In case you hadn’t gathered, reading is somewhat of a passion — and pretty much, a requirement — in this house. We all love books, and we all spend a fair amount of time reading each day.

But one area where I always want to do better is in reading aloud to the kids. Oh, I read to L.(5) at bedtime. But by then, he has usually stalled and dawdled or needed one last sip of water and we end up rushing through a quick book or two because it is time for bed. We try to squeeze in reading other times too, but I admit I’m not very good at making it a priority.

C.(12) and I are sporadic when it comes to reading aloud together. Over the course of the past year, we read a couple books (The Book of Three and The Black Cauldron by Lloyd Alexander), but during the school year it seems that homework and piano lessons and Wednesday night church and general family busyness all conspire against us. We struggle to consistently set aside time to read in the evenings and it often falls by the wayside.

But now…it’s summer. Or close enough. And I decided that one of my personal goals for this summer was to spend more time reading aloud to the boys.

Here’s the thing: I want to read to them at the same time. But I’ll tell you, it can be very hard to find material that appeals to both a 5-year-old and a 12-year-old.

So instead, I thought I’d pick something that appealed to me!

Believe it or not, I’ve never read The Wind in the Willows. It’s possible that I had to read portions of it in elementary school, as part of our reading curriculum. But if I did, I certainly don’t remember it. I know I’ve heard about The Wind in the Willows — Mole and Badger and Toad. But still, it remains a classic that I’ve never read. Perfect for our read-aloud.

Next I had to choose a time. While our evenings are more free in the summer, the kids tend to stay outside, playing and swinging, well into the evening and I’m hesitant to interfere with that hallmark of childhood. Instead, I decided to borrow an idea from my friend Jennifer: a lunchtime read-aloud. It’s perfect, really. While the kids are eating strawberries and sandwiches, they are my captive audience. I have at least 15-20 minutes every afternoon — perfect for reading!

We began today. During a trip to the library, I picked up a copy of The Wind in the Willows and as soon as lunch was on the table, I was diving into Chapter 1.

So far, so good. Actually, it was pretty great. I thought that the story might be a bit “young” for C. And I thought the language and length of chapters might be a bit “old” for L. But both of them thoroughly enjoyed the story so far.

I’m sure part of their enjoyment was related to the closeness and camaraderie that come from exploring a story together. Together-time is always a plus. But C. mentioned something about an excerpt from the book being in his reading book this past year, and L. was able to give me a pretty good recap of what we had read, so I know they were both engaged in the book as well.

I can’t guarantee I’ll be faithful to read at every single lunch-time this summer. I’m sure there will be days when we’re not here, days when I’m exhausted, days when distractions keep us from our book. But I hope to read a minimum of 3-4 days per week. I’m already trying to figure out what we’ll read next.

[C. and I are planning another reading adventure this summer -- I'll share more about that later!]

In the meantime, I’d love to hear about your read-aloud experiences, or your memories of Wind in the Willows, OR any suggestions for books that will appeal to a 5-year-old and a 12-year-old!