Wednesday, December 24, 2008

D.E.A.R. time

Katie & I have been reading Charlotte's Web for the past month or so and finished it today. We have discovered that Katie loves us to read chapter books to her. She gets very excited to read a chapter before naptime or bedtime and is thrilled when we finish the entire book. It started with a princess book that her Uncle Don gave to her two Christmases ago that was about 250 pages long and full of chapters. We didn't dare tackle it back then when she was 2, so we mostly just looked at the pictures and made up shorter stories to go along. This summer I started reading it to her - one chapter at a time - to see how she would like it. She ended up loving it and asking for more everyday until we finished it in October. I honestly didn't think we would ever make it through the whole thing, but she loved every second of it. When we finished Katie said, "Mom, there was no Snow White or Sleeping Beauty in that book!" She then decided that she was going to ask Santa for another princess chapter book that had ALL the princesses in it for Christmas. In hopes of keeping her interest in chapter books alive, we started reading Charlotte's Web with the goal to finish it before Christmas when hopefully Santa would bring her the exact book she requested. And we did it! We read the final three chapters today before her nap. She was so excited when we turned the last page. She knew that meant that her princess book will be here soon! We'll see if she gets what she asked for tomorrow!
I am enjoying this time reading with Katie and hope that she continues to love reading, and reading with her mom, for a long time. I had never read Charlotte's Web before. I loved the animated movie as a child (and still do) so I knew the story well. I loved the book just as much as the movie, probably a little more (no surprise). The last two chapters were pretty emotional for me though. I don't know if it was the writing or the hormones, but Charlotte's death and Wilbur's new friendship with her daughters at the end definitely got me. What a sweet story of friendship and love. I would definitely recommend reading this classic children's story if you haven't already. And if you have, read it again!
Drop Everything And Read

2 comments:

Becca said...

That sounds like a lot of fun. Little Katie is getting so big.

Julie J. said...

When I was 11 years old I had a steady babysitting job where I would watch and put to bed two little girls. I read Charlotte's Web to them and I have loved it ever since. My mom read it to Sam the last few months we lived with them. Right now we are reading Ralph S. Mouse. He rides a motorcycle. I LOVE READING!