Category: Education

 

The other week I was at a coffee house meeting some people for work.  I brought along Baby Mojo because it was around his nap time.  

The diaper bag, my favorite new accessory, had the staples, a bottle, change of outfit, wipes, diapers, snacks for Dad, a toy for Baby and my book from library.  

I arrived early because I wanted to A. Leave the house, B. Relax and C. See if the change in scenery would lull Baby Mojo quicker than usual.  Thankfully, the new environment did just the trick and I got a soda, doughnut and waited for everybody else.  

One of them arrived shortly thereafter when I was reading.  “Wow, is that a library book?  I haven’t been to the library in ages.  You never see them anymore!”, she said.  I wanted to reply with something smarmy like ‘yeah, since they don’t have The Jersey Shore available yet I don’t go either, this is my wife’s book’.   

However, sensing that I was in a different demographic then her, I wisely reconsidered my retort.  

Libraries do rock, but there is an age, i.e., after college and before parenthood, that people never and I mean never set foot in them.   We’ve been frequent visitors to our local library and they have loads of resources that can help children and families.  

They sell books too.  It’ll probably be on the first Saturday of every month, check with yours to see when they sell overstock or slightly damaged books for .50 and up.  Also, twice a year your local county may have a huge book sale with thousands of books and media.  Either of these choices is an excellent opportunity to set up your own ‘library’ at your house. 

If you’re thirst for books needs immediate attention here are some tips that we’ve discovered. 

-Independent book stores.  These are great places to troll because they too will sell gently used books.  Granted they’ll cost just a bit more than the library sales, but they’ll be far cheaper than new.  

-Yard Sales.  Unfortunately these are seasonal and require much more effort to locate.  However, once you get there the sellers can be highly motivated.  

-Consignment Sales.   Usually these are dozens of families, a neighborhood or a church that pool a very large supply of clothing, toys and books.  These can be great, if you plan accordingly.   Our plan is to go early on the first day and early on the last day.  On the last day most of the merchandise is 50% off, so you can be a bit less picky about what you get.  It’s the opposite on the first day as you’ll pay full consignment prices, but you’ll get first selection.  Also, take a stroller, that way you can keep your baby mojo in there and use the storage space for stuff you want to buy. 

Our own Baby Mojo likes pop up books and any book that has photos of construction, tools, animals or the outdoors.  Read aloud and shop well!