Grandparents Day in the United States is on September 7, 2008.  That’s just a few days away, so I thought it would be appropriate to share some products that I think are a wonderful idea for grandparents.
First, here is a great book filled with activities for grandparents and grandchildren to do together, Kids and Grandparents: An Activity Book.
 
I also came across a variety of books for grandparents to record their memories for their grandchildren.  I think this is such a wonderful idea and a keepsake that grandchildren are sure to treasure as they grow into adulthood and have children …read more

I’ll have to be honest here…I’ve never heard of Holly Claus before and have definitely never heard the story. I received an email about a website HollyClaus.com and I’ve been checking it out. I plan on having my kids take a look at it too and explore the world of Holly Claus.
So who and what is Holly Claus all about? Here are some bits and pieces from the press release:
New York, NY PRNewswire– October 16, 2007 – Forever Entertainment and Planetwide Media build a destination website where children of all ages can explore the world of Holly Claus and …read more

My kids get out of school on Wednesday and they are SO excited! We love the holidays around my house and I was trying to think of some fun things I can do with the kids while they are out of school; not places to go, but things to do around the home like crafts, cooking and games.
So, here is my list of 15 fun things to do with the kids during Thanksgiving:
1. Make a Thankful Tree

2. Make Finger Puppet Favors for Thanksgiving guests.
3. Play Power Yahtzee
4. Make Thanksgiving Turkey Cookies.

5. Watch Christmas Movies

6. Make Thanksgiving cards.
7. Make …read more

Happy Easter to all of our Play Library readers. Is your Easter finding you bundling up in hats, gloves, and scarves, too? We have snow covered roofs here, though we were running around in shorts and t-shirts at the start of the week. Spring is sooo unpredictable. Hope those eggs don’t freeze for the egg hunts!
May hope, peace, joy, love, grace, and mercy be yours abundantly, now and always. Happy Spring!

I’d forgotten about this book until I was looking for something else tonight and came across it in a search. Then I had to go grab it off of the kids’ book shelf!
My daughter received the book Easter Bugs by David A. Carter from a family friend for her second Easter, I think. Over these past four years, this little pop-up book has done it’s best to weather the test of time and toddlers! Most of the pop-ups have survived the kids, and they love the little Easter and spring-themed bugs! Very cute book. …read more

I came across The Extra-Thankful Thanksgiving while looking for the Thanksgiving Little People. This is a Little Bill book, the star character of the Nick Jr. cartoon created by Bill Cosby.
Little Bill is one of the few cartoons I still enjoy sitting and watching with my kids. It’s one of a couple kids’ shows that make me occasionally wish we had cable. It’s a fun show, teaches positive lessons, and is well-written. Very fun.
The book is listed at Amazon for kids aged 4-8 and says it includes 56 stickers grouped by page numbers for the kids …read more

Do you love cooking with your kids? I do, most of the time. But my kids ALWAYS love cooking with me.
So, it helps to have some meals and menus planned with “kid assistance” in mind. Kids’ cookbooks provide great ideas and inspiration.
The Let’s Eat! cookbook from The Pampered Chef is designed with kids’ abilities and palates in mind. Lots of hands on steps for the kids, and end results that are as fun to look at as they are to eat.
For my daughter’s fifth birthday, we had all the kids make their own pizzas, and …read more

I’ve discovered a new publisher to love in addition to Dorling Kindersley (DK) and Usborne – Egmont Books. Today, we picked up several of these Thomas Learning books, which have wonderful stories and colorful illustrations together with some key graphics to help children learn how to improve their math and reading skills.
I’m also fond of the I Can Learn series of activity books available in the UK. These activity books have better illustrations and are more colorful and inviting than others I’ve seen. My almost four-year-old son happily goes through several pages and feels a great sense …read more

Andrea of Picture Me Press kindly left a comment the other day and their personalized books really tickled me. This Picture Me in the Future would be perfect for my son along with the firefighter one (he’s “rescuing” Woody from a “fire” as we speak). I just wish I knew what they looked like inside.
Technorati Tags: picture me press, personalized books, childrens books, books, children, kids

Courtesy of Dr. Free-Ride at Adventures in Ethics and Science, this week’s children’s book is absolutely disgusting and a hit with her sprog (of course!).
Here’s what the doc says about That’s Disgusting! by Francesco Pittau and Bernadette Gervais.
…this is a book that can open discussions with young’uns about why we find certain things yucky. Indeed, certain of the contents provide teachable moments not only about germs and parasites and various routes of transmission of same, but also about respect for the bodily autonomy of other creatures. And you can absolutely have these conversations with giggling children. For some of them, …read more