My Favorite Childrens Books

Today Kelly from Kelly's Korner is doing a link-up about Childrens Books. I LOVE BOOKS! Here is a list I made last year of must-haves in our family library.

I've been busy building a library of some of my favorite childhood books for the kiddos. I think reading is oh-so-important and hope that they will love jumping nose-first into a book just like I did (and still do, if life gives me a few extra minutes here and there).

I didn't make this list with either girls or boys in mind. I think it's important to have a variety of books on your bookshelf and let the child choose what grabs their fancy. This list is just a few of my personal favorites and some I plan to add to our bookshelf, if they aren't already there.

1. Anne of Green Gables. I can't remember who gifted the Anne books to me, but I will be ever grateful. Such beautiful writing, and I think of Anne's spunky personality when I need a reminder to be a little more outgoing. I think I may get a bit of my independent streak from Anne, and I always find myself qualifying special friends as my "kindred spirit".

2. A Baby Sister for Frances. "Here are the buckets and brushes and me, / Plinketty, plinketty, plinketty, plee." Really, all the Frances books are charming and just plain delightful. She's a spirited little badger.

3. Nancy Drew Mysteries. The entire 56 book hardback collection is waiting patiently on my bookshelf for someone to read. My mom and I used to read these together on the sofa, each one of us devouring a different book in the series. I love that she re-read these along with me and plan to do the same (hopefully!) with WC. And Nancy, now there's an independent woman! Perhaps I need to check out the Hardy Boys for P.

4. The Complete Adventures of Curious George. George is so adorable he brings a smile to my face instantly. Even before he enjoyed his come-back, I did P's nursery in Curious George back in 2003.

5. Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing. Did you read the Fudge books as a child? I can't wait for P to get a bit older so we can dive into these. Because, surely you see it too. P = Peter, and WC = Fudge.

6. Little Women. I'm giggling right now because I am picturing the Friends episode where Joey puts Little Women in the freezer. But really, I think no library is complete without a copy of this classic. The one I have is well-worn and much-loved and I hope WC will enjoy it too. I always thought that there were characteristics of each of the sisters (practical Meg, rambunctious Jo, sweet Beth and childish artist Amy ) that I'd like to possess.

7. Where the Sidewalk Ends. I cannot go to school today, said Little Peggy Ann McKay. I have the measles and the mumps, a gash, a rash, and purple bumps. I think I have almost all the poems in this book memorized and my copy is inscribed by my aunt Nancy, who had the most fabulous bookshelf that she let me sit and go through for hours, never minding that things never ended getting put back in the same place.

8. Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. This favorite came from Aunt Nancy's bookshelf as well- I ordered this one last week and sat down and read it to the kids immediately and it was the first time they had ever heard of it. I was surprised to see some reviews on Amazon disappointed with the negative tone of this book- but that's the point! Everyone can have terrible, horrible, no good, very bad days (even in Australia).

9. Little House on the Prairie. P's 2nd grade teacher read them some Little House books this year, and he loved them. Such good history information in there!

10. From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. I am ordering this today- somewhere along the way I have lost my copy and I remember this being fabulous! Hiding in a museum and solving a mystery? Yes, please.

11. Flat Stanley. The only Flat Stanley I've read is the original, and I still have my childhood copy. I still hesitate to hang heavy things over beds because of this story!

12. Choose Your Own Adventure books. Fourth and fifth grade were all about Choose Your Own Adventure! We passed these around the school and absolutely couldn't get enough. Every time we went to B Dalton's I begged for another. I'm not sure these were typical girl reads, but the tom-boy in me loved them.

13. The Ramona Collection. The Ramona books really have a place in my heart. I actually get a little choked up when I think about her wearing her soft cozy PJs to school under her clothes. And Picky Picky. And the haircut. (I had a Dorothy Hamil too.)

14. Encyclopedia Brown, Boy Detective. I've already introduced these short mysteries to P, and he loves trying to solve the case before we turn to the back and read the solution. He often gets them right!

And of course I thought of one more after working on that silly pic above in Paint FOREVER. Right now I am reading Charlotte's Web to P and I was almost brought to tears the other night when we were just getting started and I saw the pic of Fern bottle-feeding Wilbur at the beginning- it is the CUTEST.THING.EVER. Sigh.

Now your turn- what books have I forgotten?

Of course, this post is chock-full of Amazon affiliate links.

LOTD #17

Right before Christmas I heard Emily from Beauty Broadcast talk about how much she loves IT Cosmetics Vitality Lip Flush in Je Ne Sais Quoi, a clear product that changes to pink once you apply it to your lips.

Vitality Lip Flush 4-in-1 Natural Anti-Aging Lipstick Stains take the place of four products; your lipstick, anti-aging conditioning lip balm, ultra-hydrating lip gloss, and lip stain all in one!

I was pretty interested, especially since stains are my #1 favorite lip product. However, the $20 price tag seemed a bit high. 

Not long after I heard about the product, I found out there was a special holiday gift set offered by QVC that included 6 different shades of Vitality Lip Flush for around $60 including tax and shipping.

You know the drill.... of course I ordered it! Merry Christmas to me!

IT Cosmetics Vitality Lip Flush in Je Ne Sais Quoi

So here's the product on me. It actually *does* change color on me! (I'm a freak of nature I guess because Smashbox O-Gloss and Dior Addict Lip Glow do *not* change color on me.)

Do I think it's worth $20? No, definitely not. Although it feels moisturizing on at first, that moisture fades pretty fast, so you've got to reapply, and the stain it leaves behind is very very light. But I definitely think getting the set to try at just $10 each was a good buy.

I think I'll give the other shades a shot for my next few LOTDs!

LOTD #16 and Hats

 

Fresh Sugar Berry

 

My poor lips are *still* chapped! I always reach for Fresh Sugar balm when this happens- it's so luxurious and feels amazing on. I have quite a few of the tinted ones as well as the clear, but Berry blows them all away. It's the only one that has good color payoff- and you'd think that Plum would be darker than Berry, but nope, Berry is darker.

 

 

 

Last night was WC's 1st grade program, called "Hats". It was so cute and she did a great job on her line. It was a fun end to a dreary rainy day.

 

 



LOTD #15 and some outside fun

Revlon ColorBurst Lip Butter in Lollipop

Revlon's Lip Butters were all the rage last year, and I bought 4 and really like them. These certainly aren't long-wearing, but they feel great on and don't bleed outside my lipline.  I reach for these when my lips feels a bit chapped. We were outside all weekend, and my lips are a little dry due to the crazy OK wind so this feels perfect today.

This weekend's weather was GORGEOUS and Spring is here! (The weatherman tells us it will be replaced with highs of 40 again tomorrow, but we enjoyed it while it was here.)

After church and brunch with my parents yesterday, we went over to their house and spent the whole afternoon outside. My parents taped off a Four Square court in their garage and we played for hours. There is a lake in their neighborhood, so the men did a little fishing and I walked around the lake for a bit of exercise. We capped off the evening with a family bike ride and we all slept so well last night! I am sad that Monday came so quick.....

LOTD #14 and another book finished!

Revlon ColorBurst Lip Butter in Wild Watermelon

This is one of four new shades from a collection they are calling "Pacific Coast". The other shades of new lip butters are Pink Lemonade, Juicy Papaya, and Sorbet, which I am on the hunt for. I found Wild Watermelon at Target, although for some reason the tag on the bottom with the shade name had been ripped off.

I really like this color. Several bloggers have commented that Wild Watermelon has a different texture than the first batch of lip butter, but I didn't notice that much of a difference. These really aren't long-wearing, but are very moisturizing and feel great on. I also love that the plastic cap is a representation of the shade.

I finished reading Sparky Green Earrings yesterday, and I really enjoyed it. I have to admit that I haven't been a follower of Melanie Shankle's blog, Big Mama, but really that's not for any reason other than I just hadn't stopped by there before. Now that I know her writing style and how funny she is, I'll definitely be a reader. I do understand that some of the stories in her book came from her writings on her blog, so if you are already a follower of her blog, you might make note of that before purchasing the book.

(oh my goodness, look at all the dirty dishes in the sink and on the counter in my pic!)

Have you read anything good lately?

LOTD #13 and baseball

CARGO PlantLove lipstick in CeCe

This line was long ago discontinued, but here's some info Sephora's description way back when:

What it is: A lipstick tube made entirely out of corn - a renewable and abundant resource. This environmentally-friendly innovation also emits less greenhouse gases, which many scientists believe to be the major cause of global warming. The outer carton is made of flower paper embedded with real flower seeds. Simply moisten, plant, and wait for a bouquet of wild flowers to grow!

What else you need to know: CARGO is donating two dollars from the sale of every shade to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. The PlantLove™ seeds we sow today affect future generations so we are investing in the earth and our children for the future of the planet!

Now, you and I both know I never got around to planting the package, but what a cool idea! And I love that they donated to St. Jude's- a great cause.

This is actually wears pretty well. It's very moisturizing, and the color is fabulous- not too dark, but such a pretty shade.

If I recall correctly, every color in this line was named for a celebrity, and I think this one was for Courteney Cox.

On another note, BASEBALL SEASON HAS STARTED! Yes, I'm excited! P is playing 10 and under kid pitch and loving it. The are the Mudcats this year and I love it.

I think I may love it just for the hat. I need to add some bling to mine though. Anybody local have a bedazzler I can borrow?

LOTD #12 and The Ducks

Avon Totally Kissable Lipstick

Full-coverage conditioning color infused with fruit enzymes and a blend of natural oils for lips that are visibly fuller, softer and smoother.

Avon Totally Kissable Lipstick in Plum Intrigue

I made a recent Avon order to pick up some of their Spring nail polish shades, and grabbed one of these new lipsticks (they are $5 right now). I was curious to see if it might be balm-like, which is all the rage right now with lipstick, and it is! 

I don't think I would call this full-coverage.... in fact, I think it's kind of sheer. But it feels great and leave my lips so moist, even after it has worn off. Since it's balmy, it doesn't last more than 2 hours or so, but I really like it.

Branson Report:

We were a bit sad that it was a bit chilly during the rest of our stay in Branson. But there are still fun things to do! We decided to Ride the Ducks.  The Ducks are amphibious vehicles based on the classic WWII DUKW. This was our second time and we had a fabulous drive who told us funny stories and filled us with lots of history. It was a great ride and well worth the ticket price.

You may remember that the kids and I often suffer from Carcolepsy, which causes us to fall asleep pretty quickly in the car. And WC also has Duckcolepsy I guess. After just 10 minutes or so, I looked over and this is what I saw!

But she rallied in time to take her turn to drive in the water.

And see these quackers...... I am losing them.... tonight! Enough!

LOTD #11.5

Bright, gorgeous color that can transform your day and your lips. Enriched with a silk moisturizing complex, our formula helps sustain moisture levels and helps create soft, smooth, beautiful lips in just 7 days.

CoverGirl LipPerfection in Smitten

I am SO torn on this one.... I really like the way it looks and feels at first, but it oxidizes into a brighter pink and doesn't stay moist for very long. And although it promises to "sustain moisture levels", my lips actually feel drier after I wear it.

I have heard people rave about this line, so maybe I'd like a different color? Have you tried anything from this line?

LOTD #11 and Empties

2 lipsticks in 1 BlastFlipstick! Flip your look from day to night, soft to bright, with BlastFlipstick's double-ended lipstick duos. With a creamy shade on one side and a shimmer shade on the other, it's two wearable, blendable, lipcolors in one!

CoverGirl Blast Flipstick in Vixen

In December, I joined a BzzAgent campaign for CoverGirl and received this lipstick to try and review.  I was really pleased with this one- it is long-wearing! Very long-wearing. I don't find the Blast Flipstick to be drying at all- in fact, it is very creamy yet it don't run into the lines around my lips. These retail for around $8.50.

 (Dear FTC- note my disclosure- I received this 

lipstick for review.)

And a few empties:

Bath and Body Works Country Chic Body Lotion

This is my all-time favorite scent and I love this so much I could drink it! This retails for $11, but I only buy when they are having deals like they are right now- Buy 3 Get 2 Free.

John Frieda Root Awakening Strength Boosting Leave In Spray

It appears that this might have been reformulated since I last bought it- the only leave-in in this line is now called Lift + Refresh Root Spray. (Which I might like even better!) The product I had just seemed to be a detangler, but if the new one boosts roots..... that would be even better. It retails for $6.50 and there are often $1-2 coupons in the Sunday paper for John Frieda products.

While we were in Branson, I taught WC the art of the George Washington hairstyle- where you bend your head forward in the pool and let all your hair go over your face, then fold the hair back once you lift your head out of the water. She thought it was great and we did it about a million times. So cute! Did you do this?

LOTD #10 and SDC

Revlon ColorBurst Lip Butter in Cherry Tart

Revlon's Lip Butters were all the rage last year, and I bought 4 and really like them. These certainly aren't long-wearing, but they feel great on and don't bleed outside my lipline.  I reach for these when my lips feels a bit chapped.

These retail for about $7.50. The cap of each shade is different and represents the color inside.

Empties:

Opti-Free Replenish is the only contact solution I can use- all others burn my eyes. Since I have worn contacts since 4th grade, I can't even begin to figure the amount of solution I have gone through over the years!

Last summer when I was wearing my hair wavy, I bought Dove Style + Care Nourishing Amplifier Mousse to help scrunch it a bit. This was just OK- nothing I'll specifically repurchase, but it seemed to do the job OK. I think a mousse geared towards curls would probably work better.

This week is our Spring Break, so we headed to Branson last Friday and hit Silver Dollar City on Saturday. The weather was gorgeous and we had a fabulous time as usual. We got season passes this year and plan on making several trips to MO.

But folks, let me tell you, their new coaster called Outlaw Run is NO JOKE. Poor WC was crying when it was over and about to throw up. Just be prepared if you plan to ride it! It's pretty amazing, but even I was scared a bit!