A New Take On Reading Aloud

My best friend Mint and I were discussing the miraculous fact that I recently finished reading a book. Despite all that is on my plate, taking care of my toddler and general life duties, I was able to find the time to read.

She asked me how this was made possible. I told her that I read in short spurts; while my son was napping or immersed in individual play.

She then imparted to me that her mother used to read aloud entire novels to her as a child despite whether or not they were age appropriate; this was her mother's way of satisfying her own literary cravings. For example, Mint was read the works of Agatha Christie, many vampire novels, the complete works of Shakespeare and various historical non-fiction books about the queens of England.

A lot of the material she genuinely enjoyed, but some of it was too risque for her to hear at the time.

This leads me to my anecdote of the day. My son has recently begun to recognize that objects falling into the category of "book" span beyond the baby board book. Today, he took a novel, that I had gotten out from the library, and handed it to me. So I asked him:

"Do you want me to read this to you?"
He replied "Dee!" Which I took to mean "Yes."

So I read him a page of the novel. He listened for a bit and then ran off to play with his toys.

I like the idea of reading adult fiction to him and will continue this practice. But unlike Mint's mom, I think I'll keep the material age appropriate.

Good Times

For such a long time, my son was an infant. I remember when he couldn't even lift his head. Now he is a roving toddler; constantly on the move and raring to go. It really occurred to me today just how much he has grown, when we were on a play date at my friend Gry's house. Ari and Luka (Gry's son) were feeding off of one another. Luka would laugh and then (as a consequence) Ari would burst into hysterics. It hit me; he has a real friend. He has the capacity to interact with and appreciate another person. My how he has grown.

A Watched Baby Never Naps

You know that expression "A watched pot never boils."? It refers to one's impatience while cooking. You stare at the still water in the pot hoping desperately that it will turn bubbly so you can get on with making your spaghetti.

Along the same lines, I would like to propose a new expression: "A watched baby never naps."

Today, I was stir crazy. I did not want to be indoors at all. Consequently, I was hoping my child would nap in his stroller. He was obviously tired. He exhibited all the classic symptoms: eye rubbing, crying, general crankiness. Yet he wasn't falling asleep.

Then I realized the reason he was staying awake was because I kept checking every other minute to see whether or not he had progressed on his journey to Sleepytown USA.

So I forced myself to stop micromanaging him. It was hard, but I checked my impatience and did it.

A funny thing happened: he fell asleep as soon as I stopped watching.

Monday

The Hausfrau Writes Back!

Recently I reviewed Nicole Chaison's Book, The Passion of The Hausfrau here on my blog. I wrote her an email to tell her as much. It read:

Dear Hausfrau,

You are my hero. I have a 15 month old son and have not had the opportunity to read anything substantial since he was born. Your book was the literary oatmeal (hearty meal) that I needed. I related to every page. I love your sardonic wit. Your writing epitomizes my daily thoughts and feelings.

I actually write a mom blog where I reviewed your book. Feel free to check it out:

http://oldschoolnewschoolmom.blogspot.com/2009/08/passion-of-hausfrau-my-sardonic.html

I wanted to ask if you had any anecdotes about George as a baby? You mention many of Dora's baby antics, but I was curious about George's baby-dom.

Thank you for writing your masterpiece.

Guess what? She wrote back! Here is what she wrote:

Dear Sarah--

Thank you so much for writing! Your email brightened my day (I was having a not very good one; feeling sorry for myself, etc. etc.) and made me feel plugged into something bigger and better. I checked out your blog--it looks great!--and am so flattered by your review of The Passion of the Hausfrau. Thank you!

I don't really have any anecdotes from George's early days, because I wasn't writing at that time. As in the book, it took until my daughter's birth to jump-start my writing urges. I was so tired and overwhelmed when George was a baby that it never occurred to me to pick up my pen and write. How amazing that you have the time and energy to do a blog!

You're in Brooklyn, right? Can you recommend a bookstore that you think might be a good place for me to do a reading? I'd like to plan a trip down to NYC this fall and would love to do a reading/signing.

Thanks again for writing. It meant a lot to me.

XOXO

Nicole

It's so gratifying to write to an author and receive a response. This speaks to the kind of person that Nicole Chaison is; clearly she values her readers.

Operating Instructions: Anne Lamott Speaks The Truth

When I found out I was pregnant, I had little idea of what I was getting into. I mean, I knew babies cried and pooped a lot and sometimes did cute things like laugh and drool. But that was about it. Needless to say, I was in for a rude awakening. The truth is, nobody really tells you how hard it is to have a baby.

Except for Anne Lamott, in her book Operating Instructions A Journal of My Son's First Year.

Lamott is a well-known author published several times over. She is also a recovering alcoholic and drug addict. Her book chronicles her brutally honest journey into motherhood. When she becomes pregnant, the father of the baby wants nothing to do with her or the child. Nevertheless, Lamott presses on and decides to have the baby with tremendous support from her variety of eccentric friends and family.

Her prose is candid, hilarious and irreverent. Here is one of my favorite passages where she describes her son at five months old:

He is lying beside me now, reading his plastic Beatrix Potter bath book, very absorbed. I

try to get his attention, but I can see that I am just annoying the shit out of him. (Lamott, p. 138)

It was great reading Operating Instructions at this time in my son's life, because I have just been through the same experience. I could reflect and relate to Lamott's thought processes. Her feelings of joy and intermittent resentment and anger.

I just can't get over how much babies cry. I really had no idea what I was getting into. To

tell you the truth, I thought it would be more like getting a cat. (Lamott, p. 66)

One interesting thing about her is that although she has this biting cynical wit, she is also quite religious. She speaks a lot about her church and her faith throughout the book.

Lamott lets us into her brain for one whole year. The book is written in a journal style and is a very easy read. I am a perpetually slow reader and I finished it in three days!

If you have an infant and you are questioning your sanity, read Lamott's book. You'll feel a lot better about yourself.

For more information about Anne Lamott click here.

Keys