May
28
When my kids were little they belonged to something called The Best Book Club Ever; every month we got quite a few of these square paperback books. They loved them getting them and read them often at bedtime. Hubby and I read our fair share of them out loud too. Katelyn and Sam visited recently and one day Katelyn picked one out specifically that she wanted me to read to her before she went to sleep. It was called The Wolf and the Seven Kids, not a book I remembered at all. The story was about a mother goat with 7 children; she left them at home one day to go get food at the market but told them not to open the door so the wolf wouldn’t get them. But of course when the wolf came calling the kids were eventually tricked into opening the door. The seven kid goats all hid but the wolf found and ate 6 of them! The mom came home to find one baby goat still hiding so they went to the woods looking for the wolf. They found him sleeping but his stomach was moving around. So she got her sewing kit to cut his stomach open, pulled out her kids, then they put rocks back in his stomach and sewed him back up! When he woke up, the wolf went to the river for a drink but was so heavy he fell in and drowned.
This is a kid’s book?!! I must have read this to my kids but I don’t really remember it. Has it been too long ago? Did having 4 kids fry my brain? Did I pay attention to what they were doing, did I read them anything and never gave it a second thought? Am I a bad parent?
The more I read this one to Katelyn, the more uncomfortable I got; I was unsure whether to sort of change it up as I went along or read it like it was. She didn’t seem to have a problem with it but I felt like a heel for reading it to her! Later when I looked it up, I found it was based on a Grimm’s fairy tale and when I think about it, those all seem to have some of those same characteristics about them. Most kids know those stories and do ok I guess; Ava Clair and Grayson went through a phase of wanting me to tell them the Three Little Pigs story every time I saw them.
I discreetly put the book away and later we did stuff like this:
I hope I didn’t ruin my kids or her reading her that book! I might need to read the other books around here and decide whether to keep them or toss them.
Tents in the dining room, chasing the train, popsicles outside, going to the park…..all that makes up for reading a story like that doesn’t it? I sure hope so!
May 28th, 2009 at 2:15 pm
I love forts. and popcicles….your grandchildren are so lucky to have you.
May 28th, 2009 at 7:59 pm
Awww you are such a great grandma.
As for the book, that IS kinda weird I mean…LOL Now I’m wondering if the books I read to my children are also like that, maybe I should paying better attention to what they’re reading.
May 28th, 2009 at 8:56 pm
We always made tents in the dining room when I was a little girl, I will never forget those times!
June 2nd, 2009 at 2:20 pm
When I was a child I read those Grimm’s Fairy Tales all the time – I don’t think it messed me up too bad LOL! So don’t worry – I’m sure they will be just fine. They are rather gruesome though – aren’t they?
You look like you were having a wonderful time – that’s what those sweethearts will remember!
June 7th, 2009 at 5:12 pm
I think they’ll be ok… but if it bothered her, I wouldn’t keep reading it to her. I cannot get over how much like Kathryn that she looks in that picture! Great shot of both of them. I loved making forts with sheets, and popsicles are the best! Glad you are getting to see them more and have so much fun with them 🙂