Lovely Saturday

[pegkerr]

The weather was maybe five degrees too hot, but we shall not quibble. Some sun, some clouds, not too much humidity. Lovely.

I took the girls to karate and then went and got a haircut, so I am freshly shorn for Lumos.

Went and ran a couple of errands, came back and brought the girls downtown to the lovely downtown library.

My mother took us faithfully to the library every few weeks when I was growing up, and I am glad to continue the tradition with my girls. One brainwave I had early: I bought two very sturdy and useful plastic baskets with handles, one for each girl. Library books are kept in them, unless the books are being read, which greatly lessens the probability that the books will be lost. And the baskets are very convenient for lugging books to and from the car, since we get usually either fifteen or twenty books per girl with every trip to the library. I decreed early that they would take out books in increments of five, just to simplify our lives with routine, and that they could take no more than three books out at once from one series. And I also insisted that they only take books out with the bar code taped to the back--not the uncoded thin paper backs that the librarians just check out with a generic "Juvenile Fiction," because then the girls never remember which is the library book when they are putting books back in the basket when they are due.

When we were done at the library, we went to the art fair in the Highland area. That was fun. I finally (finally!) found a pareo that was big enough to wear for a dress. I bought it, even though it wasn't quite the color/pattern I wanted. The girls bought some of the wee sewn animals that every Hmong folk artist always sells at art fairs here in Minnesota.

Came home, worked out with my new stability ball DVD, and made a pizza for dinner for the girls, since I knew that they would refuse the incredibly healthy and delicious tilapia fish I had bought for myself. Summer vegetables sauteed in balsamic vinegar on the side--once again just for me. The girls refused them. All the more for me. Yum.

Altogether, a lovely summer afternoon. Karate and shopping and books and haircut and art and time spent with the girls and good food and working out, so that I feel virtuous.

THE READING MOTHER

Strickland Gillilan

I HAD A MOTHER who read to me
Sagas of pirates who scoured the sea,
Cutlasses clenched in their yellow teeth,
"Blackbirds" stowed in the hold beneath

I had a Mother who read me lays
Of ancient and gallant and golden days;
Stories of Marmion and Ivanhoe,
Which every boy has a right to know.

I had a Mother who read me tales
Of Celert the hound of the hills of Wales,
True to his trust till his tragic death,
Faithfulness blent with his final breath.

I had a Mother who read me the things
That wholesome life to the boy heart brings-
Stories that stir with an upward touch,
Oh, that each mother of boys were such.

You may have tangible wealth untold;
Caskets of jewels and coffers of gold.
Richer than I you can never be --
I had a Mother who read to me.

Comments

[crowley.livejournal.com]

The buckets are a fantastic idea; I wish I'd thought of that when I was a kid. My mother took me to the library all the time. I can remember happily scouring the shelves for new things to read. After a while Mom had to limit me to 5 books per visit because I would check out so many books at one time, I'd lose some amongst my own library.

[naomikritzer]

Sounds lovely!

I wandered around the art fair in Highland as well.

Our library day is Wednesday. We have a "Going Back to the Library Basket" where books are put when we're done with them, and a Library Book Basket where the unread ones are supposed to go. This does not prevent them from ending up all over the house, alas. Molly also has a special canvas tote bag with a zippered pocket for her library card, which she takes on library trips. It's supposed to keep her library card from getting lost; we've had mixed success with this, but at least one of the times it went missing this was actually my fault.

[pegkerr.livejournal.com]

i've always kept the girls' library cards in my purse, with my own library card.

[cammykitty.livejournal.com]

Cute photo of your girls! & cool poem too. I still haven't been to the downtown library. I'll have to pick a day soon, maybe next Thursday when the farmer's market is open. My Mother-in-common-law went and said it was a bit extravagant, but absolutely fantastic. I like that they have public pianos.

[morganmalfoy.livejournal.com]

I admit that I am a book snob, and waste seemingly endless amounts of money on books I will probably only read once. I think that's okay for me now, but when I was your kids age, the public library was the best thing ever. Even going there couldn't really keep up with Lindsay and my reading, and my mom was wonderful about taking us to this little bookstore where the owner would always have recommendations based on the other stuff we had bought and liked. I probably should try to go get a library card for here again, but I don't know how much reading I'll be getting done once school starts.

[cakmpls.livejournal.com]

Lucky girls. When I was their age, the library let kids take out only three books at a time. And I think adults could take only five (which was fortunate, because it meant that my mother had to go back to the library about as often as I did).

[awallens.livejournal.com]

Every time I go to the library I get at least fifteen items, I love my library!

[stinaleigh.livejournal.com]

Libraries are wonderful.

[huladavid.livejournal.com]

I'm at the Central Library about 4 or 5 times a week, but then I actually have "copious spare time".

Enjoyed the poem, 'tho my mother's reading to us was more along the line of Dr. Seuss, Laura Ingalls Widler & A.A. Milne. (And I'd'a changed all those "boys" to "child"...)

[dichroic.livejournal.com]

For some reason, that poem has made me rather soggy.