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Cupcakes, Cookies & Pie, Oh, My!

Posted on Monday, November 26, 2018 by Kristy

What do birthdays, baby showers and weddings all have in common? Cake! This dessert is a favorite to many, myself included. That’s why November 26 is National Cake Day! To celebrate this awesome day, I’m going to share two authors who love cake as much as I do—Karen Tack and Alan Richardson. Below are some of my favorite cookbooks that they made in honor of delicious cake. While you’ll find these books in the adult nonfiction section, they offer some cool recipes for you and your older kids to create together.

“Make It Easy, Cupcake! Fabulously Fun Creations in 4 Simple Steps”

Tack and Richardson show you how to start with a batch of plain cupcakes and turn them into fun creations such as robots, farm animals and even a cookie village!

“Cake My Day! Eye-popping Designs for Simple, Stunning, Fanciful and Funny Cakes”

Everything that can be done with a cupcake can be done better with a cake—with a twelfth of the effort and loads more wow power, using everyday pans, bowls and measuring cups.

“Cupcakes, Cookies, & Pie, Oh, My!”

No sweet treat is safe from the authors’ ingenuity: refrigerator cookies, pound cakes, pie dough, cheesecakes, bar cookies and Jell-O are all transformed into amazing and playful desserts. There’s something for everybody in this book, and every single item you need can be found in the neighborhood supermarket or convenience store. Playing with your food has never been so exciting—or so easy.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Posted on Thursday, November 22, 2018 by Tess

Today is the day—Thanksgiving, hooray! The turkey is ready, the dishes are set, the pie is cooling on the counter and you still have an hour before the guests arrive! The kids want to play, but you want to sit. You’ve already read your latest load of library books, so what next? How about heading over to the Hoopla app on your phone or tablet and checking out these great read-along Thanksgiving titles to share with your little ones!

“One Is a Feast for a Mouse” by Judy Cox

A silly story featuring a mouse whose eyes are too big for his stomach! As the greedy mouse piles up the Thanksgiving leftovers to bring back to his home, he forgets about one important thing…the cat!

“How To Catch a Turkey” by Adam Wallace

What could be worse than Thanksgiving for a turkey? Asking the turkey to get on stage during the school play! Stage fright strikes, and the turkey is off! Can the students and teachers catch the turkey in time for the play?

“Thanksgiving Is…” by Gail Gibbons

This is a simple story that explains harvest customs around the world and how the first Thanksgiving came to be. Simple enough for young children to grasp, it’s a great way to explain to children why we celebrate Thanksgiving.

Giving Thanks: A Native American Good Morning Message

Posted on Monday, November 19, 2018 by Megan

As Thanksgiving draws near, I was challenged to find a children’s picture book that represented the first Thanksgiving from a Native American perspective. Sadly, there weren’t a lot to choose from, but my favorite was “Giving Thanks: A Native American Good Morning Message” by Jake Swamp. This text is an adaptation of the Mohawk Thanksgiving address, and at the end of the book there is a condensed version of the English text translated into the Mohawk language or kaniakehala.

Chief Swamp’s words are straightforward and easy for children to understand, and the entire book is a beautiful and elegant way to take into account everything from the fish in the sea to the stars in the sky. I highly recommend getting this book on audio so that you can hear the traditional words at the end. However, the print edition has bold illustrations that are a wonderful companion to the powerful sentiment expressed.

Practicing gratitude is something I try to do all year long, but it is especially meaningful during this time of the year. For a simple way to help your little ones understand and express gratitude for the people and things around them, you can create your own gratitude garland.

Continue reading “Giving Thanks: A Native American Good Morning Message”

2018 Missouri Building Block Nominee: A Good Day for a Hat

Posted on Thursday, November 15, 2018 by Molly

Mr. Brown is ready to leave his house. So, he dons his purple hat with the pink flower. But as he opens the door and starts to step outside, he stops abruptly. Oh no, it’s raining! Fortunately, Mr. Brown has just the hat for that. However, as he starts to leave the house again—this time wearing his rain hat—it’s snowing!

In “A Good Day for a Hat” by T. Nat Fuller, Mr. Brown struggles to find the perfect hat on a day when the weather, and sometimes even the scene outside his door (anything from a rodeo to a sailing ship), keeps changing. Hats fly off and on in rapid succession, until Mr. Brown makes an important decision that saves the day.

Full of delightful characters, repetitive phrases and bright colors, this charming 2018 Missouri Building Block nominee is sure to be a hit with your little ones. (Look closely for a certain “someone” on every page who provides a magical element to this story!)

When you finish the book, enjoy these additional fun activities.

Make Paper Plate Crowns

Make a simple crown for kids to decorate and wear. All you need is a pencil, a paper plate, scissors and decorations.

Step 1: With a pencil, divide the plate up into 8 sections as if you were cutting a pie.
Step 2: Start in the center and cut along the “pie” section lines, leaving the outside rim of the plate intact.
Step 3: Separate the “pie sections” and push them up to form the crown tips.
Step 4: Decorate the crown with a variety of crayons, markers, stickers, etc.!

Check out this video on making paper plate crowns. Find more paper plate hat ideas at the blog, Alpha Mom.

Continue reading “2018 Missouri Building Block Nominee: A Good Day for a Hat”

Let’s Get Ready for Some Football Food!

Posted on Monday, November 12, 2018 by Erin

Football season is well underway. (This season has been especially fun for me because the Kansas City Chiefs are on a winning streak!) One of my favorite things to do on game day is create scrumptious game day food. For all those other sports-loving chefs out there, this blog is dedicated to you.

For common party foods that are great for game days, give “Cool Game Day Parties” a read. The recipes range from simple ideas, such as the Classic Chili Dogs, to more creative concoctions like the Perfect Party Pizza Dip. This book even contains deserts to help celebrate the wins or console the loses. Many of the recipes have only 4 simple steps, perfect for our kiddos or busy parents.

Looking for more of a challenge? If so, try “Food, Football, and Fun!” It’ll give you some awesome recipes to help you fuel up for game day.

2018 Missouri Building Block Nominee: Go Sleep in Your Own Bed!

Posted on Thursday, November 8, 2018 by Brianna

All the animals are mixed up on the farm, and it’s delightful bedtime confusion. In the Missouri Building Block nominee “Go Sleep in Your Own Bed!” each animal heads to their bed only to find it already occupied! As each is kicked out and goes to their own bed, the cycle continues. The illustrations are done in lovely muted blues, greens and browns, perfect for a sleepy bedtime story. Each animal makes a sound before they’re kicked out of bed, which makes it fun for children to predict what animal is next! This is a great read aloud, as it’s full of fun animal sounds and onomatopoeia. If you want to extend the farm animal fun, try singing this song courtesy of Library Storytime ABC’s:

The Animals on the Farm
(Sung to: “The Wheels on the Bus”)

The cow on the farm says,
“Moo, moo, moo!
Moo, moo, moo!
Moo, moo, moo!”
The cow on the farm says,
“Moo, moo, moo!”
All day long.
Mooooooooooo! Continue reading “2018 Missouri Building Block Nominee: Go Sleep in Your Own Bed!”

Crafts for Kids: Baker’s Clay

Posted on Monday, November 5, 2018 by Jessica S

The temperature outside is inching downward, but we all know that kids’ energy has no season. They’re almost always alert and ready to go! However, cold weather can put a damper on the usual outdoor activities. If you’re looking for a fun, indoor craft that will inspire creativity (and might even sneak in a bit of education) then here’s a suggestion for you!

Baker’s clay is a craft that can be made at home with simple ingredients. The clay is easy for kids to mold and fun for making letters, numbers or shape creations. With parental help to cook it up, this can be a fun afternoon activity for the family. The baker’s clay recipe comes from page 3 of Recipes for Fun, a pamphlet of activities for ages birth to five we have available at the library.

What you need:

Mixing spoon
Bowl
Cookie sheet
4 cups flour
1 cup salt
1 ½ cups water
Art Supplies (optional)
Non-toxic water-based sealer (optional)

Continue reading “Crafts for Kids: Baker’s Clay”

2018 Missouri Building Block Nominee: Plankton Is Pushy

Posted on Thursday, November 1, 2018 by Lyndsey

Plankton likes to say hello to all his fellow sea creatures, but what happens when Mussel doesn’t return the greeting? Plankton gets pushy!

Jonathan Fenske’s book, “Plankton Is Pushy,” is a 2018 Missouri Building Block nominee that is entertaining to read aloud and requires a bit of acting. In order to get Mussel to talk, Plankton tries everything from lecturing him to begging. The surprise ending will leave you and your audience giggling. Although this book is written in conversational style, many of the pages have no words at all. Readers must rely on body language and facial expression alone to understand the character dynamics. This is a great social skill for younger kids to learn!

After you’ve finished reading “Plankton Is Pushy,” you and your little one can create an ocean themed sensory bottle. These are great for exploration and also a good way to calm down, especially when one might be feeling a little pushy! Continue reading “2018 Missouri Building Block Nominee: Plankton Is Pushy”

Broom, Broom, Broom — Happy Halloween!

Posted on Monday, October 29, 2018 by Kristy

If you’ve come to story times at the Columbia Public Library, then you’ve probably heard one of our favorite songs: Zoom, Zoom, Zoom. Usually we blast off to the moon in our rocket ships after this rhyme, but my awesome coworker has created new lyrics for our patrons who celebrate Halloween.

Broom, Broom, Broom — Happy Halloween!

Broom, broom, broom, we’re going to the moon.
Broom, broom, broom, we’re going to the moon.
If you want to be a witch, climb aboard my little switch.
Broom, broom, broom, we’re going to the moon
5, 4, 3, 2, 1, Happy Halloween!

-Megan Durham, DBRL

Have fun singing this not-so-spooky song with your little ones!

2018 Missouri Building Block Award Nominee: Barnacle is Bored

Posted on Thursday, October 25, 2018 by Amy

“I’m Bored!” Two words that every child is destined to say at some point or another. In the Missouri Building Block nominee “Barnacle is Bored” by Jonathan Fenske, Barnacle says these same fateful words as he waits for adventure to happen. Then a colorful fish swims by. Barnacle bets the fish doesn’t have a boring life. With a surprising ending, it turns out exciting isn’t always better! This picture book is a playful answer to any child’s declaration of boredom.

Extend the fun at home of the with the simple science experiment below.

Salt water sink or float

Use this experiment to show how salt water makes it easier for objects to float. Fill two small see-through tubs halfway with water and add ½ cup of salt to one of the tubs. Stir until the salt dissolves. Gather everyday objects that you don’t mind getting wet. Spend a little time predicting whether each object will sink or float before you toss them in. What happens? Some of your items that sink in the plain water will float in the salt water because adding the salt to the water made it more dense.

Once you have read at least five Missouri Building Block Picture Book Award nominees, help your child vote for their favorite. Voting is open to children in kindergarten and younger and goes through December. The winner will be announced in February.

Hoopla

Freegal

Kanopy

Overdrive /Libby

Flipster