bookworm

children are made readers on the laps of their parents. - emilie buchwald

i have a confession to make. i've been collecting children's books. for years. do you? to me there is nothing more satisfying than to be thrifting or rummage saling and to find a favorite read from when i was young. and i'll admit one of the things i look forward to most when we have children is snuggling up on the couch and reading the day away. (random bit - did you know that josh proposed to me through a story that he wrote?) i think an enjoyment for reading is a great gift and i treasure the books my shelves contain. besides real relationships i can not recall a place where you can connect so closely with another soul. as c.s. lewis said - 

we read to know we are not alone. 

reading touches a place that no other media can - not movies, theater or even music (although i do believe music touches a unique of its own). i do hope our children are able to appreciate the gift of reading as they grow. 

when i was in third grade my mom introduced me to the laura ingalls wilder series of 'little house on the prairie' and my world was forever changed. i was a girl obsessed, i read everything i could get my hands on and all of a sudden school was not as difficult as it had been in first and second grade. the benefits of reading are endless.

it is with some hesitation that i share my favorites - i want to keep them special for me and my family; it seems if i share they are not so special anymore. does that make sense? but some of my favorites that grace my shelves are-

you are special - max lucado

the house on east 88th st - bernard waber

the monster at the end of this book - jon stone

and anything by dr. seuss or louis sachar

and if we ever have a little boy i know i have to get 'love you forever' by robert munsch

any favorites out there that i NEED to add? i'm always hesitant to just add any old book but with the prices at rummage sales these days as opposed to book prices at the store you really can't go wrong.