Little House on the Bedtime Docket

While we're putting the kids to bed, we've been reading the 'Little House' books.  DF is a little young for chapter books but he's gamely putting up with it.  Relia is kind of getting into it.  The FP Gal told me I should be recording some of the stuff they say.  (This may be a series, we'll see.)

• The first book takes place in the Big Woods of Wisconsin, in the 1860's.  After a few chapters Relia told me that she was afraid of the forest.  She was sure that she'd meet a bear.  I assured her that the forests near us are very bear free.  I might have convinced her.
• DF took a different tack.  He said that he would use a sword and cut up any bears that he met.  I told him that I was sure he would, but I hoped it didn't come to that.
• For Christmas, all of the girls get a pair of red mittens.  Can you imagine what would happen if we gave Relia a single pair of red mittens for Christmas next year?  I'm sure Child Services would eventually become involved.
• We told them that the first book takes places near the Eagle Center (where we've been a few times).  Relia wants to go back there and investigate.  We'll have to set that up sometime next summer.  I wonder if we could get a certain Grandma D and cousin Pat to go there with us . . . 
• The second book starts with a passage about how the story takes place 'when all grandmas and grandpas were young or not born yet'.  We talked about how old the story is.  I told Relia that it was published in 1935.  She said "I knew it was in the 1900's!".  She also told me, authoritatively, that covered wagons first started in the 1890's.  Um, close, Sweetie.
• The Ingalls move from Wisconsin to go out to 'Indian country'.  They have to cross the Mississippi while it's still frozen.  I told Relia that they didn't have any bridges across the Mississippi yet.  "They didn't have bridges?!?"  No, they didn't.  They had to cross on the ice or on a boat.  "They had boats?!?"  Yes, sweetie, boats have been around for a long, long time.
• Tonight's chapter ended with them deep in the wilds of Kansas.  Relia was excited, because she has heard of Kansas.  I promised that I'd show her where all of the states are on the map.  DF tried to tell me something about Antarctica but he was pretty tired so I didn't catch it.  

I like that we're providing some perspective with these books.  I hope it sticks.