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Story time for a Broke-Ass Mom

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Thursdays mean story time for us at our local public library.  I have to admit that I did not seek it out when I became a SAHM; instead I literally stumbled upon it. Six months ago, my son and I were out for a walk, and I noticed a line literally around the corner and everyone in line was a nanny, a baby, a mom, or a dad.  I remember saying to my son, “Well, this can’t be the line for some upcoming concert, so let’s go see what this is about.”

We went up to the first unsuspecting mother we saw and asked, “What’s the line for?”

She replied, “Story time”. It was then that I noticed every one had a ticket with a number on it in their hand.

“Is it that great?” I asked her.

“Well, it’s not bad, there are others that are better, but this is the only one in this neighborhood.”

I looked down at my son, asked him if he wanted to try it out, and since we weren’t doing anything we did.

I wasn’t overly impressed at first, but then as we kept coming back I realized how great story time really is.  Now we go every single Thursday, and both of us look forward to it.  Below are my reasons why I love it:

  1. You see the same children every week.  This means there is opportunity for your child to make friends.
  2. Seeing the same children means you’re seeing the same parents.  Therefore, there is opportunity for you to make friends.
  3. Gives you something to do every week, and takes up at least an hour of your time.
  4. For once someone else is reading to your child, and you can just sit and listen.
  5. You get to learn new songs to sing with your child outside of story time.
  6. Once a week you can go check out new books to read with your child at home, and it’s FREE.
  7. Which leads me to…IT’S FREE.
  8. If you don’t like the books you’ve checked out, then you only have to deal with them for six more days.
  9. If you’ve made a new friend for your child, and you’re not sure you want to hang out with the parent, invite them to story time for a test run.
  10.  Brings a smile to your face at least once a week, because I’m telling you, these kids are really freaking cute!

In all seriousness, I really encourage everyone out there to seek out a story time at his or her local library.  It’s a great, FREE way to spend one hour each week.  I promise you, after a few sessions it will become one of the highlights of your week.  Sometimes, even I find myself singing the story time songs (they’re catchy, man, I can’t help it!).

Photo by: Me

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Jennifer White - Mommy No Bucks

Jennifer White - Mommy No Bucks

Jennifer has been a bit of a nomad having lived in seven different cities. Her life as a gypsy has settled down for the moment in San Francisco with her husband and two-year old son. Recently, she decided to throw caution to the wind, quit her job as an analyst to be a full-time mom while chasing her dreams (and the Pulitzer Prize). When she's not writing, she's aspiring to be a luddite (although blogging isn't helping), knitting the occasional hat, or running in the park with her son and his secondhand compost truck in tow.