and it has grown ever since. She earned a bachelor's degree in English from Brigham Young University, where she discovered that writing children's literature was what she loved best. She spent more than twelve years helping create award-winning language and literacy software for young learners and is passionate about helping children find joy in reading. Shar lives in Utah with her artist husband and their four adventurous daughters. When she's not writing, you can find her exploring, swimming, baking, or rock climbing with her family and reading as often as she can. Over in the Woodland is the first picture book she and her twin sister have written together.