"good for me" part 5

Last round (for now) of the kid's picture books:

**A Giraffe and a Half by Shel Silverstein-- written like many other Shel Silverstein poetry books in a lighthearted fashion.  A bit nonsensical and yet it somehow really tells a story.  And the rhyme is so repetitive, it is a good one for kids to be able to repeat back.

Millie's Marvelous Hat by Satoshi Kitamura-- Millie can't afford the hat she wants to buy so the shopkeeper gives her a magical hat (called your imagination) that can be any hat she wants.  It is fun to see the hats she dreams up.  It teaches kids to use the same imagination...

The Tooth Mouse by Susan Hood and Janice Nadeau -- I think I liked this one again because of the French influence.  It is all about the tooth fairy (in France the tooth mouse) and one particular tooth mouse who is trying out for the job.

Princess Tales by Grace Maccarone -- each set of pages is beautifully illustrated with lots of intricacy.  It is a look and find book.  And the fairy tales are in rhyme and almost all condensed to two pages.

Piggies in Pajamas by Michelle Meadows-- anyone who has little kids will probably rather wryly read this story about little piggies who are running around upstairs after being put to bed.  They jump back under the covers every time they think mom is coming upstairs...

Penguin Cha-Cha by Kristi Valiant-- another case of pretending to be silent and sweet while actually having a party.  This time it is some penguins in the zoo.  Quite funny.

Cornelius P Mud, Are You Ready for Bed? by Barney Saltzberg-- the funny story of a pig who is getting ready for bed...or maybe not.  The pictures say it all.

Cindy Ellen by Susan Lowell-- a Cinderella story retold for the Wild West.  Pretty cute.

Clocks and More Clocks by Pam Hutchins -- I think I enjoyed this book because of the old-fashioned illustrations and the opportunity to reinforce some basic math/time-telling skills for David.

Warning: Do Not Open This Book! by Adam Lehrhaupt-- yes, we have heard this concept before...but this book did live up to the storyline.  It is fun and full of interaction for little kids in particular.

Miss Lina's Ballerinas by Grace Maccarone-- yes, it starts out sounding a bit like Madeline (another favorite) but it is definitely a sweet book that has charming illustrations.

Never Smile at a Monkey by Steve Jenkins -- teaches a little bit about nature and wild animals in an entertaining manner.

"good for me" part 4

More kids picture books:

Delia's Dull Day  by Andy Myer-- sort of a juxtaposition to Seuss' "And to Think that I Saw it on Mulberry Street."  Instead of imagining crazy things on a walk home, Delia misses all the crazy things going on around her.  And they sure are crazy...

Cowpoke Clyde and Dirty Dawg by Lori Mortensen--  I think I am just a sucker for cowboy stories.  This is about a cowboy who tries to give his dog a bath and the resistance he meets.

Hetty's 100 Hats by Emma Dodd-- the artistic side of me loved the creativity the author had in creating 100 different hats as the little girl the book added and added to her hat collection.

**Never Tease a Weasel by Jean Conder Soule -- a classic that I remember as a child (although I don't remember the illustrations).  The story's moral is perfect for my kids, as would be for many kids.  "Never tease a weasel, because teasing isn't nice!"  We just substitute "Abigail" or "Elizabeth" or "David" for the word "weasel."

Ding Dong Gorilla by Michelle Robinson-- a funny story about a Gorilla who destroys a boy's house and eats the pizza that was delivered.  And then he leaves.  All this occurs while the parents are elsewhere, leaving the boy to explain what happened.  I think I love this, because I could see my kids coming up with such a ridiculous excuse for their messes and a missing pizza (albeit, the author does not imply that this was merely an excuse; really it happened!  Really!  Hah!).

We Read Phonics (The Juggle Puzzle)-- this was gotten by me as a phonics reader for David.  It is a a pretty basic read but also includes the fun brain-twister puzzle heard elsewhere --although often with different elements.The puzzle is to figure out the only method to row a tiger, a goat, and some stew across a lake without one eating another when left alone.  Fun to try and figure the puzzle out while reading it.

Princess Picky by Marjorie Priceman-- again probably the more humorous by my own experience with a sweet "Princess Picky" who has yet to learn to eat everything--unlike the princess in this story.

Toot Toot Zoom by Phyllis Root-- great read aloud with all the fun sounds in it.  It is the story of a fox who goes in search for a friend on the other side of the mountain.  As he picks up passengers, dhe learns a good lesson about unexpected friendship.

**Stone Soup by Marcia Brown-- if you have never read this, you should.  Another old classic that I read as a child.  It is the story of some tight-fisted peasants who get snookered out of all their pantry items.

The Princess and the Pig by Jonathan Emmett -- this is a fun retelling of the Prince and the Pauper but another mixed-up fairy tale.  Rather humorous to imagine the pig in the castle--no one noticing-- and the princess in the pigsty.

Princess Pigtoria and the Pea by Pamela Duncan Edwards-- a pig version of Princess and the Pea...or sort of.  The whole book is great for those kids who are learnig the phonetic sound for "P" as it is all an alliteration.

You Can't Take a Balloon into the Metropolitan Museum by Jacqueline Preiss Weitzman and Robin Preiss Glasser-- on the list because of the whimsical illustrations (reminiscent of Hilary Knight's Eloise) and the nod to art history.  It walks through the Metropolitan Museum and some of its most famous works while following the balloon.  There are other museum book by this same set of authors.

There's a Goat in my Coat by Rosemary Milne and Andrew McLean-- a book of lots of short, fun poems.  The illustrations are lovely and old-fashioned looking!

**Ernest the Moose Who Doesn't Fit by Catherine Rayner-- it is a comical book about a moose who is too big for the pages of the book and yet always tries to squeeze himself in somehow.  It was a favorite.

They sure are Grand!

We were very fortunate to have both sets of grandparents come and visit last month!

Unfortunately, we did not take out our camera once while my parents were here--except the last few moments after my dad had already left.  We caught one picture of Mom and the kids.

I did a much better job taking pictures while M's parents were here.

David's soccer game...

playtime and worktime outside...

before church on Sunday...

and lots of storytimes...