It’s weird that Kelly is doing a children’s book post today because yesterday I found myself at my alma mater standing on the very same track watching my youngest child run the very same races that I used to run with the very same ponytail bobbing in the very same way as she made her way around the track.
Oh it gets weirder. I was standing with the very same girl that ran those races with me 25 years ago. She was watching her child run too. Turns out my dear old friend who had three children when we were all having children about 16 years ago had a run-in with the Lord and she and her husband have adopted two more little boys. Her children now range in age from 16-year-olds to 18-month-olds.
Not. Even. Kidding.
And y’all? She was dressed with both of her shoes, she had earrings, her nails were done, and all her children were present and accounted for. I call that a pretty good day.
Anyway, we talked about teaching toddlers manners and sippy cups and runny noses and books just yesterday. It was relevant, and terrifying.
The sippy cup years are hard years. A lot of shoe-tying, nose-wiping, pants-zipping, dirt-removing, bath-timing, chicken nugget-making years.
Sweet years, but man those years are HARD.
And as one is likely to do when you stay a tad too long on the island of nostalgia, I have ended up a blubbering, hot mess of nostalgia with a side of maybe-we-should-adopt-a-baby.
Because you know what I miss about the sippy cup years? Freshly bathed kids that smell like baby shampoo and warm jammies.
And storytime.
The books that were favorites of my kids were favorites of mine as well.
G loved this one
Oh, it looks like it would be very scary, but it’s not. It’s about a pirate with a soft spot for his parrot. There were tears shed on a couple of occasions, which is totally fine because that’s the main lesson of the book. It’s okay to feel sad when sad things happen, especially when parrots are involved.
Both kids loved this one…
I Love You the Purplest by Barbara M. Joosse
Siblings wanting to know which one their mother loved best. One she loves the reddest. One she loves the bluest. Together they are purple. I have a blue kid and a red kid. They know who they are, and together they make purple. The pictures are beautiful, the language is lyrical, and the message is so good.
And AC loved this one…
A Snowman Named Just Bob by Mark Kimball Moulton
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I’m stopping by from Kelly’s Korner Blog. My oldest 2 kiddos love the Magic Treehouse books! They are great!
My son just turned four. Maybe I should start reading Magic Treehouse to him. Thanks for the recommendation.
Visiting through Kelly’s Korner. 🙂 When I saw your image for I Love You the Purplest, I knew I wanted to check out your post. My mom is one of 5 kids and she told me that was her favorite book that my Nana would read to them when they were young. When I had my first daughter, I bought that book for my mom to read to my children. It’s such a sweet one!