…with children’s books. Actual word-for-word memorization of my son’s three favorite books. This is because every night, I read the same three books multiple times right before bedtime. I try to move on to other ones, but he won’t pay attention to other books. He’s fixated on Every Little Thing By Cedella Marley; Night, Night Train, and Night, Night Farm, both by Amy Parker. Every once in a while, I can sneak The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle in there, but even that is stuck in my head.

Our home is filled with books. We don’t have a shortage between what we got as baby gifts and the collection held on to by our parents. I’ve read many of them to him, but for some reason, they stand out.

I love that he loves these books. I love that he loves to sit quietly and flip through them by himself. I even love when he comes running up to me with a book he wants me to read, but it’s always the same book.

I’ve even tried hiding the books, hoping he will gravitate to a new one, but alas, no luck. A few weeks ago, when rushing out the door in the morning, he grabbed Night Night Train and came running down the hall as it was time to leave. Since we couldn’t stop to read it and he wouldn’t put it down. I recited it – word for word – as we drove to daycare, and I got him settled in before I left. The daycare director’s son looked at me as if I were crazy as I said night, night to the station and the town.

I suppose one day he will move on from these books, and I’ll be able to read him something else. And one day after that, he won’t want me to read to him anymore. So, I’ll be content to recite his books to him while I’m making dinner, getting ready for work, or putting him to bed. As long as this is the foundation for a lifetime of reading, I’ll read the same thing repeatedly as long as he wants me to.