We have visited our local public library a few times since Cumorah got her own library card recently. I think we will actually make it a regular outing for us now. My original plan was to get our library cards at our community library (as was required) and then visit the libraries in the surrounding communities that are just as close but in much nicer neighborhoods. The city within which our home actually resides is not the most desirable city to live in. It is not a particularly pleasant or safe community. There is no way ever that we would send our children to school in the district we live in. Absolutely, positively, no possible way. Ever. I would have no problem sending them to the neighboring school districts (if we weren't homeschooling). Our home is on the border and is on a sort of little secret street. So though we technically live in the community, it does not feel like it. So, anyway, I really didn't think we would be hanging out at the library so much. I didn't have a great experience when I went to get my library card when we moved here. But, we found out that the children's section of the library is actually quite wonderful. Sure, it's a little old and warn, but it is a great place to be. It's quite large. There is plenty of comfortable seating, rocking chairs, a train table, a duplo block table, literacy computer games and a puppet theater. The librarians have been super nice to us. My children get to pick out free books to keep every month. It must be a perk of living in a poor area. The library books' due dates are flexible. I got the impression that they are really just happy to get their books back, and will do all they can to not fine their patrons. And while there is no weekly story time because there are not enough
children who attend (all the locals are in head start preschool
apparently), the library is pleasantly uncrowded in the morning. They
are really rather relaxed about everything. I feel quite comfortable chasing my four little monsters around. All in all, I think it is perfect for us. We can spend a good two hours on our library trip just playing and picking out books and reading. I love that they have all the early reader books organized by level and what not. It makes it so easy for Cumorah to pick out a bunch of books to check out for reading practice.
We recently checked out this valentine themed book.
I grabbed it from a display of valentine books and opened it up. I saw a cute picture of a mama fox and her little cubs in the middle of what appeared to be a valentine's mess. I thought it was cute. Little did I know...
Later at home I started to read this book and I chuckled to myself as a very familiar feeling story unfolded and then at one point my chuckle turned into a little choked sob. It quickly passed, but I must say that this book really, truly spoke to me on a very personal level. How did the author know so well what my life is like? On valentine's day Mama fox decides to bake a special valentine cake for her family and the children will make valentines and Papa will come home and all will be perfect. After she cleans up breakfast including the banana the baby was sitting on and the spoons she threw, Mama gets out things for her four little cubs to make valentines. But the baby is being fussy and Mama is holding her and she upsets the mixing bowl and breaks it. Mama has to go to the store to get more butter. The children cut the red paper into confetti sized pieces and toss them all over and glue valentines to a chair. They all start fussing and demanding lunch. Mama tries to put the baby down for a nap (she won't take one) and the rest of the children decide to mix up the cake as best they can while she is with the baby and make even more mess. Papa comes home to a very big mess and crying children since they can't find the secret valentine they made for him. But in the end, it turns out all right. The valentine was stuck on the baby's back while she was sleeping under the table since she didn't take her nap and the cake turns out to be delicious and nobody seems to mind the confetti and other assorted valentine making mess all over the floor during dinner. This sounds so familiar. So very, very familiar. I think I need this book. You know, the only thing that was obviously different from my life in this story was how calmly Mama fox handles it all. She is amazing.
Yay for going to the liberry! We love it. And we love to regularly spread all the liberry books on the living room floor. And we love to show Daddy all the liberry books that we "buyed" at the liberry. I do keep trying to remind them that the correct term is 'borrow', but I will be happy to hear them call it the liberry for the rest of my life. I will never tire of that word. Nor will I tire of them enjoying going out to eat at a res-nont. You must say the nont part with a distinct nasal sound. It's awesome.
