Books from Buckingham Palace!

If you know me, you will be shocked to hear that I did not buy ANYTHING (not even clothes) while in England...well except for a few children's books from Buckingham Palace ( The Queen's Shop)! I am linking up with Courtney from Ramona Recommends today for her Tuesday Travel Link Up!

I think that buying children's books as a souvenir when traveling is a great idea! Unlike a cutesy magnet or even t-shirt (while those are fine souvenirs), a book is the "gift that keeps on giving."  Last summer I bought the book Goodnight Hawaiian Moon while on vacation in Hawaii. This past school year, I read it most days to my littles right before their quiet rest time...it has a nice beach waves background soundtrack, that combined with turning my classroom lights off, puts me them to sleep (or at least calms them down). It's one of those great books that is short enough that every child knows the words after a couple of times reading it. It even includes a lullaby sung in Hawaiian. Many of my girls (on their own) would start hula dancing every time they would hear it. That spawned the idea that our class should have a Luau, which we did for Mother's Day. That is a separate post for a different day. But, needless to say, this book was definitely a class favorite!

Now let's get to the European goodies!I am excited to go back to school in a couple of weeks and share these gems with my new class while telling them about my adventures in England this summer!

1. Madeline in London
 I have always loved the classic Madeline books , so it was absolutely necessary to buy this one while in London! What little girl ( or even big girl) doesn't love Madeline?

2. Does The Queen Wear Her Crown in Bed?

I had to get this book because (besides the cute title) I immediately thought of the dozens of little girls that come thru my class thinking they are princesses-ha! Kindergarten is definitely the age where make believe and reality has a fine line. Everything is princess themed! Princess dress up, princess pink, and princess movies /books! It seems that when you start out in life THE DREAM is to be a princess...and it's even cute! But, do you know somebody that thinks they are a princess now in their adulthood? Not so cute anymore right?! :)
I also LOVE how this book shows what life is like INSIDE THE ROYAL PALACE! There is even a picture of William and Kate ( the royal couple) getting married! Such a fun book!
 This book really satisfied my curiosity, since when you go to visit Buckingham Palace you don't actually get to go inside any of the rooms.
 *Side note: Shortly after I left England, they opened some of the rooms and gardens for tourists to visit!


3. Paddington at the Palace

Who doesn't love our furry friend Paddington the Bear ? Another classic children's character book that I had to have! Join him as he has his own adventures at the palace! So cute!

Now, you definitely don't have to go all the way to England to buy these books. Good ol' amazon.com will get these to you in a jiffy! But, it sure is fun that I will be able to tell my students that I bought these books for them at the "Queen's House!" :)