Book Review – Princess Pigs & Leadfoot Hampsters (giveaway)

Editor’s Note: If you missed Karen Pantuso Swanson’s piece on buyer’s remorse and Barbie, check it out HERE. Now we have to fun pre-K reads and a double giveaway. Enjoy!
We do a whole lot of reading around here – nature stories, science stories, stories about different cultures, checking out stories about baby animals (that’s our [...]

Spring Break 2010 – Tween Must-Have Reads

Editor’s Note: If you missed Robin’s Spring Break craft roundup this morning, you can catch it HERE. Now, here’s a look at some must have Spring Break reads for those tweens in your life. Here’s the list:
Good Afternoon. It may be time for some quiet time around your house, making a trip to the bookstore [...]

A – Podlings Naturally Childish

We are a consignment store specializing in Modern Cloth Diapers, local, organic and eco-friendly products, clothing and toys. Newly-Opened Resource Center offers Birthing From Within Classes, Yoga and more, rental Available.

Mom’s Book Shelf – Emily Schultz’s Heaven Is Small

Editor’s Note: If you missed Gayle Bates this morning, you can read her post on proactive consumption HERE. Now, here’s Robin with the book of the month for March. Here she is:
Iam mildly dark. Ken would tend to disagree, and go with a much darker assessment. My favorite authors are Rosario Castellanos, Keri Hulme and Joan Didion. I [...]

Mom’s Book Shelf – A Discussion on All That Matters

I have to say that I now have a whole new appreciation for Vancouver and its evolution as a city, as well as the unbelievable conditions under which people come to this country and endure with the hopes of a better life thanks to Wayson Choy.
His novel, All That Matters, was February’s book of the [...]

Laughing Oyster Bookshop

Courtenay’s full-service independent book seller, Laughing Oyster is your literary stop for the hottest new hardcovers and enduring classics.

Book Review – The Love List of Kids Valentines Faves (giveaway)

Editor’s Note: If you missed out on the morning post introducing February’s author of the month, Wayson Choy, you can read it HERE. Now here’s Robin with a list of kid-approved Valentine’s Day books:
Love is in the air, and there’s nothing like a silly, fun, sweet children’s story to make Valentine’s Day great fun for everybody.
Sifting [...]

Mom’s Book Shelf – Wayson Choy’s All That Matters

I am so excited to announce February’s featured author and book of the month – mostly because I can’t wait to get started on a new novel and sink my teeth into a book that’s been on my shelf for ages.
As Chinese New Year nears, I wanted to take the time to examine Chinese-Canadian culture. [...]

Tween Reads from Maddy Erickson – Savvy by Ingrid Law

Editor’s Note: Good Afternoon. If you missed the discussion on Zoe Whittall’s novel Holding Still For As Long As Possible, you can catch it HERE.
Now, I’m excited to introduce Maddy Erickson as the newest addition to the crew of writers here at Our Big Earth. Maddy – as well as her reviewing co-hort Madeline McNamee [...]

Books to Teach Kids About Chinese New Year

Editor’s Note: If you missed out on Rebecca’s morning post giving us a look inside the Waldorf classroom, you can read it HERE. Now, here’s Robin reviewing a cool collection of children’s books that help kids learn about Chinese culture and Chinese New Year. Have a great afternoon. Here’s Robin:
I get sort of droopy after [...]

Environmental Ed Books for Children (giveaway)

Editor’s Note: If you didn’t catch Karen Pantuso-Swanson’s sweet story this morning, you can read it HERE. This afternoon we have Gayle Bates sharing some of her favorite eco-focused children’s books. Here’s she is:
What a way to start 2010 – getting to talk about two of my most favourite things: the environment and books!
Recent years have [...]

The Wisdom of Children – The Freedom of Innocence

Editor’s Note: Good morning. Karen Pantuso-Swanson is with us this morning sharing a lovely story that displays the ease and confidence that come with the innocence of childhood. Enjoy. Here she is:
“Kids: they dance before they know there is anything that isn’t music.” – William Stafford
My mom is a tap-dancer. She taught me to dance when I [...]

Book Review – Red is Best & Bella’s Tree

I cannot tell you how many times we have woken up in the last few weeks, our daughter launching herself onto the couch to check for snow outside, only to be bummed out at the perma-gray with no white stuff in sight.
“We live in a rainforest kiddo”, I gently remind her each time she asks [...]

Year In Review – The Best Children’s Books of 2009

One thing that never seems to give in our house is the love of a great story. We pound through tons of books and if anyone knows what she likes best, it’s the 4-year-old.
We’ve had such a great time discovering some seriously great new reads this year to spend afternoons curled up on the couch [...]

Book Review – Favorite Stories to Celebrate the Solistice

Editor’s Note: Good afternoon. If you missed out on the morning post, you can check out Rebecca’s post on Waldorf Kindergarten classrooms HERE. Now, we’ve got four of my favorite books to celebrate the solstice with your kids through stories.
Although we are just short of a week away from celebrating Christmas, one of my [...]

Book Review – The Dino Adventures of Cats & Dogs

Editor’s Notes: Good afternoon. If you missed out on the morning post from Rebecca on the tradition of advent, you can catch it over HERE. Now it’s time for a review of two very fun children’s books and a giveaway…

We have moved into the comedy portion of our daily story routine these days. There’s still [...]

Book Review – Sometimes You’ve Gotta Go Kid

Editor’s Note: If you missed the morning post on the amazing things kids say that make us rethink our perspective from Karen Pantuso-Swanson, you can read it HERE. This afternoon we have a book review and a giveaway. Have a great afternoon.

There are some books that you and your kids are just generally going to [...]

Book Review – Stories To Make Dark Days Fun

Editor’s Note: Good afternoon. If you missed out on this morning’s post, you can catch Dr. Elaine Kerr’s educational piece on childrens eye health HERE. Now, we have two children’s book reviews about stories that make the lack of light during Winter a bit more magical and a giveaway to go with it. Have a great [...]

Book Review – Not So Scary Monsters & Witches

Some kids love Christmas. Some love Easter. Mine, she L-O-V-E-S Halloween. I love the wawawahhhhhhhh coming from her when describing vampires and ghouls. But, really when you ask the tiny person what kind of stories she wants to read right now, the terms mildly spooky, a little mysterious and a lot funny are on the [...]

Learning Books About Salmon

I know I’m a bit salmon crazed this time of year. Heck, even the Fall NeighbourWood Walks are all about checking out animal migration and hot salmon spawn spots. (Come on out and join us on Thursdays. Get the details HERE)
But, these upstream-swimming dudes are the cornerstone of the ecosystem and getting kids excited about [...]

Choices & Good Books About Homeschooling

Since our daughter was about 18 months old and I started looking into the whole idea of homeschooling, I was pretty much sold on doing the learning at home thing.
We are a hands-on bunch to begin with, spending lots of our time looking for bugs in the forest, trying to figure out what bird we [...]

Homeschooling – Choose The Right Books

Editor’s Note: Good Morning. Today, Royston farmer and homeschooling mom Louisa McClellan is here to talk shop on how to find the right books for your kids.
Reading is a HUGE part of our lives around here and I, seriously, pound through dozens of books a month searching for the gems out there (long live the [...]

Get Organized – Planning Out A Nursery

Editor’s Note: Today the lovely and ever-organized Arran Kerrigan drops by to give us the scoop on getting the nursery organized.
I sure could have used this advice the first time around. I’m still looking for that pair of Canucks Robeez that disappeared about six weeks after the tiny person was born.
Organization is something I could [...]

Crafty Imagination – Easter Masks

Is anybody else dealing with some seriously crazed kiddos lately? I’m hoping there’s something in the air and our tiny person hasn’t gone completely bonkers because she’s more than a wee bit wound up these days.
Normal, relatively quiet crafting that would normally take place around our house is not even an option at the moment. [...]

Establishing A Homeschool Co-Op

Homeschooling parents are the primary educators of their children and with this comes the responsibility and challenge of making learning fun while covering all academic subjects.
It can be overwhelming at times to say the least! That’s where co-ops come in.
They are groups of like-minded moms coming together with one common goal of creating great learning [...]

Nature Journal – Mushroom Magic

It’s a story up for hot debate in our house right now, “Do fairies ACTUALLY live under mushrooms in the forest?”
Our daughter is adamantly against the whole theory. They may use these cool weather blooms to escape from the rain, stay out of the sun or hide from odd creatures (like humans, according to her). [...]

Learning Trees With Leaf Hangings

There is a bit of a chill in the air and early last week, as I was packing us into the truck, I spotted red leaves.
Then yellow, even a couple of orange beauties stood out against the bluer than blue sky.
We’d been talking, the last couple of times out in the woods, about getting to [...]

Summer Reading Together

Editor’s Note:
Mom and CV teacher Helen Oliphant has dropped by today to lend us a hand getting into the learning that happens away from the classroom this Summer.
She kicks it all off with tips on how to help your kiddos get reading, with a little help from mom and dad.

“Thurs. June 2, 1977.
I want to [...]

Mom-P-Inc. – Louisa McClellan of Ashberry Farm & Usborne Books

Motherhood, it changes you.
While there’s a whole list that involves sagging and wrinkled, exhausted and emotional that can be wrapped in there, for many women becoming a Mom takes life to a whole other level.
It brings out our genuine loves, forces them into places creatively and personally that reveal talents and ingenuity unrealized until that [...]

Check Out Library Books On-line

Late breaking comment challenge: What is your experience with tiny people at the library? Any tips? Tricks? Words of wisdom?
Tell me I am not the last mom in the universe to figure this one out.
Please.
For nearly two years, I’ve had my mother-in-law’s library card. She doesn’t use it much. So, when we first moved here [...]

Women of Heart

When I was a tiny person, I dreamed of life as a great explorer.
I lived in my imagination, with an entire universe of imaginary friends who roamed the sidewalks and pounded the pavement of the city with me, in search of magic.
As many are, mine was a complicated childhood. Disappearing into a world where I [...]

Spring Break Reading Adventures

After a long Winter of snowy tales, the tiny person and I hauled out the books about blooming flowers, baby animals and sunshine a few weeks ago to get ourselves geared up for the activity of Spring.
I’ve definitely had a tough time charging myself up lately…whether it’s the chill factor in the mornings or feeling [...]

Spring Migration

The swans are disappearing.
The thousands of lovely, white, long-necked beauties are vanishing by the day after packing local farm fields snacking down all Winter.
Thankfully, they aren’t being destroyed. It’s just time for them to head back to Alaska because a cozy rainy season on the island means they’ve got some baby making to attend to [...]

Book Review – 8-year-old Inspiration

With family literacy on our minds around Canada this week, I found myself totally inspired by 8-year-old Caden Mack, who took it upon himself to rewrite one of his favourite stories and his parents, who took it upon themselves to foster his creativity and self-publish his book.
I can’t think of a greater way to honour [...]

Worth the Drive – Kool & Child

My husband and I almost set up camp there – particularly happy that the tiny person and grandma decided to hang out at home instead of come with us. Otherwise, she would have insisted we move in forever.
I’d been told by more than one intrepid parent that Kool & Child in Nanaimo was one of [...]