Hi guys, my name is Brittany and welcome back to my YouTube channel. You guys in today's video, I'm going to share with you all of my favorite Christmas picture books. I'm really excited you guys about today's video because this is in collaboration with Rachel from Seven and All where she has invited a whole bunch of us to come together to share all of our favorite Christmas books. This video you guys was really hard for me because I have a lot of Christmas picture books and I really had to pick and choose my favorites to share with you guys in today's video. So without further ado, I'm going to go ahead and start sharing some of my favorite Christmas picture books. So the first picture book I have, it's called Pick a Pine Tree and it says on the back, pick a pine tree from the lot, slim and tall or short and squat, long straight limbs or branches bent. Mmm, just smell that tiny scent. You guys, this is such a cute picture book where it follows along a family as they are picking their perfect Christmas pine tree to kickstart the holiday season. I really love the rhyme and the repetition of this book and I really love the sense of family and friendship and community that this book really, really presents and it puts in the forefront. My two younger ones, they definitely love the back of the picture book when it shows the families. Christmas tree all decorated, they really, really enjoy that pop up page and this is a great one to kickstart the holiday season, especially as you know, we're decorating and we're getting our homes prepared for Christmas. Another favorite Christmas book we have that we read last year is called There's a Lion in My Nativity and it says Mary is already to take the starring role in her Nativity play but then things take an unexpected turn. Come on stage with Mary and narrator Sam and enjoy the surprise on every page. As Mary discovers, there's a lot more to Christmas to the Christmas story than she thought. And you guys, this is a cute, cute, cute picture book about a group of kids putting on the classic Christmas story and just things just take a turn as they are putting on their performance for their parents. This definitely was a cute, cute, cute rendition of the Christmas story and my kiddos, they definitely love this one as well last year. Another book that we added to our collection last year is called Christmas and Lago's and this was definitely a fun one because last year we did a whole continent study on the continent of Africa and I really wanted to incorporate it even when we were studying Christmas and this just goes along a story of a young girl named Ronti who is kind of embarrassed when her teacher asked her what her holiday plans are because all of her other friends are going on these big grand trips and these big grand vacations and she feels like you know what I'm just going to be here in Lago's is nothing special. So her teacher actually challenges her to write a journal and to write down all of the things that her and her family gets up to during the Christmas season and Ronti is surprised at the end to be able to read back her journal and to see all the fun things that her family got up to. I really really love this take on this Christmas story and I really really love hearing Ronti's perspective as she's finding out that her Christmas is just as special as her friends even though they didn't go to some big grand place. Her family, their traditions, it really really means a lot to her at the end of the day. And Briel really really enjoyed this story Christmas and Lago's and I thought it was a great one. So I'm really really excited you guys to read this one again this homeschooling year. Another book that I have that is actually new to our library this year is actually called I got the Christmas spirit and this follows along a young inner city girl as she is going around her whole city and she is trying to figure out what this Christmas spirit is all about. I love again the rhyme, the repetition, the poetry that's in this book and hopefully my daughters will love it too. I actually already read this one they haven't read it yet so I'm really really excited for us to read this one I got the Christmas spirit. Another Christmas book that we read last year that my daughters really really enjoyed was Grace at Christmas and this follows along Grace during the Christmas season when her family they actually are inviting two visitors to join them in their Christmas celebrations. And at first Grace she is not up with it she's not feeling it and she's like I'm used to how things are with us and I don't want to invite these new visitors in our home during the Christmas season but Grace she definitely gets surprised when actually her Christmas actually turns out to be one of her favorite yet and I really really love this one again for that sense of community for gatherness around the holiday season and this was a great one that we read last year. One that is new to us this year is actually called Under the Christmas Tree and this actually is a book of poems written by Nikki Grimes and is illustrated by Kadir Nelson and Kadir Nelson is the one who actually illustrated the book Heart and Soul. He actually illustrated a lot of other things too as well but I really thought it will be fun this year to have like a specific book that's going to have Christmas poetry. This book it says on the inside that they wanted to show different areas of inner city kids of different things of Christmas time. I really really enjoyed this one it says Nikki Grimes reveals in the site sounds and feels that makes the season so special. So I cannot wait you guys to read like all of the poems that is in here the illustrations look great and hopefully we can get some hot chocolate going and get a little Christmas poetry to time in our household this year. Another new one that I have and this one was on the Heritage Moms Christmas book recommendation is The Nutcracker in Harlem. And I'm really excited about this one because this one definitely gives a different take to the original Nutcracker story. It talks about just the jazz in the Harlem Renaissance era and it really brings it in in this book The Nutcracker so hopefully Briya will enjoy it and maybe we can compare the original Nutcracker story to this one. So I'm really really excited for us to read this new one The Nutcracker in Harlem. Another Christmas picture book that I have is actually Silent Night and this actually just goes along to him of Silent Night and it just shows the Christmas activity my younger two they definitely love this one and they actually learned how to sing this song Silent Night by me reading this book to them over and over again last Christmas season. So I really really enjoyed this one again this one is Silent Night. And the last Christmas book you guys that I'm going to share with you in today's video is called The All I Ever Wanted Christmas Doll. And on the back it says Dear Santee I've been good most of the year I love my sisters most of the time I help Mama and daddy as much as I can. I know there's a depression going on but I've got my heart set on Baby Betty. She is all I ever asked for please from a very good girl Laura Nelson Pearson and it says P.S. I'm sorry I hit Harry but he hit Desa first. And you guys I really really enjoyed this book last year and again this is actually a nonfiction account of a young girl in the rural South during the Great Depression era. And it's just so amazing for us to read these like historical events of how Christmas actually was celebrated during these hard times and how these families they had so little but their spirits it was high they had each other and my daughter really really enjoyed this book last year and hopefully she will enjoy it again. And again this is kind of a sneaky way for me to incorporate history and Christmas time as well for her but we really really enjoyed this one and again this one was definitely another recommendation from the Heritage Mom Amber on her blog for her Christmas picture book list. So you guys these are just a few of my Christmas picture book favorites that I wanted to share with you guys in today's video. I want to thank again Rachel from Seven and All for inviting me to join in this collab and I hope you guys enjoy seeing all of my favorite Christmas books as always you guys thank you so much for watching and I look forward to seeing everybody in my next one. Bye!