The Random Number Generator picked #6: Kerry Clare who wrote:
I LOVE I Can Read With My Eyes Shut.
This seems very appropriate since it was Kerry who inspired me to play along with her Family Literacy Week. We have I Can Read With My Eyes Shut too Kerry but haven’t read it much lately since Moira isn’t so into it.
Thanks everyone who commented this week! I’ll have to do something like this again soon.
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} Almost 11-months exactly after I got eye surgery I am back to glasses. The second round will have to wait a couple years. I could complain but… then I would be a jackass. I’m having a baby, my eye sight is still WAY better than it was before, I live a comfortable North American life and can afford glasses.
} Actually, I already had the glasses – I knew better than to get rid of them. I just needed new lenses.
} Having glasses again means I can drive the car again. I stopped driving in early December and was starting to feel a little stranded and dependent on the kindness of others. ( Read more )
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We have a number of Dr. Seuss books – I bet you do too. Everyone reads Dr. Seuss. Some of them are really great, and some of them are kind of meh. But as much as I would like it to be reading these days isn’t about me – at least not when it comes to kids books. And Moira has become oddly attached to Wacky Wednesday. When she is getting tired or stressed she starts yelling out her list of demands: “Nap!” “Bottle!” “Wacky! – which has recently been extended to add “Wocket!” as in, There’s a Wocket in my Pocket. We can be walking down the street and if she is upset (because, you know, I made her wear her mittens or something) she will repeat her list of demands all the way home. On each page of Wacky Wednesday there are things to point out that are weird:
It all began with that shoe on the wall.
A shoe on a wall shouldn’t be there at all.
Then I looked up and I said, oh man.
And that’s how Wacky Wednesday began.
Boy oh boy, a shoe on the wall is Wacky when you are almost two. Mostly I think she likes saying the word wacky. This week she is all about pointing out the babies in the book. Last week it was the cat. There is always something to fixate on.
My current favourite Dr. Seuss book to read is the abridged version of Mr. Brown Can Moo! Can You? We have both versions but the smaller, shorter version flows better AND it is perfect for throwing in the diaper bag when we are on the go. Plus Moira is at the age where she can help with the sounds.
The Giveaway: A copy of the abridged Mr. Brown Can Moo! Can You? You have until Sunday at 7 p.m. to comment, at which point I will close comments and announce the winner. Good luck!
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The winner is Bertha who wrote:
I’m not familiar with the Ahlbergs, but these look beautiful! I will admit that when it comes to kids books, I tend to be much more interested in the illustrations than the actual story.
If it is the illustrations you like Bertha then you will be quite pleased with any of the Ahlbergs books. I know June is going to love it. Send me your address!
The final installment of Family Literacy Week and the final giveaway will be posted within the hour.
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Back when Moira was wee a blog friend, Tiffany, gave me a ton of board books for her. In that pile were these:
I can’t say I gave much thought to them at the time but quickly learned that babies love photos. Or at least my baby. We had to drag these books with us everywhere because Moira could never get enough of them. Even before she turned 1-years old we would spend an hour every morning going through all the photos. In fact the first two words she put together were “what’s this?” or “whasis?” in Moira-speak. Since then we have looked for similar books to keep her interested:
I’m pretty sure these books are one of the reasons Moira is a very wordy child (I also think it is because I won’t let her watch TV but I’m not here to preach). For a couple of books that I would never have given the time of day to pre-child, I’m now always on the look out for more like them and will probably give them as gifts to anyone having a baby over the next couple years: they are inexpensive and can occupy a child (or at least my child) for long stretches of time.
Tiffany, I owe you big time.
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Each Peach Pear Plum has been a favourite in our house since Moira was very wee and it introduced us to another writing and illustration team: Janet & Allan Ahlberg.
At first all Moira cared about was the Wicked Witch’s cat and we would have to turn to that page so she could quickly get excited, drool all over the page and then rip it out of our hands and chew on the binding. Then all she cared about was Baby Bunting and we had to go straight to those pages. But she has come a long way since then and will point out everything now. For Christmas I bought her Peepo which I absolutely love and was a little worried that it would be too wordy for Moira but she made me read it to her eight times on the first day and we read it every night before bed these days.
With all the Ahlberg books there is so much detail in the drawings that there is always something for the child to look at – or in Moira’s case, obsess over. We have a copy of The Jolly Postman which is hugely popular but we don’t look at it much because Moira is still a little too destructive and won’t give the letters back when I take them out of the pockets.
The Giveaway: Either a copy of Each Peach Pear Plum or Peepo – I don’t think I have a spare one lying around so I will have to see what my local bookstore has. Comments on this post will stay open until Friday at 7 p.m. after which I will announce the winner and post the final giveaway for Family Literacy Week.
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The Random Number Generator (the real one this time – not Moira pulling names out of a hat) chose: PHX who wrote:
One of my kids’ favourites is definitely The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle. When we get to the part where the caterpillar has a stomachache, Lily always chimes in “oh poor caterpillar” and Lukasz has been known to give the caterpillar a kiss.
Sheep in a Jeep sounds like an entertaining read! I also love trolling 2nd hand stores for my favourite kids books – I picked up 17 Berenstain Bear books (faves of mine as a kid) a few months ago for under $17! Score!
Moira loves The Very Hungry Caterpillar too. When we get to the stomachache part we read it really fast and she laughs and then we have to read it again. She doesn’t feel bad for the caterpillar at all – I guess it is his own fault for being such a glutton.
Send me your address PHX (I’m sorry – I’m totally drawing a blank on your real name even though I know it) and I will mail Sheep In A Jeep out this week.
Today’s post – and another chance to win – will be coming up shortly.
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Andreae over at With The Crickets tagged me. The Challenge: post photos of seven red things in my house, then tag seven other bloggers to do the same. I’ve never had luck tagging people so I’m going to suggest playing along if you want to and then leaving a comment so we can all see the red things in your home.
Detail from a favourite print.
Another favourite print – Moira needs to start paying attention to this one.
Little red shoes – there is a dress that matches and it is pretty much the cutest thing ever.
My dream is to someday start a zine of my own – but I guess having a blog is a little like that.
Poppy collection – this way I always have a backup for when one falls off.
Cranberries defrosting in preparation for muffin making – complete with little grabby hand. I was tempted to let her shove one in her mouth, but I didn’t.
Fridge magnets.
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I have mentioned my love for The Gruffalo once before – although The Gruffalo’s Child is still my favourite.
One snowy night while The Gruffalo snored
The Gruffalo’s Child was feeling bored.
The Gruffalo’s Child was feeling brave
So she tiptoed out of the gruffalo cave.
I think there is something about teams of writers & illustrators that I like. Nancy Shaw & Margot Apple of the Sheep books are one great team and Julia Donaldson & Axel Scheffler are another. We now have The Gruffalo, The Gruffalo’s Child and Room on the Broom at home and I have read through Stick Man enough times to know that by next Christmas it will probably be a staple around here too (it has a Christmas theme). These books are hugely popular – so popular that The Gruffalo was made into a TV special last Christmas: ( Read more )
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My friend Kerry over at Pickle Me This has decided she is turning Family Literacy Day (Wednesday, January 27th) into Family Literacy Week over on her blog – and how could I resist not doing the same? Everyday is Family Literacy Day in our household – most mornings I can’t even finish making breakfast for us before someone starts demanding: Story! Story! We spend a good hour every morning sitting on the floor, snuggled up together reading a stack of books Moira has picked out.
This week I have decided to highlight some of our (Moira & my) favourites starting with the books of Nancy Shaw.
I was introduced to this book by my friend Kirsty who I have given the nicknames: Moira’s Flakey Godmother and Moira’s Middlenamesake because Kirsty is both flakey (brilliant doctor mind you, but flakey) and her middle name is Moira which is where I first heard of the name Moira oh-so-many years ago. Anyway, shortly after Moira was born Kirsty sent us some books and one of them was Sheep In A Jeep which quickly became a favourite.
Beep! Beep! Sheep in a jeep on a hill that's steep.
Each book tells a tale of this group of muttonheads getting into trouble. ( Read more )
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