Favorite Kids' Christmas Books

Our tree is up, warming scents fill each room, and festive wreathes with big velvet bows are hanging on the front porch. It’s December, and it’s Christmas! This year, we have a new sweet babe who helps us remember to savor the delights of slow and simple.

Our day is busy and our plate is full, but we try to give books a cherished piece of our day. In the chaotic flow of the holiday season, sitting down to read aloud a lovely picture book is soul-filling and grounding.

During these first days of December, we got out a new set of story books! Sometimes it’s my spontaneous craving to see a dreamy smile light their small faces yet other times we sit to read intentionally. Either way, each bed has a throw, so no matter where we plop down to read, we can grab for pillows and blankets to get comfortable.

We purpose to make Christmas a very treasured day, and enjoying these sweet books with the children is part of the anticipation and celebration of the holiday. Some of the books we recommend are from our own shelves, while others we borrow every December from the library.

The Very First Christmas tells the story of Christopher, an eight-year-old boy who no longer wants to hear fairytale bedtime stories. His mother recounts the miraculous events of Jesus’ birth and answers many of Christopher’s questions about Christmas. Christopher and his mother read familiar portions directly out of the Bible at bedtime. Children of kindergarten age or so will thoroughly enjoy the many truths in this little book.

The Christmas Miracle Of Jonathan Toomey must be the most heartwarming read-aloud that takes place in the 19th century. Even though we read the story each year, we still savor every page. Gloomy Mr. Toomey has a broken and hardened heart, but his relationship with Thomas, a seven-year-old boy, and his mother begins to brighten his life. This is powerful and humorous story of hope and joy. The gorgeous artwork will captivate all ages!

The Little Drummer Mouse is a loose rendition of the Nativity story starring a little mouse. Children of all ages will be engaged by the paintings. Everyone will be lost in the details of the artwork and find it absolutely beautiful. This story will both delight and surprise you.

Christmas Farm is a little hidden treasure about Wilma and her young neighbor boy Parker. This little neighbor comes to share the doughnut Wilma makes every Saturday morning. With his help, she plants a Christmas tree farm from seeds which they care for year after year. As Parker gets taller, so do the trees. They count how many trees perish, and slowly begin to make a business together. We always feel as if we can smell the green balsam branches while we read!

Mr. Willowby’s Christmas Tree tells of a tree so, so big, that it needs trimming. The tree top gets passed on to the maid, and continues to be passed on to bears, foxes, rabbits, and a little mouse family. A timeless and adorable children’s story.

The Nutcracker is gem that has fascinated imaginations for over two-hundred years! Written in 1816, it appeals to both little ones and adults’ sense of wonder. This charming tale is worth reading again and again.

The Twelve Days Of Christmas is a traditional tongue twister of a song, and everyone enjoys singing along as we flip through the delightful pages. Jan Brett’s illustrations never disappoint!

The Night Before Christmas is the well-known delightful poem. The arrival of St. Nick on the most memorable night of the year is enchanting. The art work is visually brilliant and full of antique ornaments and toys. A classic poem that reads very quickly as the exciting story unfolds.

The Tailor Of Gloucester is the Beatrix Potter tale of a poor hardworking tailor struggling to finish a beautiful coat for the Mayor’s wedding on Christmas Day. Written and illustrated in 1902, Beatrix Potter’s art is always darling and the story always sweet. This year was our first time to discover this little treasure!

How The Grinch Stole Christmas is still as popular as ever! In classic Dr. Seuss rhyme, it tells of how joy changes everything. The author exposes the greed and materialism of this season through the Grinch, who is so cranky an heartless. Throughout the story, you’ll witness his transformation. A fun, little classic everyone should own!

The Polar Express tells the story of a young boy who embarks on a magical adventure on Christmas Eve. The train’s many excitements lead him to the North Pole for a most fantastical night. It’s a beautiful book all ages will enjoy!

Can You See What I See? The Night Before Christmas is a collection of picture puzzles to search and solve on every page. This is a favortie book to have in the car or carry in your bag because it’s perfect for holiday travel. Definitely a fun treasure-hunt! It’s actually Nathan’s favorite, I think : )

Each year we discover a new treasure! What are some of your family’s favorite Christmas books? Share your favorite titles in the comments below…

with love. Damaris

10 Favorite Thanksgiving Books

We’ve been reading about pumpkins and the changing leaves, busy squirrels and migratory paths. But apple harvests coming to an end and busy little squirrel friends storing away for the winter means it’s time to get out a new set of story books!

We purpose to make Thanksgiving a very treasured day, and enjoying these sweet books with the children is part of the anticipation and celebration of the holiday. These are the days to clasp a mug of warmed cider while cozied on a quilt in the living room with a stack of books.

Some of the books we recommend are from our own shelves – we visit them every year, and some are newly borrowed from the library.

The First Thanksgiving: A Counting Story moves along very quickly because it’s written in lively rhyming verse and vivid illustrations. The book explains the story of the preparations for the first Thanksgiving feast while counting 1-12. There are hidden surprises in the art and a bold turkey on every page! Do you have a sharp eye?

Sharing The Bread: An Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving Story is a collection of paintings set in the 19th century that exude familial affection. The simple rhythmic four-line verse mirrors the ease in which this family works together to prepare their special Thanksgiving Day meal.

Saying Grace: A Prayer Of Thanksgiving is a journey back in time to the hardships and blessings of some of the first settlers. It’s the most delightful story of a young child’s faith and prayer as she recognizes God’s bounty.

Thanksgiving Day Alphabet is filled with historical facts about the special holiday. The plentiful scenes are painted in rich fall colors. Children will learn a treasure trove of details about the English settlers of 1620. Everyone will delight in the descriptions set to each letter of the alphabet.

The Story of the Pilgrims is a nice simplified version of how Thanksgiving started. The text is clear and plain which helps the little ones follow the story while focusing on the illustrations. Perfect for the preschool-aged children!

Squanto And The Miracle Of Thanksgiving is a favorite of the boys at our house! This book captures the remarkable and providential true story that so few people have ever heard. This book clearly depicts Squanto’s Christian faith and the religious roots of the holiday. The illustrations are realistic renderings which all ages will enjoy.

Thanksgiving: A Harvest Celebration offers the basic history behind Thanksgiving then explains how the holiday sill has meaning for us today. Recounting the difficulties of the Pilgrims and their gratefulness to God. The illustrations are old-fashioned with a wood-cut feel. A wonderful teaching tool! This Thanksgiving story is a classic read-aloud. It is a little long for one sitting, but certainly a cozy read. A great non-fiction introduction for little ones!

Molly’s Pilgrim is the heartwarming modern story of a Jewish family who have immigrated from Russia to escape religious persecution. Anyone who has had to move to a new place will understand the difficulties that Molly faces. This book has been the girls’ favorite read-aloud! They love glazing at the penciled illustrations! With a powerful message to live in peace an safety, this is a wonderful book for the Thanksgiving season!

A Cranberry Thanksgiving is a lighthearted and maybe silly story set in New England. It’s a cold and lonely cranberry farm at the edge of the sea, but on Thanksgiving, the house is warm and full of tradition. It’s a fun holiday read and includes Grandmother’s Famous Cranberry Bread recipe!

Thanksgiving: A Time To Remember is our family’s all-time favorite! We read short portions of this book at the dinner table everyday in November. This book refreshes our memory of the courage and sacrifice that the Pilgrims made and of God’s provision for them. It is a moving account of the Mayflower crossing and the first winter in the New World. This book will help you establish a tradition of sharing your gratefulness with one another at home. It encourages families to build a legacy of memories and thankfulness and celebrates faith, family, and freedom.

Every year we discover a new gem! What are some of your family’s favorite Thanksgiving books? Leave a comment sharing yours!

with love. Damaris

For the Love of Books: September

For a little while now I’ve been trying to maintain a reading regimen. I try to study through two or three books each month. There have been a few reasons why I’ve found this to be a valuable effort – first, it helps me grow my ability to cook healthy and nourishing meals, to be better steward, and most importantly to grow in godliness and Christlikeness. I think it will be fun to use a bit of space on the blog each month to review some of the books I’m reading. Of course, while I don’t necessarily endorse all things written or said by the authors, I have been encouraged by these book. They all come recommended to me. I hope you will share with me your recommendations, too!

The books are linked for your convenience.

The Prayer That Turns the World Upside Down: The Lord’s Prayer as a Manifesto for Revolution

by R. Albert Mohler Jr.

The Lord’s Prayer is indeed radical and still relevant to our times. As I read this book, the Lord’s prayer became less of a rote passage I’ve recited so many times and more like a Gospel message, a cry for God’s justice and power to be shown. The author brings theology, conviction, and understanding to the prayer. This short book on the Lord’s Prayer emphasizes that our prayers are the best evidence of our theology.

“The Lord’s Prayer takes less than twenty seconds to read aloud, but it takes a lifetime to learn.”

“Prayer is never an isolated event. When we pray, we convey our entire theological system. Our theology is never so clearly displayed before our own eyes and before the world as in our prayers. Praying forces us to articulate our doctrines, convictions, and theological assumptions. These aspects of our Christian life come to a unique focus in prayer because when we speak to God we are explicitly revealing who we believe he is, who we believe we are, what his disposition toward us is, and why he has that disposition.”

Expecting Better: Why the Conventional Pregnancy Wisdom is Wrong – and What You Really Need to Knowby Emily Oster

In the pregnancy world, there’s a lot of “probably fine” and “low-risk” vagueness. Since the author’s profession is to find and analyze research, she started reading studies about pregnancy and drawing conclusions. The result is an easy-to-read story of her own pregnancy experience, the choices she made, and the research she found.

“Pregnancy seemed to be treated as a one-size-fits-all affair. The way I was used to making decisions — thinking about my personal preferences, combined with the data — was barely used at all. This was frustrating enough. Making it worse, the recommendations I read in books or heard from friends often contradicted what I heard from my doctor.”

“When I got pregnant, I pretty quickly learned that there is a lot of information out there about pregnancy, and a lot of recommendations. But neither the information nor the recommendations were all good. The information was of varying quality, and the recommendations were often contradictory and occasionally infuriating. In the end, in an effort to get to the good information — to really figure out the truth — and to make the right decisions, I tackled the problem as I would any other, with economics.”

with love. Damaris

For the Love of Books: August

For a little while now I’ve been trying to maintain a reading regimen. I try to study through two or three books each month. There have been a few reasons why I’ve found this to be a valuable effort – first, it helps me grow my ability to cook healthy and nourishing meals, to be better steward, and most importantly to grow in godliness and Christlikeness. I think it will be fun to use a bit of space on the blog each month to review some of the books I’m reading. Of course, while I don’t necessarily endorse all things written or said by the authors, I have been encouraged by these book. They all come recommended to me. I hope you will share with me your recommendations, too!

The books are linked for your convenience.

Since this month I am only reviewing one book, I took the liberty to share a good deal of quotes with you.

Women of the Word: How to Study the Bible with Both Our Hearts and Our Minds

by Jen Wilkin

So often we come to the Scriptures haphazardly – not having a purpose nor a goal. Sometimes we read passages wondering what do the verses mean to me. The author makes a clear call to study the Bible so we may know Him and be like Him. She helps us see that we cannot love God if we don’t rest our gaze on His Word. She gives practical guidance for daily Bible reading/study. Very convicting and encouraging book! I recommend that you pick up a copy.

“Bible literacy matters because it protects us from falling into error. Both the false teacher and the secular humanist rely on biblical ignorance for their messages to take root, and the modern church has proven fertile ground for those messages. Because we do not know our Bibles, we crumble at the most basic challenges to our worldview. Disillusionment and apathy eat away at our ranks. Women, in particular, are leaving the church in unprecedented numbers.”

“For years I viewed my interaction with the Bible as a debit account: I had a need, so I went to the Bible to withdraw an answer. But we do much better to view our interaction with the Bible as a savings account: I stretch my understanding daily, I deposit what I glean, and I patiently wait for it to accumulate in value, knowing that one day I will need to draw on it.”

“We must be those who build on the rock-solid foundation of mind-engaging process, rather than on the shifting sands of ‘what this verse means to me’ subjectivity.”

“We must love God with our minds, allowing our intellect to inform our emotions, rather than the other way around.”

“the One whom we most need to behold has made himself known. He has traced with a fine hand the lines and contours of his face. He has done so in his Word. We must search for that face, though babies continue to cry, bills continue to grow, bad news continues to arrive unannounced, though friendships wax and wane, though both ease and difficulty weaken our grip on godliness, though a thousand other faces crowd close for our affection, and a thousand other voices clamor for our attention. By fixing our gaze on that face, we trade mere human glory for holiness:”

with love. Damaris

For the Love of Books: July

For a little while now I’ve been trying to maintain a reading regimen. I try to study through two or three books each month. There have been a few reasons why I’ve found this to be a valuable effort – first, it helps me grow my ability to cook healthy and nourishing meals, to be better steward, and most importantly to grow in godliness and Christlikeness. I think it will be fun to use a bit of space on the blog each month to review some of the books I’m reading. Of course, while I don’t necessarily endorse all things written or said by the authors, I have been encouraged by these book. They all come recommended to me. I hope you will share with me your recommendations, too!

Glory in the Ordinary: Why Your Work in the Home Matters to God

by Courtney Reissig

The small, often unseen work is necessary work. It is work that God sees as integral to his work in this world. This book gives a vision for a distinctively Christian work ethic. I particularly enjoyed learning about how attitudes towards the home and family have changed and morphed throughout history. You’ll find encouragement in that ultimately our purpose is to glorify God and that actually those day to day efforts of work can reflect Him even when they are routine and ordinary.

“Our work isn’t giving us any points with God, but it is telling the world about the God we worship. It’s telling what we value most. It’s telling what we hope in even when it is hard.”

“You also image him when you care for the details of your home. As God cares for the seemingly mundane details of creation, so you care for the seemingly mundane details of a home that needs to be kept in order.”

Upgrade: 10 Secrets to the Best Education for Your Child

by Kevin Swanson

This book makes a clear call to focus on Biblical education – that of the character. The importance of a healthy parent-child relationships and having a biblical foundation, regardless of whether or not a child is homeschooled is so inspiring! The author focuses on the 10 factors of a successful education which are Biblical principles found mostly in the book of Proverbs.

“Education is the preparation of a child intellectually, emotionally, spiritually, and physically for life and for eternity.”

“A successful education is achieved when a child is prepared to make maximal use of his God-given talents and abilities in the accomplishment of the child’s calling.”

with love. Damaris

28 Weeks: A Ball, Some Books, and Probiotics

I have never sat on an exercise ball until today. I’ve been offered one in the delivery room before, but that didn’t seem like the most appropriate time for me to learn balance. So, eighth baby, and I’m trying not to roll off one minute and trying to stay awake the next minute. It is so relaxing and the most comfortable way to sit for your lower back and pelvis. It’s really very relaxing and its fullness down your legs feels soothing. I picked the small one because I’m a small person and knew that the children would have some fun with it. So far there’s lots of rolling on it, practicing piano while sitting on it, playing basketball, you name it. Anyways, you can find them around $10 – not sure why it’s taken me this long : )

We ferment kefir daily and enjoy it with strawberries and bananas with our lunch, we brew kombucha and can go through a gallon of it pretty quickly, I love vegetables cooked and raw, but my gut has never felt as balanced as these last few weeks. I began taking this probiotic, and I feel great! It came highly recommended by a friend who is also pregnant and had done some research. There are many benefits to taking a higher dose of probiotics during pregnancy as it’s vital for our body to be well nourished. It’s also beneficial for the overall immunity of the newborn. Probiotics are a simple and powerful way to protect both mom and baby!

Lastly, I shared with you that I had been reading natural birthing books for both education and inspiration, and maybe links to the books would be helpful. I did not buy any of these books but am borrowing from the library. Of note: most of these authors do not view God as creator nor sustainer, rather their outlook is limited to a reliance on ‘inner wisdom’ or ‘inner strength’ and evolutionary rationale.

Husband Coached Childbirth

Giving Birth with Confidence

Calm Birth

Your Best Birth

A Good Birth

HypnoBirthing: The Mongan Method

Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth

with love. Damaris

For the Love of Books: June

For a little while now I’ve been trying to maintain a reading regimen. I try to study through two or three books each month. There have been a few reasons why I’ve found this to be a valuable effort – first, it helps me grow my ability to cook healthy and nourishing meals, to be better steward, and most importantly to grow in godliness and Christlikeness. I think it will be fun to use a bit of space on the blog each month to review some of the books I’m reading. Of course, while I don’t necessarily endorse all things written or said by the authors, I have been encouraged by these books and they all come recommended to me. I hope you will share with me your recommendations, too! I hope you will share with me your recommendations, too!

The Family (Home Making)

by J R Miller

This book is a hidden treasure that I’ve owned for a long time but had never read. Each chapter covers the family life and rolls of family members such as the wedded life, the husband’s part, the wife’s part, the children’s part, brothers and sisters. I’ll share a couple of quotes so you can get a taste of the rich language the author uses:

“No other work that God gives any of us to do is so important, so sacred, so far-reaching in its influence, so delicate and easily marred as our home-making. This is the work of all our life that is most divine. The carpenter works in wood, the mason works in stone, the smith works in iron, the artist works on canvas, but the home-maker works on immortal lives. The wood or the stone or the iron or the canvas may be marred, and it will not matter greatly in fifty years; but let a tender human soul be marred in its early training, and ages hence the effects will still be seen.”

“The parent’s life flows into the child’s life. We impress ourselves upon our children less by what we teach them than by what we are.”

The Most Important Place on Earth: What a Christian Home Looks Like and How to Build One

by Robert Wolgemuth

Covering all aspects of a home, this book is full of encouraging and practical ideas on how to have a Christian home that is warm, loving and points others to Christ. The author gives so many great ideas he warns in the introduction you must pick a few at a time to implement and then come back for more. You won’t be able to read it and not be inspired to build a strong Christian home. Especially if one didn’t grow up in a Christian home, this book will give hope and a vast number of ideas. Here are a couple quotes:

“As creative as store-bought toys can be, homemade laughter is more fun than anything else.”

“No screaming or yelling. No bullying or foolish threats, just simple, thorough explanation of the rules and your expectation that children follow them.”

“Doing discipline leads to the sheer pleasure of having discipline.”

with love. Damaris

The Best Summer Reading Series For Families

There are perhaps no days of our childhood we lived so fully as those we spent with a favorite book.

–Marcel Proust

As we mentioned in an earlier post, structured schooldays have ended, and we now fully embrace the new pace of summer. I confess that welcoming wide perimeters of time for each individual’s curiosities and pleasure is the sweetest gift to me as a homeschooling mother. It is satisfying physically, mentally, and emotionally for all of us in our home to rest from new lessons and long academic days. While we seek to maintain simple structures of chores, meal times, piano practice, Bible reading, family read-aloud, and bedtime, we’ve exchanged formal lessons for copywriting (from classic, favorite books that they each select) and Bible memorization. One of the ways we continue to learn is through reading which is truly the most longed for summer delight. We fill our baskets with books and also pick a long book series to listen to.

Our family loves audio books for many reasons, all of us bond with the characters, share laughs about the stories, and enjoy retelling them long after the series has been returned to the library. Sometimes the audio versions are read by the author (my favorite), or they might be dramatized. Sometimes we listened to them while the children built Legos. Sometimes we all climbed on my bed and folded laundry while enjoying the stories, but mostly we listened to the book series in the car. We took the CDs with us on road trips, to brunch, farm milk pick-up, and to the grocery store. Nonetheless, we’re never found without the next CD!

The first 7 titles that I have listed are book series that we listened to in audio form in the order in which we listened to them over the years. We listened to one series per summer. The last 3 have been recommended to me, but we have only listened to the audio book of the first in the series. We haven’t read the sequels (some may be for older children than mine are at this time).

Alexander and Eva wanted to write a short review on these book series! Here are their words:

The Magic Tree House

Jack and Annie (bother and sister) take us on countless adventures in the past. Through the 55 small books that make the series, it’s a fun way to learn history! -Eva

Ramona

The book series begins when Ramona is a very little girl and grows with her. She’s very mischievous and it’s written through her perception of life. There are 8 books in the series. -Eva

Little House in the Prairie

Laura Ingalls Wilder in the series of 9 books tells about a little girl and her family moving from the woods of Wisconsin to Iowa to Minnesota to North Dakota. It seems to be mostly autobiographical. -Alexander

The Indian in the Cupboard

Fantastic series of 5 books! A boy named Omri gets a small medicine cabinet for his 9th birthday from his brother. He thinks it’s a boring gift until he discovers the magic. -Alexander

The Boxcar Children

Four children are left orphans. The Alden siblings are afraid that their grandfather is a mean old creep. In the story, they realize otherwise. Many books have been added to the series. -Alexander

The Chronicles of Narnia

C.S. Lewis wrote the most popular children’s series (selling over 150 million copies). Four siblings, Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy in order to escape the bombing of London during WWII move to a rambling country estate where they discover the secret land of Narnia in a wardrobe. There are 7 books in the series. -Alexander

Redwall

An intricately woven story with endearing characters. Brian Jacques’s realistic depiction of the animal’s stories is why the author has been compared to J.R.R. Tolkien. 22 novels in the series (we have not read them all). -Alexander

The Penderwicks

A father and four daughters take a vacation in a gardener’s cottage in Connecticut and have daily adventures with the son of the lady who owns the manor house on which the gardener’s cottage is situated. A series of 5 books. -Alexander

A Wrinkle in Time

Overpowering the evil brain with love, Meg is able to save her family from the magic’s grasp. Interesting fantasy book! 5 books in the series. -Eva

Ann of Green Gables

Ann was a girl adopted at age 11 who finds a bosom friend. It’s full of tales of dangerous dares. 7 books in the series. -Eva

with love, Damaris

For the Love of Books: May

For a little while now I’ve been trying to maintain a reading regimen. I try to study through two or three books each month. There have been a few reasons why I’ve found this to be a valuable effort – first, it helps me grow my ability to cook healthy and nourishing meals, to be better steward, and most importantly to grow in godliness and Christlikeness. I think it will be fun to use a bit of space on the blog each month to review some of the books I’m reading. Of course, while I don’t necessarily endorse all things written or said by the authors, I have been encouraged by these books and they all come recommended to me. I hope you will share with me your recommendations, too! I hope you will share with me your recommendations, too!

Letters on Christian Education

Unlike what you might deduce from the title, this great read is a 19th century parenting book, not a home education book. It is a compilation of letters written from an experienced mother to a younger mother seeking to train her children for the glory of God. This little lost treasure is a wonder of instruction and encouragement for any parent! Here’s a quote from the first letter addressing the eternal significance of child training:“If you were aware of the high trust deposited in you when you received into your arms your firstborn infant, yet trembling with fear for the future, to say, ‘O that this child might live before Thee.'”

Let Me be a Woman

I have read many Elizabeth Elliot books over the years, and I finally got my hands on this gem. This book is a collection of letters from the author to her daughter who is about to get married. The short letters are brimming with wisdom. Every woman will find this book to be truly inspiring and eye opening concerning some of the world’s lies we might believe. It was difficult to pick a single quote that would give an accurate sample of the book because Elizabeth Elliot covers many significant womanly interests, so here are a few:

“The fact that I am a woman does not make me a different kind of Christian, but the fact that I am a Christian does make me a different kind of woman.”

“I believe a woman, in order to be a good wife, must be (among other things) both sensual and maternal.”

“The way you keep your house, the way you organize your time, the care you take in your personal appearance, the things you spend your money on, all speak loudly about what you believe. The beauty of thy peace shines forth in an ordered life. A disordered life speaks loudly of disorder in the soul.”

with love. Damaris

The Transition to Summer – Chores, Play, and Wonder

There are no closing bells or farewell parties for summertime.

In the homeschooling home, where structures of time and space have flexible boundaries, it can be difficult to discern transitions. In spite of this, we try to make a clear contrast between summertime and the rest of the year. Making this distinction has been the sweetest gift for me as a homeschooling mother. There are natural rhythms in nature such as gardening, haying time, preserving the harvest, and new baby barnyard animals, and we attempt to allow for those rhythms to fill our days.

Homeschooling is an extension of the home, and so it flexes to the needs and curiosities of the people who inhabit it. For our home in the summer, we have a mixture of structure and unstructured time in our day. There’s a definite end to our homeschool group, but other activities continue. Like many homes, we plan to settle into the relaxed days of summer, taking a break from all subjects. We do, however, incorporate copy writing (improves their handwriting and creative writing skills) and Bible memory work (a loner passage which we may not have time for during the year – this year, we are memorizing John 14 ). The children also continue weekly music lessons. Our family also functions better when we keep daily disciplines of regular meal times, Bible reading, chores, family read-aloud, and bedtimes.

One of the beauties of summer is to allow for wide and welcoming boundaries of time for the children’s own pleasure – an invitation to re-create and enjoy time. Some summers we take trips, and some years we have newborns, and swim lessons, and outings to Barns and Noble. The single thread through all of our summers has been reading. Books have certainly been the highlight of our summer activities. We pick up loads of picture books, fiction and non-fiction from the library, and you will find books in our car, in our bags, and in every room of our home.

In an upcoming post, we’re sharing the best book series for summer!

with love, Damaris