A Year of Books (almost).

So I got behind in posting what I was reading. I had already written about a number of books I had read, and just never got around to posting. So here is a list of books read between June 2015 and April 2016.

Preschool Storytime Resources.

Check out a blog post I did for a class listing and detailing 15 different resources for preschool storytimes. Most of these are sources that I go to on a weekly basis both for school and work. They are all filled with so much knowledge and wonderful ideas.

https://stephaniehartford.wordpress.com/2016/02/26/preschool-storytime-resources/ 

Library Book Displays.

One of my favourite parts of my job is creating engaging and interesting book displays. Most of my inspiration comes from Pinterest. Typically every month I do a new children's display and do a correlated theme for the Adult display. The books are always a big hit as I bring in as many books as possible from other branches and I always try to have a wide variety of materials, non fic, board books, picture books, playaways, etc. There is also a craft that goes along with the theme.

The Invention of Hugo Cabret - Book Trailer

 The Invention of Hugo Cabret - Book Trailer

So this is not my typical post, however this is honestly what my life has consisted of since January. I hope to post about that soon, but lets be real, between work and school and life, my life ends up being like a game of Jenga and currently its at the tipping point. This was a class assignment, that I think ended up looking pretty good. It makes a great reader's resource if you are trying to suggest a book to a reluctant reader or if someone wants to understand what the book is about.
You can find it here as well.
Enjoy!

April/May Books.

Sports Books for Girls.

March Books.

Florence.

Florence

Day 10

We arrived in Florence mid afternoon after a short train ride from Venice. We had our directions in hand to the hotel, so we purchased bus tickets and hopped on the bus to get to our off the map hotel. Google said to get off at Galileo 3, after 1 we pulled the stop signal, the bus stopped at Galileo 5 instead, we thought maybe the driver was trying to help us out as google said the hotel was between 3 and 5. We got out and walked back to 3, and found nothing. We were on the side of a hill that overlooked the city. It was a road on a hill with thankfully a  sidewalk and nothing else. We were lost. There were no buildings let alone a hotel. We found another set of tourists who spoke english and had a map that we asked for help, but their map was the same as ours and therefore not much help. We then came across a little old Italian man who spoke no English, but spoke to us like we knew exactly what was going on. He pointed in the direction he was walking and then just continued on his way. We figured we would follow him and hoped that he was leading us towards where we were going. We don't know if it was intentional, but as a result we found it, and in the end it was supposed to be Galileo 1.

Venice.

VENICE.
DAY 9
This was our one full day in Venice. We awoke on the train, ate the breakfast we had packed in our bags and watched out the window as we approached Venice. The train arrived in Venice around 9am, which allowed up most of the day to explore. There were only a few sights that we had planned to see and in the end we decided just to explore, wonder and ditch the museums. Venice was cute. Lots of steps up and down the bridges and we were never able to find the same location twice as the alleys were so confusing. I had done a lot of research before the trip about what to do in Italy and one blog post stuck out to me, it was about how everyone should have gelato twice a day minimum and we now know why. We were more the once a day, but we certainly did not miss a day. The blog also explain the flavours and how to find an authentic location, I highly recommend doing some gelato research before you go. 

Arriving in Venice. 

Paris.

PARIS

Day 4
We left London and took the night bus to Paris. Little did I realize that driving in the city would almost make me hurl, but the bus ride was a million times better than the flight we slept like babies. From my research I did ahead of time on how the bus would cross the English Channel, it was either going to go on a ferry or underground, but everything was pointing towards underground, which would have been wonderful as we would not need to get off the bus, this however was not the case. We took a HUGE ferry across, where we found a spot and slept. This was also Brent's first time with half a sleeping pill, it hit him hard.

On the boat from London to Paris.

January - February Books.

These past few months with so much driving I have had the chance to do a number of audiobooks and have actually had a few that I absolutely loved.

London BABY!

So those words 'LONDON BABY' may or may not have come out of my mouth a number of times as we spent our first four days of our adventure in LONDON England. Sadly my husband did not fully appreciate the friends reference or the time we were turned around and I wanted to go inside the map, but I personally found it a riot.

September-December Books.

I am so behind! I have also been so busy that I have done next to no reading these past few months. September and October were full of reading travel guides and planning for Europe and since we have been home it has been busy busy busy with Christmas and everything.

Professional Blog.

So I have big plans to get caught up on some blogging. I did go to Europe after-all! However with life and now starting my Masters that is going by the wayside. As a part of a class assignment I will be blogging here for the next little bit, so check it out.

https://stephaniehartford.wordpress.com/ 

Pumpkin Puree.

I know this is a little late, I started writing it, almost finished and then jetted off the Europe for a few weeks, so the whole blogging thing fell to the wayside. So here it is, not super useful now, but next fall I highly recommend it!

It is Fall. Therefore it is everything pumpkin. I, like 90% of people seem to be obsessed with everything pumpkin. The downside, everything store bought is super high in sugar or in quantities to feed a family not two people. If I buy an entire pie, I will then eat an entire pie. So with my love to bake I have been searching Pinterest for some healthier pumpkin alternatives. Most recipes called for canned pumpkin, but at almost $4 a can, it was looking like an expensive fall season.
I was at the market yesterday and saw a section of pumpkins labeled 'pumpkin pie pumpkin's'. I had no idea what that meant, but I assumed that somehow I could turn that pumpkin $2 or 3/$5 into a pie. I had no idea how to turn said pumpkin into a pie, but I was determined. I then came home and was very disappointed in finding no information on how to make the pumpkin into a pie. So after searching a number of resources I figured I would wing it. It turned out great and with one small pumpkin I made a skinny pumpkin loaf and pumpkin zucchini dark chocolate chip loaf with some left over.

Skating Lessons.

I have been feeling very blessed as of late. I am lucky enough to have a job I love, that also allows me to have a ton of flexibility due to the limited number of hours I work. One of the major perks is that Thursday mornings I am able to spend hanging out with my crazy niece. We have so much fun. A few weeks ago she started skating lessons. 

July/August Books.

Reading the past few months has been slow as most free time has been spent preparing for our european adventure coming up in a few months, but some of what I have been reading has been great.

Delirium by Lauren Oliver - I started reading this on recommendation from a coworker, the perks of working at the library is that your coworkers are always reading and know a good book. It was just what I was looking for, action packed with a twist and a bit of romance thrown in. If I must compare it I would say it is a little Hunger Games/ Divergent esque. Basic concept, in the future love is a disease and if caught you are said to have delirium. It is a horrible thing and there is a cure when you turn 18. The story is of a girl who is about to turn 18 and falls in love. It ends on a cliff hanger which does not disappoint in the second book. Well worth the read.

Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver - This is the follow up to Delirium, there are actually three and I am currently waiting for it at the library. The book was good. Potentially even better than the first, which is a rare thing. It was written in a similar style as Gayle Forman's books 'If I Stay' and 'Where She Went' which I love, the one present chapter and then one past. It also leaves you at a point where you become desperate to read the next book. I am excited.

The Giver by Lois Lowry - Read this book in preparation to see the movie that was in theatres. Little did I know that the movie was only in  our local movie theatre for about a week and therefore I had missed it. It was an easy read, but a wonderful one. I had read it back in about grade seven but did not remember much about it. I enjoyed the plot and the fast pace that I was able to read it. The only down side was the ending. The ending of the book, not giving anything away, left me furious! It kind of just ends and leaves you guessing as to what happens next. I get that then allows you to guess as to what happens next and believe what you want, but lets be real, I am not having that. I finished it late at night and was so frustrated that I had to immediately download the next book (I had no idea there was a next book) in desperate need to figure out what happened. Not impressed.

Cycle of Lies by Juliet Macur - This book was the first non-fiction audio book that I have listened to. Next time I will pick something a little more action packed. It was a little dry. A little too naming names and drugs and hard to follow along with. A number of times I wished it would just end, but I stuck it out until the end. Don't get me wrong it was interesting, I was once a huge Lance Armstrong fan, I wore a yellow rubber bracelet for years, and understanding just what was actually going on all that time with all of the lying and cheating was intriguing however I might have been more satisfied had I just read a ten page magazine article over listening to over 8 hours of an audiobook.

Fall Children's Display.

Fall is here! I love fall! I tried really to find a plastic rake for the children's display at the library as my original plan was to have books missed with the leaves and it to say 'Rake in a Good Book' but apparently those are the hardest thing ever to find. I looked a few falls back for one for my niece to help with the raking and I feel like in the end I bought her a plastic shovel, not the same.
So it is super simple and super cliche, but it is also my first attempt at a display so I wanted to start small and work my way up. I am also very excited to start my collection of cut letters. I have bought a file folder and as we finish with them save them for another project.
This makes for a wonderful children's display as it incorporates reading, the season and lots of bright colours. I also personally love to have a variety of formats and lots of options in terms of items able to be checked out to accompany the theme of the display. Here I have Easy Readers, Board Books, Picture Books, Non-Fic and Fiction books.

Playdate.

I recently took on a new position at the library. It pays a bit better and has more responsibilities but for the time being it has a lot less hours. I am only working a guaranteed 10 hours a week, however the benefits of a lighter work schedule include a now weekly playdate with my beautiful niece. Starting in September we will be doing skating lessons during that time. For now however it has included visits to the Ontario Early Years Centre (which a awesome if you have one near you it is great and probably right up there with the library for our favourite places to visit). We spend our post lunch in a bit of quite time (this big girl is past naps) with movies and cuddles on the couch. The warm afternoons have then either been spent at the splash pad or local kids pool. The pool is wonderful as most of it is shin high and the deep end is only up to my waist, she loves it because of all of the toys and being able to do it all by herself. So we have been having lots of fun together as the summer comes to an end, but I am very excited for her to start skating in the fall and she is excited as long as the teacher is a girl.

Tea towels make the best baby blankets. 

Snacks at the OEYC.

We went on a bug hunt!

Just making eggs for the dolly. 

Playground just outside of the OEYC.

ALS Ice Bucket.

ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease, is a neurodegenerative disease in which your neurons stop functioning. It causes one to lose control of their body. It effects everything from fine motor skills, walking, talking and swallowing, progressing further and eventually taking away more movement, all while being completely aware that this is happening. It is a disease to which there is no cure, no treatment and no understanding of the cause. It effects each person differently with an average life span once diagnosed of 2-5 years, in some extreme cases however, just a few months.