Frozen

Although I hate to waste a blog writing on Disney, I do have to be true to Ivy's loves. The Disney Frozen Read Along is one of Ivy's favorites. Poor Matt has to listen to it over and over again. The sound effects and voices make it come alive for Ivy on her long commutes home. Listening to this CD helped her to be less frightened when she saw Frozen, her first movie!

Happy Birthday, Martin Luther King

Last year it was difficult to find an age appropriate book for Ivy on black rights. This year we have a winner, a simple tale with beautifully etched pictures by Jean Marzollo and J. Brian Pinkney. Ivy is quite interested in the life of this celebrated American hero. She seems fascinated that you needed a different school/water fountain if you were black. It has prompted a lot of conversations about race over the past week. She wants to read it every night before bed! The treatment of his assassination is age appropriate; it simply says he was shot and killed.

 While reading this book, Ivy asked about the words on his gravestone, "Free at last, free at last, God Almighty free at last!" We decided to buy her I Have A Dream, a book containing King's original speech and a recording of it. We have not yet made it through - hoping to do this during the next few weekends. Nelson's paintings are just beautiful.

The Night Before Christmas

Although it is past Christmas, it is worth noting that Ivy adored this book this season. Perhaps four begins the height of Clement C. Moore's poem? Every Christmas Eve Ivy's grandmother calls her and reads her The Night Before Christmas over FaceTime. This year her Nana and Papa gave her an audio version with their voices from Hallmark. Ivy listened to it, for better or worse, all the way back home from visiting them (3 hours!). She has mostly memorized the poem by now. For all you grandparents out there - try these recordable little pieces of history.

The Three Questions

End of December...good time for a four-year-old to ponder the meaning of life, right? Jon J. Muth has taken Tolstoy's work and created a work for children with his beautiful watercolors. A young boy, Nikolai, attempts to answer his three big questions - What is the best time to do things? Who is the most important one? What is the right thing to do? Not satisfied by his friends' answers, he seeks the counsel of a wizened old turtle. He finds his answer in an unexpected way!

Christmas on Exeter Street

This is an unusual book as well as Ivy's favorite this holiday season. It is Christmas Eve in the big house on Exeter Street. A mother and her two children are expecting a few guests, but the house ends up bursting full by the end of the night. Each guest sleeps and a more and more unusual place - shelves, a baby in the sink, bathtubs, etc. Even the guests are unusual - "two fat men and their wives", a homeless woman and her baby, and kids with parents vacationing in Timbuktu. The book just gets more and more unusual. However, the message is a holiday message - open your heart and your home; Saint Nick will find you wherever you roam!

Merry Christmas!

By: Dianne Hendry
Illustrator: John Lawrence

I'll Be Home For Christmas

One of my favorite Christmas stories. Toot is not home from Ireland, and Christmas is fast approaching. Puddle has done all the preparations, save signing Toot's name on the Christmas cards. Toot promises to be home for Christmas, but when a big snow storm hits Boston, Toot struggles to get back to his friend. When he feels like hope is lost, he sits in the snow and takes out his lucky nut from his Aunt. Soon a mysterious visitor in a red suit and sleigh appears to help him out.

In this heartwarming story about friendship, Holly Hobbie dazzles us once again with the warmth and spirit of her drawings. A must read. There was a wonderful movie made as well.

Sophie's Squash by Pat Zietlow Miller

Sophie's Squash is probably my favorite fall book of 2013. It is fresh, original, and right up Ivy's alley. Young Sophie falls in love with a squash at the local farmer's market. She takes Bernice with her everywhere - on errands, to school, to visit other squash, and even to bed. Despite her mother's warnings that Bernice will rot, Sophie continues to bring Bernice with her. When others start to complain, Bernice is forced to listen to the advice of a squash farmer. Bernice is covered with the snow while she is restoring herself in dirt. Will she survive the winter? Find out in this heartwarming tale of a girl and her squash.

P.S. Ivy is getting a squash this weekend.