Author Archives: Vicki

Personalized Christmas Books to Make the Holidays Special!

Posted by Nov 9, 2017 Book Lists, Books, Christmas, Educational Products, Family Fun, Holidays, Learning

Updated: November 2019

Start a family Christmas tradition with these personalized Christmas books for kids! #christmasbooks #holidaybooks #bookgifts #christmastraditionsWhen it comes to shopping for Christmas gifts, I am always looking for special gifts that really mean something. Growing up, my parents always bought ornaments for my sister and I to add to our collection, and I continue that tradition now with my daughter. I have also made it a tradition to purchase a new Christmas book for my daughter every year. This year, I was thrilled to be introduced to the beautiful personalized children’s books from Put Me in the Story, and I am so excited that they offer fun Christmas books! I decided to gather a list of some of my favorites (as well as one which would make a great holiday gift for the grandparents!).

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Educational Gifts for All the Kids On Your List

Posted by Nov 6, 2017 Christmas, Educational Products, Holidays, Learning

The holidays are right around the corner! When it comes to purchasing gifts for the kids in my life, I have always leaned more toward the educational (blame the teacher in me, as well as my parents). I decided to gather up a list of some of our favorite educational products that we have checked out this year, as well as a few that I have my eye on as my daughter gets older. I hope you find some holiday gift giving inspiration here!

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Terrific Turkey Books

Posted by Nov 2, 2017 Book Lists, Books, Fall, Holidays, Learning, Seasons, Thanksgiving

Turkey Day is almost here! As the weather turns colder and we prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving, I wanted to gather a list of fun turkey themed books to inspire our learning this month. There are lots of fun turkey books for all ages, so I hope you find some new ones to explore on here!

Standard Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. I may receive a commission from purchases you make through the links in this post.

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Recognizing Veterans

Posted by Oct 26, 2017 Book Based Activities, Book Lists, Books, Holidays, Learning, Toddlerhood

As Veteran’s Day approaches, it is important to explain to kids why we spend a day recognizing our Veteran’s and honoring them for their service to our country. There are lots of great books about honoring the brave soldiers who have sacrificed for our freedom. To recognize the holiday as a family, I’ve compiled a list of books to share, as well as fun activities to bring them to life.

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How a Learning Tower Can Benefit Your Child

Posted by Oct 19, 2017 Educational Products, Family Fun, Learning, Toddlerhood

Kids naturally learn from watching and imitating. From the very beginning, babies and toddlers try to speak, move and act like the children and adults around them. How many times have you seen a small child pick up a phone and pretend to have a whole conversation? They learn by watching us and by attempting to do these things on their own. Allowing kids to help around the house is a great way to encourage independence, curiosity and creativity. It also provides opportunities for learning and practicing important skills. We recently had the opportunity to try a great learning tool from Little Partners which allows all ages to get more involved.

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How Many Seeds in a Pumpkin?

Posted by Oct 16, 2017 Book Based Activities, Books, Fall, Learning, Seasons, Toddlerhood

Updated on October 16, 2019
Jump into fall with these STEM activities inspired by the book "How Many Seeds in a Pumpkin?" #howmanyseedsinapumpkin #fallSTEM #pumpkinstem #pumpkinactivities

Pumpkins provide so many fun opportunities to learn and practice important skills. Plus, who doesn’t feel festive when surrounded by bright orange pumpkins? We have already visited at least one apple orchard and pumpkin patch this year, so I was inspired to find lots of ways to use them in our learning. I was also thrilled to find a book that ties math and other lessons in with pumpkins and the fall season. Check out all of the fun we had counting pumpkin seeds!

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Give the Gift of Laughter and Creativity!

Posted by Oct 12, 2017 Books, Family Fun, Raising Readers, Toddlerhood

One of the best parts of being a parent is the opportunity to act like a kid again. As a teacher, some of my favorite memories are dancing, singing and just having fun with the kids. The same is true now that I am a parent. The other day while emptying the dishwasher, my two year old picked up a spatula, sat on the floor and used it to “row” herself across the kitchen floor — all the while singing “Row Row Row Your Boat”. When she asked me to join, I sat right down with her and scooted across the floor too. And the laughter from that moment will stick with me as an amazing memory.

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Pumpkin Activities for Kids!

Posted by Oct 9, 2017 Book Based Activities, Books, Fall, Family Fun, Halloween, Holidays, Learning, Seasons

Updated October 16, 2019
Pumpkin activities to help kids with name recognition and money skills, plus a Jack-o-lantern sensory project and craft! #pumpkincrafts #pumpkinbooks #fallsensory #namerecognition #dramaticplay

I love the fall! If you regularly read the blog or follow me on social media, you may already know this since I tend to mention it a lot. I love the sights, sounds, smells, and tastes. I’ve been really excited to get out to our local farmer’s markets and orchards because all of the different apples, pumpkins and vegetables inspire me to create fun projects and recipes with my daughter. Today’s book follows a little boy and his mom as they go out to the farmer’s market in search of the perfect pumpkin, and we paired it with lots of fun pumpkin activities for kids!

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Battling Parenting Woes with Help from Boys Town!

Posted by Oct 7, 2017 Full Grown Bookworms, Toddlerhood

Reading is and always has been a passion of mine. So when I became a mom, I was anxious to get my hands on all kinds of reading materials that would help me be the best parent I could be. As my daughter has grown, so has my reading list. I firmly believe that kids who see their parents reading will be more likely to read, so I take every opportunity to read texts from a variety of sources. While I still have quite the stack of parenting books, I also turn to the resources on the internet more often than not. Boys Town is full of fantastic parenting resources offering helpful tips and advice for this crazy journey of parenting.

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You Are Wonderful

Posted by Oct 4, 2017 Authors, Book Based Activities, Books, Family Fun, Raising Readers, Toddlerhood

As a mother, it is so important to me that I raise my daughter to be proud of who she is. I want her to have confidence to do the things she loves and surround herself with people who see the wonderful person that she is. I make it a mission to tell her how loved she is, and how much I appreciate the things that make her special. Luckily Nancy Tillman’s amazing books give me that opportunity whenever we read them together. I am a huge fan of her beautiful work, so I was thrilled when I was offered the opportunity to check out her newest one about helping kids discover themselves!

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