Ah, February… the month of love! This week at Ready to Read we read some Valentine’s Day themed books.  

 Emily’s Valentine Party by Claire Masurel ; illustrated by Susan Calitri

In this lift-the-flap book, Emily decides to have a Valentine Party. We had fun watching Emily buy decorations, favours, and bake Valentine Cookies with her mom. The minimal text and fun flaps, which everyone had a chance to lift, made this book a lot of fun. Claire Masurel has written more Emily books that are lots of fun too including Emily’s First Day of School and Emily’s Dance Class. Check out her other books here!

Just for You by Mercer Meyer

 Little Critter wants to do special things for his mom, only things keep going wrong! He tries to set the table, but the television is just too distracting! He tries to carry the groceries, but the bag breaks! Finally he finds something he can give his mom just for her.

The Day it Rained Hearts by Felicia Bond

The Day it Rained Hearts is probably my favourite Valentine’s Day story. On the day it rains hearts, Cornelia Augusta (how is that name?) catches runs outside to catch them. She uses the hearts to make valentines for all her friends and then mails them. It’s fun to see how well the valentines match up with her friends (a heart collar for her friend the dog, a valentine with a cotton ball for her friend the rabbit).

After storytime today we made our own valentines to give to our friends and families.

Happy (almost) Valentines Day!

Do you remember going to the Kortright Centre as a kid? 

Our school always had at least one combined McMichael Art Gallery/ Kortright field trip per year.  I loved it so much my parents used to take us there for walks, special educational days and even for a Halloween walk.  My bus drives past the entrance everyday on my way to work so I began thinking why not write about what is going on at the Kortright Centre in the adult leisure blog?  I know I would love to go and experience some of the great programs they offer. 

On the weekend of January 30^th and 31^st (weather permitting) the Kortright Centre is hosting a dog sled race.  What a fantastic way to witness a truly Canadian phenomenon.  Wish for snow everyone!

Looking for something different to do this Valentine’s Day?  The Kortright Centre is holding a Valentine’s nature walk and dinner on February 13^th.  Also in February is the Owl Prowl.  I remember doing a similar program at the Kortright Centre as a child and being absolutely fascinated with the sounds, homes and droppings (!) of the owls we encountered on the prowl.

 Kortright is also involved in producing educational materials.  One example of this is the video recording Solar energy : a bright future. You can find it @ your library!

The Kortright Centre for Conservation is located at 9550 Pine Valley Drive in Woodbridge. Pine Valley Drive is located south of Major Mackenzie Drive, west of Highway 400.