So...D.E.A.R.

We finally finished A Little Princess.

We started it over a year ago, in our other house, and finally picked it back up again to finish.  The girlies have seen the movie a few times so they were familiar with the story, which always helps (especially the younger girls). 

This was the first time I had read this book too.  It is different from the movie.  The girls kept waiting for Sarah to find out her father didn't actually die, (because that's what happens in the movie) but it never happened.  They were a little confused when the book ended differently.  But it was good to know they were following along well!

This book is definitely one to add to your read-together list, if you haven't already.  It is a very sweet story and has a sweet message - every little girl is a princess.  My girlies loved it, and have even named their dolls Sarah, after the main character, and Emily, after her doll. 

And like Sarah, they wonder if their dolls magically come to life when they leave the room.  :)

So...D.E.A.R.

Drop Everything And Read

This book is an example of how much I love my daughters.

We went to the library to check out some more Magic Treehouse books. The next one in the series wasn't available. Located just one shelf away were millions and millions of Rainbow Magic fairy books. Literally millions.

First Daughter begged and begged. I was hesitant. Mostly because I wanted to stick to a series I knew both Daughters enjoyed. Partly because they looked stupid. I totally judged this book by the cover. Guilty as charged. And rightfully so.

We read #1::India the Moonstone Fairy and #2::Scarlett the Garnet Fairy. Both were pretty dumb. But they are about fairies and jewels and all things girl and so First Daughter loves them. Therefore, Second Daughter loves them too. Or so she says.

Second Daughter actually had a harder time following these books than others we've read. She was pretty distracted and not too interested while I was reading. Honestly, I was pretty distracted myself. I put myself in auto-read mode to try and get through it. It was slightly painful.

Something tells me though that we will keep reading these doozies. At least the rest of the Jewel Fairies series. Luckily, there are all sorts of types of fairies that have their own series as well. Oh joy.

Like I said...I love my daughters.



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::So...D.E.A.R. classics.

Thanks for stopping by!

So...D.E.A.R.

Drop Everything And Read

Second Daughter and I just finished Disney Princess Collection. This is the first "chapter book" that Second Daughter and I have read just the two of us.

We read one story every day before her nap and it was something that we both looked forward to.

This collection has the classic stories of the Disney Princesses, as well as some new stories starring the same familiar princesses.

It was perfect for Second Daughter because the stories and characters were very familiar to her. There was a picture on every page for her to look at while I read which was also a bonus.

I worried for a while about not spending as much time reading with Second Daughter as I did with First Daughter. I worried that she wouldn't develop the same love for reading as First Daughter has. I worried that she wouldn't have the same imagination, language, and reading skills as First Daughter.

I was wrong.
She has caught up just fine and loves story time as much as First Daughter does.
Good thing too, because D.E.A.R. time is one of my favorite ways to spend time with the kiddos. Another ploy to get some extra snuggles in.



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::So...Today Was a Great Day i love me some snuggles.

Thanks for stopping by!

So...17::Staying In

::reading before bed.

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P.S. Just got my 50th subscriber! Yay for people actually reading this little blog!
Thanks for making my day, whoever you are.
Thanks for stopping by!

So...D.E.A.R.

Drop Everything And Read

We have become fans of the Magic Tree House books by Mary Pope Osborne. These are written for newly independent readers - about 1st grade level - and perfect for family read-alouds. The stories are simple, but full of adventure and excitement.

Jack and his little sister Annie find a magical tree house in the woods by their house that is full of books. In book 1, Dinosaurs Before Dark, Jack looks in a book about dinosaurs and says, "I wish we could go there." Suddenly, they find themselves back in the time of the dinosaurs where they encounter a Pteranadon, Tyrannosaurus Rex, and other prehistoric animals. They discover that they can magically go to any picture from the books in the tree house.

As you can imagine, my girls are loving these stories. I am too!

What I love the most about these books is that it encourages kids to find adventure in books and to be excited about reading. In each adventure, Jack brings along the book which he uses as a reference to learn about the world they're in. He also brings a notebook to write notes and observations in. Since we have been reading these books, First Daughter has kept a notebook in her bed so she can take notes during reading time. It's adorable.

The other thing I like about these books is that every adventure is based off of different time periods, cultures, or historical events from history. Mary Pope Osborne has also published reference guides to go along with almost every book. If the story sparks your child's interest to learn more about the topic (i.e. dinosaurs, space, the Titanic, etc.) they can go to the reference guide to learn more. Since these are geared towards early readers, they are also full of great illustrations (which is great for Second Daughter).

So far, we have read:

#1 Dinosaurs Before Dark

#2 The Knight at Dawn

#3 Mummies in the Morning

#4 Pirates Past Noon

#5 Night of the Ninjas

We go through these books so fast. We are already on Book #6 and almost finished. Luckily there are about 45 books in the series and luckily the library is stocked with about 15 copies of each volume. So fun!



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So...D.E.A.R.

Drop Everything And Read

Reading is one of my favorite ways to spend time with the kiddos. This year, with First Daughter in Kindergarten and at home reading requirements, we have rekindled our love for reading chapter books.

Here are a few of the chapter books that we've read in the past year:

Pollyana is a story loved by many, but this was actually my first time reading the story. I had never even seen the movie. I know, it's hard to believe, but it's true. First Daughter & I read this around the time Third Daughter was born. If I remember correctly, Grandma read a few of the middle chapters with First Daughter.

This was a great story, very well written, and full of my kind of humor. I loved it. I think First Daughter was too young at the time to follow the story or to understand the humor. I'm not even sure that after watching the movie she understood the story any better. We will definitely try this one again now that she's older. I know that she will love it someday.

Pinnochio is also a classic that I had never read. My only experience was the Disney movie - which is very different from the book. This, in my opinion, in not appropriate for little kids. Pinnochio is very naughty! In the movie Pinnochio seems innocent to me - as if he finds himself in trouble or in sticky situations because other manipulate or take advantage of him. In the book, Pinnochio gets himself into mischief and is not a very good boy. How he ever turns into a real boy? I don't know. He definitely doesn't do anything to deserve it!

This was another story that was a bit too mature for First Daughter (we read it when she was barely 4). I found myself substituting a lot of words and skipping parts while reading it to her because I thought some of it was inappropriate. I don't think I will even recommend she read this again when she's older. Who knows...

Peter Pan I loved! Again, I was only familiar with the Disney movie and the stage production - never had read the book. But I loved it! And I think First & Second Daughter loved it too. They were fairly familiar with the story which I think helped them follow along with the storyline. The pictures in our copy also helped. I'm pretty sure Second Daughter was more interested in the pictures than the story, but that's ok.

We love the fantasy, adventure, and imagery of Peter Pan. Reading it made us want to fly away to Neverland and play with the Lost Boys and Princess Tigerlily. We had a lot of fun reading this one.

The girls favorite part: the word "nincompoop." They couldn't get over how funny that word is and kept asking for me to "read the part that says nincompoop" over and over again. What can I say, it is a hilarious word!

Alice in Wonderland is a strange book. It is just strange. There is a lot of fantasy, strange characters, confusing conversation and riddles, and definitely a lot of intrigue. Did my 3 & 5 year follow the storyline? I'm pretty sure they didn't. Most of the time I don't think they had any idea what we were reading about. Not to mention the book hardly resembles the Disney movie that they are familiar with.

The biggest upside for the girls? This book also used the word nincompoop. :0)

Speaking of Disney's Alice in Wonderland...we just barely saw the latest version with Johnny Depp. I have to admit, I didn't think I would like it at all, but I loved it!

So what are we reading these days?
We have fallen in love with the Magic Tree House series. Fun, quick reads that are perfect for our little ones to follow. Third Daughter even likes listening and looking at the pictures. Pretty soon here I wouldn't be surprised if First Daughter is reading these books to the rest of us!