September is “Apple Fall” and Apple Fall means: apple crafts, apple sensory bins, and beautiful apple picture books! Even though Miss Mouse is bigger and we don’t do themed months quite the same way we did for preschool, we still honor the rhythms of the seasons in our daily life. And beautiful books are one of my favorite ways to do so.
And I mean I really do love beautiful books. The cover, design, style, illustrations — those things draw me in before anything else. So of course we will start there.
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Beautiful “Apple” Picture Books
- The Apple Pie Tree, by Zoe Hall. Two sisters watch their apple tree change from blossoms through fruit and eventually pie.
- Apple Farmer Annie, by Monica Wellington. A brightly illustrated picture book that follows Annie as she picks apples, makes treats, and takes them to the market.
- Applesauce Day, by Lisa J. Amstutz. A beautiful story about family traditions and togetherness, centered around making applesauce in the fall.
- The Mouse’s Apples, by Francis Stickley. Sweet illustrations set the tone for the simple story about a mouse finding apples.
- Little Apple, a Book of Thanks, by Brigitte Weninger. A little girl gently tells the story of the apple with gratitude and sweet illustrations.
- The Apple Cake, by Nienke Van Hichtum. A story about kindness and sharing while searching for apples to make apple cake.
- The Apple Pie That Papa Baked, by Lauren Thompson. Rhythmic, poetic storytelling in a nostalgic illustration style.
I love keeping good, lovely, beautiful books on our shelves — books with a good story, lovely language, beautiful pictures, and a heartfelt message. These are the backbone of our personal library. But I also enjoy books that make you think, wonder or learn something new.
So we also have books that help you learn about things: directly or indirectly. So we also have books that teach us about the apples themselves, their life cycle, their uses. Learning through stories is so much nicer than learning strictly through textbooks.
Lovely Books for Learning About Apples
- Apples, by Gail Gibbons. A wonderfully illustrated introduction to apples, including how they grow, are harvested, and the many ways we use them.Informational book about apples with nice illustrations.
- How to Grow an Apple Pie, by Beth Charles. A lovely story that also teaches the journey from apple seed to apple pie.
- How Do Apples Grow?, by Betsy Maestro. A non-fiction book with pretty pictures that teaches the science of apples for young kids.
- Apples, Apples, Everywhere!, by Robin Koontz. Explore the apple orchard and learn more about apples with a sweet story and cozy pictures.
- Johnny Appleseed, by Reeve Lindbergh. Learn about John Chapman—the real man behind the Johnny Appleseed legend—and his life planting apple trees across the American frontier.
- The Seasons of Arnold’s Apple Tree, by Gail Gibbons. Follow Arnold’s tree from season to season.
But I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the third type of lovely books we have on our shelf: the fun books. The silly books we read for fun because everything doesn’t have to be turned into a lesson. The enjoyable books that maybe sneak in a little learning with rhyming or counting, but aren’t expected to teach a lesson.
I’ve been that mom who tried to make every fun thing teach a lesson as if we couldn’t have fun just for fun’s sake. But I don’t follow that line of thinking anymore. I still love living books, and I’m still not a fan of “twaddle,” but there are plenty of fun reads that are worth our time.
Simply Fun Apple-Themed Stories
- How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World, by Marjorie Priceman. A whimsical adventure story around the world to gather supplies for apple pie.
- Ten Apples Up On Top, by Dr Seuss – in which Seuss does what he does best, keeping things fun with silly rhymes, a bunch of apples, and a little bit of math.
- Little Apple Goat , by Caroline Jayne Church. A silly story about a little goat who loves apples (and something interesting that happens to his leftover seeds.)
- Ten Red Apples, by Pat Hutchins. The farmer just wants an apple! “Fiddle-dee-fee, save one for me!” Another fun counting book with adorable pictures.
- Silly Willy Apple Cake, by Amelia Griggs. A fun rhyming story with silliness to spare.
And now that we’ve talked about apples, learned about apples, and looked at even more apples — we have to wrap up with a simple baked apple recipe your kids can almost make by themselves (because that’s how we do things here.)
So make a cup of apple cinnamon or Winter Spice tea and light your apple-pie-scented candle because I have just the recipe you’re looking for.
Easy Baked Apples for Kids
Before you begin, choose six firm small apples, wash them, and core them. (I’m using Pink Lady.) Preheat your oven to 375 degrees, and grab your supplies:
- six washed and cored apples
- small baking dish
- cold butter
- brown sugar
- cinnamon
- additions: walnuts or pecans, cranberries or raisins, maple syrup
Directions: Let your child arrange the apples in the baking dish in a tight formation. Ask your child to press a small chunk of cold butter into the core of each apple. Have them next add a small spoon of brown sugar and a sprinkle of cinnamon to the middle of each apple. Let them finish with the filling/topping additions of choice, finishing off with a drizzle of syrup.
Add a splash of water to the dish and bake for 30-40 minutes or until the apples are soft and fork tender. After baking, let the apples cool enough before eating. Place an apple on each plate, spoon a drizzle of the sauce from the bottom of the baking dish onto your apple. Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream if desired. Enjoy!
P.S. Don’t worry too much about exact measurements here. A little butter, a little sugar, and a sprinkle of cinnamon is part of what makes this such an easy recipe for little hands to help with. I set out the supplies and let Little Miss Mouse assemble everything herself. The only thing I needed to do was core the apples and operate the oven.
Mom’s Cozy Corner
Moms get to enjoy Apple Fall, too, right? While at the library with Miss Mouse, I popped over to find a couple of apple themed books for myself. I found an Apple Valley novel called “The Cottage on the Corner” and a historical fiction called “Beneath the Apple Leaves” by Harmony Verna. As soon as I got home, I made a cup of spice tea and dug into the first one. I finished it in three days and thoroughly enjoyed it.
Modeling reading physical books is one of the ways I encourage a love of reading with my kids. Reading with a cuppa tea is how I model the “enjoying” part. =) My current fave is a blend by Twinings called Winter Spice, and I also enjoy a good cup of regular apple cinnamon tea.
Life with perimenopause has taught me that my nervous system needs these “slow down” signals – and watching our kids grow up in this busy world has made it clear that our kids need those, too. Let’s teach our children how to enjoy a slow moment with a good book.
