Friday night books

Swimming and reading are a great combination for a Friday night. Add in the long-delayed pizza, we read:

• Dora's Pirate Adventure by Leslie Valdes and illustrated by Dave Aikins - I hadn't ever thought to look for Dora books at the library until our last visit. Reid was pleased that I did but Ken and I haven't been as enthusiastic about reading them. They sound like they were adapted from the tv script and we aren't really fans of the show. Still, reading is an end in itself, I guess.
• Miss Spider's New Car by David Kirk - there are many bugs in this book, I need to talk about them with Reid the next time we read it.
• At the Carnival (a Dora the Explorer book) by Leslie Valdes and illustrated by Robert Roper - Reid likes this book because she needs to count to keep track of the number of yellow tickets that Dora and Boots are collecting.
• All You Need for a Snowman by Alice Schertle and illustrated by Barbara Lavallee - a book that reminds me that we haven't built a snowman yet this year but that makes Reid smile.
• Without You by Sarah Weeks and Suzanne Duranceau - a story about a baby penguin and her dad who are waiting for the mama penguin to come back to them. It tells quite a bit about how penguins live and raise their young through simple text and lovely pictures.
• Meet Diego! by Leslie Valedes and illustrated by Susan Hall - we have this book as a video but Reid has never commented on it.
• Diego's Safaari Rescue by Ligiah Villalobos and illustrated by Alex Maher - Reid is a big fan of African animals and so welcomed this new book into her collection.
• Valentine Surprise, a Clifford the Big Red Dog book by Quinlan B Lee and illustrated by Steve Haefele
• Time for Bed by Mem Fox and illustrated by Jane Dyer - I love this book. I love the illustrations of parent and baby animals and the soft, soothing rhyme. Reid rarely chooses it anymore. I told her that I was shutting the light out if she didn't bring me this book and she finally snuggled in and listened to it.
• Kisses by Nanda Roep and Marijke ten Cate - a story about a little girl who wants a kiss from her dad and all of the different kinds of kisses that he offers her.
• Bear's New Friend by Karma Wilson and Jane Chapman - I'm a fan of any book featuring Bear. The illustration, the rhythm and gentle story reel me in each time.

Wednesday books

Reid was down with a cold. She'd fought it while we had visitors but by Wednesday it was full-blown. We read:

• The Old Woman and the Red Pumpkin by Betsy Bang and illustrated by Rachel Merriman, one of the Discovery Toys Reading Together at Home collection - I was a bit worried that Reid would be frightened by the animals intending to eat the old woman but she was more interested in what the old woman was eating to get so fat.
• The Big White Ghost, a Clifford the Big Red Dog book by - I don't know if everyone reads Halloween books in January but I do since Reid still chooses them off of the bookshelf.
• Dinosaur's Day Out by Nick Sharratt, one of the Discovery Toys Reading Together at Home collection - Reid is getting better at transferring what she sees on the map to the pictures on the pages that follow. Given my lack of map reading skills, I am hopeful that she will continue to develop these abilities.
• The Cat in the Hat Comes Back by Dr Seuss - I started by asking Reid to tell me the letters of each of the little cats but she was so tired that I decided I'd best read them myself and get her to sleep.

Tuesday books

Grandma Joyce, Uncle Roger, Aunt Lisa and Brock left just after supper. Ken, Reid and I were pretty tired but still read:

• Giving Thanks, a Clifford's Puppy Days book by Sarah Fisch and illustrated by Bob Roper - the way that everyone is too busy for Clifford makes me a little sad because it is true that sometimes we are so focused on the trappings of a holiday that we forget the reason for it.
• Hippos Go Beserk! by Sandra Boynton - Reid likes this book for counting and also number recognition (she is odd that way) and I am a dedicated Sandra Boynton fan.
• Someday by Alison McGhee and illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds - this book brings tears to my eyes. It might be intended for mamas but Reid and I both like to read it.

Balmy and busy January day

It was a hectic day, with the taste of days to come as lessons have started up again. We read:

• Boo!, a Clifford the Big Red Dog book - Who says that Halloween books can't be read in January? I like to see Jetta being taken down a peg; she can be a bit hard to take. Emily Elizabeth does, too, for that matter.
• Stella: Queen of the Snow by Marie-Louise Gay - Stella is so "knowledgeable" as she guides Sam through the delights of his first snow.
• Dinosaurs' Day Out by Nick Sharratt, one of the Discovery Toys Reading Together at Home collection - this book tells a simple story and much of it references the map that they consult near the beginning. Of all the books we have and have read, this is the only one in which a map plays a key role.
  
• Pocoyo and Friends: A first book of friendship (no author) - this book is for kids who are 18 months or 2 years old, as is the show upon which it is based. Reid used to love watching Pocoyo and I still miss it but we only read the books now.
  

Getting a head start on Friday's quota

Reid and I read a story in bed before getting up and another at breakfast. It made me feel calmer, knowing that I was only 1 book away from our 3 book minimum. We read:

• If My Dad Were a Dog by Annabel Tellis - a book that I would have to like if only because of the correct use of "were" rather than "was" in the title. The story itself is a whimsical imagining of a day with your dog/dad/.
• Winnie the Pooh Friendly Stories (Disney Musical Treasury) by Guy Davis - and I sang the song only twice (or maybe four times)
• Stanley's Party by Linda Bailey and illustrated by Bill Slavin - I had tried to read this book to Reid a few months ago but she wasn't interested. She was more patient today and enjoyed the story of such an outrageous pooch as Stanley.
• Very Best Friends by Ann Braybrooks and illustrated by Arkadia - Hearing Reid's "Winnifred!?" makes this book worth reading. The message that new friends don't replace old ones is a bonus.
• Can You Find Me? by Susan James Frye and illustrated by Andrea Eberbach, a Kindermusik book from the fall session that has a skunk in it and Reid is very fond of skunks lately.