Here's something we love: Now through April 29, you and your little ones can cast votes for the finalists in the Children's Choice Book Awards . What a cool way to get your kid involved in picking new titles to grab from the library. The…
Just in time for Earth Day on April 22, a new book weaves together all the intricate threads --biology, climate, culture, economics, evolution, food, history, and politic -- that combined, makes up the rich tapestry of our world. And it …
It's a given in most of my kids' story books: Other than the demise of a wicked witch or two, the main characters are going to live until the end of the story. But, I just discovered a timeless, beautiful tale about life--and, yes, its e…
I am used to seeing my kids pushing buttons, laughing delightedly as they zoom around another wii game, or play with their father's tablet. But, let me tell you, I wasn't prepared to see them having the same reaction to a simple three-co…
I've been a long time reader of Meagan Francis' blog The Happiest Mom , not only because any mom of five who can string together coherent sentences has my utter respect, but because her straightforward, friendly, and non-judgmental appro…
My heart skips a beat when a new shelter magazine arrives in the mail, but ten minutes of flipping through the pages usually leaves me wanting more. The houses are too perfect, too expected and too completely out of touch with my life an…
Ah spring. The birds are chirping, the buds are poking through the soil, and if you ask the sigOth, miniskirts are making appearances on the leggy 20-somethings in our neighborhood. What's not to love? Right in time, I've found a delicio…
Though my sleep-addled brain may never forgive him for Fox in Socks , that tongue-twister of a story my son requested night after night, there is no question that Dr. Seuss' collection of fanciful stories include some of our very favorit…
I first got to know Gretchen Rubin when she was kind enough to include me in one of her Happiness Project interviews on her popular blog. At the time, I had no idea that she was about to come out with the #1 New York Times best-selling b…
Kyran Pittman's subtitle for her memoir Planting Dandelions is "Field Notes from a Semi-Domesticated Life." I hope she'll forgive me for repurposing it here to tell you why this is the mothering memoir you would be foolish to skip becaus…
Even if I had known about One Year to an Organized Life with Baby when I was first pregnant, I probably would have been too disorganized to read it. We had recently moved to a new house and to say we were unprepared is an understatement.…
My dad died when I was 22 -- long before I met my husband, or had my son -- and my mom is very much alive. So you wouldn't necessarily think that the book Parentless Parents , by my friend Allison Gilbert , would resonate with someone li…
We have eagerly been awaiting the Let's Panic About Babies book every since we first became pregnant with our own babies. And that's saying something. Because back then, we didn't even know anything about authors Alice Bradley and Eden M…
On any given day, I might have to drop off a neighbor's kid at his piano teacher's house although he doesn't know her last name or the name of the street on which she lives, clip a finch's toenails, and negotiate with an international cr…
I'm not the Most Neurotic Mom in the World, but some days I feel I'd make it to First Runner Up, ready to step in, should she be unable to fulfill her duties. I work hard to give my children a healthy, positive, eco-friendly environment …
I only had one pregnancy that required winter clothes and boy, was that a challenge. Pants never seemed to fit me and sweaters always made me hot , so I found myself wearing the same few outfits over and over again. Too bad I didn't have…
"Eyes and ears are much respected, but the butt has been neglected." And so begins the masterful and hilarious The Butt Book , by Artie Bennett, illustrated by Mike Lester. Let's face it, few things are funnier to a little kid (and those…
After many months of buzz, hoopla, and general fanfare, I finally got around to checking out Christoph Niemann's I LEGO N.Y. , and as a native New Yawka, I know can't imagine what I had been waiting for. This board book is everything I l…
My five year-old's current vocabulary include words like despondent, haberdashery, and Mezzo-Soprano. Not because she's any sort of verbal genius, but because her grandmother introduced her to one of the most wonderful books for kids I'v…
My husband loves to joke around with my son about "those old-fashioned paper whatchamacallits." We're all avid readers, but my husband and I converted to e-readers a long time ago. We've actually discussed whether or not we should bother…
Enjoy these, our editors' favorite books, music, and DVDs of the year to help keep our kids entertained and educated . And frankly, us too. Books for little kids Even after reading it oh, every night for a month, my youngest daughter sti…
There are a gazillion ABC books out there--plenty of which we feature here. While I believe that as long as you're reading to your child ,you're already doing great, once in a while a book comes along that really stands out from the othe…
Whether you celebrate Christmas, Hanukkah, neither, or both, there's no better gift for kids than the gift of reading. If you don't need a fourth copy of the Velveteen Rabbit to make you cry on your toddler's footy pajamas, try one of th…
Manners books for children may sound a little old-fashioned, but thank goodness they aren't. I've come to realize that children of a certain age love learning rules and getting to understand social construct; my own five year-old thinks …