Admittedly, one of my favorite things about being a blogger is occasionally getting the opportunity to review things that are actually relevant for me and my children. That I have been getting so many amazing children’s books in the mail to check out lately has been a joy – because I have never stopped loving children’s books – and frankly they’re the only kind of books I have found time for lately.

The girls and I have a method for book reviews – I read through everything first… then? I let them check out the books. This list of our favorites was made by the three of us after going through an amazingly plentiful pile of books received in the past several months. The other books? For the most part – still pretty amazing. These, however, are our favorites.

Goldilocks and the Three Dinosaurs: As Retold by Mo Willems

If you have kids and you haven’t discovered the wonder that is Mo Willems then get thee to your bookstore or library (or Amazon!) pronto. I dig his style – from Snufflebunny to the Pigeon series. This retelling of the Goldilocks story did NOT disappoint. Instead of visiting the house of three bears, Goldilocks trespasses into the home of three dinosaurs. Hilarity ensues. It’s a good one and the girls and I giggle every time we read it. The book is recommended “For Dinosaur Ages Triassic to Jurassic” – both of my daughters love it, and I do too – so you be the judge.

Charlie and the Christmas Kitty

Y’all are familiar with The Pioneer Woman, right? Well, Ree Drummond is now writing kid’s books, including this one that stole Pumpkin’s heart – probably because it’s about a dog. This book spurred a discussion with my mom’s husband about kid lit and the power illustrations have to make or break a good book. While the story here isn’t particularly special (in my opinion – my daughter would argue otherwise), the illustrations are warm and really steal the show. For the animal loving kid in your life, this is a fun addition to their library.

Fancy Nancy: The Wonderful World of Fancy Nancy

Okay, remember when I just said that illustrations could make or break a children’s book? The Fancy Nancy series is one that I really believe could stand alone on its merits story-wise, but the illustrations, the bright colors and the fun font used for the story all just make it even better. Nancy is a little girl who likes to be “fancy” and this box set contains four books from the Fancy Nancy series (our set is paperback). Not only are the stories fun, but Nancy is genuinely likeable and the “fancy” vocabulary your kids will pick up along the way make these darling books a real treat to read with your kids.

My Brave Year of Firsts: Tries, Sighs, and High Fives

I’m not entirely sure how I feel about Jamie Lee Curtis as an author but she keeps writing books and people keep buying them and I can almost forgive her for being in those weird yogurt commercials (sorry about your digestive system, Jamie Lee). This book is fun and bright and the rhyming is cute and fun and easy to read. Overall, it’s pretty relatable for kids – even down to the first time you laugh so hard milk comes out of your nose (that HURTS, y’all). This sweet book is a lovely reminder to parents about all of those firsts we may have forgotten – first time walking around the block, anyone? (The kids will dig it too.)

These books were review copies and sent for review purposes but my opinion and that of my kiddos is solely our own. AND BOY DO WE HAVE OPINIONS.

Last night on Twitter is when I first started seeing quite a lot of Nora Ephron quotes posted. You spend enough time on social media, you realize that when someone who isn’t talked about much is suddenly talked about excessively, they’ve either gone to jail for doing something really bizarre… or they’ve died.

I kind of wish Nora Ephron had just done something really bizarre.

Waiter, there is too much pepper on my paprikash.

The writer of some of my favorite books and movies has passed away and while clearly I never knew her personally, I feel a loss in a way. Her characters, particularly the women, were easy to relate to (Sally, perhaps a little too much so) and were real. She had an uncanny knack for writing dialogue, and it was distinctive. Whether you’re watching “When Harry Met Sally” or “You’ve Got Mail” or “Sleepless in Seattle”… or whatever… you could peg that dialogue as Ephron dialogue. In a world where so many writers are trying to be someone else, to have a voice of your own that was both recognizable and yet accessible enough for so many to relate to is a rare and wonderful gift. Were her films award-winning caliber? Um, probably not. But you can’t deny the fun, light-hearted spirit.

You’re the worst kind: You’re high maintenance but you think you’re low maintenance.

I find that I’ve always known countless more women than men who have a near rabid love for “When Harry Met Sally” – it’s been one of my favorites for years. I loved the friendship between Meg Ryan and Billy Crystal, loved the evolution of their relationship from the time they first met in Chicago to his “I love that you get cold when it’s 71 degrees out” speech. That the movie is infinitely quotable was because of Ephron’s writing and her gift for creating characters that the viewers couldn’t help but love, even despite their flaws.

Oh but “Baby Fish Mouth” is sweeping the nation? I hear them talking.

I’ve found that in reading Ephron’s books, as well as seeing her movies, bits and pieces from various stories worked their ways into different pieces of work. The “two neuroses knowing they’re a perfect match” quote from Sleepless in Seattle? That was originally written in the novel, Heartburn, which was made into a movie in the late 80s and only real asset really was that Carly Simon “Coming Around Again” song which I still love because it reminds me of my childhood and my dad’s wife playing Carly and singing along and oh, that whole album conjures up memories. There was a syndicated columnist in Heartburn as well who I’m guessing shaped Greg Kinnear’s role in You’ve Got Mail (I could be wrong. I’m too tired to analyze).

Sometimes I wonder about my life. I lead a small life – well, valuable but small – and sometimes I wonder, do I do it because I like it, or because I haven’t been brave?

I found myself, this morning, almost wishing that it had been Delia Ephron who had passed away instead and then I felt immediately awful because poor Delia’s only offense is that she never has written as well as her sister (Her latest novel sits on my kitchen counter, I’m about a third of the way through – and while I feel it was written as though she could envision making it into a movie, it feels like she wanted it to be somewhat of a female “Hangover”, but didn’t know how to execute it, so there’s a lion who sits in the middle of the bar who will never measure up to Mike Tyson’s lion in Hangover). The novel “Hanging Up” was decent, but unlike Nora’s stories, didn’t translate well to the screen and instead ended up being some weird mishmash with (of course) Meg Ryan, Lisa Kudrow, and a third person who I can’t even remember and am too lazy to look up on IMDB. Had it been Delia, I’m not sure I’d have been as sad.

I suck as a human.

I have made a lot of mistakes falling in love, and regretted most of them, but never the potatoes that went with them.

So, cheers to you Nora, wherever you may be. Thank you for the words and the entertainment and the memory and the characters that you created. They’ve embedded themselves in pop culture history, and more importantly, my goofy little heart.