Moms only!

Misaela · Post by **Misaela** » 25 Jul 2013, 20:23

How do you find the time to read books with 1+ little ones? How much more/less do you read since becoming a mother?

Loveabull · Post by **Loveabull** » 25 Jul 2013, 22:18

I can give one thought from personal experience...don't know how old your little one is...warning-from crawling age to 18 months the only reading time or peace you'll have at all is naptime or babysitters...but with newborns and infants nursing is terrific for so many reasons!!! I breastfed all my kids and that was my favorite reading time too. I had books stashed next to the bed and favorite chair, plus a few in the diaper bag. My favorite position was nursing laying down with a good book. If you're feeding on demand that's a reading break oh every three hours or so... relaxing for you, relaxing for baby...win-win!

If you're bottle feeding I'm sure there must be some way to hold bottle and book too, just takes some practice

Now if you have toddler and baby it gets trickier. I had a small living room so I would babygate each entry and lay on a bean chair with the baby baby and let the toddlers play around me...kinda creating a large playpen sort of. For a couple years I had five kids under ten so I feel your pain...it's okay, it'll get better...until they're teenagers

Misaela · Post by **Misaela** » 25 Jul 2013, 22:23

Well, I just got to the crawling stage, and can barely get a whole meal or shower done from start to finish without interruptions! But, after bedtime, I get some mom time. Nursing was really good but, since I was studying also during that time, every naptime was to catch up on chores or schoolwork.

Loveabull · Post by **Loveabull** » 25 Jul 2013, 22:31

Oh the crawling stage...you grow eyes on every side of your head...I do not miss those days...yeah from now until about two years old your reading time is probably going to be after your little one is in bed. If you have a partner or someone to give you some peace...books in the bathroom...either when you're going potty or taking a bath...if you take showers well...a bubble bath and good book with the door locked can work wonders

suzy1124 · Post by **suzy1124** » 26 Jul 2013, 04:21

good advice L.B.!

Misaela · Post by **Misaela** » 26 Jul 2013, 08:24

I might just do that! Thanks a lot for the advice!

AliceRose · Post by **AliceRose** » 01 Aug 2013, 07:22

Loveabull wrote:I can give one thought from personal experience...don't know how old your little one is...warning-from crawling age to 18 months the only reading time or peace you'll have at all is naptime or babysitters...but with newborns and infants nursing is terrific for so many reasons!!! I breastfed all my kids and that was my favorite reading time too. I had books stashed next to the bed and favorite chair, plus a few in the diaper bag. My favorite position was nursing laying down with a good book. If you're feeding on demand that's a reading break oh every three hours or so... relaxing for you, relaxing for baby...win-win!

If you're bottle feeding I'm sure there must be some way to hold bottle and book too, just takes some practice

Now if you have toddler and baby it gets trickier. I had a small living room so I would babygate each entry and lay on a bean chair with the baby baby and let the toddlers play around me...kinda creating a large playpen sort of. For a couple years I had five kids under ten so I feel your pain...it's okay, it'll get better...until they're teenagers

I have a 6 week old and I am breastfeeding on demand. He wakes up for 2 night feeds most nights, and I read then! I don't even have to leave my bed. I actually really like the night feeds because it's really relaxed! He is my first so I don't know what to expect when he gets older.

lady_charlie · Post by **lady_charlie** » 04 Aug 2013, 21:53

I only had the one, but I did read somewhere that you can read any old book you want to out loud to wee ones and they really won't know the difference or care much as long as you are reading, although I might choose carefully if I had older toddlers! So you could read The Mill on the Floss to your babies and they would get something out of it too, if you see what I mean. We actually started reading chapter books very early, so it wasn't great literature but we read Frog and Toad, Charlotte's Web, and Mr. Popper's Penguins before she was four. Of course reading out loud may drive you crazy instead of being relaxing. Another thing we did was act the stories out, and if you had more kids that would work even better. We used ourselves, or dolls, or puppets. Sometimes we made special puppets for certain stories, other times we just had the puppets on hand "play" the characters we needed.

Misaela · Post by **Misaela** » 04 Aug 2013, 21:58

lady_charlie wrote:I only had the one, but I did read somewhere that you can read any old book you want to out loud to wee ones and they really won't know the difference or care much as long as you are reading, although I might choose carefully if I had older toddlers! So you could read The Mill on the Floss to your babies and they would get something out of it too, if you see what I mean. We actually started reading chapter books very early, so it wasn't great literature but we read Frog and Toad, Charlotte's Web, and Mr. Popper's Penguins before she was four. Of course reading out loud may drive you crazy instead of being relaxing. Another thing we did was act the stories out, and if you had more kids that would work even better. We used ourselves, or dolls, or puppets. Sometimes we made special puppets for certain stories, other times we just had the puppets on hand "play" the characters we needed.

At about what age did you start reading those kind of books? It's a good tradition that I could start with my son, as soon as he's old enough.

lady_charlie · Post by **lady_charlie** » 04 Aug 2013, 22:17

She moved out of the nursery when she was about three, and we had already read Frog and Toad and Charlotte's Web by then. We read Mr. Popper's Penguins all the way through so many times I got really sick of it, but she would just belly laugh and ask for that book again the next day. She was between three and four then.
We read books every day since she came home from the hospital and she has a natural tendency to sit still and be quiet, so she put up with it better than some kids would. I do give myself some credit for the joy she takes in books now, and she does read a little bit above her level. It is more important to find the next thing they are ready for than to push or try to make them sit still if they don't want to, and when I tell her how many times she listened to Mr. Popper's Penguins she says she doesn't remember it at all.
But once she learned to read for herself we took turns reading out loud until she got better at it and now she reads and reads and reads.

Loveabull · Post by **Loveabull** » 08 Aug 2013, 09:05

It's fine as well to start collecting board books and begin a small library of children's books-Maurice Sendak, Mercer Mayer, Dr Suess...short simple books that appeal to you, they must appeal to YOU because you may be reading some of them aloud every night for several years

I remember oldest kid nudging me when I'd start to snooze " Mommy you missed a word, the duck says I can fly to the moon and back, not I will fly to the moon". You can read to them any time of the day of course but a story before nap times and bed time are a nice way to relax together.

justme1403 · Post by **justme1403** » 19 Aug 2013, 00:33

Hi,
I am a new member and a single mom of four kids, two adult girls and two minor age boys, my oldest girl and the two boys live with me full-time. I find time to read whenever I have a few minutes to myself, I will pick up a book, a magazine or read from my computer. I never found it difficult to read once my older three got older, when they were young I did find it hard to find time. Within the last seven years my kids have learned that I need my time just as well and that has allowed me to go back to school and take and hour or maybe two if I need it for myself once a week.

lady_charlie · Post by **lady_charlie** » 19 Aug 2013, 19:44

Yes, I would also say that I have been collecting books I think she will be ready for next.

We had a lot of board books and Dr. Seuss and all sorts of things but as we moved on to chapter books I started shopping for garage sale classics, state reading lists, Newberry Award Winners, anything.

I still have shelves full of books she can't read yet for one reason or another that I am saving for her.

Loveabull · Post by **Loveabull** » 19 Aug 2013, 22:44

Just Me and Lady Charlie, you're both doing splendid! It's important to have reading time for your little ones but also for yourself. Sometimes a good place for a family read is in the kids section of a bookstore. We have a place in town that has beanbag chairs in the children's department. I'll grab some adult books and relax on a bean chair and encourage the little ones to find books to read around me. Some public libraries have equally welcoming kids sections.