What Wyatt's Reading - December Edition

So, I am narrowing this post down to the top five books we read this month, as it would be a mammoth blog post. Lol. Being Christmas, we read so many holiday books. Rather than list off the multitudes, I narrowed down the list to the favorites. The ones that elicited the most squeals of joy, clapping, and also, frankly, a few that I liked the most too.

(clicking on the covers should take you to the Goodreads page..hopefully!)

Wyatt loves loves loves Llama Llama! I do too honestly, they are so cute, and easy to read aloud with their simple, sing-songy rhymes. It is so sad that Anna Dewdney passed away this year, and so young.

Wyatt spotted this on display at the library and would not rest until I grabbed it for him. I have to admit, I was a little in love with it too, after I read it. The illustrations are so detailed and interesting, I found myself going back and flipping through the book to look at them without little hands pawing at the page. The story was really cute too - and the main character little girl looks a lot like my friend's daughter!

I picked this one out for him for Christmas, and read it to him on Christmas Eve. We read about Iceland's tradition of giving and reading books on Christmas Eve (and eating chocolate!) and so our little family decided to have our own Icelandic style Christmas Eve. We exchanged books and had some reading time, although it was not all that we did. This was Wyatt's book. I adored it! 

Another book gift for Wyatt. I saw this book when we vacationed in Saugatuck this summer, and knew I had to get it. Billy and I both have multiple tattoos so I thought this book would be fun. We have appointments in February to get a new tattoo - we are each getting a tattoo, "the best tattoo of all". We are getting acorn tattoos to represent our little guy. I can't wait!

This book is absolutely gorgeous. It is also really fun! Wyatt and I had fun finding the little foxes together, and I enjoyed the unique page design. Some of the pages were cutouts, delicate and beautiful, and while I loved them, they frustrated Wyatt since they were fragile and he couldn't really grab onto them - especially since this was a library book! I am going to buy it for him, both because I love it, and also so that he can touch the pages. I can use it to help teach him how to respect books, but also still interact with it the way that it was intended. 

What Wyatt's Reading

It's been so long since I have done of these posts! There is no way I would be able to post everything we have read so I am going to share just some of our recent highlights from May.

No, No, Gnome! by Ashlyn Anstee: This book was so cute and Wyatt just cracked up while I was reading it to him. Like really really laughed. Lol.

Hector and Hummingbird by Nicholas John Frith: I loved this book - just the colors alone were amazing.

 Verdi by Janell Cannon: I had read Stella Luna before but never Verdi. I enjoyed this book about growing up and this book made me realize Wyatt is really listening to me when I read to him, because when I read a part about Verdi biting a fish on the nose, Wyatt turned around to show me his nose. It was cute. I love that kid. Lol.

The Umbrella by Jan Brett: One of Wyatt's grandmothers went to Costa Rica for two weeks so we checked this book out to read about the types of animals she might see. We will find out soon if she saw any of these guys! I love Jan Brett.

 If I had a Gryphon by Vikki Vansickle: LOVED this book!!! So fun and imaginative.

  

If You Happen to Have a Dinosaur by Linda Bailey and Colin Jack: Much in the vein of If You Had a Gryphon, but with dinosaurs. I loved it but then I love dinosaurs. Wyatt seemed to enjoy the illustrations.

Up in the Garden, Down in the Dirt by Kate Messner: A very quiet, gentle book. Wyatt and I read it in the evening after his bath. It was the perfect time to read although before an afternoon nap would work too.

What Wyatt's Reading- February Edition

Wyatt and I have just been reading through this cold month! There are so many holidays in February that we were not able to cover them all - a goal for next year! After Groundhog Day, we moved on to President's Day, Black History Month, and of course Valentine's Day - next year we will definitely be adding Chinese New Year and Mardi Gras, if it is in February again.

Speaking of Mardi Gras, Detroit has its own Fat Tuesday tradition - Paczki Day! This is traditionally a Polish celebration and we have a large population of people of Polish descent in our area of Michigan. Naturally, a holiday as delicious as Paczki Day is enjoyed by everyone - everyone is Polish on Paczki Day! A paczki is similar to a jelly donut, and come in many flavors: custard, lemon (my favorite), raspberry, chocolate, strawberry, and prune are top choices. Yes, prune. Lol. I bought Billy and I each a paczki, and also, one for Wyatt. He only got a little taste, but his tiny taste buds were blown.away.

 

Anyway back to the books!

This is what we have finished:

 Abe Lincoln's Dream by Lane Smith: I'm not sure what I thought of this book. It was kind of weird. I did learn that Ronald Reagan's dog would drive everyone crazy by barking at the Lincoln bedroom door all day...

The Ballad of Valentine by Alison Jackson: I loved this book, and so did Wyatt. You can sing it to the tune of Clementine, and I dare you not to. You just can't help yourself! It is designed to be sung and it is very well done. Wyatt loved it - he loves all things music.

John, Paul, George and Ben by Lane Smith: I liked this book much better than the Lincoln book. It was pretty cute, and would be a good way to introduce history to kids.

Llama Llama I love you by Anna Dewdney: Super adorable board book. Short and sweet and good for gnawing on as well. I am sure it comes in a less durable format as well for those children who have moved beyond eating their reading material.

Madam President by Lane Smith: LOVED this one! It mixes fact with fiction in a good way, through the imagination of a little girl who dreams of being President one day. 

Porcupining: A Prickly Love Story by Lisa Wheeler: Not technically a Valentines Day book, but this is an old favorite. This poor porcupine is just looking for love in all the wrong places - until he finally meets his prickly match! Lisa Wheeler is also a local author, and I love that too. 

A Boy and a Jaguar: I picked this one up because I loved the cover, but what was between the pages was a much more beautiful story. A little boy who stutters makes a promise that if he ever finds his voice, he will speak for those who can't speak for themselves - animals. This book is wonderful and I think it is a story for all ages to enjoy, honestly. It's a true story, as well. I teared up a little, just an FYI.

Still to Read:

We are working on these this week!

What Wyatt's Reading

Ok, so he's not actually doing the reading, I am. But he loves to be read to! And I of course love reading to him. We read old favorites of mine and also books I just randomly grab off the library shelves. My mom laughed at me the other day - I went to the library and came home with more books for my 7 month old son than I did for me!

Here is what we have been reading lately:

Next week, we start reading Halloween picture books! I am pretty excited - I still love picture books and the Halloween ones are my favorites. I wonder if that will rub off on Wyatt?