Written by Leann Boyd

My older child prefers carrots to cookies. When given the choice, he picks carrots every time. This is to say nothing of my personal triumph as a parent or strong example of healthy eating habits. (I will usually pick the cookie—especially if it's oatmeal raisin.)

Ezra loves carrots because bunnies eat carrots and bunnies are cool. “Momma, I want to eat carrots like a bunny.” A few weeks ago at story time, the theme was bunnies. We read bunny books and sang bunny songs. We hopped like bunnies and made bunny ear headbands. We ate carrots. My son eats carrots because of what he learned and practiced and saw others practice at story time.

I am new to the stay-at-home mom deal. The contrast of a professional career against the demands of full-time parenting was startling at first. My children will not formally evaluate my performance at the end of each term. I feel the pressure of evaluating myself weekly, daily, hourly. Being at home with two people who need so much has drawn my attention to the beauty of living in community. I need to converse with adults. I need to give my children a safe platform to practice the social scripts we have rehearsed at home. I need to know that I am not the only one who has trouble or feels overjoyed by things that seems small to others.

Our family is not a self-contained unit. We need community. We have found a little bit of the community that is so vital to our family at Big City Story Time. Every first and third Friday, I pack up the boys and head to the SALT space to build relationships with other families. Story time has become an event to which we all look forward. At each story time, we read books centered around a theme. (Bunnies, ABC's, City Life, etc.) We sing songs, make a craft, and have a snack. But we also play and learn and teach and talk and love each other. We share stories and experiences that are shaping the people we are to become. Big City Story Time is meant to be a service to families—our own and those in our neighborhood. All caretakers of preschool children are invited to join us as we grow together every first and third Friday at 1160 Broadway, 5th floor from 10:30-11:30 A.M. Currently we have, on average, 7 families who participate. We look forward to meeting you and your family and sharing our lives and experiences with you.