Baby 365

Earlier this year, I made a pledge to read to my baby daughter every day. I was feeling like, "the cobbler's children have no shoes." I had every best intention of reading to her, and LOTS of books to choose from, but with a jam-packed schedule, it was hard to make the time.

I'm about 3 months in... how is it going? It's going really well! I am glad that I'm making the effort. Sometimes we end up skipping a day, but usually there's another day where I really have her attention and we read 2 books so that makes up for it.

I think having a professional relationship with books, I felt a certain pressure to heavily curate my books at home and only offer my daughter the very, very best. Choosing to read every day, weirdly, took the pressure right off. I end up reading whatever we've got to hand. Ratty board book at the local coffee shop? Check. Books at the pediatrician's office? Check. Books from the dollar store? Yes. Library books? Yes, and yes. Pretty much a smattering of everything. I'll say my daughter's taste has really evolved in the past month or so. Board books, with sturdy cardboard pages, are an absolute must. She used to respond to high-contrast, black and white picture books. Lately, she enjoys books with a lot more color and simple words, especially animal sounds. Last night I read her a touch and feel book with fluffy pages that she loved.

Here's a sampling of what we read our first month into this project: