Move over Chuckie Cheese, the Library is where it's at!

I just want to say that I love the library! I didn't used to like it, actually I LOATHED it with every breath of my being! My mom never really took us there very often, that I remember. So I don't have those cute childhood story-time memories that others may have. My memories of the library are more from my school-age days. Picture this-- a procrastinating high schooler hunched over a classic novel rereading the same page over and over again because you just can't focus anymore or a tired, overworked college student in a solitary cubicle amongst the towering stacks of journals furiously trying to memorize some note cards written to help study for a biology test. Can you see it? Oooooh...(shivering) my stomach is turning just thinking about it. So, for those of you who can visualize or who have "been there done that", you can understand my feelings toward the library or may even feel the same way! But wait--there is library-loathing therapy! First thing you have to do is become a elementary school teacher. This one kind of forces you to deal with your fears. You HAVE to take your students to the library, you HAVE to help them find books and you HAVE to show the kids how much YOU like the library! Yea! Acting skills come in handy here--library-love can be a hard thing to fake. Anyway, the next step is to have a kid. All kids love the library and want to go there all the time and I guess it is the "good parent" thing to do, right? So for the last 6 years, through two kids and five years of teaching, I can honestly say that I have cured my library-phobia. For those of you who still have a bad library vibe and didn't choose teaching as a profession and don't have kids, ummmm...sorry...your out of luck!
In times where money is tight and things cost so much, I had to find some cost-saving alternatives to Blockbuster, Chuckie Cheese and Build-a Bear--Analise's favorite places to go. So I had to be really enthusiastic about the library to divert her attention from the previously mentioned places. "Yea! Let's go the library, Analise! It will be so much fun there! Trust me..." Here again, is where my acting skills came in handy. She was skeptical (so was I), but she went along anyway. Until I started going there, I didn't realize what it has to offer. You can check out movies, CD's, computer games, books on tape and Leapfrog games. There are cozy places to read and computers to use. There are reading programs and story times, even pajama story time! YES! There are even classes that you can take to learn just about anything that you want. There are so many fun things to do there that it didn't take much convincing. Now, Analise loves to go library. We go at least once a week and the best part about it, Analise gets just as excited about going to the library as she does about going to Chuckie Cheese. Score one for mom!
Here are our library adventures for this week! Analise always wants to rent a movie, so here is the one she picked out this week!

Yes, everyone that is a Denise Austin work-out video for kids. Awesome! Here she is in action:

That is her friend Allikaye getting in on the action. I guess her watching me work-out to all of my Denise Austin videos rubbed off a little. I'm so proud! She is also enrolled in summer reading program. Once she reads 720 minutes or 60 hours, she will get a ticket to Elitches. Woo-hoo! That is some motivation right there! She better get busy, that's a lot of reading...
Weston is also loving the library! I got him a baby signing video and he absolutely LOVES it. Here is what he does when Rachael, the signing lady, comes on:

He can't get enough of her eye-popping orange sweater or her crazy taped up fingers. Dang it--he's cute! We signed up for the "TOP HOGS" at the library, too. There are some genius pigs that can ride skateboards, play musical instruments and do all sorts of tricks and they'll be at the library on the 26th and so will we! I am so excited about it! Oh yeah, Analise is, too.
I am also cashing in on the treasures of the library. I just finished reading "One More Day" by Mitch Albom. It was a good one. Here is my next read that I am excited about...

It's on hold, so hopefully I won't have to wait to long for it. I want Wes to to be a signing genius, so I need to brush up on my "skills", as Napoleon Dynamite would say. The library, in all honestly, is really a hidden treasure. I can now say that...yes...wait for it...I love the library! All hail to your local library. Go check it out!