9 bedtime books: Riggs' current favorites

Riggs loves to read books and if it were up to him he'd probably read at least 20 every night before bed. But his mean mama has a rule of two books, and they have to be from the 'bedtime book' shelf. He's not really supposed to read his bedtime books during the day - and by 'not really supposed to' I mostly mean if he wants to look at them it's ok but I won't read them to him during the day. The purpose of this is to keep these books special and interesting for at bedtime, and to make sure the books we're reading before bed help him wind down and think about going to sleep.

Anytime I find a good bedtime book I add it to our little collection, but I admit I'm pretty picky. Llama Llama barely made the list, because it's a little bit rousing for him, but he loves it so much I try to always read it to him first and choose a calmer choice for the second (and last) book. I know there are a goodnight-truck-type books out there but for Riggs they just aren't a good choice. He'd get so excited about the trucks/construction equipment/trains that he wouldn't settle down into the quiet mood I like him to be in while we read bedtime books.

Riggs' Favorite Bedtime Books 2014

one | I Would Tuck You In - We picked this one up at Costco and love it so much. The illustrations are beautiful and there are little facts about the animal featured on the bottom of each page.

two | Time For Bed - Another Costco find actually, when I was pregnant with Riggs. I read this book to him every night when he was a little baby before bed, so it definitely has special meaning for me. He really like it too, and it was through reading this book that Riggs learned a lot of his animals at an early age.

three | Llama Llama Red Pajama - This book came in the mail through our Imagination Library subscription. Like I mentioned earlier I was a little bit skeptical and read through the whole thing myself before introducing it to Riggs. He really loves it and has never tried to imitate Baby Llama (stalling bedtime by asking for water) which is something I was a little worried about when I first read it.

four | Goodnight Moon - I don't think I really need to say anything about this one, except that every child should own it. It's such a classic and it fostered a love for the moon in Riggs that both Steve and I love so much. Plus I love books that have lots of little detail in the pages, like the little mouse that moves around from page to page, Riggs loves to find him and point him out to whoever is reading it to him.

five | Guess How Much I Love You - The illustrations in this book are probably my favorite thing about it, they are so dreamy and magical. I love the message too, and Riggs is obsessed with bunnies so any book with bunnies is a favorite of his.

six | Sweet Dreams Lullaby - This is another beautifully illustrated book and I particularly like it because it's written as a true lullaby, in rhyming verse. Again the main character is a bunny so Riggs really likes that too.

seven | All of Baby Nose to Toes - This was another book we received in the mail through the Imagination Library program and we both love to read it. Riggs names every character as someone from our family which I just love. And it never technically mentions bedtime but the baby takes a bath, gets dressed for bed, gets loved on by family then snuggles sleepily on it's mamas shoulder with a blanket on the last page. Riggs always says "goodnight baby" so I think he figures the baby is going to bed too. We do read this during the day before nap, but it's the only one from this list that we 'break the rule' for.

eight | Love You Forever - Oh my goodness, this book. I can barely read it to Riggs without tearing up, and I'm sure he thought I was crazy when I have broken down with a wobbly voice and a few tears a few times. It is just so sweet and really touches a chord inside me, because one of the biggest things that scared me about having a boy was 'losing' him as he grows up. I think every family should have this book on their shelves, it's just too sweet to miss.

nine | Under the Silvery Moon - I found this one recently at a used book store in Anchorage (Title Wave) and it is by far my new favorite. It's just a beautifully written and illustrated book and I could read it every single night. Riggs loves it too and picks it as one of his books at least every other night it seems.

Another favorite bedtime books is called Tiger's Bedtime, and it was mine when I was little. I would have added it to the list but I couldn't find it for sale online (or even a picture of it). I love reading it to Riggs because it brings back so many memories from my own childhood. What are some good bedtime books that I'm missing here? I'm always looking for more to add to our little shelf :)