Hush Little Baby

So I like the melody of Hush Little Baby, but I've always been bothered by the words ("Daddy's gonna buy you"). Have you felt the same way? Well, luckily Sylvia Long has. Her version of Hush Little Baby I really like.

I'm going to assume she would be happy to have you sing this to your child instead of the materialistic one, and that you will want to go out and get the book with the pleasant illustrations once you read it. Here's a sample of the song:

Hush little baby, don't say a word,
Mama's going to show you a hummingbird.

If that hummingbird should fly,
Mama's going to show you the evening sky.

Isn't that great? I once tried to change the lyrics myself when I was rocking Maya to sleep, but mine were too snide, especially when I got to diamond ring. Long's words are so gentle.

The image of rocking a baby to sleep, singing a lullaby is one of those that brings up feelings of warmth, peace, and love. But we all know sometimes bedtime can be anything but peaceful. Maya, like all babies, is so beautiful when she's sleeping. But occasionally she sprawls herself out like a drunken frat boy. Here's a photo of my little cherub sleeping.

If You're Happy and You Know it: Jungle Edition

Another version of If You're Happy and You Know It, this time by James Warhola, depicting animals showing their happiness in their own way has come along.

For me this one has it's ups and downs. First the ups. I like the variety of animals included, such as the monkey, elephant, and snake. And I really like that all the animals participate on each page. My favorite page is when the children's parents are calling them to go home. All of the animals are in suspended animation, acting silly and with "Uh oh" looks on their faces.

The down side is that there is just one line on each page, then the full stanzas are written on one spread in the back. This isn't really a problem. I just sing the book through anyway. And I try to strategically skip over that one page at the end.

So if this is your kids' favorite song, and there's a good chance it is, here you go.

Young MacDonald

So we have a very technologically savvy little girl already. Maya loves to type on the computer and talk on the cell phone. She sits in my lap and presses things on the laptop while I'm surfing. In the past she has managed to pull up functions I never knew existed. Once she called up the source info for the web page I was on.

We rarely let her touch the cell phone, since in the past she would suck on it and make the speaker fuzzy. But in a desperate moment to keep her awake in the car till we got home (been there, haven't you?) I pulled out a ringer (get it, ringer?). Maya managed to take three pictures, change our ring tone, and call my brother.

I'm sure if I could see her I would have seen her What? look, shown here when we caught her tearing open a package of outlet covers. So much for safety.



Another adaptation of a familiar children's song, Young MacDonald, by David Milgrim, is about a boy genius. It's a bit of an homage to Young Frankenstein, as our hero does experiments in cloning. He joins various barnyard animals together to make new species. I know it sounds disturbing, but the results are pretty cute.

Here's a sample verse:

Young MacDonald had a farm, ee-i-ee-i-o.
And on that farm, he make some Deese, ee-i-ee-i-o.
With a Hee-Honk here,
And a Hee-Honk there,
Here a Hee, there a Honk,
Everywhere a Hee-Honk.
Young MacDonald had a farm,
Ee-i-ee-i-o.

You know how I often say a book will take a little practice to read it smoothly. Definitely one of those here. But you might want to give Young MacDonald a try. It has to be seen to be believed.

Carry Me!

Hallelujah! We had two breakthroughs this week. Maya took her first steps the other day, and last night she did a lot of walking. She has a long ways to go before she's running around the playground, but she's on her way. I know everyone says we'll be wishing for the days when we didn't have to chase her around, but after five months of Maya walking all over holding onto our fingers, our backs are a little sore. I'll see if I can get some video on here tonight.

Rosemary Wells' Carry Me! is a touching book showing parent and child being close even as the child grows and becomes more independent. It comes in three sections: Carry Me!, Talk to Me!, and Sing to Me!

In the first section, the little bunny sings to her Mom and Dad, "Carry me into the garden Under the plum tree's shadow. Carry me over to hear the bees. Stuff my pocket with early peas."

In Talk to Me!, the little bunny can stand with help and is learning to be by herself, but she longs to hear her parents' voices. "Red eyes blink from moonlit wings. Tell me a story about these things."

In Sing to Me!, she can run and play on her own. "Sing me a winter song I'll sing you right along The old song we know...."

As Maya grows I know I'm going to miss those cuddly times, so I'll just make sure I'm there waiting when she comes looking for a pair of arms.

Here's a great daddy song for Father's Day. I change the words liberally to make it Maya's and mine.

Dance to Your Daddy

Dance to your daddy,

My little laddie.

Dance to your daddy,

My little lamb.

You shall have a fishy

In a little dishy.

You shall have a fishy

When the boat comes in.

Dance to your daddy,

My little lassie.

Dance to your daddy,

My little lamb.

You shall have an apple.

You shall have a plum.

You shall have an apple

When your daddy comes home.

Hey Mr. Choo-choo, Where Are You Going?

I think I've mentioned before that Maya's favorite musician so far is Dan Zanes. She loves those acoustic guitar sounds. Dan Zanes does tasteful new songs, children's classics, and traditional songs that I can listen to and enjoy along with Maya.

Our favorite CD is still the one our friend Nicole gave to Maya before she was born, Catch That Train. It has a couple of train songs, classics like "Loch Lomond" and "Welcome Table", a couple of foreign language tunes, and even a protest song. Guests include Father Goose, Nick Cave, Natalie Merchant, and The Blind Boys of Alabama (weren't there five at one time?).

Check out the video for the title track on YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UWIYo-T4Dq8

Hey Mr. Choo-choo, Where Are You Going?, by Susan Wickberg and illustrated by Yumi Heo, is a great train book with a wonderful tune. Just listen to this:

Hey Mr. Choo-choo,
Red, white, and blue-choo,
Hey Mr. Choo-choo,
What are you doing?

Conductor call-call-calls.
I want to pull-pull-pull.
But I wait-wait-wait
Till my cars are full.

Isn't that great? The arrangement of the text as a whole is thematic. Each set of stanzas, which can take up two or more pages, begins with that first refrain but poses a different question. "What are you pulling?" or "Where are you going?"

I had a bit of trouble with the meter reading it through the first time, but with practice I think I could sing this book as well as read it. The wordplay and repetition are so much fun and feel great on your tongue.

Speaking of YouTube, I've been thinking I'd like to add a video component to this venture. Something like clips of reading stories and singing songs. How about some other ideas? What would be useful or entertaining for all of you?

Scarlette Beane

Our little garden in our little backyard still looks pretty good after two weeks. We hope it will thrive. Maya loves being out in the yard. And now we can do work while she tools around on her own (We just have to keep one eye open for things being eaten). Patty made a couple of beautiful garden stones in Maya's honor.

Our hope is that Maya will continue to love being outdoors as she grows. The little girl in Scarlette Beane, by Karen Wallace and illustrated by Jon Berkeley, is born with not just a green thumb, but green fingers too. Her parents have a house and yard even smaller than ours.

When Scarlette is five she is given her own garden. After planting her seeds her fingers glow in the night. The next day her vegetables are so big the neighbors have to come with construction vehicles to harvest the crop, and everyone has to eat outside.

That night Scarlette sneaks out to plant more seeds in the meadow. Her fingers glow brightly again. The next day there is a castle made of vegetables, and they move right in.

Maya will of course have her own little garden plot as well someday. But we'll try to keep our expectations reasonable.

Here's a song about a garden worm from What Shall I Do with the Baby-O, by Jane Cobb. She recommends singing it while trying to change the diaper of your little wiggly worm.

Wiggly Woo

There’s a worm at the bottom of my garden.
And his name is Wiggly Woo.
There’s a worm at the bottom of my garden
And all that he can do,
Is wiggle all night,
And wiggle all day,
Whatever else the people do say;
There’s a worm at the bottom of my garden,
And his name is Wiggly, Wig-Wig-Wiggly,
Wig-Wig-Wiggly Woo-oo!

"Slowly, Slowly, Slowly," Said the Sloth

Yesterday Maya and I went to the zoo. Maya liked the tiny monkeys that came right up to the glass and the tiny African deer. She barely even noticed the giraffes even when we were standing a couple of feet away from them, nor the big gorillas. I guess she likes animals that are on her level.

We got a big surprise from the zebra. Whenever we get to the zebra page in her animal book, I just say, "This is a zebra. It has stripes," since I don't know what sound a zebra makes. Well, were we shocked when the zebra suddenly let out a long series of noises somewhere between a donkey and a howler monkey. I'm not sure I can (or want to) imitate it. I may just stick with, "It has stripes."

Maya also liked the mid-size monkeys (sorry, I don't remember the names) who were very playful and swung around on ropes and branches. The sloth in "Slowly, Slowly, Slowly," Said the Sloth, by Eric Carle, also hangs from a branch, but I doubt Maya would find him as entertaining.

As the other forest animals scramble around him, the sloth spends the entire book hanging from a tree, occasionally eating a leaf or sleeping. The sloth does everything, "Slowly, slowly, slowly." The animals ask questions, but the sloth doesn't answer.

Not until the jaguar has the audacity to call him lazy. After a lot of thought, the sloth lets out a lengthy explanation with many synonyms on how he is not lazy. He just likes a peaceful life. He likes to take things "slowly, slowly, slowly."

I was worried that this book would bore the kids in storytime. Not at all. I read "slowly, slowly, slowly" in a comically slow manner. Then I read his soliloquy like the guy in those old Micro Machines commercials (don't bother trying to define all the new words unless asked). Turned out pretty good. The children laughed quite a bit.

Here's a great song to go along with this story. Creep and run your fingers around the baby's belly as you sing.

Slowly, Slowly, Very Slowly

Slowly, slowly, very slowly
Creeps the garden snail.
Slowly, slowly, very slowly
Up the garden rail.

Quickly, quickly, very quickly
Runs the little mouse.
Quickly, quickly, very quickly
Up into his house!

Who's in the Jungle?

I've been looking on YouTube for videos of people performing children's songs, because sometimes I'll read about a song that has great lyrics, but unless it's to the tune of another more familiar song, I have to make it up. I found a fun little tune called the Elephant Song by a guy named Eric Herman. Check it out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yihq8BIhL9c

Like the Elephant Song, Who's in the Jungle?, by Heather J. Gondek and illustrated by Chris Gilvan-Cartwright, is a good opportunity to help children identify familiar animals by their characteristics.

It's a Who-am-I lift-the-flap type book. The clues and the answers are all hidden beneath flaps. For example the giraffe page says, "I have a long neck. I eat leaves. My fur has spots. Who am I?" Neck, leaves and spots are all hidden under flaps with their pictures on the front. Your children can identify the pictures, then the animal.

A good interactive book for kids, especially before or after a trip to the zoo.

Wave Goodbye

Rob Reid is a teacher and a children's performer. He create hilarious programs for kids, uses a ton of music, and he can even hold his own at a poetry slam. You may remember seeing his name in the comments way back in December. Rob holds a special place in my heart, as he was my mentor when I first started working in a children's library.

I came across one of Rob's picture books, Wave Goodbye, illustrated by Lorraine Williams, in the library the other day and brought it home. I recommend this one for when you want to add a little movement to your book reading time. I think I recall having Rob perform this as a rhyme.

Wave Goodbye presents all of the things you have on your body that can be waved. "Wave your elbows, wave your toes. Wave your tongue, and wave your nose." You even get to wave your derriere.

Read it standing up, or better yet, memorize it and make up a tune for a raucous song.

I don't know how readily available this book is outside the midwest. You can also go to Rob's website to find the words:

http://www.rapnrob.com/rapspoem/raps01.html

The Seals on the Bus

One thing I still have to remind myself about storytime is that children love repetition. They love hearing stories they know and singing songs they know all the words to. It's comfortable and it's healthy. However, I think it's great to take a familiar song and change it up a bit, and kids seem to like it too.

Lenny Hort does just that in The Seals on the Bus, illustrated by G. Brian Karas. A family takes a ride on a bus that quickly fills up with animals. And the story is told in song.

The seals on the bus go
ERRP, ERRP, ERRP,
ERRP, ERRP, ERRP,
ERRP, ERRP, ERRP.
The seals on the bus go
ERRP, ERRP, ERRP,
All around the town.

The family holds on as long as they can, even when "The vipers on the bus go HISS, HISS, HISS." But when "The skunks on the buss go SSSSS, SSSSS, SSSSS," they have to get off. Only the parents really seem to mind.

Imagine the fun you will have with this book. Add more animals until the cows come home (that was a hint.)

Here's a funny little ditty I learned recently that's along the same lines. Now whenever I'm getting on the bus I'm singing this in my head.

A hip, a hip, a hippopotamus
Got on, got on, got on the city bus.
The people, people, people on the bus
Said, "Ow, you're squishing us."

Shark in the Park

There's a great book by Seymour Simon called Animals Nobody Loves. I'm pretty sure there's a shark in there. Sharks are ugly, mean, and scary. But like those other animals, we just can't get enough of them. I've got another great book to share, then I'll teach you a great song about sharks.

The second book in our 'shark' Special Double Issue (see below) is Shark in the Park, by Nick Sharratt. Timothy Pope is trying out his new telescope down at the park. As he looks all around, he spies what looks like a pointy fin. He yells (and so should you), "THERE'S A SHARK IN THE PARK!"

Indeed, through a hole in the page you can see a fin also. But turn the page, and it's really the pointy ear of a black kitten. Later it's a crow's wing, and lastly Timothy's father's hair.

Timothy decides that there are no sharks in the park today (Ah, but look in the pond).

The text is a rhyming, sing-songy one. In funny books like this, especially one with clever die-cut pages and a popular theme, the text often falls flat. Not here. The rhythm is playful and stays true. I highly recommend this one.

So here's the shark song. I've heard many versions, but here is the one I like best.

Shark Attack
(Sing each verse twice)

Baby shark (make a mouth with your thumb and forefinger)
Da-daa da-da-da-da

Mama shark (cup two hands together)
Da-daa da-da-da-da

Papa shark (elbows together)
Da-daa da-da-da-da

Grampa shark (curl fingers in to make dentures)
Da-daa da-da-da-da

Gramma shark (kissing noise)
*smooch* *smooch* *smooch* *smooch* *smooch* *smooch*

Crazy shark (flail arms wildly between bites)
Da-daa da-da-da-da

Stupid shark (smack forehead with top hand)
Da-daa da-da-da-da

Disco shark (think John Travolta)
Da-daa da-da-da-da

People swimming (make swimming motion with arms)
Da-daa da-da-da-da

Sharks a-creeping (whisper, making sneaking motions)
Da-daa da-da-da-da

Swimming faster (sing faster)
Da-daa da-da-da-da

Lost an arm (one arm behind back)
Da-daa da-da-da-da

Lost a leg (hop on one leg)
Da-daa da-da-da-da

See the light (make a circle in front of your eyes)
Da-daa da-da-da-da

Gone to heaven (make halo over your head)
Da-daa da-da-da-da

SHARK ATTACK!!!!

Catalina Magdalena

When I was younger I went to church camp several years. But I have never heard the Catalina Magdalena song. Have you? At the back of the Tedd Arnold book, whose full name is Catalina Magdalena Hoopensteiner Wallendiner Hogan Logan Bogan Was Her Name, there is an explanation about the song. Arnold says there are many versions of this old camp song, but he likes his the best.

Catalina's parents have a habit of overdoing things, like taking way too many pictures and giving her way too long of a name. Catalina grows to show some odd characteristics, like two-toned hair, cross-eyes, and long, wiry legs. She's not the most dainty of girls, but she finds love and gets married, having to add one more name to her already long handle.

The infectious cadence of the song is of course the best part of Catalina Magdalena. My favorite stanza is:

She had two holes in the bottom of her nose-

One for her fingers and one for her toes.

Catalina Magdalena....

I'd type out all of the lyrics, but the title page says the text is copywrited. I'm not sure how that is possible, since Arnold explicitely states that he did not write this song. But it's Scholastic, and I guess they can do whatever they want.

Arnold does a great job of interpreting the lyrics in the illustrations. He adds a great deal of detail, from the multiple baby name books in the Bobans' house to the new baby with three hair colors. The eyes on the front cover have movable pupils that your kids can try to cross.

The MONSTER at the End of This Book

Here's the book you've all (well, one person anyway) been waiting for. The fourth book in our FIVE-DAY MONSTER MARATHON is The MONSTER at the End of This Book, by Jon Stone and illustrated by Michael Smollin.

I know, I know, this is a television-based book. But as far as media goes, I mean, it's Sesame Street. That show is based upon all of the best things, like literacy and jazz music. And this book is so very good.

Our host is Grover. Be warned, you may have to watch a little Sesame along with the kids so you can do the voice right. We don't have a TV, so we may be able to avoid that for awhile, but I'm sure Maya will become familiar with the "lovable, furry old Grover" sometime. She already has an Elmo phone. And I try to do the voice anyway. Grover is so very expressive, a method actor really.

Grover notices the title of the book, and being afraid of monsters, implores us not to turn any pages. After all each page brings us closer to the end of the book, and here there be a monster. He tries everything in his power to stop us-tying, nailing, and walling up the pages. But nothing works, and finally we find the monster at the end of the book is a monster we like anyway. I bet you can guess who it is.

Here is another great monster song to the tune of If You're Happy and You Know It.

There's a Monster in My Closet

There's a monster in my closet and it's green (rawwwr, rawwwr).
There's a monster in my closet and it's green (rawwwr, rawwwr).
There's a monster in my closet and it's really, really green.
There's a monster in my closet and it's green (rawwwr, rawwwr).

There's a monster in my closet and it smells (pew, pew).
There's a monster in my closet and it snorts (snort, snort).
There's a monster in my closet and it cries (boo, hoo).
There's a monster in my closet and it jumps (jump, jump).

Go Away, Big Green Monster!

Awhile back, Patty got our niece, Katiana, to begin calling me Uncle Larry Monster, in the nicest, Sesame Streetest sort of way. Later we inaugurated a new game. I would stand in a doorway, and Katiana would yell, "Go away, Uncle Larry Monster." After I closed the door, she would beckon, "Come back, Uncle Larry Monster."

Perhaps she got the idea from book two in our FIVE-DAY MONSTER MARATHON, Ed Emberley's Go Away, Big Green Monster! In this book the ambassador of 'anyone can draw' builds a monster face, feature by feature-two big yellow eyes, long bluish-greenish nose, big red mouth with sharp white teeth, and so on.

But we're not afraid, "so GO AWAY, scraggly purple hair!", etc. Until our monster disappears. All of this is done with bold colors, basic shapes, and die-cut pages, giving the monster a 3-D effect.

Go Away, Big Green Monster! would be good for drawing practice as well, breaking down the task into doable parts. Creative and coordinated youngsters who are already drawing could easily adapt the features to create new, even sillier monsters.

For now, Maya and I are going to enjoy the text.

Here's another great monster song provided you don't have downstairs neighbors.

Monster, Monster

Monster, monster under the bed,
(Cup hands around mouth)
You should go somewhere else instead!
(Shake finger)
Go, Monster, go!
(Stamp feet slowly)
Go, Monster, go!
(Stamp feet faster)
Go, monster, go, go, go!
(Stamp feet very fast)

When a Monster is Born

Well, this is the first time I've gone more than a day without posting. I've actually missed four days. Sorry about the wait.

I've been working diligently getting ready to network at the national Public Library Association conference tomorrow in Minneapolis. Got my resume looking shiny, and I made a bookmark to advertise this blog. Any suggestions as to what I should say to all of those librarians to encourage them to bookmark 'Mayareads' or, better yet, hire me?

Thanks to Carrie for the concerned email to assure me that our absence in cyberspace does not go unnoticed. I'll confess, in the back of my mind, the pause wasn't entirely unintentional. I brought home a few of my favorite new and old monster books to read to Maya. And instead of reviewing one and just listing the rest, I thought I'd challenge myself to come up with FIVE books for our HUGE MONSTER MARATHON (And I'm even going to do it without using the greatest monster book of all time, Where the Wild Things Are. I mean, is there anyone out there who hasn't read that book a dozen times?). I also have some great new monster songs to share. Let's get to the first book.

When a Monster is Born, by Sean Taylor and illustrated by Nick Sharratt, is a new book that got me thinking about monsters. I'd seen it used by another librarian, Michael Boe, for storytime awhile back, but couldn't remember the title or author.

Luckily, in last month's issue of Mothering magazine (Ok, I read Mothering magazine. But remember I am a part-time stay-at-home dad, the magazine, unlike other 'parenting' magazines, is very positive about dads being involved in childcare, and it's just sitting there in the bathroom anyway.) there is a short article about this very book. We'll get to that later.

There is a bit of text in this intergenerational tale, and it's all so clever. I could try to describe it, but it might be better to just give you a sample. Taylor imagines all of the possibilities presented by the advent of a new little beasty:

When a MONSTER is born...
...there are two possibilities-
either it's a FARAWAY-IN-THE-FORESTS monster, or...
...it's an UNDER-YOUR-BED monster.
If it's a FARAWAY-IN-THE-FORESTS monster, that's that.
But if it's an UNDER-YOUR-BED monster, there are two possibilities-
either it EATS YOU, or...
...you make friends and TAKE IT TO SCHOOL.

There are always two possibilities, both of which are usually silly and implausible, just the way we like them. It's a bit like a Choose Your Own Adventure book that way. At each metaphorical fork in the road, one possibility leads to a dead end, and the other presents a new dilemma.

The tale winds on to show our monster running away after eating the principal but meeting a nice young kitchen girl behind a hotel. They fall in love, kiss, and she turns into a monster as well. They get married and have a baby, which of course leads us all the way back to the beginning. Romantic, no?

It's such a funny, funny book, you'd think it would be popular with the kids, wouldn't you?

Well, it seems Sean Taylor did win the Under 5 Nestle Children's Book Prize for When a Monster is Born. He accepted the award proudly since it is based upon children's votes. However, he declined the award money provided by Nestle, citing the company's violations of the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes. He questioned whether Nestle is an appropriate sponsor for this prize. Indeed the organization has now ended its sponsorship. Hopefully this doesn't mean the end of the prize. Kudos to Taylor for paying attention, doing the research and making what must have been a tough decision.

Maya likes Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes. Here's a new version for when she's being a little monster.

Horns and Fangs

Horns and fangs,
Knees and claws,
Knees and claws.
Horns and fangs,
Knees and claws,
Knees and claws.
Eyes and ears
And tail and paws.
Horns and fangs,
Knees and claws,
Knees and claws.

Look for four more monster books above.

Yes

Nicole asked about books with very few words, and I recommended Jez Alborough. I picked up Yes today. Bobo reminds me so much of Maya. I'm not sure exactly why. Like George, she's a good little monkey and always very curious.

In Yes, it's bath-time for Bobo the monkey, which makes him very happy. But when it's time to get out and go to bed things become more negative (maybe that's what reminds me of Maya; see Bath Time!). Bobo's lizard and elephant friends make a splash and tucker poor Bobo out, helping Mama get Bobo to sleep.

It's a challenge to say just a couple of words in many ways to keep the story flowing, but it can be done. You can also fill in sound effects.

Last night I was thinking about whether there are nigh-wordless songs. The best I could think of are those songs in which you replace words with motions. Here are a couple I know:

Little Peter Rabbit
(To the tune of John Brown's Body)

Little Peter Rabbit had a fly upon his ear.
Little Peter Rabbit had a fly upon his ear.
Little Peter Rabbit had a fly upon his ear.
So he flicked it till it flew away.

After singing it through once, you replace 'Rabbit' with bunny ears, 'fly' with a bzzzt sound, 'ear' with wiggling your ear, 'flicked it' with flicking your fingers, and 'flew away' with your hand flying off.

Here's another one:

My Hat It Has Three Corners

My hat it has three corners.
Three corners has my hat.
For had it not three corners,
It would not be my hat.

In this one, you replace 'my' with pointing to yourself, 'hat' with touching your head, 'three' with holding up three fingers, and 'corners' with touching your elbow.

Good luck.

Bath Time!

Today we read one of Maya's new Christmas books, Bath Time!, by Sandra Boynton. Actually we read this one two or three times each bath. It's plastic, of course, so you can read it in the tub. There are only eight pages, but the rhyme is sing-songy enough (as are all Boynton's books) that you cannot help but start a melody. Don't forget to make the sounds "Quack, Quack", "Booo, Booo" (for the boat), and "Squeak, Squeak" at the appropriate times. There is a squeaker embedded in the book to help with the last one. Maya can't make the squeakers work yet, but she can slap the book on the water and make a mighty splash (Baths are a bit messier now).

Maya loves Bath Time!. Why? Because Maya loves baths. The only thing she doesn't like about taking a bath is getting out. Songs and rhymes always help us out in uncomfortable situations (i.e. getting in the car seat). Here's a good one for drying off:

AFTER MY BATH

AFTER MY BATH,
I TRY, TRY, TRY,
TO WIPE MYSELF
‘TILL I’M DRY, DRY, DRY.
HANDS TO WIPE,
AND FINGERS, AND TOES,
AND TWO WET LEGS
AND A SHINY NOSE.
JUST THINK,
HOW MUCH LESS TIME I’D TAKE,
IF I WERE A DOG, AND COULD
SHAKE, SHAKE, SHAKE

I got this from the ELSIE database from the Minneapolis Public Library. It's a database of recommended books, songs, etc. from the librarians there. I'll be adding to it as part of the internship I start tomorrow, so you may see my name somewhere down the road. Here's the link: http://www.mpls.lib.mn.us/elsie.asp

Happy bathing and see you tomorrow.