Autumn Books for Kids

The weather here in Kentucky has finally changed!  We have the cool crisp mornings. The sunny afternoons! It is perfect!

To celebrate,here is a list of my favorite Autumn themed children's books!

 There was an Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves

By Lucille Colandro 

Great for 3 to 7 years old

This book is irresistible to Preschoolers. It has repetitive text that is easy to sing along with. This book tickles the funnybone! 

One of the repetitive phrases is " I don't know why she swallowed the leaves, perhaps she'll sneeze." The children loved to pretend sneeze every time I read that line!

The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything

by Linda Williams

Great for 4 to 7 years Old

This is an excellent read aloud book! It offers plenty of opportunity for the students to participate along with the story. A series of items such as a pair of shoes and a pair of gloves follow the little old lady home. When I read this book to the children, I suggested movements for each item that followed the old lady. 

A great book with a bit of suspense and spookiness, but without being really scary!

 Apples and Pumpkins

by Anne Rockwell

Great for 2 to 5 year olds

A great choice for the younger ones! This one will  get your child talking about their trip to the pumpkin patch!

Leaf Trouble

by Jonathan Emmett

Great for Older 3s through Kindergarten

The illustrations in this book are beautiful! Very playful and colorful! The main character is adorable and you can't help but like him. His little misunderstanding about leaves is just adorable!

 The Bumpy Little Pumpkin

by Margery Cuyler

Great for 3 to 7 year olds

This is one of my favorite Halloween books of all time. The book offers a great message of friendship and acceptance! 

Five Little Pumpkins

Dan Yaccarino

1.5 to 5 year olds

A book rendition of the classic fingerplay "Five Little Pumpkins Sitting on the Fence." The little ones enjoy pointing out the pumpkins, the ghost, and the cat. Older children enjoyed this book because many of them are already familiar with the fingerplay. 

I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pie

Alison Jackson

Great for 3 years to 7 years

Another wonderful book with repetitive text! The children love to giggle at the absurdity that someone could eat so much for dinner! The ending is hilarious! A Thanksgiving classic!

Be sure to check out my Amazon Listmania of my favorite Storytime books

Emily's Favorite Read-Aloud Books

Reading

  

In a Heartbeat

Sharing the Power of Cheerful Giving

by Leigh Anne and Sean Tuohy

The Tuohy family is such an inspiration. This book was very hard to put down. I spent a few late nights early mornings reading this book!

Eating

Five Guys Burgers and Fries

 

 A guilty pleasure! Those fries are amazing! Pour some malt vinegar on those babies and its all over! 

One of the best ideas to come around in a long time

 

 Malls turned Greenhouses

A Must See Movie

 Waiting for Superman


Why must a good education come down to winning a lottery?

Menu Planning and What I'm Reading

Menu Planning

Fed up with eating out far to often, I have decided to actually plan meals. To many of you this may not be the most earth shattering idea. For our family it has really made a big difference. We are consuming much healthier foods.We are wasting less time thinking about what to have for dinner every night. Not to mention the less last minute trips to the grocery store eating up time.  

Each evening has a different theme.

Monday: Breakfast for Dinner

Tuesday: Crock Pot Dinners

Wednesday:Pasta or Casseroles

Thursday: World Food Night

Friday:Sandwich night!

The food is simple.With our busy work schedules it feels so nice to have a plan!

What I'm Reading!

I've recently been reading "The Happiness Project" by Gretchen Rubin. It is just what I need to be reading this time of year. The gloomies tend to creep in this time of year.Just by reading this book and thinking of the concept of being happy is making me happier. Speaking it into being? Maybe!

The author strives to make her life happier. Is that even possible? Without moving to a private island or other such radical life changes she wants to make her everyday life happy. She sets monthly goals such as  "Being Serious About Play" and "Pursue a Passion" to give her project a nice framework. 

The author came to the realization that she was in danger of "wasting her life away." I can relate to this. We can let the blah and drudgery of everyday get to you. Life can seem dull when all you do is just "exist" in a haze and not take the time to notice all the truly wonderful things going on. Being mindful and deliberate in the way you choose to act and feel. 

This book has been a real joy to read. The author writes in a manner that is easy to connect to. She is transparent and shares her challenges as well as her successes. I have been inspired to step out of my own "hum drum" life and try something new. 

So I am going to strive to try/make something new every week. A new recipe! A new craft project! Meeting someone new! I plan to document in this blog what new things that I am trying!

Off to bed!

Emily

What I'm reading now: Blogging for Bliss

Just before Christmas I treated myself to this lovely book!

7 Reasons why this book is fantastic

1. Lots of fun creative eye-candy!

2. This book features blurbs about many popular bloggers such as
Alicia Paulson: Posie Get Cozy
Serena Thompson: Farm Chicks
Lisa Tutman Oglesby: Celebrate Creativity in all its forms
Jennifer Perkins: Naughty Secretary Club

3. An awesome chapter on starting a blog

4. Helpful Html codes

5. Blogger Etiquette

6. Tons of tips on increasing traffic to your blog

7. A stupendous glossary of blog related terms

This is a great go to resource for anyone who is interested in starting a blog or bumping their blog up to the next level. I've kept this book in my bag for about 3 weeks and have pulled it out for reading during lunch breaks and before bedtime! Its been a pleasure to read!