I'm Back [With A Book Review]

After an 8 year hiatus, I'm back!!! Where do I even begin? The last time I made a post, I was 6 months pregnant with my first child. Today I am mom to 8 year old Maura and 6 year old Mason. 

Maura & Mason enjoying the boardwalk this summer. 

I'm still a practicing Speech-Language Pathologist, but have also taken on additional roles, namely helping with the family insurance business (let me know if any Pennsylvania or Delaware peeps need a quote😉)! 

SLP by day, insurance diva by night 😉

My work with the infant, toddler, and preschool population still continues. I even have a handful of virtual preschool students! I SO love the variety that I have going on at the moment. Even though the population I work with remains the same, my 2 children do not! My love of children's books continues and I'm constantly seeking out stories that I can share with my kids. Particularly stories that tell a story they haven't heard before.

I wanted to share a book that I initially purchased to help my daughter accept and embrace her body, but ended up using with both kids! 

Laxmi's Mooch by Shelly Anand

Laxmi's Mooch is a body positive story about accepting our bodies, and ultimately ourselves. Laxmi has a "mooch" as they say in Hindi (mustache) that she is self conscious about. After having a discussion with her parents, Laxmi learns that she comes from a long line of women with "moochay." Her mooch is normal and beautiful! Laxmi returns to school the next day and helps her schoolmates embrace their body hair, even drawing a mustache on a classmate who is lacking. 

One of my favorite pages!

So many themes can be explored with this book:

• Use this book as an opportunity to discuss your culture vs. Laxmi's culture. What do you have in common? What are your differences?
• Body diversity and body positivity can be explored.
• Readers can discuss how to troubleshoot social interactions with peers. What can you do when someone says something that makes you feel upset or self-conscious? 
• Who can you go to for help when you are having difficulty with a friend? 

You can listen to a read aloud of Laxmi's Mooch by author Shelly Anand below

Who would you share this book with?