So Many Children

Happy Mothers Day (a couple days early).  One of the things I remember growing up is when my Mamma would take the four of us out, everybody would ask how many were hers.  The look on their faces when she claimed all four of us was priceless.  Now to be fair my Mamma has always looked MUCH younger then she actually is...and in all honesty acts like one of the kids more often then not.  That paired with the fact that she had four children in an age where anything over two was considered a lot was always good for a conversation starter.  Here are some of my favorite books about other mamma's with large families.

All-of-a-Kind-Family

This was a favorite in our house growing up.  This collection of stories about a family with five girls and a patient mother struck home with three out of four of us kids.

Mrs. Purdy's Children

This hard to find book about a family that just keeps adding children was one I remember from my childhood days.  I think every time my Mamma had another kid she got the same kind of comments as this Mother of the Year.

Ten Kids, No Pets

A huge fan of the Babysitters Club series, this book by the same author features a large family who's kids just want a pet.  I remember before we got our dog, using my siblings as pets to show my parents I could take care of one.

Little Women

The four girls plus their neighbor who is more of an adopted brother reminds me very much of my own family.  This is a family full of imagination and spunk and always in some sort of mostly harmless trouble...just like mine.

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe

This is the very first book that I personally identified with, and the fact that it featured four sibling probably had a lot to do with it.  To this day all four of us remember casting ourselves in the roles (gender swapping Edmund) and making up our own Narnian adventures.

I love love love being part of a large family.  I love that we all read and share our passion of books.  We can all thank our Mamma for her tireless efforts to instill a love of reading in all of us, of constantly dragging us to the library, for instituting reading time, and now that we are all grown up having regular bookshop coffee time and a suitcase full of books when she comes to visit.  I love you so much Mamma and from your big giant family WE LOVE YOU!  Happy Reading Everybody!

Book Garden

Hello All!  Mother's Day is just around the corner and since many of my memories of my Mamma include working in her numerous gardens, here are some idea's to add a literary twist to you garden.

Book Planters

A unique way to use old books

Book Bricks

These bricks add a unique twist to your garden

Literary Signpost

This DIY signpost is perfect for any literary garden

Alice In Wonderland Garden statues

These statues bring a bit of whimsy to the garden

Pond Book Nook

Of course no garden is complete without a perfect place to read!

Now everybody get out there and help your mothers in their garden, or kitchen, or studio or wherever it is these amazing ladies need us :-)  Happy Mothers Day to the bestest Mamma ever!

Mothers Day Bouquet

Bouquet is a really hard word to spell, I just wanted to get that out there before starting this post. Mother's Day is here again, though if the world was a fair day we would have a Mother's Week, or a Mother's Day every month, or something like that because gosh darnnit my Mamma is just that awesome.  To celebrate this blessed occasion let us shower these amazing women (not all who are mothers by birth I might add) with the traditional Mother's Day gift of flowers, but not just any flowers, we shall bestow on these wonderful caretakers the present of literary flowers.  Ok enough rambling and more pictures.

Lily Book Bouquet

How beautiful is this book bouquet?!?  Best part is it will never die

Book Corsage

This would be a nice variation on the cheap carnations most mothers get on their special day

Book Rose

Simple and Elegant

Book Flower Centerpiece

Forget my Mamma, I want this!

Flowers

Of course you could always reverse the process and giver a book about flowers!

Seriously though a HUGE shout out to all of the amazing women who take on any sort of mothering role.  As an EMT I see people at there worst, but whenever a mother figure is around, it always goes just a little bit better.  Special mention to M, E, and E for being amazing mothers and letting me borrow there children on occasion.  A huge hug and kiss to my incredibly special MIL, who makes every other MIL in the world look bad :-)  To my own Mamma, who to this day remains my bestest friend in the whole entire universe.  I wouldn't be who I am without you, and I really love who I turned out to be (even if I am still a work in progress), thanks for still teaching me, helping me, drinking with me, venting with me, getting inked with me, and who knows maybe this trip posting bail with me!  I love you Mamma!