Book Blogger Appreciation Week: Meet the Mom Behind Chronicle of an Infant Bibliophile

Welcome everyone! It has been very cool to see so many posts highlighting different blogs and books! I missed the kick-off yesterday where you were supposed to highlight different blogs that didn't make the short list. It seems like my world has exploded this month and I can't seem to get it together! Oh well - no stress - this blog is for fun!

I am interviewing Lynn from Chronicle of an Infant Bibliophile today.

Hi Lynn, and welcome to Books and Needlepoint! To start things out, tell us why you started blogging and how long you have been doing it.

I started blogging earlier this year. Our son has always loved books, and I thought it would be fun to keep track of all of the books he'd read, and to share his opinions about books with other parents. We have the whole list of books he's read (288 so far) in a list, with all of the reviews accessible by clicking on the title -- http://infantbibliophile.blogspot.com/2009/01/test_6425.html. I had also just moved to a new city where we knew almost no one, and was trying to entertain myself as a stay at home mom, so I found the blog was a nice creative outlet for me. It helped that typing is fairly quiet, and I blog during my son's naptime(s).

Let me tell you - Lynn's list is amazing. She also has it broken down in her sidebar into themes of the books - like dogs, cats, counting, etc - so if you are ever looking for a kid's book on a particular subject - this is definitely the blog to turn to!

This isn't the only blog that Lynn has though - so let's see if she will tell us about her other ones.

My favorite hobby before becoming a mother was quilting. I've toyed for years with the idea of starting a quilting blog. I gave it a try a few months ago, but decided I didn't have time for it, so I've set it to private for now. The other blog I created is called Crazy Allergy Mama (http://crazyallergymama.blogspot.com). It focuses on parenting a child with food allergies. My son is allergic to wheat, egg, milk, nuts, and sesame. I post there sporadically -- much less often that at Chronicle of an Infant Bibliophile.

I am impressed that anyone has time for more than one blog - but with a little one it is even more impressive. I would love to have a blog for just my needlework - but that ain't happenin'!

Outside of reading, what are your other hobbies? (I want to hear more about that quilting!)

I love quilting -- dreaming up quilts, shopping for fabric (especially that part), planning, cutting, piecing, and quilting. I love every stage in different ways. But I find it a challenge to fit the hobby into motherhood. My son loves to sit on my lap while I use the machine, actually, but it is hard to find the time to plan and cut the necessary fabric to be ready to sew together. Growing up, all of the women in my family were crafty, so I've also at different times done crocheting, knitting, scrapbooking, cross-stitching, and plenty of other crafts. My husband and I also love photography -- lately mostly of our little guy -- and games.

I have always dreamed about doing a quilt - but the worst part to me about any kind of sewing is cutting all the pieces out - and quilts have A LOT of pieces! You should combine photography with your quilting and make one of those memory quilts!

This was kind of an 'off-the-wall' question - but I was really curious! Why do you love the consonants B, D, M, N like it says in your profile?

The profile refers to my son (the "Infant Bibliophile"), who could only really say those consonants when he was first learning to talk. He's saying more and more words now, so the list of letters is growing. I guess I should update the profile!

Is this the first BBAW that you have participated in?

Yes, it is. I'm excited to be joining the fun!

I actually stole this last question from Lynn - it is one that she asked me and I thought it pertained very well to her! What were your favorite children's books when you were a child and/or what were your children's favorites?

As far as my favorite childhood books, some of the ones I remember are: The Monster at the End of This Book, Harold and the Purple Crayon, Call of the Wild, Curious George, Danny and the Dinosaur, Mr. Popper's Penguins, the Mouse and the Motorcycle, and the Ramona Quimby books.

My son, like yours, loves anything with transportation vehicles! He also loves to be quizzed about finding things, so Counting Colors, I-Spy, and Richard Scarry books are a big hit. But he enjoys a good picture book too.

Be sure to check out Lynn's blog - and add her to your blogroll!