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Our Favorite Children’s Picture Books
There is just something so magical about books. The way they can take you on a journey you never imagined or help you learn or make you feel the feels is so amazingly awesome. And children’s books are where it all starts. I’m sure you can remember a beloved book from your childhood. Maybe you had your parents read it over and over. Today, I’m sharing some of our family’s favorite children’s picture books. You may have heard of a few of these before and others may be new to you. So, let’s get started!
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1. Pajama Time by Sandra Boynton
This sweet and short little board book, with it’s sing-songy wording, is the perfect quick bedtime story. You can see our copy is pretty banged up due to excessive use!
2. Love You Forever by Robert Munsch
Is there anything sweeter than a story about a parent’s unconditional love for their child? I remember my Mom reading this to me as a child with tears streaming down her face and now I read to my kids too (with tears streaming down my face).
3. Diary of a Wombat by Jackie French
This book is a bunch of fun with a cuddly wombat and her simple adventures. The illustrations are adorable and the story will surely leave you smiling.
4. Grandfather Twilight by Barbara Berger
We love this book so much! It tells the magical story of how Grandfather Twilight faithfully places the moon in the sky every evening. The images are soft/calming and this one is great for bedtime.
5. The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams
My personal favorite children’s book with lessons on love and what being “real” really is! This is a timeless story with a beautiful meaning and definitely one that stays with you through the years.
6. The Magic Rabbit by Annette LeBlanc Cate
This is an amazing story about a magician and his rabbit. A mishap separates the two best friends, but of course there is the perfect happy ending.
7. The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein
The Giving Tree is such a wonderful book. The story is about unconditional love and learning to give. I really like that this book can open up a discussion with kids about taking and giving.
8. There’s a Nightmare In My Closet by Mercer Mayer
My kids love scary things and I think that this book is partially responsible for that. Reading this to them at a young age helped them to overcome fears of monsters in their bedrooms at night and taught them that just because something seems scary, doesn’t always mean it is.
9. The Little Boy/Girl Who Lost His/Her Name
We purchased this book for my son for Christmas and it is awesome! It is a totally personalized book for your child. The character in the story goes on an adventure to find his/her name, meeting fun friends along the way. So cute! (Get 15% off of your first book by clicking here.)
So, those are some of our favorite children’s picture books. Some of them are classics and others just have that little something that makes them extra special to us!
Are any of these your favorites too? Or do you have another favorite not listed that you would like to share? We are always on the hunt for new good books and would love any recommendations you may have!
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Photography Project 366 – A Photo Journey
Have you ever heard of the 365 Photography Project? Basically, you take a photo each day of the year for one year. Sounds pretty simple, right? I’ve attempted these kinds of photography projects in the past and only ever completed one. I’m not going to lie; this stuff is harder than it seems.
So why would I want to give this a go yet another year (with one extra day this time for leap year?) Because I absolutely love photography and it is worth it! Yes, there are times when I’m scrambling to take a picture before midnight because I forgot or was too lazy to grab my camera.
However, even during those times I have been able to capture so many of the great little moments of my life, our family, and things that we’ve done.
Those times when your kids are laughing or that crazy huge beer your husband bought on date night. The seemingly mundane things that make up the everyday or big, exciting events in our lives. They are all important in creating who we are and doing a daily photography project is a great way to collect those memories. Plus, it is also a great way to work on my photography skills!
My favorite part is watching how our family grows and changes in just the course of a year. Those memories captured by my camera are priceless.
Have you ever considered doing any kind of photography project? All you need is a camera and a little motivation! Whether it is a desire to improve your photography or capture those special moments, now is the time to start!
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2016 New Year’s Resolutions
It’s a new year, which means everyone is sharing their latest resolutions and I am no different. There is something about putting away all of those holiday decorations and recovering from excessive delicious food consumption that really motivates people to want to make changes. Without further ado, here are my 2016 New Year’s Resolutions.
Blog Resolutions
1. Try To Successfully Do This DIY Blog Thing On My Own – When you are used to sharing all of the responsibilities of blogging equally with someone else, it can be a little intimidating to think of doing it all on your own. I know most of the bloggers out there are running everything solo, so it is totally doable. Wish me luck!
2. Share More – Though things may a bit sporadic and sparse around here while I try to get this solo blogging gig under control, one thing that is important to me is to share more of the personal stuff on the blog. Sure, step by step tutorials are great (there will still be plenty of DIYing going on around here), but throwing a little of the life material in with it all will hopefully make things more fun.
3. Be More Intentional – There may have been a time or two (or ten) that I have created something just so I would have a project to share on the blog. As fun as it is to put together most projects I work on, it can be frustrating to have put time into something that ends up in the trash or being donated because I don’t have a use/place for it. In 2016, I hope to be more intentional and create/work on projects that our family will love and use.
Personal Resolutions
1. Spend More Time With Family – This is kind of self explanatory. I find that I tend to keep piling stuff on my plate just to try to please everyone, which in turn takes me away from the people I care about. Learning to say “no” is OK and something I hope will allow me to be present in the lives of my husband and kids. Because they are what matters the most!
2. Get Organized – I am finally reading The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo and so far, I really like it. I have rounded up 3 garbage bags of clothing to donate and it is such a freeing feeling. By letting go of the things that I don’t love, I will be able to really enjoy our home. I’m tired of not being able to find things I need because they are hidden underneath all of the extra clutter we have.
3. A Healthier Me – Of course, this wouldn’t be a good resolution list without a little health talk, right? I’m doing the typical stuff… trying to eat clean, exercising, and drinking more water.
So, did you make any resolutions for 2016? What sort of things are you working on? I would love to hear what you want to accomplish this year!
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My Struggles with PMDD
Have you ever heard of PMDD? It’s basically severe PMS. (Find more out here.) I hadn’t heard of it until about 2 years ago when I was diagnosed with it.
Let’s go back in time for a minute: In late 2012, I went nuts. Literally, crazy. My emotions were all over the place. I couldn’t control them at all. I possessed so much anxiety, anger, and sadness. Friendships were ruined and I hurt a lot of people I care about. Thoughts of suicide sat heavy on my brain. It all started in September of that year, I had just stopped breastfeeding my one year old and I had a very active 2 ½ year old. I thought, “Two kids, two and under. I am probably just sleep deprived. That’s got to be what is going on with me.” So, I just kept chugging along.
When my feelings weren’t getting any better, I decided to start seeing a therapist. After several months, I started to realize my therapist was getting annoyed with me because all of my “huge problems” were actually quite petty. Luckily, my awesome husband didn’t take kindly to my bullying either, but he also very much understood I was having a hard time.
In addition to everything going on in my own head, my husband and I were also realizing our youngest son had special needs (you may know my youngest son has autism spectrum disorder.) I wanted to connect some dots for you. 2012-2014 is the same time frame we were finding all of that out.
As the year passed, I started to recognize there was a monthly pattern to my emotions. My solution was to just start avoiding people during those times of rage. Insomnia was also very much a part of my life. I would sit up at night and worry that a friend of mine was saying something bad about me. I lost so much sleep thinking people were saying things they weren’t. (Who cares, right? Well, I certainty did.) I felt miserable.
In December of 2013, I finally called my GYN and made an appointment. I had been keeping a mood journal for several months and shared what I had been experiencing. That’s when I received the PMDD diagnosis. My doctor prescribed me a daily dose of 20mg of fluoxetine (Prozac) to help stabilize my mood.
The first several weeks of taking this medication my body did not react well, but the doctor told me to stick it out and make it to the six week point. So I did. That made all the difference in the world. I was myself again. All the worrying was gone. I could finally enjoy my family the way I had always wanted to.
Alright, now let fast forward to November and December 2015. I was beginning to recognize some changes in my mood again. This time I chalked it up to being stressed about the holidays.
One morning, I guess I was in a particularly bad mood and I was yelling at my five year old because he was running late for school. He looked up at me with big teary eyes and said “Mommy why are you being so mean to me? Can you stop yelling at me please? It hurts my feelings.” I stopped dead in my tracks. I hadn’t even realized I was yelling. That’s when it dawned on me; all of my PMDD symptoms were back. I called my doctor immediately. He said sometimes this can happen where your medication can “poop-out” or stop working. So, he recommended that I up my daily dosage.
Right now, I am in the middle of the adjustment period to the new dosage and I am not entirely sure it is working. I am awake during the nights and sleeping during the days. My dreams are so stressful that my rest doesn’t even feel like rest. I keep getting so worn down that I keep getting other sicknesses as well. So, with all of that being said, I am going to have to step back from the blog and focus on my health, personal struggles, and my family. This decision did not come easy to me, as I have loved meeting people, sharing ideas, and working with my sister on Elizabeth Joan Designs. I am sure Erin will have many great new things to share with you. And who knows, I may pop in every now and then to share the happenings around here.
Well, thanks again for all of your support and goodbye for now!