More great Christmas books for toddlers

I think it's time for the second installment of great Christmas books for toddlers (original list here). Here are some more of this year's favorites:

Christmas in the Barn by Margaret Wise Brown, illustrated by Barbara Cooney.
Ok, it might be exaggerating to call this our favorite, as I haven't given it to Lucy yet (it's going "in" her shoes from Sinterklaas). But it's gorgeous, and I love it, so I'm including it here. Lucy and I were just talking tonight about how Jesus is depicted differently in many different stories by many different people, reflecting their experience. So this version which seems to be set in New England in more modern times makes perfect sense to me. With the same rhythm as Big Red Barn, it's familiar and new all at once; soothing and peaceful.


Merry Christmas, Big Hungry Bear by Don and Audrey Wood. Do you know Little Mouse from The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear? (If not, and you have a toddler, you might want to run out and get it right now. They'll love it.) He's back here, barricading his huge heap of gifts so the big hungry bear won't get them. But that bear is lonely, and never gets any gifts. Little Mouse's decision is a lovely message about the true spirit of Christmas.

Lucy and Tom's Christmas by Shirley Hughes. Looks like this one's out of print, but if you come across it used (or for that matter, any Lucy and Tom books, or Alfie books, or heck, anything by Shirley Hughes), grab it up. It took me a while before I picked up her books--they looked too-long and not my style. But once I got started reading them with kids, I couldn't stop. They are so perfectly kids' daily experience. My Lucy loves reading about this Lucy and Tom preparing for Christmas, celebrating with their family, and even becoming grumpy from all the excitement (and being helped back to calm by a walk with grandpa).

The Christmas Book by Dick Bruna. While you're looking for out-of-print books, look for this one. Dick Bruna's illustrations are amazing in their simplicity (and are straight out of my childhood), and the story is told simply and at a perfect level for young children. Apparently, there are some versions of this book with a pop-out-and-use nativity scene included; I'd love to get my hands on that one! Meanwhile, I'll read this one again and again and again.

And the one I want to buy next is

Christmas is Here by Lauren Castillo. I've seen it on several blogs, but finally got to hold it in my hands yesterday. It's gorgeous. I love its simplicity, the fact that it uses the text straight from the Bible, and the way she combines a modern family's walk by a nativity scene with the story of the first Christmas. The close-up picture of the modern child peering into the manger at Jesus grabbed me immediately.

(There are more. I may have to do a third list soon!)

Weekend outing: Sturbridge

We bought a new chicken coop this weekend, and it was more than an hour's drive to pick it up, so we decided to make a day of it and visit Old Sturbridge Village while we were in the neighborhood. I hadn't realized just how big it was--we were only able to see a tiny bit of it, being on toddler time as we were.

I found myself especially interested in the things that define my daily life these days: home, food, and children:

A simple and practical kitchen set-up:

Watermelons stored up in the attic (in November? I'll have to try that!):

A sweet sleeping corner that reminded me of Laura and Mary:

A trundle bed:

A beautiful baby's bed to keep out the drafts:

A potty seat sized just right for toddlers (fascinating from an EC perspective--no preschooler would fit in this chair):

A cozy scene by the fire with knitting and toys:

A beautiful, tiny, child's desk under a window:

There was lots to engage Lucy, too. Her special request was a ride on the stagecoach:
"Horses! Me in?"

She tried out a butter churn:

And even got to "milk" a "cow."


I really look forward to future visits; a homeschooler's haven, I think!

In. Pig.

"In."

"Pig!"

"More. In."

Lucy's beloved Tim and Eric just returned from a trip to Canada, and brought her back a piggy bank. She's going to be rich in no time, because it is irresistible to watch her drop the coins in there. When she asks for "more," you get her more as quickly as possible! She spent a good 20 minutes last night dropping coins "in. in. in."

In the studio: we must paint

When I wrote about the boat-making we've been up to lately, several of you gave me your support for describing more of the kids' work here. I'm thinking about regular "in the studio" posts--sometimes with detail, sometimes just a photo or two--to share some of what we do. Let's say weekly, shall we? Please forgive me when I lapse, as we know I will! (I will edit out faces and names for the children who aren't mine, however, for their families' privacy.)

When the children are quite young--toddlers--they often connect an activity to my house. If they did it the first time they were here, it becomes the thing they associate with the place, and they expect to revisit the experience each time they come. One little girl associates painting with the studio right now. So when she's here, it's time to paint. Here are she and Lucy, exploring the feel of paint on their--and each other's--hands. (You can also see some toes--that's me, and another girl, stringing a necklace on the nearby table. There's none of that "we're all painting now" here--everyone works on their own thing.) It's a pretty bad photo, but you take what you can get when there's drippy paint flying off the hands of two busy toddlers!