If you love reading your kids will too!

One of our favorite family activities now that Izzy is getting older is reading. I just love how excited she gets in the morning when she plops into our bed with a big stack of books! It's so amazing to see how Izzy's little mind just soaks up every little detail of the story into her mind. Reading is so important for children in their life-long development. It's a habit we should all be getting our families into. The more our kids see their parents reading (instead of doing other things like watching t.v.), the more they will want to read, and the stronger their learning habits will become. What's also important when it comes to reading is making it fun. I know little kids usually want to sit down for story time no problem, but older kids sometimes have other ideas of how they'd rather spend their time. I know sometimes us moms can get so busy with our day to day lives, what with the errands, the cooking, and the cleaning that we forget that the habits that we show our children are the habits they will develop and practice. This week I have a challenge for everyone. Why not turn the t.v. off this week and take a family trip to the library? I know that you mommies out there must have some books on that summer reading list that you haven't gotten to yet, why not go check them out? Then, when you return home have some family reading time. Make a yummy snack and crack open a good book. I bet you'll all have a great time spending quality time with each other instead of watching t.v. Here's an even better idea, why not enjoy this summer weather and go reading together at the park? There's so many fun ways to instill the importance of reading into your children's minds. If you show them your habits, they will soon practice them. So have some fun with your kids this week and enjoy some good books! Let me know if you come across some exceptionally good ones! Have fun everyone! ~Marina