Here Piggy, Piggy: It's READING FAIR Time Again!

Last spring, Libby won first place in the state reading fair.

And while this was a great opportunity for her, it's also got me a little scared this year.

The concern: how do I explain to my first grader that it might be someone else's turn to win this year?

We've talked about it and discussed it, but I'm not sure she really GETS it.

More on that in a minute.....

But first,
here's what she came up with this year:

Most importantly: HER BOOK

If you have young children and have never read the Mercy Watson books, you are MISSING OUT! They are favorites at our house. They are chapter books, but there are lots of pictures and the chapters are short, so they're great for early readers are not quite ready for real chapter books.

Here's the whole dog and pony show, costume included:

That's right; my little one is posing as Mercy Watson herself for her project presentation.

Notice that the costume comes complete with pig feet.

Now for a closer look at her board:

The pigs on the sides represent the things Mercy considers being for Halloween before she decides, with help from her parents, to be a princess.

The the pigs in the center are princesses, like Mercy Watson.

Lib and I also made this cute little piggy out of a Halloween trick-or-treat bucket:

Lib's favorite part:

My favorite parts (there are two):

And in case you can't tell via computer pictures, the pigs' noses are 3-D.

And even though no one may notice, Lib had so much fun with the details on this project.

Thoughts on this?

Here's what I know:

* Libby had a lot of fun choosing her book, cutting, painting, gluing, and writing for her project.

*We are both very happy with the way it turned out, making her a winner no matter what.

*I feel like doing this helped to better understand what she reads and to see that books are fun.

And isn't that all that matters?

And now I can proudly say:

LIBBY PLACED SECOND IN YESTERDAY'S READING FAIR!

To me, this is good news. Here's why:

*she was still able to see that hard work pays off, and that the extra effort is always worth it when it comes to doing your very best.

*she was also able to learn that winning isn't the most important thing, which I do believe is a very important lesson indeed.

Speaking of lessons, I've just about learned that I need to focus on saying NO more often, as this week has had me totally overwhelmed. And if you know me, you know that overwhelmed isn't something I feel very often, as I like my plate fuller than most. And today, I'm home once again with sick Hollyn. Hopefully she's about shown this ole' virus who's boss because I miss my sleeping baby!

Here's hoping your Friday and your weekend are awe-some in more ways than one.

I'll be at a meeting most of the weekend, which means great friends, great food, and great fellowship.

OH, and one more thing....this ole' blog of mine is just about to reach 100,000 views. When it does, there will  be a special giveaway by yours truly. Are you excited?

I sure am.

Today I'm linking here, here, here, here, here, and here.  Where's YOUR favorite place to link to?