Books of the Week- Picnic

Eva surprised me with her pick this week but it is a classic.  She chose The Bears' Picnic by Stan and Jan Berenstain.

In this story, Papa Bear leads Mama Bear and Brother Bear on a search for the perfect picnic spot but each spot has it's issues- mosquitoes, trains, crowds and so on.  Will they ever get to eat their picnic lunch?  I thought the humor might be a little above her but Eva totally got it.  She liked the mosquitoes and the lightning the best.

My pick this week isn't actually a picnic book but an alphabet book that our librarian recommended called L M N O Peas by Keith Baker.

This book is adorable!  I am a big pea fan to begin with but this made me love them even more.  The rhyming text takes us through the alphabet introducing us to all sort of peas- electricians, miners, poets, volunteers, even an Elvis pea makes an appearance.  It is beyond cute and so fun to read!

Books of the Week- Pets

There was no question in my mind as to which book Eva would pick as her favorite this week.  We read Love That Puppy by Jeff Jarka many, many times this week.

This is the story of an ordinary boy named Peter who one day decides to become a dog.  The humor is perfect for toddlers (with some laughs for parents thrown in too) and the illustrations are adorable.  When I asked Eva what she liked about the book, she said, "Peter pretends to be a dog but he's not a dog.  Silly Peter!"

As for my choice, Daddy and I both loved the story The Best Pet of All by David LaRochelle.

In this book a little boy really wants a pet dog but his mom won't let him have one.  So he asks her for a dragon instead.  His mother tells him that if he can find a dragon, he can have it for a pet but it turns out that dragons do not make very good pets.  Only one thing will help get rid of the dragon but you'll have to read the book to find out what it is.

Books of the Week

I'm adding a new feature.  Each week Eva and I will pick a favorite book from the week's theme and write a short review of it.

My favorite book this week was Counting in the Garden by Kim Parker.

I love the illustrations in this basic counting book.  They are so bright and cheerful with lots of little details. The animals are absolutely adorable and the vocabulary is toddler friendly while introducing new words like "frolicking".  

Eva's choice for her favorite book this week is Planting Seeds by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace.

This board book goes through the life cycle of a carrot while also reinforcing counting from 1-10.  When asked what she liked best about it, Eva replied, "The bunnies and the carrots."  She was also able to "read" this book herself after having it read to her once so it's great for beginning readers.