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  • Great Kids Books Parents Won’t Mind Reading Again… and Again

    Great Kids Books Parents Won’t Mind Reading Again… and Again

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    Some nights I absolutely love reading my kids a book before bed. Other nights I think I’ll scream if Miss Nerd whips out her tattered copy of Frozen for the 452nd time.

    Little Nerd is 7 now, Miss Nerd is 4 – that’s a lot of books to be got through every night! Sometimes, especially when solo parenting, the bedtime routine drives me absolutely bonkers. There are times I am exhausted, irritable, the kids are bickering, they’ve been prolonging dinner time, bathtime, brushing their teeth and packing away their toys and basically doing every single little thing they can to delay the inevitable bedtime. All I want is to get that bedtime story read so I can get them into bed. Sometimes, the bedtime book is the only calm, pleasant spot in a night of nuttiness.

    After bedtime reading for almost seven years now, Mr Nerd and I have certainly come to appreciate a good children’s book – the mark of which I believe is a book that BOTH children and adults can re-read over and over, without adults wanting to poke their own eyes out with the corner of a hardcover.

    Photo Heather Robbins.

    A while ago I shared some of my personal favourite books on Instagram and so many people asked if I could collate them into a blog post for easy reference and gift shopping – so here it is!

    Every single one of these books are ones that my kids LOVE while also being books that I think adults will appreciate and enjoy too.

    Please tell me if you have any recommendations in the comments, so I can check them out too! We are always looking for new reads.

    Me and Little Nerd when he was one. Feels like yesterday and an age ago all at once! Photo Heather Robbins.

    Tricky’s Bad Day
    Alison Lester
    Poor Tricky – we can ALL relate. He wakes up at 5 to get a drink, wakes up his entire (now cranky and tired) family, and it starts the beginning of Tricky’s bad day, where NOTHING goes right, and everything (and everyone) is irritating to him. Until Mum gets home at the end of the day; and Dad and Tricky escape together. They get their coat and boots to head out in the rain – they can still make this a wild and adventurous day. My friend and mum-of-three Ashlea from Our Sunshine Days recommended this book to me; and it immediately became one of our family’s favourites too. It’s such a great little story and relevant to both kids and adults. Sometimes just getting outside for a run around, even when it’s a windy, cold day, can help you turn your dark mood right around.

    This will show you how much Tricky’s Bad Day has permeated. Sometimes when I am in a bit of a funky mood – particularly on a dark, drizzly day when the kids and I have been stuck in the house and we’re driving each other crazy, I find myself gazing outside at the trees blowing in the wind and thinking, “All I need is a run up a hill.” Quoting Tricky’s dad. Also, on a minor note, I love that it is the mum in the book who goes to work that day, and Dad stays home with Tricky and his two younger siblings. Tricky’s Bad Day won the Book of the Year for Early Childhood at the 2019 CBCA Awards.

    Peepo 
    Janet and Allen Ahlberg
    Peepo is one of the best books ever written for babies and toddlers, and I’m sure most people who have read it will agree! It’s a classic. Peepo is one of the many books created by husband and wife team Janet and Allen Ahlberg. They produced more than 100 children’s picture books together, with Allen writing away in a shed in the back garden and Janet painting the illustrations in a loft above the garage, until Janet sadly passed away from cancer when she was 50. Like many of the Ahlbergs’ books, there is something about Peepo that is charming and warm. The most gorgeous detailed illustrations; following a few days in the life of a busy little baby and his loving family, and all the little things he sees around him.

    What adds to Peepo’s magic are all the little hints in the pictures, like blimps and helmets – most children wouldn’t think anything of them; adults will realise, that while not mentioned in the text, Peepo is set in London during WWII. (Try not to tear up at the bittersweet last page, when the dad and mum tuck the baby into bed; the dad saying goodnight while dressed in army uniform). We started reading it when Little Nerd was one, when he loved finding things in the pictures, and have enjoyed it with both kids for years since.

    I Want My Hat Back
    Jon Klassen
    If your sense of humour is on the dry side, like I’ve been told mine is, this is a kids book I think you’ll enjoy. The bonus? It’s a quick read – you’ll whip through it! Perfect for those nights when you can’t wait til the kids are in bed so you can Netflix and chill. The story follows a bear looking for his hat, but no one has seen it. The littlest kids might not quite understand what’s taking place in the pictures; the ones who realise what’s happened will likely be filled with mirth or glee. This book was another recommendation from one of my followers. We must have read it 30 times now and my kids still giggle at it.

    The Paper Bag Princess
    Robert Munsch
    Written in 1980 and still just as relevant and punchy today, this one is a classic (and another good SHORT book!) It’s about a feisty princess who is also strong and clever – and I love the message of standing up for yourself. Little Nerd and Miss Nerd LOVE the ending. (Prime has free overnight delivery of this one – a good last-minute gift idea!)

    The Snail and the Whale
    Julia Donaldson
    A sweet stories about a beautiful friendship, and I love the wonderfully creative solution to the problem at the end. Julia Donaldson can do no wrong. Beautiful illustrations and writing.

    There’s a House Inside My Mummy
    Giles Andreae and Vanessa Cabban

    This is the book to get if you are expecting another baby and aren’t sure your firstborn is grasping what the heck is going on! This gently humorous book will help. It’s sweet and simple and tries to teach little kids why Mummy is a little more tired than usual these days. When Little Nerd was two and I was pregnant, he LOVED having this read to him when I was roughly the size of a house myself, would recommend for 4 and under. There’s a line in it about the mum feeling too tired to play sometimes and that line that would bring me to hormonal preggo tears pretty much every time.


    The Paper Dolls
    Julia Donaldson
    Five stars for The Paper Dolls, my favourite Julia Donaldson book. It was recommended to me by a House Nerd reader who said she knew it off by heart and still loved it. We all love it too – it’s one of those special books. It’s about a little girl whose mummy helps her make five little paper dolls one day and she plays with them all the time. Until one day, she meets a little boy with a pair of scissors. While it’s pretty obvious what happens (my kids still shake their heads at his reprehensible act) the ending is beautiful and happy, I think adults will appreciate the nostalgia, as well as the bittersweetness of the last few pages. And while not overtly emphasised, The Paper Dolls is a book that could be used as a gentle way to introduce the subject of loss to little kids. The illustrations by Rebecca Cobb are perfect, with a lovely hand-drawn quality, showing how the little girl’s special memories grow as she gets older and older. Waaaaah. (In a good way). Again, it’s a book I occasionally find myself welling up at; one that makes me read a little slower and cuddle my kids a little bit tighter. (What is up with me and getting teary at kids books? I am sensing a theme).


    Pig the Pug series
    Aaron Blabey
    The young and old will appreciate Pig the Pug. Pig is rude, grumpy, selfish, stubborn, hasty and sneaky… and always learns things in a hard (and hilarious) way. Aaron Blabey is a VERY talented writer and illustrator – his drawings kind of remind me of comics, and adults will laugh at the humour in his drawings just as much as kids do. My kids particularly love Pig the Fibber, Pig the Star and Pig the Winner, but you can’t go wrong with any of the books in the series.

    Where the Wild Things Are
    Maurice Sendak
    It would be remiss of me not to include Where the Wild Things Are in a round-up of great childrens book; even though I’m sure 95 percent of you have likely already read it. Written in 1963, there’s still something so perfect about this book; the pictures, the perfect cadence of the writing, or perhaps it’s just the nostalgia of the story that makes it feel comforting returning to it as an adult to read to my own kids. Max was naughty and rude. His mother calls him WILD THING and sends him to bed without dinner. While in his room, he goes on a wild adventure to a land where wild things are, tames them and makes himself their king. But when he starts to feel lonely, he realises he wants to go home to where someone loves him best of all… and where a little reminder that his mum still loves him is waiting for him in his room.

    This Moose Belongs to Me
    Oliver Jeffers
    One of my favourite books by award-winning writer and illustrator Oliver Jeffers. This Moose Belongs to Me is an easy-to-read book about a boy named Wilfred, who owns a moose. “Wilfred owned a moose. He hadn’t always owned a moose. The moose came to him a while ago and he knew, just KNEW, that it was meant to be his. He thought he would call him Marcel.” Most of the time Marcel is a pretty good pet…. until one day, when Wilfred wonders whether Marcel really belongs to him at all. I’m never unhappy about being asked to read this one – it’s a light, cute story that is easy to read and the illustrations are gorgeous; with vintage painting-style backdrops teamed with cute drawings.


    Here We Are
    Oliver Jeffers
    Another brilliant Oliver Jeffers book, this is a lovely read with the ability to move me to tears. (I know what you’re thinking, it sure doesn’t take much to bring me to tears!) A beautiful hopeful take on the world we live in, with poignant words, and topics that entice little minds to ask big questions. Somehow this is a book that will make you feel good, take a step back and look at the bigger picture. A good one to read at the end of a long parenting day.

    Back to Sleep
    Zoe Foster-Blake
    Poor Finn. We’ve all been there. Try as he might, he just CAN’T sleep…. because Mummy and Daddy won’t sleep throught the night. Just as Finn gets Daddy back to bed, Mummy wakes up…. and then Daddy again, and so on and on. Written with Zoe Foster Blake’s standard wit, this book is a really cute, funny role reversal that kids will laugh at and parents will wryly appreciate. “Can you lie with me till I fall asleep?” said Mummy. Finn took a deep breath. He could never say no to that. She wouldn’t be forty forever. He needed to make the most of these precious years.

    No One Likes a Fart
    Zoe Foster Blake
    Except my kids, apparently, who laugh at this one every time (for some reason they find “air biscuits!” hilarious) If your kids are like mine and consider any book about burps, farts and bad smells completely glorious, they will appreciate this. My two are 7 & 4, but even older kids around 9 will like this one. (Free delivery of this one if you have Amazon Prime!)

    Koala Lou
    Mem Fox
    “Koala Lou, I do love you.” It’s a good day if I make it through Koala Lou without bawling, while the kids look at me questionably. As an eldest child myself who can understand what it felt like to often feel a little overshadowed by younger siblings, I relate to this furball perhaps a little too much, but it’s a really sweet, simple story about the endearing love between a parent and child.

    Stickybeak 
    Hazel Edwards
    There’s something so nostalgic and 80s about Stickybeak to me – I think it’s the beautiful, detailed drawings. I feel like it’s so rare they illustrate books like this these days. Brings me right back to my own childhood reading this one; I still remember my Year One teacher reading it to my class. A light-hearted story about a classroom’s pet duck and his adventures as he goes home with one of the kids for a weekend.

    We’re Going on a Bear Hunt
    Michael Rosen
    I can remember being on a class excursion to the city in Year 1 and my teacher having the whole class sing the nursery rhyme version of this book – I couldn’t believe Mr Nerd hadn’t sung the song in school too, it never left my brain! This is a special sort of book. I love the cosiness of it, the paintings, the parents, three kids and dog banding together to go on a crazy – and fairly irresponsible – family adventure. My kids ask for it ALL the time. Miss Nerd feels sorry for the bear at the end. “He just wanted to be friends.” Apparently.


    Claire Malone Changes the World
    Nadia L. King
    A new book by Irish-Australian author Nadia L. King, my two love this story about a clever little girl who isn’t happy with the way the world is going. At first, it makes her really sad. Then, she decides she wants to try to change things. My kids became obsessed with writing letters after they read it. Like The Paper Bag Princess, I love stories that carry a message about empowerment, and doing what you can. The drawings in this are gorgeous too.

    Magic Beach
    Alison Lester
    If you ever enjoyed beach shack holidays as a child, this book will be a wistful step back into time. It’s a series of rhymes about a family playing and imagining at the seaside, with detailed pictures with lots of little things to spot. There’s something very calming, even for an adult, about the slow cadence of the rhymes and repetition in this book. It is a slow-paced read that is perfect for unwinding hyper little kids at the end of a busy day when you’re trying to lull them to sleep! I love the last pages that depict the family all asleep in the little bedroom with the moonlight glinting on the ocean.


    What kids books could you happily read and again? Would love to hear in the comments! Maya x

  • Advice For Brand Spanking New Parents

    For the primary few weeks, supply the cereal a couple of times a day after the breast or bottle feeding. Unless your baby is in pain, it’s finest for your baby to study to consolation Enmeshed Parenting himself to get again to sleep. Leave him alone for a couple of minutes to see if this happens. If it doesn’t, consolation the infant and tell him it’s time to go to sleep.

    Emily and Laura are Christians, but they’ll talk about subjects prone to affect each mom sooner or later in time, together with insecurities, discouragement, loneliness, struggling, and melancholy. If you’re a Christian yourself, the duo may also assist you to continue to pursue Jesus nicely even with a young youngster in tow. Though motherhood is full of trials, Emily and Laura will speak about resting well, caring for children with particular needs, redeeming the day after difficult challenges, and building the friendships you’ll need as a younger mother. Most episodes are minutes lengthy, however the content material is so wealthy the time will fly by. While different podcasts on being pregnant and parenting discuss breastfeeding and pumping to some extent, this one goes to approach the subject from nearly each angle you’ll be able to think of. This is also one of many few reveals on this record hosted by a gaggle of moms each week, which provides a really neat dynamic to the dialog. Janet is prepared to break down difficult ideas and dynamics in easy terms in a conversational way.

    • Garrett is enthusiastic about serving to nonprofits leverage stories and information to catalyze social change through analysis, writing, and grant improvement.
    • That parents should be involved goes with out saying, however the selection shouldn’t be between being an attachment father or mother and raising a failure.
    • Harrison’s e-book additionally sums up the elemental dilemma in baby safety when, as he puts it, applying Solomon’s wisdom.
    • Calibrate your expectations about what your baby is able to doing independently, whether or not you may have an infant studying to sleep by way of the night, a toddler serving to to place toys away, or an older baby resolving conflicts.
    • Here we explore how stress, lack of sleep, weight acquire, melancholy and low T may cause low intercourse drive in women and men.
    • Parenting interventions in the course of the first 3 years of childhood are efficient for bettering ECD and caregiving.

    Native Americans traditionally used cradleboards which could be worn, however which involved minimal bodily contact of mother and youngster. In the primary yr, babies be taught to focus their vision, reach out, discover, and be taught concerning the things that are around them. Cognitive, or brain development means the educational strategy of memory, language, thinking, and reasoning.

    A one-hour personal session, by way of cellphone or Skype, offers your family an opportunity to discuss the specific issues you would possibly be going through. You will work with Dr. Mary to develop a targeted plan that works for your liked ones. “I even have given copies of your book to any mother or father that confides in me that they are at their wit’s finish. I tell them, ‘it will change your life,’ because Unique Baby Names that’s what it did for me and my household.” We are a community of infant-toddler professionals who are passionately devoted to empowering mother and father and caregiving professionals to supply the safe and respectful beginnings youngsters want for a wholesome life. Webinar attendees may even learn to access community resources and monetary assistance programs obtainable to assist pay for baby care.

    The biggest group of children have been coming into the culture. We had a booming economy and we had the corporatization of drugs,” says Johnson. In different phrases, the Boomers did properly as a result of that they had an economy and medical advances to back them. And yet, Spock’s millions of followers would argue that it was the parenting fashion borne from his guide that result in higher outcomes for the children. I ask Julie, Sylvie and Martha in the event that they really feel attachment parenting is a rejection of feminism. Absolutely not, they are saying, with the weary eye rolls of ladies who have heard this criticism before. “To say that you have to go to work to be a feminist could be like saying being a feminist is determined by being a man, fully denying the truth that we’re completely different,” Martha says.

    Learn about our strategy to offering care and explore our scientific centers, telehealth companies and applications. Insights on learning, conduct, and classroom management strategies. A Mother Uses Art to Alleviate Her Sons’ Pandemic FearsWork and life have never been nearer together for the Italian photographer Elisabetta Zavoli, because the coronavirus pandemic has made her children topics and collaborators in her art. The first piece of data parents tend to obtain about who their child will be—often, as with the gender-reveal crowd, before birth—is the form of the child’s genitals. This moment of discovery can mark the beginning of a lifelong process of gender socialization. For some dad and mom, the desire to know and influence their child’s identification starts when a doctor determines the child’s intercourse. A Bronx couple, desirous to protect their one-year-old from the gender pressures exerted on young kids, use gender-neutral pronouns and outfits for his or her baby.

    This weblog is provided for basic informational purposes solely. By utilizing the blog, you agree that the data on this blog doesn’t represent authorized, financial or any other form of professional recommendation. No relationship is created with you, nor any duty of care assumed to you, whenever you use this weblog. The weblog just isn’t a substitute for obtaining any legal, financial or any other type of professional recommendation from a suitably certified and licensed advisor. The data on this weblog may be changed with out discover and is not assured to be complete, accurate, correct or up-to-date. California’s household regulation procedures are advanced and trying to navigate them with out help of a California family lawyer can be irritating. Every child has different needs, and each parenting scenario is exclusive.

    Baby and Parenting

    PEPS is excited to introduce a peer-support collection for expectant parents! Birthing individuals, their companion, and adoptive dad and mom can register to attend a 6-week sequence that may embrace time to share highs and lows and feature matters for dialogue each week. See S1 Protocol for the final evaluate protocol used for the present research and notes concerning any modifications produced from the preliminary prospectively registered protocol. We uncovered substantial variation in program content Baby Boy Clothes and implementation traits across research and considerable heterogeneity in pooled effect size estimates across practically all evaluated outcomes. Try this record of books which would possibly be all excellent for squishing, lifting, and taking half in — just what baby needs to do with a book! Between smartphones, tablets, e-book readers, and, after all, desktop and laptop computer computers, you may learn online extra usually than off.

  • Documentaries For Parents

    Some of the dad and mom appeared quite anxious for his or her baby to place the items in the proper places, and gave them plenty of assist. Others spotted that the task was too troublesome for his or her youngster, and let the game evolve by following the child’s lead.

    UnityPoint Health – Meriter specialists and group specialists are occasional visitors. In addition to feeding concerns, dialogue topics Baby & Parenting tackle multiple areas together with postpartum transitions, parenting, new child and older infants.

    Health Options

    Use this time to articulate and handle any fears you could have, build a robust support network, and set up a predictable, steady way of life for your loved ones. It’s a pure inclination to focus inward as you put together for childbirth, and you may really feel too tired after a protracted day to socialize, however do not forego the corporate of associates completely. Your family and associates is usually a source of nurturing help, both now and after the child arrives. How about a weekend brunch or a Saturday afternoon film? Maintain relationships and make sure to ask for assist as the large day draws near. Having a baby is among the biggest life changes that you’ll experience.

    Baby & Parenting

    Because it’s easier to be unruffled if you don’t should do all of the home labor your self. This groundbreaking portrait of working mother and father and the way they divide family tasks is a couple of decades old but sadly as related as ever. I first read this as a freshman in faculty, but I nonetheless give it some thought on a regular basis. It’s that final half that endears Janet to me most of all; with out it, plenty of what she advocates for would seem foolishly optimistic or simply absurd. You don’t must “respectfully” inform your toddler to stop kicking you in the damned face, and you need to know the limits of your personal endurance before you let your baby cross them.

    What Does Robust Compassion Appear To Be In Real Life?

    Both the daddy, mother and different caregivers should communicate with the new child. You will discover that she can hear and will soon start memorizing and copying your words.

    “After about 4 months, if he is waking up, you in all probability must let him do the final little bit of falling asleep on his own. You can still rock him as part of the wind-down course of, but put him down drowsy, not asleep. Bedtime Rituals “Sleep time should be consistent,” Mindell says. “It also keeps the infant in lighter phases of sleep so he can practice arousing and going again to sleep, which is good in case of any problems, similar to sleep apnea.” However, soy-primarily based method is an effective alternative for parents who don’t want their babies to eat animal merchandise. Hypoallergenic formulation break down milk proteins so that they are more easily digested. Fear of an allergic response makes some dad and mom reluctant to give their babies milk-primarily based formula manufacturers, but only 3 p.c to four percent of infants have a real milk allergy.

    Sleeping Basics

    Signing together with your baby is also a fantastic bonding alternative, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. It’s interactive and enjoyable, and can be incorporated into a variety of actions, together with reading, singing, feeding and tub time. “I’ll by no means not cry when I see babies babble in ASL [it’s] adorable every time,” commented one other. “I’m a mother of two youngsters so I would hope somebody may assist me,” Mitrisin mentioned. But moments later, the parents’ worry turned to reduction as they heard their daughter cry — a noise Mitrisin described as “one of the best cry” she had ever heard, WPXI reported. Earlier within the day, Olivia had been appearing fussy, which brought on her parents to turn into concerned, according to the outlet. I’m then linked to a machine to watch the child’s heartbeat, and I’m also given a clicker to click each time I feel the child move.

    • Think of attachment parenting as connecting tools, interactions with your infant that allow you to and your child get connected.
    • “Obviously, it is very scary to have your child in the back of a truck with AEDS on her,” he explained to WPXI.
    • Your family and friends is usually a source of nurturing assist, both now and after the child arrives.

    Instagram jogged my memory of the world past my more and more messy home. The influencers I followed have been devoted mothers who nonetheless had time to work on their very own projects, buy groceries and try new skincare merchandise. I informed you issues aren’t all the time so clean around right here,” she stated into her telephone’s camera, gesturing at the laptop and buying bag sitting on her grand kitchen island, much bigger than mine. In the background, a couple of baby bottles sat in her in any other Baby case spotless sink. That night, I was too tired to even take into consideration cleaning. I picked up my telephone and, as I’d carried out dozens of instances already that day, opened the Instagram app, noticing that one of the influencers I followed to strive to figure out this new thing referred to as motherhood had posted new videos. It still sort of amazed me that, just by opening my telephone, I could watch someone who had figured out how to be a home goddess, the proper mother.