Thursday, December 17, 2009

What Kylie is reading - weeks of Dec 7 & 14

121009_goose.jpg

Sorry you haven't seen a blogpost from me in a while. My grandmother (my father's mother) passed away on Saturday, December 12th. I went to the funeral in TN while Karen's mom came to stay with Kylie here in VA. My other grandmother (my mother's mother) was in the hospital for a few days too and I was there so I could be with her. She came home on Tuesday and I drove home to VA last night.

Kylie's Nana (Karen's mom) brought Kylie some wonderful toys. I'll share more about them later. I also have several post-it notes taped to my computer with some interesting things about Kylie that I want to share with you too. For now, I'm settling back to my daily routine with Kylie and trying to get back into the Christmas spirit.



Here are some lovely books that Kylie has enjoyed the last 2 weeks.


Sunshine on my Shoulders by John Denver
This is a beautiful book. It is a joy to read to Kylie over and over. I can't imagine that you don't know the tune to the John Denver song. But if you don't, there is a cd enclosed with the book with his song. This book is now on Kylie's wish list.


Captain's Purr by Madeleine Floyd
We read this one a lot. It's a story about Captain the cat's day: eating, sleeping, roaming. And it has a bit of whimsy. Captain rows a boat to the house of his cat girlfriend each night. They sit in the boat together, under the stars and hold paws. The watercolor pictures are realistic and sweet. I highly recommend this one.


The Cantaloupe Cat by Jan Yager
Keeping with the cat theme, we enjoyed this lovely book that also depicts a cat's day. It has black-and-white drawings highlighted with orange.


My Pony by Susan Jeffers
From School Library Journal review: The pigtailed narrator of this enchanting story wants a pony of her own. Her parents tell her that a horse is too expensive and that they don't have enough room, so she draws pictures of a horse. Her art takes her to a magical world where she rides a beautiful, dappled silver horse through forests and clouds. When she returns from her journey, she is happy because her imaginary animal "waits just outside my window. Always." Get this one from your library. It's awesome.


Can You Make a Piggy Giggle? by Linda Ashman
A nice rhyming story about a boy and some farm animals who try to make a pig giggle. It always brought a smile to Kylie's face.


1,2 I Love You by Alice Schertle
From Booklist review: As the title implies, this picture book offers a counting rhyme with an affectionate tone. A mother elephant addresses her little one as they engage in a variety of child-centered activities, such as marching with trumpet and drum, playing hide-and-seek, and riding on a little train. The numbers climb from 1 to 10 in the first half of the book, then descend until the end, when the little elephant goes to bed and to sleep. The rhythmic, rhyming verses are mildly engaging. Executed in a looser and more informal style than in many of McCully's previous books, the colorful artwork features playful, large-scale paintings of the elephants and, on every spread, details of two little mice intent on their own activities.


Duck Tents by Lynne Berry
I liked this one more than Kylie. I thought the illustrations were adorable. It's a story about some ducks that go camping.


Goldilocks and the Three Bears Retold by Jim Aylesworth and illustrated by Barbara McClintock
Kylie often asks me to tell (not read) her a story. She starts it off for me by saying, "Once upon a time, in a kingdom far, far away"...So I got this one to remember exactly how the Goldilocks story goes. I liked this version of the story.

And now, here are some pictures of our lovely girl.
121009_quick_glance.jpg

121009_trail.jpg

121009_bench1.jpg

6 comments:

Teaberry said...

Oh, so sorry to hear of your loss. :(

I do like the cat books!

Sorry I too have been MIA lately-- especially in response to your kind offer of food once the baby's come... It's been busy around these parts and times we're not, I'm out like a light.

Speaking of naps... zzzzzzzzzz. ;-)

Alayna said...

So sorry to hear about your grandmother's passing. I'm glad you were able to attend the memorial, though. Hope your transition home is going smoothly and that you all have a wonderful Christmas!

Beth said...

I'm so sorry to hear about your grandmother. My thoughts and sympathy are with you.

Dee said...

So sorry to hear about your loss. Thoughts are with you.

Kylie's hats are so adorable! Ever make and sell them to others.

Scooby Mommy said...

So sorry to hear of your loss. Thoughts and prayer's with you.

On a brighter note, Kylie looks so grown up in that second photo. I've followed your blog for a while now and she really is growing up fast.

Have a lovely Christmas.

Lisa

Ethan Barry's Momma said...

Wendy...I am so sorry to hear of the passing of your grandmother and the hospitalization of your other grandmother. Hopefully the latter is doing better. Such losses are never easy, especially around the holidays. You are in my thoughts. How wonderful that you were recently in TN and got to see everyone!