If there is one thing I’ve been consistent about as a parent, it’s been reading books my favorite children’s books to my kids. I’ll admit, we were those people who read to our kids when I was pregnant. Yep, my husband read the same book each night to my belly from about six months pregnant on to the end for each kid. It may seem silly, but we will swear to you that at only a few hours old, my son raised his head and looked in my husband’s direction when he started reciting, “Goodnight Moon.”

I love that my kids are now old enough to snuggle up next to me in bed as we make our way through chapter books that I also enjoy reading.  

I love when families want to incorporate a book into their session as memory of reading together. It’s a special way to document your family and the everyday things you do. See the gallery below of my own iPhone snaps I’ve taken over the last six years of my kids reading. Cue the tears.

Here’s a list of our favorite children’s book from the last six years. I still have all our favorites and will save them for my kids to pass on to their kids one day (if they so choose).

Baby/Toddler Favorite Children’s Books:

• Goodnight Moon 
• I Love You, Good Night
• Little Blue Truck
• Stream Train, Dream Train
• Where Do Diggers Sleep at Night
• Goodnight Princess
• I Love You Stinky Face
• Oscar’s Grouchy Sounds
• Guess How Much I Love You
• Curious George Goes Fishing

Toddlers/Kids Favorite Children’s Books:

• Little Joe Chickapig
• The Day the Crayons Quit
• The Day the Crayons Came Home
• The Paper Dolls
• Franklin Plays The Game
• Press Here
• I Had a Favorite Dress
• All Kinds of Families
• Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History
• Little Legends: Exceptional Men in Black History
• Sheep Won’t Sleep
• Nothing Rhymes With Orange
• The Prince and the Witch and the Thief and the Bears
• The Legend of Rock Paper Scissors
• Pizza & Taco: Best Party Ever
• Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus followed by The Duckling Gets a Cookie
• Wordy Bird

Chapter Books: We started reading chapter books to each kid around the time they turned three. 

• The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe (The first chapter book I read with my son. I did lots of debriefs and explanations each night, but overall, I think he understood the story.)
• Where the Red Fern Grows (My all time favorite as a kid.)
• Old Yeller (Another favorite, but after I read Where the Red Fern Grows and Old Yeller, my son asked me to not read any more books where animals die. Ouch. He did enjoy them, but we did cry a lot.)
• Charlotte’s Web (The first book chapter book I read with my daughter. She didn’t cry during the book, but my did son cry when we watched the movie.) 
• All of a Kind Family (My daughter enjoyed this story about 5 sisters. It’s probably been my least favorite we’ve read, but I did learn a lot about Jewish traditions.)
• The Very Very Far North (Witty, heartfelt and cute. My kids and I laughed out loud a lot.)
• Just Beyond the Very Very Far North (Not as good as the first one, but still very good read and so heartfelt.)
• My Father’s Dragon (Quick read, beginner chapter book readers could probably get through this on their own.)
• Stuart Little (This is by the same author as Charlotte’s Web and I don’t think it’s as good, but we still enjoyed it.)
• Harry Potter Series (I have never read these or seen the movies, so my son and I are slowly making our way through the series. I look forward to reading these each night!)
• The Never Girls Series (My husband and daughter worked there way through this series and my daughter loved it. Quick reads and the series goes on for 13 books, but she never tired of the storyline.)

Favorite Children’s Audio Books We’ve Listened To:

• Paddington 
• Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
• Short Stories for Kids – We listen to this on the Apple Podcast app. They are 10-15 minutes stories and great to turn on when you need a minute of peace in the car
• My Side of The Mountain – a friend recommended this and my whole family enjoyed it on the way to the Missouri over Thanksgiving break

I’d love to hear any suggestions you have as well! I always love adding to our home library. 

Let’s Start Planning Your Family Photo Session

Pregnant and expecting?! Is your child growing quickly and you want to freeze this phase?! Or maybe you want updated family photos, but think you have to wait until next fall (you don’t!). Contact me and let’s start planning today. I’ll help you plan what to wear for family photos! 😉

In the meantime, check out more of my family photography work.

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