Alabama–Many kids and adults alike have fond memories of their “much-loved” childhood companion—be it a bear, blanket, or rabbit.  In the children’s book, The Adventures of Blair Bear and Nunny the Bunny, local author, Blair May Newman, takes you on romps with her sidekick Nunny the Bunny!Blair was born in Alabama, growing up in Jasper.  Most of her career has been spent fundraising for The Arthritis Foundation—a very passionate job for someone who was diagnosed at the young age of two with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis.  Blair believes her attachment to her bunny, Nunny, was due to the pain & loneliness of dealing with a chronic disease at such a young age.From the moment Blair arrived home from the hospital as a newborn, the adventures of Blair & Nunny began! Nunny was in her crib, given as a gift by a family friend. As a child, Blair could not pronounce the word bunny, so she called the rabbit Nunny and declared he was a BOY...thank you very much!  Blair and Nunny have been together through thick and thin, there was even a piece of Nunny sewn into Blair’s wedding dress!Blair can remember dreaming of writing children’s stories her entire childhood.  Advised by her older brother, she kept a binder with her collected stories. She can remember the color of that binder and the stickers attached!Finally in 2011 Blair started writing the book. She reached out to her friend Weezie Boiles in hopes that Weezie would be interested in illustrating the book.  Weezie is an artist and graphic designer and had always wanted to illustrate a children’s book, so they were the perfect team!Weezie’s illustrations are a work of art.  All illustrations were done by hand in watercolor using images from Blair’s childhood and even her life today.  To make Blair Bear look old Weezie used an image of Blair’s daughter May from her 100th day of school.On the last page of the book you can see a picture of Blair and Nunny taken during the Mother’s Day Out program at The First United Methodist Church in Jasper.  Joan Thornton of The Very Idea was Blair’s teacher back then and can remember that Blair would not attend without her Nunny! 78The Adventures of Blair Bear and Nunny the Bunny is a children’s book for all ages and the illustrations are beautiful! To order the book, e-mail nunny@nunnybunny.com or visit www.nunnybunny.com.  Social media hashtag: nunnybunny