The Uffitzi
February 15, 2008

Mozart was very happy to see some of her
favorite paintings in the Uffitzi Gallery in
Florence! The spectacular Uffizi is the

The Child's Gift of Art
This was a very smart set to bring with us as Mozart loves them and rereads them over and over. There are actually four books in this set, one each about DaVinci, Picasso, Degas and Van Gogh. In a fun, child centric way they teach a lot about the artist and their art. They are also tiny books, so great for travel. I just happened to buy these at a museum a few years before leaving, so glad I did now.

The Random House Book of Poetry for Children
Mozart has had a lot of fun with this book this past winter in Spain doing reading out loud sessions with our 11 year old neighbor who is here often on play dates. It is a large book so is only available to her in the winter. We had lots of poetry books at home, but had to trim them down and I picked this one mainly because it was edited by Jack Prelutsky who was her favorite poet when she was little.

Linnea in Monet's Garden
Simply a wonderful book to help a young child prepare for Paris, Monet, Giverny, museums, history and gardens and encourages her to appreciate the beauty of all. It will also keep the memories alive years after the event. We even got the doll of Linnea while at one of the Paris museums and Mozart carried it with her all over France and still plays with her from time to time. We wrote about how we used it to plan part of our Itinerary here & I don't think Mozart will ever forget Angelinas.

Zoe Sophia's Scrapbook
This is  wonderful book to prepare for Venice and Mozart has always enjoyed the story of this 9 year old girl's trip to Venice. We used it to make up a kid's itinerary during our time in Venice which Mozart got a real kick out of, as you might recall from this post.

Michelangelo's Surprise
This is a lovely picture book that Mozart has had for a long time which I picked up by chance one day long ago. She has always liked it and it was particularly nice to have it with us in Florence. Her connection to the story and beautiful pictures helped her feel more familiar with Florence, the Medici's and Michelangelo.

Katie and the Mona Lisa
Mozart loves this whole series. We got them when she
was quite young,but she still loves them at seven and
rereads them all over and over. Charming stories,
exuberant illustrations and a fun approach to art
education for a young child. When she sees these
paintings in real life in museums as we travel,
she feels like they belong to her.

Storybook Travels
Great ideas for family travel by making itineraries
based on great children's Literature! Over 30
itineraries in North America and Europe for amazing
adventures for parents and children to share. We have
done many out of the book and have taken the idea
and made some of our own. Love it....wonderful
way to help a child identify with a place and learn
while having fun.