I have a little library for the kids in our home. I can’t tell you how much those books mean to me. I don’t know how I’ll ever be able to get rid of any of them. We have everything from Baby Faces and Thomas the Train to Pinkalicious and I’ll Love You Forever. Each one of them is treasured because of the memories I have reading them to the kids.
If you can’t tell, I’m a bit of a bookworm myself. I heard once that the reading that you do as a child becomes a part of you like no other reading will. And if that’s true, then I’m a part of Trixie Belden, Bobbsey Twins, Ramona Quimby, Nancy Drew, Little House on the Prairie, Anne of Green Gables and the Babysitters Club. All of these books mean so much to me too. In fact, I still own many of the books I read as a child. Some of the sets I’ve picked up along the way at auctions and library book sales, but I’m hoping my kids will read and enjoy many of these same books.
As any good book lover will tell you, book collections can get out of control really fast. And my bookshelves are no exception! I know all of you techies out there are yelling at the screen, get a Kindle! Use your iPad! But I just can’t go there. Nor do I want my kids to miss out on what it means to fall asleep with a book in their hands or not to know the smell of a bookstore. Books are just homey.
All of this is leading to organization, I promise!
I’ve been trying to organize my bookshelves lately, but it’s just one of those projects I keep putting off. I have most of the kids’ books organized (or have tried- I’d rather have them reading them than have them perfect!) but I don’t have my own collections out and ready to read.
Here’s what my bookshelf looked like before-
Bookshelves Before
Just a hodge-podge of stuff, really.
And here is what it looked like after I added in my favorite childhood books-
Bookshelves After
Yes! That really is an old school TV! They do still exist!
I know this isn’t earth-shattering but I’m so happy to have them out and accessible. For another generation to love.