books we're into

since we have summer weather year 'round {why yes i am boasting about that although i have zero to do with the weather here} we aren't feeling the need to make the most of every single summery second. which is actually kinda nice.
so we really like books around here. i often say to people when they ask what i miss from home, sidewalks, parks and libraries. yup. we love books.
luckily in kampala there are a couple book stores that have a great selection of kids books so i pick up a new one every now and then. plus i've also found some second hand places that sell some fantastic older books.
if you have kids, you know that they'll go through their favourites which of course have to be repeated seventy million times every day. and usually multiple times at bedtime. of course.

so here's what we're into at the moment:

Dr. Seuss' Green Eggs and Ham
i'm not sure who first pulled this one out, but every time we read books, this one is a must these days. this morning noah "read" the whole thing to jude which made my heart go all squishy from all the cuteness.

Dr. Seuss' Fox in Sox
of course this book is a favourite. and impossible to read through without making a single mistake although that's my goal every time i read it. {hm, maybe i do have a bit of "type A" in me...}. the boys have picked up on one line "goo. goo. gluey gluey." and make sure they say it every time we use glue in crafts.

The Snail and the Whale
this is such a sweet book about a snail who wants to see the world and a whale who lets him hitch a ride. the illustrations are lovely and it has such a delightful rhyme to the story.

Mater and the Ghostlight
i picked up this book back in canada for a roadtrip we were going on with the boys. it's still a favourite and the boys like to say a lot of the lines in all the right voices from the pixar short film. super cute.

Jesus must be really special
this was a book that was sent over from our church in toronto when they celebrated their 50 year anniversary. it's about a really sweet family who loves Jesus and i never fail to feel like a lousy parent when i read it. {jokes. sorta.} but the boys like it. so that's enough for me.

Pete the Cat
jamie's family sent this book over for noah's birthday and the boys still love it. even jude will "read" it to himself. there are tons of activities you can do with your kids that are related to this book. {just look on pinterest!} and while i was looking up this book on amazon i saw that there are other pete the cat books which looked super cute!

Moomin's Lift-the-Flap Hide & Seek book
i grew up reading stories about the moomins who live in moominvalley and loved the books. when i happened upon this book at a store here in kampala, i knew i had to introduce my boys to the moomins. the fact that it's a lift-the-flap book makes it fun for the boys. there's even a character called the Fillyjonk who has three children and the boys say that maybe they should call me Fillyjonk since i'll have three kids when this baby is born. kids are so funny. {luckily the name hasn't stuck.}

Tootle
this book is one that jamie and i both dread when the boys pull it out. it's got so many words and at bedtime, let's be honest. sometimes you just want a quick "Hop on Pop" book to read before having some downtime. but regardless, the boys love this book about a little train who wants to be a "flyer" between chicago and new york, but can't manage to stay on the tracks.





and my kind friend kelly has lent me Mr. Poppin's Penguins to read with noah but we haven't started it yet. perhaps today we'll start. noah loves reading and we've already read our way through several chapter books together.

there are many others but those are just a few of our favourites at the moment.
what are your favourites?

valentine's day

at dinner last night i spoke to the boys about valentine's day and how Jesus loved us the most by giving his life for us.
but mom, i love Jesus more than you do because i love, love, love, love, love him.

this morning i pulled out the Jesus storybook bible and read about Jesus dying on the cross and rising from the dead.
childish observations are both hilarious and poignant.

he has no shirt on, mommy. {repeated at least three times by jude}
why are there three crosses, mommy?
are there more soldiers?
i see a crack above the stone. maybe that's how Jesus could get out.


as i read to them about mary in the garden, searching frantically for her Lord, i struggle {very unsuccessfully} to hold back the tears. the boys don't question the drops of water running down my face or my voice that tremors with emotion.

"'Mary!'
Only one person said her name like that. She could hear her heart thumping. She turned around. She could just make out a figure. She shaded her eyes to see...and thought she was dreaming.
But she wasn't dreaming. She was seeing.
'Jesus!'
Mary fell to the ground. Sudden tears filled her eyes and great sobs shook her whole body, and all she wanted in that moment was to cling to Jesus and never let him go."


o love that wilt not let me go,
i rest my weary soul in thee;
i give thee back the life i owe,
that in thine ocean depths its flow
may richer, fuller be.

o joy that seekest me through pain,
i cannot close my heart to thee;
i trace the rainbow through the rain,
and feel the promise is not vain,
that morn shall tearless be.


happy valentine's day.

books for kids

Books are a huge part of our lives.
I've been a book worm since as long as I can remember. I was reading (I'm pretty certain) by the end of Sr. Kindergarten because my best friend had learned to read and if she was reading, then darn it! So was I! (Competitive, much?)
And every birthday and Christmas until I got into high school and more into clothes I always got a ton of books.
Then I met Jamie.
Another bookworm.
And it seems as though we have two children who both love books as well!
I'm not sure if I've mentioned it before, but one of the biggest things we'll miss when we move to Uganda is our library. Oh we love our library. We are there several times each month taking out huge stacks of books and maybe a movie or two.
I figured it was about time to let you all in on a few books that are standard favourites and a few that we are reading right now.
This is books for kids (stay tuned for books that Jamie and I like).

Some of our standard favourites and ones that we read on a regular basis are the following:

The Jesus Storybook Bible

I love reading this one. I've been known to cry reading almost all of them one or two of the stories. We've made our way once through all the stories and now we're back for round two. The pictures are gorgeous and I have never read a Bible story book like this before. The small caption is "Every story whispers His name" and it's so true. In every story that's in this book, the end always ties it back to our Redeemer and Saviour Jesus and it's so completely beautiful.

Big Truths for Little Kids

We had put this one away for awhile but I recently pulled it out again and as soon as I did Noah said, "Oh I love this book, Mommy. I really love this one." Basically it's a book full of catechisms to read through with your child and then there's a story that follows each set of questions. There aren't very many pictures and I haven't started the "story" part of the book, but I imagine we'll get into that shortly with Noah as he can handle books with almost no pictures these days.

The Story of Easter

I recently purchased this board book and I love it. It tells the true story of Easter with great pictures for kids without getting too graphic or sugar coating it either. I've read this with both Jude and Noah. This is one that will stick around in our kids library.

First 100 Words

We received this one when Noah was a baby and now it's a favourite of Jude's. Most kids love this book for the colourful pictures that they can identify. Jude now points to almost everything in this book and can name it (which all of a sudden helps me realize that he's got over 100 words. that's crazy.). He'll sometimes sit and point at the page with pictures of babies/kids and shout "baby! baby! babeeeeee!"

And here are our current library faves:

Boy of Mine

Oh this one may have to be purchased. I absolutely adore this book and so do both boys. It's a board book and a sweet one to read before bedtime. It's part lullaby, part poem. Noah practically has it memorized and Jude looks at it and says, "boy - mine!" We all love it. (That's it. I'm convinced. I'm buying it.)

Benny the Breakdown Truck

This is an adorable British series and I love that they call a tow-truck a 'breakdown truck'. There's also a 'bonnet' instead of a trunk and 'petrol' instead of gas. I love it. Noah's really into cars and tow-trucks and so this series may be one that becomes more popular in our household. 

Hands are not for hitting

I got proactive about Jude's habit of hitting (and blogged about it here) and looked up some books that I could read to him about proper uses for our hands. This one is simple and corrects bad behaviour in a positive way by showing what hands are for (hugging, saying hello, etc.). 

Little 1

This is a sweet book about numbers. I think I may like it more than Noah does, but it's both beautifully illustrated as well as sweet and educational. Bonus! 

I would love to know books your kids like (and books you like reading to them since they usually want them read over and over and over again) so make sure to leave a comment.