the weekend roundup!

What are your weekend plans?  I have a dogwood tree in my front yard that begins to change into its autumnal red way too early every year, almost a full month and a half before the other trees on our street.  I'm sure there is some scientific reason for it changing early like pH balance in the soil or lack of fertilizer. (I have a black thumb, truly.)  But, I like to think more poetically.  Maybe the tree is connected to me and feels how ready I am for crisp air, pumpkin spice, and crunchy leaves under my feet.  Until then, I will be spend my weekend sitting on a playground bench putting up with the soupy southern humidity while my kids run around the jungle gym and monkey bars.  

Here is what I will be reading while my kids play!  

Kids Book Review is in a New York state of mind, sharing a book for preschoolers about the cutest dog in New York City, Marcel here and picture book, The New York Year, here. 

Pragmatic Mom has a great book list of ten bilingual Spanish picture books here. She also has an interesting book list for anyone wanting to read more about the American revolution and the Boston freedom trail here. 

What Do We Do All Day has created STEAM activities that you can do right now with stuff you probably have around the house here and a list of some of the best fairy tale classics here. 

Chickadee Lit has a two part list on unique friendships in picture books here and here. 

Pink Stripey Socks has a pikachu book mark DIY project that will make any Pokemon fan happy here!

ned the knitting pirate by diana murray

Hi there!  Welcome to Booktomato!  Today we are talking about a brand new book that is quickly becoming one of our faves.  It combines two things that I would never have thought to put together - pirates and knitting - but it works!  

The story begins with a rolling and rambling ship full of pirates doing typical piratey things - swabbing things, looking through telescopes, saying aargh.  However, not all of the pirates are into norm-core pirate conforming.  Ned the pirate loves to knit, and he sports an adorable hand-knitted tri-corn hat and fuzzy socks.  

The captain of the ship along with the crew are not happy with Ned.  Pirates are supposed to be rough and tough with swords and cannons not doing arts and crafts!  But Ned stays true to himself and what he loves, and in the end, doing so saves the whole ship from a sea monster.  

I love this for lots of reasons - I love to knit even though I'm not that great at it.  I love the illustrations and the funny rhymes throughout the story.  Most of all, I love that this story could be an excellent jumping off point for a conversation about why the other pirates thought that knitting wasn't a pirate activity.  What are "girl things" and "boy things"?  Can boys do "girl things" and can girls do "boy things"?  I think the answer is absolutely!  

What do you think?  Have you read Ned the Knitting Pirate?  

what we read today: our great big backyard by laura bush and jenna bush hager

CONFESSION: my kids love screens.  They love them.  Iphone.  Ipad.  Ianything.  They will interact with screens until I take them away.  And don't get me wrong, I do take them away.  I am one of those mean moms that won't let her nine year old have his own cell phone and only lets her kids watch t.v. and play video games on the weekends.  I'm such a bummer!  But even with my rules, I do feel like my kids spend a lot of their weekend free time watching Jake and the Neverland Pirates on Netflix or playing Minecraft.  I would like to strike a better balance of outdoor time and screen time.  One of my goals this fall season is to take advantage of our mild Southern climate and go camping once a month.  We have a state park less than an hour from our house, and I plan on setting up my tent and camp stove on one of their campsites once a month for screen-free nature time.  

This whole screen time balancing act is definitely a modern parent problem, and I love that this new book by mother/daughter team, Laura and Jenna Bush, addresses that problem in funny way and provides us with a solution - the great outdoors!  Our Great Big Backyard is all about  our amazing state and national parks that we have in America as seen through one gigantic family vacation that travels through all of them!  The kids in the family reluctantly put down their Mario Cart for a minute, and when they do, they realize just how fun it can be to hike up a mountain, row a canoe, and spy all kinds of wildlife in our great park system.  

With the anniversary of our National Park System here, my kids and I read this book and then spent some time talking about how lucky we are to have parks like the majestic and magical Yellowstone Park, the Grand Canyon, Yosemite, and so many more.  And to add to that, we have hundreds of state parks that let us drive out of our big city life and be hiking next to waterfalls and towering trees in a few hours or less!  This is one of those things that makes America a special place.  

What about your family?  Do you set limits on screens, or are your kids given free reign?  I've read tons of articles, and it seems that half tell me to limit screen time while the other half say not to limit it.  We seem to have found a system that isn't perfect but functions well enough for us.  What is your system?  

book of the day: cockatoo, too by bethanie deeney murguia

Summer is coming to an end, and we need just one more tropical fix before the warm weather is gone.  Let's take a trip to the rain forest and spend some time with two adorable cockatoo birds! 

Cockatoo, Too by Bethanie Deeney Murguia just came out this month from Little Bee Books, and it is adorable!  The story is a play on the word "cockatoo" and tells a short and sweet story of tropical birds playing and dancing together.  The story is funny, and the pictures are lively.  Preschoolers and early elementary school kids will love this.  My three year old will want to get up and dance right along with the birds! 

Story Time Conversations:

For younger readers (preschoolers):

Let's pretend to be cockatoos in the jungle!  Can you dance like the cockatoos?  Can you jump like a cockatoo?  Sing like a cockatoo?  

There are so many beautiful colors in this story!  Let's name every color we see on each page.

For older readers (elementary school kids):

This book is a play on words.  Can you find all of the different two/toos in the book and tell me the different meaning of each one?

9 kids books about apples!

Hi there!  Welcome to Booktomato!  Today we are thinking about all things autumnal - pumpkins, sweaters, beautiful colors, hayrides, and APPLES!  Have you ever gone apple picking?  It is so much fun, and it makes that apple pie that you bake later taste so much sweeter knowing you picked the fruit yourself.  

Here are nine of the best apple themed books out there.  Take a look! 

Ten Apples Up on Top! by Dr. Seuss (Sep 8 1998)

Random House Books for Young Readers

Buy on Amazon

The Apple Pie That Papa Baked

By Lauren Thompson

Buy on Amazon

How Do Apples Grow?

By Betsy Maestro

Buy on Amazon

Amelia Bedelia's First Apple Pie

By Herman Parish

Buy on Amazon

One Green Apple

By Eve Bunting

Buy on Amazon

Apple Pie ABC

By Alison Murray

Buy on Amazon

Apple Picking Time (Dragonfly Books)

By Michele B. Slawson

Buy on Amazon

Apples

By Gail Gibbons

Buy on Amazon

Johnny Appleseed

By Steven Kellogg

Buy on Amazon

there is a tribe of kids by lane smith

CONFESSION: I did not know who Lane Smith was when I picked up this charming book on my local bookstore's shelf and purchased it.  Later, I looked up Lane Smith on Wikipedia and blushed with embarrassment!  How could I not know who he is?!  

His Wikipedia page reads like the ultimate list of your favorite books.  He has partnered with children's literature greats like Jon Scieszka, illustrated covers for Roald Dahl novels, has won two Caldecott medals, and his 2010 work, It's A Book, has been translated into 25 languages.  And I didn't even recognize his name.  Shame, shame, shame! 

His latest work, There is a Tribe Of Kids, has a combination that I think makes for a successful picture book - simple, carefully chosen words paired with simply drawn but full of character illustrations.  But when I say simple, I don't mean "easy to make", you know?  Simplicity is one of the hardest qualities to attain when it comes to writing stories, and this book achieves it.  

The story follows a young wildling boy, perhaps a cave boy, as he looks for a family with whom to belong.  He can't swim like the penguin family.  He can't climb like the goat family.  He tries out animal families of all kinds, and we get to learn all of the different names of animal families like a pod of whales, a herd of goats, and so on.  In the end, he finally finds a family where he fits - a glorious tribe of kids! recommended age: 3+

6 kids books about soccer!

With school getting back into swing, it's time for after school activities like clubs, dance, and sports!  Here are some of our favorite books to inspire all of those little kickers out there!  These are some of the best soccer books.  Do you have a soccer book to add to the list?  Let me know!  I love getting book recs from our readers! 

The Berenstain Bears Get Their Kicks

By Stan Berenstain, Jan Berenstain

Buy on Amazon

The Everything Kids' Soccer Book: Rules, Techniques, and More About Your Favorite Sport! (Everything Kids Series)

By Deborah W. Crisfield

Buy on Amazon

For Soccer-Crazy Girls Only

By Erin Downing

Buy on Amazon

Sean wants to be Messi: A fun picture book about soccer and inspiration. US edition (Volume 1)

By Tanya Preminger

Buy on Amazon

Soccer on Sunday (Magic Tree House (R) Merlin Mission)

By Mary Pope Osborne

Buy on Amazon

Franklin Plays the Game

By Paulette Bourgeois

Buy on Amazon

trainbots by miranda paul and shane mcg

Kids love trains.  Kids love robots.  So guess what?  A genius person put them both together in one book giving kids everywhere exactly what they want!  Miranda Paul is a relatively new author who has written several titles including the new and adorable 10 Little Ninjas.  

Trainbots is the story of cheerful and rather industrious little robots who work together to build a shiny, new train that they will ride all the way to Kids Town, the place where boys and girls are waiting to play with their new robot toys.  On the way to Kids Town, terrible mean bots jump on board the train and break it.  The trainbots turn into super hero bots who save the day!  

Story Time Conversations:

• This is a rhyming story.  Let's think of some words that rhyme.  I say a word, and you think of a word that rhymes.  Ball/Wall Cat/Bat Bot/Pot Train/Rain
• If you were riding on the trainbots' train, what car would you ride in?  Caboose?  Engine?  Passenger car?
• Which robot toy do you like the best?

medieval girlhood: catherine, called birdy by karen cushman

I remember the exact day that my sixth grade teacher put this book in my hands.  Mrs. Hall had carefully styled grey hair, gold wire rimmed glasses, and always wore lots of perfume.  She could be stern, but she had a warm smile.  I had finished my work and was staring idly into space, and she must have noticed it because she went to her book shelf and got Catherine, Called Birdy by Karen Cushman.  I couldn't put it down and quickly fell in love with Catherine, a fourteen year old girl who lived during the Medieval period.  

Catherine is called Birdy by her family because she had a lot of pets and loved animals.  Her brother teaches her to read and write, and he gives her a homework assignment - to keep a journal and write in it every day.  Birdy is stubborn, strong, and set in her own opinions - something we value in our girls today, but in 1290, it wasn't seen as positively.  Her father wants to marry her off, and the suitor he picks is someone that Birdy thinks is terrible!  This book is a wonderful story with a strong female lead character.  It's funny, sometimes shocking, and also serves as a very detailed and fascinating look into life during the Medieval time period.  

Did you read this as a kid like I did?  Did a teacher give you a book that you still hold dear?  Let me know your experiences in the comments!  

more aliki!

Hi Booktomato family!  How has your week gone?  My three year old just started a new preschool this week, and it is going to be a big change for us because he is goes every morning until lunch time.  It will take some getting used to for the both of us since he has stayed home with me full time until now.  He loves it so far, and he's having a lot of fun.  I am enjoying it too, even though I miss him a little bit.  I love having a couple of hours each day to myself.  I'm happiest when I have a space in my day for my own creativity.  

Let's talk some more about the wonderful author, Aliki!  The first one, Milk: From Cow to Carton, is one of my favorites.  We have a small milk packaging factory in our neighborhood, and we like to imagine that inside its walls, cows are walking around in aprons and hair nets with clip boards in their hooves overseeing the production.  The information in this book doesn't exactly match up with our imaginations but it is a fascinating story.  The book follows the journey of milk from the farm to the factories where it is screened for safety purposes and bottled up for grocery stores.  It also talks about different cultures around the world and different animals that produce milk.  This book has that great Aliki formula of beautiful pictures + engaging information + clear language and easy explanations to questions that little minds are wondering about.    

Here are a few more Aliki books that we really enjoy reading.  

My Five Senses (Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science 1)

By Aliki

Buy on Amazon

William Shakespeare & the Globe (Trophy Picture Books)

By Aliki

Buy on Amazon

How a Book Is Made (Reading Rainbow Book)

By Aliki

Buy on Amazon

Mummies Made in Egypt (Reading Rainbow Books)

By Aliki

Buy on Amazon

the talking eggs by robert d. san souci and jerry pinkney

I love it when I read a story that is unpredictable.  Most movies/tv shows/books fit in to one of a few formulas, and after reading a few pages or watching a few minutes of it, you can usually tell where the narrative is heading.  

When I read The Talking Eggs by Robert D. San Souci with my older son (age 9), we got a few pages in, and he exclaims, "Oh I can tell where this is going!  It's going to be like Cinderella."  He was right.  The beginning of this story has all of the makings of a Cinderella adaptation - a young girl who works night and day to please her mean and selfish mother and sibling.  That, however, is where the similarities between this story and a fairy tale formula stop! 

When her mother sends her on an errand to fetch water at the well in the woods, Blanche meets an old woman who is terribly thirsty.  Blanche shows kindness and gives the old woman water.  When the old woman meets Blanche at the well a second time, she brings the girl to her unique home.  There Blanche sees a two headed cow, chickens of every color of the rainbow, and other crazy things.  Because she is polite and doesn't laugh at any of the old woman's crazy possessions, the old woman rewards her with magic eggs that produce riches and jewels!  When Blanche's mean sister, Rose, visits the old woman, she is not as polite, and her behavior gets her in trouble. 

storytime conversation starters: 

• what was the craziest thing blanche saw at the old woman's farm? would you be able to go there and not laugh?
• why was blanche rewarded and rose was not?
• what would you want to be hidden in your magic eggs?

the weekend roundup!

Hi there!  Welcome to the weekend roundup!  In our house, we survived our first week of fourth grade, and for that, we deserve a celebratory fancy latte for mom and hot chocolate for kid! Here are some of the best book posts from around the web to fill your weekend with kid lit inspiration!  

The cover of Bird and Bear and the Special Day has me craving walks through fall leaves.  Kids Book Review shares the details of this cute picture book here.  They also review a new YA novel set in London, V for Violet, here. 

Pragmatic Mom has two great book lists this week!  One geared towards teaching toddlers kindness here and one with books about Mexico here. 

What Do We Do All Day shares a list of math art books that are great for getting kids excited about math here. 

B is For Bookworm does a monthly reading challenge that encourages kids to log more book time.  The details are here. 

a classic for every bookshelf: who's there, spot? by eric hill

Hello hello! Welcome to Booktomato!  Today we are talking about a pure and simple classic character that every young reader should have on their bookshelf - Spot, the dog.   Author Eric Hill created this darling little doggy in 1976 for his son, Christopher. Spot the dog can be found in a number of essential preschooler books like this one, Who's There, Spot?, Spot's Birthday Party, Spot Can Count, and others.  Each book features fun lift flap windows to discover on each page.  Did you know that Hill invented the lift-the-flap style? He did! recommended age: 0-5  

Story Time Conversations:

• The first read around, open each flap and talk about who is inside.  The second read around, try to guess who is inside the flap before opening it. 
• Which of Spot's friends is blue?  Which friend is green? 
• Do we go to the places Spot went to in his day?  School?  Laundry room?  Backyard?  Talk about what we like and don't like about each place. 

Have a great day and read something fun!

6 cookbooks for kids!

Do you have a New Year's Resolution to cook more and eat healthier?  I always feel like once the holidays filled with eggnog and endless sugar cookies are done, I'm ready to press the reset button on what me and my family are eating.  Here are some of the most adorable and fun looking cookbooks I have found, and they contain some fun and healthy recipes to help me achieve our goal of good food choices.  I really want to cook from these with my kids.  Wish me luck! 

Cooking Class: 57 Fun Recipes Kids Will Love to Make (and Eat!)

By Deanna F. Cook

Buy on Amazon

This cookbook for ages eight and up is truly a cookbook for beginners that spells out each recipe in easy to understand picture-heavy tutorials.  Some of the recipes look really cute too. 

Kid Chef: The Foodie Kids Cookbook: Healthy Recipes and Culinary Skills for the New Cook in the Kitchen

By Melina Hammer

Buy on Amazon

The title says it all - this is for the foodie kid in your life.  The one who likes the stinky cheese on the cheese plate and is curious to try new things at dinner time.  The recipes aren't your typical kid recipes, and with a little help from an adult, this book could be a first voyage into culinary adventure. 

The Young Chef: Recipes and Techniques for Kids Who Love to Cook

By The Culinary Institute of America

Buy on Amazon

This is labelled for ages ten and up and is a comprehensive lesson on cooking techniques like knife skills, measuring, how to roast, and how to saute.  

The Help Yourself Cookbook for Kids: 60 Easy Plant-Based Recipes Kids Can Make to Stay Healthy and Save the Earth

By Ruby Roth

Buy on Amazon

The Help Yourself Cookbook employs loads of playful humor and fun facts to empower kids to think about nutrition and cook for themselves, showing them that they are capable of becoming mini chefs! 

The Forest Feast for Kids: Colorful Vegetarian Recipes That Are Simple to Make

By Erin Gleeson

Buy on Amazon

I have had the adult original edition of The Forest Feast for about a year, and I love the unique, vegetarian recipes.  They are really yummy.  The Forest Feast for Kids features the same recipes with clear, step-by-step instructions. 

The Silver Spoon for Children: Favorite Italian Recipes

By Editors of Phaidon Press

Buy on Amazon

The Silver Spoon is for Italy what The Joy of Cooking is for America - a classic tome with millions of standard recipes.  We have this Silver Spoon for Children in our kitchen and have used it so many times.  The lasagna recipe in this is actually my favorite lasagna recipe that I use all the time, even when I'm not cooking with mini chefs around.  

the weekend round up!

Hi there!  Welcome to what is for us, the last weekend of summer break.  School starts Monday, and we are right back to homework, construction paper, glue sticks, and class parties!  Here is a list of book posts to read while you wait in the mile long check out line at the school supply store.  

Kids' Book Review shares a artistic new alphabet book here.   This awesome blog also has an interview with best-selling author, Fleur McDonald here. 

Pragmatic Mom shows us how to make a simple sun catcher here. 

What Do We Do All Day shares 15 books guaranteed to make kids smile here. 

story time + snacks: funfetti madeleines for madeline

Sometimes the story on the page sustains us, and sometimes, well, we need funfetti.  Yes, I did take the ever classy, oh-so-french madeleine cookie and white trash it up a bit with an entire bottle of star sprinkles thrown into the batter, and it was so good.  Normally, I don't like to clutter my kitchen cabinets with gadgets and pans that only have one task, so buying a cookie pan that would only be used to make one specific type of cookie didn't appeal to me.  However, the key to making the classic french madeleines is a madeleine pan.  Most madeleines start with a base of flour, sugar, eggs, and butter, but from there, they are quite versatile.  You could add chocolate chips, orange zest, dried fruit, whatever you want.   

Eating French cookies got us in the mood for everyone's favorite red-headed frenchie, Madeline!  I have loved Ludwig Bemelmans' stories about Madeline for as long as I can remember.  We think nothing of reading about a strong, independent female character today, but Madeline was doing her own thing long before it was the norm.  I found this volume of every Madeline book published into one collection a couple of years ago.  It's a treasure!  

Funfetti Madeleines

• one cup flour
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 4 eggs
• 1 stick butter
• one bottle colorful sprinkles (optional)

1. combine flour and baking powder in a bowl.
2. beat sugar, eggs, and vanilla until thick (this takes a couple minutes.)
3. fold flour mixture in to egg mixture.
4. melt butter and add to batter.  put batter in the refrigerator for about an hour. stir in sprinkles.
5. preheat oven to 325 degrees.  butter the madeleine pan.  fill molds of pan with batter.
6. bake for 10 minutes or until golden.

reference books kids love!

Hi there!  Welcome to Booktomato! I hate to bring you a list of text-book style picks during what might be your kids' time off for summer break (no school=no boring text books/work sheets), but not to worry, these are fun!  I wanted to share with you some of the reference books geared towards kids that I have collected over the years.  I have no worries bringing educational books to you during spring break because unlike some text books, these make learning fun!  There are a lot of really great dictionaries, thesauruses, and encyclopedias for kids that strike a great balance of informative and fun/playful.  Whenever my kids have a question about a country, a unique word, or a science concept, sometimes it is more helpful for them to research the topic on their own rather than hear me just give them an explanation.  

I found this set of The Little Golden Book Illustrated Dictionary at a second hand store a few years ago.  I was so happy to find the complete set in one place!  It has six volumes, over 10,000 words, and 3,000 pictures.  It was published in 1951, so like most older reference books, I'm sure there are some outdated word entries.  However, overall, this is still a great first dictionary set.  Not every word entry has a picture, but each entry provides an easy but thorough definition and a sentence that really helps with understanding.  I have seen illustrated dictionaries with more pictures, but those tend to be more cute than functional.  This set is actually functional for reference purposes. 

This student thesaurus by The American Heritage has been a life-saver for my third-grader this year.  He is learning to write "big kid" paragraphs in his reports, and that means learning how to find new and interesting words.  This edition is not illustrated and is really meant for upper elementary and possibly junior high level readers. 

If you check out one book from this post, this should be it!  We purchased this My Picture Atlas by Roger Priddy probably 7 years ago through a montessori catalog, and it has been used every week since its purchase.  I couldn't love it more.  Its cover says it all - it gives kid-friendly facts along with colorful pictures and a map of every country in the world.  When you have this book, you know how to say hello and thank you in every country's official language.  You know what each country produces, what the people like to eat, and what their houses look like.  It is such a great reference for kids who want to learn about the world! 

Do you have any kid's reference books that you go to again and again?  Ones that your kids love?  Let me know!  

the weekend roundup!

Weekend time!  Woohoo!  What are your plans for the weekend?  Here are some kids bookish posts to read while you sit on the couch with your favorite coffee mug in one hand and kids in pajamas watching cartoons sitting around you. 

Great Kids Books shares a list of books about the upcoming U.S. elections here. 

Kids Book Review reviews super-cute picture book Mrs. Dog here and a chapter book that is perfect for third and fourth graders, The Other Christy by Oliver Phommavanh here. 

Pragmatic Mom shares some of her favorite Instagram feeds here. 

Crafty mastermind Pink Stripy Socks has an easy and cute ladybug painting craft here.  

mufaro's beautiful daughters by john steptoe

Hi there, Booktomato family!  Where we live, we are entering into the second to last weekend of summer!  This Sunday is the last Sunday that isn't a school night.  I feel bittersweet about it every year.  I am ready for the season to change from muggy Summer to crisp Autumn.  I am ready for pumpkin flavored everything and sweaters.  I am ready to see all of our school friends again.  I am not ready for my now-fourth-grader's homework to start streaming in.  I am not ready for a week that whizzes by so fast that we have to fight for family time.  In every season, turn, turn, ya know?  

Today's book pick is one I remember watching on a Reading Rainbow episode when I was little, and when I found it again at a book store, I remembered just how much I loved it!  

This marvelously illustrated book is based on the Cinderella story, and while it isn't a traditional African tale, the setting and characters are inspired by a trip the author took to Zimbabwe.  Mufaro is a happy and prosperous man with two beautiful daughters - Manyara, pretty on the outside, but selfish and impatient on the inside, and Nyasha, beautiful, kind, and loving on the inside and out.  

The Prince announces that he is looking for a wife.  When both girls decide to travel to the big city to try and become the Princess, Manyara's true colors serve her poorly while Nyasha is rewarded for her kindness.  This tale has a good amount of magic and unique twists that keep it from being a straight forward Cinderella story and make it more interesting.  

Storytime Conversations: 

• What picture in this book is your favorite?  I liked the picture of . . . 
• Why was Nyasha rewarded in the story?
• Why was Manyara punished in the story?
• How can we act more like Nyasha throughout the day?
• What fairy tale does this story remind you of?

we love little golden books: seven little postmen by margaret wise brown

Do you do any thrift store shopping?  I love a good thrift store, and I have one in my area that always has the best picture books.  Every time I go, I magically find some amazing kid's book waiting for me to take it home.  This week I found this charmingly retro little golden book, Seven Little Postmen, and I bought it for only seventy-five cents!  I paid for it and did my little good deal dance while singing Macklemore's "Thrift Shop" in my head.  It's the little things.  

What happens to a letter when you drop it in the post office box?  This book answers that question for young readers with fun illustrations by Tibor Gergely.  A little boy mails a letter to his grandma.  The letter travels on mail trucks, trains, a mail plane, and gets sorted by seven different postmen on its journey to grandma's house.  Check it out!