Share Your Nostalgia – Round 2 Wrap up (and my picks)

As I have said all week, I wasn’t sure how a second round of nostalgia would go. I was pleasantly surprised to see the stats for the posts of my guest bloggers. Speaking of them, I need to thank Randy, Christian, Max, Stewart, and Dave for all taking time to write a piece for this feature. Each of them have blogs that they write and have a life off the blogging grid. The fact that they chose to participate means a lot to me. Thank you guys!

This round’s topic was to write about your favorite childhood book. It may have been something you were read by your parents or grandparents. It could have been the first book you ever read by yourself. Perhaps it is a book that you read to your own children. The posts from my guests ranged from western heroes to wild things. There were groups of adventure seeking kids to good ole Dr. Seuss.

Dave’s books yesterday tie in with one of mine today. He had two Little Gold Books. Those books lined the book shelves in my room. I had SO many of them. I had Disney books, books with Sesame Street Characters, and just about every Little Golden Book you can imagine. The one that stands alone for me was one I remember my mom reading to me.

As a kid, I naturally had a lot in common with this poky little pup. I always seemed to lag behind. One time I was so interested in something at the mall, I didn’t realize my dad had left the store!

It is not the story that I love so much, it’s that I remember mom reading it to me. I made sure to buy this when my first son was born. I remember reading it to him and thinking, “Why did I like this book so much?” The answer was – mom.

Fourth grade was a milestone year for me in many ways. Mrs. Gallop was my teacher and she read us many books throughout the year. As a matter of fact, the ones I am about to mention have forever stuck with me. I cannot wait until my kids are old enough for me to read those books to them.

The first one was How To Eat Fried Worms.

Ah, childhood! Billy has made a bet. If he wins, he gets $50, which he will use to buy a minibike. What does he have to do? Eat 15 worms over 15 days. I remember all of us getting grossed out as he began to eat these worms.

Next, it was Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing.

Peter is a fourth grader. His younger brother, Fudge, is always doing something. So much that Peter feels that compared to Fudge, he is … “nothing.” Throughout the book, you see Peter’s frustrations and how he often gets caught up in his brother’s chaos. As an older brother, I remember thinking of my little brother, Christopher, and just how much he was like Fudge!

Finally, Mrs. Gallop read us a classic. James and the Giant Peach.

James is forced to live with two evil aunts. He discovers a giant peach in his yard. He, and a bunch of insects, use the peach to get away from it all. Their adventure takes them across the ocean and all the way to New York City! I remember the book had a few small cuss words, which made us all laugh. This was one of those books that we all were engrossed in this story!

I give kudos to the guest bloggers who were able to come up with just one. For my childhood, there were so many that stuck with me. I was so grateful to those who introduced me to reading.

I had hoped my wife would join us and blog about her favorite childhood book, but she is shy and said she wasn’t sure about it. So I will tell you that she still has a copy of her favorite book, and reads it to our kids often.

I had never head of this one, but it’s actually cute.

I have a book that makes me think of each of my kids. For Dante’ (Now 22), it’s The Three Little Kittens.

I read this more times than I can count. When I was away on a radio trip, I actually recorded it onto DVD so I could “read” it while it was away. For Dimitri (almost 18), it was …

Both kids actually liked this, but it is Dimitri who noticed and laughed at the silly faces on some of the snowmen in the book. For Ella (5 next week), it was ….

This book will forever warm my heart and remind me of my sweet baby girl sitting on my lap. I loved when it got to the point where she would finish the lines with me. Wonderful memories with this book. Andrew’s book was one that his speech therapist gave him…

This makes so much sense for him. He has always been fascinated with tools, plugs, flashlights and everything that has buttons!! He loves interacting with this book

Last one, I promise! Both of my kids loved this next book….

I gotta tell you, it was hard to read to them the first time. I laughed as I read it! It’s a future classic!!

What was your favorite book as a child? Please tell me in the comments. If you’d ever be interested in taking part in this feature, let me know. I’d love to feature YOU here.

This blog has always been an outlet for me to share my experiences, my memories, and my life with you. I hope that my posts cause you to look back at your life at your fond memories, too. Thank you for being here.

Thanks again to those who participated in Round 2. I’ll begin to think about Round 3, if readers would be interested in that. If so, I think I’ll run it in April. Does that work for you?

Thanks for sharing with me…. Keith