Week 19: Happy Easter!

Our Weekly Progress: 

Well, we got a little behind again! I try to read 10 books each week, and write up each blog post at some point during the weekend. The week numbers, by the way, are based on how many weeks old Emma turns during the week. So this past Thursday, she turned 19 weeks old. 

Anyway, this past weekend we visited my parents for Easter, and when we came home on Sunday, we hadn't read ANY of the week's books yet. (The ones I was supposed to be writing about during the weekend that just ended.) 

BUT I have off this week for Spring Break! So I was determined to read 20 books during the week and catch up. So far, so good! 10 down, 10 to go. And there were lots of good books this week! Check it out:   

Our Weekly Favorite:

Title: The Treasure Bath

Author/Illustrator: Dan Andreasen 

Summary:

"Have you ever wondered what lies beneath the bubbles in the bathtub? Embark on a magical journey with a little boy as he explores a creature-filled world beneath the sea."

"This wordless picture book for the very young is full of imagination and surprise. Never has bath time been such a thrilling (and soapy!) adventure!" 

Why I Loved it:

• I really, REALLY loved the illustrations in this book! They are exceptionally well done. The little boy's expressions tell it all. 
• The story-line mixes the everyday with the whimsical, which I love. 
• I don't want to give anything away, but the ending is adorable. 
• This story is told with NO words! It's perfect for kids who can't read yet to make up the words for this tale as they look at each page.                   

Other Books We Read This Week:

	Title: Bayou Lullaby Author: Kathi Appelt Illustrator: Neil Waldman This was not my favorite book. And I have always been intrigued by the Bayou. I hope to visit one day. Even so, the abstract-style of poetry in this book is what ruined it for me. However, I did enjoy the glossary in the front of the book, introducing the bayou-related terms that you would encounter as you read.
	Title: Suryia & Roscoe: The Story of an Unlikely Friendship Author: Bhagavan "Doc" Antle with Thea Feldman Photographer: Barry Bland  This book was so disappointing to me! I thought it was going to be a true story about a remarkable friendship between two animals at a zoo or wildlife preserve. But the authors kind of tried to turn it into fiction, if that makes any sense. They told it from the animals' perspectives, like it was almost normal for a dog and orangoutang to be friends. I wish they had told the true story behind how these pictures were taken. Instead, I'm left to wonder.
	Title: Sophie and the New Baby Author: Laurence Anholt Illustrator: Catherine Anholt  There are a lot of get-the-older-sibling-ready-for-a-new-baby books out there. This is one of the best that I've read. I love the season theme, which very realistically depicts how long a baby takes to arrive!
	Title: Harry's Home Author/Illustrator: Catherine and Laurence Anholt  This was a very good book, with a few good themes running throughout: differences can be good, traveling, homesickness, country vs. city, modes of transportation. Well done.
	Title: Happy Birthday Chimp and Zoe  Author/Illustrator: Catherine and Laurence Anholt  I really enjoyed this book about monkey-twins on their birthday. Very cute.
	Title: Billy and the Big New School Author/Illustrator: Catherine & Laurence Anholt This book was good, but I probably wouldn't read it again unless my kids were starting a new school.
	Title: Crankee Doodle Author: Tom Angleberger Illustrator: Cece Bell  I surprised myself by liking this book! It was very silly, but also funny. I loved the last page where the pony gives a little bit of history about the song, "Yankee Doodle."
	Title: The Very Fairy Princess Takes the Stage Authors: Julie Andrews (yes, the Julie Andrews!) and Emma Walton Hamilton Illustrator: Christine Davenier I like these books. I would read them again. I wouldn't necessarily buy them for my own library, but if you want a dose of adorable, just ask a Daddy or Grandpa to read this story out loud to your little one! So cute. This book is all sparkle and little-girl-glam.
	Title: Story County Here We Come!  Author/Illustrator: Derek Anderson  I really enjoyed this imaginative tale about 5 friends who decide to start a farm. It's really very cleverly done. I loved it when they decided to plant jelly beans and candy corn. Even though it's a short book, the author still managed to give each character a unique personality. Well done!

Week 18: Emma learns to eat books

Our Weekly Progress: 
"I tried to read with Emma, but she kept trying to eat the books!" 

That was my husband this week. I guess it's normal for a 4 month old to want to put everything into her mouth, but that makes it difficult when we're trying to read library books with her!

So we have a new rule: She has to be holding a toy when we read to her from library books. (Her favorite toy, by the way? A crumpled up page from a magazine. Second favorite is a credit card. She played with one for an hour yesterday!) 

She's also been especially loving her cardboard-paged books this week. Here's the normal progression:

1. She "reads" (looks at the pages) for about 15 seconds.

2. The book goes straight into her mouth. 

3. She gets trapped underneath the book and starts to cry. :) 

It's been a fun week. Emma is growing and changing so fast now that I can't wait to see what's in store for next week! 

Our Weekly Favorite:

Title: Saturday with Daddy
Author/Illustrator: Dan Andreasen
Rating: 4 stars

Summary:

"A young elephant and his Daddy spend Saturday running errands, sipping lemonade, and having a cookout. The charming art and simple story make this a perfect summertime book for fathers and their preschoolers." 

Why I Loved It:

• The artwork is fantastic- the elephants are super-adorable!
• This story reminds me of how Emma often spends Saturdays running errands with her Daddy.
• I love anything that has to do with cookouts! 

Other Books We Read This Week:

	Title: My Grandson is a Genius! Author: Giles Andreae Illustrator: Sue Hellard Rating: 4 stars I liked this book. The words told one story, and the pictures told another, which I liked. The pictures were so full of details that you could look at them for a long time!
	Titles: Captain Flinn and the Pirate Dinosaurs & Captain Flinn and the Pirate Dinosaurs Missing Treasure! Author: Giles Andreae Illustrator: Russell Ayto Rating: 4 stars These books were definitely new and fun. Was it a little too much to include pirates and dinosaurs in the same book? Maybe. But I think that it worked pretty well for these stories.
	Title: Good Little Wolf Author: Kristina Andres Rating: 3 stars This book was kind of cute, but it didn't really seem to go anywhere.
	Titles: The Very Fairy Princess: Here Comes the Flower Girl! and The Very Fairy Princess Sparkles in the Snow Authors: Julie Andrews and Emma Walton Hamilton Illustrator: Christine Davenier Rating: 4 stars I love that these books are written by Julie Andrews. They are actually very well-done. It was especially cute to hear my Dad reading these fairy-princess books to Emma when we visited over the weekend!
	Titles: I Love My Mummy & I Love My Daddy  Authors/Illustrators: Giles Andreae & Emma Dodd Rating: 3 stars These books were nice, but nothing too special.
	Title: With a Little Help From Daddy Author: Dan Andreasen  Rating: 3 stars This book goes with our favorite for the week, and it was cute, too. Of the two of them, though, this one was my second-favorite.

Week 17: Posting Late > Posting Never

Our Weekly Progress: 
We actually did read all of our books this week. I just didn't post about them because I've been exhausted. The reason I've been exhausted is because Emma decided not to sleep this week! Ahggg! 

I've found out that everyone on the Internet has a different opinion about the right way to get your baby to sleep through the night. And they all feel very strongly about their opinions. 

Thankfully, everyone that we've talked to has told us that we're not doing anything wrong, and to just keep trying different things until we find something that works for us, and for this particular baby at this particular time. This tells me that I've surrounded myself with non judgmental, kind, and supportive people. I'm so grateful for them. :) 

In the meantime, there have been books to read! One thing that hasn't changed is that my daughter and I LOVE our story time together. Here's what we've been reading:  

Our Weekly Favorite:

Title: Two Hands to Love You  

Author: Diane Adams
Illustrator: Paige Keiser

Summary: 
"With two loving hands, an adoring mother cradles her baby after bath time and a devoted father introduces his toddler to the wonders of the world. Sister, brother, grandma, and grandpa all can't wait to share what they love best about the world with their newest family member. And when it is time to step out into the world, this caring family is right there alongside." 

"In simple, heartfelt language, this soothing picture book for the very young will tug at the heartstrings and remind us all of the caring hands that helped us along our way." 

Why I Loved It: 

• The summary is perfect for this book. The language truly is simple and heartfelt. 
• The rhymes are natural, and the rhythm of the book flows.
• This is a bedtime story if I ever heard one. I can easily imagine a slightly-older Emma asking for me to read this book to her before she falls asleep.
• The repeating verse about never being far from your baby will melt your heart. "I'll love you, think of you, wherever you are:" So true!  

Other Books We Read This Week:

	Title: Why Are You Doing That? Author: Elisa Amado Illustrator: Manuel Monroy Rating: 4 stars I really enjoyed this book! It was repetitive, but that's supposed to be good for kids. :) I really liked the mini-glossary of Spanish words in the back of the book.
	Title: Tea for Ten Author/Illustrator: Lena Anderson  Rating: 3 stars I like the idea of a counting book, especially one with cute animals! I thought the rhyme scheme could have been a bit smoother.
	Title: To the Tub Author/Illustrator: Peggy Perry Anderson Rating: 3 stars This book was fun. Really, though, the title is my favorite part. Lately, I've enjoyed "flying" Emma into the bathroom while I shout, "TO THE TUB!"  Hahaha!
	Title: We Go in a Circle Author/Illustrator: Peggy Perry Anderson Rating: 5 stars This was about horse therapy- I love that someone wrote a book about this! It is very well written, and will tug at your heartstrings. Reading this book would be a great way to start a conversation about disabilities with a child.
	Title: All by Myself! Author/Illustrator: Aliki Rating: 3 stars I thought this book was cute, and enjoyed reading it, but probably wouldn't read it again.
	Title: The Very Fairy Princess Sparkles in the Snow Author/Illustrator: Blaze and Thunderbolt  Rating: 2 stars I'll be honest- I didn't read this one with Emma. It's  I really old-looking, and basically a chapter book disguised as an easy reader. I didn't even want to read it myself, because it just seems so. . . old. But once I did, I kind of enjoyed it. Cute story. It could use a reprint with color pictures, though!
	Title: Chuck's Truck Author/Illustrator: Peggy Perry Anderson  Rating: 1 star I thought this book was ridiculous, the rhymes were forced, and it didn't flow very well. Stay away!
	Title: Chuck's Band Author/Illustrator: Peggy Perry Anderson  Rating: 2 stars Chuck's Band is slightly better than Chuck's truck. The rhymes come much easier. Unfortunately, I was too scarred from Chuck's truck to enjoy Chuck's Band.
	Title: The Best Book in the World Author/Illustrator: Rilla Rating: 2 stars A few notes: 1. At first glance, you might think that this book has won a Newbery Award. False. Good advertising on the cover-designer's part, but false.  2. This is not the best book in the world. I like the idea- that books can take you to new places, but I wasn't a huge fan of the rather abstract writing style.

Week 16: A short break from the library

This week, we did not read any library books! I know, so sad. For the first time in a while, my husband and I both worked full, 5-day weeks, and we just weren't used to it. But we visited the library yesterday, and checked out 20 new books.  We're planning to rotate ten books at a time from now on. That way, even if we don't make it to the library every single weekend, we'll still have new books to read. Because even though we still read last week, and I love all of the books in Emma's personal library, it's exciting to read something new- and I missed that!

On another note, a stranger saw my husband and me leaving the library and said to us, "You guys are great parents!" Maybe a snap judgement based on the HUGE pile of books I was carrying, but still- nice to hear. I'll take it! :)

See you next week with some more reviews!