WWRW: Books for Kids of All Ages

Are you on Pinterest?

I am.  I'm not terribly good at it, but I have a board called Books! where I pin interesting articles about reading and other bookly things.

This article, "Top Ten Favorite Books for Struggling Middle School Readers" piqued my interest.  I'm always on the lookout for good Hi-Lo books (high interest-low reading level) for my dyslexic student.

This Top Ten List has quite a few that seem to have changed Edmund's opinion of reading time.

Take this graphic novel, Bad Island by Doug TenNaple.

Edmund woke up, on a Saturday, went out to my car just to retrieve this book, and completed it that very day!  That, my friends, has never happened before.

I read Bad Island too.  It's about a family that gets stranded on a mysterious island with unusual plants, dangerous-never-before-seen-animals, and other deadly inhabitants.  This story is interspersed with the scenes from "another world, another time," in which aliens aided by humans are battling other aliens.  The two stories are connected in a surprising way. The family learns to work together to save each other and "free" the island (that's not really an island).

The son, Reese, has some issues with obedience and had actually been planning to run away before he was forced to go on this family "vacation."  His disobedience at one point allows him to save his parents from certain death. His father alludes to the fact that he knew his son would not obey the order to return to camp.  But all in all, I have nothing to complain about this fun little adventure story that has given my own son a boost in confidence.

At bedtime, Patrick is reading Where the Red Fern Grows to Edmund, and sometimes to Peter too.

Yes, Peter is a high school senior.  Yes, Peter is going away to college this fall.  (One UD legacy from this family and counting!)

But who wouldn't want to hear again how those nasty Pritchard boys challenged Billy and his Redbone Coonhounds, Old Dan and Little Ann, to tree the Ghost Coon?

Wilson Rawl's Where the Red Fern Grows is a wonderful tale for any age.  It's been awhile since we read or listened to it here.  Patrick noted that he had forgotten that Billy's mother is expecting a baby, a pleasant surprise in literature.

Huge props to Laura at This Felicitous Life for introducing us to James Mayhew's Ella Bella Ballerina series!

Jill is totally enamored with Ella Bella and her ballet teacher's magical music box.  In each book, Ella Bella learns the story behind a ballet.  So far, we have read Ella Bella Ballerina and Cinderella, Ella Bella Ballerina and Swan lake, and Ella Bella Ballerina and The Sleeping Beauty.

I've learned quite a bit about these ballets myself from James Mayhew's beautiful picture books.  Jill's birthday is Friday, and I *think* she might be getting a few of these titles to have and to hold.

I've been reading about Melissa Wiley's The Prairie Thief on Charlotte's blog, so I went and got it for my own self.

The Prairie Thief  is a charming story about a few legendary creatures of old in a new world, the American frontier.  I don't want to give anything away, but I will tell you that these creatures don't only appear to and communicate with the children (as I expected) but adults can see them too!

A fun book, I'd say The Prairie Thief is good for any kid who can read chapter books on their own.

You can also read all about author Melissa Wiley and her family at her blog, Here in the Bonny Glen.

Right before Easter, I went on a quest looking for age-appropriate Bible stories for Jill. From the depths of my memory I remembered these Little Chunky Bible Stories that Peter and Susan used to have.  I think I bought them at WalMart once upon a time. We had tiny lift-the-flap books about Jonah, Moses, Daniel, and David.

It took me awhile to find them online, and sadly they are all out of print EXCEPT All Aboard Noah's Ark! (A Bible Story Chunky Flap Book.  All of the titles are authored by one Mary Josephs, a fact which aided my used book search immensely.

Short, sweet, and scripturally sound (as far as I can tell) I did manage to get a few of the OOP titles used and Jill got a few new and new-to-us lift-the-flap Bible stories in her Easter basket.  These books are perfect for occupying little hands in Church.  I find it impressive that most pages have not one, but TWO flaps to lift.

I'm easily impressed.

That's it from me this week.  I look forward to reading your WWRW posts!

An InLinkz Link-up

Clickables on Holy Thursday

If you don't read Rebecca at Shoved to Them you should, and you definitely need to check out her 9 year old daughter's art blog that Rebecca introduces in this post.

Peter is taking a Theology of the Body elective this semester.  He told me that they watched this TED talk in class recently:

Which led to me telling him about former America's Next Top Model contestant Leah Darrow and her journey from fashionista to chastity speaker.

Which led to him telling me about actress (former Power Ranger) and designer, Jessica Rey, and her line of modest swimsuits inspired by Audrey Hepburn.

The things she has to say about scientific research, male brains, and bikinis is all new to me (around 4:30). National Geographic is one of her sources.

Did I mention that she is a former Power Ranger?  That fact alone gives her a lot of credibility in my book.

Sweet Beth lost her little Rebecca Irene this week.  I just can't help picturing Beth and Rebecca and thinking of this mama who lost her baby too.

This video of a young man with Down's Syndrome getting his college acceptance letter made me smile.

Lastly, I have a lovely conversion story to share with you about a couple entering the Church this weekend. I am always blown away when I see people make this journey from another faith or from no faith at all.  Seeing new Catholics profess the faith at the Holy Saturday vigil is always a high point of this weekend.  

Have a blessed Easter!

7QT A Week in Review

1.  Saturday

We got to see Jim Gaffigan's show and spend some time with him backstage.  You can see that his baby bump rivals mine.

2. Sunday

We watched a Family Movie chosen from Netflix based on the number of stars it got.

Kon Tiki did not disappoint.  Patrick and I had both read children's versions of Thor Heyerdahl's Kon Tiki when we were kids, so we were familiar with the historic adventure from Peru to Polynesia.

Edmund enjoyed it too, thank goodness, because we were aiming to please the 11 yo old boy demographic.

3.

Monday, I got a call from my midwives.  No gestational diabetes, but a little on the anemic side.

Phew.  I'm not just a lazy sack of trash.  I'm not just old and pregnant.  I'm old, pregnant, and have low red blood cell count!  I can change one of those things!

I got this stuff for a small fortune at a health food store.  The bottle is hard to open and I spilled a few drops yesterday.

Shoo-Wee!  That stuff smells like rusty nail water.  It tastes slightly better though. I expect to have massive increased energy levels a n y m i n u t e n o w.

4.  Tuesday was the Feast of the Annunciation.  

All of these big Catholic vocabulary words can be very confusing, so I made a matching game for Edmund.

I printed pictures of famous artworks such as the Annunciation above, the Assumption, the Immaculate Conception, the Nativity, the Epiphany, the Presentation, the Baptism of the Lord, the Transfiguration, the Crucifixion, the Resurrection, the Ascension, Pentecost, the Assumption, and a few others.

Then I printed the words in a big, nice-yet-easy-to-read font.  Cut the words out let him match them up.

It's pretty darn near impossible to find a picture of the Incarnation that is not the Annunciation or the Nativity. 

I used this one, which is sort of cheesy, and maybe confusing.  

I was hoping there would be a picture of Jesus appearing somewhere, saying, "I am the Word Incarnate." Sort of laying it all out there for us, the way Mary did at Lourdes when she said, "I am the Immaculate Conception."  But I couldn't find one.  If you know of one, please share!

5.  Wednesday, I decided to go ahead and put away my three maternity sweaters, because the sight of them is mucho depressing.  

I also got out all of Jill's summer clothes because, gosh darn it, is supposed to be SPRING! I refuse to let the weather man dictate what we will or will not wear.

I even cleaned out the front hall closet AND I put all of the snow pants in the basement.

Yes, I know I have cursed Chicagoland with more snow as a result of my actions, but on the plus side, Jill has at least three potential Easter dresses.  Scroll to QT 7 to see one of them in action during our Easter dress photo shoot.

6.  My high-schoolers have been on Spring Break this week.  

Peter is on the left.  

Peter got to go on a self-paid trip to Walt Disney World with his baseball team.  Susan and Lucy got to help me catch up on laundry and clean out that front hall closet.

I had been planning to take everyone out for breakfast yesterday, but middle of the night stomach flu hit Jill, so we were in no shape to go anywhere.

Miracle No. 1:  She had to go potty right when she got sick, so she was already near the toilet!  

Miracle No. 2:  She seemed fine all day, and no one else seems to have caught the bug.

She is feeling 100% again and was deee-lighted when this adorable pillow doll of her patron saint came in the mail from WaltzingM.  

Charlotte sells both the finished saint dolls, or the doll kits for crafty peeps.  

7.  Today, I made up for yesterday by taking the big girls out to lunch at California Pizza Kitchen (fish tacos for me, shrimp fettuccine for them), and on an epic shopping adventure.  We were very happy that Patrick was able to work from home today.  

Edmund only called me three times while we were out, twice about history, once about math. He is not on Spring Break.

There is a Dress Barn near me that we have never ventured into.  I looked at their stuff online with Susan and Lucy the other night and we were BLOWN AWAY by their selection of adorable yet modest dresses that are reasonably priced.  I signed up for emails to get a 20% off coupon and with the "buy 2 dresses, get $10 off sale" we scored big time in the dress department today.

Too bad you can't see her coral wedges that match perfectly.

Patrick might not think they need two dresses each, but we have the Easter triduum, Lucy has a Spring Dance, plus there's Peter's graduation, my brother Peter's wedding and rehearsal dinner, and a summer baptism coming up.

Each of these dresses was near or less than $40.  

This one is actually from Kohl's, but it was also under $40 with my 20% off coupon last weekend.

Plus, we figured out their sizes so we can take advantage of the much larger selection online, in case someone happens to need this one, which fit either of them perfectly, but only came in beige (yuck) in the store:

Both retro and classic.  

Or this one:

The website tells you what size the model is wearing AND how tall they are!  It's nice to know that this model is 5'10" so this dress won't be shockingly short on my 5'9" daughter.  Lucy wears the petite sizes because she did not get the amazon genes.

We loved lots of the colorful dresses.  Is it just me or does LOFT only sell clothes in gray, ecru and skin color lately?  The girls appreciated that Dress Barn is arranged by color.  Don't look good in orange? Just move away from the orange section.  

Patrick's aunt used to be a buyer for Dress Barn. Susan and Lucy were wondering just how does one become a buyer for a store like that, and wouldn't that be a dream job?  

Yes.  Yes, it would.

Linking up with the cool kids at Conversion Diary.

Easter Basket Ideas for Everyone

For the younger set:

I recommended the Rhythm Band RB210S 12-Pack Egg Shakers last year, and they were a big hit at our house. I split the dozen with a cousin. Six shaker eggs is more than enough for any household.

I've been looking at the Calico Critters Hopscotch Rabbit Family for awhile now, and was thrilled to discover that Calico Critter sets are buy one get one 50% off at Toys R Us right now.  I used my eBates to get a little extra cash back and avoided shipping charges by doing in-store pick-up.

I know Target is selling a much cheaper version, but I read some side-by-side reviews, lost at least a dozen ebay auctions, and decided to invest in some new-in-box figures for Jill.  I just know these bunnies are going to love living with the Disney princess figures.

Target's Li'l Woodzeez wins in the tiny animal buildings and accessories department though.  At a fraction of the cost, the Li'l Woodzeez general store, bakery, cottage, and camper are every bit as good as their more expensive Calico Critter cousins.  Jill's birthday is right around the corner!

Schleich animals show up here for all gift occasions.  These Schleich Chicks look especially springy to me.

I grabbed a Melissa & Doug Jumbo Coloring Pad for Jill when she was sick a few weeks ago, and she has spent HOURS coloring in it with washable markers.  The paper is perfect for markers, and the illustrations are both big enough yet detailed enough for little hands.

I love Dover and there are a lot of Dover Easter books to choose from:  stained glass books, sticker books, books of temporary tattoos, and plain ole coloring books.  I give Dover books to all of my kids, regardless of age.

Even Grammy loves a temporary tattoo every now and then.

For teens:

There are so many fun mash-up tee-shirts at Tee Fury, like this Inconceivables tee. Get it?  It's The Incredibles but with the Princess Bride characters?  Brilliant.

An egg shaped lip balm?  Perfect.  The eos Organic Smooth Sphere Lip Balm (5 Pack) is available through my affiliate link right there, or at your local Costco.

Santa put some peppermint VIA packs in the stockings of my three high-schoolers, and they got some clearanced pumpkin spice VIA packs for St. Valentine's Day.  Nothing brightens a teenager's day like a latte on the way to school.  I know, because they label their packs with sharpie and NO ONE had better mess with them.

For Easter, they might be getting the Starbucks VIA Latte - Vanilla Latte (5 Single Serve Packets), or I might switch to Starbucks Via Ready Brew Iced Caramel Flavored Coffee in hopes that warmer temps are coming soon.

For boys:

We are perpetually short on AirSoft ammo, loads of weapons, no ammo.  Edmund will be thrilled to be able to reload once again.

He's also getting some Paper Targets because some thoughtful person (me) gave him this paper target stand for his birthday, that did not include any actual targets!

The boys in this house are also getting batting gloves or golf gloves, golf balls or baseballs, and maybe a pitchback for practice.

It's kind of a big ticket item for an Easter basket, but that's what happens when your birthday is 12 days after Christmas.

Our baskets will also have the obligatory chocolate bunnies, jelly beans, and Peeps. Always gotta have the Peeps.  My kids don't even like them, so that means they are ALL for ME!  Bwah-ha-ha!

Theme Thursday: Funny

I spy two photobombers.

I love photobombs.  Especially the animal variety, thanks to Dwija.  Do you see it below?

I also love goofy faces.  See my godson in the top picture. And my children, goddaughter, nieces, and nephews below.

How was our week in Texas? 

Perfect.  

Absolutely perfect.