I Would Still Love You

Mommy, would you still love me if I pulled my shorts up too high in Party City?
Mommy, would you still love me if I pushed Mr. Adden?
Mommy, would you still love me if I needed paci for one more night?

"What if I turned into a polar bear,
and I was the meanest bear you ever saw
and I had sharp, shiny teeth
and I chased you into your tent
and you cried? [said the baby bear]

Then I would be very surprised
and very scared.
But still, inside the bear
you would be you,
and I would love you." - Barbara Joose, Mama Do You Love Me?

Selah, would I still love you?
Yes.
Because you would still be you.
And your mama is crazy bout her Selah.

Planting A Rainbow

One of my all time favorite things to do with the kids is to connect literature to life.

I adore reading quality children's literature to them and living it out
OR
just having fun with it.

Like reading

If You Give a Pig a Pancake - and whipping up syrupy pancakes
The Napping House - and taking a snooze
Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed - and getting some good air
The Doorbell Rang - and making cookies to share
The Grouchy Ladybug - and painting rocks to look like ladybugs

Today we read Planting a Rainbow, by Lois Ehlert. Selah especially adored this book; Adden, not so much. But they both loved getting dirt underneath their fingernails and planting some seeds. Adden, well, he REALLY loved the dirt. Digging it, tasting it, throwing it up in the air. The child is in desperate need of a bath. We all are, but I diverge.

To be quite honest, I have my doubts that anything will grow. I'm not even sure why I attempted planting anything, knowing that I can't keep already vibrant plants alive. But for the kids' sake, I'm praying that something - anything - will sprout up. Even if it's just a weed, they're going to be psyched. And I will think that I'm a budding horticulturalist.

If you're a parent, what are some of your kids' favorite books?
And how have you linked literature to life?
I'm always on the prowl for good ideas. Thanks!

If You Give a Pig a Pancake...

For any of you who are local, Pittsburgh's International Children's Theatre's production of If You Give a Pig a Pancake is phenomenal. It's a musical revue of that plus Diary of a Worm, Horace and Morris but Mostly Dolores, How I Became a Pirate, Lilly’s Big Day, and the Paper Bag Princess. They've got the same production continuing all weekend and much more to come (Velveteen Rabbit, Russian American Kids' Circus, etc.)

Selah and I had a mommy and me night, which was much needed after a day with a sad little Mr. Adden. The poor guy has been under the weather of late and I'm pretty sure he cried straight for about 3 hours today. I could not muster one smile out of him with any amount of parachute time, ball games, singing, or even yummies.

So it was pure delight to hear Selah giggle her way through the show. She was pretty patient today - cutting paper, coloring, and dressing her babies while I tried to make Adden not scream. During the show, she sat on the edge of her seat with big eyes and a bigger smile. She kept glancing over at me with this kind of expression like, "Is this for real?" We topped the evening off with lots of pancakes, butter, and syrup with Paul and Adden.

The night couldn't have been sweeter...