And because things were nice and tidy, which meant I knew tiny bits and pieces wouldn’t get lost, I let Chicklet play with one of our favorite little childhood toys that we haven’t busted out in awhile.
Oh, how we’ve always lurved this flower garden.
I’m not overly sentimental about many of our toys, but this is one I’ll keep for grandkiddos. :) It’s so simple and sweet, but the source of many, many fond memories.
And those memories hit me hard when all three of my crazies crowded around and played with the set, because I could so easily rewind a few years in my mind and envision one—or two—of them with a paci and footed pajamas, building their little flower garden.
Man, how times flies.
It’s definitely bittersweet to see how they’ve so obviously grown, but I have to remind myself that it’s okay to be a bit sentimental about the tiny babies they used to be—and the things they loved back then—while also enjoying the slightly older humans they’ve become, complete with new and varied interests.
But for kicks and giggles, before I move on...some pics of Little Man, who built with this garden set every morning for months when he was two years old. Perhaps this was foreshadowing of the LEGOs that now capture his interest. ;)
Ugh. I just wanna smoosh those baby cheeks!
Here’s the full post of his flower building back in the day, in case you’re interested:
Here’s the full post of his flower building back in the day, in case you’re interested:
Also. Can we just take a moment to marvel at the gloriousness of having this blog at my fingertips when I want to recall the specifics of some toy or event or silly quirk from years past?? It’s absolutely the best resource—nearly nine years running!—but that’s a post for another day.
Anywho.
Because of the rainy, gloomy, happily-lazy weekend (translation: not a lot of action to report on this here blog), and because of the bittersweet vibes of watching my babies with a toy from days past, I decided to sit down and type something I’ve intended for ages.
A post about the books my babies are loving these days.
Because, just like with the little garden toy from years past, I had a moment the other day that reminded me of just how much my babies have grown and changed.
Basically, I was in Tarjay, and noticed this Valentine book that’s part of a series we loved when Little Man was younger, and I was this close to picking it up and buying it before I paused and changed my mind, acknowledging that’s it’s probably just a bit too young for any of my babies these days. Deep sigh.
Now, don’t get me wrong. I’m a lover of all kinds of books, so I don’t put it past myself to buy it at some point, regardless, so I can continue our collection (and save for those imaginary grandkiddos, hehe). But in terms of actually entertaining my crazies in the best possible way, it’s just too much of a baby/toddler book for them at present.
But.
There’s always a flip side to any bittersweet coin.
And the positive here is that we never (ever, ever) lack for books in our world. We just get to keep expanding our horizons. Onward and upward (I mean, can we say Harry Potter, anyone!?).
So we’ll just keep discovering books that we lurv for family story time, and in the meantime, I want to share some of the series that we adore right now—broken down by favorites, according to each kiddo.
And please note: we have a gazillion one-off books we love, but this post is specific to series only. Perhaps I’ll share our favorite one-off books another day. :)
Now, without further delay...
The How To Catch A Series
We love, love these books, and own ten of the eleven listed below—woohoo!—and two others that aren’t included in the picture.
I believe our very first was Mermaid, and perhaps then Unicorn (ahem, can we say perfect for Chicklet?) before we started to collect the holiday ones.
Our most recent (read just last night!) was Dinosaur, and it was a winner, as usual. The only one we’re lacking is Turkey because I have yet to find it in a hardback, and I’m annoying and want them all to be the same. ;) And our very favorite of all is Yeti (not pictured above).
My kiddos seems to love the these books because they typically involve some mischief, hijinks and quite a bit of resourcefulness, as kiddos attempt to catch a variety of creatures. With vibrant illustrations and engineering situations, they’re very cute books.
Next up...
The Pout-Pout Fish series:
Ugh. I adore, adore, adore these books—and more importantly, I enjoy the lyrical rhyming of reading them aloud. They are just fantastically fun reads with beautiful, sea-hued illustrations.
Ugh. I adore, adore, adore these books—and more importantly, I enjoy the lyrical rhyming of reading them aloud. They are just fantastically fun reads with beautiful, sea-hued illustrations.
This is the first book series that I so clearly connected with Chicklet and our reading time together, so there are a lot of precious memories there. Not only are these illustrations beautiful and the rhyming top-notch, but every book includes an excellent life lesson told in the loveliest of ways.
The two below are some of our very favorite—though we love them all.
I know there are tons of tinier, simpler board books or paper backs in the series, and we do have a handful of those, but we really hold out for the new, giant hardback books that are longer and more in depth. Usually, there’s a year or two in between the publishing of a new one, but they’re worth it!
Oh, and for sentimental kicks and giggles, check out this link to Chicklet’s pumpkin she made in kindergarten that was in honor of The Pout-Pout Fish books. :)
http://delappenings.blogspot.com/2019/10/chicklets-storybook-pumpkin.html?m=1
Okay, last up for the more Chicklet-centric book series:
Okay, last up for the more Chicklet-centric book series:
There Was An Old Lady series:
Okay, although the hubby doesn’t love these as much as I do, I think these are jolly good fun, and my kiddos agree.
Okay, although the hubby doesn’t love these as much as I do, I think these are jolly good fun, and my kiddos agree.
Basically, each book follows the old lady eating and eating and eating a bunch of odds and ends that are all within a certain theme, until she spews them out at the end and creates something fun.
I adore them for two reasons. First: the illustrations are crazy unique. They are unlike any other series I know, in that they’re made of squiggles upon squiggles. Crazy original, if you ask me.
And the second reason I adore them is that I build a dramatic reading by getting faster and faster and more frantic with each page and mountain of items the lady is eating (ironically, this is why the hubby doesn’t them, as he doesn’t mirror my dramatic reading and gets bogged down in the repetitiveness, ha). So there’s a fun, silly drama to the laundry list of items she’s munching, and the kiddos get a big kick out of my super-speed reading. Sometimes I even pretend to run out of breath, hehe.
The series had been going for quite some time, and some of the older ones are a bit harder to find. To date, we’ve collected about two-thirds of the ones pictured below, and we’re always happy to snag more. :)
Okay, next up, some books I more closely align with Chica...
Okay, next up, some books I more closely align with Chica...
The Fancy Nancy series:
Ugh.
I can’t even put into words how much I adore these books—and how many amazing memories I have of reading them with a Chica.
When she was younger, and we lived in McKinney, she kept all of the hardback books in the series on her nightstand, and every night for about a year that I was able to put her down to bed (the hubby and I have always done a steady rotation among the kiddos) we would select one of these books. I think we both adored the accessories and flair and love for French words that makes the main character, Nancy, eternally glamorous. And the illustrations are so girly and fun. I mean, even the colors of each hardback book seem, well, fancy, and beautiful enough to set out on a nightstand!
The books were actually turned into a TV series on Disney Junior, which was great. But nothing can touch the originals in my opinion.
Definitely must-reads for any girlie girl who loves learning random fancy and French words that are one of the major bonuses of the books.
And speaking of girlie girl books...
The Pinkalicious series:
We were a bit late to this series, and we had to grow into them, as they are a bit on the longer side, so I had to wait until attention spans were longer. But we came to adore them so much, and they’ve always been a staple in Chica’s closet. :)
Now, last but not least...
The Skippyjon Jones series
Now. I must admit that these were a slow burn series for us. We’ve owned them for years (like, since my babies were infants), but have just now truly connected with them.
Now. I must admit that these were a slow burn series for us. We’ve owned them for years (like, since my babies were infants), but have just now truly connected with them.
And the crux of that is this: they’re wordier on each, individual page, and longer books in general, so we just weren’t ready for them for quite some time.
But right now, these books are golden for us.
The most important reason my babies love them right now is that they’re obsessed with learning Spanish words! Which is fan-freaking-fantastic, and something that I would really foster, if I were being the best mother possible. And I’m trying, I promise I am!
The most important reason my babies love them right now is that they’re obsessed with learning Spanish words! Which is fan-freaking-fantastic, and something that I would really foster, if I were being the best mother possible. And I’m trying, I promise I am!
These books follow an adorable cat—who thinks he’s a chihuahua—with an overactive imagination and a closet that takes him on amazing adventures, complete with some friends who always join up with him.
They’re are practically tongue twisters at times to read, but so, so fun. Definitely not calm bedtime reading, hehe.
Our favorite might be Snow What?
Okay.
So there you have it.
Six of our very favorite book series for the late Pre-K, early elementary years.
As I mentioned, I have oodles of one-off books that I adore with a passion (and even many books that just have sequels, but aren’t a full series, so I didn’t count them here). So perhaps I’ll share more of those another day.
And in the meantime, I’ll just say this:
WE. LOVE. BOOKS.
:)
Stay healthy, stay sane, and keep reading, peeps!
Over and out.
P.S. I would be remiss if I didn’t count Little Man’s superhero books as a sort of series that we adore and read all the time, as a family. They aren’t originals, obviously, but just re-telling of the comics, but they’re a staple around our house and definite keepers.
And for one last bit of bonus fun...when I was asking Chicklet about her very favorite books, she said her “science book” without hesitation.
She selected this book years ago on an outing at Half-Price Books, and I thought it was random and wouldn’t hold her interest, as it’s quite advanced in wording. More like a kid’s encyclopedia on scientific subjects.
But it is hands-down her most prized book (well, besides her children’s Bible that she also adores) and has spent hours over the years studying the pictures and occasionally having her sissy read sections for her. :)
Love my babies and any kind of books that capture their attention’
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