Herman The Helper

I am leary of books that attempt to teach moral lessons to children. They often seem heavy-handed. There is a book at Jack's school that he loves called 'Herman the Helper.' I figured since his lovely and amazing teachers chose this book so it must be good. I checked it out from the library and we have read it *many* times. Herman is an octopus. Each page details his day helping all the members of his community -- his mom, dad, friends, enemies, the young, the old, etc. At the end of the day, Herman returns home for dinner. His parents ask him if he'd like help with his mashed potatoes and, on the last page, Herman says, "No I'll help myself." Yesterday I asked Jack if he would help me with dinner. He said, "No, help yourself."
See? These books backfire.
We are in our new home and we really love it. The kids don't really seem to notice. They each have their own room. One bonus is they can play outside without us having to worry as much about them running onto a busy street. Jack spent much of yesterday afternoon watching/helping Ryan move dirt into our backyard. He seemed happy just to be outside. We had to put a special lock on our front door because Sonia quickly figured out how to open the door. She ran out the door 50 times a day knowing it was an act of rebellion.
We've been having fun lately outside, in spite of the weather. We walk down to a lovely green space by our home that feels like a forrest. The kids play in the creek and explore the different paths. Lots of fun.

Sonia in her silly glasses

Kids at the nearby greenspace

Jack not helping