A few Books By Leslie Patricelli

This month I’m reviewing two new books by Leslie Patricelli. Both are picture books intended to be read to infants and toddlers. Since I’ve been reading to and with my son since he was 3 months old and managed to do a ridiculous amount of research in my effort to raise him as a bibliophile, I consider my self, if not an expert, at least well-educated on what makes a great book.

Both Baby Happy, Baby Sad and Higher, Higher make the grade. Why? Both books combine bright, easy to distinguish pictures with large easy type and simple themes.

Why are these things important? First, thought we don’t often realize it, babies don’t have 20/20 vision. Their eyesight doesn’t reach that level of clarity until around age 5 or 6. So, intricate pictures are not only a waste, but also not very effective in maintaining their attention.

Second, if you want to start as soon as possible reading to your infant, in the interest not necessarily of educating, but in creating a love for books, the concepts have to be pretty easy. Stories are for toddler; infants aren’t ready yet.

Both books feature expressive faces, something babies really enjoy and fun concepts both parents and babies can enjoy.

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A Qlubb For Moms And Other Busy People

This month Team Mom asked me to check out a new online organizer, Qlubb. After having spent an exhausting soccer season trying to keep track of all of the emails sent from various moms, to me, to the team mom and to the coachs, this tool looks like a welcome relief.

I am, of course, an avid user of a variety of group communication tools including Yahoo groups, Google groups, Skpe chat...the list goes on. I get various daily digest of conversations throughout the day in my in-box and after awhile it gets, shall we say mind boggling.

So, I thought about how Qlubb might make my life easier. to start with, it is set up for exactly those types of tasks a family might have. So it has spots for photos (and videos) - great for sharing game shots, a place to list volunteer activities and sign up and spots for comments.

The mainsection where scheduled events can be listed is clean and easy to follow - perfect for finding out at the last minute where one is supposed to be.

Unlike the more business focused groups I use, this tool is designed specifically for personal events. And I need more tools like that.

Critter Congo

The Critter Congo band in a box arrived last week for me to review. I barely opened the box when the pieces were scattered around the house.

We just love musical instruments!

I like this set because it can be played with in several ways - a key decision factor for me. The instruments can, of course be used to create music, but also they can be incorporated into pretend play.

This toy comes from Parents Magazine and is phthlates free- so mouthing shouldn't be an issue - makes it safe for even the youngest musicians (18 months+)
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I generally like toys from parents magazine because of their habit of extensive testing and their commitment of providing play value - that is, toys rarely are so structured that children can play with them only one way.

You can buy this toy at Costco and put it under the tree right away. But be ready for noise - the happy kind!

Delgado Movie Review

I usually don't like to review movies because I am ridiculously critical. One thing with which I have a real problem is that so many movies marketed to kids are rated PG.

I wasn't allowed to see a PG movie until I was 14...and to earn a PG rating (GP in those days) it didn't take much. Nowhere near as much violence was allowed in a PG movies as there is today.

But, I was asked to review this movie, so I took a look at the trailer and the website. This movie has won a number of awards and it's apparent why. It is beautifully made and is a wonderful story. I would actually like to go see it!

On the other hand, I do think that PG movies should be reserved for those say at least 9 or 10.

Herb The Vegetarian Dragon

I'm a big fan of Barefoot Books. We have quite a selection at our house. I usually go for the history based books and those that feature storytellers stories and get them from my friend Prism who sells them and has a great storytelling and craft business.

But I got an email from Rebecca, who sells Barefoot on the other side of the country to review Herb, the Vegetarian Dragon.

Though I'd seen this book, I had always passed it over. Thank Rebecca, it's now one of our favorites! AS IT SAYS ON THE WEB SITE:

"A magical read for all new readers, young and old; Herb's story tells the tale of the future." - Sir Paul McCartney.

I have to agree!

The Secret Mountain

You know I am a fan of books on tape, books with CDs and in general anyway to increase a child's vocabulary.

It hit home this week when my son decided that he wanted to read the history book we, as a family try to read together each week. This, is of course, out attempt to supplement the woeful way in which history is covered in school.

Since he has listened to stories on CDs and tape, on a wide variety of subjects, he started reading and much to the amazement of both my husband and I easily read the words, "Mesopotamia", "Olympus" and "Hammurabi".

Wow!

So, I was excited to have a chance to review a few books from The Secret Mountain.We received:

Dream Songs
A Duck in New York City
Down at the Sea Hotel

All three were terrific. Unlike traditional audio books you might find at a large bookstore, these focus on engaging the child as a storyteller might. The CDs allow a child to hear the story over and over again - a great alternative to watching TV and a way to expose them words that they will later encounter when reading.

I hadn't heard of this line before but I will add it to my list of favorite vendors with Barefoot Books and Jim Weiss's Greathall CDs

Bubbles and Doodles In The Bath

I have to say, I was less than thrilled when I received this SpinMaster Kid Kleen Bath Blizzard.

I’m not a big fan of machines that do for kids what they can easily do themselves or, in the case of a bath toy…what naturally happens when you add rushing water to soap.

But, my son was absolutely delighted with this toy. Maybe it has something to do with boys and machines.

It was easy to set up and so far, seems pretty solidly made. The constant stream of bubbles that it produces lets children extend their imagination as cooks, waterfall explorers and what ever else comes to mind.

The second Spinmatser Bath toy we both loved.

The Aquadoodle mat works great both in and out of the tub. It's a pressure based rather large drawing mat that comes with a pen that can be filled with water to provide the pressure. No worries if you lose it though, and stick, rod or even a finger will work just fine.