Are you busy in the garden?

It's springtime and in our family that means gardening time.  We are definitely busy in the garden tilling, weeding, watering and picking all so we can enjoy yummy, fresh veggies!

Picking strawberries

Our garden- just planted

If you don't have space for your own garden, check out some local community gardens.  in community gardens you can purchase a plot to garden yourself.  Many community gardens have garden managers who are able to answer any questions you might have about gardening.  Louisville has both Metro Government managed gardens as well as non-profit community gardens.  A few of the non-profit community gardens are Billy Goat Hill Garden, The Parklands and the St. Francis Center.  

Even if you don't have your own garden take advantage of those that do and visit your local Farmer's Market!  Here is a list of Farmer's Markets in the Louisville area.

If you aren't getting outside to garden and work in the yard- at least get outside for some read aloud time! Busy in the Garden by George Shannon is a super cute poem book all about springtime, flowers and gardening.  Each poem is rhyming and illustrated making this the perfect book for reading aloud.  He even has riddles about different plants/crops that might be found in the garden.  These poems are so fun they will bring out the green thumb in anyone!

Happy Reading (and gardening!)

Laura

Books Starring Moms

Since this weekend is all about moms here are some great kid books starring moms and their kiddos!

1) Just Me and My Mom by Mercer Mayer

You probably know the Little Critter series written by Mercer Mayer.  He has books about EVERYTHING in that series.  If you are looking for a book to teach your child about a certain topic, try checking out this series.  In Just Me and My Mom Little Critter and his mom take a trip into the city together- just the two of them.  They ride the train- Little Critter loses the tickets.  They go to the museum- Little Critter touches the exhibits.  They go to eat lunch at a nice restaurant- Little Critter brings his frog.  It is one problem after another for Little Critter and his mom.  Then on the way home Little Critter falls asleep in his mom's lap, making the trip with all its problems, worth it.

2) Nana in the City by Lauren Castillo

A little boy travels to the city to visit Nana.  To the little boy the city is big, scary and no place for a nana to live all by herself.  But then in true Nana fashion she knits the little boy a super hero cape and takes him out to show him all the fun they can have in the city.  With the help of Nana and his super hero cape the little boy realizes how EXTRAORDINARY the city is.  Leave it to Nana's to show their grandkids how to have a good time- no matter where they are! They are the true super heroes!

3) Llama Llama Misses Mama by Anna Dewdney

We cannot leave Llama Llama and his mama off of this list of books starring moms and their kiddos!  Llama Llama and his mama are always learning lessons and figuring things out together.  From going grocery shopping together in Llama Llama Mad at Mama (see my post here) or saying good night in Llama Llama Red Pajama.  In Llama Llama Misses Mama Little Llama is off to his first day of school. He has to say goodbye to his mama and learn how to play and have fun with his new friends, all while missing his mama.  Then Little Llama learns that his mama will always come back to him and he can love his mama and school.

4) The Cuddle Book by Guido Van Genechten

Ask any kid who the best person to cuddle with is and I am pretty sure they will say their mom. The Cuddle Book by Guido Van Genechten proves this.  The cute illustrations show different animal mommies cuddling with their babies.  We learn that elephants cuddle with their trunks and that it is hard for crabs to cuddle.  The books ends with the very best cuddle- Mommy's cuddle!

I hope all you mommies out their find time this weekend to read and cuddle with your little (or big) kiddos!

Happy Reading!
Laura

Never Forget

Today marks the 13th anniversary of 9/11.  It is so hard to believe that it was 13 years ago my sociology professor got a phone call in the middle of class, it was his wife telling him a plane had crashed into the World Trade Tower.  He immediately told us to go home, "This is not where you need to be, this is not good.  Go home and check on your families," he told us.  By the time I got back to my dorm and turned on the television a plane had struck the other tower.  Like everyone else in our country I was shocked and scared.

In the days after 9/11 our country united.  It was probably one of the most patriotic times I can remember in my life time.  Everyone was truly proud to be an American.  Everyone was helping one another, supporting one another.  You could not go anywhere without seeing a flag flying.  It was bright side to a horrific tragedy.

It is crazy to think that most school aged children were not even born when 9/11 happened.  Just like I was not living when Pearl Harbor was bombed, Kennedy was assassinated or Martin Luther King Jr. killed.  But just because I was not alive at the time, does not mean I don't need to know about it.  Our children need to know what happened on 9/11 and more importantly how we came together as Americans to support, reach out and love one another.  It can be a difficult topic to approach, especially with children, so many issues that are hard to understand.  Luckily, we can always turn to literature to help us teach children.

The Man Who Walked Between the Towers, by Mordicai Gernstein is the true story of Philippe Petit, a tightrope walker who dared to walk between the two towers.  Phillipe normally performed in the park.  But when he saw the towers being built he just had to walk between them.  One night him and some friends strung a wire between the two towers and at dawn Phillipe began to walk between them.  Quickly the police ran to the top of the towers yelling, "You are under arrest."  But no one would come and get him as long as he was on the wire.  "For almost an hour he walked back and forth, he walked, danced, ran and knelt in a salute upon the wire."  Eventually he surrendered to the police and was sentenced to performing for children in the park.  The book ends with Phillipe falling, but catching himself, during one of his performances, and telling us the towers are gone now but their memory is still imprinted in the sky.

For kids who know nothing about the towers, this book offers a story about them as well as beautiful pictures.  The reader will also notice how Phillipe, although he fell, was able to catch himself, which is just what America did.  On 9/11 America fell, but we were able to catch ourselves and 13 years later we are still a country where freedom reigns.

How do you talk to your kids about September 11?

Never Forget,
Laura

International Literacy Day

How great is it to have an entire day devoted to reading and literacy?  Last year I shared a book about reading with you all for International Literacy Day (see that post here).  So I think I will do the same this year!  This one just happens to be written by my favorite author and includes two of my favorite literary characters!

Gerald and Piggie go on yet another adventure in We Are in a Book! by Mo Willems.  This time the two friends realize that they are in a book and are being read.  They love it!  It is so cool that they are being read they chant it, "We are being read!  We are in a book!"  Then Piggie realizes that they can make the reader say different words, but only if the reader reads out loud.  Piggie makes the readers say, "banana" and Gerald and Piggie are overcome with laughter.  Banana is so funny to the two of them! Heeheehee Hahaha!  Then Gerald realizes that soon the book will end and he goes from laughing to crying.  He tells the reader that he, "has more to give.  More words... more bananas!"  Luckily, Piggie once again saves the day by asking the reader to, "Please read us again."

My son got his own copy of this book for completing the 1,000 books before kindergarten challenge from the Louisville Free Public Library.  For more information about this program you can click here.

You don't have to read a book about reading today, but at least read something in honor of International Literacy Day!

Happy Reading!
Laura

Related Posts:
Reading Makes You Feel Good
Reading Magic

Read from Birth

One reason I wanted to start this blog was to encourage parents to read to their children, no wait scratch that- I want parents to read to their BABIES and as soon as they are born.  Reading to babies, toddlers, and kids makes such a difference in so many aspects of their life.

Now, the American Academy of Pediatrics has my back.  They are recommending that parents begin reading to their children at birth.  Here is a great article from the Huffington Post.  Books are Just a Start, explains the decision of the AAP why reading is so good for our BABIES.

The article lists so many positives from bonding, to better brain development.  But what I like best is at the end.  It is not just parents who need to read to babies but also the people who care for these babies while mom and dad are at work.

What do you think? When did you start reading to your child?
How can we encourage parents and other caregivers to read to babies?

Happy Reading!

Laura

First picture of my son being read to.  He was not even one week old.  

Yes, Let's

With this weekend being the "unofficial" end to summer I think it is only appropriate to share a book about a favorite summertime activity... hiking!  Summer and fall are the perfect times to get out into nature and do some hiking, just like the family does in the book, Yes, Let's.

Using a rhyming text, Yes, Let's tells the story of a family who wakes up early, loads up the station wagon and heads out of town, into the forest, to spend a day hiking.  What is great about the day is that they don't just hike, the swim, build dams, make boats and relax.  They are truly spending a day together as a family.  No phones or tablets, just family and nature.  I really like the pictures in this book.  Even though the words tell the story of a "perfect" family, who has a "perfect" time together in the woods, the pictures tell otherwise.  In the pictures you can see teenage daughter and mom arguing about wearing boots, mom is getting scared by a spider and brother is covered in mud.  The pictures tell the story of what really happens when you take your kids hiking.  But in the end the family enjoyed every minute of it, they don't want to leave and can't wait to go back.  This book perfectly sums up summer, long tired days, bug bites and scratches, getting annoyed by siblings but in the end you would do it all over again!

If you like to hike, or just want to make some memories with your family, Louisville has so many great places to check out:

The Parklands: Complete with a spray ground to cool off in after hiking.

Bernheim Forest: I especially like to walk through the fairy garden and edible garden.

Jefferson Memorial Forest: Offers programs for kids of all ages to help them explore nature.

Many area parks like Cherokee, Joe Creason, EP Tom Sawyer and Iroquois also have great hiking trails to explore.

Where is your favorite place to hike?

Happy Reading!
Laura

Throwback Thursday

For this week's Throwback Thursday I am sharing a lullaby illustrated in a book.  This particular lullaby is not one that I remember from my childhood, but is one that I learned in my son's music class last year.  For those of you not familiar with the song you can hear it here:

All the Pretty Little Horses is a traditional lullaby that originated in the slave culture of the American South.  The book I found is illustrated by Linda Saport includes an extra verse that is not usually in the popular version of the song (but is included in the version I posted above).  The illustrations in this book are made with pastels, which creates a very dreamlike and soft feeling- perfect for a lullaby.

I wanted to share this song with you because it is one of my son's favorites.  He is not a big lullaby fan but when we found this song written in a book he loved it.  Now he asks to read this book every night. It is a simple and soft lullaby easy to sing to your child when going to sleep or upset.

What lullaby do you love singing to your child.  I will help you to find it written as a book!

Happy Reading!

Laura