I love books. There's no denying it. Yesterday I drove to the downtown library and perused the new books aisle, the cookbook section, and the parenting section for an hour and came home with 13 books just for me.
People ask me, "When do you have time to read?" I carry books with me all the time. I read at stoplights much to my kids' chagrin. "Mom! The light is green!!! Go!!!" I read in waiting rooms. I read in the car while I'm waiting in the pickup line at school. I read right before I fall asleep for at least an hour every day. I just love all the knowledge out there that can be so easily absorbed by just reading.
One of our dreams for our family has always been to raise avid readers. I like to think that we have done all the right things to encourage that. They need models. I think we are doing our part, there. David is also a big reader (surprise, surprise). :) We have been reading to the kids every single night since before they were born. (The picture above was taken in 2000, when D was five months.) Even now that they can read independently, we read together out loud almost every night. (I like to pick one author and read all his/her books. This week we are reading Patricia Pollaco.) It comes as no surprise then, that they also love to read.
Yesterday, I picked up a book at the library titled If I Live to be 100: Lessons from Centenarians by Neena Ellis. The book originated from a project she did for NPR's "All Things Considered." I am intrigued by centenerians since my dad is 90 and in such good health. I wonder what he has done differently than most people his age who have alls sorts of ailments. He takes no pills, except for heartburn (because he probably overeats!) He has all his teeth. His hearing is not as great as it used to be but he can still hear, and he can't see with one eye. He has no arthritis. No diabetes. Nothing. Thank, goodness! Anyway, I saw this book and I thought about my dad so I checked it out.
I read parts of it on my way to pickup the kids from school (at stoplights only, of course!) and fell in love with some sections. At dinner, I was so excited about the book that I spent a good 10 minutes describing it to the kids. They listened intently and asked lots of questions. Then I casually asked them what they were reading. I did not expect this, but my two older kids ran to get their books and brought them to the dinner table. D has three books going: Lone Wolf from the Wolves of the Beyond Series, something from the Lemony Snicket series, and one from the Seekers series. He proceeded to tell us about his books. Then N shared with us The Puppy Place's Chewy and Chica about two chihuahuas that are born in a doggy mill and are adopted by a family. I was thrilled to see my kids so excited about books. They even read sections of their books out loud. After we picked up the kitchen, the reading out loud continued.
When my husband got home, I couldn't wait to share with him about our "book club" dinner. My 2-year-old overheard me talk about it and she told Daddy that tomorrow she is going to talk about the books she's reading.
I am so excited about this. I think we are going to implement a weekly, maybe daily? book talk at dinner.
People ask me, "When do you have time to read?" I carry books with me all the time. I read at stoplights much to my kids' chagrin. "Mom! The light is green!!! Go!!!" I read in waiting rooms. I read in the car while I'm waiting in the pickup line at school. I read right before I fall asleep for at least an hour every day. I just love all the knowledge out there that can be so easily absorbed by just reading.
One of our dreams for our family has always been to raise avid readers. I like to think that we have done all the right things to encourage that. They need models. I think we are doing our part, there. David is also a big reader (surprise, surprise). :) We have been reading to the kids every single night since before they were born. (The picture above was taken in 2000, when D was five months.) Even now that they can read independently, we read together out loud almost every night. (I like to pick one author and read all his/her books. This week we are reading Patricia Pollaco.) It comes as no surprise then, that they also love to read.
Yesterday, I picked up a book at the library titled If I Live to be 100: Lessons from Centenarians by Neena Ellis. The book originated from a project she did for NPR's "All Things Considered." I am intrigued by centenerians since my dad is 90 and in such good health. I wonder what he has done differently than most people his age who have alls sorts of ailments. He takes no pills, except for heartburn (because he probably overeats!) He has all his teeth. His hearing is not as great as it used to be but he can still hear, and he can't see with one eye. He has no arthritis. No diabetes. Nothing. Thank, goodness! Anyway, I saw this book and I thought about my dad so I checked it out.
I read parts of it on my way to pickup the kids from school (at stoplights only, of course!) and fell in love with some sections. At dinner, I was so excited about the book that I spent a good 10 minutes describing it to the kids. They listened intently and asked lots of questions. Then I casually asked them what they were reading. I did not expect this, but my two older kids ran to get their books and brought them to the dinner table. D has three books going: Lone Wolf from the Wolves of the Beyond Series, something from the Lemony Snicket series, and one from the Seekers series. He proceeded to tell us about his books. Then N shared with us The Puppy Place's Chewy and Chica about two chihuahuas that are born in a doggy mill and are adopted by a family. I was thrilled to see my kids so excited about books. They even read sections of their books out loud. After we picked up the kitchen, the reading out loud continued.
When my husband got home, I couldn't wait to share with him about our "book club" dinner. My 2-year-old overheard me talk about it and she told Daddy that tomorrow she is going to talk about the books she's reading.
I am so excited about this. I think we are going to implement a weekly, maybe daily? book talk at dinner.
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