One of my very favorite children's authors is Charlotte Zolotow. I remember my mother reading her to me when I was a little girl. Zolotow captures childhood so acutely that I am transported, with each reading, back to my own. Her books are both heartfelt and sincere - and completely in tune with the rhythm of children, the simplicity of life to a child.
Happily, Amazon has a nice selection of her books here. A couple of my favorites are William's Doll and The Sleepy Book, but my all-time favorite?
This book is a conversation between a little girl and her mother. The little girl is explaining to her mother why she likes to be little. And Mammas? If you were once a little girl who loved crayons, birthday cakes, skipping through leaves, catching snowflakes on your tongue, and pretending your dining room table was your own tiny house...this book will break your heart. In the best possible way.
I love the illustrations. It shows a little girl being a little girl. A little girl without glitter. Without princess dresses or shirts that say "Lil' Fashionista". A little girl with messy hair and sneakers who runs and jumps and thinks and plays. And her outfits? Totally adorable, yet completely practical.
If I ever had my own little girl, this is how I would dress her. (For at least as long as she'd let me.)
There's all sorts of warnings about kids and TV exposure. Too much TV may inhibit babies' language development. And toddlers? To summarize another recent study, too much TV makes toddlers fat and dumb. Whoa. Think I'm exaggerating? Dr. Linda S. Pagani, the lead author of this study, says (much more eloquently than I do):
We found every additional hour of TV exposure among toddlers corresponded to a future decrease in classroom engagement and success at math, increased victimization by classmates, have a more sedentary lifestyle, higher consumption of junk food and, ultimately, higher body mass index.
Bad enough, right? But it doesn't end there. Even in teenagers, there seems to be a link between too much TV and depression. However, experts aren't sure if this link (or any of these links, really) are because of the programming itself, the commercials, or the fact that TV time takes away from other, healthier activities.
I don't know about you mammas, but this mamma has a serious case of guilt everytime I use the TV to "parent".
Not all kiddos like scary, but if yours does....we have some books for you! The books below are just scary enough to capture a kiddo's attention, without going too far over the edge. And the illustrations in these books? OH MAMA. Crazy-amazing.
Sure, music soothes even the most savage two-year-old human beast. But for some of us, powering through a kids music CD is a cloying act of endurance, often precipitated by an already stressful meltdown situation. Not so with Anya Jane & Friends’ Lullabies, a recent release of “old favorites and new gems,” beautifully rendered in acoustic guitar, requinto (a cute little guitar), mandolin, harmonica and piano, with amazing vocals that will leave both you and your tiny person breathing a sigh of relief.
A soulful, toned-down rendition of the classic “Your Are My Sunshine” kicks off the perfect soundtrack for winding down after dinner and getting into the evening routine. “Jamaican Farewell” follows in a mellow canter two songs in, then pretty much every soothing and reassuring thing you could ever say to your child is summed up in a miraculously un-saccharine “Everything is Gonna Be Alright” followed by a beautiful original instrumental, “Cowboy’s Lullaby.” The CD wraps with one movement of Beethoven’s “Pathetique Sonata Op. 13,” and a traditional rendering of the classic “Tu Ra Loo Ra,” accompanied by harmonica and acoustic guitar.
Oh, and unlike most other lullaby CDs, Anya Jane & Friends’ Lullabies is suitable for listening all day long, any time you and your tiny people need to take a moment to chill. I find it especially useful around hour 2-1/2 of any 3 hour drive, when it usually seems like everyone is about to lose their minds.
Pick up your copy of Lullabies on the Music Train web site. And if you’re in Denver, don’t forget to look into Anya’s kids music classes. Anya is a dynamic, energetic teacher and great musician to boot. Her classes are full of joy, dancing, ears-on fun and are easily the best kids music classes in town because they’re such a blast for moms and babes alike.
OK, yes, I know many of these books have been around for quite some time, but they are, in fact, what we're reading this week. With my sweet potato rounding out his 26th month of life on Earth and preschool starting in September, we're gearing up for the marathon that, apparently, is the feat of potty training a boy child. We're loving reading these books as we sit on each of the three (yes, 3!) potties hanging around our happy home and wanted to share:
My attempt at green parenting has been a precipitously slippery slope. I started out with cloth diapers, a natural rubber mattress, all organic clothing, homemade organic baby food and exclusively non-plastic toys. But what I've ended up with is 7th Generation disposables/part-time (like, when the mood strikes me) cloth diapering, a mix of pricey organic cotton and $2.97 Target specials (made, probably, by kids only slightly older than mine), frozen "all natural" chicken tenders & Whole Market taquitos, and more plastic toys than I can shake a stick at. So much for my lofty green ideals.
What happened between then and now?! Well, lots of things, like gag-inducing encounters with the diaper sprayer, the sheer economics of dressing a rapidly growing kid in $30 shirts, picky eating, and, of course, my kiddo's preferences in toys.
We recently had a green toy coups, however, when I discovered Sprig Toys, a Colorado-based eco-friendly toy line. For Huck's big 0-2, I purchased the Dolphin Explorer Boat (because anything to do with water is an instant win with the boy wonder) for $29.99, the dump truck and the loader, both $14.99 at Real Baby in Denver. All three toys are paint-free and made of Sprig's proprietary SprigWood, a delightfully satisfying-to-the-touch bio-composite material made of reclaimed wood and recycled plastic. If your little one isn't a classic dump truck/loader enthusiast, check out DuneBug's Sand Truck, which includes an adorable DuneBug character and wild flower seeds.
The little man especially adores the Dolphin Explorer set, spending nearly an hour at a go on his step ladder at the sink and in the tub with his boat, captain and dolphins, and we're looking forward to spending warmer spring days at the playground digging and dumping sand. For my part--and considering kids are spending record-breaking time in passive play with battery operated toys and electronic media--I adore how active he is in his play with these items--Sprig Toys are, as a rule, "kid-[not battery-]powered," which is just what this pseudo-green mama wanted.
Next Sprig Toys acquisition: The Discover Rig. Lights, motor sounds and songs are powered not by batteries, but by a generator triggered when your kid moves it. Also of interest, Sprig's Storybuilders: four classic story books with block-and-panel sets that allow kids to build and re-enact classic storylines. If I had a little gal, I might even do Princess Penny's Story Building Palace. I wish it weren't so. . . pink. . . but it would be a blast to build a little castle (as long as she can build skyscrapers out of normal blocks, too!) and hey, who doesn't like a pointy princess hat on a cute little faceless figurine?
When my
brother and I were growing up together, it was him and me, against the
world.We were a team, and although we invariably
drove each other bananas at some point on any given day, we were sister and
brother, through thick and thin.That’s
all there was to it.No discussion.Together we felt bigger, stronger, more
secure, and, best-of-all, we always had a friend through cross-town moves, new
schools, every-other-weekend visits with our father and on family
vacations.So. . . as a sister and newly-minted
mom-of-two, I’m always looking for ways to reinforce the importance of the sibling
relationship because I know whata life
line it can be.
Right
now, with two-year-old and 5-month-old boys, that motherly prodding comes in the
form of obsessively pointing out and exulting images of happy brothers in
magazines, songs, pictures and books. Me: WOW! Look at those brothers! They are having sooo much fun! He's too little now, but soon you'll be having a blast with your little brother! Which is why my new favorite sibling book
is What
Sisters Do Best/What Brothers Do Best, by Laura Numeroff with
illustrations by Lynn Munsinger.This is
a flip-over book that has the story of what sisters do best and illustrations
of sister/sister and sister/brother pairs on one side and identical text with different
illustrations of what brothers do best on the other.
This isn't a book on par with childrens' classics like Seuss, Goodnight Moon, or even The Going to Bed Book, but it is a simple, straightforward and illustrative jumping-off point to talk to the apples of your eye about the perks of siblinghood and all the things they can do together one day. I think it helps my big boy, when he's looking with total bewilderment (see right) at this little attention sponge who, though adorable, only rolls over when he's angry, to know that some day they'll be able to do lots of things together,
like climb trees, ski and help each other out. And, should a little chic come along some day, we'll be all set with the flip side about sisters.
This is one my favorite books and it makes a lovely gift for Father's Day from your little one. Daddy Loves Me , by Karen Moore, is about this super cool Dad who does all kinds of fun (and even helpful) activities with his kiddo. From buying "special treats" at the fruit stand (amazing . . . not cookies or candy) to popping the bubbles while WASHING the dishes, this dad and kiddo duo do it all! Told from the little one's perspective, it really emphasizes how special that time is with dad. Not to mention, it has a few good activities that dads might not think of on their own! I am telling you mommas, check this one out! --j
No matter which your preferred term of endearment is: buttocks, nates, arse, butt, backside, bum, buns, can, fundament, hindquarters, hind end, keister, posterior, prat, rear, rear end, rump, stern, seat, tail, tail end, tush, bottom, behind, derriere, fanny, (or, one of the many "R" rated synonyms), one thing is for sure, moms everywhere are obsessed with tushies (either their baby's or their own)! So join in to honor all kinds of tushies with The Tushy Book. In this adorable story, by Fran Manuskin, we are all reminded what an important role tushies play: "Sitting down would not be cushy if you didn't have your tushy!" B & N said it best: "A celebration of the body part some of us love, some of us hate, but we all use every single day—the TUSH!" So, grab a copy, and laugh with your little one as you enjoy the only book I have ever seen that focuses on this body part!
Roses, strawberry jam, pickles . . . who can resist! This scratch and sniff book by Katherine Howard has it all! Just in time for Easter, this adorable story is about a bunny who lets his nose lead him on an adventure through fields of flowers, a strawberry patch, a forest, a garden and more. Available at bookstores everywhere and, of course at Amazon. And how is this for value, my vintage 1970's copy still smells! A real must have for scratch and sniff enthusiasts of all ages!
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