Second Child Syndrome

I know there are things we did the first time around that didn't happen for our second one. Poor bear doesn't have nearly as many baby pictures. Has no baby book. "Cried it out" earlier. Wears tons of hand-me-downs. Has always had to share our love and attention.

Of course there are good things about being second. Breast feeding was easier and lasted longer. We let her play more without hovering. She has a big sister to do everything with.

I like to think the good and bad balance most of the time. Sometimes it's obvious that it's just not though. Like this morning...

When bug was two we started the potty training process and it was A BIG DEAL. Bright pink Baby Bjorn potty chair. New big girl undies with Minnie Mouse on them. Princess pull-ups. The whole deal. We cheered and rewarded every success and stressed over every failure.

Flash forward to now and our bear. She isn't two yet. When we moved into the new house we happened to find the potty chair. Because we didn't want to have to look for it in a few months we haphazardly put it under the sink in the downstairs bathroom. It's been sitting there with no attention drawn to it. 

This morning I was trying to rush out of the house for gymnastics with bug when she decided she had to pee. Disgruntled, I dragged her into the bathroom. While we were in there I realized that the lonely (dusty) little pink potty was full of pee.

Without any prompting the bear had taken it upon herself to use the potty in the few minutes she was diaper-less between her morning change and getting dressed. And we had no idea. Amazing. And kind of sad.

Why I say, "I'm tired"

A few days ago I made a post resolving to stop saying, "I'm tired" as an excuse. I think recognizing the problem was all I needed. It doesn't mean I never skip out on a workout (like this morning...) or never say "no" to one of the girls' crazy requests, but I'm forcing myself to think about the real reason behind it.

That said, I still actually AM pretty tired by the end of the night even when it's a typical day without any extraordinary tasks. I was complaining to my husband about being so tired and that something must be wrong with me. He looked at me incredulously and went through my day pointing out everything we do to keep the family going. When we actually went through it, I'm impressed I'm not MORE tired.

Before I share my "to-do-list" from yesterday I want to add the disclaimer that I am NOT in any way implying that I am superwoman or any busier than any other mom out there today. I just think this is an interesting look at where many of us are at trying to balance motherhood, careers, school, maintaining a house, and tackling the complexities of nutrition.

Some notes about the list...

• I love iced coffee in the summer and have been using this recipe from Bon Appetit magazine to make an iced coffee concentrate. This method saves space in the fridge.
• Packing bug's lunch is like a really complex guessing game. I have to decide what food she might decide is acceptable to enter her stomach at the exact moment in time that she is sitting in the cafeteria. What she deems appropriate one day is not necessarily a winner the next day...
• Errands before work and during lunch have become the mainstay these days because it's too hard to drag the kids out in the small window between dinner and bedtime.
• Dinner last night was a roasted eggplant lasagna that I have made before and love. The girls refused to eat the eggplant this time so I gave in and made them spaghetti to toss with the ricotta/sauce mixture. I followed the recipe here from Peace, Love, and Low-carb. The meat sauce is amazing, but I was trying to save some time so I didn't make it. Instead, I used our favorite locally produced jarred marinara sauce.
• I like to utilize the delay start on my washer and wrinkle care cycle on my dryer to plan laundry around the girls' bedtime. If I put wash in when I get home on a one hour delay, it is usually finished right after dinner/dishes to switch to the dryer. I keep the dryer on the wrinkle setting so it keeps it from getting wrinkly if bedtime takes longer than usual or I get distracted starting another task and don't get to it right away.
• Homework has gone very well so far (it's only been two days...). We are using the kitchen table as our designated homework spot and I keep a bin of sharpened pencils and crayons/markers in the hall closet and bring them to the table for homework.
• The recipe I prepared for dinner tonight is based on the stuffed spaghetti squash recipe here from Closet Cooking. I made a lot of modifications. If it comes out well, I'll share the recipe soon.
• I'm not going to share the creamer recipes because they were not what I would consider a success. They are drinkable and add a pleasant fall flavor to coffee, but I really feel that the non-dairy milk alternatives created more of a flavoring than a creamer. They taste very "all natural" in a way that I am not entirely sure is desirable. I'm going to keep working on it...

Musings of a Five Year old (before 7 am)

This morning my monster children wonderful princesses were up around 6 am. This isn't really any earlier than usual, but it still doesn't make it my favorite time to get up. I had been up late last night catching up on laundry, making mini-muffin quiches for the bug's lunch, roasting eggplant, and putting together an eggplant lasagna to have for dinner tonight.

I obliged and rolled out of bed when bug asked for breakfast in typical dramatic five-year-old fashion - "Mommy! You have to get up! My tummy is so empty...listen, it's grumbling!" I trudged down the stairs carrying the baby bear and told them I would cook once I had a chance to go pee. As usual, this is never a private affair. The bug stood in the doorway urging me to go faster while the baby bear stood inches from me saying, "eww, poop!" and trying to shove toilet paper into the toilet behind me.

When the bear finished her job, she left the room. The bug continued to watch me as I washed my hands, but was quiet. Then, she tilted her head to one side contemplatively and said, "Why am I here?" I thought she meant in the bathroom watching me urinate and wanted to reply that I was wondering the same thing, but I took the good Mommy route and instead asked, "What do you mean?" And the answer I never saw coming was, "You know...why do I even exist?"

I really expected that she would be having this conversation in a dorm room over cheap vodka listening to Phish someday rather than at dawn while watching her mother pee, but I gave her the most honest and appropriate answer I could think of, "Because Mommy and Daddy wanted to have a baby, so we made you, and here you are."

But my ridiculous early morning pop quiz didn't end there. She thought about it for a few seconds and continued with, "How do babies even get out?" I believe in honesty when it comes to bodily functions so I told her, "Well, the baby can come out through the mommy's private parts or the doctor can make a cut in her belly and take the baby out." Again, she thought about it and with a mildly disgusted look on her face she declared, "When I have a baby, I definitely want it to come out my private parts," and walked away.

Her existential musings seemed to have ended as abruptly as they started and she went off to play with her sister while I went to the kitchen to cook breakfast (which they would go on to NOT eat, also typical). Alas, she had one more winner for me before the morning was up and came into the kitchen a few minutes later. Without introduction she said, "Well, I guess it's too late...I was really hoping I would be a twin," and walked away again.

Where do these things come from?!

I'm tired

A few days ago I was driving with my daughter and she asked if we could play tag outside when we got home. Similarly to most people over the age of ten, tag doesn't really excite me that much. Sighing, I replied, "Mommy's really tired, maybe we can do it later." She made an exasperated noise and said, "You're always tired! When will you not be so tired??"

I realized that saying, " I'm tired" is just filler for dead conversation or (in my case) an excuse.

An excuse not to get up and jog. An excuse to eat junk food. An excuse to avoid exercise. An excuse to be sluggish and lazy. An excuse not to cook a healthy dinner. An excuse to let my girls watch the I-pad longer than they should. An excuse to avoid household tasks. Excuses, excuses, excuses!

So I'm trying to eliminate this phrase from my vocabulary and stop making it so easy put things off. Because it's a lot harder to admit saying I'm tired means, "I'm lazy and don't care enough about my kid to indulge her crazy game of tag" than to say, "I'm tired and deserve a rest so I'll let her watch the I-pad instead."

Kindergarten Blues

Two days ago my daughter started kindergarten. Logically, it shouldn't be that big of a deal. She's been in daycare since she was a baby and went to a full time pre-K program last year. We encourage her to be independent and she's great at making friends. I loved school as a kid and want her to have an even better experience than I did.

Knowing this, I was still on the verge of tears all summer every time I thought about her starting kindergarten.

Well, the big day has come and gone. I shed a few tears walking away from her on the first day, but kept my composure by focusing on how happy and excited she was. I've felt such a strange mixture of sadness and grief, I've had a hard time processing it.

Tonight, I figured it out in a completely accidental way. I went out to get a coffee to keep me going for a night of crafts and baking. On the way home I elected to drive by our old house. As soon as I saw the familiar street sign, I felt a sickening drop in my stomach and wave of grief wash over me.

In that moment it hit me why kindergarten was such a difficult thing to understand. Just like our old house, my "baby" was a thing of the past. They both represent so many wonderful memories, warm feelings, and "I want to remember this forever" moments that are never going to be repeated. And because it was so meaningful, letting go hurts a bit. But just as I kept driving, looking ahead to our new house, I am ready to embrace the new life my girl is beginning. 

As a book lover I like to think of it not as the closure of one chapter, but the opening lines of another just waiting to be written...

September Post A Day

During my residency I tried to take on a "post a day" challenge and kind of...almost...not really at all succeeded. The issue isn't that I don't have things to say, recipes to share, or pictures to post. My problem is that I have a bit of an obsessive-compulsive personality and it takes me an ungodly amount of time to write each post. I write and revise so much that I sometimes lose track of what the inspiration behind the post even was and just delete it.

My goal in taking on this challenge is to post one picture each day (a recipe, a craft, a parenting moment, etc) and write a brief post - that I don't obsess over - to try and break my cycle of insanity.

Today was a very simple day. Time with my girls, errands, household chores. Nothing extraordinary. I took the picture above of my oldest daughter while we were playing together because it just felt like a moment I wanted to capture. There was something about the scene that made me want to cry. She is just a little girl in pigtails playing dress-up. But the intensity of her concentration represented her as a big kid ready for kindergarten. It felt like a big moment in parenting. A moment I both embrace with pride and turn away from with an acute sense of loss...

Forgive me

I need 5 minutes to rant because I just can't take it anymore. People need to stop comparing and competing their kids (and babies!!)

Every parent in the world thinks their kid is the cutest thing to ever appear on the planet earth. Every spit bubble, spaghetti face, and dance move is ADORABLE. In addition to being the cutest baby ever their baby is probably the earliest walker too. If not the earliest, definitely the most stable. Did I forget to mention that this same beautiful, master of balance also says more words at a year of age than any other kid in the history of the world?! And trust me, it doesn't stop there! Before the kid even knows how to use the potty (which they will do well before any other kid does), the parents are pretty sure they can tell their genius baby is presidential material from the way they shift in their sleep during conversations about politics.

Obviously I'm exaggerating (a little), but you all know what I am talking about. The problem isn't that parents think these things to themselves. Honestly, I think all parents should think their kid is the absolute best thing in the world. And they should post their pictures and videos with delight and vigor on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or whatever social media outlet appeals to them. The problem is when people are so obtuse that they forget that every other parent thinks their kid is awesome and the best too. This inevitably leads to the competition factor that is driving me INSANE.

Let's role play a scenario. Mama A was just at the playground with her son, little B. She took a photo of him on the swings and posts it to Facebook with the caption, "Mommy's cutie enjoying the sunshine! Aren't I lucky?" All her friends see the photo and agree! He's a cute baby. She's a lucky mom. Everyone feels warm, fuzzy, happy thoughts and moves on with their day.

Elsewhere on Facebook Mama C takes her daughter, little D, to the museum. She posts a video of D pointing at the mastodon exhibit saying something that might be mastodon with the caption, "I'm the luckiest mom in the whole world because I have the most beautiful AND the smartest baby girl ever!" All her friends see the video and get annoyed. If Mama C is the luckiest mom in the world and little D is the cutest and smartest that means that they lost the kid lottery and got stuck with a sub-par model. No parent wants to believe their kid is inferior so they start thinking about all the ways Mama C is wrong and how their kid is way better.

The vicious cycle continues as the kids get older. When the babies are little, the drama is just at the mama level. Snide comments looking at Facebook or talking on the phone to another mom or family member don't get through to the babies. But soon the kids are grade-schoolers, high schoolers, and college bound seniors who are so accustomed to their moms comparing them to cousin Bob or the neighbor's kid that they think in terms of comparisons too!

They start to have prejudices against the people that are "doing better" than they are. Family relationships and friendships are damaged as inferiority (or superiority) complexes push people apart. Entitlements creep up when kids ask their parents why they can't have what someone else has when they've always been told they are better than that person. And what I think is the worst outcome: these poor kids have no way of seeing their own unique intrinsic value outside how they measure up to someone else.

Is this really the message we want to send our kids?

I love my kids so much sometimes my chest literally feels like it will burst with happiness and pride. I want to build them up to be as proud of themselves as I am of them, but I want that pride to come from teaching them to be good people with admirable traits not from asserting that they are better than someone else.

Friday Five: Summer Family Friendly Activities

If you read my post about trying to make every second count this summer, you'll understand where this Friday Five is coming from. We're trying to save money with a larger mortgage and a big empty house in need of furniture looming in the immediate future, but want to make the most of our free time with the kids. Here are some fun ideas I've been brainstorming that cost very little...

1. Have a picnic - for breakfast! Picnics at the park for lunch and dinner BBQs with friends and family are expected during the summer, but the typical morning meal remains about the same year round. Honestly, this makes no sense to me because the morning is a PERFECT time for a summer picnic! The sun isn't as bright and in your face. The weather isn't as hot, humid, or unbearable. And, most kids are in a great mood after getting a full night of rest. You can trek to a park or just spread a blanket in your own yard. Serve easy to eat finger foods like "breakfast sandwiches" (nut or soy butter with fresh sliced strawberries), hard boiled eggs, slices of cheese and meat, fresh fruit (bananas, sliced apples, berries, or oranges), and raw veggie sticks (carrots, cucumber, raw zucchini, peppers). Bring along your own milk, juice, and coffee - never forget the coffee - and enjoy!
2. Go swimming! There are few things my children love more than splashing through water like madmen. I want to give them that joy as often as I can during the summer. From a parenting standpoint "swimming" or "going to the beach" sometimes sounds like a nightmare because of all the stuff it requires. It really doesn't have to take a ton of effort to get them to a body of water if you plan appropriately. Keep a swimming bag stocked at all times that contains a swim suit for each person, a towel for each person, sunscreen, and diapers (if applicable). You'll still need to get life jackets, snacks, etc but you're more than halfway there!
3. Start a Summer of '14 time capsule! This year is especially momentous for us because of our big move and my bug starting kindergarten in the fall, but I think this is a really fun idea for anyone. First, you'll need to get a shoe box - bonus fun, let your kids color and decorate it! Then, make a list of all the things your family plans to do for the summer (family parties, day trips, vacations, hikes) to put in the box. As your family goes on all of your adventures check off your completed activities and don't forget to add "pieces" of your summer to the box. Ideas: family pictures, "journal articles" about certain days, ticket stubs from concerts, movies, or amusement park admission, receipts from a fun meal out, scorecards from mini golf, and anything else that your kids want to add. At the end of the summer seal the box up tight and bury or store it until the date you choose - 2 years? 5 years? 10 years? Your choice!
4. Make your own popsicles! First, you'll have to get a mold - we bought this one from Target for about $3, I have no idea why it's so expensive on amazon. I'm sure you can find about six dozen links on Pinterest to pop recipes, but it's much more fun to let the kids decide. Throw some combination of fruits, water, juice, milk, or yogurt, and, if needed, sweetener (maple syrup or honey to keep it natural) into the blender, pour into the molds, and see what happens! Surprisingly, my bug's decision to make watermelon, orange juice, and whole milk yogurt pops turned out delicious.
5. Have a Family Field Day! You can invite extended family and make this a big deal, or keep it as a small, silly family event. Big or small, the idea is to keep the adults and kids playing together. Let each family member create or choose (from a list you make) their own event with the goal being to have fun, not to win. Some event ideas: water balloon fight (make sure you pick up the balloon pieces afterwards so none of our furry friends eat them!), three legged races, sandcastle building, carnival style games, beach ball volleyball (or just keeping it in the air), and silly relay races (jumping, walking backwards, crab walking, etc). At the end of the events, you can have ribbons that you can award your kids for things like "great attitude" and "happiest player" or get more specific to the events you planned like "tallest sandcastle builder" and "silliest crabwalker". 

Life Lessons...Building a House

It's almost over. Feeling stressed. Worrying if we made the right decisions. Being displaced. Finally, it's coming to an end. In just about a month we should be closing on our new house.

I'm excited. I'm scared. I'm grateful. I'm overwhelmed. I'm happy. But mostly, I'm relieved. The 15 month process of marketing and selling a home, taking up temporary residence, and building a new home has been one I don't want to repeat anytime soon.

For all the badness I've felt during this turbulent time, I think I've learned some important lessons as well. At the very least I hope my struggles can help someone else going through the same process, but I hope my "life lessons" will be inspirational for anyone in a difficult situation.

1. Never forget what you DO have. When you are moving and 75% of your personal items are packed away it's easy to feel discouraged. I'll be very happy to have my own couch, family photos, and extensive kitchen supplies back, but living without them reminded me to appreciate people and moments over "things". We tried really hard to take a time out whenever we started to get too wrapped up in the process. My advice: just be present with each other and let that be enough.
2. Trust your instincts. My husband stressed himself out over every single detail when we were picking out carpets, cabinets, tile, siding, etc for our new house. After the initial stress of choosing each item, he continued to worry about whether it was the right choice until it appeared in the house months later. In the end, things came together beautifully and he put himself under tons of unnecessary stress worrying. My advice: make a thoughtful decision, have confidence it's the right one, and move forward.
3. If it doesn't seem right, it might not be. When our siding went up, it was not a good day. It did not look the way we expected from the samples. It wasn't "us". How could we have picked these colors?? My husband looked back at all of our records and was confident something was amiss. He contacted the designer, foreman, and saleswoman. Somehow an error had been made and an old color scheme had been ordered. It was an honest mistake, but wasn't what we chose. They quickly fixed it and everything was back on track. My advice: Don't be afraid to ask questions when things don't seem right.
4. Channel your stress into something positive. Unlike my husband, I didn't really stress much about details. My stress was worrying about the "big picture." I spent a lot of time feeling guilty about what the moving process was putting our girls through and bad for myself that life was on hold. For awhile I let my stress impact me in really unhealthy ways - indulging in sneaky trips to Starbucks, eating unhealthy foods, being grumpy with my family, etc. Finally, I started taking my stress and laying it on the line each time I go for a jog. I tell myself I can't stop until I let go of the previous day's frustration. It's amazing how well it works. My advice: Find a positive outlet and use it on a regular, scheduled basis.
5. Put it in perspective. It is a huge pain to move with little kids, only have a fraction of your belongings, live in less than ideal housing (too small or too crowded), and have an unclear endpoint to the whole process. But really, in the grand scheme of life and the world, these are pretty insignificant problems. Babies get cancer. Kids go to bed hungry. People are murdered for their beliefs. Natural disasters claim thousands of lives. Those are problems - what we dealt with were minor inconveniences. My advice: Whatever your struggle is, pick two or three things that are going well and focus on those instead. I used to repeat to myself, "We're healthy and we're together" whenever I was having a bad day and it kept me sane.

Why this summer matters to me

My baby starts kindergarten in the fall. All moms who have met this milestone know that it signifies something huge in the world of parenting. My girl has been in daycare since she was five months old, so it's not just about separation. It's about accepting that this beautiful, sweet, innocent, perfect - not perfect in the dictionary sense of the word, but perfect to me - little girl must be surrendered to "the outside." She will no longer be in the company of children and adults that we ultimately have the power to veto if we so choose. There will be teachers that we might not like - or might not like us. Tasks that may be difficult. Experiences that might be scary. Kids that may - or more likely will - bully. 

The day she was born - instantly in love

My fears about elementary school are deeply rooted in my own experiences. I was a fat kid. A smart fat kid. A smart fat kid who was nice to everyone and had strange fashion sense. I was teased relentlessly because of my weight and messy hair. Kids asked me in secret to help them with their homework, but laughed at me in front of others. I let their words get to me and each year my opinion of myself slipped a little lower.

Me: The awkward years made more awkward next to my sister in her "cute as a button" phase

It is this history that fills me with trepidation when I think of my daughter starting kindergarten. Each day the words I have have tried to pass on to her - you are smart, you are kind, you are beautiful in every way - risk being lost as the new people in her life pass on their own words. Instead of a gentle whisper in her ear at bedtime, I want my words to become a roar that echoes in her ears. My mom did her best to do this for me and it kept me afloat.

My princess on her 5th birthday pretending to be Olaf

That is why summer means so much to me this year. I don't want to waste a single opportunity to build her up so that she's harder to knock down. I want my daughter's days to be filled with so much love, happiness, and validation that she radiates confidence when she walks through that classroom door in September. 

The Christmas Season is Here!

Last year I read some very funny, cheeky blog articles bashing Elf on the Shelf mommies for over-achieving. I laughed and admitted the absurdity of it all. I wouldn't be caught dead making flour footprints all over the floor or drawing mustaches on family photos and blaming it on our elf (Sugar). I did create a lot of work for myself with a 12 days to Christmas Countdown (examples here), but I tried to tell myself that was different...

Fast-forward to Sugar's arrival this year. She made her grand appearance on Thanksgiving day when she turned up in our car while we were having dinner with my family. The next morning she was slyly observing us from the wreath hanging on our coat closet...

November 29th - Hiding in the wreath

I was looking for something fun to do with the girls when I picked them up from daycare/K-prep on Friday and remembered that last year I never took the extra step to buy our girl elf one of the sweet little skirts they sell for them. I suggested going to look for one when my extremely bright little bug suggested that we could MAKE her a skirt instead. We headed off to Hobby Lobby and purchased a piece of felt that I quickly and easily turned into an Elf skirt. The bug was so excited last night to leave the skirt out with a note she dictated to me and then signed. 

This morning Sugar was proudly wearing her new skirt and the bug was thrilled. I'm hoping I can stick to simply moving her around for a few weeks without any major hi-jinx or projects to undertake...

November 30th - Hanging out in her new skirt on top of the light in the dining room

If you give a mom a blog...

...she's going to write about her kids and her crazy life.

It's now 9 am. I've been up for over three hours. That's the downside when the baby bear decides to sleep through the night; she wakes up between 5:30 and 6:30 am and is UP for the day. This morning was particularly fabulous because the bug heard me come in to get the baby and was up as well.

The first chore of the day is always nursing and changing the baby. Today I had to do everything with the bug thisclosetome because she was still tired. They were both in a good enough mood though, so I won't complain. I dumped out a bunch of blocks and they built towers while I made their beds and attempted to make myself a cup of coffee (I say attempted because it was at least an hour later before I drank any of it...). This only lasted for about 15 minutes until the bear started roaring for breakfast.

Around this time Daddy decided to make an appearance (I'm pretty sure he was awake listening to us and deciding how long he could use his i-phone and pretend to be asleep...). The next 40 minutes was spent trying to cook breakfast while simultaneously keeping something on the bear's highchair tray so she didn't LOSE HER MIND waiting for the scrambled eggs I was attempting to make. We went through at least a half dozen clementines, a handful of puffed rice cereal, two slices of baked ham, and a few small slices of organic multi-grain bread before the "real" breakfast made it to the table.

By the time I fixed my coffee (now on ice) and a poached egg for myself, the baby bear was LOSING HER MIND because she was bored with eating a little bit of everything in the kitchen and wanted OUT of the highchair. Daddy and the bug were sitting among the breakfast wreckage looking at pictures of ridiculous animals on the computer and the bug was laughing maniacally and declaring, "Show it to Mommy!" every ten seconds or so.

My breakfast view. Not pictured: bear throwing scrambled eggs into the air by the fistful to my left

Then we cleaned the kitchen (Daddy helped!) and I dressed the bear while the bug went upstairs to play. The bug is still in her jammies, but I'm not ready for that fight yet. Then, a miracle occurred. Both kids went into the playroom and are having fun WITHOUT crying or asking for anything! The bear is in her jumper and squealing delightedly at her sister while the bug is setting up all sorts of crazy make-believe scenarios. I know I am going to have a massive mess to clean later, but I do not care in the slightest. It's quiet and I am enjoying it!

And now I get to the point of this post and where the title came from. I'm planning to throw the bear an "If you give a mouse a cookie..." first birthday party. When I was browsing the internet looking for inspiration I found this silly and appropriate poem another blogger wrote called "If You Give A Mom A Muffin." I told my husband I was going to write "If You Give A Dad A Donut." And this is what we came up with...

If you give a dad a donut,

he'll sit down at the computer and eat it.

He won't notice the baby's stinky diaper,

or the four year old emptying mommy's purse,

or mommy trying to cook breakfast and do laundry and make the beds.

Instead, he'll find a thread about donuts on Reddit.

And chances are,

if he sees a thread about donuts,

he's going to eat another donut.

Raising a Kid that Loves to Read

Reading is something that has been a huge part of my life for as long as I can remember. I have so many memories of reading book series like The Baby-Sitters's Club, Boxcar Children, American Girls, Goosebumps, and Fear Street when I was growing up. Combine the facts that we didn't have a lot of extra money when I was a kid and I was a fast reader, my parents rarely bought me brand new books. Building my collections required a lot of work visiting used book stores, libraries, and yard sales to find the books I was missing. As I got older I continued to read anything I could get my hands on. I eventually allowed my love of reading to guide me into the wonderful liberal arts program at Boston College where I completed an English degree alongside my science core for medical school.

My husband on the other hand, well, he just doesn't read. I don't think he ever completely read a single book we were assigned in high school or college. After years of begging him, he did finally read the HP series and a few biographies about Walt Disney, but that's about it.

Keeping both of our book backgrounds in mind, I really, really wanted to raise our kids to love reading the way I did. Below you'll find some tips on how I've made literature a big part of my kids' lives...

1. Build a collection early. If you have any say in your baby shower, ask your friends/family to do what mine did for me - encourage guests to forgo cards and sign a book for the baby instead. After two showers I had a great beginning library for my bug with many classics.
2. Start reading to your kids as early as possible. I really don't think there is any time that is too early. With my first I was spending SO much time working on breast-feeding that I decided to start reading the first HP book out loud to her while she was nursing. Reading one chapter was just about the perfect length of time for her to eat.
3. Make a daily routine that includes reading. When my bug was a few months old I started this routine - each morning I would choose a new book (and toy to coordinate if we had one) and place it on the changing table. After each diaper change I would read her the book and play with the toy for a few minutes.
4. Books at bedtime! We probably didn't really start reading at bedtime until bug was a little older (I want to guess 18 months or so), but now that we have two kids, baby bear has been part of our nighttime reading since she was born. The bug gets to pick out 3-5 books and we snuggle in bed and read them together. Daddy and I swap this routine so we are both involved in reading to them.
5. Have books in every room that your kid spends time for easy assess. We kept a bookshelf in the bug's bedroom, added a bookshelf organizer to the playroom ,and have a bin under the sofa table in the living room.
6. Start the tradition early that books are gifts. Encourage family to buy their favorite books to pass on - my bug always asks who gave her which books when we read them so it's a nice way for her to remember different family members.
7. Visit bookstores and libraries regularly. We try to go to the local library at least once a month and I let bug pick out any books that grab her eye.