Hello Friends!!!

How are you this Saturday?  I hope all of you are well and enjoying good weather.  The weather has changed here in the midwest.  We are back to winter.  It is 39 degrees today and raining and chance of snow tomorrow.  So I will enjoy some hot tea and my blanket and think of warmer days this spring.  Oh Yes, 48 days till spring!!!!

This is a great day for some hot cocoa or hot tea and a good book.  I thought I would share five books with you that I love to read over and over. I hope you will enjoy some reading this weekend and reading to or with a child can make so much difference in their reading ability and most children love that time with a parent or grandparent.  Reading can take you many places in your life and who doesn't want their child to experience that.  So start reading to them early in life and keep it up as long as you can especially in the elementary school years. So check out my blog for some ideas for the children and other reading blogs for more ideas.

Enjoy your weekend and see you Monday.

Gone With the Wind

by 

Margaret Mitchell

Love Letters

by 

Debbie Macomber

Little House on the Prairie

by

Laura Ingalls Wilder

The Mitten

by

Jan Brett

Pride and Predujuice

by

Jane Austen

I hope you will share in the comments on this blog your favorite books.  I hope you have an enjoyable weekend and may I suggest  reading a good book. :)

Happy Reading!!!

Hello Friends!

How is everyone today?  It is 70 degrees here at my home today.  When I was out earlier I saw people in shorts, no coats,and even someone in flip flops. :) It really isn't January weather here in the midwest.   I will not complain though because I really enjoyed being out with no coat and gloves.  It was an excellent day.

I do remember though that it is winter so it can change at anytime. So I enjoy it everyday. It is warm like spring this January.

Today I would encourage you to read a good book with a child today.  You know most children love to hear their parents or grandparents read to them. It always helps them to become better readers when they go off to school or if they are already in school it helps them then too.  Also, it is great if you have a young reader for you to listen to them read. Practice makes perfect is true with reading too.  So check out a good book and read or listen to a good book this evening. :)
Please check out my January postings for this year and last year for some really good books to enjoy this winter day.  See you again on Friday with a new book for winter.
Happy Reading!!!!

Happy Monday Friends!!!

How is your day going? It is very beautiful outside here today.  It is 60 degrees and the sun is shining through my windows as I write and listen to the Johann Strass Orchestra and Andre Rieu.

Today I am having a hard time  thinking of winter as the weather is so beautiful here and I hope the storm in the Northeast will not be to bad for the folks living there.

Today I want to share a children's book  about a cute teddy bear and a winter day.  I hope you will share it with a sweet child this cute book.

Snowbear's Winter Day

by

Dorothea DePrisco

It is snowing and Snowbear calls for his forest friends.  Penguin and Fox found their friend, Snowbear. They said,"Bunny made a strawberry pie, let's run over there." The friends all run over to Bunny's cozy home and Fox knocks on the door  and says, "Bunny, are you home?" Bunny answers the door and they all have some strawberry pie and then decide to go to the pond to skate and play.  They go ice skating and Penguin builds a snow castle.  The friends make snow angels and have sled races.  It is a wonderful fun day in the snow and then they all head back on sleds to Bunny's house to snuggle in a blanket and watch the beautiful snow falling out the window.

This book would be for young children and they will love the illustrations of the animals and the snow. It would be nice to snuggle with a child under a blanket and have hot chocolate while you read this cute winter book about Bear and his friends.

Happy Reading!!!

Hope you enjoy the book and if you have snow I hope you enjoy it too!!!

Happy Sunday My Friends

How is everyone this Sunday?  It is raining here at my home today and I am drinking some hot green tea and thinking about what I would like for lunch. I am also listening to Andre Rieu playing the violin.  It is amazing and very uplifting.  I wish I had learned to play the violin.  I love being able to play the piano but I truly love to listen to the violin. I believe that music and reading are my great loves. What do you love ?  What do you like to do?
My favorites are playing the piano, listening to music, singing, reading, and enjoying the beauty of this earth.  I hope you will share with me some of your favorites in the comment section of this blog.

See you Monday with a new book for you to check out.

I hope each of you have a wonderful day.  ENJOY ONE OF YOUR FAVORITES!!!!!

These are some of the things I love !!

Hello My Friends!!!

How is your day going?  Is it snowing in your neck of the woods?  It is 42 here today and cloudy but no snow and it doesn't  look like any next week either but I am not complaining.  We are having great weather for January in the midwest. I am reading some good books this week though.  I just read two great children's books today that I haven't read before.  I thought I would share one today and one tomorrow or Saturday.

 What are you reading this week?  Please share in the comments section below something you are enjoying reading.  I would love to hear from you.

I know if you have children or grandchildren that you have had the talk about sharing with them.  Sharing is a concept that some children are great with and some never seem to learn the lesson well.  The book I am going to share today is about sharing and would be a great book for young children.  It has great illustrations too.  I hope you will share it with a child. :)

Little Snowman Stan

Can't We Share?

by

Guido Van Genechten

Little Snowman Stan lives in Freezeland with all the snowmen.   There is always snow and it is cold in Freezeland.  All the snowmen in Freezeland do wear hats of all shapes and sizes.  Snowman Stan has a beautiful blue plaid hat on his head. One day there arrives in Freezeland a snowman with a bare head.  Little Stan asks the snowman where his hat is.  Dimitri, the snowman says on his way to Freezeland there was a big snowstorm and he lost his hat and he looked for hours and never found it.  Little Stan feels bad for Dimitri so he tells him that he can wear his hat for a couple of days.  Dimitri is so happy and thanks him.

One day Little Stan realizes that Dimitri has had his blue plaid hat for 10 days so he goes to ask Dimitri if he can have his hat back.  Dimitri doesn't want to give it back to Little Stan.  So Little Stan goes away and cries. Little Stan goes to talk Alfred about his hat and what he should to.  Little Stan tells Alfred about what happened to his blue plaid hat.  Alfred calls all the snowmen together and tells them about Little Stan's hat and asks them what they think could be done so Little Stan could have a hat too. There are many responses but no one says what Alfred hoped they would say.  The Little Stan says, "We can share my hat."

Read the book and find out how they decide to share the hats for the snowmen in Freezeland.

This is a wonderful book about sharing with great illustrated snowmen.  What child doesn't love snowmen?  This is a great book to share with a child about sharing.

Check out the books that Guido Van Genechten has written for children.  The author is from Holland.

These two are really cute books.

Hello Everyone!!!!

Well, it is Monday and the sun is shining and the temperature is going to   be 57 today.  It is wonderful weather for January in the midwest. So I am sitting in the sun writing, and watching the birds coming to the bird feeder.  I saw a small yellow one earlier.  I am hoping to have some cardinals.  I love them especially in the winter.

I hope it is good weather where you are this day.  I hope you will have time to read to a child today or for yourself. I am reading Persuasion by Jane Austen and a Chicken Soup for the Soul book.

What are you reading?

Today I am going to share a cute children's book about a sweet hedgehog who loses his nest in a winter storm.

One Winter's Day

by

M. Christina Butler

Little Hedgehog loses his nest in a blustery winter storm.  All that he has is a cap, gloves, and a scarf.   He decided to go stay with Badger until the storm goes away.  On his way to Badger's house he meets a family of mice who are so cold.  Their nest blew away in the storm too so Little Hedgehog gives them his hat for a nest.  The mice are so happy and warm now.  Next Little Hedgehog meets Otter near the river.  Otter tells Little Hedgehog his fur coat keeps him warm but his hands are freezing.  So the Little Hedgehog gives him his gloves. The Otter thanks him and Little Hedgehog continues on to Badger's house in the storm. Little Hedgehog reaches the woods and runs into a family of deer and the little fawn is shivering in the cold so Little Hedgehog gives him his scarf and heads off in the deep snow to Badger's house.  The wind is howling and the Little Hedgehog slips on the ice and rolls down the hill and hits Badger's door.  Badger goes to the door to see what has happened and finds Little Hedgehog in a ball of snow.  He invites him in and give him some tea and Little Hedgehog falls asleep next to the fire.  

I really did love this book. The ending is very special when he returns with Badger to build a new nest after the storm.  Young children will love this book. The author has written several great children's stories about sweet animals.  Check them out at your nearest library.

Happy Reading!!!

Happy Weekend Everyone!!!

I was not feeling well yesterday so I missed my post yesterday so I am doing it on Saturday this week.  I am enjoying the sunshine coming through my sliding door as I type now.  We are having very pleasant weather here the last few days and this weekend almost feels like spring.  I love spring.  There are just 62 days till spring.  I am excited about that. :) After Christmas I am not a big fan of winter .:)  

This week I decided to watch all the Jane Austen movies I have and the ones I didn't have I found on Youtube.  Two of them I hadn't seen before, Mansfield Park, and Northanger Abbey.  They both were very good.  I have a hard time deciding which I like best Pride and Prejudice or Sense and Sensibility.  What is your favorite Jane Austen novel?  I think everyone should at least read Pride and Prejudice once in their lifetime.  They are amazing literature that everyone should read at least once. My daughter loves Jane Austen and so do I.  She is very popular even today.  Next, I am going to watch Becoming Jane with Ann Hathaway and The Jane Austen Book Club.

So if you haven't read Jane check out one of her books this winter and enjoy the beauty of love and family.  Also, why not watch a movie of one of her books too with family or friends. I thought I would list her books for you to choose from.  Enjoy the characters of Austen in her great books.

Jane Austen Books

Sense and Sensibility

Pride and Prejudice

Northanger Abbey

Mansfield Park

Persuasion

Emma

I hope you will enjoy reading Jane Austen and check out some of the movies made off of her books.  I enjoyed this week reading and watching the movies.  I even think I would enjoy a Jane Austen Book Club too. 

Happy Reading!!!!!!