tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28260206460224314002024-03-14T01:07:33.136-07:00Book and Seaglass HunterAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08567504140473953315noreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2826020646022431400.post-18768139196526690432018-05-25T17:58:00.002-07:002018-05-25T17:59:47.736-07:00Cake Day and Cake "Dough" Sensory TrayWhat's the best kind of day? A "Cake Day" of course! "Cake Day" is the third book in Star Bright Books "Small Talk Books" series, which displays some of the ways that families can best interact with their young children to enhance language and other preschool skills. You can read my first reviews of "<a href="http://bookandseaglasshunter.blogspot.com/2018/01/mcbd-2018.html">A Fish to Feed</a>" and "<a href="http://bookandseaglasshunter.blogspot.com/2018/03/banana-for-two-and-grocery-games.html">Banana For Two</a>" in previous blog posts <a href="http://bookandseaglasshunter.blogspot.com/2018/01/mcbd-2018.html">here</a> and <a href="http://bookandseaglasshunter.blogspot.com/2018/03/banana-for-two-and-grocery-games.html">here</a> if you'd like to learn more about the Small Talk Books series. Thank you to Star Bright books for sending me each of these books-all opinions are my own.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yum!</td></tr>
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"Cake Day" has been a favorite in my house over the last few months. It turns out my kids like reading about cake almost as much as they like eating it! "Cake Day" is the story of a young boy and his Grandma baking a cake for a special occasion. Throughout the story we see the warm and easy interactions between the boy and his loving Grandma, as well as the multitude of every day learning opportunities. Grandma is constantly helping the boy to make observations, asking questions, answering his questions and responding to his thoughts. She also models conventional grammar and speech patterns as she talks naturally with the youngster.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I wonder who will clean up all that flour?!</td></tr>
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Many parents worry that they have to do something special to "teach" their children to talk, as a parent of a child with a speech delay, thoughts about what I can do to help improve his speech are always on my mind. "Cake Day" helps to point out that simply speaking to little ones frequently, and in the proper patterns and conventions is a huge part of "teaching" language development. Rather than worrying about giving an outright correction to short sentences or incorrect grammar, the Grandma models longer phases and sentences, and includes proper speech in her conversation with the little boy. The story is very cute and one that children and adults alike will enjoy reading. The conversation modeling and included professional note about language development are an added and appreciated bonus-as well as the cake and frosting recipe, so that you can have your very own cake day at home!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Grandma has some great helpers!</td></tr>
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To celebrate our (many) readings of "Cake Day", I created some cake themed sensory trays for E and C. These were our first attempt at "Cloud Dough"-there are many recipes available on the internet and a few variations you can try. We started with the 8:1 flour:oil recipe, we used regular all purpose flour and vegetable oil. I found that the dough was a little drier than I wanted, so I added a little more oil, simply mixing the two ingredients together. I added a few sprinkles of cocoa powder and cinnamon to the mix, which gave it a little variation in color and a nice scent to start out with. The dough lasted in our sealed containers for about two weeks, and may have lasted longer but we were ready to move on to something else ;)</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ready to make some cakes</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Taste Safe, but sadly doesn't taste like cake </td></tr>
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With each tray I also included sprinkles, birthday candles, cookie cutters, plastic cake toys, and muffin trays. WE had fun making our own little cakes and decorating them in the muffin tins, squishing and spreading the "dough", filling the tins, making shapes, and of course E discovered that the dough was a great new thing to drive his trucks through!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">C's Decorated Cupcakes</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cake Trucks</td></tr>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08567504140473953315noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2826020646022431400.post-41778227542512503852018-03-12T20:04:00.001-07:002018-03-14T18:35:53.513-07:00Banana for Two and Grocery GamesYellow, brown, green, and every shade in between. How do you like your bananas? Maybe a banana is best when shared with a friend, as in "Banana for Two", the next book in Star Bright Books "Small Talk Books" series. You can read my review of the first book, "A Fish to Feed"<a href="http://bookandseaglasshunter.blogspot.com/2018/01/mcbd-2018.html"> here</a>.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One Banana, Two Banana</td></tr>
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"Banana for Two" is a cute, simple story for young children and their families. This entertaining board book, is perfect for babies and young toddlers. The illustrations are warm and inviting, and young children will likely recognize the familiar setting of a grocery store, and the experience of shopping with a caregiver. This book features a mother and small child (as well as a cameo by the family from "A Fish to Feed", which is a cute touch). Also of note is the fact that both "A Fish to Feed" and "Banana for Two" depict diverse families. Beyond being a cute story for little ones, this book is a great resource for parents and caregivers. As with the other books in the Small Talk series, "Banana for Two" features an educational message for parents, as well as modeling throughout the text. The goal lesson in "Bananas for Two" is in the importance of incorporating conversations at math from a young age, and in noticing the importance of math in everyday life. From my teaching days, I can certainly confirm that many children (and even adults) often question why they must learn math, or how it relates to them. Incorporating math into simple everyday conversations from an early age could certainly have a positive impact on a child's interest in math and early math skills. "Banana for Two" shows how simple it is to do just that-and provides parents with a little extra confidence in their math talk skills.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This mom is lucky her child hasn't figured out how <br />
to escape from grocery carts yet...</td></tr>
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After reading "Banana for Two" with E and C, I decided to incorporate a few grocery and counting related games into our play time. The stars aligned and I just so happened to receive an email from Melissa & Doug with a free healthy eating grocery list printable recently, and it is a great resource to save for both learning and play. You can print your own copy <a href="http://www.melissaanddoug.com/blogpost?postId=free-printable-healthy-eating-shopping-list-for-kids">here </a>.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Coloring-loved by kids and moms alike</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">E practices coloring in each box-and used a <br />
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Since the Grocery List printable has different foods in nice, neat little squares I took this as the perfect opportunity to practice on some focused coloring with E. I pointed out to him that each food could be colored a different color, and helped him slow down and think about which color he wanted to make each food (as opposed to large scribbles across the entire sheet). It turned out to be a very good fine motor exercise for him, as well as a chance to slow down a little bit-which is a pretty big feat for an active almost three year old. Depending on your child's age and skills, you can also use this sheet for practice cutting, gluing, or even drawing. It would also be fun to make a grocery list using pictures cut from store flyers. Another fun way we played with the food list was as a matching game-I simply laid out a few different sets of food pictures and showed E how to match the items, and then count "one, two". I think after playing this way for a little while longer, we will be able to flip the food cards over and turn it into our own homemade memory game.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Healthy Food Match</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Everyone needs double onions</td></tr>
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After making our grocery list, we set up a small grocery store with our play foods, and made sure to set out foods we have multiples of so we could have some good counting opportunities. E had a great time choosing between his shopping cart or shopping basket, and picking out the different foods from his "store". Grocery store is definitely the new favorite pretend play activity in our house! E has a little bit of a "Supermarket Sweep" shopping mentality (who else thinks they should bring that show back?!), but we also make sure to take the time and look at the foods he is "shopping" for. This is where I incorporated some of the Small Talk tips from "Banana for Two". As E shopped, I pointed out if he was choosing one or two of each item. E loves to count, and two is his absolute favorite number, so he really enjoyed counting the foods he chose, looking at the foods on his list and counting there, and checking off the items on his list as we shopped.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsxq4PD7vPF6qOdqFN2KNtdq1qzsM9LCkid_tsuO041Em61fI34gTz1h2zou-bevxSvIMaRq0MiKxYf91ehobK3x-vRN6jlMWQiuV1m_Bt4vM7Q5TxQZeqHrC1uwEL78YwQmCZnL-NuZx9/s1600/IMG_6589.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsxq4PD7vPF6qOdqFN2KNtdq1qzsM9LCkid_tsuO041Em61fI34gTz1h2zou-bevxSvIMaRq0MiKxYf91ehobK3x-vRN6jlMWQiuV1m_Bt4vM7Q5TxQZeqHrC1uwEL78YwQmCZnL-NuZx9/s400/IMG_6589.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pretend veggies-a fun way to encourage real veggie love!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZM496wMEvvTr5sTEU7F0jtQecr_7vCM_O_DEP-C1_vjhOS-8hQwh2eaYN_6OgTL_mXGo-5dOU8Xiuycle-qnXMPD_-viLxGnF2fZVSfXAYxwdbcdNj8zNJvs5bYbxWv1XVvkS080t_9TQ/s1600/IMG_6652.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZM496wMEvvTr5sTEU7F0jtQecr_7vCM_O_DEP-C1_vjhOS-8hQwh2eaYN_6OgTL_mXGo-5dOU8Xiuycle-qnXMPD_-viLxGnF2fZVSfXAYxwdbcdNj8zNJvs5bYbxWv1XVvkS080t_9TQ/s400/IMG_6652.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Everything on the list!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKnrj3SZsffxUTHffQdgRXlOpYGorPfPb6RZHj4NAia4_A8fXZ-twS58iXqCrMbjcl7MaJZ5UMcI_DH_oH6XqoDWB9hsb8Tte5BkJrMPsB45LGRTblXZTNDU0R0IdzmBUA81NMV-9VpHfo/s1600/IMG_6597.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKnrj3SZsffxUTHffQdgRXlOpYGorPfPb6RZHj4NAia4_A8fXZ-twS58iXqCrMbjcl7MaJZ5UMcI_DH_oH6XqoDWB9hsb8Tte5BkJrMPsB45LGRTblXZTNDU0R0IdzmBUA81NMV-9VpHfo/s400/IMG_6597.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Picking peppers!<br />
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It really is amazing to see how much enjoyment talking about these simple day to day tasks can bring to a toddler. It can be easy, in our busy and stressful adult worlds, to forget how new and exciting even the most dreaded chores like grocery shopping can be for a young child. This morning I let E know that we were going to be going to the grocery store. He's gone grocery shopping many times, and generally enjoys it-but today it turned into a whole new adventure. With all of his focus on our grocery games in the last few weeks, he really had a new level of enthusiasm for this simple trip we've made countless times before. E ran to find a grocery list, his shopping basket, and his puppy and waited by our front door to eagerly head to the store. He was so proud to walk the aisles of the grocery store and choose a treat to carry in his basket-and he brought smiles to lots of faces as he shopped!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidupiqRLwFiGD-gV88D4ceS146bI5wlPc7vMwLr3YfEUkCEre-SkGOikkrk59p7m9cmaqAzjqNhuVV-O4Fa2dpb3C0MT5dXa2K2WnOhwzyKR_grIO9neHSHm3mh54P7dFiPXlhD_mgfx52/s1600/IMG_6648.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidupiqRLwFiGD-gV88D4ceS146bI5wlPc7vMwLr3YfEUkCEre-SkGOikkrk59p7m9cmaqAzjqNhuVV-O4Fa2dpb3C0MT5dXa2K2WnOhwzyKR_grIO9neHSHm3mh54P7dFiPXlhD_mgfx52/s400/IMG_6648.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A happy little shopper!</td></tr>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08567504140473953315noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2826020646022431400.post-38854546319707139062018-02-03T18:52:00.003-08:002018-02-03T18:53:57.027-08:00Easy Valentine's Toddler Games <br />
<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">I love using objects from around the house to create new play </span><span style="color: #222222;">opportunities</span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: inherit;"> for my toddlers. While I love Pinterest as much as the next mom, I usually don't have the energy or supplies to create some of the great activities that are out there. Instead I like finding things I can make in ten minutes, while my kids are happily eating lunch or (miracle) napping-and making things from stuff I already have hanging around the house. Here are two simple to make toddler activites that you can use for Valentine's Day, or any other time of the year. They are also easy to customize or switch up depending on what concepts you are working on with your little ones. </span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1-6H15GV3d_kA8yt-YdVTXPjqSM5y1kSYdhcEAcPNJMTOn756TFZ79vjO4s6Jg3kzhBrKZU4ov1luyHHxEkxxx19y6pbJaSqPtLesI3jLVbFtsTHNxENeXwWI2snXRbk95Hy5in9AlTm5/s1600/IMG_6107.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1-6H15GV3d_kA8yt-YdVTXPjqSM5y1kSYdhcEAcPNJMTOn756TFZ79vjO4s6Jg3kzhBrKZU4ov1luyHHxEkxxx19y6pbJaSqPtLesI3jLVbFtsTHNxENeXwWI2snXRbk95Hy5in9AlTm5/s400/IMG_6107.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Easy toddler games to keep you from going quackers!</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: inherit;"><br />My first Busy Mom DIY is a chocolate treat match up. I used a $1 chocolate box and labeled spots “1, 2, 3”. Then I added some heart stickers on the bottom of our chocolate play food so we can practice counting and maybe start recognizing numbers a little! To play, we just empty the box and count as we add the chocolates back in, pointing out what the number looks like to get a little exposure in. You could just as easily use letters, shapes, or colors instead of numbers, depending on what you are working on at the moment. Don't have any pretend chocolates? Use painted rocks, yogurt covers, sculpt treats from play dough-there are plenty of options hiding around the house, and your toddler won't mind if it doesn't look Pinterest perfect.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBmv_sT6fhytgKKu0c72zJdWgRuK0b4bTbbiujmPT9b0qpCiGACZXRS4wq1vRPk2KTRlFMQ8izOLIzWO5jpxBrt0iHUfhwUVJMH1OdlCEyMs4dlFeXhnYriPC87Uk2Ajo7S3OdPPJkTxK8/s1600/IMG_6117.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBmv_sT6fhytgKKu0c72zJdWgRuK0b4bTbbiujmPT9b0qpCiGACZXRS4wq1vRPk2KTRlFMQ8izOLIzWO5jpxBrt0iHUfhwUVJMH1OdlCEyMs4dlFeXhnYriPC87Uk2Ajo7S3OdPPJkTxK8/s400/IMG_6117.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Chocolate that is fun for playing and safe for diets<br />
(as if anyone would want to be on a no chocolate diet).</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTQztu4i5FVEerbCwCL_gEpRNV7J7H6HhyfP21YVyG7Wx2e2QY0ltbw90_C2V8pAYQtrlnILEvm9mj4d7iCQMiiwE_KtBkhPlpHhPSFjfCObieBpdq2csEBBA8KDu_hhyVp7ZiAXgRbghg/s1600/IMG_6119.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTQztu4i5FVEerbCwCL_gEpRNV7J7H6HhyfP21YVyG7Wx2e2QY0ltbw90_C2V8pAYQtrlnILEvm9mj4d7iCQMiiwE_KtBkhPlpHhPSFjfCObieBpdq2csEBBA8KDu_hhyVp7ZiAXgRbghg/s400/IMG_6119.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Counting and Matching</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">We also have some sweet themed rubber ducks (my kids LOVE these ducks). I simply added a matching color sticker to the bottom of the duck and a corresponding sticker to the cupcake liner in the muffin tin (I used double stick tape to keep the liners in place). E knows his colors, so we are using this activity to work on the concept of matching-it’s easy enough for him to have success while he gets the hang of the idea of matching, and also easy to upgrade for matching shapes, letters, numbers, or even sight words later on. Plus E gets some extra practice naming the colors (still working on orange)! C loves simply placing the ducks in and out and carefully carrying the muffin tin from the table to the shelf. You can really use anything in place of the ducks to match a different holiday or theme, or just based off of what you have that is easily accessible. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbJAVGdWUuoGlShsTKeT0yRbfRl5Yv6JWkizfjKpr9OICe6ZglySzg_aAro9p7seDy9huJ1XJm4yl9UeMwmR015og4d3LuuLoYrJHpnDSWpCABNOBKsq9jk22sT4z0Hce_p_ucRmJ3o4TO/s1600/IMG_6104.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbJAVGdWUuoGlShsTKeT0yRbfRl5Yv6JWkizfjKpr9OICe6ZglySzg_aAro9p7seDy9huJ1XJm4yl9UeMwmR015og4d3LuuLoYrJHpnDSWpCABNOBKsq9jk22sT4z0Hce_p_ucRmJ3o4TO/s400/IMG_6104.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dessert Ducks</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcMEuxqIS51m3vXPn1-4qNoMhnnBfshkrTivSfrC4bgfhX44ZefhiEmQs5gIQYCw8Gd7_VjFEt4lDmjYFSauYnUdICENkoCgFtt-ML2Aq8x2X3NxJe5jxTtFkgNLy7zVAtv-rY_FeRt4s2/s1600/IMG_6126.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcMEuxqIS51m3vXPn1-4qNoMhnnBfshkrTivSfrC4bgfhX44ZefhiEmQs5gIQYCw8Gd7_VjFEt4lDmjYFSauYnUdICENkoCgFtt-ML2Aq8x2X3NxJe5jxTtFkgNLy7zVAtv-rY_FeRt4s2/s400/IMG_6126.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Match colors and conversation hearts with duckies </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz9ZFhTSWyD4ctn3H0q3piJc3WX5VVtbb6Gwt_odjgosBfHS6GNxvw3P7OFm6UCvOxbLyjIACoYuIfBmXlKXoMkbNXUb1mqyhcFK-TdaFMrhyphenhyphendyXCSMR0RZPQJUvRis9HMVaJaRrFd5LzC/s1600/IMG_6116.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz9ZFhTSWyD4ctn3H0q3piJc3WX5VVtbb6Gwt_odjgosBfHS6GNxvw3P7OFm6UCvOxbLyjIACoYuIfBmXlKXoMkbNXUb1mqyhcFK-TdaFMrhyphenhyphendyXCSMR0RZPQJUvRis9HMVaJaRrFd5LzC/s400/IMG_6116.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Working on slowing down and finding the match</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX6L4hhIcV3IQa5EgWijM-tC-3ohNiQqGGQyeqPUzga3YzgNG717D-RMPrvEmHatiUyFr6m2hiEFSZ9NILTLlXaYcTpWjbzikRdr2ANvvGHx6IpbAcY05-aKAHu2eNL5nIX8y4SghSLDDf/s1600/IMG_6110.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX6L4hhIcV3IQa5EgWijM-tC-3ohNiQqGGQyeqPUzga3YzgNG717D-RMPrvEmHatiUyFr6m2hiEFSZ9NILTLlXaYcTpWjbzikRdr2ANvvGHx6IpbAcY05-aKAHu2eNL5nIX8y4SghSLDDf/s400/IMG_6110.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Getting his ducks in a row</td></tr>
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Visit my previous post to find out about or <a href="http://bookandseaglasshunter.blogspot.com/2018/02/winter-sensory-play-table.html">winter sensory table</a> and matching Valentine's theme.<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08567504140473953315noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2826020646022431400.post-15759983272227486992018-02-03T18:10:00.001-08:002018-02-03T19:07:51.377-08:00Winter Sensory Play Table<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">We’ve made it to February and that means winter is getting closer to its end. Although yesterday we learned that we still have six more weeks of winter-we honestly haven’t had too bad of a winter yet. Thankfully.</span><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif;"> I was really dreading this winter and being stuck indoors with two toddlers. I stocked up on a pile of target dollar spot novelty items, which have definitely been great for boredom busting. I also decided that our water table didn’t get a break this winter. It’s been living in the corner of our playroom for the past few months and we’ve been using it as a sensory table. I try to change it up about every three weeks, we've had four different set ups so far:</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">Our first version of the sensory table was dyed pasta. </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222;">It’s simple to make your own dyed pasta:</span></span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: inherit;">Add about half a box of pasta to a gallon size plastic bag. We used different shapes and textures (shells, bow ties, ziti, spirals, wheels, smooth rigatoni (I need to study up on pasta names, I'm sure there is an actual name for that). </span></li>
<li>Add about a teaspoon of food coloring. I used mostly gel, but also regular old fashioned food coloring, and I didn't notice a huge difference in the finished product. </li>
<li>Finally add a small amount of vinegar (you can also use hand sanitizer) into a Ziploc baggie. Give it some good shaking until it is evenly coated, then let it sit for about ten minutes. Pour onto a paper towel or cookie sheet and allow a few hours to dry out.</li>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikPEgLIdreCMArenvzS8m0TSM92fgE4ENhEHUPPdshgN9ZnWc2tDHb6PDGS6eXHk78926S2qQReJ8HTROFrhXOskYrbN9DvFKNigpKpO2dmH220vHToJ8u_VGqECbj99SNXtyAM6cxuiwG/s1600/IMG_4351.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikPEgLIdreCMArenvzS8m0TSM92fgE4ENhEHUPPdshgN9ZnWc2tDHb6PDGS6eXHk78926S2qQReJ8HTROFrhXOskYrbN9DvFKNigpKpO2dmH220vHToJ8u_VGqECbj99SNXtyAM6cxuiwG/s400/IMG_4351.JPG" width="300" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">We used six different pasta types which filled the table nicely.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">E and C both really enjoyed the pasta. We used a variety of shapes and textures, and they actually spent a good 20-30 minutes just running their hands through the pasta the first few days. E loved using the pasta as cargo for his trucks, and C was big on filling and dumping with the play kitchen pans. We also did a simple color sort with the muffin tin (my muffin tins spend more time in the playroom than the kitchen). You could also use the pasta as counters, for fine motor practice with stringing, matching colors or shapes, or as an art medium (pressing into play-dough, making necklaces...)</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZINN1HUe-RnZ08XOMqpPHriScYw30kqpjN5z6HMMgwReFusbmniKuzSJPt59_j7NGAgBX0lNLeHMrdfL9fCYQrqU35pv8n0sTh3taIP357ast_L16iy8HXNneB7p_DdtzFy2HxWB09yQw/s1600/IMG_4667.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZINN1HUe-RnZ08XOMqpPHriScYw30kqpjN5z6HMMgwReFusbmniKuzSJPt59_j7NGAgBX0lNLeHMrdfL9fCYQrqU35pv8n0sTh3taIP357ast_L16iy8HXNneB7p_DdtzFy2HxWB09yQw/s400/IMG_4667.JPG" width="300" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">Tray of various shape and color~color spots in each muffin section</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyETvobqVHbcSX1Cb34QEnIW8r5hIXOw2DuNcLLHCDgMTCY5oqPm4xvwLLSrL-EQQT2p2G2KuUyJ1KOaPRSvGV7WIY67qAqueysECiUmR27V2EqJeypDDKtbs3iVbqzASpV3cuTfmTqhQ1/s1600/IMG_4670.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyETvobqVHbcSX1Cb34QEnIW8r5hIXOw2DuNcLLHCDgMTCY5oqPm4xvwLLSrL-EQQT2p2G2KuUyJ1KOaPRSvGV7WIY67qAqueysECiUmR27V2EqJeypDDKtbs3iVbqzASpV3cuTfmTqhQ1/s400/IMG_4670.JPG" width="300" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">We sorted by color this time, but shape or texture would be fun as well!</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwRWvv-Z715-WNbJLBHgbfuMI7pf-M5u4JoCbRZtbLKwzvixVyX7KDkzmiEfV_otQxxsNKJaqG9MCv7pz95oZxhYNeQvsoaq0ou5f7h5lZIZhHwzHUbuoh99xvcCCJeVPfaPXxnA4rcLCl/s1600/IMG_4673.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwRWvv-Z715-WNbJLBHgbfuMI7pf-M5u4JoCbRZtbLKwzvixVyX7KDkzmiEfV_otQxxsNKJaqG9MCv7pz95oZxhYNeQvsoaq0ou5f7h5lZIZhHwzHUbuoh99xvcCCJeVPfaPXxnA4rcLCl/s400/IMG_4673.JPG" width="300" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">All sorted! </span></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">We used the table as a light table briefly around Christmas. Basically E really loves having different things to drive his trucks through, so we played around with some old light strands and other odds and ends from the Christmas supplies (bows, small boxes, ribbons). It also added a nice little glow to the playroom in the weeks leading up to Christmas.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQk0IDivqBOhTw068yntYtRBlt13mNnFhw3sIFWs_ngK1H1bWTdI5yZ6Ldfjbsk1SR-nLp8VtMoVINNsegmsYkBc3qhtZ_AqBib5GquaW34AF8x4_yNZwGmyik_n-riCZ5a72JBPi7-eM-/s1600/IMG_4878.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQk0IDivqBOhTw068yntYtRBlt13mNnFhw3sIFWs_ngK1H1bWTdI5yZ6Ldfjbsk1SR-nLp8VtMoVINNsegmsYkBc3qhtZ_AqBib5GquaW34AF8x4_yNZwGmyik_n-riCZ5a72JBPi7-eM-/s400/IMG_4878.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">*Light*Bright*</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">Next we tried rainbow rice (made the same way as the rainbow pasta, above). This was definitely the messiest material we’ve had so far, so if you try it out just be comfortable with a little extra sweeping. E was pretty good about keeping the rice in the table, but quite a bit still ends up on the floor simply from moving toys. C, on the other hand, LOVED throwing big handfuls of rice into the floor, with a big smile on her face the whole time, fully embracing and enjoying her "defiant" side. Beyond that, both E and C enjoyed filling and dumping bottles, dropping the rice into the metal muffin tin (this makes a great sound and it was my favorite part of this table). Actually, when I wasn’t thinking about sweeping up the rice, it was pretty relaxing to play with. We also did lots of scooping, filling of trucks, burying objects (and hands), hiding little toys to search for in the rice, and we also tried out some of our bath strainers and funnels. We are still finding little rice grains here and there a couple weeks after cleaning this table up. You might try covering the floor with a large cloth or sheet in an attempt to confine the rice a little more, as I've seen some people do. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEF3iH2IKEeed_TCxGslzyABixu3uB9NheGYX0j1QNQdGHHqkV8cGOIZZOqnTV94NyaAAlmRyN8mVTShAS-mst6ZJ8pAUw_qPQbxdR8rCX2NNuYPCHJOKr_yj5qELfF0LyRxgckZL1vfRp/s1600/IMG_5916.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEF3iH2IKEeed_TCxGslzyABixu3uB9NheGYX0j1QNQdGHHqkV8cGOIZZOqnTV94NyaAAlmRyN8mVTShAS-mst6ZJ8pAUw_qPQbxdR8rCX2NNuYPCHJOKr_yj5qELfF0LyRxgckZL1vfRp/s400/IMG_5916.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">10lbs of beautiful rainbow rice</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">Our newest table has a Valentine’s theme, and I even added a little shelf of related Valentine’s activities to go along with the table. I spent about $10 at the dollar store, along with some items we had at home. The table is filled with some silky rose petals, glittery hearts, foam conversation hearts, heart bead strands, fuzzy pipe cleaners, crinkly crepe paper, and a few scraps of tulle.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfTc-PzQKZBF3P9bUJOe8-6cGYOYAgB7tzxXS_zMKqXZsQoHGXCOhpgx0lUl9nssSw5pXwoZAdBag5NpkFK6wy4NZWSYIi37xfSRzk4v1YuQ0Xh5Xz5dTY464kyi7XIE_PIPGsTwZNtpBD/s1600/IMG_6095.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfTc-PzQKZBF3P9bUJOe8-6cGYOYAgB7tzxXS_zMKqXZsQoHGXCOhpgx0lUl9nssSw5pXwoZAdBag5NpkFK6wy4NZWSYIi37xfSRzk4v1YuQ0Xh5Xz5dTY464kyi7XIE_PIPGsTwZNtpBD/s400/IMG_6095.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red and white and pink and pink...and more pink</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0X8cqdRNEhz9-Yom7CUYkfwRIAYZyZT9Jh3cBy6ubANTYTFGsDc0jeAoJl50YMznMv_3863c2d1ux-aYjvIZi68bUKxrLAv4sQwbDKuQktVDtbCTgM3WjL8VfZhSJuZLbcjhITL6tzVCU/s1600/IMG_6097.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0X8cqdRNEhz9-Yom7CUYkfwRIAYZyZT9Jh3cBy6ubANTYTFGsDc0jeAoJl50YMznMv_3863c2d1ux-aYjvIZi68bUKxrLAv4sQwbDKuQktVDtbCTgM3WjL8VfZhSJuZLbcjhITL6tzVCU/s400/IMG_6097.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">E&C Sweets</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLMmm4V9zwYLAlTAl2lagIOJ4NmK-ClvO9imhkoIDJpDH38YExK793KE-VMSqeV048Rb_XqvJTgXhPDCVDJTC3Zr5pd4H_G5rNUzUK11w6DDoXxj8p7Pkq14WrU04E4eAt8Eaj4xYbgNNC/s1600/IMG_6099.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLMmm4V9zwYLAlTAl2lagIOJ4NmK-ClvO9imhkoIDJpDH38YExK793KE-VMSqeV048Rb_XqvJTgXhPDCVDJTC3Zr5pd4H_G5rNUzUK11w6DDoXxj8p7Pkq14WrU04E4eAt8Eaj4xYbgNNC/s400/IMG_6099.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Play table accessories</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKWzjzUKub6irBGdN_AFCgaILFJjAl-Z9sHfidMzJIpeuJG6xlvgM-tRIEB_7uPYQQGQylJg72DpLPev6budf_kiEPW66n1PIw8WLxHszRYkNNT8tZ9IMT-Y-_-VSi3jxOE04-GebDpexq/s1600/IMG_6101.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKWzjzUKub6irBGdN_AFCgaILFJjAl-Z9sHfidMzJIpeuJG6xlvgM-tRIEB_7uPYQQGQylJg72DpLPev6budf_kiEPW66n1PIw8WLxHszRYkNNT8tZ9IMT-Y-_-VSi3jxOE04-GebDpexq/s400/IMG_6101.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">E is working on using the kitchen tongs,<br />
using them to pick up the small pieces is a fun fine motor challenge</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">C enjoys filling the Valentine’s mail boxes up, and we count the number of items we can fit into the boxes. She also enjoys when I hide the different objects in the mailbox and she can open it and see what’s inside. I added a Target cupcake puzzle that I’ve been saving, and we have been having fun hunting for the pieces and then completing the puzzle.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgquR9kQaVJlKjKxFMS9TfizQJ3vLEETG6iz15lc5vQLQZJMNEIX_IoAY9tbvjphS5HgGuuYJemGeMRX-hWaeuqbo_oPfB9YoKquxCpxLKyPm-Mqf8GjNK27HLGybYu1pCOm4DwsTdwxNz/s1600/IMG_6103.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgquR9kQaVJlKjKxFMS9TfizQJ3vLEETG6iz15lc5vQLQZJMNEIX_IoAY9tbvjphS5HgGuuYJemGeMRX-hWaeuqbo_oPfB9YoKquxCpxLKyPm-Mqf8GjNK27HLGybYu1pCOm4DwsTdwxNz/s400/IMG_6103.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thank you Target Dollar $pot</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: inherit;">Along with the usual scooping and filling items, we have some extra imaginative play items to fit a sweet shop theme. We have a few different pretend treats, and some oven mitts that E and C enjoy trying on.</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXQSZiSSzO-IBIkWNuwz-QHoh5VguLO_F-4al8MPjW3zTfYLdZbTzF1GN_wMvdjd8uqJYHr16edoWER9THcDaRW0M-TCcn2Aj5X9uIEHhl0A_KNmTDwatXlxxizt2RPzxhzS7WpwFca6-E/s1600/IMG_6102.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXQSZiSSzO-IBIkWNuwz-QHoh5VguLO_F-4al8MPjW3zTfYLdZbTzF1GN_wMvdjd8uqJYHr16edoWER9THcDaRW0M-TCcn2Aj5X9uIEHhl0A_KNmTDwatXlxxizt2RPzxhzS7WpwFca6-E/s400/IMG_6102.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kitchen Fun</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq_fulZdRjENNCZow3_T7QGg5HMkNQGRQS7vW5-eoSxLS1aqDFFyNW5OtGQKQ4OqllpsUEO4nlN-Wk1AduC6iGSfiyyqaYmHXE8sS-qVbv3WP72fUJGYL0L5GYlUaDGzPDbtMW_nOCFFga/s1600/IMG_6124.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq_fulZdRjENNCZow3_T7QGg5HMkNQGRQS7vW5-eoSxLS1aqDFFyNW5OtGQKQ4OqllpsUEO4nlN-Wk1AduC6iGSfiyyqaYmHXE8sS-qVbv3WP72fUJGYL0L5GYlUaDGzPDbtMW_nOCFFga/s400/IMG_6124.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">C's oven mitts</td></tr>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
Check out my next post for our fun and easy <a href="http://bookandseaglasshunter.blogspot.com/2018/02/easy-valentines-toddler-games.html">Valentine's Day treat games</a>!</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08567504140473953315noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2826020646022431400.post-18673222222934682242018-01-27T14:36:00.004-08:002018-01-29T18:00:15.780-08:00MCBD 2018<div style="color: #454545; font-family: ".SF UI Text"; font-size: 17px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 17pt;">Today is the 5th annual Multicultural Children’s Book Day! This is my second year as a reviewer, and this year I had the opportunity to review multiple books!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1cIYJhRsbuihwccZzohNDco5hsRm6BgLpbeAwqaIBS9L5GsCrAVtnzwSadLpGGHSppfxpcz5M0CHs3Mx7FM4W9ymqpXBAzvqaPWlORq5GYTTESBi-gbCorVmLh4CteIXBC6asDfwr6gSe/s1600/image1+%25281%2529.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="495" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1cIYJhRsbuihwccZzohNDco5hsRm6BgLpbeAwqaIBS9L5GsCrAVtnzwSadLpGGHSppfxpcz5M0CHs3Mx7FM4W9ymqpXBAzvqaPWlORq5GYTTESBi-gbCorVmLh4CteIXBC6asDfwr6gSe/s640/image1+%25281%2529.jpeg" width="494" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Read to the bottom and be rewarded with a coloring page version!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 17pt;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 17pt;">But first, here’s what our awesome hosts and founders have to say about MCBD:</span></div>
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<h3 style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://multiculturalchildrensbookday.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Multicultural Children’s Book Day</span></span></a><span class="s14" style="color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> 2017 (1/27/18) is in its 5</span></span><span class="s15" style="color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 8.399999618530273px; vertical-align: super;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 12.600000381469727px;">th</span></span><span class="s14" style="color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">year and was founded by Valarie Budayr from </span></span><a href="http://www.jumpintoabook.com/"><span class="s16" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; font-style: italic; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Jump </span></span><span class="s16" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; font-style: italic; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Into</span></span><span class="s16" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; font-style: italic; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> A Book</span></span></a><span class="s14" style="color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">and Mia Wenjen from </span></span><a href="http://www.pragmaticmom.com/"><span class="s16" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; font-style: italic; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">PragmaticMom</span></span></a><span class="s17" style="color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman"; font-style: italic; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">.</span></span><span class="s14" style="color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> Our mission is to raise awareness of the ongoing need to include kids’ books that celebrate diversity in home and school bookshelves while also working diligently to get more of these types of books into the hands of young readers, parents and educators. </span></span></span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="s29" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Current Sponsors:</span></span><span class="s30" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman"; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> </span></span><span class="s18" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> MCBD 201</span></span><span class="s18" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">8</span></span><span class="s18" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> is honored to have some amazing Sponsors on board. </span></span></span><span class="s20" style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">2018 MCBD Medallion Sponsors</span></span></span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">HONORARY: </span></span><a href="http://www.cbcbooks.org/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Children’s Book Council</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="https://www.juniorlibraryguild.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Junior Library Guild</span></span></a></span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">PLATINUM</span></span><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">:</span></span><a href="https://clubs.scholastic.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Scholastic</span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> Book Clubs</span></span></a></span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">GOLD</span></span><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">:</span></span><a href="https://audreypress.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Audrey</span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> Press</span></span></a><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">,</span></span><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> </span></span><a href="http://www.candlewick.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Candlewick Press</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="https://lovinglionbooks.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Loving Lion Books</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="https://secondstorypress.ca/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Second Story Press</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://www.starbrightbooks.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Star Bright Books</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://www.worldwidebuddies.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Worldwide Buddies</span></span></a></span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">SILVER</span></span><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">:</span></span><a href="http://www.capstonepub.com/library/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Capstone</span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> Publishing</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="https://charlotteriggle.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Charlotte </span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Riggle</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; 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font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Barefoot Books</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://www.caroleproman.com/"><span class="s33" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Carole P. Roman</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="https://www.charlesbridge.com/"><span class="s33" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Charlesbridge</span></span><span class="s33" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Publishing</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Doc-Like-Mommy-Crystal-Bowe/dp/1973757591/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1515429527&sr=8-1&keywords=Doc+Like+Mommy+by+crystal+bowe"><span class="s33" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Dr. Crystal Bowe</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://www.gokulworld.com/"><span class="s33" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Gokul</span></span><span class="s33" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">! 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line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Honorary Author Sponsors: </span></span><a href="http://www.aramkim.com/Books"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author/Illustrator Aram Kim</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> and </span></span><a href="http://www.juanamedina.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author/Illustrator Juana Medina</span></span></a></span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://janetballetta.com/index.html"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Janet </span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Balletta</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://www.sunkissesmoonhugs.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Susan Bernardo</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://www.carmenberniergrand.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Carmen Bernier-Grand</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://space2launch.org/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author </span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Tasheba</span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> Berry-McLaren and Space2Launch</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://www.bollygroove.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Bollywood Groove Books</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://www.annebroyles.com/index.html"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Anne Broyles</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://kathleenburkinshaw.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Kathleen </span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Burkinshaw</span></span></a><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://eugeniachu.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Eugenia Chu</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://lesaclineransome.com/bio.html"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author </span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Lesa</span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> Cline-</span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Ransome</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="https://www.hatsoffaith.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Medeia Cohan and Shade 7 Publishing</span></span></a><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="https://www.desibabiesonline.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Desi Babies</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="https://www.danidixonbooks.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Dani Dixon and Tumble Creek Press</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://judydodgecummings.com/books/the-underground-railroad-navigate-the-journey-from-slavery-to-freedom/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Judy </span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Dodge Cummings</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://www.dgdriver.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author D.G. Driver</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="https://sistergirlcollection.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Nicole </span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Fenner</span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> and Sister Girl Publishing</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">,</span></span><span class="s20" style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> </span></span><a href="http://debbimichikoflorence.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Debbi Michiko Florence</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="https://www.joshfunkbooks.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Josh Funk</span></span></a><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://mariagianferrari.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Maria </span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Gianferrari</span></span></a><span class="s20" style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">,</span></span><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"></span></span><a href="http://www.brownboybook.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author </span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Daphnie</span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> Glenn</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="https://globesmartkids.org/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Globe Smart Kids</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://pinkpearlwriting.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Kimberly Gordon Biddle</span></span></a><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://quentinholmes.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Quentin Holmes</span></span></a><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://www.estheriverem.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Esther </span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Iverem</span></span></a><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0692872663/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=franticmomm02-20&camp=1789&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=0692872663&linkId=c6a7f3f1e2164d6ff9415ff17269597b"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Jennifer Joseph: Alphabet Oddities</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://www.kizziejones.com/index.html"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author </span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Kizzie</span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> Jones</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://faithljustice.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Faith L Justice</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> , </span></span><a href="http://mysticprincesses.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author P.J. </span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">LaRue</span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> and MysticPrincesses.com</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="https://handsaroundthelibrary.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Karen Leggett </span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Abouraya</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://www.enjoyingplanetearth.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Sylvia Liu</span></span></a><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://www.sherrimaret.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Sherri </span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Maret</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Tessie-Tames-Her-Tongue-Learning/dp/1631981331/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1510847546&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=tessie+tamed+her+tongue"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Melissa Martin Ph.D.</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="https://www.empoweredculture.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author </span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Lesli</span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> Mitchell</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Are-Pinky-Mukhi-Param-Patel/dp/1631778471"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Pinky </span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Mukhi</span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> and We Are One</span></span></a><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://mirandapaul.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Miranda Paul</span></span></a><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">,</span></span><span class="s35" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> </span></span><a href="https://daydreamerspress.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Carlotta Penn</span></span></a><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">,</span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> </span></span><a href="https://www.realdadsread.org/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Real Dads Read</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://writeondad.wixsite.com/writeondad"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Greg Ransom</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://sandralrichards.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Sandra L. Richards</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://realmvpkids.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">RealMVPKids</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> </span></span><a href="http://www.notyourordinarylady.com/shop"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Andrea Scott</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://www.alvasachs.com/contact.php"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Alva Sachs and Three Wishes Publishing</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://www.shellybeanthesportsqueen.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Shelly Bean the Sports Queen</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://www.sarahjamilastevenson.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Sarah Stevenson</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://gaylehswift.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Gayle H. Swift</span></span></a><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> </span></span><a href="http://elsatakaoka.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Elsa Takaoka</span></span></a><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">,</span></span><span class="s36" style="color: #8ca6a4; font-family: "times new roman"; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> </span></span><a href="http://www.christinetaylorbutler.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Christine Taylor-Butler</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">,</span></span><span class="s36" style="color: #8ca6a4; font-family: "times new roman"; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"></span></span><a href="https://mixedfamilylife.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Nicholette</span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> Thomas and MFL Publishing</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> </span></span><a href="http://andreaywang.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Andrea Y. Wang</span></span></a><span class="s32" style="font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">, </span></span><a href="http://www.raincitylibrarian.ca/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Jane Whittingham</span></span></a><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> </span></span><a href="https://www.natashayim.com/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Author Natasha </span></span><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Yim</span></span></a></span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="s14" style="color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">W</span></span><span class="s14" style="color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">e’d like to also give a shout-out to MCBD’s impressive CoHost Team who not only hosts the book review link-up on celebration day, but who also works tirelessly to spread the word of this event. View our CoHosts </span></span><a href="http://multiculturalchildrensbookday.com/about/co-hosts/"><span class="s13" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">HERE</span></span></a><span class="s14" style="color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">.</span></span></span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="s23" style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.399999618530273px; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">TWITTER PARTY</span></span><span class="s23" style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.399999618530273px; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> Sponsored by </span></span><a href="https://clubs.scholastic.com/"><span class="s24" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Scholastic Book Clubs</span></span></a><span class="s20" style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">: MCBD’s super-popular (and crazy-fun) annual Twitter Party will be held 1/27/18 at 9:00pm.</span></span></span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="s20" style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">J</span></span><span class="s25" style="background-color: white; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">oin the conversation and win one of 12-5 book bundles and one Grand Prize Book Bundle (12 books) that will be given away at the party!</span></span><span class="s25" style="background-color: white; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> </span></span><a href="http://multiculturalchildrensbookday.com/twitter-party-great-conversations-fun-prizes-chance-readyourworld-1-27-18/"><span class="s24" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">http://multiculturalchildrensbookday.com/twitter-party-great-conversations-fun-prizes-chance-readyourworld-1-27-18/</span></span></a></span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="s20" style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Free Multicultural Books for Teachers: </span></span><span class="s20" style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">http://bit.ly/1kGZrta</span></span></span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="s20" style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Free </span></span><span class="s20" style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Empathy </span></span><span class="s20" style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Classroom Kit for Homeschoolers, Organizations, Librarians and Educators: </span></span><a href="http://multiculturalchildrensbookday.com/teacher-classroom-empathy-kit/"><span class="s24" style="color: blue; font-family: "times new roman"; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">http://multiculturalchildrensbookday.com/teacher-classroom-empathy-kit/</span></span></a></span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span class="s26" style="color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman"; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.399999618530273px; text-decoration: underline;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">Hashtag:</span></span><span class="s14" style="color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;"> Don’t forget to connect with us on social media and be sure and look for/use our official hashtag </span></span><span class="s27" style="color: #17365d; font-family: "times new roman"; font-weight: bold; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">#ReadYourWorld</span></span><span class="s14" style="color: #222222; font-family: "times new roman"; line-height: 14.399999618530273px;"><span class="bumpedFont15" style="line-height: 21.600000381469727px;">.</span></span></span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 17pt;">My first #partner book for this years MCBD was sent to me by<a href="https://lovinglionbooks.com/"> Loving Lion Books</a>. </span><span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 17pt;">Written by Norah Barrett Cooper, this cheery, customizable book tells a simple and relatable story of a big family get together. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfl7ACs5sWi7bsRqFxl3IRXvpyCwCv6SDSMUWtk3IsJOucxuZHRNUbkV0n0GmUFsV2IO6PjpSTtvI0_gDWgwkwNopH-P2_k5fmAD5NRHv31dXkPcAzHLCbFU5SWqNstYeBtYGTRErqzWVS/s1600/image1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1334" data-original-width="750" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfl7ACs5sWi7bsRqFxl3IRXvpyCwCv6SDSMUWtk3IsJOucxuZHRNUbkV0n0GmUFsV2IO6PjpSTtvI0_gDWgwkwNopH-P2_k5fmAD5NRHv31dXkPcAzHLCbFU5SWqNstYeBtYGTRErqzWVS/s400/image1.png" width="223" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Customization options include skin tones and family members (mom & dad, mom & mom, dad & dad) </td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 17pt;">A little girl eagerly awaits her family members’ arrivals, and the delicious meal they will create and share. She spends the day playing with her cousins, on what is clearly a happy occasion and joy filled day. Joelle Nelson’s bright illustrations add even more fun to the story.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix8e6Z-rbCn1RL9Nsm09dTlB6sZsxAM6VwbYb5YWmBbbzjCj-4jupv6KqW37YM7rI2Zv9STas3V26mWlzG6aDfxLYdIRF198dAzPJI6XuJ5a3AVsbG0ezdy4iKZpVrtmKXtiQ8S1ICb1qd/s1600/image1.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix8e6Z-rbCn1RL9Nsm09dTlB6sZsxAM6VwbYb5YWmBbbzjCj-4jupv6KqW37YM7rI2Zv9STas3V26mWlzG6aDfxLYdIRF198dAzPJI6XuJ5a3AVsbG0ezdy4iKZpVrtmKXtiQ8S1ICb1qd/s400/image1.jpeg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Love Family"...because families are love</td></tr>
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<span style="color: #454545; font-family: "sfuitext";"><span style="font-size: 17pt;"> Many little readers are sure to connect to the story of a big family party and dinner, recalling their experiences with Thanksgiving meals, family reunions, special holidays, birthday celebrations, or even more regular family gatherings. The book emphasizes the importance of family togetherness in a general, almost subtle way. The simplicity of the message fits perfectly with the idea of a book with </span><span style="font-size: 22.6667px;">customization</span><span style="font-size: 17pt;">, because it allows for the more specific details to be filled in by the readers own experiences and memories. The types of foods eaten, games played, and stories told can easily mirror what any child has seen in their own life. I would love if even more customization options were added!</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid1axLtpdSkiEqugOlMVnDOICKS8zmWMBg5cpBWVskqGilV80u_9f_Z88svs0CKXkuJDBfm94JmoqgZkD0tOHQrso45EvjrChdaBQ83O4TIPDtoWcxxjONujbaYjEWOzg9gD-J7bvE77-t/s1600/image2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEid1axLtpdSkiEqugOlMVnDOICKS8zmWMBg5cpBWVskqGilV80u_9f_Z88svs0CKXkuJDBfm94JmoqgZkD0tOHQrso45EvjrChdaBQ83O4TIPDtoWcxxjONujbaYjEWOzg9gD-J7bvE77-t/s400/image2.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Smiling faces, yummy food, hugs-what more could you want?</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 17pt;">This book would be appropriate in preschool and early elementary classrooms. It would serve well as a jumping off point for discussing different celebrations and traditions in students’ families, maybe with a focus on compare and contrast-noticing our special differences, but also how some themes are universal within so many families. At home, as a book to play connection, we enjoyed making homemade play dough to create different skin colors and making families of all colors and sizes. Our play dough recipe was inspired by <a href="http://craftulate.com/homemade-herb-and-spice-play-dough/">craftulate.com</a> and uses spices for coloring, so it is also a full sensory experience. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 17pt;">To make spiced play dough:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 17pt;">Mix together, in a medium saucepan:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 17pt;">1/2 cup flour</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 17pt;">1/2 cup water</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 17pt;">1 tsp cream of tartar</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 17pt;">2 tbs salt</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 17pt;">1 tbs of desired spice (cocoa powder for dark brown, cinnamon for lighter brown, paprika for copper red, turmeric for bright yellow, mustard powder for faint yellow). </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 17pt;">After mixing the ingredients thoroughly, heat the pan over medium heat and stir constantly. After about two minutes of stirring, your dough should begin to form a ball. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 17pt;">Remove your dough ball from heat and place on wax paper. Allow a few minutes for cooling, and you can begin to kneed your dough-it’s ready to play!</span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBry8U2dS_UpjnJnEwxSEFBJyVefo56Sbr5fZM8fhQL2hgShgyXd9FYgSFgrgom6Gh6CJ9nt8M8YJvD6STSptSYDq5OcsCMDJ2ll_B6TdhxkCSDbTI0OqXzpKBW-KJ0XAh0KIOrPMKixyq/s1600/image3.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBry8U2dS_UpjnJnEwxSEFBJyVefo56Sbr5fZM8fhQL2hgShgyXd9FYgSFgrgom6Gh6CJ9nt8M8YJvD6STSptSYDq5OcsCMDJ2ll_B6TdhxkCSDbTI0OqXzpKBW-KJ0XAh0KIOrPMKixyq/s400/image3.jpeg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cocoa, Tumeric, Mustard, Paprika, Cinnamon (clockwise)</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 17pt;">This dough is truly an awesome sensory tool. The different spices give off wonderfully different scents and have beautiful colors. Barring any allergies or sensitivities, they are taste safe (although they definitely don’t taste good)! You can feel the warm dough soon after it’s been prepared, or cold dough that has been in the refrigerator for a little while. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi09SqG6GV8YvgqVmflqYjVYJUrTe6m5GMh6lXRzb_azyQJMLSDRtEOJUgltcYIjv09MnBzRciwbXUb9eM0A-P8_zK7d67NgS_xebfLN_8i-jG0k5TsJlH0qCRBPOfxKusrl-WlvIU8ROyL/s1600/image4.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi09SqG6GV8YvgqVmflqYjVYJUrTe6m5GMh6lXRzb_azyQJMLSDRtEOJUgltcYIjv09MnBzRciwbXUb9eM0A-P8_zK7d67NgS_xebfLN_8i-jG0k5TsJlH0qCRBPOfxKusrl-WlvIU8ROyL/s400/image4.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Happy Dough Friends and Family</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIH5FAp8WiRZkMtfcbiOlXF5l8o46jSZUbRk3jDVcrcawQDttkY1baEtzSVTibeqBUJlaAk54aGj1mMlBXxFBDevqgWLt8eo8-ZRTdA9GODvoH9ppjsYkow6GKppqD9Vq5bwF5bDqz_Y4L/s1600/image6.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIH5FAp8WiRZkMtfcbiOlXF5l8o46jSZUbRk3jDVcrcawQDttkY1baEtzSVTibeqBUJlaAk54aGj1mMlBXxFBDevqgWLt8eo8-ZRTdA9GODvoH9ppjsYkow6GKppqD9Vq5bwF5bDqz_Y4L/s400/image6.jpeg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">C discovered that the cinnamon dough smells much better than it tastes</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgafAQ6Cj-8k6hsDZzAvJ2fJ4EMp75upDBNJZ1p1nhPzMwKD0bycW36ZqZJFAyavSURHg3GjPnQASrLZvVtx4ztYtMgXRNlBuo7XvYzw12KsWloV5GXw5U9l5rfFNNEAhfp2qICjooX01_Z/s1600/image7.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgafAQ6Cj-8k6hsDZzAvJ2fJ4EMp75upDBNJZ1p1nhPzMwKD0bycW36ZqZJFAyavSURHg3GjPnQASrLZvVtx4ztYtMgXRNlBuo7XvYzw12KsWloV5GXw5U9l5rfFNNEAhfp2qICjooX01_Z/s400/image7.jpeg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dough is Fun!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 17pt;">My second #partner book for MCBD 2018 is <a href="https://starbrightbooks.com/index.php">Star Bright Books</a> “A Fish to Feed”. Star Bright Books features multilingual books in 23 languages, and is a fantastic resource for educators for English Language Learners, as well as parents and families. I was lucky enough to receive both the English only and the Spanish/English versions of this book. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioHE9_ojw1KG8GjJ8TRIJ1ztzzd6GIa5o7PNfHdowyXbKG3ZZLygKaA25RyzRcP0_r6GOsGixVUFZWhWLTj4QLJqxlO_ua7S0P743top2PqspsCfyOFPeIDiu0ldH1uM9mpw4km0NTBB6B/s1600/image1+%25282%2529.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioHE9_ojw1KG8GjJ8TRIJ1ztzzd6GIa5o7PNfHdowyXbKG3ZZLygKaA25RyzRcP0_r6GOsGixVUFZWhWLTj4QLJqxlO_ua7S0P743top2PqspsCfyOFPeIDiu0ldH1uM9mpw4km0NTBB6B/s400/image1+%25282%2529.jpeg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"A Fish to Feed"</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 17pt;">The story is fun for toddlers, and shows a father and son as they explore their neighborhood on the search for a new pet fish. The book features cutouts that allow you to peek through to the illustration on the next page. C (1.5) loved the little circle cutouts and being able to touch the next page through them, or look through the little circle onto the next page. I loved how this feature added a little something extra to the story, and thought it was a pretty creative illustration feature.</span></div>
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<span style="color: #454545; font-family: "sfuitext";"><span style="font-size: 17pt;">The story models conversation between the father and son, and includes a message to parents about their child’s language development and how to enhance that through conversation. The text of the story furthers the message to parents, showing how father elaborates on the conversation with the child to further their ideas and introduce new </span><span style="font-size: 22.6667px;">vocabulary. These elements make the book as much a tool to teach parents as it is an enjoyable story for little ones</span><span style="font-size: 17pt;">. As a parent of a child with a speech delay, I greatly appreciate the professional information presented at the beginning of the book regarding language development and how to help your child grow in that area.</span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA9Q2x-7BcBXutmJ04A_LpMHmXO5yR3QQqXe6pExMA_3uh68xhGMh_elqPyGEbAhh33SMzqzRZ4t-wocNCQNS9yrx5ntf6t4r2VD5Avq3CCVswLWHQ9dPqfl33NaGykIMnpjxFjuzTA1JP/s1600/image3+%25281%2529.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA9Q2x-7BcBXutmJ04A_LpMHmXO5yR3QQqXe6pExMA_3uh68xhGMh_elqPyGEbAhh33SMzqzRZ4t-wocNCQNS9yrx5ntf6t4r2VD5Avq3CCVswLWHQ9dPqfl33NaGykIMnpjxFjuzTA1JP/s400/image3+%25281%2529.jpeg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">English Only</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU7dRf4XIlDTItM51-kyfl_-GP9hWU3-5fgqcVhf9J9ueZnABkaY5HZj-dyVwuifWcJDFaPx2uYd48OMMBvSI40owg_qxRIvycqF-t5Or9jBYnQs6oewCNm1ERn-EdN1UWSx3X_BetfIT0/s1600/image4+%25281%2529.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU7dRf4XIlDTItM51-kyfl_-GP9hWU3-5fgqcVhf9J9ueZnABkaY5HZj-dyVwuifWcJDFaPx2uYd48OMMBvSI40owg_qxRIvycqF-t5Or9jBYnQs6oewCNm1ERn-EdN1UWSx3X_BetfIT0/s400/image4+%25281%2529.jpeg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spanish and English</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 17pt;">Star Bright offers books in Amharic, Arabic, Bengali, Burmese Karen, Burmese, Chinese, English, Farsi, French, Haitian Creole, Hebrew, Hmong, Japanese, Korean, Navajo, Ojibwe, Portuguese, Russian, Somali, Spanish, Tagalog, Urdu, and Vietnamese. Some languages are available on their own and all are available in multi language books paired with English. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 17pt;">As our book to play project connection with “A Fish to Feed”, we created our own hand print fish pets. A paper plate would work great for this activity, but we just used a regular piece of paper (someone forgot to get paper plates at the grocery store). E (2.5) picked out his favorite colors to make his hand prints pets, and we added some eyes and features together. Crepe paper made our “water”, and we experimented with a few different tools to stamp on bubbles and rocks. Finally I labeled our fish colors with the English and Spanish words. E loves naming the colors, so he had a great time with this project!</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMFdEGb8biZjjscnHDuZIdYH6s77FgQ8VtF2RcB2dvK5wChxRAxY3ECwyyZxm-6BG5WN-i1BF2Cz2gra64qwMVhsabN-9ex9QwMKGIlSF-h_O9eJON0WYs2HzbUK17BP3cYoVfLWCEH8uz/s1600/image2+%25281%2529.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMFdEGb8biZjjscnHDuZIdYH6s77FgQ8VtF2RcB2dvK5wChxRAxY3ECwyyZxm-6BG5WN-i1BF2Cz2gra64qwMVhsabN-9ex9QwMKGIlSF-h_O9eJON0WYs2HzbUK17BP3cYoVfLWCEH8uz/s400/image2+%25281%2529.jpeg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our fish friends don't need food ;)<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">I hope you've enjoyed learning about a few new books and publishers in the world of Multicultural Children's Books. Check out the hashtag #ReadYourWorld on social media for even more reviews and recommendations. Follow the link in the caption below to print out your free coloring page, designed by Aram Kim!</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTBH9lwbW-c9PhhZ5cUkI4QzXMO_NYRmMcNMuRBSDAq63DBLyOp1TsMZSiypfWwhlzYFbIm8oWKywXDCdg9Qw6OLVl5mOg0LhSMuyL9Tj5DQ_8WMQGVj3qz1EKc53K4T8pZih3nKPtd_L-/s1600/Image-1+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1050" data-original-width="750" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTBH9lwbW-c9PhhZ5cUkI4QzXMO_NYRmMcNMuRBSDAq63DBLyOp1TsMZSiypfWwhlzYFbIm8oWKywXDCdg9Qw6OLVl5mOg0LhSMuyL9Tj5DQ_8WMQGVj3qz1EKc53K4T8pZih3nKPtd_L-/s640/Image-1+%25282%2529.jpg" width="456" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://holidayhouse.com/docs/MCD_Coloring_Page_Aram_Kim.pdf">Read Your World, Color Your World</a></td></tr>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08567504140473953315noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2826020646022431400.post-1282324535049484452017-07-18T09:22:00.000-07:002017-07-18T09:22:55.587-07:00Little Tykes Playhouse Flip<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This post combines a few things that I really love: free side of the road junk and spray paint. And of course, my kids! Now that we are onto our second summer in the house, we've gotten through some of the more pressing home fix ups and have a little bit of time for some fun stuff. This summer, we focused on making our yard more kid friendly. We had our yard fenced in a few months back, and since that was a more expensive project, I've been looking for deals for the little extras I wanted to add to the yard. At the top of the list for this summer was some type of playhouse or structure, and a sandbox. With a little bit of luck I was able to cross all three off early in the summer, yay!<br />
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My first find definitely came with a stroke of luck! My husband and I happened to be driving home late one night after a visit with friends, and just down the street from our house we spotted a great old Little Tykes house out on the side of the road! Despite the fact that it was nearly midnight, I made Hubs pull over because this was a score, no way was I letting it sit until morning. I'd been stalking a few on the Facebook swap pages, and they can go for upwards of $50, so free sounded pretty good to me, especially since I knew I wanted to give it a little face lift. So there we were, in the dark, on the side of the road disassembling this little house and cramming it all into our Jeep, because just like groceries, we wanted to make it all in one trip. Luckily, the darkness kept us from seeing the substantial layer of grime (and spiders' webs) that covered the house. It got a nice sudsy bath the next day! There were also a bunch of random, rusty screws sticking out of the doors and windows, which had to be removed (still trying to figure out their original purpose).<br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYO5vDhNVeRZ6KtqhlwzGVI5quoVjAcR363D-l5QpuLakOdCqzjRF0nkqkKO9teJf4FqQbOBBmiJWbwUKr9MtJZ5O6JFQ2mfXRTjD8WCMrbB74w-4QYx9vGhZ7FyRvRJP_c6oeSqLW97bs/s1600/IMG_0473.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYO5vDhNVeRZ6KtqhlwzGVI5quoVjAcR363D-l5QpuLakOdCqzjRF0nkqkKO9teJf4FqQbOBBmiJWbwUKr9MtJZ5O6JFQ2mfXRTjD8WCMrbB74w-4QYx9vGhZ7FyRvRJP_c6oeSqLW97bs/s400/IMG_0473.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Our house even came with this sign...not *quite* move in ready though</td></tr>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVY_GCFh-Dpt9ErTu-AMgyjl0UwYp7LkEcAbO5Q1x5UBv1cRG7uJ7OiIw_WEyBrNL3UMM2c3f8159zfFppyz1047uF2EDpdMVEJX7aPFSITECWXasfaybPGhh1gKlnFE9Qh2wkEAiOUCYV/s1600/IMG_1741.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVY_GCFh-Dpt9ErTu-AMgyjl0UwYp7LkEcAbO5Q1x5UBv1cRG7uJ7OiIw_WEyBrNL3UMM2c3f8159zfFppyz1047uF2EDpdMVEJX7aPFSITECWXasfaybPGhh1gKlnFE9Qh2wkEAiOUCYV/s400/IMG_1741.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Ordinary, bland Little Tykes house, after its bath<br />
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Once my freebie house had a good scrub down, I had to decide what color scheme to go with. I considered a gray/navy/deep red, but that didn't quite fit with the woodsy setting under our hemlock tree. Instead, I went with a nice mossy green as the base color, tan shades for the shutters and roof, and a pumpkin pop for the door. I used "Rust-oleum Painter's Touch 2X Ultra Cover Paint and Primer". </div>
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The roof and door knob are easy to remove from the house, and the sides can be taken apart. I believe you *should* be able to take the door and shutters off, but I was nervous about snapping one of the connections, so I didn't fuss with it too much. I've consulted with my personal adviser, Google, who confirmed that most people have a hard time getting the shutters/door to budge, but a few Hulk moms have claimed victory. Personally, I just took a little time to tape the edges around the windows and door, as I was aiming for pretty good over perfect. I also used a trash bag to cover up the areas that I was worried about over spraying, but found that I really didn't need it after my first window. After a little practice I was able to get my spraying pretty accurate. Unfortunately I didn't think to take a picture of how I used the plastic bag to cover the windows, but it should be easy enough to figure out on your own. Of course, I recommend starting with the back window where you'll be less likely to be bothered by any mistakes. You can easily unscrew the doorknob before painting the door if you'd like it to be a different color. </div>
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The first piece I sprayed was the roof, mainly because it is the easiest to take apart. The roof has two pieces, and you will also want to spray at least part of the underside. The underneath edges can be seen from the outside, so mark off the point where you can see them, and spray at least that far on the underside. I used one can total for the roof, although I did not spray the entire underside.</div>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd3oIVCDiAFzXXbj6ae3kMU4XZnZHWqcjNWYA53UcU5FeK-2n-WM06xDOrXW-S7DOQ_D2oARytG50tNdO7tqPuvhdyZXB-mOjB1FdzLowa7CcLkSI6Xm3_Z6q7FZnFYbSibEf7g5c8a4wa/s1600/IMG_0656.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd3oIVCDiAFzXXbj6ae3kMU4XZnZHWqcjNWYA53UcU5FeK-2n-WM06xDOrXW-S7DOQ_D2oARytG50tNdO7tqPuvhdyZXB-mOjB1FdzLowa7CcLkSI6Xm3_Z6q7FZnFYbSibEf7g5c8a4wa/s400/IMG_0656.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">The roof can easily be removed and sprayed on its own</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
I decided to spray the sides while the house was still standing. You could also lay each piece down and spray it on its own, but I didn't see any real benefit to that method. I was a little worried about paint drips, but the drips I have are minimal. Just remember to spray from far enough away and you should be fine. I also appreciated that I didn't have to do much bending by keeping the house standing, nor did I have to do much to protect the area. Also, since I worked on this project during nap times and evenings, the house was still available for E to use while I worked on the project. The paint is dry to the touch within 20 minutes, and able to be handled within an hour. It is fully dry in 24 hours.<br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu_ItJOvLa3Wb-QCGzjNTFf0ZkY5EHw_0rseIC83YwjQfwBpPjQZ6ywTMILTXMre1mRRBvY-7BCGCooE05mO8i6yOVt9hvS5jkGM6QvC9kflVF2cYrrhiK5D-ThxLo6lpAOV8tToy-tRT_/s1600/IMG_0657.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu_ItJOvLa3Wb-QCGzjNTFf0ZkY5EHw_0rseIC83YwjQfwBpPjQZ6ywTMILTXMre1mRRBvY-7BCGCooE05mO8i6yOVt9hvS5jkGM6QvC9kflVF2cYrrhiK5D-ThxLo6lpAOV8tToy-tRT_/s400/IMG_0657.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">In progress spray painting</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I gave each piece one coat of paint, and then did a few touch ups in some places. In total, the project took about 4 nap times (7ish hours). I used 4 cans for the siding/base color, 1 can for the shutters, half a can for the door, and 1 can for the roof (but could use a little more to cover more of the underside). I painted both sides of the windows and door, but left the inside walls unpainted. The amount of spray paint you need could vary a little depending on the colors you choose and how good their coverage is over the original colors. I did not use any top coat or extra primer. <br />
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDDdZIjdKHFatvWksGp5_-K0am_GBFe4I1RS8EUqKCuFNdr_0Cfmk-d6o6czg-hXQf5d1coXly3H-nIqc4Vwr4ljqER3zs_vBl3MbkE4XaT-itkpoM0XdyhcgGOhZSr2pASCBzcV6mtX4J/s1600/IMG_1286.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDDdZIjdKHFatvWksGp5_-K0am_GBFe4I1RS8EUqKCuFNdr_0Cfmk-d6o6czg-hXQf5d1coXly3H-nIqc4Vwr4ljqER3zs_vBl3MbkE4XaT-itkpoM0XdyhcgGOhZSr2pASCBzcV6mtX4J/s400/IMG_1286.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">London Fog (roof and door knob), Cinnamon (door), Nutmeg (shutters),<br />
and Moss Green (siding/walls) were our color choices.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
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<div>
As far as wearing goes, there are a few spots that a small amount of paint has scratched off, in the high traffic areas. E grabs onto the window of the door in one spot to open and close, so there are a few scratches there. Also, the areas where the edge of the window rubs against the wall to open and close has worn a bit. Other than that, we've had the house outside for almost two months now and it still looks great. I plan on taking it in before winter and the really harsh weather arrive. </div>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8Pjaki-t3GJWmZzVOwIOnF6RLDxwPtykVUpSovU6RDzCmyWe3mMEq-uUHtXA_HOVsrP93B9-Y7YKKwcscVpSzgzFH-RYHC21UlyqvZT0nYej3QzYihEgsDkLStUtHF62gmOv4CIa-j3Yu/s1600/IMG_1289.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8Pjaki-t3GJWmZzVOwIOnF6RLDxwPtykVUpSovU6RDzCmyWe3mMEq-uUHtXA_HOVsrP93B9-Y7YKKwcscVpSzgzFH-RYHC21UlyqvZT0nYej3QzYihEgsDkLStUtHF62gmOv4CIa-j3Yu/s400/IMG_1289.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Small areas on the edges have slight wearing after<br />
a month of opening and closing.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<div>
For finishing touch, we added street numbers and a potted marigold. I'm looking for a good replacement door knob too, and maybe a few other touches to add to the outside. I'd love to find a nice free side of the road picnic table!</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU70YJKF19RnwnpBn0kJ2l2I2QyxTKd3Gl003F3jqfno_Q1YQ2sIa7Zsvb8-X56OqUeGEDHZx_OwGwZtyNRbObbd4qpaAyUKmRRQpOipbV-CDDofPg8Di-7ADNsyOHPEPp5u_IcApqWRln/s1600/IMG_1308.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjU70YJKF19RnwnpBn0kJ2l2I2QyxTKd3Gl003F3jqfno_Q1YQ2sIa7Zsvb8-X56OqUeGEDHZx_OwGwZtyNRbObbd4qpaAyUKmRRQpOipbV-CDDofPg8Di-7ADNsyOHPEPp5u_IcApqWRln/s400/IMG_1308.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Happy with his house!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
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<div>
Overall, this was a pretty fun and satisfying project. I have a better appreciation for graffiti artists now, because after a few hours of spraying my wrist definitely was aching! I love transforming my finds with a simple spray painting, and now I get too look at something that is more fresh and my style than the washed out and faded original colors.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP54z1WQ715xuLcQieBUN2uvsaXGxKNVKX3RF54YtODGiS7DtNTXWZT3O1eIB7pmCV47aBBitktUKRI1e6UL4OsnwsGYbT-6wkyFlXnrtY57UbpJp1Gu3uA3F9E6BCSN1ShTr0tRZf6o1v/s1600/IMG_1285.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgP54z1WQ715xuLcQieBUN2uvsaXGxKNVKX3RF54YtODGiS7DtNTXWZT3O1eIB7pmCV47aBBitktUKRI1e6UL4OsnwsGYbT-6wkyFlXnrtY57UbpJp1Gu3uA3F9E6BCSN1ShTr0tRZf6o1v/s640/IMG_1285.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 12.8px;">Home Sweet Home</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Have you done any side of the road redo projects this summer?</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08567504140473953315noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2826020646022431400.post-33545120274279730402017-07-11T18:50:00.001-07:002017-07-11T18:50:56.282-07:00Busy, Busy JulyYay for July! July is such a great month, the month that really makes me think "summer". There's always plenty going on, right from the start with Fourth of July celebrations. Add in a sprinkling of trips to the beach, cookouts, bonfires, tending to the garden, afternoons at the playground or in the pool, and it just seems to speed by. We also have the added fun of two pretty big July birthdays in our family. Both my actual first born and practice first born (aka little sister), are July babies, so we really get to pack in some celebrating this month! Clearly there are lots of places where a July book theme could take me, but to me no summer is complete with some time at the beach.<br />
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Here are a few of the beach and ocean themed books we will be reading this month:</h3>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgR7RD59WoY2xjpHlg3yXKAbw_GZnFfc316OopDGQAUNRTvqyPcudlTmMqDErDZ8CFIcyqE15s3OPodPLJs9gksBOGF-9vFf1Eg9E7rYd5eXa6ln90-hnjLh4pXMdohaUKGc0kiV8Mj4kV/s1600/IMG_1359.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgR7RD59WoY2xjpHlg3yXKAbw_GZnFfc316OopDGQAUNRTvqyPcudlTmMqDErDZ8CFIcyqE15s3OPodPLJs9gksBOGF-9vFf1Eg9E7rYd5eXa6ln90-hnjLh4pXMdohaUKGc0kiV8Mj4kV/s640/IMG_1359.JPG" width="480" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Beachy Book #shelfie</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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"Theo at the Beach" by Jaclyn Crupi:</div>
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Theo is an adorable little puppy who has lost his sense of smell. He decides to take a trip to the beach, hoping that some of the seaside scents will awaken his sense of smell again! As readers follow Theo on his adventure at the beach, they will find that the book includes a few rub and sniff scented illustrations. We have two Theo books in our library, and E is currently loving them! He loves sniffing each page to see if he can find a scent, and its pretty adorable to watch! The stories are cute, however I do wish a few more scent pages were included. It is a fun book to read when talking about the senses, especially soon after a trip to the beach, when your child has a fresh memory of what sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and feelings they had while at the beach! If you love Theo, he also has a trip to the park book, as well as a trip to the grocery store!</div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUNlN7SIvhzuks2QQOIkbmg7Bu2ctPDm3H5ZGi0dfzxiYXv59cS3EhTdNF2jzMGIbZYexGsdRHoUPVsQ8EFMgLKw6Hr72TbC0l1EDPX9ZOH9IHpGy3EpgtxJCqTvdu99uSUcooaNnhtnp0/s1600/IMG_1374.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1315" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUNlN7SIvhzuks2QQOIkbmg7Bu2ctPDm3H5ZGi0dfzxiYXv59cS3EhTdNF2jzMGIbZYexGsdRHoUPVsQ8EFMgLKw6Hr72TbC0l1EDPX9ZOH9IHpGy3EpgtxJCqTvdu99uSUcooaNnhtnp0/s400/IMG_1374.JPG" width="327" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sadly, this is only a smelling book, no taste samples included</td></tr>
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"Penguin on Vacation" by Salina Yoon:</div>
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Salina Yoon's Penguin books are some of our favorites, and following Penguin on all of his adventures is fun! This time, Penguin decides that he needs a break from the cold and snow of his home (who can blame him?), and sets off on a little vacation. He hits the beach and makes a new friend who shows him how much fun the beach can be. When Penguin is ready to leave, he is sad that his friend can't join him. But Penguin soon learns he isn't the only one who needs a vacation.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbxlvqDQ_W1MYnmo5BHeBHUrn1tnU2IZSl7fE1eIRYCgqHl0UPR2aZVCqCeK5kNvQYFCvEaYu0zsMGiOAXXyzPCk2NUAevaqUwPUmFcpgQ5cE7JvLWGjel-XTPMYJzfkUt7BUxuZ0Jzwvg/s1600/IMG_1372.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbxlvqDQ_W1MYnmo5BHeBHUrn1tnU2IZSl7fE1eIRYCgqHl0UPR2aZVCqCeK5kNvQYFCvEaYu0zsMGiOAXXyzPCk2NUAevaqUwPUmFcpgQ5cE7JvLWGjel-XTPMYJzfkUt7BUxuZ0Jzwvg/s400/IMG_1372.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Don't we all, Penguin. Don't we all...</td></tr>
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"Duck & Goose Go to the Beach" by Tad Hills</div>
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Yet another adorable Duck and Goose tale (tail?). Duck and Goose are happy in their meadow, until one day when Duck decides they should go on an adventure, see something different. Goose needs a bit of convincing, but reluctantly follows his friend. Lots of exciting new sights await them, the biggest being the ocean. Suddenly, Duck isn't feeling quite as adventurous, although Goose is quite excited! Although they both end up enjoying part of their adventures, they agree that home in the meadow is where they are happiest.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ_XdUY9MyungjkJEZGTG_Fny5CUvkSw8ANuRp7y1OrpxARlzPJISREWeWjOFqb51zDMK7Ez8MBxMAYfcJIDq1t_Xx9Z7t1v5G6VJb8VO93Zrn4SGU7T_eHTAr8jt224t95z4X_nSySxuW/s1600/IMG_1378.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ_XdUY9MyungjkJEZGTG_Fny5CUvkSw8ANuRp7y1OrpxARlzPJISREWeWjOFqb51zDMK7Ez8MBxMAYfcJIDq1t_Xx9Z7t1v5G6VJb8VO93Zrn4SGU7T_eHTAr8jt224t95z4X_nSySxuW/s400/IMG_1378.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Meeting the locals is always...interesting...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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"Under the Sea" by Redd Byrd:</div>
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This simple, interactive book is fun for toddlers. It features three spinning pieces with different sea creatures. Each page has a few different questions about the animals and your little one can answer the question by turning the piece to show the correct creature under the question. The cover of the book clearly says 2+, and I'd agree. E just turned 2 at the beginning of the month, and we haven't really used the book in it's intended way yet. There isn't really a story outside of the questions, but this book really is great for practice with identifying traits and asking questions. The illustrations are bright and colorful, and easily lend themselves to more questions you can make up on your own. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxMLGzE-sMWqwKz5Fm5XGdZ6g6HowvBYf_RJ6tNOViw9aE6TEWSszo_b8-W1NatW7TKhtDvDTVzoWqaNQgTzshDWBMvby5z4FV2iNuaU4CaMkWVKQH2uGZp_Rv114X7tyI5t0Qni_lx3wz/s1600/IMG_1376.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxMLGzE-sMWqwKz5Fm5XGdZ6g6HowvBYf_RJ6tNOViw9aE6TEWSszo_b8-W1NatW7TKhtDvDTVzoWqaNQgTzshDWBMvby5z4FV2iNuaU4CaMkWVKQH2uGZp_Rv114X7tyI5t0Qni_lx3wz/s400/IMG_1376.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">2 out of 3, not too bad...</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Whatever fun summer experiences you and your children have this summer, I hope you are able to find a fun book or two that relates. The best part of reading these beachy stories was asking E if he remembered our recent beach trip and seeing him smile and nod yes. I can't wait until he is smiling and talking about it too!<br /><div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08567504140473953315noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2826020646022431400.post-24338949941051792832017-06-12T17:41:00.000-07:002017-06-12T17:41:10.631-07:00Dads Read Too!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy9yu7h8gKIjm9sr6oJ_M9JHVHYCFaPPU-C3y2JxXQXxZIs1NFO-nodepOcILWxDVHKWd-EgK89WX9-P48u9I1JA7vukT0VnjabWgFSE8b2GeZetvcrdmS6zPmhmVqLTkuDl2A401ShnsW/s1600/IMG_0315.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="836" data-original-width="626" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy9yu7h8gKIjm9sr6oJ_M9JHVHYCFaPPU-C3y2JxXQXxZIs1NFO-nodepOcILWxDVHKWd-EgK89WX9-P48u9I1JA7vukT0VnjabWgFSE8b2GeZetvcrdmS6zPmhmVqLTkuDl2A401ShnsW/s320/IMG_0315.JPG" width="237" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9gtIs34-4FfqLU8EyETRckzUk4n7k6b27HMjlxRL0qc8eeSmhamW0bgPqmlSPyBnAsxNR42fH0pMoxEhciOFmTj2bv8z2ZwpeUVT1D0_F0uAAA0kNqHTSgneDQlCDooO67PXD11ZEFMyV/s1600/IMG_0325.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="836" data-original-width="626" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9gtIs34-4FfqLU8EyETRckzUk4n7k6b27HMjlxRL0qc8eeSmhamW0bgPqmlSPyBnAsxNR42fH0pMoxEhciOFmTj2bv8z2ZwpeUVT1D0_F0uAAA0kNqHTSgneDQlCDooO67PXD11ZEFMyV/s320/IMG_0325.JPG" width="237" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.8px;">Sometimes scrolling through my social media accounts it seems like we forget this simple fact-dads read too! There are plenty of images and anecdotes of moms reading with their little ones, but I seldom stubble upon a dad sharing their favorite bookish discoveries or library adventures. There of course be many reasons why dads aren't showing off their story time skills on Instagram and Facebook, but I think it is so important for </span><i style="font-size: 12.8px;">all</i><span style="font-size: 12.8px;"> of us to realize that dads can read-and they can do a pretty great job. I'd love to see more kids being read to by all of the important people in their lives-moms and dads, grandparents, siblings, aunts, uncles, friends...everyone! So in honor of the upcoming Father's Day holiday, I'm sharing a few of our famiy's books about dads, and hoping you will think about shaking up your daily story time routine with an extra read aloud by dad (or another special family member or friend).</span></div>
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<span class="m_5358625541274765322s1">There isn't much that makes my heart happier than listening to my husband reading to E. Hubs has an inconsistent work schedule, with some nights only ending well after our kiddos are in bed. It can be a bummer sometimes, but also makes nights when he is here extra special! Usually bedtime becomes a divide and conquer task, since little C still needs some quiet time with me before she is ready to sleep for the night. That means E gets some special one on one time with his Daddy, which includes a good long tubby and a read through three or four of his favorite books, before being tucked into bed (burrito style, like only Daddy can do, of course). I love hearing them reading from the other room as I take care of C. Even though my husband is reading the same books with E that I usually do, the story becomes totally different with his silly voices, expert sound effects, little asides, and always plenty of belly laughs from E. Harvard University even backs me up on this one. They released a study not too long ago outlining the differences between mom and dad reading styles, and why reading with dads can be so important for little ones. You can read a little about it <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/health/children/11895432/Bedtime-stories-its-better-if-dad-reads-them.html">here</a>. So to celebrate that special energy comes with a new perspective on an old read aloud, here are a few of our books about Dads.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaxB0sHecN_XX8GL0w5gS_gGt-02aM6lCAsqmArHCJ5UtuObzX8D4oRqtIftZJxAyEOiasqwrMIwI6-WNapavCp31G2IiJAG0w7BnFfpeifGtBrtq8bzui5D8A2N5OUNfZNWdF_In0L7Rg/s1600/IMG_0314.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="836" data-original-width="626" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaxB0sHecN_XX8GL0w5gS_gGt-02aM6lCAsqmArHCJ5UtuObzX8D4oRqtIftZJxAyEOiasqwrMIwI6-WNapavCp31G2IiJAG0w7BnFfpeifGtBrtq8bzui5D8A2N5OUNfZNWdF_In0L7Rg/s400/IMG_0314.JPG" width="298" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Daddy #shelfie<br /><br /></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 12.8px;">"Following Papa's Song" by Giannna Marino:</span></div>
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<span class="m_5358625541274765322s1">We received this book through Dolly Parton's Imagination Library. The illustrations are simply stunning, dreamily depicting the whales' underwater environs. They beautifully transport the reader from dawn to dusk, as the Little Blue travels across the ocean and learns from his Papa's wisdom. When Little Blue strays from his path, he finds that his papa is always waiting to guide him back. This is one of my favorite Imagination Library books thus far. If you have a child under age 5, I highly recommend checking <a href="https://usa.imaginationlibrary.com/find_my_affiliate.php#.WT8s4-vyvIU">here</a> to see if the program is available in your area (who wouldn't love a free book each month?!)</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4m5ubwPQP8Fh4g1OYhC2oXoLhyphenhyphen_afnL6LdF8CbHBwQjwYzOW603V7-vhif1kay7JcU7Dkhyphenhyphen7_3eMsCh-_pVb48aasmsSxu0p5MVAp6OsezAYlNajN-9NGspqF_uVl7Kjg3IxhUcHgR9oD/s1600/IMG_0383.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4m5ubwPQP8Fh4g1OYhC2oXoLhyphenhyphen_afnL6LdF8CbHBwQjwYzOW603V7-vhif1kay7JcU7Dkhyphenhyphen7_3eMsCh-_pVb48aasmsSxu0p5MVAp6OsezAYlNajN-9NGspqF_uVl7Kjg3IxhUcHgR9oD/s400/IMG_0383.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I want to spend a day swimming in Little Blue's ocean</td></tr>
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<span class="m_5358625541274765322s1">"I Love My Daddy Because" by Laurel Porter-Gaylord</span><span style="font-size: 12.8px;">:</span></div>
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<span class="m_5358625541274765322s1">This cute board book shows animal fathers taking care of their babies. Animals are seen building homes, finding food, keeping babies safe, or playing. There are many learning opportunities with this book, ranging from a simple discussion of different types of animals, comparing animal fathers to a child's father (Daddy loves to chase you in the yard, just like the animals daddy plays with him), and even an opportunity to learn some Spanish words. The book includes both Spanish and English text, as well as labels or animal names.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8qTxMrDHmHqhEG_-FKHALgH-9rGti-bVo8xQA5sU3eR7Z5nTRKxb1X0CEqPh-r4Ttz9Zpt-hbKHAKRKOSNDESX04xhM_KFeBb3EhaXd1lbBuFWXm5v9zq_3Pfq6eGmw7nyavqA1EJysZQ/s1600/IMG_0384.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8qTxMrDHmHqhEG_-FKHALgH-9rGti-bVo8xQA5sU3eR7Z5nTRKxb1X0CEqPh-r4Ttz9Zpt-hbKHAKRKOSNDESX04xhM_KFeBb3EhaXd1lbBuFWXm5v9zq_3Pfq6eGmw7nyavqA1EJysZQ/s400/IMG_0384.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dads teach lots of good things, but apparently getting laundry into the hamper isn't one of them.</td></tr>
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<span class="m_5358625541274765322s1">"Your Baby's First Word Will Be DADA" by Jimmy Fallon:</span></div>
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<span class="m_5358625541274765322s1">Fallon's popular books is seen on the shelves at many stores year round, and especially near Father's Day. If you haven't checked it out yet and know a soon to be or new dad, it is worth a peek. Very simple conversational text and bold, geometric animal graphics easily capture the eye of 0-2 year olds. Animal sounds are always fun, and E enjoys joining in on the few sounds he knows, which includes Dada...still waiting to really hear Mama over here!</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX2D4Ro6KFzR35BNeTTSNSNj9K1jIS_dD4KJe5XfeONx2PKqC0kMsEEtHb2cV8ouitgX1hUguTW6mPvsV1e_mbDp_Jk6Jd1CMXzu4W_JN13sal52_XS1lyg9OLFMPpy5RYtHb94FnULMLD/s1600/IMG_0382.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX2D4Ro6KFzR35BNeTTSNSNj9K1jIS_dD4KJe5XfeONx2PKqC0kMsEEtHb2cV8ouitgX1hUguTW6mPvsV1e_mbDp_Jk6Jd1CMXzu4W_JN13sal52_XS1lyg9OLFMPpy5RYtHb94FnULMLD/s400/IMG_0382.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Your baby's first word will be Dada...but Dada will swear it's Mama at 2am</td></tr>
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<span class="m_5358625541274765322s1">"I Love You Daddy" by Melanie Joyce:</span></div>
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<span class="m_5358625541274765322s1">Although this book isn't especially remarkable, it is a sweet read. The story follows bear cub and his daddy through the forest and shows the simple things that bear cub appreciates about his daddy.<span class="m_5358625541274765322Apple-converted-space"> </span>It's not a book we read frequently, but it is a nice story to bring out occasionally, especially when feeling a little extra lovey towards Daddy. There is also a companion book geared towards moms. <span class="m_5358625541274765322Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8ZVm_wNK9tdFBFOVlu7ljfflumaGFCLrNTr4JhiXdCaby-Xz57_SVrcX4c0Lw6sDjkSods_NJtUaDXvMjVYmTn4Z23L12PgYkE-mxcvYgAP5IJLyYlnUfEblzDspUsgDDgBtFtkMcGuSC/s1600/IMG_0387.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8ZVm_wNK9tdFBFOVlu7ljfflumaGFCLrNTr4JhiXdCaby-Xz57_SVrcX4c0Lw6sDjkSods_NJtUaDXvMjVYmTn4Z23L12PgYkE-mxcvYgAP5IJLyYlnUfEblzDspUsgDDgBtFtkMcGuSC/s400/IMG_0387.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cuddles with Dad are sweet, even for a bear</td></tr>
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<span class="m_5358625541274765322s1">"When Dads Don't Grow Up" by Marjorie Blain Parker</span><span style="font-size: 12.8px;">:</span></div>
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<span class="m_5358625541274765322s1">This is easily my favorite book on the list. I came across it at a fun little used book store, back when I was pregnant with E. I had actually been looking for some old field guides for a nursery project, but when I spotted "When Dads Don't Grow Up" it immediately made me think of my husband. He wasn't a dad just yet, but E was due just a few days after Father's Day, and this book became my husband's first Father's Day gift. Hubs still gets a little teary when he reads the note I wrote to him on the inside cover...so that's my little emotional connection with this book, but really you've got to believe me that it is seriously cute. It's all about dads who know how to be silly and fun loving, who know how to embrace the messy and the ordinary and make them into memories. It celebrates dads who are kids at heart, even if they are grown ups on the outside.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUyFWY1wycP5tvJmGqAh3QXXrUuM__LKaNd1_-ryWLaQHmxlgYTveWKHWTk1U8sUIQaywM6AbSX5qKqpa4l9AMow6IrJjKNOLx32G32JHV6kGCDdYSzTjJrt_MfeXfMbemAwmCZhWaa7Md/s1600/IMG_0385.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUyFWY1wycP5tvJmGqAh3QXXrUuM__LKaNd1_-ryWLaQHmxlgYTveWKHWTk1U8sUIQaywM6AbSX5qKqpa4l9AMow6IrJjKNOLx32G32JHV6kGCDdYSzTjJrt_MfeXfMbemAwmCZhWaa7Md/s400/IMG_0385.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bubble wrap dad = my husband</td></tr>
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<span class="m_5358625541274765322s1">"What Daddies Do Best"/"What Mommies Do Best" by Laura Numeroff:</span></div>
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<span class="m_5358625541274765322s1">This fun book is really two books in one. Simply flip over for the second story! That novel aspect makes it pretty neat for little ones. The two stories celebrate all the ordinary things that dads (and moms) do for their children. If you are looking for a book that goes beyond the typical gendered roles of moms vs. dads, this book definitely checks that box (dads can sew buttons, garden, etc). Because really, when you are a parent there's no job you don't do for your child, regardless of stereotypes...sometimes the job just needs to get done. And that's truly what daddies AND mommies do best.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpS6OFSNC2ZsMc9xkxAg4OjrRpeuWNX36EGkNENchMmSuPU6CsaP5MHsuNJCW_MJKWbXBrPPc-zJCkmrab_GiQdrjc2rY1a73R7h6OLiuOR4QgDdf1yQnZaXbfXuoRqFLQj5Tg8sZ7pvlB/s1600/IMG_0386.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpS6OFSNC2ZsMc9xkxAg4OjrRpeuWNX36EGkNENchMmSuPU6CsaP5MHsuNJCW_MJKWbXBrPPc-zJCkmrab_GiQdrjc2rY1a73R7h6OLiuOR4QgDdf1yQnZaXbfXuoRqFLQj5Tg8sZ7pvlB/s400/IMG_0386.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Snowman or snow-hippo?</td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;">I'd love to hear from you! Do you celebrate Father's Day with books?</span><span class="m_5358625541274765322Apple-converted-space" style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8px;"> </span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08567504140473953315noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2826020646022431400.post-89409606685556368622017-05-10T17:13:00.000-07:002017-05-10T17:15:47.511-07:00For the BirdsThis month we are celebrating our feathered friends! Now that the weather has started to be more consistently on the warm side (despite a chilly, rain filled week here in New England), we are seeing plenty of birds at our feeders, hopping across the lawn, and perching on the telephone wires. Since E loves pointing out birds and calling "eeeeeee" or "awww awww"to them, its the perfect time to take up his interest in the avian type, and maybe inspire a lifelong bird watching hobby. I'd certainly love to see E as a friend to birds (among other creatures), as it seems to be an interest that runs in the family. E's great-great grandfather (whom his middle name is after) wrote popular columns for a Boston newspaper about birds. His great grandmother happily fed and housed all sorts of flying friends, tending to gardens filled with plants to attract hummingbirds, orioles, and others. E's grandfather can identify pretty much any bird call you hear in our region, and identify even more species. And I personally am enjoying feeding the birds in our own yard, and hoping to add a few bluebird or wren houses, or maybe a bird bath this spring.<br />
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Here's a look at what we are reading this month:</h3>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCksRfIWkyVPd0TmGSyaYo9jqVUnxxNsVAl9LddCiUbvfa9hWVxXiiLWDOq71fCgPFMZ-qO3EMEynkHzG4-L2wLTEwmrhQc8mZ-0tWLU3RFAgRblwllb_fll4pIMsOKeDRko4x27S58Kvi/s1600/IMG_9688.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCksRfIWkyVPd0TmGSyaYo9jqVUnxxNsVAl9LddCiUbvfa9hWVxXiiLWDOq71fCgPFMZ-qO3EMEynkHzG4-L2wLTEwmrhQc8mZ-0tWLU3RFAgRblwllb_fll4pIMsOKeDRko4x27S58Kvi/s400/IMG_9688.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A bird book variety</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBLY0FV_WVqAuOplyqqe7HIkWgs21lCi5H7psSh6iCLnZNIJ3Xcvt09pQ2h4f44P6r0I9pK700yqU-WDQ9PBRcWCxUZbD1RY_0YR0zV8Q73ZSqzjNpWv1FRdnBXC5ac9-ULVkXh1yjJGj2/s1600/IMG_9685.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBLY0FV_WVqAuOplyqqe7HIkWgs21lCi5H7psSh6iCLnZNIJ3Xcvt09pQ2h4f44P6r0I9pK700yqU-WDQ9PBRcWCxUZbD1RY_0YR0zV8Q73ZSqzjNpWv1FRdnBXC5ac9-ULVkXh1yjJGj2/s400/IMG_9685.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">#shelfie<br />
Notice E's own bird nest on the wall?</td></tr>
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"Birds" by Kevin Henkes:</div>
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Many recognize Kevin Henkes as the author of the mouse stories (has your child met Chrysanthemum, Owen, Chester, or Wemberly yet?) You might be surprised that Henkes also has some equally lovely stories that are not about mice. I love "Birds" because it is light and airy, and the whimsical imaginings of the narrator seem so relatable to young ones. Filled with simple observations about birds, and childlike questions without any of the "right" answers, this book could inspire many happy talks about birds while taking notice of them all around you.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWPDTQ0_I_XuIAjKRux_zkIxrSS8wBTJX4BITqCum2M02ht48RZZJ_SLyVYNrPRSS4vness5Fg1SVyofdiPmxIfP749KXSfX8Ew9Synv9LD9_VCYWNBIyrHvRESQKuneEsZgXgFxd5OxYi/s1600/FullSizeRender+%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWPDTQ0_I_XuIAjKRux_zkIxrSS8wBTJX4BITqCum2M02ht48RZZJ_SLyVYNrPRSS4vness5Fg1SVyofdiPmxIfP749KXSfX8Ew9Synv9LD9_VCYWNBIyrHvRESQKuneEsZgXgFxd5OxYi/s320/FullSizeRender+%25283%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A rainbow of colors all the time.</td></tr>
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"Owl Babies" by Martin Waddell:</div>
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Since May is also host to Mother's Day, here is a bird story about an owl momma and her babies. Mommy Owl leaves the nest for the night to find food, and her three little ones worry about her return while they wait for her, alone in the dark forest. Each owlet has a different personality, trying to be brave, or in charge, or just plain honestly missing mom. The sweet story ends with Mommy's return and the owlets' realization that their Mommy wouldn't leave them alone for long. The story is also reassuring for toddlers or preschoolers who may be dealing with a little separation anxiety of their own, whether it is facing preschool, daycare, or just the night in their own room apart from the person who makes them feel safest.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf0ahXXOjNvAPrRXqoNO4QUbYLuEpJT_tH4RaJf7B6VsRFAyTJehR1NXK8PwLfau0X2TBUcOuoj1PZqkIbn3Boy6jATDGD9JejqZjxC0AIfRHpRINc4FEvifMcXGZQYkue5QMoxKtl21X-/s1600/FullSizeRender+%25285%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf0ahXXOjNvAPrRXqoNO4QUbYLuEpJT_tH4RaJf7B6VsRFAyTJehR1NXK8PwLfau0X2TBUcOuoj1PZqkIbn3Boy6jATDGD9JejqZjxC0AIfRHpRINc4FEvifMcXGZQYkue5QMoxKtl21X-/s400/FullSizeRender+%25285%2529.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Whooooo doesn't love owls? </td></tr>
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"Wings on the Wind: Bird Poems" collected and illustrated by Kate Kiesler:</div>
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Poems do not get nearly enough love. I'll admit that I am also guilty of some degree of poetry aversion. Maybe it's from the trauma of middle school poetry units...being forced to create rhyme after rhyme, or having to read your own poems aloud to your peers at a poetry slam, even the memorizing and reciting boring, ancient poems with points off your grade for each error...there could be a lot of long built up resentment for poor poems, but they really don't deserve it!</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM1JFu7OZ6DaHYOrvLOwWcT0EuZT8q1ct0XDhUR6a6BxDt7v_Lty5Y-f3iUywO1f17X-qyzKvh2hMBUNDG2eU8UvtStvQfkRdC4oOsXhVf83VgdVb7MXi9vmir4gzt8U46yvMGiPQq8waJ/s1600/IMG_9707.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM1JFu7OZ6DaHYOrvLOwWcT0EuZT8q1ct0XDhUR6a6BxDt7v_Lty5Y-f3iUywO1f17X-qyzKvh2hMBUNDG2eU8UvtStvQfkRdC4oOsXhVf83VgdVb7MXi9vmir4gzt8U46yvMGiPQq8waJ/s400/IMG_9707.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">DISCARD...<br />
This little book didn't even get the love it deserved at the library! <br />
Hopefully it is happy to have found it's home on our shelf.</td></tr>
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Honestly, poems are fantastic for younger readers. A collection of poems can be flipped through, stopping to read just one or a few, as your interest is spiked. The rhymes, flows, and melodic nature of the lines of a poem appeal to little listeners as well. After all, so much of early literacy is just about playing around with language, having fun, engaging with words and sounds.</div>
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This collection of poems is beautifully illustrated, and features many different bird species-from the ordinary to the exotic. It follows birds through the seasons, as they arrive in the spring and fly south in the fall. I love that it follows that cycle, and it is easy to pick a few poems every now and then, as they are appropriate for the time or what your child is seeing in their own world right then.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNaWfVy8KOBcMFg8mVisFUQxA4t_u4xOz8v_FsdPxJ2Wi7D5jbjv8O5bEP3xLvT5wqz4yNNbtzEiW8cKQ4gpoO1WxYmSYshZRmXK3px0fsEo5nMy3Cq3vG7_Kzk3ieZhomPDUQfw4fR_Db/s1600/FullSizeRender+%25284%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNaWfVy8KOBcMFg8mVisFUQxA4t_u4xOz8v_FsdPxJ2Wi7D5jbjv8O5bEP3xLvT5wqz4yNNbtzEiW8cKQ4gpoO1WxYmSYshZRmXK3px0fsEo5nMy3Cq3vG7_Kzk3ieZhomPDUQfw4fR_Db/s400/FullSizeRender+%25284%2529.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Red wing blackbirds are one of our feeder's frequent visitors.</td></tr>
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"Birds"by Jill McDonald:</div>
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Baby C was just given this book and she loves it! The illustrations are bright and cheery, and she gets the biggest happy smiles on her face while turning the pages. The brief text introduces you to a handful of birds that may be familiar to little ones, including some which kiddos might find in their own back yards, and others that they would only meet at the zoo. The book also introduces some opposite concepts, meeting birds who are big and small, fast or slow, like noise or like quiet, and so on. Each page also includes a starred fact, giving it the feel of a very early reference or nonfiction book with the added text feature.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjddflXcDYccQapiLTx2mWDihi3s1YMOm_mhbhLNh0zi6P-EhjYooqeTB-862dw1Uu9y1NmRpyzson2HzNiW_1QiEJ8KaZVQRZntoVRGccdx0B2hjqCeOPoOf2Ch6UOgWJ0vs8kfTfygHgB/s1600/IMG_9691.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjddflXcDYccQapiLTx2mWDihi3s1YMOm_mhbhLNh0zi6P-EhjYooqeTB-862dw1Uu9y1NmRpyzson2HzNiW_1QiEJ8KaZVQRZntoVRGccdx0B2hjqCeOPoOf2Ch6UOgWJ0vs8kfTfygHgB/s400/IMG_9691.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
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"Garden Bird Facts" by Marcus Schneck:</div>
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This is a pretty simple adult reference book, but E loves flipping through it and pointing out the different birds. Honestly, I am loving the addition of a reference book to our stack, since it can never be too early to expose the littles to a different type of book, varied text features, captions, diagrams. etc. I also believe it is great for the adult to learn right alongside the child. While I do know a bit about the birds in our area, I could definitely learn a whole lot more. And it is important for my kids to see this happen, all the time, and without it being any big special occasion. I like to keep myself thinking, wondering, asking and answering questions. And while my own babies won't be in school for a few years still, I know that when they do get there, I want them to understand that school isn't the only place where you learn, that the whole world around them has lessons to teach and important things to notice!</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVwQZ-Uo_tS33S5qNzahMvyg1_mkYHXW3X7lKGUzVR6nmt-UibfgiqK-5OFPaCOIJPAUIDTvbOBGeczAmIAtFy1c8iW1X_65IjLfdlcIYUwMUzzGWoIf_RV3fSLcc9FzvOCBnkzutdQNH_/s1600/FullSizeRender+%25286%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVwQZ-Uo_tS33S5qNzahMvyg1_mkYHXW3X7lKGUzVR6nmt-UibfgiqK-5OFPaCOIJPAUIDTvbOBGeczAmIAtFy1c8iW1X_65IjLfdlcIYUwMUzzGWoIf_RV3fSLcc9FzvOCBnkzutdQNH_/s400/FullSizeRender+%25286%2529.jpg" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lots to learn if you want to be a birding expert!</td></tr>
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Beyond the Books-Bird Activities:</h3>
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Bird Observers/Bird Detectives:</h4>
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Watch for birds in your yard, when you are out for a walk, or playing at the park. Keep a little journal to record which ones you see! Hear a bird singing in the morning-can you figure out which bird makes that song? Use your reference book (or Google) to identify any bird species you do not know that name of. Find a feather, egg, or birds nest that you might be able to identify-which type of bird did this come from? Can you add a feature to your yard to attract more birds (feeder, houses, water)? <br />
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Being a bird watcher can incorporate a few senses (sight, hearing, maybe touch with a discarded feather...but please use common sense and don't touch an active nest or wild animal); as well as working on skills such as patience, quiet, and movement! Enjoy the outdoors and make a new feathered friend or two!<br />
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E is kind of little still, and I know that he doesn't fully understand what we are doing when I write in his little bird journal, but I am pleased just to have him see his momma writing. It is so important for the little ones to see adults writing, or reading, and for all different purposes. I just figure this quick little activity is a way to help get E immersed in that world, and it is a simple and fun activity we can add to and expand upon as he grows!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYo7fJ1xAQKaj2lHmITKblcJy32tSHoKipnN50IBtYrwvWr8TvjMU8PRQGO4YmgU299N02bd0ccFLfK2_XPDC19IrwPBaQ-OK3FlwSw5s3y3GNngi7jIumumzuIVVTnm5u_soMd_4X11Dt/s1600/IMG_9719.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYo7fJ1xAQKaj2lHmITKblcJy32tSHoKipnN50IBtYrwvWr8TvjMU8PRQGO4YmgU299N02bd0ccFLfK2_XPDC19IrwPBaQ-OK3FlwSw5s3y3GNngi7jIumumzuIVVTnm5u_soMd_4X11Dt/s400/IMG_9719.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">E's illustration reminds me a lot of the page out of "Birds", above.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgixHWrH7be0bLdsq3PWCUrdIA4O_9v0b0AV8-w2Wg6ecGymuQ_H4qu96JD0agXs3gpi3vvGIe0AUNyZcIzFXckrf0rroIyppL7yLu_ij6UIX9wbilYxK2PX3JdKTb5GRXCLOZFnQKeYrDc/s1600/IMG_9720.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgixHWrH7be0bLdsq3PWCUrdIA4O_9v0b0AV8-w2Wg6ecGymuQ_H4qu96JD0agXs3gpi3vvGIe0AUNyZcIzFXckrf0rroIyppL7yLu_ij6UIX9wbilYxK2PX3JdKTb5GRXCLOZFnQKeYrDc/s400/IMG_9720.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our first few sightings and entries.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08567504140473953315noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2826020646022431400.post-64943398914319916442017-04-08T19:03:00.000-07:002017-04-08T19:03:06.016-07:00April and Easter Book ShelfSomehow this first week of April has flown right by. It was a yucky, rainy week and I'm not feeling in the most spring-y mood, so I've been dragging my feet a bit when it comes to thinking about fun spring things for my book highlight. We also started out the month with a little tummy bug for E, who thankfully recovered quickly, and just in time to enjoy some extra time with his Daddy home on vacation! With those little distractions I am just getting the shelf changed over to highlight some of our Easter books now. Hopefully I can get my act together and do a better highlight into our next set of books and activities. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8Ri5Pclt-I4/WOmSozfamHI/AAAAAAAAAJo/XgScc6y9kfkOErc8lpwSTNE_DaormKIOwCPcB/s1600/IMG_8761.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8Ri5Pclt-I4/WOmSozfamHI/AAAAAAAAAJo/XgScc6y9kfkOErc8lpwSTNE_DaormKIOwCPcB/s400/IMG_8761.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">E's Easter #shelfie</td></tr>
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<b>What we are reading this month:</b><br />
<b><br />"The Velveteen Rabbit" by Margery Williams:</b><br />
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<b><br /></b><b style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #545454; font-family: "roboto" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">We have three different versions of this classic! I truly love this timeless story of a special and loved little bunny and his journey to becoming "real". It makes me a tiny but emotional to remember the special things that were real to me throughout childhood. It also causes me to pause and think about the beloved friends that are "real" to my little ones. </span></b><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDwnMiQcTuDgnuZtwG9Q4_e7UxORDJ1NHWfoy0xyvonzflcjc08P54hWw9NxoaPaTaURQ8YY5zqOWQZhT2Lqhq8Cej3zvwRYVDeJ3WM9ZIrY6I9clooUAhtcUGtJV8GWBB1Dm0H18smF4J/s1600/FullSizeRender+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDwnMiQcTuDgnuZtwG9Q4_e7UxORDJ1NHWfoy0xyvonzflcjc08P54hWw9NxoaPaTaURQ8YY5zqOWQZhT2Lqhq8Cej3zvwRYVDeJ3WM9ZIrY6I9clooUAhtcUGtJV8GWBB1Dm0H18smF4J/s400/FullSizeRender+%25282%2529.jpg" width="353" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our three copies of "The Veleveteen Rabbit" include the original, a board book, and an abridged picture book. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fun to compare: The scene where the Velveteen Rabbit becomes Real</td></tr>
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<b>"Duck and Goose: Here Comes the Easter Bunny" by Tad Hills:</b><br />
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Another adventure with Duck and Goose that is silly fun for toddlers. Duck and Goose search for a place to hide in order to catch a glimpse of the Easter Bunny. They check out lots of silly places, but end up falling asleep before they see the mysterious bunny!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What came first--the duck, the goose, or the egg?</td></tr>
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<b>"Disney Bunnies: All Ears" by Calliope Glass</b><br />
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A quick, fun, interactive toddler read. With attached flexible, furry ears, to help Thumper express how he is feeling, this book is a cute way to talk about some basic emotions. Of course, E loves any book with an interactive component. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CX08pz3F16s/WOmStMG-zsI/AAAAAAAAAJg/ft4ghIOQB3APgOtNx77movY_WlTsa0_-ACPcB/s1600/IMG_8769.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-CX08pz3F16s/WOmStMG-zsI/AAAAAAAAAJg/ft4ghIOQB3APgOtNx77movY_WlTsa0_-ACPcB/s400/IMG_8769.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hello there, Fuzzy Ears</td></tr>
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<b>"Where are Baby's Easter Eggs?" by Karen Katz</b><br />
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This bright and cheery book is perfect for spring and would be so cute in a little one's Easter basket. It is part of the popular series of Baby's lift the flap while searching adventures. This time we get to help Baby look for Easter eggs, but find some fun spring surprises along the way!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kinda jealous that Baby found a garden with gingham and polka dotted flowers...</td></tr>
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My goal this week is to do some quick, cute Easter crafts or activities and get a blog up, so stay tuned for that! And I am excited to share our Easter basket books once that silly bunny delivers them! Cya then!<br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08567504140473953315noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2826020646022431400.post-40272371999771453542017-03-07T17:17:00.000-08:002017-03-07T17:17:14.869-08:00Rainy Day Play<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Today has been one of those early spring, dreary rain type of days. The type where you wish to cuddle into a nice fluffy pile of blankets, eat warm cookies, and watch movies all day long. You know it's a lazy day when your high energy toddler sleeps in until almost 10 am! Seriously, that happened. I had to go check on him a few extra times, because that is seriously not him!<br />
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As nice as it can be to picture a lazy rainy day spent relaxing, that often isn't the case with kiddos. Lots of rainy days can quickly turn boring, when the kiddos and Mom begin to feel a little trapped. Or when the idea of watching Frozen for the fourth time in a row gets a little old. Also, I'm aware that we are a little late hopping on the Frozen train, but E wasn't around in the back in Frozen's heyday. So I love try to keep something different on had for these rainy days. E loves anything that isn't actually a toy, so I have been coming up with some not toy play ideas for our rainy days. He also loves collecting things, so I figured being able to carry around a bunch of fluffy little pompoms would be fun for him!<br />
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Our latest not-a-toy play material are these awesome little pom poms from Target! There are a few other color assortments if your kiddo has a preference, and of course you could find pom poms pretty much anywhere if you don't have any on hand. I liked these particular ones because they came in a variety of sizes and shades of blue, so they will be fun for all kinds of sorting activities on another day.<br />
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In keeping with our vehicle reading theme, and well, because E loves his trucks, I put out a fun little play set up for E involving his trucks, pom poms, and some kitchen utensils and other tools. If E can't play with his trucks out in the dirt, he needs something to load them up with! </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Thanks to Dad for the sectioned veggie tray that NEEDED to be reused after a party considering it cost $11.99 for some pretty sad looking carrots and celery!<br /><br /><br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Loading up the dump truck!<br /><br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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And with that I was chasing pompoms around the house for the rest of the day! Who has a fun rainy day or indoors, boredom busting activity?<div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08567504140473953315noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2826020646022431400.post-1487867355308448722017-03-02T17:47:00.001-08:002017-03-02T17:48:16.034-08:00March Books on the Move<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I've been waiting for March as the perfect time to highlight some of E's vehicle books! Here in New England, we can count on March to bring us at least a few good thawing out days. That is before Mother Nature reminds us that it's never really safe to assume it is spring in New England, until sometime in April. Regardless, those early sunny days are perfect for getting back outside and into some dirt and mud to play with your trucks! After an entire winter longing to spend the afternoons outside, E is loving every moment of his outdoors time over the past few days. Since he has been big time loving on his trucks lately, and is bound to become even more enamored in the coming weeks, it is a perfect time to focus on all things vehicular in his reading as well!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Who am I kidding, we play with trucks outside no matter the weather!</td></tr>
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<b>Here are a few highlights of what we are reading this month: </b></h4>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">#shelfie</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">#bookstack</td></tr>
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<b>"Digger, Dozer, Dumper" by Hope Vestergaard</b><b>:</b><br />
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I can already tell that this book is going to be a favorite of E for a long time! A nice rhyming verse with an explanation of each vehicles purpose is accompanied by adorable illustrations of each vehicle going about it's job. There are quite a few different vehicles highlighted, including construction vehicles, and others you might see within your community. E can't sit for the whole book right now, but it is so easy to pick up where we left off previously, or even just let him choose random pages with whichever vehicles appeal to him at that moment. Not to mention it works as a resource for this momma, who has about zero knowledge of which truck is which. Seriously, I can identify a dump truck and that's about it. Thank goodness that I will be able to learn alongside E as we are bound to read this book over and over!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-D_rbsSXbVMc/WLjIRnKdyAI/AAAAAAAAAGM/2lPpLGvlW4MZnDuhK3AYqTpNYsWkTZZrwCPcB/s1600/IMG_7701.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-D_rbsSXbVMc/WLjIRnKdyAI/AAAAAAAAAGM/2lPpLGvlW4MZnDuhK3AYqTpNYsWkTZZrwCPcB/s400/IMG_7701.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Love the humor in this book!<br />
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<b>"B is for Bulldozer" by June Sobel:</b><br />
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This nice little alphabet board book highlights each letter, as they might be used to describe the sights and sounds of a construction sight. What I really enjoy about this book, is that rather than a string of alphabet letters with theme related words, it actually tells a complete story. If the reader pays close attention to the illustrations, you can follow along as the children observe the construction project come along through the seasons, leading up to a fun surprise at the end! I'm not one to spoil a surprise, but I can give a hint--the construction project ends with something that can ZOOM! A quick read, perfect for little ones.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WFA3fm1SXkw/WLjIVGYh5QI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/Zvt9EDVeJBA6afOZj7BmoAEJnQNVg1GBACPcB/s1600/IMG_7700.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WFA3fm1SXkw/WLjIVGYh5QI/AAAAAAAAAGQ/Zvt9EDVeJBA6afOZj7BmoAEJnQNVg1GBACPcB/s400/IMG_7700.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"E" happens to be a favorite letter in this house.</td></tr>
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<b>"Dig, Dig, Digging" by Margaret Mayo:</b><br />
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This book came highly recommended to me when I was gifted a copy at my baby shower. It was gifted to me by a coworker, who happily reminisced about her son's love of the book. My own son definitely enjoys it as well, and it is one that we read frequently. The pages each feature a different truck, and carry on a predictable pattern and rhyme to describe the tasks the truck does each day. Little ones watch the busy vehicles work hard all day, and the story finishes with a time to rest message for the trucks, and equally busy little movers. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GAYsF2shRAE/WLjIcIDM1kI/AAAAAAAAAGY/CARFFmxUHj4bExbgBsN8n_UgJ_R151qiQCPcB/s1600/IMG_7699.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GAYsF2shRAE/WLjIcIDM1kI/AAAAAAAAAGY/CARFFmxUHj4bExbgBsN8n_UgJ_R151qiQCPcB/s400/IMG_7699.JPG" width="397" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bulldozer...another one of the few vehicles I can identify</td></tr>
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Side note: While I fully appreciate any gift, and especially books, I <u>really</u> love when people give their personal favorites, and anything a little out of the ordinary. It's so special to be able to think about the giver when enjoying the books with your child. When the book is one that is a little out of the ordinary, it is just so much easier to connect with the gift giver than when it is the third copy of "Goodnight Moon". So I encourage everyone to think outside the box a little next time they gift a book to a child-your personal favorite just might inspire a new fan!<br />
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<b>"Old MacDonald had a Truck" by Steve Goetz:</b><br />
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This book really is so much fun. I love that it takes a song most kiddos are familiar with, and adds a different twist to it! Old MacDonald actually has more than just a truck in this story, he has a whole bunch of trucks. Preschoolers will love singing along with the familiar Old MacDonald tune and enjoy the surprise at the end of each E-I-E-I-O. Plus, Old MacDonald has a little something up his sleeve, with all the busy working trucks. You'll have to check out the book to see what it is!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eQqf0gZxRdk/WLjINmjy68I/AAAAAAAAAGI/_CUcWkdxC3wjXrwjdx4BZdzhBo55l-bNgCPcB/s1600/IMG_7702.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-eQqf0gZxRdk/WLjINmjy68I/AAAAAAAAAGI/_CUcWkdxC3wjXrwjdx4BZdzhBo55l-bNgCPcB/s400/IMG_7702.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"E-I-E-I-FLOW"</td></tr>
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<b>"I am a Fire Truck" by Josephine Page:</b><br />
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This super cute fire truck shape book is great for toddlers! E loves to "drive" this book around, and anything that gets him engaged with a book makes me happy! It's a really quick read, with just a few pages of a sentence or two each, to explain different types of fire department vehicles. "I am a Fire Truck" is my perfect diaper bar book--I keep it in there for something different to pull out while waiting at the doctor's office, or for E to look at while in his car seat, and it never gets old! Also available are dump truck, train, and garbage truck versions.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xJIisY4W4v0/WLjIf0F-lnI/AAAAAAAAAGg/q2xbB9ZfPMInyflAOuTXY9svxu8e63qnQCPcB/s1600/IMG_7698.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xJIisY4W4v0/WLjIf0F-lnI/AAAAAAAAAGg/q2xbB9ZfPMInyflAOuTXY9svxu8e63qnQCPcB/s400/IMG_7698.JPG" width="300" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">How cute is this?!</td></tr>
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I really love our little collection of vehicle books, and find that they give so many opportunities for conversations outside of our reading nook. It is great to see these vehicles out and about, doing their jobs in our community, and be able to use or reading time to learn more about them! And of course, all this truck talk carries right over into playtime as well!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dump truck or food truck?<br />
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What about you? Do you have any favorite vehicle books?<br />
<b><br /></b>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08567504140473953315noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2826020646022431400.post-76409722371384979612017-02-03T09:29:00.001-08:002017-02-03T09:29:23.594-08:00February Book PicksAh, February, the month of all things sweet. Lots of hugs and kisses, love, friendship, and sweet treats (extra for me since it's my birthday month)! This month I highlighted a few books that fit these themes for our monthly book shelf. Plus I've included a super quick and easy fun Valentine's Day craft. It's "sleep deprived mom of 2 under 2" tested and approved, so you know it will be low effort but still cute! Oh man, I could say a lot about that sleep deprived thing right now...the 4 month sleep regression is alive and well in this house, let me tell you! Good thing Miss C is super cute and cuddly...although I do appreciate her cute-and-cuddliness way more at times that don't fall between the hours of 11pm and 5 am. Anyhow, enough of my complaining, let's get down to business!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">#shelfie</td></tr>
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<h3>
Here's what we are reading this month:</h3>
<b>"Love is a Truck" and "Love is a Tutu" by Amy Novesky:</b><br />
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I first spotted these two books a few months ago, back before Christmas. I was tempted, but I resisted the urge to buy them around the holidays, knowing they would make the perfect gifts for E and C to "give" each other. Not that either of them is even remotely aware of getting or giving gifts, but it's <strike>a great excuse to buy a couple cute books</strike> never to early to foster a little sibling love right?<br />
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"Love is a Truck" and "Love is a Tutu" show the many faces that love can take on. From a toddler's loving obsession with a favorite toy, pastime, or category, all the way to the unique love with have with a special person. These books just hit home so easily when you are living in toddler land. I mean, the little boy who loves all things trucks is just so spot on my son. He is always pushing a truck, riding a truck, collecting his truck puzzle pieces, reading truck books, zooming and vrooming. I love how these books made me think about all the little "loves" that our kiddos take on as they grow, and how silly they can be sometimes. Seriously, over the past two weeks, E's favorite "toy" has been a handful of pencils-he certainly would be saying "Love is a pencil" right now, if he could form sentences, that is! Plus, the bright, bold, tricolor illustrations are totally awesome as well, and make these books easy to spot on the shelf!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You make my heart go Vroom Vroom!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HSmaWHtqHwY/WJS8IwUxxkI/AAAAAAAAAC8/PKVmrPalQFA-JyojHfQq59MysqvITFJ9ACPcB/s1600/IMG_6403.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HSmaWHtqHwY/WJS8IwUxxkI/AAAAAAAAAC8/PKVmrPalQFA-JyojHfQq59MysqvITFJ9ACPcB/s320/IMG_6403.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">You love me?! I love you tutu!</td></tr>
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<b>"Three Little Words" by Clemency Pearce:</b><br />
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This adorably illustrated picture book explores three special little words, and all the instances where hearing them makes you feel so much better! Friendly little forest animals experience some common negative experiences that preschoolers may also go through...losing a race, scary dreams, meeting new friends...and find that hearing "I love you!" from a family member can make those yucky feelings disappear! The final pages turn it around and give little ones a chance to think about how they can make someone else's yucky feelings disappear...I'll give you a hint-it's by saying "four little words". Any book that gives toddlers and preschoolers the opportunity to explore their feelings and help open up discussion about them is certainly a great resource, and this book could definitely do that!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A Perfect Cuddle Bedtime Story</td></tr>
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<b>"Duck and Goose: Goose Needs a Hug" by Tad Hills:</b><br />
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Well, with my over tired Mommy brain, I pulled out the "wrong" Duck and Goose book...I was totally thinking of "Duck and Goose: How Are You Feeling?" for Valentine's Day, but this one works too! I actually forgot about a bunch of our love themed books while I was planning out which books to feature this month, oops! Anyways, we love all the "Duck and Goose" books! Duck, Goose, and their friends are lovable in the same way my toddler is lately-adorable, silly, a little bossy at times, and occasionally misunderstood! In this story, Goose is feeling a little sad. His friends want to cheer him up, and try lots of different things, Eventually they find out just what Goose needs, simply by listening to what he has to say! A perfect lesson for littles (and a reminder for moms and dads too), that sometimes the best way to help someone out is by hearing what they have to say! This book works pretty well in combination with "Three Little Words" to get kiddos talking about their own feelings, and feelings that others have too!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A glass of wine?</td></tr>
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<h4>
**Bonus** Busy Mommy Craft-Conversation Heart inspired garland:</h4>
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So I love Pinterest as much as the next girl. And I've actually made my share of Pinterest projects that have turned out pretty good (and a few fails too). However, sometimes I want to just do a craft that can be completed in less than one nap time (the dishes aren't going to do themselves, and all that), with materials that I already have laying around.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">E's shelf garland relocated to a toddler safe zone.<br />He doesn't always approve of my Mom crafts, obviously.</td></tr>
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Enter the Busy Mommy Craft. As easy as one, two, three (four):</div>
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<li> Using construction paper or scrapbook paper, cut out some simple heart shapes.</li>
<li>Write love themed sayings on each heart. You could choose your favorite traditional Conversation Heart sayings, or make up your own! You could even have your little ones help by making up their own creative phrases. If you need some inspiration, check out this Smithsonian <a href="http://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/the-history-of-sweetheart-candies-157116/#ixzz2KuAR4QEc">article</a> that details the history of this favorite candy, and is sprinkled with favorite sayings both old and new.</li>
<li>If you have a hole punch, use that to create holes on each side of your heart, about 1/3 of the way down from the top. </li>
<li>Using a length of wide ribbon or tulle, thread through the two holes in each heart. You can adjust the spacing of the hearts after they are all strung on, and to fit how you like them in the space of your choosing. </li>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08567504140473953315noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2826020646022431400.post-15756808998243622112017-01-27T08:15:00.001-08:002017-01-27T08:15:15.293-08:00Multicultural Children's Book Day!Welcome to my post in celebration of the Multicultural Children's Book Day! This year, I have had the pleasure of being a book reviewer! I'll let you know all about that in just a sec, but first, here's some info from the lovely people who set this whole day up!<br />
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-267b8cba-d87d-4a4a-f447-cb4c6e3c871d"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://multiculturalchildrensbookday.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Multicultural Children’s Book Day</span></a><span style="color: #222222; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> 2017 (1/27/17) is its fourth year and was founded by Valarie Budayr from </span><a href="http://www.jumpintoabook.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; font-style: italic; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Jump Into A Book</span></a><span style="color: #222222; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and Mia Wenjen from </span><a href="http://www.pragmaticmom.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; font-style: italic; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">PragmaticMom</span></a><span style="color: #222222; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">.</span><span style="color: #222222; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Our mission is to raise awareness on the ongoing need to include kid’s books that celebrate diversity in home and school bookshelves while also working diligently to get more of these types of books into the hands of young readers, parents and educators. </span><span style="color: #222222; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Despite census data that shows 37% of the US population consists of people of color, only 10% of children’s books published have diversity content. Using the Multicultural Children’s Book Day holiday, the MCBD Team are on a mission to change all of that. </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Current Sponsors:</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> MCBD 2017 is honored to have some amazing Sponsors on board. Platinum Sponsors include </span><a href="http://www.scholastic.com/home/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Scholastic</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="https://www.barefootbooks.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Barefoot Books</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and </span><a href="http://www.playbroccoli.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Broccoli</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. Other Medallion Level Sponsors include heavy-hitters like </span><a href="http://www.caroleproman.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Author Carole P. Roman</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://audreypress.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Audrey Press</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://www.candlewick.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Candlewick Press</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://www.realdadsread.org/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Fathers Incorporated</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://kidlit.tv/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">KidLitTV</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://www.capstonepub.com/consumer/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Capstone Young Readers,</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><a href="http://childsplayusa.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">ChildsPlayUsa,</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><a href="http://gaylehswift.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Author Gayle Swift</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://www.wisdomtalespress.com/index.shtml" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Wisdom Tales Press</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="https://www.leeandlow.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lee& Low Books</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://packngogirls.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Pack-n-Go Girls</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://www.liveoakmedia.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Live Oak Media</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://www.catherinespascha.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Author Charlotte Riggle</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">,</span><span style="font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><a href="http://www.chroniclebooks.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #1155cc; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Chronicle Books</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and </span><a href="http://pomelobooks.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Pomelo Books</span></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="color: #222222; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Author Sponsor include: </span><a href="https://www.handsaroundthelibrary.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Karen Leggett Abouraya</span></a><span style="color: #333333; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://www.applevillebooks.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Veronica Appleton</span></a><span style="color: #333333; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://www.sunkissesmoonhugs.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Susan Bernardo</span></a><a href="http://kathleenburkinshaw.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, Kathleen Burkinshaw</span></a><span style="color: #333333; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://cardinalrulepress.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Maria Dismondy</span></a><span style="color: #333333; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://www.dgdriver.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">D.G. Driver</span></a><span style="color: #333333; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://www.geoffgriffin.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Geoff Griffin</span></a><span style="color: #333333; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="https://theseashellsoflife.wordpress.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Savannah Hendricks</span></a><span style="color: #333333; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://www.themagicpoof.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Stephen Hodges</span></a><span style="color: #333333; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://www.carmenberniergrand.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Carmen Bernier-Grand</span></a><span style="color: #333333; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">,</span><a href="http://www.najistories.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Vahid Imani</span></a><span style="color: #333333; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://www.gwenjacksonstories.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Gwen Jackson</span></a><span style="color: #333333; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://www.henakhan.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Hena, Kahn,</span></a><a href="http://davidakellybooks.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> David Kelly,</span></a><span style="color: #333333; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><a href="http://www.marianallanos.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Mariana Llanos</span></a><span style="color: #333333; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://www.nolimitsnoboundaries.net/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Natasha Moulton-Levy</span></a><span style="color: #333333; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://teddyomalley.blogspot.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Teddy O'Malley</span></a><span style="color: #333333; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://www.stacymcanulty.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Stacy McAnulty,</span></a><span style="color: #333333; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><a href="http://www.cerecerenniemurphy.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Cerece Murphy</span></a><span style="color: #333333; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://www.mirandapaul.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Miranda Paul</span></a><span style="color: #333333; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://www.annettebaypimentel.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Annette Pimentel</span></a><span style="color: #333333; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://writeondad.wixsite.com/writeondad" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Greg Ransom</span></a><span style="color: #333333; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://sandralrichards.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sandra Richard</span></a><span style="color: #333333; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">s, </span><a href="http://elsatakaoka.com/?page_id=5" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Elsa Takaoka</span></a><span style="color: #333333; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://www.captainmama.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Graciela Tiscareño-Sato</span></a><span style="color: #333333; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://www.sarahjamilastevenson.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sarah Stevenson</span></a><span style="color: blue; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://www.treyjonesbooks.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Monica Mathis-Stowe</span><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></a><a href="http://www.ayomoneyjarbook.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: white; color: black; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SmartChoiceNation</span></a><span style="vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://andreaywang.com/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Andrea Y. Wang</span></a></span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: #222222; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We’d like to also give a shout-out to MCBD’s impressive CoHost Team who not only hosts the book review link-up on celebration day, but who also work tirelessly to spread the word of this event. View our CoHosts </span><a href="http://multiculturalchildrensbookday.com/about/co-hosts/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: blue; font-family: "calibri"; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">HERE</span></a><span style="color: #222222; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">.</span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: #17365d; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">MCBD Links to remember</span><span style="color: red; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">:</span><span style="color: red; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">MCBD site: </span><span style="color: #17365d; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">http://multiculturalchildrensbookday.com/</span><span style="color: red; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Free Multicultural Books for Teachers: </span><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: "helvetica neue"; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">http://bit.ly/1kGZrta</span><span style="color: red; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Free Kindness Classroom Kit for Homeschoolers, Organizations, Librarians and Educators: </span><span style="color: #0070c0; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">http://multiculturalchildrensbookday.com/teachers-classroom-kindness-kit/</span><span style="color: red; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Free Diversity Book Lists and Activities for Teachers and Parents: </span><span style="color: #17365d; font-weight: 700; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">http://bit.ly/1sZ5s8i</span></span></blockquote>
What a fun day it was when I opened my mailbox and found that my review books had arrived! I received a beautiful little set of board books, "Little Artists Books" by Niki Daly, published by Kane Miller Books. Little E and I were immediately drawn in by the cherry illustrations, and simple, happy stories. This sweet little set comes together in a cute little slipcase, which Little E quickly took to carrying around the house. The books are just the right size for little hands to grasp onto, and make it easy for toddlers to turn the pages all on their own. Each story follows a different child on a different artistic endeavor-music, painting, dancing, or fashion design. The stories depict children of different races taking part in these beloved childhood activities. I find that the simplistic nature of the stories and settings make it easy for a young child to connect to. What little toddler doesn't love painting or music; dancing or dress up? I love that my kiddos can see children that look a little different from them, as well as some who look similar, all engaging in activities that my little ones enjoy!</span><div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">The four "Little Artists Books" by Niki Daly</span></h4>
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To expand on the fun of the "Little Artists Books", I decided to do a little art and music infusion project with my 1.5 year old, Little E. Little E has been having a blast ignoring his lovely store bought toys after Christmas, in favor for a more homemade, recycling bin variety. I'm totally one to embrace that, which is what, along with the music and art themes in the "Little Artists Books", inspired me to help him out with a "Recycle Bin Rock Band".<br />
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I decided to break the fun up into three days, to encourage a few repeated readings of the books. Also, I'm not that much of a crazy person to believe that we would continue to have fun with this all in one sitting, while I also entertained 4 month old Miss C. On our first day we did some recycle bin art and focused on the Little Artist story "Carlos". Carlos makes some pretty awesome paintings, and his story points out different colors, shapes, and lines. I wanted to give Little E a chance to play around with those same elements, so we broke out the finger paint and got to work. With a little scurrying around the house, I found Little E some tools that he could use to create different types on lines and shapes with his finger paints. Awesome stuff we used included a plastic fork (great for tiny dots and straight lines), a cotton ball (for big dots), a foam brush, the cap from a fruit and yogurt pouch (perfect circles!), and a q-tip.<div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Our paint exploration materials and "Carlos" book</span></h4>
With a little quick prep (high chair for mess containment, baby wipes for clean up) it was easy to let Little E go crazy for a bit as he explored with his different tools.</div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Forks make great dots and sets of stripes!</span></h4>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">A nice blue smear from a foam brush.</span></h4>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Mixing colors and tools!</span></h4>
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On Day 2 we focused on the Little Artist story "Mondi". Mondi loves to make music! So we went scurrying around the house yet again and found all the supplies we needed for a fun, homemade rain marker instrument. It is so easy, and you can do it too!<br />
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<li>Raid your recycle bin for a long container-we used a Pringles can!</li>
<li>Fill the can with about 10 sticks, collected from the back yard. </li>
<li>Add in some small filler material (rice, dried beads, small beads, etc). We used birdseed, because it happened to be the first thing I found. Obviously, if you have little ones, use your judgement and appropriate supervision with this project and any chokeable parts. The twigs will filter the filler material giving it a rain like sound. Play around with how much filler you add based off of what sound you like best-it will vary based on your container shape, number of sticks, type of material used. This is a great way to get older kiddos involved-they will love making predictions about how the sounds change based on all of these variables.</li>
<li>Use duct tape to secure the lid to the container. We simply wrapped a piece around where the two pieces meet.</li>
<li>We used our lovely art from Day 1 to cover our container and make our instrument beautiful!</li>
<li>That's it-you are ready to enjoy!</li>
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Our "Mondi" book and rain maker instrument</div>
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To celebrate all of our hard work, on Day 3 we had our "Recycle Bin Rock Band" concert, in front of all our favorite teddy bear friends! We are looking forward to seeing all the other books and ideas shared throughout the day today to celebrate and bring awareness to the importance of multicultural books!</div>
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<span style="font-size: xx-small;">Rock on!</span></h4>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08567504140473953315noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2826020646022431400.post-16499924005158229292017-01-08T13:32:00.001-08:002017-02-03T09:38:16.377-08:00Let it Snow!It's safe to say winter has arrived here in New England, with several snow storms throughout the region in the past few weeks! This month E's bookshelf is spotlighting books about snow, and the many different experiences we can have with it!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I spy, with my little eye, someone RED!</td></tr>
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"The Mitten" by Jan Brett: Many are familiar with Brett's retelling of this classic Ukrainian folk tale. Her beautiful illustrations bring to life winter scenes from a time and place far away. The story is of a little boy who has lost one of his snowy white mittens, and the animals who find it. It is simple enough for the youngest readers to follow along, but the illustrations add plenty of interest for older children as well.</div>
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"White Snow, Bright Snow" by Alvin Tresselt: This story, originally published in 1947, depicts the first snowfall in a small town. It has an old time classic charm, as we follow the activities of several different members of the community. There are great opportunities for children to compare and contrast with the different activities of characters at the first snow and first sign of spring, or between the different ways each neighbor reacts to the snow.</div>
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"The Little Snowplow" by Lora Koehler: A sweet story for younger children who might feel like being little isn't great. A new little snowplow has joined the city garage, but the other vehicles don't think he will be much of a help with the impending winter storms. Little Snowplow spends his time practicing and practicing, and when the biggest storm of all arrives, he finds out that being little-and working hard-can have there advantages.</div>
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"Snowmen at Night" by Caralyn Buehner: This is when of those books that makes me think "Why didn't I think of that?"! Find out what snowmen do at night, and why they sometimes end up looking so different from when they were first built. As a bonus, the illustrations have hidden pictures on each page. A great story full of imagination!</div>
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"Hideaway Husky" by Lisa McCue: This story is surprisingly cute for a book written to go along with a toy. I had low expectations but it turned out to be a nice read with cute illustrations. Paw is the smallest husky at the ranch, and really wants to be a part of the dogsled team. He proves his worth when a young child gets lost in a snowstorm and Paw comes to the rescue!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">#shelfie</td></tr>
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Winter is such a great time to cozy up with some books! What are your favorite reads during the winter?</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08567504140473953315noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2826020646022431400.post-41073214518236363072016-12-09T18:33:00.002-08:002017-02-03T09:41:57.516-08:00Christmas BooksWe are just starting out our family Christmas book collection. One of the best parts of having little ones comes at this time of year. Watching them experience the magic of the season is so inspiring, and sharing traditions with my kiddos is certainly something I look forward to as they grow. Of course part of those traditions comes in sharing a few Christmas stories throughout the season. Here are a few highlights from what we are reading this month...<br />
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"The Sweet Smell of Christmas" Patricia Scarry- Boy does this one bring back some memories! If you haven't seen this book yet, it's a sweet little story of a little bear who is experiencing the Christmas season through lots of yummy smells. Of course it's scratch and sniff, the best part! I noticed it popping up here and there on my Instagram feed in the last few weeks! Suddenly I was transported back in time, remembering the smell of the pine tree and candy cane hidden on the pages. I called up my mom to see if she remembered all of the smells and we enjoyed reminiscing about the book. A few days later, we just so happened to be searching for an entirely different, non Christmas book at Barnes and Noble and I just so happened to spot this one on the shelves! I snatched it up to add to our collection. I think E will really enjoy it next year, when he is a little more capable of the whole scratch and sniff business!<br />
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"Duck and Goose: It's Time for Christmas!" By Tad Hills- We are big Duck and Goose fans at the moment. The characters are adorable, the themes are relatable, and they are just long enough to hold the attention of a squirming toddler (I'm looking at you E)! This Christmas tale features Duck and Goose engaging in a variety of winter activities, before finally taking part in a favorite Christmas tradition.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb-YHp3zdKto6XhdHPUFy7ibswLHaMfD4A4UzFRzvwIpN-T8z5MXJbylgf855bh6lkmNNDkrJl_8JqXWzvoSdXh4zNHCTaI5qlaNkQjjv8a5GK9lIkwRk8LMGCupSmHZ25CRWHH68P0oLk/s1600/15337130_582492601935720_4796854801725915136_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb-YHp3zdKto6XhdHPUFy7ibswLHaMfD4A4UzFRzvwIpN-T8z5MXJbylgf855bh6lkmNNDkrJl_8JqXWzvoSdXh4zNHCTaI5qlaNkQjjv8a5GK9lIkwRk8LMGCupSmHZ25CRWHH68P0oLk/s320/15337130_582492601935720_4796854801725915136_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Duck...duck...duck...SANTA!</td></tr>
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"Click, Clack, Ho!, Ho!, Ho!" By Doreen Cronin- I've found that any book that features a story within a story is really fun for kids. They love being in the know as something is going on that other characters have yet to find out! In this tale, silly Duck tries to take on the role of Santa-until he gets stuck! He needs help from his barn yard pals and a special friend. Meanwhile, the Farmer is patiently waiting for Santa, little does he know he's about to be in for a big surprise! Lots of silly Christmas fun!<br />
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"The Story of Christmas" By Patricia Pingry- This simple story tells the Christmas story in a simple way that is easy for even the smallest kiddos to listen to and find meaning it. It also connects the Christmas story to the Christmas celebration many children are very familiar with-exchanging gifts.<br />
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"The Polar Express" By Chris Van Allsburg- Many love this Christmas classic. It holds a special place in my heart for the tradition my sister and I created around it, and now share with my kiddos. It's just a simple reading of the story of Christmas Eve right before bedtime, but it's something that my sister and I cherish, and I hope my children will too. This story is just so perfect, a description of it really can't do it justice.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Love this page, and this scene in the movie!</td></tr>
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I have been enjoying sharing these books with my little ones this month, and look forward to our collection growing as we celebrate many more Christmases to come!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08567504140473953315noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2826020646022431400.post-10644219102589483232016-11-17T14:14:00.001-08:002017-02-03T09:45:14.481-08:00Bears, and Bears, and Bears...Oh My!With winter just around the corner (I know, I don't want to hear it either), we are getting to know one of our favorite hibernaters this month. Here are a few of our favorite books about bears.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">#shelfie</td></tr>
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"Little Cub" by Olivier Dunrea: This sweet board book reminds me a little of my Dad and my son! Grumbly Old Bear and innocent Little Cub find each other in the forest, and find that each has something perfect to offer the other in their little relationship. Conversation starter about how everyone brings a little something to a relationship. </div>
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*Bonus: Great as a tool for compare/contrast.</div>
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"Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?" & "Baby Bear, Baby Bear, What Do You See?" by Bill Martin Jr.: I'd venture a guess that most are familiar with these classics! They are delighting my toddler at the moment. A perfect combination of rhythm, bold pictures, and familiar animals, what more could a 16 month old ask for?</div>
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*Bonus: We are using these as a tool for teaching and reinforcing color identification.</div>
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"Charlie Goes Camping" by Carrie Weston: I love this book for preschoolers. Charlie is a gentle bear who helps his teacher and classmates to have the best field trip ever!</div>
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*Bonus: <span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">So cute and has so many talking points and lessons offered! Try talking about what it's like to judge someone by what they look like, listening and being safe on a field trip, or to introduce the topic of camping.</span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">"Bear Snores On" by Karma Wilson: If your family hasn't been introduced to Bear and his friends yet, now is the time! The sing song text and beautiful illustrations make this series a big hit at my house. </span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbWftZNQD1tKEoncK9Tko-Bo2TLUJA280bNL1NJPgT8LiTUZRRQckj47Ma_SOvCRf4mMpF3F0Y0X2sS4tKyp-DLxGE_BuGUDt6cnVggEylePlYcBFlK7zzpooKqTNXd-tzmvEUUf7n7r9u/s1600/14128636_392527514470811_6813677607482032128_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbWftZNQD1tKEoncK9Tko-Bo2TLUJA280bNL1NJPgT8LiTUZRRQckj47Ma_SOvCRf4mMpF3F0Y0X2sS4tKyp-DLxGE_BuGUDt6cnVggEylePlYcBFlK7zzpooKqTNXd-tzmvEUUf7n7r9u/s320/14128636_392527514470811_6813677607482032128_n.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We're all about those bears</td></tr>
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">*Bonus: While you're at it, grab "Bear Stays Up For Christmas" just in time for the start of the holiday season. You won't be disappointed!</span><br />
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<span style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; background-color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0);">What bear books should we check out next?</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08567504140473953315noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2826020646022431400.post-5758235116884031362016-11-15T17:17:00.001-08:002016-11-15T17:18:47.614-08:00Here's to the StartStarting is always the hardest part right? Finding the perfect words to open your college essay with. The first bits of awkward conversation on a first date. Tying your shoes. Riding a bike. I don't think I need to exhaust the whole list of things that come with shaky beginnings. Instead I'll get to the point and start out my first ever blog post.<br />
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Being a stay at home mom with "two under two" is busy...especially on the days like today when the toddler figures out how to climb onto the entertainment center for the first time. But between all the wiped up spills, kissed boo boos, belly laughs, and cold dinners, sometimes my brain feels a little neglected. So in the hopes that I can give my brain a little bit of a workout now and then, I'm giving this blog thing a try. </div>
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My plan is to write about a few of the things I love, and be linked up with an Instagram account. As a former teacher who can't get enough of books (especially kid lit.), I'm hoping to share some of my family's favorite reads each month. I've also been dying to get in on a good Instagram #seaglasschallenge but didn't want to participate through my private account. Perhaps I'll throw in some crafting and decorating, possibly a silly story about a kiddo now and then. Who knows where it will end up, but for now...here's to the start.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08567504140473953315noreply@blogger.com0