This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase after clicking them, we will be compensated, but there is no additional cost to you. All opinions expressed are our own. Thank you for your support School is almost out and it is time to think of how to enjoy the summer with your kids and grandkids. Reading has always been a big part of enjoying the summer with my family, as well as going to summer movies or watching summer movies at home. A couple of summers ago, I had two of my grandchildren with us in the summer for about 6 weeks. We had so much fun together! One thing that we did every night before bedtime was read a chapter or two aloud out of a novel. Then, when we finished it, we would watch the movie that went with it. Since they were here partially to have me tutor them in reading that summer, this was a super fun way to stress the fun that goes along with reading and to have some bonding time together. I feel like I have a particularly close bond with these two grandchildren because of that summer together. (sigh) ( You can read about some of our times together here, here, and here!) I prefer to watch the movie after reading the book for a couple of reasons:
In order to be able to actually find a movie or television show that goes with the book, it is often better to stick with the classics. I love the classics anyway and I feel like it is good to expose your kids to them at a young age so they can learn to appreciate them. The beauty of reading aloud at home in the summer is that you can read at a pace that is good for your children and yourself! You will have to decide which books you think will fit best with your child's age and personality, as well as which version of the movie. The books and movies that I am listing are some of my favorites, and some that I have used with children at home or in the classroom. I'll try to recommend an age roughly, but you know your child best, so nothing is written in stone here. If you haven't read some of these books yourself, what a joy to experience them with your children together this summer! For the younger set: I still remember going to the library with my mom as a child and she recommended this book by A.A. Milne. I checked it out and lost myself in the adventures of Winnie-the-Pooh! I was lucky enough to read the book before I ever saw the Disney versions of the stories. Then when I did see the Disney versions of the stories, I loved them as well. This movie would be a great place to start, out of the many choices. Because of Winn-Dixie is one of the books I read with my grandkids that summer. It is becoming quite a classic I believe. There is something very relatable about dogs and kids usually enjoy books about them. The movie is equally enjoyable! Old Yeller is another great book about a dog and a settler family. I had my 3rd grade reading students read it aloud with me one year and then we watched the classic Disney movie. They loved it! You could spend the entire summer enjoying the Little House on the Prairie Books. There are 9 in all and they give such a great view into what frontier and early settler life was like by the author who lived through it all. Instead of a movie, watching the old TV series would be a delight! Alicia's favorite book for a long time, beginning in grade school, was the Wizard of Oz. L. Frank Baum didn't only write the book we are all familiar with because of the Classic Judy Garland Movie, but there are 4 more stories after this one! The movie is fine, but everyone should read the actual books, which are even more magical and imaginative! Middle Grade-ish: Anne of Green Gables was a favorite of mine as a young girl and a favorite of Lindsey's as well. The stories of this young girl on Prince Edward Island transports you to a simpler and more beautiful time and place. I love the PBS series that so beautifully depicted the story better than any I have ever seen. This book is innocent and perfect and teaches real values. Treasure Island is a true classic that captures the imagination. Every kids dreams of finding a hidden treasure! There are many versions of the movie, you could watch more than one! This one is a Disney classic, the Muppets did a highly enjoyable version, lol, and here is one from the 1930's. You really have to know your kids when it comes to Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn because while I love these books, I found when I tried reading them aloud to my kids years ago, that the colloquial language used in these books was difficult for them to understand. So, it may be better for a little older kids to enjoy. I'm linking to the classic Johnny Whitaker movie version because I think kids will love it. The Swiss Family Robinson is great for he adventure loving family to read together! When the Tarzan treehouse at Disneyland used to be The Swiss Family Robin Treehouse, I used to dream of living in it or at least spending the night and waking up in Disneyland in the morning! The movie is full of action and romance! I hope you appreciate that I am not specifying which gender will enjoy which book on this list, because as a child I read and loved them all and I expect that your children will love them as well! Robin Hood was especially a favorite of mine! And, my all time favorite movie version is the one made with Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland! There are other darker versions out there, but this one is fun and exciting for kids! After you read the book, you can go the extra mile and make the movie experience even better by providing snacks that would go with the movie! For example:
You get the idea! Just listen for ideas as you read the books!
I hope you try a classic or two with your kids this summer! These book memories will stay with them for a long time! If you would like to suggest some favorites of your own, I'd love to hear them in the comments.
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This post contains affiliated links. I will be compensated for purchases made at those links with no additional cost to you. Thank you for your support. We've been counting down (or up) the days until my mother's 100th birthday and it finally arrived! We are all so proud of her and blessed to have her in our lives. If you would like to read more about her and why she is the best mom ever, you can look at this post or this one. She has done so well and lived such a good and wonderful life and we wanted to celebrate it in a big way. Doesn't she look beautiful? One of my uncles always used to think of my mom as a Betty Boop figure for some reason and gave her many Betty Boop collectables. So, we went with the Betty Boop theme and used red and black tablecloths on the tables. She always loved to play Scrabble, so I made picture holders using Scrabble pieces and trays. We put pictures on the tables of my mother throughout her life. (After 100 years, there were many to choose from!) The words I used are ones that I felt represented my mom. I painted the trays and little wooden doll head feet in black and red. I used a pencil to dot the white polka dots on the feet. In order to have enough letters and trays, I went to a thrift store and found an old Scrabble game for $3.00. I also found just the letters on Amazon. I used tiny clothes pins, painted them red and used E600 and hot glue to attach everything. We included pictures like these: Those are my mom, my older brother as a baby and my dad. At 100 years of age, people tire quickly, so we knew that we had to have the party be short, yet fit in all of the things my mom would want. Here is what happened: There was delicious Italian food. There was a beautiful cake and outstanding cupcakes! She danced (to big band music) with my son and my brother. She took pictures with her children, grandchildren and great-grand children who were able to attend. Then she started falling asleep and had to go home! She opened her gifts the next day! Unfortunately, since her party, my mom's health has taken a turn for the worse. She misses my dad and feels ready to leave us. When she goes, we will miss her, but we will be so happy for all of this time that we have had her with us and so blessed to know that we will see her again one day with all of our loved ones that have gone before. I am so thankful for the knowledge of that truth. I'm so thankful for this last bit of fun we were able to have together. My heart is full.
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A little over a year ago, I had this idea to do an activity for our women's group at church entitled "Gather." One of the things our church emphasizes is the importance of family and family ties back through our ancestors. We truly know that Families are Forever. Knowing who you are and where you come from is a priceless gift that can give you a sense of comfort and belonging. I find it remarkable to see in today's world how many people do DNA tests to find their relatives, and how many TV shows there are about searching for one's roots. It all attests to me the importance of family being a part of our beings.
For this activity, I found some amazing family trees that are free to have printed from familyhistorydaily.com I encourage you to search this site for a ton of family history ideas from research to family trees to other ways to display your family history. These family trees are free to download and have printed. I sent mine to Staples and had them printed for about $1 a piece! They came out beautifully and make a very inexpensive gift just as is! But, if you want to spruce them up a bit, I have a couple of ideas for you.
We happened to have some left over bead board at our house from a past project. My family tree print is 11 x 17 inches, so I had my good husband cut out a piece for me to make a backer frame for my tree. I decided that if someone is still doing research to find all of the names to fill in on their charts, this type of frame is perfect because it can be displayed and gradually filled in as they do more research.
For this beautiful black and white choice, I also printed it in the 11 x 17 size. I went to Hobby Lobby and purchased the black frame, complete with mat in a 13 x19 size, the mat has an 11 x 17 opening.
Using black alphabet stickers, I stuck the word "Gather" all over the mat in both upper and lower case letters. I love how it came out.
As I mentioned, I came up with this idea a year ago, but then Covid hit our family so the activity was postponed. We finally were able to do it this year! Other parts of the activity included:
The thought just occurred to me that framing an old recipe in my mom's handwriting might be a nice addition to this family tree gift! I'll have to mull this over! In the meantime, I hope there is someone that you know that would love an awesome family tree. It is a heartfelt gift that doesn't break the budget!
Other Family Themed Gifts:
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Many families have a Christmas tradition of reading a different Christmas Book to their children every night until Christmas Eve. I love that and I know that one year I actually wrapped up 24 Christmas books, many of the loved ones that we already owned, and let the kids open one each night for us to read aloud. Even if the book was one they had read many times before, it was always fun to see which book would be the surprise story each night. Of course, after we read it, that book would be available for the kids to reread on their own throughout the rest of the season. It was surprising how many Christmas books we actually owned!
While I love Santa and the tree and all of the fun trappings of Christmas as much as the next person, I have always felt that it is important to make sure that the Savior is the focus of Christmas and I made sure that many of the books we read were about the Birth of Jesus. He is the Reason for the Season after all!
So, I've put together a list of some great books that center on the Nativity. They would all be a great way to round out your Christmas Advent Reading this coming December.
We have recommended other Christmas books in the past if you are still searching for a few more: |
Creators of Hot Cocoa Bombs! (copyrighted)
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Helen Reynolds: Mother of six children , grandmother to eleven! I love to cook, craft and create things and I especially love doing that with my family, So, when my lawyer daughter, Lindsey, my artist daughter, Madalynn, and I came up with the idea of Hot Cocoa Bombs, this blog was born. Then, one more daughter, with her technical and science skills, plus creativity has joined in to round us out! Read more about us here! Archives
April 2024
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