Tidy Books Kid’s Bookshelf Review & Giveaway

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If you are a parent you know that reading is extremely important for your child. The sooner you start reading to your children, the better. For us, we started reading to Riley the day we got home. Our voices soothed her when she was upset. She is now two (where in the world does the time go??) and she absolutely adores books! We probably read 10 different books a day on any given day. Seeing her point at pictures and saying “dog” or “kitty” or if I ask her where Elmo’s nose is and she knows where to point… it warms my heart. I know I am doing something good for my daughter – teaching her to love books as I do.

If you are a parent who reads a lot to your child, you also know that you accumulate books… LOTS of them. We have lost track of just how many we have. Riley always gets several for her birthday and any holiday, as well as whenever we go to the thrift store they have bags of books for just 50 cents to $1 – you can’t beat the price! The “downside” to it, is the fact that you run out of places to put them. All of ours usually ended up under the couch or in a pile in the corner if they were not being read that day. And, of course, we’ve had some books that did not make it because milk or juice was spilled on the floor and they got really wet and sticky and could not be recovered.

That’s why when I was contacted by Tidy Books to become an ambassador for them, I was so excited! Over the next 12 months I am going to be reviewing different products made by Tidy Books and, guess what? You get the chance to win one for you and your family!

First, I want to let you know a little more about Tidy Books. The independent company started in 2004 by Geraldine Grandidier, who also created the first children’s bookcase for her daughter. Their designs are great for children and include practical ideas to make sure that books are included in a natural part of your child’s world, thus planting that love of reading that all children should have.

As a Tidy Books Ambassador, the first product of theirs that I am reviewing is their Children’s Bookcase. This bookcase is made with wood that is from sustainable sources and finished with a water based lacquer that is eco-friendly (you can never do enough for your earth!). By the weight and feel of the wood, I can definitely attest that the materials are high quality, so you are getting a good value for your money. The front has the alphabet and it is in 3D form, so the letters stand out, giving it a great look. Another great thing about the Tidy Books Kid’s Bookcase is that it comes with a five year guarantee!

Above is the packaging the bookcase comes in. The bookcase comes in either natural/wood, white, blue or pink; we choose white since it fits in with all of Riley’s furniture. I love how it comes with all of the screws and even the tool you need to put it all together with – very convenient! All in all, it took my husband about an hour to put it together… of course that was with the “help” of Riley. She was actually great for getting a screw or piece of the bookcase he needed. She was trying! 🙂

And ta-da! It’s all put together and Riley is one happy little girl – just look at that smile! We decided to put the bookcase in the living room since that is usually where we are when we look at the books. It actually helps use some space wisely that would otherwise be blank. And since it’s so thin – it only sticks out 6 inches at the bottom and 3 inches at the top – it’s not sticking off the wall drastically! As far as how many books we have gotten to fit onto it, I lost count. Definitely not all of her books (she probably has at least 200 books), but what I have been doing is keeping all the ones we can’t fit onto the bookcase in a box in my closet and every week or so after Riley has gone to bed, I’ll take a big stack of books off the case, put them in the box in my closet, and replace them with “new” ones. It keeps it fun and interesting for Riley, I believe. Plus, there’s only so many times I can read “Simba’s Friends” in a week. 😉

I love having somewhere to put all of Riley’s books now, too. Hopefully we won’t have anymore fatalities as far as books getting spilled on, since they now have a home! I definitely love the alphabet on the front, as well, because Riley is actually starting to learn a few letters. She can point out a, b, c, and d to me! Miles and I are so proud of her – she is such a smart little girl!

Now for the fun part for all of you! The giveaway! Tidy Books is offering one bookcase to a lucky reader of mine! All you have to do is go to the Tidy Books Kid’s Bookcase Giveaway with Optimistic Mommy page and enter your information and you are entered to win! The giveaway ends May 17, 2013! Oh, and don’t forget to check out the spotlight page for Tidy Books, as well – I am one of the featured bloggers this month! Good luck! 🙂

Disclosure: As an ambassador for Tidy Books, I received a free Kid’s Bookshelf in exchange for my review. All opinions are 100% my own!

Courtney P.

I’m a 20-something stay-at-home mother and wife. I have an amazing husband, a beautiful daughter, two loving dogs, and a lazy cat. I wouldn’t change my life for anything! I love to read, listen to music, cook and blog!

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