The Wizard of Oz Mother-Daughter Book Club

My daughter Hannah and I have intended to begin a mother-daughter book club for the last three years.  I read an awesome book on the topic and wanted to being when she was five, nearly three years ago.  The idea of connecting with our daughters through literature has so many benefits: long term connection with our daughters, time to focus on one another, listening attentively to each others' thoughts and feelings and serious subject matters through books, seeing our daughters as the world sees them, our daughters seeing their mothers in a role outside motherhood, other mothers mentoring our daughters, and ongoing connections with the same mothers and daughters.

Hannah wanted to focus on Little House in the Big Woods, though her project ideas were so elaborate that I pushed off plans for too long.  When she and her little brother became captivated by reading The Wizard of Oz and I began seriously nesting in preparation for our third child, we worked out a plan for a simple gathering centered around the book.  After years of anticipation, it was finally time to begin our Mother-Daughter Book Club.

Four daughter, four mothers, and one fairy god mother gathered under our cherry tree recently to talk about The Wizard of Oz.  Each girl brought a book-centered question, a tasty treat, and an activity.  After connecting with one another through unstructured play time, we shared a meal, each answered the girls' questions about favorite characters and moments and lessons, and finally dove right into the colorful activities.  Simple and sweet.

Our gathering was such fun we have decided to choose and discuss another book.  Together we brainstormed a list of books with female protagonists and can't wait to get started on planning our next Mother-Daughter Book Club!

Joyful preparations

My four-year-old son's ruby slipper

Ruby slipper portraits using corn, pen, pipe cleaners, glitter glue, etc.

Polka dots

Patterning

Simple elegance

Corn, quinoa, and tissue paper

Magic with pipe cleaners and tissue paper

My son created this ruby slipper after the party.

Somewhere over the rainbow, we fall more in love with reading together.