I Had To Order More!

Doing the circles is the easy part. After that’s done, that’s when the tears and recriminations begin to fly. Because that’s when I, as Keeper of the Chequebook, make the hard choices. Or in some cases, the not so hard choices. Sabrina and I often have very different ideas of what makes good choices from the catalogue: I tend to go for the classic/quality and Sabrina….doesn’t. This month I think we achieved a fair balance between what she wanted and what I was willing to buy.

We both had Drama Queen on our lists, which is sometimes a rarity these days. Unless we’ve both circled every book in the catalogue, this type of agreement always means a “yes” in the final analysis.

I don’t usually say yes to all the media generated stuff so neither Hannah Montana nor Drake and Josh made the cut. I just couldn’t say no to High School Musical 2, though. Sabrina is just such a huge fan of this right now, and even if it’s not exactly a Newbery Award winner, she’s still reading and not watching tv if she has this. (As an added bonus, if she’s reading the book, I won’t get the soundtrack stuck in my head again.)

Speaking of Newbery winners, I ordered both From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs Frankweiler and Number the Stars. They were my reward for allowing HSM2 past the media filter. Even though Sabrina didn’t show any interest in either of them, I think she’ll enjoy them at least as much as the other two once they’re here. Two very different books, but both with a lot to offer, I think. Keeping with the Newbery theme, we also ordered the School Favourites Pack with Holes and Loser. Holes is a great book that I would love to read with Sabrina at bedtime; I’m not sure she’s old enough for Loser, but I’m a Spinelli fan, so it won’t go to waste.

I thought we were done at this point, until I added up our order and discovered we were still well under twenty bucks. So I did the only reasonable thing and added more books.

I’m not a fan of the Chicken Soup series, but it was hard to argue with Sabrina’s logic, so I bought it for her. And then I bought Andrew Clements pack for me. I think Sabrina will really like Frindle, it’s such a great, subversive story.

Even with my additions, the order was still under twenty five dollars: $24.70 for 9 books; that’s less than $3.50 per book!

One of the best things about Scholastic is that there’s no minimum; I could have only ordered the ninety-five cent back to school special and they would have happily sent it. The other great thing about Scholastic is that their prices are so amazing, I’m happy to spend more for the value I’m getting.

Restraint Is Not My Strong Suit

While putting together my first Scholastic order, I really became of aware of restraint and how much I do not possess that quality. It was very hard but it’s done.

There was never any doubt that I would be buying the Inside My Body! Kit. What a fabulous little kit! Perfect for my budding anatomist. Plus I rarely say no to educational things that Rowan is interested in.

On that note, we are also getting the Let’s-Read-And-Find-Out Science Pack as well as the Sharks Wonder Wheel. At first I wasn’t interested in the Sharks Wonder Wheel because it wasn’t a “book”. Then I realized that the wheel concept wouldn’t be as bad as I thought. We can look at as many or as few facts as we want with the wheel and the spinning will provide hours of entertainment.

I ordered the Words Of Wisdom Pack. I loved the message and illustrations in Zen Shorts. These books need to be on our bookshelf. My other selfish pick is Don’t Let The Pigeon Stay Up Late. I don’t know if Rowan will feel the Pigeon love as much as I do but I’m going to give it a try.

I couldn’t resist buying If You Give A Pig A Pancake. I’ve heard good things about the series. It looks cute and it’s less than a dollar. I also bought The Magic School Bus Gets Caught In A Web. We love the TV series and it’s less than two dollars. I’m sure we could find either of these books at our local library and I could satisfy our curiousity for free, but there is something about owning your own books.

Boy is Rowan’s teacher going to love me! The total this month is $48.65 which seems like a lot but we are getting 11 books, a skeleton kit, and a fact wheel.

Look Mommy!

Rowan surprised me. I thought she would circle everything but she only had a few.

#70 Sharks Wonder Wheel: Look Mommy! Sharks! I like sharks.

#39 Inside My Body Kit: It’s a skeleton! Can I get it Mommy?

#46 The Magic School Bus Gets Caught In A Web: A Magic School Bus book?! I didn’t know they had books. Look! It’s the spider one! I’ve seen that show!

#44 Let’s-Read-And-Find-Out Science Pack: It’s a book about penguins. And there’s a book about bugs too! And a book about frogs!

#48 Mystery Money Cash Register: I like this toy Mommy. Can I get it?

My First Circles

This is my first official Scholastic flyer. It’s not a friend’s flyer. It’s not a neighbour’s flyer. It is all mine. I suppose I can share it with my daughter.

#38 I’m Ready For Kindergarten! Pack: This is Rowan’s first year in Kindergarten and I think she would love to read about others who are sharing her experience.

#39 Inside My Body Kit: We are quite the science geeks in the house and Rowan has started down the path as well. A few months ago she was begging me for a skeleton model.

#33 How To Tell Time Kit: I had one of these cool watches when I was a kid. Even with the prevalence of digital clocks, I still think it’s important to be able to read a “real” clock.

#20 Don’t Let the Pigeon Stay Up Late: What can I say? I love Mo Willems and I love the Pigeon.

#44 Let’s-Read-And-Find-Out Science Pack: Lately Rowan has had a fascination with non-fiction. We have had an endless parade of books about whales, sharks, insects, and space marching through this house. Normally we get these from the library but 5 books for $18 is a great deal.

#52 Phonics Word Families: Rhyming is one of Rowan’s weaknesses. She just doesn’t grasp the concept yet. She likes to rhyme “cat” with “car”. She thinks rhyming means it starts with the same sound. I think something like this might help her.

#86 Words of Wisdom Pack: Wow! I read Zen Shorts at the library and loved it. What a wonderful message. I can only imagine The Three Questions will be just as inspirational. For $8, I think these books are going to make the final cut.

#46 The Magic School Bus Gets Caught In A Web: We love the Magic School Bus! We’ve never read one of the books though. I would like to get this to see how the book compares to the show.

#34 I SPY Phonics Fun Boxed Set: One of Rowan’s latest obsessions is the game I Spy. We play it everywhere. I bet she would love these books! I think the phonics is just a bonus.

#35 If You Give A Pig A Pancake: I’ve heard many good things about this series (If You Give A Mouse A Cookie, If You Give A Moose A Muffin) and I don’t know how we missed them. I think I need to get this one to see what the fuss is about.

I Thought I’d Want Fewer Titles With My Second Child

#79 Words Are Not For Hurting: Hands Are Not For Hitting was a great book–A message wee folk (and sometimes Biggies too) need to hear, in a format that made it palatable to hear. So I have high hopes for this second one in the series. The preschool set is just learning to “use their words” instead of their teeth, and need a little help figuring out how to do that.

#76 The Wheels on the Bus: The Baby fell in love with this song at the pool this summer, and surprisingly, we don’t have a version of this yet.

#73 We Are the World Pack: I like books that promote tolerance and diversity. It’s an important message to have on the bookshelf, I think.

#23 Go Away Big Green Monster: I guess we’re just about at that stage again. sigh.

#68 A Very Brave Witch: I guess it ’s time to start thinking about Hallowe’en stories again. This one seems to have a positive message to go with all the witchy fun.

#54 Raising Healthy Eaters: I hate cooking, and I’m not very good at it, so I’m always on the lookout for cookbooks that have healthy, kid friendly recipes in them.

#39 The Letters Are Lost: We have a ton of alphabet books on the shelf already, but I have a weakness for them. This one looks like it sets itself off from the crowd with a travel theme. Could be fun to tuck away until our next trip.

#5 The Busy Body Book: It’s never too early to start promoting healthy exercise habits. Maybe this book will inspire us all to be more active.

#15 Look and Find Little Einsteins: The Baby has a Backyardigans Look and Find that she absolutely adores. I have to confess, though, that while she can pour over it for hours, I’m getting tired of finding the same old things over and over. Maybe this would be a nice change of pace.

#16 Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus: I have seen this book around for a few years, but I never end up getting it. I’ve heard great things about it, though, and it did win the Caldecott Medal….

#48 The One-Armed Cook: A cookbook that understands that I don’t have a lot of time or attention or hands free to just whip something fabulous up? I think I’m sold!

Not Bad for Less Than $30

Clearly if I’d bought everything The Kid and I had circled, she’d be wearing books to school for picture day. The sad reality is, I just can’t order everything, and sometimes the hard choices have to be made. So, what made the cut, and what didn’t?

Junie B Jones First Grader at Last Aloha Ha Ha pack and India the Moonstone Fairy Pack were on both of our list, meaning that there were no tears and no negotiations about those choices. However, I did feel like adding Clementine and The Disney Fairies on top of these two would be overkill, so they just remain circles for now.

As a mathphobe, I am in favour of anything that makes the so-called scary math concepts fun and easily understood, so I opted for Pizza Fractions. I just didn’t have enough sense of what the Crazy Dice Math Kit was all about to justify the extra $2. Maybe next month. Although, just watch, they’ll start probability tomorrow and won’t even think of fractions until January.

I managed to meet my personal goal of making sure to get non-fiction into the mix by including Eats, Shoots & Leaves as well as the fractions game. I think I’m more excited about this one than The Kid is, but since I’m the one signing the cheque, she’ll just have to suffer through my love of grammar.

I’ve never read The Bailey School Kids, but since Dragons Do Eat Homework was only $1.95, I figured we could take a chance on it.

I had overlooked the Roald Dahl Pack because we have so many Dahl novels already;the problem with packs like this is that once you have quite a few novels, it’s often hard not to get stuck with at least one repeat. The Kid was clearly reading more closely than I was, and pointed out that not only do we not own any of these Dahl’s, one of them is Matilda, one of her favourite novels. Sold!

I spent last year refusing to buy Because of Winn Dixie because I didn’t think The Kid ready for this reading level. This year, I’ve decided to give it a try. If it’s too challenging now, it can always sit on the shelf for a bit.

And even though it didn’t even make it on The Kid’s radar, I bought Ralph S. Mouse. The pull of nostalgia coupled with the ridiculously low price made it irresistible. I hope she gets into it, but even if she doesn’t, I think it was a great value.

Total Order:

I wrote a cheque for $29.60, and the teacher will soon be stuffing nine items in Sabrina’s backpack.

Oh, and I broke down and bought a membership in the Bearific Friends Club, too. The Kid was right, it was a great deal.

Why My Mom Should Buy Me These Books

#21 Drama Queen: I am a drama queen myself and I like to read about other dramatic girls.

#22 High School Musical 2: I love High School Musical. I watched HSM2 this summer on the Disney Channel and it’s my new favourite movie. Since my mom won’t let me watch tv all the time, I can still have HSM even when the tv is off.

#77  School Favourites Pack:  My friend read Holes and she said it was really good.  I want to read it too, but it’s never in when I go to the library.

#24 Electronic Organizer: Now that I’m in Grade 4 I need to get organized. My mom has a an organizer and I think this would really help me get my homework done and remember when I have Girl Scouts.

#38 Hannah Montana Crushtastic: Hannah Montana is my favourite show but it’s only on on Saturday mornings. If I got this book, I could still have Hannah Montana stories even when she’s not on tv.

#20 Drake and Josh Surprise: I really like Drake & Josh, even if they are boys. They always get into trouble because they’re kinda dumb, but they always help each other out. My favourite is Megan, their little sister, because she tortures them. I think it would be fun to read about their adventures.

#10 Chicken Soup for the Girls Soul: I’m a girl and I think it would be cool to read about other girls who have problems and stuff just like me.

#54 Littlest Pet Shop Pack: I really like Littlest Pet Shop. They’re some of my favourite toys. With this book, I can see all the ones I want to collect and learn more about them. Plus they give you a Pet Shop and that’s cool!

#36 Guinness Book of World’s Records 2007: This book has all sorts of cool, weird stuff in it. I think it would be fun to read when you just want to read a little bit but not a whole book.

#18 Doghouse Electronic Pet Pack: I really want to have a v-pet. This one has a book with it which is better than the store, because then I won’t lose the instructions.

Please, Mom?

#14 The Cat Spook Book of Tricks and Treats: I think it looks fun and I want to learn how to do tricks. The flashlight looks cool.

#24 Dragons Do Eat Homework: I love The Bailey School Kids because they do a lot of funny things. They always think everything is magical and it causes trouble. We read these in school all the time. Plus, I really like dragons.

#51 Junie B Jones Aloha Ha Ha Pack: I really like the Junie B. Jones books because they are really funny. Junie B. always makes a big fuss about stuff and gets into trouble. They’re fun to read.

#40 Hannah Montana Hold on Tight: I really like to watch Hannah Montana. She’s cool! I think it would be fun to read books about her when I can’t watch the show.

#45 Horrible Harry Pack: Horrible Harry is really funny. He’s always plotting trouble, but he isn’t really horrible.

# 52 Secret Diary: I want my own diary and this one has two keys so if I lose one it doesn’t matter.

#80 Roald Dahl Pack: I really like Roald Dahl. We’ve read lots of his books at home, but we don’t have these ones yet. My teacher read us Matilda at school and I really liked it. I’d like to read it again at home.

#6 Animal Ark Cat and Kitten Set: I really like cats and dogs and animals and this series is all about that. It’s all about pets and taking care of them and I’m into that.

#53 Labworks Secret Slime Factory: Experiments are cool! With this, I can make stuff and it will really work because there will be instructions.

#48 India the Moonstone Fairy Pack: I really, really, really love this series. I have almost all of the Rainbow Fairies, both of the Special Fairies, and almost all of the Weather Fairies. I can’t wait to read about Kirstie and Rachel and the Jewel Fairies because they sound like they could be the best ones yet.

#21 Disney Fairies Good To Be a Friend: I into fairies and stuff. My mom bought me a Disney Fairies book at the bookfair last year and I really liked it. I’d like to read more about Tink and her friends. Plus, I think it’s important to be a good friend.

#63 Nancy Drew Clue Crew: My mom gave me all her Nancy Drew books and I like them, but they’re all about when Nancy is a grown up. I think it would be fun to read about her when she was in Grade 3 just like me!

# 10 Because of Winn Dixie: I borrowed this from my friend Sami and read a bit of the beginning. I liked it and I think I would like this story a lot because it’s about a dog and a girl with just one parent, just like me.

#34 Friends Forever Pack: I want to give my best friend the charm necklace so that everyone will know that we’re best friends.

#61 Mood Stationary Box: I’d like to know what my moods are.

Bearific Friends Club: I love Build-A-Bear Workshop. I really want to be able to see all the newest stuff and play on the special website. There’s a lot of stuff with this club and I think I would really enjoy being a part of it.

It’s Like Crack, But With Books

I sat down today with my September Scholastic Flyer and a red pen. When I emerged, there were 11 circles on the page.

#31. From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs Basil E Frankweiler: I may possibly have squeed a little when I saw this title. This is one of those titles you don’t forget. I’m a bit fuzzy on the plot after 20+ years, but I definitely remember it was a lot of fun to read.

#45. The Homework Machine: I haven’t heard of this book before, but the premise–a group of kids invent a machine that does their homework for them–sounds like it could be fun. I want to ask Sabrina what she thinks of this one before I commit to it, though.

#21 Drama Queen: Knowing Sabrina, this will be on her list of picks too. I try to pick out stories with positive female role models, but they have to be easy to identify with, too. And if there’s anything Sabrina can identify with, it’s a drama queen.

#2 Andrew Clements Pack (Frindle & The Report Card): I read Frindle a few years ago–long before Sabrina would have been ready for this story. It made me an immediate fan of Clements and I’m really looking forward to finally sharing this quirky story of individuality and challenge with Sabrina. I don’t know anything about The Report Card, but since it’s by the same author, it’s probably worth the risk.

#22 Eggs: I haven’t heard any buzz about Eggs yet, but I am a fan of Jerry Spinelli. From Stargirl to Maniac McGee, he tells good, fun stories full of quirky, fully realized characters and positive messages.

#69 Princess Academy: I keep seeing these series floating around and passing over them as too advanced for Sabrina. Now that’s she’s in fourth grade, though, maybe it’s time to challenge her a bit. I’m pretty sure she’ll like the subject matter, and with the series mandate to turn the stereotype on its, I think I might too.

#25 Encyclopedia Brown Pack: This is another of those nostalgia circles. I think I read every Encyclopedia Brown book there was when I was a kid. The stories are pretty boilerplate, but the underlying message–that’s it’s cool to be smart–is not. A four pack might be just the way to introduce Sabrina to this junior detective.

#88 Sweet Scents Origami: Sabrina’s a crafty kid, but she’s not very patient. Maybe this is just the thing to keep her occupied and teach her the joy of an effort well spent. Plus, it seems like you get a lot of value for that $4.95

#61 Number the Stars: I like Holocaust fiction. I think it’s an important moment in history, and that it’s more important than ever that we keep the memory alive. That said, I have yet to share this genre of stories with Sabrina, seeking I guess to protect her from the inevitable ugliness they contain. This novel is one of the classics of this genre, and may be a good place to start building our collection.

Circle Worthy

This month ten different books were deemed “circle worthy” by this Mom (Kid’s list was significantly longer)

#76: Ralph S. Mouse: As soon as I saw this title, it was like I was in the third grade again. This is one of my nostalgia circles–a classic that takes me back to my own childhood while letting me engage with my daughter’s. This month’s $0.95 special is almost certain to make the cut.

#51. Junie B. Jones: First Grader At Last Aloha Ha Ha Pack: Junie B has been getting a lot of flack lately from language purists who just don’t get that the childish syntax and grammar is part of the charm, but I admit to being an unabashed fan of Junie B. Sabrina delights in these stories, so this one is definitely on the list.

#33. Freckle Juice: Another Nostalgia circle. I remember this title from back when I was nine years old and desperately embarrassed by my freckles. I don’t really recall much except for the title, but it’s Judy Blume, so it’s bound to be funny.

#16 Clementine: Judging by the blurb, it looks to be Junie B for bigger kids. The Kid loves Junie B, but now that she’s in the third grade, it might be time to go for a slightly more grown up heroine.

#11 The Book of Planet Earth: It looks like a pretty user friendly book filled with earth facts. It would probably be a good thing to have around the house for speeches, projects, what have you. A definite maybe.

#58 Pizza Fractions: Help with the dreaded fractions! Definitely something to consider.

#19: Crazy Dice Math Kit: I’m not sure what this is, exactly, but I’m in favour of anything that makes math fun.

#48 India the Moonstone Fairy Pack: Last year we drank the Koolaid on this one, and as a result, we already have the Rainbow Fairies and the Weather Fairies on the shelf. I might as well just circle this one, since I know the Kid will do it for me if I don’t. Especially since it comes with lip gloss.

#81 Rosa: A kid’s version of the Rosa Parks story. I’d really like The Kid to know about this period in history. There’s still a lot of room to grow in terms of race relations, but I think kids of today’s generation truly have no sense of how ridiculous the world used to be. Plus, a story of a strong woman standing up for what’s right is always welcome on our shelf.

#28 Eats, Shoots & Leaves: I love this book! And now it’s in a kid friendly version! I cannot wait to see what they do with this as a picture book!