My Summer Bookworms

Oh. My. Freaking. Goodness.

If there’s one thing and one thing only that I could instill in my children, it would be a general sense of kindness—toward themselves, toward the world. Just an overwhelming aura of living with gratitude and a positive attitude, and seeing the good in all things.

But if I’m lucky enough to instill in my children two things, the second would hands-down be a LOVE OF BOOKS and STORIES and READING. And all signs point to us being well on our way to this goal!

(*Insert massive, insane happy dance—complete with jazz hands.*)

We’ve always been big into reading in our household. Picture books at bedtime, during the day (when they were little and we needed to kill some time), and now, as a way to really spend some quality time bonding, as I try to read longer books with them each, one-on-one.

Of course, I’ve detailed on this here blog the joy of reading Harry aloud with Chica. It was a journey we began on her seventh birthday, and we’re now closing in on the very end of the 4th book in the series, and it continues to be such a beloved activity for us.

In fact, her official Summer Reading Goal was to complete this 4th book, but since it’s something we read together, I was very eager to find a series of books that were age-appropriate that she could get hooked on—badly enough to read on her own time.

And we finally hit the jackpot with a series that she flew through so quickly she was ignoring us in the car, at the dinner table, in the playroom, and anywhere else you can imagine.

Total luck of the draw with these. And I’m really not kidding that this is the view I had for days on end. :)

Now. As part of her unfortunate initiation into binge reading, she also experienced the pain we book-lovers loathe like no other: finishing all the currently available books in a series and having to wait for the next release.

Bahahaha.

I’m not gonna lie: there was a small part of me that got an evil kick out of listening to her whine and beg and plead that she just couldn’t wait until September for the sixth book. It was like the stages of grief, ha. Alas. It is a pain her growing literary brain must bear. 

Welcome to the club, my beloved firstborn.

Needless to say, she recently discovered that she’s about 98% of the way toward the 2,000-minute reading goal that the elementary school set as the highest-achieving bracket, ha. And I couldn’t be more proud that she’s done it for the joy and entertainment, and not just to mark it off a list.

Last note on the Chica reading front: in an attempt to find another series for her to read to help combat the angst of waiting on the September publish date for the next book in her series, I busted out this old, classic we all know and love:

Needless to say, she was #unimpressed.

Haha. 

She took one look at the outdated covers and politely scrunched her nose whilst politely trying to say no thanks, Mama.

But I was undeterred. I eventually discovered these books have been re-branded with fresh covers and took a chance to buy the first and see if I could win her over (we’ll get to that whole don’t judge a book life lesson another year). She’s still a tiny bit skeptical, but seems more interested than not. So stay tuned for her official verdict.



Now. Let’s talk about Chicklet, next!

My beloved second-born has such an incredible approach to picking out books when we’re out and about.

SO often, she selects amazing National Geographic titles (no shock, as she’s such a lover of animals—both real and imaginary), or really cool books that tell you everything you could possibly want to know about a single species or subject.

Like this one:

She’s SO detail-oriented when it comes to the pictures in a book that she just devours them page after page, as she’s working to sound out different sections of captions or paragraphs.

She and I are well into the first Harry (she also started the series when she turned seven a few months ago), and it’s so fun to guess what’s she’ll find most delightful or intriguing, or to see how her brain reacts to certain bits of the story since she’s heard vague mention of odds and ends from her sissy over the years.

I’m hoping we can finish the first book by the holidays (and have the fun reward of watching the movie, as well), but in the meantime, I’ve also been so eager to find series for her that feel like her own. Something I want for each of my babies to reflect their personalities and interests.

And we also recently hit the jackpot with this graphic novel about a dragon. Woohoo!

As my beautiful girl continues to work as darn hard with her reading fluency, it was a major lightbulb moment to see how perfectly suited the layout of a graphic novel is for her.

TONS and tons of frames (for pictures galore!) and dialogue in more manageable bubbles that really help to love her through the story and maintain her interest.

She absolutely blazed through this first novel (in what I’ve learned is a series of at least six so far), and was crawling on to my lap, Daddy’s lap, or sidling up to her sissy to ask any one of us to read aloud to her, any chance she could get.

I mean, I really really don’t think there’s a happier sight for me than seeing my kiddos walk around like this:



Since she loved the first one so, dang, much, I ordered the second and third right away, and she’s been carting them around with her pretty much everywhere.

I’m so grateful to find something that appeals to her so much, and I’m absolutely going to be checking into other popular, age-appropriate (animal-centric, if possible!) graphic novels for her. :)

And now, my Little Man.

As a soon-to-be-kindergartner, he’s obviously at the start of his official reading journey, but already so brilliant at sounding words out.

And more than anything, he just wants to be part of the book club, and the owner of a series of his own, as well. :)

And we’ve also (also; we’re three for three with the kiddos!) hit the jackpot with one that is hilariously too old for him (though when I looked up the recommended age, it was just eight, so we’re not far off).

It’s a series he actually heard about because they’ve turned it (or are turning it?) into a show, and it involves zombie and monster hilarity and all sorts of funnies and sillies and weapons that would delight and thrill any youngster like himself, tehe.

Though he hasn’t allowed me to take the time to read more than a chapter or two to him, he brings the book everywhere and runs his finger down every line of every page, occasionally stopping at words he recognizes or can easily sound out. And I ADORE it.



I seriously am just so grateful for all the time we’ve spent looking at books, shopping for books, reading books together, reading books one-on-one, reading books during the day and ar night, and I will continue to indulge and encourage their reading in any way I can.

So a big, giant YAY for books and reading and keep ‘em coming (forever and EVER).

Over and out.