Feed Me Books Friday: Father’s Day Book Picks

Don’t Spoil the Surprise!

I’m running the risk of revealing my husband’s Father’s day gift by sharing my book choices this week, but what good would they be to you next week? I’ll just have to keep his eyes off my blog for a couple days…


Making Memories Cover to Cover


It’s a chicken-or-egg question: do books evoke such strong feelings and memories for me because I love to read, or do I love to read because books evoke such strong feelings and memories? In either case, books play a prominent role in vacation memories, birthdays, and holidays in our lives. It stands to reason then, that part of Daddy’s Father’s day present would be a book. In past years, I’ve chosen books that highlight special relationships between fathers and children or those that feature dad as the hero. This year, Daddy will be receiving two books to share with his two little boys.


The Big Boys

Daddy and B will hone their motor skills while they enjoy The Boy Mechanic Makes Toys, from the Editors of Popular Mechanics. As an honest reviewer, I have to admit I have not read all 275 pages. That said, I was sold after reading the jacket, the foreword, the table of contents, and a few random pages. The book contains an array of 159 projects from the pages of Popular Mechanics magazine in the early 1900s. The foreword emphasizes the value of ingenuity and craftsmanship. Methods and materials have not been updated for modern advancements, and some projects are more entertaining to read about than to actually produce, such as the folding-chair sleigh or fighting roosters toy. However, the majority are intriguing and sure to result in some quality father-son time for anyone with some mechanical inclinations. Chapters include: Making Magic, The Science of Fun, The Really Great Outdoors, Fun for Little Ones, Fun for Older Kids, and The Toy Workshop. I know B will be excited to learn the old-time magic tricks, and will definitely want to try out projects like the toy water plane or dry cell toy tractor.


The Little Guy

T is not yet big enough to participate in the “projecting” that B and Daddy enjoy together (though he thinks he is) so the book I chose for him to enjoy with Daddy will help them spend some quiet time together and is sure to lead to some giggles. Toddlers like T who spend all day with Mommy need special time to develop an emotional bond with Daddy, too. Daddy Cuddles, by Anne Gutman and Georg Hallensleben depicts six different animal daddies cuddling their young. The text is repetitive, but that’s comforting and developmentally appropriate for toddlers. Each page reads, “Daddy [animal] cuddles his [young].” The illustrations show how the animal families exchange “cuddles” and I’m sure Daddy and T (and even B) will share some laughs as the boys cling to Daddy’s belly like the baboons or nuzzle noses like the tigers. We already enjoy Mommy Hugs and Daddy Kisses from the same series, and this one is sure to become a bedtime favorite too.


Appropriate for: babies, toddlers, preschoolers, primary grades, Dads


What are your favorite Daddy books? Will you be doing anything special to celebrate fathers this weekend?

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Feed Me Books Friday: Feed Me Love

A Birthday Tradition
Being the book lover and collector that I am, I was buying children’s books and stashing them away before I even started my family. While I was pregnant with my first child, I decided I would start a tradition of a special book gift for each birthday. My recent discovery of Your Birthday Book added another tradition, but that’s another post. So far, each book I’ve selected has been a picture book about being a special and loved part of the family. Their primary developmental quality might be that they instill a sense of emotional security, but that’s not why I buy them. I buy them because they touch my heart. I’m not sure whether I’ll continue to choose picture books as the boys get older, or if I’ll find age-appropriate books and novels that speak to their talents or personalities. What I know is that when they become adults, I’ll have a library of love to give to them.

Some Shots From the Birthday Party:

It’s a Milestone Month

I’ve already written about B starting preschool this month. September is also T’s birthday month. My youngest had his first birthday this week, and it is at once joyous and bittersweet. We love birthdays, and the 1st is especially exciting, but it also makes me reflect on how fast T is growing and how much he has changed in this short time. It makes me realize how much B has grown in the last year as well, to become a caring, helpful, and attentive big brother. It reminds me to soak up the mundane day-to-day moments before they disappear. With both B and T, their 1st birthday prompted memories of “last year at this time…” from my husband and I. We think about what life was like before they arrived, and how very blessed we are that they were added to it. The book that expresses this feeling best for me is Marion Dane Bauer’s Love Song for a Baby. It was the first of the birthday books for both of my boys. It is narrated by a parental voice speaking to a child, “Come hear a song about a baby… Come hear a song about you.” The narrator begins by describing the love the parents felt “before the sun ever kissed you.” Each page is a snapshot of a memory, from pregnancy through infancy and toddlerhood; memories of round cheeks, clapping hands, and burps that were “bells” are illustrated with soft pastel oils. And on each page the narrator affirms, we loved you. Reading this with my sons or on my own warms my heart, stirs my memory, and kindles both nostalgia and pride. Share it with a child you love – you won’t be sorry.


Appropriate for: babies, toddlers, moms, dads, everyone.


Do you have a favorite “I love you” book? Please share it in the comments – I’m always on the look-out for next birthday’s gift!


Link up your book recommendations for the week below, and visit the other links to get some great ideas!


 

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Read Your Way to a Happy Father’s Day

Daddy's special time with T and B

Celebrating with Books
If you’re a regular reader, you’ve probably noticed I like to buy books to mark special occasions: vacations, birthdays, holidays. Father’s Day is no exception. My mom actually started the tradition in our family. The year my oldest was born, she gave me a “mommy” themed book for mother’s day, and my husband a “daddy” themed book for father’s day. I’ve enjoyed keeping it up, partly because I look forward to the collection we’ll be able to look back on and peruse, and partly because (I admit) it’s a great excuse to shop for books!

Daddy's Special Stack
My husband does most of the bedtime reading at our house, and it’s always a special treat to pull out the books that have extra daddy love, including Daddy Kisses and Daddy Hugs from our board book days. Daddy also loves to be silly, and we enjoyed my mom’s gift of My Father, the Dog for its daddy connection as well as its humor.


Funny and Loveable
My Father, the Dog, by Elizabeth Bluemle, is a light-hearted comparison of how the narrator’s father is like the family dog: he enjoys getting the newspaper, he likes to sleep on the couch, but best of all, and he cares for and protects his family, among other similarities. I love that it’s silly and fun to read, but still imparts the warm fuzzies at the end.


Blessed
My husband is an amazing father, and I value the unique skills and attitudes dads bring to parenting. We’ll be making dad a project this weekend and making some new memories. How will you honor dad?


Appropriate for toddlers, preschoolers, primary grades.


I’ll be linking up with Feed Me Books Friday and Meme’s the Word on Saturday.

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