My Wish. My Dream. My Journey.

My wish is for all children to have parents or caretakers who love, protect, and cherish them. I wish for parents who believe what solid scientific research shows: that reading every day – themselves and with their children – can help parents do exactly this. My dream is of a world where all caretakers of all children relish sharing the great and the small wonders and hopes of the world with young ones -- and the complex issues, myriad disappointments, and unstoppable tragedies, too, as children grow into tweens, then teens.

Literacy is power, my friend. For a graphic illustration of this point, read author Gary Paulsen’s very short quick-read novel Nightjohn aloud to your teen (no younger than 13) – this piece of historical fiction will painfully, and clearly, illustrate (to you and your teen) why reading is a civil right in the United States, lest we ever forget. As a mom, step-mom, and teacher, I want all of the children in my charge equally empowered to thrive and to pay it forward to others. As parents, caretakers, and teachers, we have the ability to share the immense power of children’s books, young adult literature, and even classics with our collective kids. The empowerment books provide our children is free for the taking. What is stopping you from sharing the unstoppable power of literacy with your child?

You only need two things to start this journey of empowerment: desire and a library card. Will you help your kids grow into emotionally, intellectually, and spiritually strong – and wonderfully unique – adults who can navigate our complex and emergent new world?

I challenge you to raise a reader – a child capable of conquering the ghosts and skeletons we risk passing down to them. A child capable of imagination and wonder. A child capable of love and empathy and compassion. A child capable of communicating effectively and problem-solving efficiently. A child capable of blessing and being blessed.

My mission is to help others see what I have discovered and am still uncovering every day – how reading (and loving) can revolutionize your relationship with your child and rock their world for the better.

This blog’s purpose is to motivate, encourage, and support you as caretakers and parents by sharing my heart-songs. Here you will find my daily discoveries and book-sharings, my musings, my realizations and a-ha moments, and most importantly, reading resources you can use with the children in your world.

Get ready to rock a child’s world and join me on my journey. With this blog now up and running… I can only say one thing… Whoooooo Hoooooo!