Trip to the Library

When I was little, I loved going to my small town library.  It was a big treat for me to go in there and check out books.  It was an even bigger treat whenever mom finally let me walk to the library by myself.  I can still see the small little area that was set aside for the kids.  There was a round table in the middle, a water fountain on the wall and all my favorite books:  Caddie Woodlawn, Little House on the Prairie, Encyclopedia Brown, The Boxcar Children, Nancy Drew, Trixie Belden, Sweet Valley High, and the list goes on and on.  To this day, I can still remember that certain smell the library had when you walked in to it.  It was even more exciting when it was time for me to venture to the other side and start checking out the adult fiction:  Stephen King, Victoria Holt, Phyllis Whitney, Dean Koontz, Nora Roberts, and the list goes on and on again.  Of course, I still love going to the library and finding books to read that I have on my ever growing list...but I also enjoy taking the girls and watching how excited they are to get the next book in the series, or a new book no one has read yet.

Tonight Harry and I took the girls to our library and I get so happy watching them run to the children's wing and immediately start looking for their next adventure.  Megan loves Fancy Nancy, Charlie and Lola, and any kind of book that has a cute cover.  (Takes after her mother)  She is also reading the Magic Treehouse Series as well as The Fun Day Fairies.  It is so cute to see her so excited to find the next book in the series she wants.  Wendy loves the Bernstain Bears, animal stories, and she is also reading the Magic Treehouse Series.  She is my non-fiction reader.  She has at least one non-fiction book in her bag each time we go.  Her pick this week:  The Properties of Gases.  (She has already informed me, with a big smile, that it's not the gases from behind).  Ellie's library bag is full of Dora and Max and Ruby.  I think I have read every Dora book that library has to offer a zillion times.  They each have their own library card and, thanks to Aunt Jayme's Christmas presents, they each have their own bag with their names on it to carry all their amazing finds home.

But...the best part of the whole thing is looking in the review mirror and watching them already looking through or starting to read their new books before my van is even out of the parking lot.  When we were pregnant with the first child, I always asked Harry "what if they don't like to read?".  It was a huge fear of mine that they wouldn't like to read.  I should have known they would have gotten the reading gene from me.

I look forward to the day that we can read a book and pass it on to each other, have discussions over lunch about the latest Bestsellers, and get phone call or e-mails that say "you have got to read this book!".  Until  then I will cherish the bedtime stories, the cuddles on the couch listening to Jack and Annie travel to distant lands, and seeing what adventures are up next for Dora and Boots.