Our Little Avid Reader

Kai loves reading. Aside from the "mandatory" nap time and bedtime stories, Kai reads multiple books multiple times every day. Sometimes he'd pick up a book and start reading (usually loudly) on his own; other times, he'd bring a book to you and climbs on to your lap so you can read to him.

Because he's been exposed to stories in two different languages, Kai's also able to distinguish Chinese books from English ones. He says "mao" when he sees a picture of a cat in a Chinese book and "kitty" in an English one. He's got a few "must-read"s (these are read at least once every day); but he's always excited to read new books as well.

For a 16-month-old, Kai's got quite an impressive collection in his library already. We're lucky that our family and friends also value and enjoy reading. Aside from the gifts we received from family and friends, we also inherited some books from Jordy, who is basically like Kai's big brother. I also have a hard time not buying a book or two for him when we go shopping 'cause I use books as distractions. These books often end up at the check-out counter with the rest of our groceries.

Kai's books are scattered all over the house; we also keep a couple of books in the diaper bag. This means Kai always has access to his books wherever he is. When Kai's fussy or frustrated because of boredom, Bill and I usually suggest, "Wanna go read?" and it always works! We let him pick the book he wants to read, and he lets us know where and how he wants to read it.

Growing up as an only child, I spent countless hours in stories and fables. Bill told me that he'd read under his sheets with a flash light after his mom had put him to bed. Now Kai is the most avid reader in the house, and Daddy reads e-books on his iPad. Sadly, Mommy can't remember the last not-child-related book she read...