Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Chinaberry


There are lots of places I love to get books. One of my favorites was introduced to me a few years ago by a wonderful friend and fellow children's book lover. The company is Chinaberry. You can find them here. I have not bought anything from them recently, so I haven't been getting their catalogue as often as I would like, but it is amazing. Talk about a wonderful resource. They give some of the most thorough descriptions I have found on their books and they have amazing selections in each catalogue. Unfortunately, because they are a small scale company, their prices can't always compete with some of the discount retailers, but they do have a great outlet and they are a fantastic company to support. If price was something I never had to consider, I would shop Chinaberry religiously!

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Mortimer's Christmas Manger


I can't believe I haven't already posted about this book. Mortimer's Christmas Manger by Jane Chapman and Karma Wilson is a fantastic book! Mortimer is a little mouse that hates his hole. He thinks it is dirty and creepy. One day he finds the perfect little house, but it is filled with little people. He figures out they are not real, so every night he moves them out. Unfortunately, someone always puts them back. On Christmas Eve he overhears the people of the house telling a story about the people and the little house and he realizes that they are talking about Baby Jesus. Mortimer makes a decision and gets sweet results. I love this different take on a story including the nativity. I'm sure you will too! Plus the illustrations are great!

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Christmas Mice


We added a new Christmas board book to our collection, by Richard Scary. It is called Christmas Mice. On the back of the book it says it was originally published in 1965 as The Santa Claus Book. I think it was one of the old, old Golden Books. It would be so fun to get my hands on some of those! However, the newly published version is a great second best. The story is simple, the pictures amazing, the perfect read aloud for a toddler! The story tells about two mice who are the first ones awake on Christmas. They go around the house exploring all of the wonderful presents Santa left and wonder if Santa forgot them. Do you think Santa would forget them?

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Olive the Other Reindeer


We try to add a few new Christmas books to our collection each year and Olive the Other Reindeer, by by Vivian Walsh and J.otto Seibold, is one that we added this year. I had heard lots of great things about this book and it did not disappoint. The illustrations are really the magic of this book. They are simply amazing. Olive is actually a dog that gets a little mixed up with the song Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Olive thinks that instead of "all of the other reindeer" the song says "Olive, the other reindeer". It is a fun story of how Olive helps the reindeer.

Sunday, December 13, 2009

Donuts

Our family discovered a fun new tradition this week. When I was looking through the ads on Sunday, I noticed that K-mart had something called a "Mini-donut" maker on sale. I have been dying to try making homemade donuts as a holiday tradition, but I have to admit, I am scared to death of frying things with oil. I have never attempted it. I have always been scared of hot oil, but a few years ago my husband had a cousin who's wife was severely burned in a fluke oil fire when they were cooking scones. Since then I have been petrified of it. Anyway, I went to K-mart to check it out and sure enough it is a super cool device. It only cost me $16.99 and it bakes the mini donuts instead of frying them, so they are slightly more heathly and they only take 4 minutes to make! PERFECT for a family of small children. I did a search looking for recipes because it only comes with one, which we thought was great, but I was looking for a chocolate one, and several people complained that the donuts weren't good. If you are expecting a Krispy Kreme, you're not going to get it. These are cake donuts. They taste a lot like the little powdered hostess ones that the kids love, but better because they are hot and fresh. Anyway, if you are looking for a fun thing to try with your family, I would definitely recommend a mini-donut maker!

Sunday, December 6, 2009

Wombat Divine, by Mem Fox


If you have never read any of Mem Fox's books, you need too! She has been a favorite author of mine for a long time. I ordered this particular book from one of my Scholastic book orders when I was teaching. I hadn't heard the story, but knew that I loved Mem Fox. It was too religious for me to use in my classroom, but I love the story and love reading it to my children each year. This year it has been so fun to read from my collection of Christmas books with my nearly 3 year old daughter, because it is the first year she is really starting to grasp the stories. This one was a real hit. We read it 3 times in a row before she went to bed tonight. It is the story of a little wombat that is excited to be able to be in the Nativity play for the first time. He volunteers for every part, but nothing is right for him, he is always too big or too sleepy, or too clumsy, until the very end when his friends discover the perfect part for wombat.

Thursday, December 3, 2009

Who's Coming to Our House


Who's Coming to Our House, by Joseph Slate, is another great Christmas board book for really young children. It is the story of the animals in the barn preparing for the birth of baby Jesus. Little kids will love the animals and the rhyming text and parents get the chance to talk about the Christmas story after the read the book to their children. It is the perfect way to introduce the story of the birth of the Savior in a very simple, child-like way.

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Favorite Christmas Board Book


Christmas in the Manger, by Nola Buck and Felicia Bond, is my favorite Christmas board book for really small children. The illustrations are wonderful and it has a great rhyming text that is cute, but not too cute. The story keeps the spirit of the real reason for Christmas, but is not preachy or too difficult for small children. It is the perfect Christmas book for a baby or small toddler!