Stephanie Burgis - Magical Books for Ages Ten to Fifteen

Wistful Friday and Library Love

March 5, 2010, 2.51 pm

Today I'm feeling a little wistful but also very lucky. Patrick's gone up to London for a quick business day-trip, and I'm missing him a lot (as is MrD, who insisted on a long phone call - luckily, Patrick is a good dad and doesn't mind supplying ALL the conversation while his phone partner just breathes heavily in a stalker-like manner ;p ).

At the same time, this is making me realize just how lucky we've been to afford all these months of paternity leave. Patrick and I have been genuinely doing equal parenting since last August (apart from the times when my CFS has been bad, when he's done the HUGE majority of the parenting work. That is an amazing rarity and a real gift (for MrD, definitely, but also for Patrick and for me). And even apart from the co-parenting, it's been such a gift for me to be able to hang out with my husband-and-best friend every single day, to share all aspects of life with him. That's so different from the years when we were both working day jobs, and I've really, really loved it.

So...today feels odd, without him here. We're all looking forward to him coming back late tonight. But it's also making me realize just how lucky we've all been, in a way that is too easy to take for granted.

***

So...with me left to do sole parenting on my own, what did I decide to do this morning? Oh, take a wild guess, I bet it won't be hard. MrD and I went to the library!

I've always loved libraries (as long-time readers of this blog already know from all my burbling about them over the years), but I've never felt so grateful to them as I have since MrD was born. Even apart from the great events that libraries arrange for babies and toddlers and their parents, I just love that our tiny local library is a safe, happy place for me to take MrD and spend an hour or more. There are plenty of books and blocks for him to play with, and the libarians are warm and welcoming and take it for granted that toddlers WILL make some noise and do some running around, no matter how hard their parents work to control them - that's just what toddlers do.

Not only do the librarians smile indulgently at MrD even in his most rambunctious moods, they go out of their way to search out fabulous CDs of nursery rhymes and baby music for him and recommend books he'll like. When we arrive at the library, he lights up with happiness and excitement, and so do I.

Today I only had enough room on my card for 9 new items, and there were way too many good books and CDs and DVDs to choose from. (I was cursing myself for not returning more!) Luckily, MrD has his own library card, so he still managed to get plenty of new books, and we came home with a big pile. I've got a CD of Welsh Celtic music to listen to, I've got the DVD of Driving Aphrodite to watch, and I've got Jay Asher's Thirteen Reasons Why to read, along with six other exciting books.

MrD's asleep upstairs right now, and Maya's asleep in her dog bed. I'm listening to my new music and about to dive into one of my new books.

What about you guys? What do you have checked out from the library right now?

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