Scholastic Parent & Child® magazine today released its "100 Greatest Books for Kids" issue celebrating literary excellence. Earning the coveted top spot is the 1952 best-selling children's novel Charlotte's Web by acclaimed author E.B. White. Good Night Moon (Margaret Wise Brown), scores the number two spot, followed by A Wrinkle in Time (Madeleine L'Engle), The Snowy Day (Ezra Jack Keats), Where the Wild Things Are (Maurice Sendak), Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (J.K. Rowling), Green Eggs & Ham (Dr.Seuss), The Diary of a Young Girl (Anne Frank), The Giving Tree (Shel Silverstein) and Frog & Toad Are Friends (Arnold Lobe).  "100 Greatest Books for Kids" debuts in the March 2012 issue released today, which features author and mom J.K. Rowling on the cover in a never-before-seen photograph exclusive to Parent & Child.

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As a little kid, there’s always that one gift. You know the kind. You’d beg, plead and threaten your parents, Santa and whoever else would listen that if you didn’t get that Super-Duper Important Toy, there’d be trouble. Whatever it was you were dreaming about – a Game Boy, a BeDazzler, Strawberry Shortcake – you obsessed over it like Ralphie with his Official Red Ryder Carbine-Action 200-Shot-Range Model Air Rifle.

Decades later, it’s those same toys that inform some parents when holiday shopping for their own kids. But do kids today still think Gak is cool? Is Connect Four lame if it’s not played on an iPad?

To help the parents out there, we’ve rounded up a few toys you might remember from your own childhood and matched them to modern-day equivalents your kids will love.

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I think every parent understands how important it is to read to a child.  Reading teaches critical language development and social skills, as well as helps children achieve and succeed in school.  But the best part is how reading thoroughly enriches a child's life by opening the door to a brand new world every time they open the cover of a book.

Before becoming a mom, I must admit that I wasn't very knowledgeable when it came to children's literature,  but since reading to Riley every day for the last three years, I've learned a lot along the way.  Scholastic and Parent & Child have accepted a huge undertaking...to name the greatest 100 children's books of all time!

A panel of child development and literary experts joined forces with a few experienced parents (including ME!) to come up with the esteemed books on this list.  I carefully thought about the books Riley and I enjoyed together and selected several which I thought were countdown-worthy.  I have no idea which books actually made the list and will be anxiously awaiting the results right along with you!  I can tell you though, that one of the selections I recommended is in the very first reveal of books 91-100!

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So fortunately I have no disasters to report or discuss this week.  Well, besides the "biting incident", all was well and good.  Today I feel the need, however to discuss the absolute ridiculous ability that Facebook has over me to fire me up when it comes to parenting topics.  I truly believe I have a sickness of some sort.  Masochist anyone?

So I know that there are certain sites I need to just stay the heck away from.  In fact, they have been unliked or hidden long, long ago.  Do you know what I'm talking about?  Those sites that basically tell you everything you thought you were doing right is now wrong and you're pretty lucky your kid is alive even if chances are that now they're going to turn out to be serial killers?  Yeah...those sites.  Anything that goes on the co-sleeping/breast feeding tirade, I try to ignore by principal.  I know better than to let some total strangers get the better of me...or so I thought.

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Sometimes, our 'imperfect parenting' moments aren't so funny. I wondered if I should write this post, because I didn't know if I was ready to get all serious and everything. In the end though, I decided that it's still an example of imperfect parenting- it's an experience to be sure, and I KNOW we all have these whether we are willing to admit them or not. To remove any unnecessary drama...yes, Linc is fine. He wasn't hurt a bit. Just knocked another couple of years off of my life, that's all.

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So we started my toddler in preschool this year. It was a very, very big step for us as he has been home with me since, well, forever. It was time though - for him to find some excitement in the day since that wasn't happening stuck in the house with myself and his two 10 month old twin brothers.

If it was just Brody - I would have had this all nailed down in May. However...having not one, but two little ones (in addition to my hurricane of a toddler) to look after has completely made me lose my game. And by that I mean my organized, detailed to-do list which the former teacher in me thrived upon.

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