Emma is currently mad about...

...the Berenstain Bears. I'd sort of heard of them before...I think my sister had given us one Berenstain Bear book a long time ago. But one day while we were stuck at home, Emma watched the BB show on PBS and was totally hooked. Now every day I record the BB show and we watch it when we get home. And we've checked several BB books out from the library.

I guess what I like about the BB books and programs so much is that there is always, in a fun way, a positive lesson to be learned and reinforced. The stories talk about not being greedy or eating too much junk food or watching too much TV.

Over my lunch hour today, I ran over to the local used book store and picked up about six BB books for like $10. I love this bookstore because they have a huge kids' section and I can indulge in Emma's latest book obsession without spending much money.

Who knows how long she'll be digging the Berenstain Bears...like most kids, Emma kind of flits from one thing to another (except for the princess thing, which seems to have no end!) But I'm thrilled to encourage her infatuation with little kid stuff like this as long as I can. The longer I can stave off the dreaded Bratz phase, the happier I'll be.