If you were one of the many people who left a comment on my Cloudy With A Chance Of Master Class post- THANK YOU! Wow! What an awesome collection of wise words to have all together in one e-place!
Below, are a just a (very) few of the friendly folks who made that conversation such a blast. I thought it would be fun to feature photos of them and their loved ones, along with some of their comments, here today. First up- Kate:
(Kate and her kiddos)
One my favorite parts of Kate‘s comment was when she said:
“Encourage their curiosity, ensure that they follow their passions, and resist the urge to make them conform to your ideas for their future. Trust that if they work hard and grow in their personal talents, they will succeed and be happy as adults.”
Such great advice, isn’t it? Love that.
Karmen, left a great tip, too. She said:
“PLAY with your kids! We spent over an hour in a circle after dinner last night, hitting a big pink playground ball around seeing how long we could keep it in the air. SO. FUN!”
(Karmen and her family)
Sunny’s comment read:
“My best parenting tip is to pray through it all, the good, the bad and the ugly. When they are teenagers and hating you, and when you don’t like them very much either. God is our heart’s refuge, and leads us through. My son is 24, and telling him occasionally that “I love him more than…..” is a tradition we have shared for years. For example, telling him “I love you more than all the postcards being mailed that day in all the world” while he was on location filming in South Africa was my way of letting him know he is one of the most special blessings in my life.”
(Sunny and her son, Matt)
I must have re-read this next comment from Janet a half a dozen times. She said:
“My kidlets are 6 & 8. They are amazing kids and I love the questions they ask. In fact, I realized the other day that the routine in our house before a question is raised is always them asking me “Mom, can I ask you a question?” And my response is always “You can ask me anything.” And they know I mean it, so they do ask me anything. Which often leads us to the computer to look up the longest whale, the busiest airport, and sometimes the name of that guy who does the voice of the character in this or that movie. I never know what…and I love it.”
(Janet and her kidlets)
And then there was this hilarious story from a reader named, Annie:
“One day, my darling children were acting up and ended up going outside onto the deck when I had told them not to. So I said, “Kids, get your butts back in the house.” They came and put their little tushies just inside the sliding glass door and said, “Ok, Mommy! Our butts are back in the house!” They were 2 and 4 at the time, and like the wonderful mommy I am, I took a photo of it. 
”
(Annie’s little Loves, with their tushies back in the house)
A commenter who goes by the name GG online said, “The most precious time for us is dinner time when our girls recount they days events. Oh the detail they provide…the laughter that explodes around our table…the line of communication we foster by encouraging them to talk about their day- and in turn, they now ask us what our day was like. They look forward to this family time together and save things to say. Dinner around the table, with no technology = completely priceless!”
(GG and her family, sharing stories and supper)
A reader named Maureen shared this awesome advice about reading:
“My one piece of advice would be to read to your children. No matter how hold they are, read to them. As they get a bit older, read things that will challenge their mind, and make them ask those great questions. My two daughters are now 22 and 24 and rarely are they without a book (or Kindle!). I rarely had to deal with “I’m bored” when they were younger, because they always knew they could lose themselves in a good book. It has made them curious enough about some subjects to explore them as adults- things like travel and career! Children love the sound of our voices and reading to them provides a sense of security and closeness. We spent many an afternoon with a snuggle and a good book. Even now my daughters will snuggle in when I am reading and ask “what-cha readin”!! Attached is an old photo of my Dad reading to my daughter and nephew. He is the one I have to credit for the advice I have passed on to you.”
(Maureen’s Dad, reading to her daughter and nephew)
Maureen said her Dad’s favorite book to read to the kids was Richard Scarry’s Busy, Busy Town…
…and man did the memories come rushing back when I Googled that title! I always used to look so hard to find the little worm- ha!
I remember having lots of favorite books when I was little, but it just occurred to me that I can’t recall the names of so many of them. Do you remember some classic children’s books that were popular in the 70’s? I’d love to Google more titles today!
PS- I’m waiting for a photo from one more kind commenter from the other day, so if you come back and visit this post again later this week- you’ll probably find another fun family featured here!
For pics between posts, join us over on Twitter, Facebook and/or Instagram!
Laugh with them! My three sons are 12, 13 & 15. They are the funniest people I know besides my husband:). The more fun you have together the more they want to around you so they don’t miss out on anything! Their friends are over all the time because I make cookies and then just sit in the back ground throwing out a one liner every once in a while. They feel safe here. No topic is considered taboo and everyone is comfortable with that. We defiently have rules here but everyone knows them up front and the rules are fair so they are easy to follow! Fill your house with love but one of the most important things you can show your child/children is a strong relationship with your spouse. Children notice everything so the example you show them will be carried over into their future relationships. Plus don’t just depend on them for your happiness that’s to much pressure for any child! I think the world of my boys and they know it but when it comes time they have to be prepared to go out into the world on their own knowing we are here cheering them on!
Go Dog Go was one of my oldest daughters favorites. We read that book until it finally fell apart. Right now we are reading Pete The Cat to our grandsons.
Aaaaahhhh! That was one of my FAVORITES that I couldn’t remember, Teresa! Thank you so much for leaving this comment! 😀
My sons favorite book is Good night Moon and Sam’s Car. My favorite book growiung up was Great Expectations. I remembering reading it when I was 6. We also had a Big Bedtime Series of religious stories. Not sure if that was the actual title but I loved it.
I probably would have done a lot of things differently. First, and most importantly, I would have figured out a way for us to live on my husband’s income, or on my income, so one of us could have been a full-time at-home parent.
The other thing to remember is once they are grown-ours are 26 and 24-they will make decisions that do not reflect the values they were taught or how they were raised. I have to remind myself that it doesn’t mean I failed as a parent.
Richard Scarry is one of my absolute favorite authors! I would pick up all of his books; the cartoon was just wonderful as well, so much so that my father would watch it with as much enthusiasm as me and my sister! The book “Corduroy” is a classic favorite of my family as well.
Well I don’t know if these were popular in the 70s (I was born in the 80s) but some of my favorite children’s books as a kid (and favorite to read to my nephew now) are:
– Harold and the Purple Crayon
– Where the Wild Things Are
– Goodnight Moon
– The “Mr.” and “Miss” series by Roger Hargreaves. ie: Mr Nosy, Li’l’ Miss Chatterbox, Mr. Noisy, Mr. Messy, Little Miss Sunshine
– The Monster at the End of the Book
– Berenstain Bears (special favorites are: “The In-Crowd” and “No Girls Allowed”)
– Are You My Mother
– Hop on Pop
– Mike Mulligan and his Steam Shovel
– The Little House
– Scuffy the Tugboat
– Tootle
– The Poky Little Puppy
– Pat the Bunny
– Lyle, Lyle Crocodile
I’ll stop myself now, but I could go on and on and on. My nephew is three and for every occasion I get him a book my brother and I enjoyed as kids.
🙂
I’m the same as you!
My love of reading started young. My favorite was Harold and the Purple Crayon. I could stare at Eric Carle’s artwork all day – especially The Very Hungry Caterpillar. Strega Nona always made me smile 🙂 Other favorites were: Where the Wild Things Are, Dr Seuss, any Aesop Fable, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good Very Bad Day, Miss Nelson is Missing, The Polar Express, The Giving Tree, Caps for Sale, The Little House. Being a small child in the early 80s – I LOVED Reading Rainbow 🙂
My mom saved a bunch of our books from when we were little and I’m so glad! A couple that I now read to my children are “Little Rabbit’s Loose Tooth” and “The Monster at the End of This Book”. A new favorite classic of their’s is “Llama, Llama Red Pajama”. I’m definitely saving that one for my future grandchildren!
When my kids (about your age now!) were growing up they loved the Frog and Toad books. And I can still say most of the Dr. Suess books by heart! One book my son especially loved was ‘Harry the Dirty Dog’. The dirt must have been appealing. The Curious George books were favorites, too.
Reading with the small crowd is one of my MOST favorite things! We are big fans of Frank Asch’s books (from the early 80’s) like Moon Cake; Happy Birthday, Moon; and Moon Dance. 🙂
I loved the Amelia Bedelia books.
How about Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McClosky? That was one of my favorites. He also wrote Blueberries for Sal – another really good one. Oh, also Inside, Outside, Upside-down and Old Hat, New Hat – Berenstein Bears.
I LOVE kids’ books!
The Read-Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease is a great resource… tons of books (including many classics), sorted by age.
Thanks so much for featuring my family! What a sweet honor. Sadly, our dog, Nigel, popped the pink ball last night. I blogged about it today.
Favorite books from 70s: Dr. Seuss anything, Robert the Rose Horse and one about 16 Cousins Watching Me (or something like that).
My favourites in the 70’s were the Frances books – Bedtime for Frances, A Bargain for Frances – cute little muskrat with simple drawings. And by the same author, Harvey’s Hideout – loved it.
My own children are now in the 10 – 12 range and they love when I read out loud to them. We’ve read all of Beverly Cleary, and now they like to hear stories from the Chicken Soup series. Layla, I think you would love Sandra Boynton board books for babies (and young children). Great rhyming stories with funny pictures, particularly Barnyard Dance. You will love the world of discovering children’s books when the two of you become the three of you.
I agree with the Sandra Boynton books. My oldest had memorized several of them because we read them so much and now she loves reading them to her little sister.
We had 2 children in the 70’s and 1 in the 80’s, Here’s a few favorites, theirs and mine. 🙂
Corduroy
Where The Wild Things Are
Are You My Mother?
Mike Mulligan & the Steam Shovel
Sam, Bangs & Moonshine
The Cat in the Hat
Tiki Tiki Tembo
There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly
Love the Richard Scary books! My son loves to look for the worm now, too! I have saved a ton of books from my childhood that I now read with my boys. The “Sweet Pickles” books were some of my favorites in the 70s. Anyone remember those? I loved looking at the map of the town in the back of the book to see where all the different animal characters lived. My 8-year-old loves them too, especially “Fixed by Camel” and “Fish and Flips”… He and my husband read them together all the time! 🙂
I love giving “I will love you forever” and “The giving tree” both make me cry when I read them now!!!
Being a child from the mid 70’s I must mention the little golden book The Pokey Little Puppy. I refer to it often with my students still now. My Mom read it to me. I read it to my little sister. I read it to my daughter and now I read it to my students as well. It is a must read especially if your child/student has a bit of a slow speed compared to others around them.
I thrift every Saturday morning and 9 out of 10 times I find myself on the floor in the Childrens book section reading all of my favorites from when I was a kid. I end up buying them. I have stacks of all of my favorites in my office but no kids.
It is what it is. Those books bring me comfort.
What a great post, Layla — it’s so fun to see that every parent has a different nugget to share. 🙂
My favorite children’s books were The Little Engine That Could (so many life lessons in that!!), Are You My Mother?, Goodnight Moon, and any of the Dr. Seuss books… my own kids enjoyed all of these and many many more!
xo Heidi
Reading with a child creates so many lasting memories! Happy Adoption Day (by John McCutcheon) is a great book to affirm that your child is chosen and loved. Our family book that is read each night is Goodnight Moon.
If you have a daughter, Dance Me Daddy (http://ourlearningcollection.blogspot.com/2012/06/dance-me-daddy.html) by Cindy Morgan, makes a beautiful gift book to be shared between a daughter and her daddy. Other favorites in our home are the Llama, Llama series, Laura Numeroff books (If You Give a Mouse…), Eric Carle books, and Gloria Houson books. What an exciting time to be looking for special books for your forever child!
Hi Layla. I so love reading all your posts everyday and sometimes rereading them too. My children were born in 1974 and 1976 and we were crazy readers to them. So many books from that time were favorites. My daughter Meg, recently got a book for her children called Have you filled a bucket today by Carol McCloud. It is such an amazing and beautiful book that I thought I would mention it for you to google if you have not seen that one yet. Hope you love it too. Happy Spring. Hugs, Geri.
Peg, your comment really touched me. I have 3 daughters (all teenagers). The oldest is almost 18. So many times I feel like I am failing when she makes choices that don’t reflect what we have taught her. My husband is better than I am at understanding this. What you said makes a lot of sense, and really gave me a lift when I needed it. She has a mind of her own, and that doesn’t mean I am not a good parent. Thank you for that comment!
70s books:
Danny the Dinosaur
The Ant and the Elephant
Bernstein Bears
Mike Mulligan and the Steam Shovel
Babar
Harry the Dirty Dog
so many more I loved…can’t list them all .
Ferdinand the Bull
Dr Seuss
The House that Beebo Built
Mama Do You Love Me
Papa Do You Love Me
Courage
Winnie the Pooh
The Secret World of Og
James Herriot kids books
And so many of the ones already mentioned!
Well, Layla, you hit on my favorite subject today! There are two excellent sources for books for kids.
The first is a list of the American Library Association Caldecott Medal Award winners. The Caldecott Medal is for excellence in illustration (which I think, as an artist, you’d get a real kick out of). These are, naturally, going to be read-aloud books, and there are many highly recognizable titles: The Polar Express, Where the Wild Things Are, Make Way for Ducklings, The Snowy Day, You can find them here: http://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/caldecottmedal/caldecottwinners/caldecottmedal .
The other is really for older kids – when they’re ready to listen to (or read to themselves) chapter books. It’s the American Library Association Newbery Award winner list. You are guaranteed to find a classic children’s book here – Old Yeller, Mr. Popper’s Penguins, My Side of the Mountain, and pretty much all of Laura Ingalls Wilder. I have read just about every single one, either as a child or as an adult (Confession time: sometimes children’s literature has more interesting premises than adult literature, and you don’t -generally – have to worry about reading through sections that are smarmy or uncomfortable.) You can see the entire list here: http://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/newberymedal/newberyhonors/newberymedal .
Of course, I can’t imagine childhood without Dr. Seuss or Shel Silverstein. So much fun!
Thanks for including us, Layla. Love reason the tips and the book lists.
One series my kids are loving that isn’t vintage but very fun is Elephant & Piggie by Mo Willams.
🙂
That would be READING – not reason. Darn iPhone. 😉
That picture of the grandpa reading with the kids warms my heart!! That’s my only memory with my Opa!
As a parent: You need to perfect the tickle hug. Every good long hug with my kids end up in tickles and giggling.
Loved reading everyone’s advice!
A few of my favorite books from childhood;
* The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein
* I’ll Love You Forever by Robert Munsch
* The Country Bunny by DuBose Hayward
* Where the Wild Things Are
* The Little Engine That Could
* The Velveteen Rabbit
And there’s one I can’t find anywhere, and can’t remember anything about the title, but can picture some of the illustrations… It was about a little girl who found ‘magic ground’ and whatever she planted and nourished would grow a tree of the same kind of fruit. For example, if she buried a hat, a tree with hat “flowers” would grow. A metaphor for life, for sure. I hope to stumble upon the book again some day!
We read all the time in our house! We love Bread and Jam for Frances, Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel, There’s an Alligator Under My Bed….I could go on and on. Enjoy collecting books!
I was an avid reader as a kid, and spent most of my 4th grade summer at the library. So much fun to be had there! As for a favorite book, I loved Dr Seuss’s The Giving Tree, and any of the Shel Silverstein books!
“There’s too many kids in this tub,
There’s too many elbows to scrub,
I just washed a behind that I’m sure wasn’t mine,
There’s too many kids in this tub!”
Lol, I love it! 🙂
Layla… Like you don’t have anything else to do….
What a wonderful gift to mom’s to collect stories like these and pu them in a book with some of your illustrations.
Just think about it.
What an uplifting read~
Went back to your Cloudy with a Chance of Master Class post and the clip you posted by Diane Sawyer reminded me of an interview I read or saw with the founder of Spanx, Sara Blakely. She was talking about how difficult it was for her to launch her brand and how determined she had to be to follow her dreams and she told the story of how her father would ask them every night at the dinner table, “What did you fail at today?” In our perfectionist society, I thought that was a great way to teach kids that failing is part of the journey and getting back on the horse is just part of the deal.
I don’t know about the “70s, but my favorite books growing up were: The Boxcar Children” series books; A Wrinkle in Time; Madeleine: Go Dog Go; Hop on Pop; Are you my Mother?; It Snowed Last Night; and The Cat in the Hat Comes Back.
In the ’90s my kids favorites were: The Giving Tree; The Lorax; Timothy and the Night Noises; Corduroy; Green Eggs and Ham and Captain Underpants! LOL
“Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb” is by far one of my favorite children’s book! It is also one of my daughters favorite books. My original book has been to many show-n-tells past & present. Oh….& how can I forget “The Berenstain Bears Go to School” & “Babar the Elephant!”
Layla, I think you’d love “Miss Suzy Squirrel.” When I was a kid, I never tired of looking at her cute little houses. And, I loved anything about Amelia Bedelia – she was so wonderfully silly. And, my 2-year-old son, Jude, loves “Put Me in the Zoo.”
I just wanted to comment on what I’ve dubbed the “stalker mommy” genre of books. The funniest one to me is when the little boy is a middle-aged adult, but his elderly mom puts a ladder on the top of her station wagon and drives across town to climb up the ladder and sneak in his window and hold him in a rocking chair. I was howling with laughter. Nothing whatsoever creepy about that, right? And, why couldn’t the mom just enter through the front door?? lol. Maybe I shouldn’t post this – what if hordes of enraged stalker mommies bring their ladders to my house to exact revenge…:)
I loved seeing mention of Richard Scarry’s book in your post. JUST last Sunday I was looking for space in a bookshelf in the spare room for cookbooks and came across Richard Scarry’s “What Do People Do All Day”! I used to spend hours with that BIG book open across my lap!
Two others that brought back memories were “The Flying Sandbox” and “A Friend is Someone Who Likes You”. It’s so much fun to get lost in a book, especially when it’s with Mom, Dad, Nana, or Papa….!
The 2 I can remember are Baby Dear & There’s a monster at the end of this book
I love the Dr. Seuss books (of course!) and the Eric Carle books. Our favorites are Brown Bear, Brown Bear and The Very Hungry Caterpiller. When I was little, I loved the Bernstein Bears books and I Love You Forever. We also love any of the Sandra Boynton books, Fancy Nancy, and the Olivia books. Man, I could spend a fortune at the book store, but we just visit the library every week. My husband HATES to read, but I’m determined to teach our sons to enjoy reading 🙂
I agree with Maureen’s comment in your post. The best thing we can do with our children is read but I would also add in sing. I have always exposed my kids to language rich books with beautiful stories. I have always made sure to pick books that I can enjoy as well as my child. That way my enthusiasm for reading is always visible. I picked our music in a similar way. Some of our favorite children’s music includes Justin Roberts, Elizabeth Mitchell and the Putumayo series. I also very much value our time in the Music Together program. As a result of the reading and singing, talking is a competitive sport in our family. My children are rich in language especially my eldest who loves to write stories. I credit it all to the early exposure they had to books and music. I have a passion for children’s books so it is hard to narrow down my favorites but a few would include Stand Tall Molly Lou Melon, Make Way for Ducklings, anything by Patricia Polacco, Miss Rumphius, any of the Stella and Sam books by Marie-Louise Gay, Caps for Sale, Custard the Dragon, The Paper Bag Princess, any Pirate Pete book, Ladybug Girl series, and so much more. Don’t forget to include poetry books in a children’s reading collection as well as nonfiction.
Next time you find yourself by the seashore with your nephew, check the book “Flotsam” and “The Seashore Book”.
Hey Layla,
Check out “Books that Build Character: A Guide to Teaching Your Child Moral Values Through Stories” by Kirkpatrick and Wolfe.
A great guide to hundreds of books divided by age.
Anything by Eric Carle is wonderful! Little Bear books are great, too! Frog and Toad are always fun!
In this crazy world, with so much heartache and evil, it’s so nice to read a post like this (and your “Cloudy with a chance…”) and see that there are so many wonderful and truly good people out there. So glad to see so much LOVE. Thanks, Layla, for posting.
You MUST get “The 20th Century Children’s Book Treasury” compiled by
Janet Schulman. It’s a compilation of some of the BEST children’s stories, includings Madeline, Curious George, Guess How Much I Love You, Make Way for Ducklings, Where the Wild Things Are, Goodnight Moon, The Sneetches, and Winnie-the-Pooh. My children love this book and have read it at least a hundred times each! (My oldest is 4th grade and still loves it!)
Go, Dog. Go! and Are You My Mother both by P.D. Eastman – BEST books ever!
Morning is a Little Child by Joan Walsh Anglund – Simple poems plus adorable people pictures as only Joan an do!
One crocus…
one robin…
one bee…
can
start
a
spring…
you’ll
see!
I just finished a delightful book, The Reading Promise, My Father and the Books We Shared by Alice Ozma. It’s a true account of a father and daughter who made a pact, when the daughter was in the 4th grade, to read together every night for 100 nights. They not only did that…….they read together each and every night until the daughter went away to college! Read it. Be inspired. It is a beautiful story. My children were born in ’76, ’78 and ’82. A few of their favorites were: The Little Engine That Could; A Is For Annabelle by Tasha Tudor; Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day; Mother, Mother, I Want Another; The Little House on the Prairie books; the Sweet Pickles books and, of course every one of The Berenstein Bears stories. There are so many more but I don’t think I should take over your entire blog! 😉 I now read these same stories to my granddaughters. The oldies/classics are marvelous but there are some wonderful, wonderful books being written today. Collecting childrens books has become an obsession for me lately. Beautiful, Tender. Loving…. A soothing calm in an oft-times stormy world. xoxo.
I have an 18 year old daughter and we read all the classic such as Dr. Seuss and Richard Scarry but Sandra Boynton books are the best for the little ones. She can still recite Moo Baa LaLaLa and Doggies…heck I can do!!! When they get a little older, read the Shel Silverstein poems/books. Read to them always….we only stopped reading a little each night when she became a senior in high. She would read a few pages then I would read a few pages, then off to sleep she went. Instill that love of reading early…it effects everything!!!
The ‘Old Witch’ books, like ‘Old Witch rescues Halloween.
I read to my children (now in their late 30’s) every night until the youngest was 14. It was a good way to stay connected, bond and discuss things. They are now doing the same for their children. The picture book, “A Pair of Red Clogs” by Masako Matsuno, was a favorite story and dealt with the issue of honesty.
Wonderful suggestions in the comments! I highly recommend getting the book Honey for a Child’s Heart by Gladys Hunt. The book is filled with lists of books for different ages and is a wonderful guide to reading with your children.
My favorite children’s book when my daughter was little (born in 1991) was Love You Forever. We read it a gazillion times and she had it memorized. The book is still available and I highly recommend it.
My advice would be the same as the advice my mother gave me, “do not threaten to do something unless you are willing to follow through”. I have seen so many mother’s threaten their children with time outs or taking toys away but they NEVER do anything. So do you think the kids mind, uh no, of course not. And my second bit of advice is to show love, love, love. I don’t think a child can ever be spoiled with too much love. And remember as they get older especially, sometimes the right thing to do is the hardest thing to do. Remember that you are the parent and you don’t get a second chance of raising a kid, so do your best. Don’t try to be their best friend, that will come later if you do your job right. Ok, I could go on and on. Being a Mom and a Step-Mom have been the biggest blessings in my life!!!