Nathan loves to read books. Well, he doesn’t actually read them, but he loves the whole experience of sitting in our laps, holding the book with his hand, and following along as we read. He really focuses on the pictures, furrowing his brows ever so slightly as he gazes intently at the colorful illustrations. Occasionally, he’ll reach out and grab for a picture then look up at me curiously when his hand comes back empty. I use my “theatrical” voice, which is higher-pitched and presents a caricature of the characters in the books, giving the stories a dynamic feel. Nathan loves it. He’s very persnickety, however, about which books we read. He has three favorites, and everything else pales in comparison. His favorite is Paddington Cleans Up. I, however, am beginning to loathe that book. It’s my own fault, though. I made the characters’ voices too annoying, but Nathan loves the whiny tone I assigned to Paddington so I keep doing it.
There are some things we do simply for the sake of our kids, right?
So I keep reading that book over and over again with a whiny voice for Paddington simply because Nathan loves it. When he’s being a Grumpified Grumpy Grump, all I have to do is break out Paddington Cleans Up, and Nathan is all smiles. Any other book, however, risks bringing about the Apocalypse. He’ll let me know in no uncertain terms that I’m not reading his favorite book. How dare I!
If he’s in a good mood when I start reading, he likes Wynken, Blynken, and Nod as his second favorite. The Little Red Hen is his third favorite.
I’m hoping that he continues enjoying reading time as he grows older. Both my husband and I were, and still are, avid readers. Admittedly for me, however, I’ve not been reading nearly as much lately. Time is elusive, and I can’t seem to catch enough of it to settle down and enjoy a good book. However, all the way up through high school, I’d always have a book nearby. I’d read while eating, fall asleep to reading, walk down the halls in school reading… yeah I loved it. Hopefully, Nathan will too.
