Easter Basket Book Suggestions

On March 15, 2024 By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn holiday gift guide10 Comments

Every year, I struggle with the Easter Basket. I don’t like to just buy random toys and candy because to be honest, Wyatt already has a lot of toys and I know his grandparents will fill him up on candy. So I try to find useful items, things for the summer, for outside, things like that. One thing Wyatt loves is books – so this year, I am just going to go all in on a book basket, with one or two pieces of a candy, and maybe a small toy. He just had a birthday and has games and toys and a fully stocked art cabinet, so we are good there too. So it feels like the perfect year to do a book basket, and I was thinking I would share some suggestions with you guys in case you wanted to add a book or two to those Easter baskets this year as well! (not that you have to! You know what the kiddos in your life like!) And I feel like this post might get long! I will try to keep the suggestions from getting out of control!

So, here are some suggestions of old books and new books, for the little readers on up!

This post contains Amazon Affiliate links. I would make a small commission if you were to purchase something from a link at no extra cost to you.

The More You Give || Franklin’s Flying Bookshop || Backyard Fairies

Backyard Fairies by Phoebe Wahl is fantastic. I love anything by her. This book is about a little girl searching for fairies. Are they there?

Franklin’s Flying Bookshop is an adorable story about a little girl named Luna and a dragon named Franklin who love books and reading, just like Wyatt does. (and me) These two start a flying bookshop to share the love.

The More You Give…this is maybe one of my favorite books I have read, including books that I read for me. I feel like it is a modern day take on “The Giving Tree” which I loved as a kid but it is so depressing. In this story, a young boy and his grandmother live together and have a great life filled with pancakes and hugs and nature. Together they plant an acorn which becomes a tree, etc. Eventually the boy grows up and teaches his daughter this lesson and so on, until the meadow they lived in becomes a forest. I am not doing this book justice in this review. It is just so beautiful and I want everyone to read it because that will be infinitely better than whatever I have to say.

Rabbits & Raindrops || Escargot || The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, & The Big Hungry Bear

Rabbits and Raindrops by Jim Arnosky I started a collection of Jim Arnosky books for Wyatt when he was a little baby. I always loved them and I would pick them up at book sales when I spotted one. This is a favorite of mine, and it feels so springtime. Plus, rabbits!

Escargot by Dashka Slater Wyatt has ALWAYS loved this book, and still does. It is seriously one of our all time favorites. This little French snail has slid his way into our hearts, and will probably stay there.

The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear by Don and Audrey Wood Another favorite. I read this to Wyatt so many times when he was little, and it was always delightful. How will this mouse keep the big hungry bear from eating his perfect strawberry?

The Velveteen Rabbit || Grasshopper on the Road || Frog and Toad Are Friends

The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams I am sure we all remember this heartwarming, heart wrenching tale of the velveteen rabbit, who just wanted to be real. It touched my heart at an early age, and I never looked at my stuffed animals the same way after reading it. I felt it just needed to be on this list, and this copy looks gorgeous, with the illustrations drawn by Erin Stead, who does beautiful work.

Grasshopper on the Road by Arnold Lobel We are huge Lobel fans here. We actually have a whole stack of his books on the table to read as I type this up. Wyatt really liked this tale of a grasshopper who is just being himself, a grasshopper enjoying his journey down the road.

Frog and Toad Are Friends by Arnold Lobel A classic, beloved Lobel, that everyone must read. Sweet tales of two good friends, a frog and a toad.

Charlotte’s Web || The Wild Robot || Heartwood Hotel A True Home

Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White Another classic that I am sure we all know and love. A book of loyalty, love, friendship, that yes, tugs at the heartstrings but is worth the tears. A story that won’t be forgotten. When I asked Wyatt what his favorite read aloud we have read together was, this was the book he said. I actually have a wonderful memory of reading it to him while we were on a mini trip to a tiny farm, and the rain drummed softly on the windows above the bed. It was one of those moments, you know?

The Wild Robot by Peter Brown A tale of found family, in the weirdest of ways. Roz the Robot is washed up on an island and has to learn to live a different life than a robot would normally have. For a machine, she has a big heart, and learns to adapt and change and love.

A True Home (Heartwood Hotel #1) by Kallie George Oh, how I loved reading these gentle books to Wyatt when he was younger! They are simple, sweet stories, of the small woodland animals who make their home in the Heartwood Hotel. They are like family, and the stories just give you the warm fuzzies.

The Wind in the Willows || Anne of Green Gables || Watership Down

The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame This book is such a delight. It is actually the very first chapter book I read to Wyatt – and he was only 7 weeks old! I read it to him when he came home from the hospital, on warm April days with the windows open, and the scent of our apple blossoms was on the wind. Perfect moments, perfect book. A true classic that will make you want to go boating and on picnics!

Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery Romantical, clever, imaginative Anne deserves a place on everyone’s bookshelves. Anne allows you to dream of a better life, one filled with whimsy and where everything is special, even the tree outside your window.

Watership Down by Richard Adams Ok. So if you have been around here before then you know that Watership Down is my favorite book of all time. And yes, this book is a bit darker (ok maybe more than a bit?) than the others on this list. It is the story of resourceful, clever, brave rabbits who seek out a better world and life for themselves. I find it so inspirational, full of friendship and loyalty, bravery and quick wittedness. It does have its scarier moments though, so keep that in mind.

And.. I am going to call it here. I could go on, there are so many wonderful books out there!

My Sunday-Monday Post

On July 30, 2023 By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn Sunday-Monday Post42 Comments

My Sunday Post is hosted by Kimba the Caffeinated Book Reviewer

Sunday Salon is hosted by Deb at Readerbuzz

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Kathryn at Book Date

Hello everybody! Last week was a better week for Wyatt – yay! It was a much better week – we got out of the house here and there, including a really cool trip to the Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge in Ohio, which was spectacular, and Wyatt got some actual relaxing down time to recuperate while I caught up on some things around the house, including finally starting some homeschool planning for next year. I am super excited already about some of the things we are going to be doing! We also got to sit on the porch at the library, which I love. I think my dad is going to visit this week and watch Wyatt so I can get out for some “me time” and my plan is to grab a coffee, my library book, and read on the porch here for a bit. It was nice to hang here with Wyatt though for a minute or two.

Read Last Week:

I read Flower’s book Prose and Cons and just devoured it, but now I want it to be fall. Lol. I am saving the next one in the series until wintertime, since it looks like it takes place around the holidays. I did however, put another series by Flower on hold at the library..

When I finished Prose and Cons, I wasn’t feeling like a new book really, but I was looking for some lighthearted comfort and remembered how much I loved the MG book Gone-Away Lake last year. So I grabbed that copy off of Wyatt’s shelves and started rereading it. Yep, just as good as it was last year. I love this book honestly. It is a little old fashioned in some parts and in the way of the Little House series, maybe just a few problematic phrases but overall it is full of adventure and whimsy. Wyatt is not really a fan of it yet, he prefers books with animal characters, but that is ok. I mean, my favorite book is Watership Down, so it tracks.

Reading This Week:

I am excited about this one, since it is set in Northern Michigan, near Traverse City, one of my favorite places to visit.

Posted Last Week:

What Wyatt’s Reading – July

Tuesday Morning Coffee Catch Up

Watching and Listening:

Nothing too exciting right now on this front – we finished up When Calls the Heart (just in time for the new season to begin, yay!), and are working on rewatching Death in Paradise. We tried to start White Lotus but for some reason that night Wyatt was being a pill about going to bed so we switched it off to come back to a different night, and then just haven’t gotten back to it. I was enjoying it though!

As for listening, we have been just all over the place. We have been listening to a lot of Billy Strings, the National Parks, and occasionally some Jim Croce or James Taylor or Carole King. It sometimes depends on the weather what we listen to.

Anyway, that is about it from around here! How are you all doing?

What Wyatt’s Reading – July

On July 27, 2023July 27, 2023 By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn book review5 Comments

We are in full swing with summer reading! July was a bit of a crap month around here, between Wyatt’s health and the weather and the air quality, and although we did get out and do some things, we spent quite a bit of time reading indoors.

This post does contain Amazon Affiliate Links.

We go to the library, a lot. It is one of Wyatt’s favorite places to go, and they all know him and talk to him when we go in. They are part of his little community and I love that the library plays such a huge part in his life. So we check out stacks of books weekly around here.

There are of course favorites, for both of us, every month. Let’s start with Wyatt’s!

Dandylion Summer was at the top of Wyatt’s list. That one was constantly a go-to before we returned it; it is a cute story about two sisters who make a wish on a dandelion for a great summer and soon find themselves with a new friend, a lion made of dandelions and flowers. They play with him all summer and then as the leaves start to turn and the days get cooler, they see him less and less and then one day he is gone. They know they will see him again next summer though so they are not sad. And, as the girls walk down the street filled with trees of autumn leaves, the reader spots a tiger in the trees, looking very autumnal so we know they will soon be making another new friend.

Fox the Tiger is another of Wyatt’s favorites of the month. It is a pretty simple story, about a fox who wants to be a tiger, and then every other animal he meets likes that idea and transforms themselves as well. He and his friends play at being something different for a bit, then eventually it rains and their costumes are destroyed and they go back to being happy with who they are. Then there is Everyone Loves Bacon! This book was a really fast, really quick and easy picture book read- with a shocking ending! (not really, I said that for drama, although it did surprise Wyatt and I!)

Finally, Wyatt also enjoyed That Book Woman. When we went to Greenfield Village for Father’s Day and their classic car show, they had a woman at the CCC camp who was dressed as a pack horse librarian and Wyatt loved talking to her. I knew I had to find a book for him about it afterwards, and I am so happy I found this one. It is a pretty long book, a little more serious, but he was wrapped up in the story of Cal and his sister Lark and the librarian who delivered free books in rain and snow, all the way up the mountain to their family. Cal hadn’t been much of a reader before, but after seeing the Book Woman deliver books in all types of weather he wondered just why they were worth all that, and started reading “that chicken scratch”, and became a reader. It was a wonderful book, and I loved it as well!

Now, my favorites!!

Let’s start with…. A Bed of Stars. This book is about a child who just feels overwhelmed with the world, until they go camping with their father out in the desert one night, “to shake hands with the universe”. It was a beautiful story, about our place in the world, about family, about comfort. I really enjoyed this story, it’s illustrations, and Wyatt snuggled up with me while we read it.

Let me also talk about Frogness for a minute too. We both loved Frogness, it was about a child and her dog who go searching for frogs in the evening, and experience so many small moments of wonder on their adventure. However, it is not until they take a moment, to just be in the moment, no looking, no searching, just being, that they find what they are looking for. A fun look at mindfulness – and frogs, of course.

I also loved Home of the Wild, although it tugged hard at my heartstrings! It was just such a sweet, wonderfully lovely, bittersweet story of a boy who loves the wild and all the creatures in the wild, and one day finds a fawn who needs some extra help. So he takes her home, makes her strong, and although his mother has told him that the fawn will need to be released into the wild when it is time, because that is where wild things belong, in the wild. The two become inseparable, and then the day comes that the boy has to let her go. But when he becomes lost in a storm some time later, looking for the fawn, the fawn finds him and leads him back home. The boy knows now, that his little fawn is big enough and strong enough to be on her own, although they do spot it each from time to time. Ok, so writing that out made me a bit teary again! It makes me feel the same way I did watching The Fox and the Hound as a kid (my favorite Disney movie of the classics) and the Widow Tweed has to say goodbye to Tod.

All of these are going onto the wish list for our own home library! I have started to whittle through our collection lately, weeding out books to give away, and it is hard, y’all! We just don’t have enough space for all of our favorites!

Have you read any of these? Any making your list of to be reads to the littles?

What Wyatt’s Reading

On June 29, 2023June 30, 2023 By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn books and reading11 Comments

At the start of this month, I set a goal for Wyatt and I for a summer reading challenge. I counted all books, whether he read them, I read them to him, or we read them together. For some reason, I felt like 20 was an appropriate number. I must have been crazy, because the challenge has already been completed and he received his first reward today, which was the Ghosts in the Attic Game from Peaceable Kingdom, his pick. The last week or so we haven’t really been able to do much outside, it has either been raining or like today, the air quality is too bad to leave the house for any length of time. We have been filling our time indoors with board games, and books, and of course, painting. However, this post is about books, so let’s get back to those. I can get carried away.

It was a pretty good month! So many insect books, I love it! There were some standout favorites out of this bunch, of course. Wyatt absolutely loved, loved, loved Snake’s Big Mistake, for many reasons. One thing we love to do is find characters in wheelchairs in books, and we were excited to spot a little hedgehog in a wheelchair in this one. But Wyatt also loved this book because it was about art and pottery. He loves art, and his grandma is a potter, with her own wheel and kiln and everything. I rarely read the author blurb to Wyatt in these books, but this one caught my eye. The author Sarah Kurpiel is herself a wheelchair user, and get this, a LIBRARIAN and an ARTIST. Wyatt’s two big loves, art and the library! It was very exciting. I saw that she also has a book, Lone Wolf, which of course Wyatt and wolves, so I will make sure we pick that up for him.

He also really loved Are Pirates Polite?, which was super cute, and now when he does something I can say “Is that how pirates act?” or “Do pirates interrupt?” Interrupting is such a thing for him right now. He is finding his words and adding to his speech everyday and is in a hurry to say them all to us, at all times. We have not had to address interrupting until this point so it is a new struggle for us all. Hopefully pirates help us. And finally, his final favorite of the month, What About Worms? This was a cute book, where the tiger was afraid of worms and worms were afraid of spiders and Wyatt found it absolutely hysterical.

As for my favorites, let’s start with the book that made me teary. Does this happen to anyone else? We were reading “Love Makes a Garden Grow” and ugh, it was so beautiful and sentimental I started to tear up and cry. Wyatt stuck his little face in mine, and asked me if I was sad. I had to tell him not really, but I was more just overcome with emotions over the story. Garden books that get sentimental will probably forever make me cry; my uncle Art and I had a special bond over gardening and now he is gone and you know how these things sneak up on you and hit you in the heart. It was a very beautiful book, especially for those who garden with family. I also really enjoyed The Red Tin Box. It is about a little girl who buries her treasures in a little red tin box, and goes back years and years later with her granddaughter and digs it up. It was just very sweet and I loved the whole idea of it. We loved reading Evergreen together too! It is a longer picture book, with little chapters almost, and is about the adventures of Evergreen the squirrel and her quest to get her acorn full of restorative soup to a sick family member. It was really well done! Firefly Hollow is actually our current read aloud, so we are not done with it yet. It just seemed perfect for the summer. We read a chapter before bedtime every night, and I probably look forward to it as much as Wyatt.

And that just about wraps up June for what Wyatt and I have been reading! Every book we read was amazing and special, it was a great month spent with great books.

Our Favorite Magical Creatures Picture Books

On March 10, 2023March 10, 2023 By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn books and reading9 Comments

So for as long as I can remember, I have been enchanted by the idea of faeries and other magical creatures. The magic and whimsy, the thought that there are wee little creatures living in my flower garden, that could fly and drank out of acorn cups and slept inside flowers. I loved fairy tales, Tinkerbell, and all magical type creatures – elves and gnomes and pixies, even dragons. They are just so fun to daydream about, you know? It is probably why I am really enjoying this whole new cozy fantasy movement in books right now. My little niece seems to take after her aunt, because she is completely enamored with fairies and mermaids and unicorns too; Wyatt has his favorites too, dragons for one. And gnomes, but gnome picture books are weirdly hard to find. And Yetis. And since March is a magical month, with leprechauns and pots of gold and rainbows, I thought I would share a few magical creature favorites!

Fairies!

The Fairy Garden is about a little girl who wishes and wishes for fairies to live in her garden. I feel ya girl! Maybe this is still why I plant a garden…. And Backyard Fairies by Phoebe Wahl is fantastic. I love anything by her. This book is about another little girl searching for fairies. Are they there?

Dragons!

Dragons Love Tacos. Well, Wyatt loves dragons and I love tacos. Wyatt loves me. Dragons love tacos. Does this make me a dragon? Maybe. Anyway, this book is all about dragons and how to lure them to your party by providing tacos. Although, maybe keep the salsa hidden from them.

There’s No Such Thing as a Dragon. This one takes me back! I read this book when I was little, and then I read it to Wyatt too. He loved it, I love it. There are so many books out there, new books, that sometimes I have to remind myself of all the wonderful stories I read as a kid to share them with Wyatt.

Zog. This one is a big hit around here. Wyatt loves the Julia Donaldson books and when we studied Scotland a few summers ago, we did a whole big unit on her and on Zog. It was super fun, and Zog remains a favorite.

Mermaids!

Tallulah Mermaid of the Great Lakes is a definite favorite around here! For one, it’s the Great Lakes, not the ocean, and we are soooo much closer to the Great Lakes being in Michigan. Have we seen Tallulah yet? No, but we will keep looking!

Oona. Oh my gosh is this one adorable. Oona and her little otter (squee!) Otto are the best of friends. Oona is a mischief, jut like my Wyatt, and the illustrations are amazing. There are three books in this series as well!

Pearl. A simple story of a mermaid given a small task which under her care becomes something more. This one is so beautiful too, all shiny and glam and pearlescent.

Nessie and Gnomes!

Nessie Baby. I actually just bought this for my new niece, who hasn’t even arrived yet! It is just super cute and while it will be a bit before she enjoys it I couldn’t resist. This may be the first book she ever gets!

Nessie the Loch Ness Monster. This was another book we discovered during our Scotland study! This was probably Wyatt and Mermaid Girl’s favorite section, learning about dragons and the Loch Ness Monster. And this book was so darn cute as well as containing actual history about the legend.

No, No, Gnome. Wyatt cracked UP when we read this book the first time. This gnome has a lot of enthusiasm but also causes a lot of trouble! Wyatt also enjoyed yelling “No, No” along with the book.

Tomtens and Yetis!

Tomten and the Fox. I almost put this one with gnomes, because it does really belong there. But, it is also a snowy book and I felt like the Yeti needs company, so here we are. This is one of the books we read multiple times a year, but especially in the quiet winter months. It’s a quiet story, and while the fox doesn’t get exactly what he came for, he was taken care of. Everyone is happy. I bought this all the way back when Wyatt was only a year old, and we still love it. It’s the sequel to The Tomten which is good but we love this one.

Yeti and the Bird. This poor Yeti is lonely! (told you, poor Yetis) But one day, this lonely Yeti makes a friend when it lands smack on his noggin. I love this message of not judging people (or magical creatures) based on appearance!

Dear Yeti. These intrepid hikers set out in search of Yeti, who is feeling shy. They send him letters, that are brief updates reminiscent of telegrams from old timey explorers, and yep, a bird delivers them. When the hikers run into some trouble, Yeti comes to their rescue. Super cute, and Wyatt loved it for the yeti, and because he loves mail and letters.

The inspiration for this post comes from Wyatt, who when asked said I should post about books – and my head is still in the Cerulean Sea, and thus, this post was born.

Do you like magical creatures and fantasy? What is your favorite creature?

What Wyatt’s Reading – January

On January 27, 2023 By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn book review, books and reading14 Comments

Hi everyone!! It’s been a fun reading month, full of wolves and snow and adorable woodland creatures! We hit up our library at least twice a week, so I am not sharing all of the books that we read together, but I am sharing some of our favorites. I am also back to buying more books than I had been so some of these are from Wyatt’s own personal home library.

This post does contain Amazon Affiliate links. If you were to purchase a book using a link, I would make a small commission at no extra cost to you.

A Thing Called Snow was pretty loved universally around here, by the whole family. Zommer’s books are oversized and just beautiful. In this one a fox and a hare, born in the spring and about to experience their first winter, are on the lookout for snow. My Winter City was more my favorite, not Wyatt’s. I just loved this look at what winter looks and feels like, all the little details from frost in the dad’s beard to slushy bus rides. Noisy Night was all Wyatt. This one was pretty cool because you feel like you are going up a floor in the building with every page because the residents all complain about the noise above them, until we get to the very top. It was pretty cute. And finally, probably the favorite book of the entire month, No Fuzzball! Any cat lover will be delighted by this one, and how Queen Fuzzball adjusts to a new little kitten face in her kingdom. It is absolutely adorable and also, made us chuckle. Definitely a keeper.

Wyatt loved Wolfboy. I knew he would – he considers himself a wolfboy half the time. And I could certainly relate to the grumpy feelings of being hangry!

We finally got some snow around here the other day, so Wednesday afternoon, after playing in the snow, we came in, had hot chocolate, and read a stack of snowy picture books. When It Starts to Snow and Blizzard were two of our favorites! When It Starts to Snow is a book that feels slightly poetic, with how it keeps asking the questions “What if it starts to snow? What do you do? Where do you go? These questions are answered by all of the little woodland animals and made us feel all cozy, because we knew what we were doing on our snowy day. Blizzard was fantastic- we both loved it! The author John Rocco tells his story about the blizzard of 1978, and the part he played in helping his neighbors and community, along with his memories of that time. We both really enjoyed it! It probably was our favorite right after No Fuzzball.

I Love Books in the Otter series is one of Wyatt’s go to grabs right now. He loves it because he too, loves books, just like Otter, and going to the library.

As for longer read alouds, we read the second in the Heartwood Hotel series, The Greatest Gift. Wyatt loves these books about the animals who work and live and stay at the Heartwood Hotel. After we finished up The Greatest Gift we moved on to Fantastic Mr. Fox – we are still reading this one and while things seem grim for the foxes right now, we have faith that Mr. Fox will come up with something to save his family!

Have you read any of these?

Saturday Morning Coffee Catch Up

On November 19, 2022November 21, 2022 By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn homeschooling17 Comments

The coffee is excellent today – Billy made it this morning and isn’t it always better when someone else does the making? We are back to Post Alley, our favorite. Billy also told me the other day that my coffee is always made strongest on Mondays – hmm. I wonder why that could be?

It was a bit of week around here. In the overnight hours of Tuesday/Wednesday Wyatt woke up with some quick illness that came and go very fast, like within two hours. I really don’t know what that was about, but it was an intense two hours!

Then Wednesday was my birthday! It was extremely low key, with basically 100% laying around by Wyatt and I. I could have had worse birthdays, and in fact I have. It was actually sort of nice to be do absolutely nothing for a change and to spend the day with my little guy just chilling. I very, very rarely allow myself to completely relax and it was amazing. Billy gave me a book, my friend dropped off a gift, and my parents gifted me with money to spend on me. They were very specific that it had to go to me and not something for the house or a bill or Wyatt. We will see.

The other night I nestled up in bed with my cup of mint tea, my new book, and a cat and it was all very cozy. The wind was whipping outside and it was so cold outside, but warm and happy inside. And I am still loving our bedroom refresh! The other day was so grey outside but our room still felt so open and light.

I’ve done some online Christmas shopping this week and feel pretty good about where I am! I have one thing for Billy, two of my three nieces are halfway done, and for Wyatt, I need to get just a few things still. I still have more shopping to do but I like to know the kids are covered first, then I move on.

In all my relaxing time from my birthday I took an online quiz on my phone to see what my “booksona” is. It was actually a really fun quiz. It was interactive and different from most little silly quizzes. I mean it was still silly but it was fun too. And I have to say I agree with my booksona! It feels really accurate.

Tonight my brother Devin and his family are coming over here for dinner. We are using a recipe for pizza dough that Jeanie from The Marmalade Gypsy sent me that her partner Rick uses. We are all going to make our own individual pizzas. I think it will be fun! Last week we had a really laid back dinner at my brother’s house, soup and bread and homemade pumpkin pie. It was a very simple, perfect evening. Even though I had Wyatt dressed like Doc Boy from the Garfield Christmas Special. (well Wyatt is super cute in anything) And for a little bit of reality, that is Wyatt being sassy! Then, one second later trying to charm us. Stinker.

This weekend we have to do a lot of around the house stuff. Cleaning, getting groceries including the ingredients we need for our contributions to Thanksgiving and Wolfenoot, and work on the gifts we are making. Busy but also fun, with a nice break for pizza with family.

Next week is a little wild, and the introvert in me is freaking out already! Tuesday we have a get together with my cousin and his kids, my mom, and my brother and fam. Wednesday we have early Thanksgiving with Billy’s family, and Thursday Thanksgiving at my brother’s. It will be a lot of fun but Friday Wyatt and I will be doing a lot of nothing.

And that is about it for today! I hope all is well in your world!

Homeschooling Journey: North Dakota, Edward Hicks, and Peace.

On November 14, 2022November 14, 2022 By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn homeschooling3 Comments

Last week was well, peaceful. I wanted to explore the concept of peace and mindfulness and home this month with Wyatt. It just felt like the right thing for November. It is an ongoing theme, so we started reading a few books on the topic of peace, talked about things that felt like peace to Wyatt, and made those cute peace dove hearts with his cousin one afternoon. Inside the kids had to write three things that peace is and they did a really good job.

When I learned that North Dakota was home to the International Peace Garden, which is situated on the border of the U.S. and Canada I knew it was the state we were going to work on in social studies. I mean, obviously. We didn’t get around to making our own mini peace gardens but maybe before the month is over we will.

We always cover the key facts of the state, talk about the state animals/trees/flowers etc, and then always pick the interesting facts that are most appealing to us. I am not expecting Wyatt to memorize the date of statehood or what number state they are, or even the capitol of the state right now. I want him to learn about the area the state is in, the region, what the landscape and climate are like, the flora and fauna, and those interesting things that stand out. I am always a little surprised by what he chooses! This time he chose as his favorites the W’eel Turtle, which is an 18 foot turtle built out of 2000 wheel rims, and that the National Buffalo Museum is there, and home to a rare white buffalo named White Cloud. I didn’t tell him that White Cloud passed away in 2016 so he is on display there, not actually living there. I kept that tidbit to myself.

We always have fun in art! This week Wyatt was a bit bored by the actual art and artist I had chosen – Edward Hicks and his work The Peaceable Kingdom. And from his perspective it probably wasn’t super exciting to look at, but it did give us the opportunity to talk about how the animals in the painting are usually animals that wouldn’t normally get along, which was the point of the painting, that they were a peaceable kingdom. He then picked an animal from the painting and then together we created one out of oil pastels. It was again an art lesson with Dad, which has been a fun trend! Wyatt chose a lion from the inspiration artwork, and then I helped him with the actual outline of the lion using hand over hand due to his motor control, although he is getting better and better everyday! Sometimes he just wants my hand over his wrist as a confidence boost while he does all the work. Anyway, we got the lion drawn, he made all the wild marks for the mane, and then Billy showed him how to blend the pastels to make it look smooth and soft. It turned out really well! And Wyatt did enjoy that part!

What We Used:

This section contains Amazon Affiliate links. In addition to the curriculum I am creating for him, we also use curriculum from The Good and the Beautiful, The Waldock Way, and Blossom and Root for phonics, reading, science, and social studies.

P is for Peace Garden || Peaceful Pieces || Peace is an Offering || Peace Train || The Peace Book

For the peace dove heart craft

What Wyatt’s Reading: Halloween Edition

On October 20, 2022October 20, 2022 By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn book review7 Comments

Wyatt and I have been hitting the library hard this month, checking out and returning books, for both school and pleasure reading. It is not unusual for us to leave with 25 books at a time, which seems absurd but we need them! We really do….

What We Have Read So Far:

How to Haunt a House was a cute little book about little ghosts in ghost school, learning how to haunt a house. It was a non-scary Halloween story and pretty silly too.

Halloween is Coming explores the excitement that builds before the holiday. We liked it because of the disability representation, and because it was fun autumn read.

No Such Thing and There’s a Ghost in this House were very similar – both have a little girl main character who exclaim there is either no such thing as ghosts, or that they have never seen a ghost in their supposedly haunted house. In No Such Thing, little readers can have fun spotting the ghosts that the little girl doesn’t see, and in There’s a Ghost there are see through pages that make the ghosts appear on the pages. Both are really well done and fun, and I love the art in both. There’s a Ghost in this House is a bit creepier than No Such Thing.

Wyatt absolutely loved Inside a House that is Haunted, Trick or Treat Crankenstein, and A Tiger Called Tomas. These three were his favorites besides the above ghost books – all of the ghost books. Inside a House that is Haunted is a progressive, repetitive story like There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly, with picture clues as well. Wyatt loved this one and I did too, because Wyatt had so much inadvertent speech practice with it. Trick or Treat Crankenstein is about a little boy who was so excited for Halloween only to have the day not go as he had wished. Wyatt was loving this story. And A Tiger Called Tomas was adorable – I loved the art, and this story of a boy who is shy and unsure. His Halloween costume lends him some confidence with its anonymity, and he learns that not only do people still know who he is, but that they like him.

Finally Stumpkin and Samurai Scarecrow. Stumpkin was sort of sad for me – this poor little pumpkin who is waiting and waiting to get picked and no one picks him. But it does have a happy ending! It was very sweet. Samurai Scarecrow is a cute little sibling Halloween story. Yukio is so excited for Halloween, but he gets tired of his little sister Kashi following him around and copying him all he time. He gets annoyed with her and lets her know it. Then feels bad about it. In the end though they make up but how it happens is a pretty big surprise!

On Our Shelf Waiting To Be Read:

There is still time before Halloween so we are going to keep on reading! We have some waiting on the shelf to be read which we will get to soon – and maybe a few more after these even!

I would love to hear your Halloween picture book favorites!

Homeschooling Journey: John Henry, West Virginia, and Clementine Hunter

On September 26, 2022September 26, 2022 By Erin @ Cracker Crumb LifeIn homeschooling5 Comments

Last week was a great week of learning around here! We are getting settled into a routine and getting used to the new curriculum and the things I am supplementing myself are going well. I designed my own literature arts curriculum for Wyatt and I to use and not to pat myself on the back, but we are both enjoying it a great deal. I am also winging it with music and art, and honestly it is all going together very well! We will see how that continues.

First, lets talk about John Henry. Wyatt LOVED the story of John Henry, but seriously, why did it have to end the way it did! We read the book by Ezra Jack Keats, watched the John Henry cartoon by Disney, and sang many many John Henry and railroad songs, including one by John Denver and another by Johnny Cash. This was by far Wyatt’s favorite though. I can’t tell you how many times we have sung this now. We talked about how brave and strong John Henry was, and talked about times Wyatt has been brave and strong as well. We talked about how machines and industrialization made life both easier, but also took jobs from many people, which was something that also came up when we read Paul Bunyan.

I read a few versions of John Henry, some mentioned states, other didn’t, but I ultimately decided West Virginia was a good state to accompany the story for our Social Studies portion of the week. There is a statue of John Henry in West Virginia and it seems to be part of their folklore so it made sense. We learned about railroads, about the state symbols of West Virginia, and chose some interesting facts and favorite things. I of course loved the history about John Denver’s song Country Roads, how he sung it in D.C. and received a five minute ovation. The song has naturally become the state song. Wyatt chose as his favorite fact the Mothman myth, which was just a little mention in the book that we use as our “spine”, The 50 States. Sometimes it is so 100% obvious he is my kid. As we read a bit more about Mothman, I learned we had just missed the Mothman festival in West Virginia! How cool would that have been to attend together as a field trip?

Art was also really cool this week. We learned about Clementine Hunter, and if you are unfamiliar with who she is, I encourage you to look her up! She was fascinating and brave and talented. We learned that she had a gallery show that she wasn’t even allowed to attend since she was Black, and so we talked a bit about that, as well as an age and developmentally appropriate discussion about slavery and racism. We read Art from her Heart, which is a fabulous picture book, and then recreated her painting of zinnias. I picked zinnias from our yard, brought them in, and Wyatt got to work. I helped him with the shape of the jar in the painting, but the rest was all him and I think he did amazing!