Big Adventures for Tiny Humans, No. 3
Last winter on Wednesdays we went to story time with Miss Jenny at the library.
We started going to this story time back in the fall at the invitation of some friends, and it was an immediate hit with my little book lover.
In the early days she would sit in my lap for a few minutes and then stand right by me to sing the songs. She was interested in the books, excited about the songs, and so proud when she got to engage directly with Miss Jenny. Her interest and excitement and pride were reserved, as is typical for her, but her eyes lit up and showed how much she loved the whole thing.
Always a quick visit to the readers outside the children’s section
It didn't take more than a class or two before she preferred being out of my lap, standing in the middle of the circle or helping Miss Jenny point out pictures in the books. She loves the matching games we play where each child has an item that they get to stick on the board when it matches Miss Jenny's item. The songs are catchy, resurfacing at bath time or during car rides along with a big smile.
When all the books are read and songs are sung, Miss Jenny wheels a big cart of toys out from the closet. As the weeks go by, this seems to become a bigger and bigger highlight of story time.
But Miss Jenny herself might be the biggest highlight in our house. Any random object that fits nicely in little hands can be turned into a phone, so Hello, Miss Jenny! spoken into the tv remote, a wooden block, a stick of string cheese is typical. Many times each week, as we load into the car, she asks story time? see Miss Jenny? Not today, next week! We repeat that conversation no less than ten times as we drive, her curiosity finally, temporarily satisfied.
Sometimes the request for goodbye song? toys? starts before the welcome song, but she's typically redirected by whatever Miss Jenny has planned for the day. If not, a bored wander to the middle of the circle, lifting her shirt and exposing her bellybutton as she moves, sparks laughter from the parents, a playful poke by Miss Jenny, giggles, distraction.
So we went each week. We met new friends, borrowed new books, saw Miss Jenny. It was a thrill for my toddler, and then the anticipation built again until the next week when we’d do it all again.
Summer programming tends to be a little different from the school year, so it’s been a while since we saw Miss Jenny. Hopefully we’ll reconnect later in the fall, and the thrills of Miss Jenny’s story time will be fresh and exciting once again.
