Bedtime Favorites

Our night time routine is as much the same as it was when my son was just itty bitty. Sadly the bedtime reading has only recently become more consistent. Even now my little guy doesn't sleep through the night. This coupled with work meant I was always more tired then not and getting M to sleep, more often than not, wouldn't include a bedtime story.

Over the last three or four months bedtime reading has returned as apart of our routine, and I'm loving seeing how M reacts to the books. He's just three months away from turning two, and he's showing attachment and understanding when prompted during story time.

Little Owl Lost by Chris Haughton (Amazon)


One day Little Owl falls out of his tree while he's sleeping! A squirrel decides to help Little Owl find his Mama Owl in the best way he knows how, through trial and error. The minimalist illustrations and silly misunderstandings between Squirrel and Little Owl make this book Monkey's first pick for bedtime reading. The very first page is Monkey's favorite since he gets to flip it back and forth to see Little Owl accidentally fall from his cosy nest. The first page says, 'Uh oh!' and it's his absolute favorite part. He'll say "Uh! Oh!" and flip the page back and forth over and over before he'll let me continue. On every page he'll point to Little Owl and say "Owl!" When I ask him which characters are which (considering I've read the book to him 100,000 times) he's to the point where he'll say "Bear!" or "Mama!" He absolutely loves this book, and every night I'll tell M, "Let's read the owl story." He gets so happy and will repeatedly say "Owl! Owl!" I plan on buying him Haughton's two other books Shhh! and Oh No, George! just because M likes Little Owl Lost so much. (Shhh! is the winner of the Irma S and James H Black Honor for Excellence in Children's Literature Award.)

Llama Llama Red Pajama by Anna Dewdney (Amazon)

In this sweetly illustrated story Llama Llama becomes worried just as soon as his Mama Llama walks out his bedroom door after their goodnight story. He calls out to her, and she says she'll be up soon. But soon is just not soon enough for Llama Llama! Obviously Llama Llama is already a pretty beloved character with many more books about him. I started introducing Llama Llama books to M pretty early on. This story is just one he seems to enjoy the most. When the book says that Llama Llama gets a kiss from his Llama Mama, M leans over and waits for me to give HIM a kiss! (We've also added that Llama Llama gets a kiss from Dada so Daddy can get in on the goodnight kisses, too. M always waits for me to say "And the Dada." before crawling over to his Dada for a goodnight kiss!) This is another book I can tell he loves because he can't wait to turn the pages, and knows exactly when they should be turned based on where we are in the story. He also always knows just when to lean in a get his baby kisses! I love it! I had to give this book a little break though so M doesn't get too tired of hearing it over and over. 

Little Blue Truck by Alice Schertle and illustrator Jill McElmurry (Amazon)

In is very cute story a little truck's loving sweet friendliness causes even a big and 'important' truck to recognize and appreciate the 'small' people in his life. This was one of the books that Little Monkey didn't originally have much interest in. I don't know if it's because it was a little too long for his attention span. But, one day I read it with him and he suddenly enjoyed it. He started pointing to the little blue truck and saying, "Blue", in the most adorable way possible. Really it was one of the first books he started to point and interact with even though it was not one of his favorites.




Bedtime reading is so good for children's development, but honestly I get so much out of just seeing M's reactions to the stories. I love seeing more of his personality shining through in what he likes and doesn't like. I'm sometimes very surprised what catches his attention.

First Books For Babies: Exploring Language

I will be the first to admit that lugging everything in the car and getting the baby to the library isn't easy. I hate to say it but I avoided going to the library simply because the idea of going by myself intimidated me. Monkey is one wiggly kid. The first time I went to the library I didn't take my stroller. It's a great stroller, and I love it. But, I hate that the thing is so big and heavy. Usually John picks it up and loads it into the trunk. That first trip I just decided to get along without it.

Big mistake! The second time I went to the library I took the stroller. With Monkey strapped in I had a much easier time looking around at the books and loading up our book bag. That's how we learn folks. Even if my stroller is tough for me to load and unload into the car I'm taking it.

The really nice thing about the public library is that it has plenty of board books in both English and Spanish. Usually when I'm looking for books for my baby I look for a variety of books in both languages. If I can manage it I look for books that are bilingual. Meaning they have the words in both English and Spanish on the page. Although I understand Spanish a lot better then I can speak it I'm still learning. I usually have to ask John to read the book to me first so I can hear the words before I can read the books more fluently. I like to think of this time as learning time for both Monkey and myself.

Okay enough chatter, here are a few books we picked up this week that have both English and Spanish and one book that has Yiddish!

1. Ten Little Fingers/Tengo Diez Deditos: This book explores what a baby can do with their ten little fingers. The book reads almost like a little song or dance. If your baby is a little bit older you can act out the different parts of the book along with the illustrations. This has the potential to be a very active book.

2. Fiesta!: We already own a few books that deal with counting, colors, and basic words like that. Fiesta is a book that explores counting in the context of a party. The illustrations allow you to reinforce the context of counting what the numbers mean with your little one. 

3. My Senses: Mis Sentidos: Again I have books on the basics. This book allows you to explore what each of your five senses does, and give pictorial examples. I really enjoyed it. I also think it's helpful for older children to learn more about their five senses and understand how it is that they learn and explore the world. 

4. Nosh, Schlep, Schluff. Babyiddish: Now this book I picked up based on the title alone. How stinkin' cute is a book that incorporates Yiddish? Very. Very cute. The illustrations allow even the non-Yiddish speaking parents to guide their baby to understanding what each word means. It's a very sweet book. I feel like it's a perfect book for anyone with a love of language.

First Books For Babies: Say and Play Bilingual Series

First Books For Babies is a series that will feature books I'm currently reading to my baby. The reviews won't be long, but I'm hoping that chronicling them will help other mothers when it comes to finding good reading material for their little ones. 

One of the things that I looked forward to as a new mom and book lover was the ability to expose my baby to new worlds and people through books. Little Monkey is now six months old (I know I can't believe it either!), and he loves to be read to. 

Most babies love to be spoken to, but the ability to introduce new vocabulary to them through sight and sound is a life-long gift you can give your baby. Just 15 minutes a day can make a world of difference in advancing your baby in school and life. Little Monkey is at the age in his reading milestones where he wants to hold and look at the book. (He also wants to shove the pages into his mouth, but what baby doesn't?) He shows interest in the photos and what is on the pages. When I tell him the word in both English and Spanish he listens and absorbs the words. He may not be able to tell me the words back, but you can tell that he's listening and that is all that matters at this age. 

As a mom who lives in a part of Texas where knowing another language is essential and not really optional I loved stumbling across this lovely series of books published by Say and Play. I purchased mine from Target, but you can also find them on Amazon or Overstock. 

Each book uses brightly colored photographed images on white backgrounds to highlight a specific word. Each page is very well represented on the cover. One item is on a page with both the english and spanish word in a bright corresponding color. The exception to this is the Numbers/Numeros book which teaches babies the name and concept of numbers from one to ten. 

I love that these books are bright and colorful without over stimulating Little Monkey. When you're looking for ideal books for babies  you don't want to bombard them with too many things on one page. The illustrations should be fairly simple and easily describable, but they should also take advantage of contrasting and bright colors that will capture a babies eyes and attention. I really love this series of books and the fact that both Little Monkey and I are learning and we read. If you are not like me and want an English only version of these books Say and Play sells them in English only formats as well. 

Picture Book: Hands Are Not For Hitting, Words Are Not For Hurting

Two books picture books I love are called Hands Are Not For Hitting and Words Are Not For Hurting. Both books are meant to help children understand how to interact with each other in group settings, and are written for 4 to 7 year olds.

Hand Are Not For Hitting written by Martine Agassi, Ph. D. tells children what good things their hands are meant to do, like playing, writing, waving, sharing. It encourages children to positively use their hands to help others.

Words Are Not For Hurting written by Elizabeth Verdick tells children how their words can hurt or help someone. It encourages children to chose their words carefully. It also tells children what they should do if someone else is careless with their words.

Both books are a part of my library, and I find both books to be great conversation starters on a child's level. They are a part of the Best Behavior Series which includes other books that target more towards preschoolers and toddlers such as Teeth Are Not For Biting and Germs Are Not For Sharing.

The Best Behavior Series is definitely a series I plan to keep in my own children's libraries as a means of understanding what kinds of behavior are appropriate and which are not.

6 Christmas Picture Books I Love

Christmas is over, and the new year is just around the corner. One of the great things about Christmas time is reading holiday themed books. I love holiday books so I try to rotate the books that I read as much as possible. I warn you that many of these books feature bears. I'm not really sure why.

1) It's Christmas, David! I love David Shannon's books. No, David! is simple but hilarious. My personal favorite is Alice the Fairy. It's Christmas David! follows David through the perils of behaving during Christmas. No peeking at gifts, sitting through dinner parties, and trying to get a present and not coal from Santa. A really sweet and silly book that kids are sure to relate to.

2) You Are My Miracle is such a sweet read. Every time I read I imagine a mother reading to her child during bedtime. The mother teddy bear tells her baby bear in beautiful rhymes how much she loves him. It's guaranteed to give beautiful memories to your little teddy bear.

3) Silent Night by Juliet Groom takes a mother bear and her cub through the beautiful wonders of their woods. Just as the title states the author integrates a bit of the song, Silent Night, into the poetry of the book ending with a little bit of the Christmas story.

4) The Bear Stays Up for Christmas by Karma Wilson takes her beloved character Bear and keeps him up for Christmas. Despite the fact that bears sleep through winter Bear's friends want Bear to experience Christmas with them. This book will be released in January 2013, but as much as my kids love Bear books I know they would love this too. (I can't tell you how many times I've read The Bear Feels Scared.)

5) Chaucer's First Winter by Stephen Krensky follows along the same lines of The Bear Stays Up for Christmas. Chaucer's first winter is here, and even though his parents will sleep though winter Chaucer just has to know what winter is. Chaucer stays up with his friends through winter as his parents (supposedly) hibernate.

6) The Littlest Christmas Star by Brandi Dougherty follows Max and his class's christmas play where he is the star of Bethlehem. Max feels that his part is so very small that he goes around and tries out other jobs in the class. Eventually Max learns how important his part is, and takes to the class play with all his heart.

My Christmas tree is still up! As far as I'm concerned that means you can still get to your library and read a few Christmas themed books with your kids.

Picture Book: For Just One Day

Title: For Just One Day

Author: Laura  Leuck


Illustrator: Marc Boutavant

Leuck and Boutavant send children on a journey to predict what animal comes next in this fun and beautifully illustrated picture book. Children get to pretend to be a whale, a bee, a crocodile and so much more.

I found this book last summer in Austin at a small independent bookstore. I loved it the moment I looked at it. The illustrations alone bring so much life to the animals that the story is introducing the children to. But, what I also love about this book, is that the students really seem the love participating in the game we played afterwards.

Over the summer, I used this particular book as a lesson in my internship. After reading the books to the kids I then turned around played a game with them. I had written down animals that occured in the book and asked one student to act out the animals so that the others could guess. At first I tried to just have the students act out what they thought the animal would do. Big mistake! I assumed the students had a frame of reference, and, even if they did, I was fairly sure they just didn't know what to do. I took this lesson and acted out each animal with the students as a group, and then played the game. It was so much better this way! With an idea of what to look for with each animal the students not only guessed easy and correctly the students doing the acting knew just what to do as soon as their turn came up.

I really enjoyed this book, and the activity. It's so much fun I'm sure moms can participate with their kids at home.