At the Library

David loves the library. Unfortunately, this means that he uses his (very) loud voice to express his excitement. We walk run past the people sitting studiously at the computers, and when I ask him to use his “quiet voice,” he gets terribly offended and screams “NOOOO” even louder.

We haven’t been kicked out yet.

Here are some highlights from our bags:

For David: Boats on the River by Peter Mandel.

boatsontheriver

 

I am getting a little tired of dump trucks and bulldozers. I picked this one out, in hopes that David will expand his interests to include boats. So far he has enjoyed counting how many people are on each boat.

 

 

For me:

Quilled Flowers: A Garden of 35 Paper Projects Quilled-Flowers-coverby Alli Bartkowski

After drooling over this book, I decided I’m going to have a new hobby.  Quilling looks fun and inexpensive . . and perhaps it will be something I can get into. I’ve bought some cards at Ten Thousand Villages that were quilled, but little did I know that that is what the technique was called. I decided to go quilling-crazy on Pinterest.  We will see if my “new hobby” gets any further than that.

 

 

Naturally Fun Parties for Kids: Creating Handmade, Earth-Friendly Celebrations for All Seasons and Occasions by Anni Daulter

funpartiesMost of this book is geared towards older children than my two-year-old, but I still had fun looking at recipes and thinking of ways to celebrate living in each season of the year. I really want our home to be a inviting place for others, and as David grows I want his friends to have fun playing at our house. This book made me dream a little bit in color of what that might look like.

Pictures of Hollis Woods

Sometimes I get tired of adult fiction, and read youth/young adult fiction instead. Josiah’s cousin introduced me to Patricia Reilly Giff. I read Pictures of Hollis Woods (Newberry Honor 2003) one afternoon while David was napping. I’m glad he’s a good napper!

holliswoods In Pictures of Hollis Woods, Patricia tells the story of Hollis, a girl who is wishing for her own family after being placed in many different foster homes. Hollis’ anxiety about the social worker’s visits remind me of experiences I’ve had as a foster parent.  On that note, I wish that there would be more books written from the perspective of the foster parent. I’ll have to be on the lookout!  If you’re into movies, I see that there is a movie version of this book – I don’t know how much it follows the book.

In Our Library Bag – June 7

David’s picks:

brownbear Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? -Eric Carle:  Great book. I don’t know how many times David has picked this, even though we have it at home.

 

 

 

My Clothes/Mi Ropa – Rebecca Emberley:myclothes I guess David wants to learn Spanish.

 

 

five-little-ducks-w-holes Five Little Ducks – Rebecca Emberley: The little holes in the pages are David’s favorite part.

 

 

 

I ordered for David:

headshoulders Head, shoulders, knees, and toes-Annie Kubler: David says “no” every time I start reading this one, so I’m guessing that he’s not a fan.

 

 

Teddy Bear, Teddy BearteddybearAnnie Kubler: We like to act this one out. David now knows how to turn around.

 

 

I ordered for myself:

hungrymonkey Hungry Monkey: A food-loving father’s quest to raise an adventurous eater – Matthew Amster-Burton: A very entertaining book – fun snippets and yummy-looking recipes. I don’t know why I decided to read it while experimenting with the GAPS diet – I want some cheese!!! (and chocolate and bread)

 

deeper-waterDeeper Water: A Tides of Truth Novel. – Robert Whitlow: I decided to try some Christian fiction again- this time a legal drama. It was kinda interesting, but I’m not sure if I’ll read the others in the series or not. I have always had a fascination with the law, but never enough to seriously consider law school.

 

 

In Our Library Bag This Week – 5/31/13

I decided to keep track of our reading by recording our library books each week.

David’s pick:

Tails – Matthew Van Fleet. tails0 This is a super-cute, interactive book. I can tell by the wear that many other children love it too.

 

Ordered for David:

thewheelsonthebus

The Wheels on the Bus Go Round and Round – illustrated by Annie Kubler. David is into wheels right now, so we sing every page, every day.

 

 

 

Row, Row, Row Your Boat – illustrated by Annie Kubler.rowyourboat Not quite as cool as the Wheels on the Bus, but I still want to order Kubler’s other song-picture-books.

 

 

love you through

 

I Love You Through and Through-  by Bernadette Rossetti-Shustak. “I love you running, and walking, silent, and talking. I love you through and through. . . yesterday, today and tomorrow, too.”

 

 

Ordered for myself:

Operating Instructions: A Journal of My Son’s First Year byOperating Instructions Anne Lamott. Apparently I already read this book, but I didn’t realize it until I started reading it again. I can’t decide if I like Lamott’s style or not. She is hilarious, but a little raw for my taste.  This made me laugh: “I just can’t get over how much babies cry. I really had no idea what I was getting into. To tell you the truth, I thought it would be more like getting a cat.”

The Little Boy & the Library Book

IMG_6133There once was a little boy who loved going to the library. Whenever his mama drove into the parking lot, he would yell out “Library! Books!”  Each week his mama would pick out new books for him to read.

This particular week, she chose Lucy Cousins’ Noah’s Ark. Noah's ark

It was a big hit.

After reading the book approximately 20 times the first day, the little boy wanted to sleep with his book. After his mama said no (because mama knew how little boy liked to rip pages), he could be heard wailing, “Noah!” from his crib.

And the next day, he proceeded to carry his beloved book around all day.

I don’t know why David is fascinated with this book, but I thought I’d share it. It’s simple, colorful, but not totally accurate biblically (if you’re being picky- there’s nothing glaringly wrong). Now I need to go hide it before David wakes up from his nap and wants me to read it. Again. For the one hundredth time. Just kidding. I don’t hide books.  (Although I did hide David’s baby book because I wanted it to last until at least his second birthday.)

Easter Books for Children (minus the bunnies)

easterbooks copy

Want to read an Easter book to your child, without all the bunnies?  I do love bunnies (we have a pet rabbit!), but there is more to Easter.  Here are some of my favorites:

theeasterstoryThe Easter Story- Patricia Pingry: This board book is a keeper. With simple pictures and simple message, it is perfect for the toddler in your life. (I was slightly disappointed by the way the illustrator depicted everyone’s skin as very white. . . Jesus lived in the Middle East!)

 

 

The Tale of the Three Trees – Angela Hunt: I love threetreesthat this book tells the story in a different way – through the perspective of three trees (there is a different board book version of this book that David enjoys).

 

 

 

 

 

letscelebratejesus Let’s Celebrate Jesus on Easter – Amy Beveridge: David loves this board book. The book doesn’t tell the biblical account, but it talks about different traditions and how Jesus is greater.  Here’s an example: “On Easter I will hunt for eggs, but Jesus never has to hunt for me – he always knows right where I am.”

 

 

 

 

Benjamin’s Box – Melody Carlson:

David is too youngbenjamin's box for this one, but I could see myself using this in the future with Resurrection Eggs. The story is told through the eyes of Benjamin, a Jewish boy who watches the events of Passion Week unfold. He fills his box with the same symbols as are in the resurrection eggs. (By the way, it is super-easy to make your own Resurrection Eggs – plenty of tutorials for that!)

 

thefirsteasterThe First Easter – Carol Heyer Beautiful summary of the story of Jesus’ life and final days on earth. (And yes, I felt like the skin tones were more appropriate in this one!)

 

 

 

 

 

The Parable of the Lily- Liz Curtis Higgs:parableofthelily

I like the story line, but I don’t enjoy the pictures. I included it here because of the symbolism of the lily bulb and new life. This book does not tell the biblical account, but reading the book can start the discussion.

 

 

 

 

Do you have any favorite Easter books for children? Please share!

Photo credit: peasap / Foter.com / CC BY

More things = more happiness?

you are not your stuff
Ian Koh / Foter / CC BY-NC

I don’t know what it is, but every year around this time, I get really into organizing and de-cluttering. I think that this year it may be even worse because of all I’ve been learning about poverty and oppression in the world around me.

Here is one of my favorite children’s books that celebrates simplicity and the joy of giving:

quiltmakers_gift

The Quiltmaker’s Gift by Jeff Brumbeau and Gail de Marcken. I haven’t read it to David because I don’t want him to rip the pages.

Here’s the synopsis main part of the story without the ending:

A woman makes beautiful quilts to give to the poor and needy. A unhappy king who already has everything wants a quilt. But the quiltmaker will only give him one if he makes presents of everything he owns.

 

I will leave you to guess what happens, or read it to find out.

Things I love about the book:

  • Beautiful, detailed illustrations
  • Message that happiness does not come from what we have

Something I would change:

  • Illustrations just feature people with pale skin

Appropriate for:

  • Adults who like reading picture books (people like me)
  • Elementary age children for read-aloud/independent reading (you know your child’s abilities better than me)

My (Current) Top 5 Children’s Christmas Books

I love children’s books. Sometimes I think I should have been a children’s librarian. But that’s a whole other blog post. For now, I want to share some of my (current) favorite children’s books for Christmas. These are ones I found on my own bookshelves. I’m sure if I went to our local library, I would pick 5 OTHER books as my favorites!

1. Who Is Coming to Our House? by Joseph Slate and Ashley Wolff

In this book, the animals in the stable get ready for some special visitors: Mary, Joseph, and baby Jesus. The rhyming text does use some old words (1980s!) but it is still appropriate for a small child. David loves this board book, even though he just moo’s through the whole story.

 

 

2. The Christmas Day Kitten by James Herriot, illustrated by Ruth Brown

christmas day kitten

I loved this book as a child, probably because I love cats. Unfortunately I discovered I am allergic to them,  but I can still enjoy this book. Written by a veterinarian, this book has no ties to the biblical narrative, but it still gives me warm fuzzies when I read it. Because of its length, it is more suitable for an older child with a longer attention span. (Sorry David)

 

 

3. The Little Drummer Boy – by Ezra Jack Keats

 

I have trouble not singing the song as I read this book. For those of you who are not familiar with the song or book, a little boy plays his drum for baby Jesus. I know that this is not necessarily based on the Bible, but I do appreciate the message: do what you do well for Jesus, and that will probably make Him smile.

 

 

4. This Is the Stable – by Cynthia Cotten and illustrated by Delana Bettoli

 

I found this treasure at some yard sale or thrift store, where I find most of my books. Simple rhyming text tells the story of Jesus’ birth. Young children enjoy reciting the repetitive words.

 

 

 

 

5. Song of the Stars: A Christmas Story by Sally Lloyd-Jones and illustrated by Alison Jay.

song of the starsWow. I saw this in a bookstore and bought it at full price – it is that good! If you’re familiar with The Jesus Storybook Bible, then you may recognize the author’s style. All of creation is waiting and getting ready for the birth of Christ. I love how Sally Lloyd-Jones ties Jesus as baby and Jesus as co-creator together in this story.

 

What are your favorite children’s Christmas books?