If your house looks like ours, you could probably give Barnes and Noble a run for their money. But if there’s ever anything I will encourage my daughter to want more of, it’s books! At some point (probably around the 10th or 12th time you’ve read The Napping House), you start getting new books for yourself as much as for your kids. Hey, sanity is worth something in this crazy world. Here are a few cute (and, bonus, non-sugary!) books to give your little one this Valentine’s Day.

Snuggle Puppy by Sandra Boynton

Elmo Loves You

Love, Splat by Rob Scotton

Henry in Love by Peter McCarty

Somebody Loves You, Mr. Hatch by Eileen Spinelli

The Yuckiest, Stinkiest, Best Valentine Ever by Brenda Ferber, Illustrated by Tedd Arnold

Cranberry Valentine by Wende and Harry Devlin

The Day It Rained Hearts by Felicia Bond

I love reading to my child. We do it every night as part of her bedtime routine, and it’s a big deal for her to pick out the book each night. But I’m not going to lie—I definitely have those nights when I positively dread storytime for fear that she’s going to choose some ridiculously long book when all I really want is to get her in bed so I can open a bottle of wine.

After reading The Cat in the Hat one such night (which takes freaking forever to read—thanks for that Dr. Seuss!), my husband and I got smart and started offering her a selection of books to choose from rather than giving her full reign over her entire library of books. She still gets to feel like she’s picking the book and we don’t want to take a long walk off a short pier by the time we’re done reading; it’s a win win! Here are our favorite bedtime books when we’re trying to make a quick getaway.

Olivia is just now getting to the age where she can hold a mini conversation and ask us about things she sees and hears. I am thankful, however, that on this day, she is not yet asking me what the flags are flying for, why people are wearing pins, or what 9/11 means.

I am thankful because I am terrified of the day when she will ask me and how I will answer that question truthfully without scaring her half to death or making her mistrustful of others.

It’s going to be a tough conversation and one that I will need to be prepared for. For those of you who have little ones already asking the tough questions, here are some children’s books to help you through those discussions.

America is Under Attack by Don Brown

September Roses by Jeanette Winter

It’s Still a Dog’s New York by Susan Roth

The Survivor Tree: Inspired by a True Story by Cheryl Somers Aubin and Sheila Harrington

September 12th: We Knew Everything Would Be All Right by Masterson Elementary Students

The Little Chapel that Stood by A.B. Curtiss

September 11, 2001: A Day in History by Evelyn B. Block

Fireboat: The Heroic Adventures of the John J. Harvey by Maira Kalman

Do Not Be Sad- A Chronicle of Healing by FDNY Engine 24 Ladder 5

Olivia can’t get enough Elmo. When she was home sick one day, I let her watch part of an episode of Sesame Street, and that was all she wrote. She now climbs onto the couch with the Apple TV remote (she knows I pulled Sesame Street up on Netflix—she’s a smart little cookie!) and says “Elmo?” I don’t get the attraction, but apparently this is a pretty common obsession for the preschool set, and I suppose there are worse things for her to fixate on. So I’ve rounded up some of our favorite Elmo things to share. Enjoy!

Bonus: Zulily is running a sale right now (through Friday) on Elmo apparel for boys and girls. There’s some seriously cute stuff on there!

Elmo Alphabet Lunch Box, $13.29

Elmo Girls Tee, Old Navy, $12.94

Crest Elmo and Friends Toothbrush, $3.68

Elmo Take Along Buddy, Sesame Street $15

Elmo Fresh Food Feeder, Toys R Us $5.59

Elmo's ABC Book, Walmart $2.91

Elmo Rashguard, Old Navy $12

Let me clarify that title—it’s the first trip to the dentist for my daughter. We made an appointment for her with a recommended pediatric dentist for next week. I’m not going to lie—I have some serious anxiety about the whole thing. I know how difficult she can be just brushing her teeth; I can only imagine the chaos that will ensue in a dentist’s office.

Since I was just at my own dentist this week for my six-month cleaning, I took the opportunity to ask them for any advice for making the trip as painless as possible for Olivia (and for me!). Everyone asked the same thing: have you been reading to her about the dentist? Ummmm, no. Ooops.

So I set out to find some good, age-appropriate books about going to the dentist to help ease her into the whole idea. Here are some of the best ones I’ve found. If you know of any other good dentist books or have any tips for how to get through our first dentist appointment, let’s hear them!

Olivia loves books; so naturally, her collection is growing exponentially thanks to yours truly (I read for a living, so I’m positively giddy that she likes books). It’s a good thing we are inheriting my sister’s old dollhouse bookshelf (as soon as we find a place to put it!), because we are rapidly running out of room. If your child’s library is also multiplying like rabbits, check out these great bookcases that are perfect for your little bookworm:

KidKraft Swivel Bookshelf/Mirror, $109.99

aly and company bookcase, $260

Oeuf Mini Library, $660

Firefighter Revolving Bookcase, $159.99

Target Tot Tutors Book Rack, $31.99

IKEA, Hensvik Cabinet and Shelf, $109

Land of Nod Library Cart, $199

My friend, Lolly, is due with her first baby in May. So this weekend, we celebrated her and baby Sarah June (how cute is that name? don’t you just love it?!). The shower was held at the home of a friend in Charlottesville, VA, and the house itself would have been worthy of a blog post—the entire home looked like it was from the pages of a magazine (or one huge Pinterest pin), gorgeous! But back to the shower. The theme of the shower was “Sarah’s Story Begins,” and the feel was sweet vintage. Our hostesses, Amanda and Erin, did a fabulous job on the decorations and the food, from the hand-sewn circle garland to the mini TBM skewers. They managed to pull off a delicate girly shower with only the slightest hint of pink.