Tag: carols (page 1 of 1)

A Few of Our Favorite Christmas Albums

Have you worn out your favorite Christmas albums yet? This is the point in the season for me when the old standards start to feel a bit stale and we’re ready for something fresh, something new. And so I thought I would share a few of our favorites with you in the hope that you might find a new song or two to enjoy.

A Few of Our Favorite Christmas Albums | Little Book, Big Story

Our Favorite Christmas Albums

The Light Came Downby Josh Garrels

Songs for Christmasby Sufjan Stevens

Waiting Songs, by Rain for Roots

Family Christmas, by Slugs & Bugs

A Slugs & Bugs Christmas, by Slugs & Bugs

A Very She & Him Christmas, by She & Him

Prepare Him Room, by Sovereign Grace Music

The Sounding Joy, by Elizabeth Mitchell & Friends

Christmas Stories, by Jenny & Tyler

Unto Us, by JJ Heller

Behold the Lamb of God, by Andrew Peterson

And while we don’t love every song on this last album, the ones we do love are excellent—perhaps our favorite versions of our favorite Christmas hymns. They’re perfect for epic Christmas kitchen dance parties:

Christmas Songs, by Bad Religion


On Another (Less Musical) Note

Wildflowers Magazine: Christmas Issue | Little Book, Big Story

Did you know that the Christmas issue of Wildflowers is available? Also, Wildflowers now offers two different kinds of subscriptions, so whichever one you choose, you’ll find each season’s issue waiting for you in your mailbox. Huzzah!

Wildflowers Magazine: Christmas Issue (Illustration by Thea Rosenburg) | Little Book, Big Story

In other news: I got to take a stab at illustrating for this issue, and it was so much fun, I’m coming back next year as a full-time illustrator!

The Friendly Beasts

Sometimes, at Christmastime, you just want to sing. If you love farm animals, then you just want to sing “The Friendly Beasts.” And if you love singing and farm animals and you’re three years old, then you want to sing “The Friendly Beasts” over and over and over.

At least, that’s how it goes at our house.

The Friendly Beasts | Little Book, Big Story

The Friendly Beasts is one of Sarah’s favorite songs and because of that, it’s become one of our favorites, too (it was either that, or let the pendulum swing the other direction. We didn’t want to let that happen). Tomie dePaola’s beautiful book walks through the song, verse by verse, with his oh-so-uniquely-beautiful illustrations, and closes with a page of sheet music so that you can pick the tune out on the piano for your kids. (If you don’t have a piano or don’t like the piano or find that sheet music bears an uncomfortable resemblance to Ancient Hebrew, you can also sing along to Sufjan Stevens’s version of the song.)

But if your little musician loves singing and animals and happens to be three, get ready: “The Friendly Beasts” season does not close at the first of the year. (But you may not mind that as much as you think.)

The Friendly Beasts | Little Book, Big Story

The Friendly Beasts
Tomie dePaola (1998)