toddlers – The Pajama Chef

This sweet picture book written by singer-songwriter and mama Ellie Holcomb is sure to become a family favorite!

A description of the book from the publisher:

In this engaging board book with whimsical art, singer/songwriter Ellie Holcomb asks a childlike question and answers with a lovely lyrical tale that shows young readers that God our Maker sang the first song, and He created us all with a song to sing.

As usual, my five point review:

If you’ve ever heard Ellie Holcomb’s music, you know that her lyrics absolutely point to God and her voice is beautiful. That is clearly true of her writing as well! This sweet story–the result of a mother’s desire to answer her child’s question of “who sang the first song?” is full of God’s truth and His love, simply shared to connect with children.
In addition to the wonderful writing, the illustrations by Kayla Harren, are fantastic! They’re full of intricate detail–a variety of animals, children of every color of the rainbow, and gorgeous scenery enhance this book. There’s even a mama wearing her baby in a wrap! (Swoon.) As we read the book together, my son loves to point out his favorite whale or the cute little girl’s ponytail swinging as she runs.
Reviews for children’s books usually center on the story and illustrations, but Ellie has a little something extra special for her audience. She wrote and recorded an album to correspond with the book!! Sing: Creation Songs is the perfect addition to this sweet book. My little boy is a tough cookie when listening to music, but when I put the album on the other day, he smiled up at me and said, “Mama, Iike this song.” *insert heart eye emoji here*
The message of this book is just what I want to instill in my son–that the Father loves him and that he is His. I am just so in love with this book!! It’s not another “celebrity writes a book” but a truly wonderful story that resonates with children and parents alike.
If you are looking for a gift for the under six crowd… this is it! From baby showers to holidays to birthdays, this is a lovely, well made book with a great message. Highly recommend for girls and boys alike!

Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from B&H/Lifeway Bloggers. However, I was not required to write a positive review. The thoughts expressed above are entirely my own. Thanks to B&H/Lifeway for the chance to read this great book!

Reviews

Book Review: All the Colors That I See

August 7, 2018August 7, 2018 Sarah

All the Colors That I See is a great board book to help young children learn their colors–and that God made all of them for us to enjoy, too!

A description of the book from the publisher:

Green and yellow, red and blue?—what favorite color did God give you?

In this delightful board book, preschoolers can learn their colors and learn where they came from—God! They’ll be encouraged to touch, tap, or pat colors on each page, and a sneaky chameleon will follow them along the way.

In the Little Words Matter™ board books, it only takes a few words to tell a big story. Crafted especially for toddlers, these books make biblical truths easily understandable and enjoyable for little ones and their parents too!

As usual, my five point review:

I love getting new books to read with my toddler, and this sweet board book is no exception. This book is a great way to teach your young child about all the colors God has created for us to enjoy and appreciate.
Most educational books for toddlers about colors or objects are pretty boring, in my opinion. I thought All the Colors That I See is so creative! The premise: teaching children about colors is pretty basic. However, the authors take this a step further by encouraging children to engage with the colors–circle them, tickle them, touch them with their nose. Silly things like that. Finally, there’s a color changing chameleon to find with each color as well. All this adds up to a fun and educational experience for your child–and you! I can see my son engaging with this book differently as he grows, so that’s definitely a bonus.
One thing I expected with this book, perhaps by the title, was that it would explore issues of race. It doesn’t go there at all, so just be aware of that. I think it could be used to bridge that topic with older toddlers or preschoolers in a pinch, but I know there are better books about that as well.
The faith content in this book is not forced or overbearing, and is very age appropriate. For instance, God made the color red and He also made red apples. On some pages the text is more explicit about God than others, but you can use a similar sort of prompt to share about God’s creation with your child whether you are reading this board book or on a walk outdoors or at the grocery store.
Overall, I highly recommend this book. I think we will be reading it for many years to come! My son’s favorite color changes every day and this book is a great way to explore that, and to remind him that God made colors for us to enjoy.

Looking to share the story of Creation with your little ones? This sweet board book, God Made the World, is the perfect way to do that!

Reviews

Book Review: God Made the World

June 6, 2018June 6, 2018 Sarah

Looking to share the story of Creation with your little ones? This sweet board book, God Made the World, is the perfect way to do that!

A description of the book from the publisher:

Who made the sun, the stars, the moon, and the animals? God did! And who made me? God did! God made the entire world! Author and artist Sarah Collins brings a fresh approach to her illustrations using geometric designs to create bright, beautiful, and exiting pictures that preschoolers will want to look at over and over again.

God Made the World board book tells the story of creation in simple, easy to remember rhymes with art that is engaging and fun for young children. And it is sure to become a classic introductory creation storybook that will be used by countless families and teachers.

As usual, my five point review:

What a great board book! It is absolutely beautiful to look at it and feels good too. I know that’s a little weird to say, but we read a LOT to our toddler and the more high quality board books (in terms of construction) just feel good in your hands. Thick pages that stand up to drool and being thrown, bent, and otherwise abused (parents… you know this is true!!) are important. We do teach good book behaviors, but it’s a process. 🙂
God Made the World covers the story of creation as told in Genesis 1. The author shares creation’s story through a series of fun rhymes that are enjoyable to read and enjoyable for a child to hear. They aren’t sing songy (which can be annoying) but are fresh and new.
Speaking of the Christian message of this book… it’s straight from the Bible, and that’s important to me. I want my son to be exposed to Christianity through a variety of sources–family, daycare, church, music, books, and more. I want the Bible to be repeated to my son over and over and over again, and Biblically based storybooks are great for that!
The illustrations are awesome. Bold and bright colors as well as fun geometric shapes and patterns make this book pleasing to look at too. I think this also holds the interest of babies and toddlers better.
In general, I think this is a fabulous board book! It would be a great gift idea for a baby shower, first birthday party, or even to gift to your church nursery or daycare. It’s read on repeat at our house… the test of a good book!

Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from Tyndale House Publishers. However, I was not required to write a positive review. The thoughts expressed above are entirely my own. Thanks to Tyndale House for the chance to read this great book!

Reviews

Book Review: Tell Me About Easter

February 28, 2018February 27, 2018 Sarah

Looking for a simple, fun way to introduce Easter to your toddler? This is a great pick!

Looking for a simple, fun way to introduce Easter to your toddler? This is a great pick! #Easter #bookreview

A description of the book from the publisher:

Is it Easter yet?

Rhyming text fills this short-and-sweet die-cut board book that helps toddlers celebrate the true message of Easter—Jesus! Plus, foil and flocking will engage little readers’ senses as they spot and pat each fuzzy animal. Welcome, Easter!

Looking for a simple, fun way to introduce Easter to your toddler? This is a great pick! #Easter #bookreview

As usual, my five point review:

This a short and sweet book about Easter–both sweet spring animals and Jesus. It is absolutely perfect for toddlers! Aside from the content, we’ve been able to use it as we teach our son about colors and animals–asking him questions about what he sees and whatnot.
We love the illustrations in this book. It’s not just your average everyday board book–many of the animals (lambs, chicks, bunnies), flowers, and leaves are covered in soft felt flocking. A great tactile way for your kiddo to interact with the book. There is also gorgeous foil in this book as well. Both elements make this book very engaging to young readers. And a pretty book is fun for adults to read, too!
The book rhymes, but not in an obnoxious way like other books can. Apologies for using the word obnoxious to talk about books, but please tell me you know what I mean here! 🙂 This rhyming is sweet and sing-songy… it’s precious to see my son nodding and grinning along with the text. He even claps at the end!
My husband and I value good theology for books–especially kids’ books. This one is great–very straightforward and simple. You can see the majority of the spiritual content on the page above.
All in all, I would highly recommend this book for a way to prepare your kids for Easter, especially for the little crowd (under 3-ish?). It’s simple and sweet. My almost two year old son loves it, either when we read it aloud or when he “reads” it to himself. I could see this book being fun for older siblings to read to their younger siblings as well.

How I Eat

How I Eat: Cooking on a Budget for an Easy to Please Husband and Two Picky Toddlers

February 2, 2018February 1, 2018 Sarah

Welcome to How I Eat: Meal Planning for Normal People. (If you missed it, click over to read more about this series on The Pajama Chef.) This series is meant to inspire readers (and myself!) with tips and tricks for meal planning and getting dinner on the table. Whether you’re cooking for one or a crowd, I firmly believe that good food shouldn’t be sacrificed just because life is busy.

Today’s feature on How I Eat is Morgan of My Confetti Life. Morgan lives in the Nashville area, and is a fellow contributor to Nashville Moms Blog. She’s also married to a Ben, her college sweetheart, and is mama to three cute kiddos. Through her blog she shares her life, family, food, faith, and more. It’s my pleasure to share her approach to meal planning today!

Tell us about yourself. Who are you cooking for? What else influences how you get meals on the table?

I am cooking for an easy to please husband and two picky toddlers, ages 3 and 5. My husband came from a family where his mom would fix a entrée and two or more sides and a dessert. Our weekly grocery budget does not allow for that, so I pick meals that have low cost ingredients or meals that I know we will have leftovers from. I am a stay at home mom and I love being in the kitchen so I do not mind a little prep work.

What meals do you plan?

Dinner
Snacks, Desserts, etc.

In a typical week, approximately how many meals per week do you plan to eat at home or prepare to take with you (e.g., to work or school)? No shame… curious minds want to know! For this, I would include any food purchased at the grocery store (e.g., rotisserie chicken, bagged salad mix, etc.) but not takeout.

16-18: I eat out 3-5 times per week, maybe a few days for lunch or so.

What is your basic meal planning method?

I write down the days of the week. I fill in meals that we plan to eat out. I then scroll through my Pinterest for dinner ideas. I usually make 3 classic meals then try something new for the other 2 or 3.

What are your favorite weeknight meals?

What are your “no-brainer” meals? Or what meals do you make when there’s “nothing” to eat?

Grilled cheese! Sometimes with bacon.

Do you use any tools to help you create your meal plan and/or execute it?

Paper meal planner of some type

What is your best advice for someone who is just starting to meal plan?

Weekly meal planning is amazing, it takes a little effort to get the hang of it. I base the order of the meals we eat off of the produce and its shelf life.

Anything else you want to add?

Kroger ClickList is an awesome meal planning tool. I plan my meals and order the groceries all at the same time.

Thank you, Morgan! I like your tip about planning menus while thinking of the produce/ingredient shelf life. For that reason I’ve lately been planning meals with frozen veggies for the end of the week, or choosing to have our weekly meal out on Friday night when we’re almost out of groceries. I also agree, ClickList is great! I don’t use it every week but occasionally it is a lifesaver. Great idea to plan and shop simultaneously! Thanks for sharing your strategies with us!!