Building a Little Library

The book situation in our house has always been a bit…precarious, mostly thanks to my habit of acquiring more books than our shelves can hold. Josh keeps books, too, but he’s much better about borrowing from the library and only holding onto those he receives as gifts. No, the problem is mainly due to me. There’s my extensive fiction collection (both adult and young adult), my research collection, books and binders I use for teaching. And now we’re starting an entirely new set of shelves: one for the little person who’ll be joining our family in July.

Yes, that little person is a baby. We are so thrilled (and overwhelmed, and anxious, and oh-man-will-we-do-this-right?) to meet her, but in the meantime we are finding plenty to do to get ready for her arrival. Now that I’m feeling slightly less exhausted and spring is clearly on its way, I’m getting excited to rearrange furniture and set up a little space just for Blueberry (our nickname for the little one). Key, of course, are the books. Even if she doesn’t inherit my book-hoarding tendencies, at the very least we can get her off to a good start.

Some wonderful friends and family members have started our collection with beloved favorites, like Make Way for Ducklings, The Snowy Day, and a mini-Mo Willems compendium. My sister has been steadily gifting us with fun, slightly irreverent picture books, including Kate Beaton‘s awesome first non-comic collection, The Princess and the Pony. A dear friend and I spent a blissful afternoon browsing the children’s section at our local bookstore, and I picked up a copy of Goodnight, Gorilla, which I first heard about in my literary agency days. I’ve had so much fun remembering the books I used to love when I was little, and discovering all the fantastic books that have come out since then, and I can’t wait to introduce them to Blueberry.

Right now her mini-library takes up just part of a shelf next to my desk. I can look over at the titles while I’m writing, and it’s comforting to see them all lined up there. A reminder that yes, big changes are ahead, but we’re getting ready, little by little.