Well folks, here we are at the unofficial end of summer and beginning of fall.  I’m so relieved to be done with summer because I live in the desert.  We had a pretty mild summer… I don’t think it even reached 120 this year… but I am still so ready for fall festivities!  Time to handpick apples, create a million and 1 slow cooker recipes and hunt for Halloween costumes — wuhoo!

My son is 19 months now and has a ton of energy.  He is highly distracted, living in his own world, and always on the go.  Seriously, the kid could not be less interested in his toys.  He flips everything upside down and runs away… that’s the extent of his interest.  He would much rather be outside playing in the dirt, the sand, the rocks, the grass… woodchips, leaves… anything.

Literally the only “toy” that can make my son stop and sit is a book.  He LOVES board books.  Hey, if he’d rather sit and quietly look through books as opposed to banging on plastic light-up toys, so be it. = ) Board books are perfect for roadtrippin, which I talk about it my post yesterday: 10 Tips for Traveling with Toddlers.

Here is a collection of fall board books from Simon & Schuster that Gabe is loving:

• The Itsy Bitsy Pumpkin by Sonali Fry

This gently spooky twist on “The Itsy Bitsy Spider” makes a favorite nursery rhyme just perfect for Halloween!

The itsy bitsy pumpkin
rolled down the spooky street.
He passed a ghoulish ghost
and some stinky goblin’s feet.

A little pumpkin is trying to find his way back home! And with a little help from a friendly witch, he is soon safe and sound, back on his porch—where there are no spiders to be seen! Little ones will love this fresh fall spin on a classic nursery rhyme!

• I’m a Little Vampire by Sonali Fry

This clever Halloween twist on “I’m a Little Teapot” adds fang-tastic fun to a favorite nursery rhyme!

I’m a little vampire
short and stout.
Please give me treats
so I won’t pout.

This mischievous vampire has a monstrous sweet tooth—and it’s not for tea! Little ones will love this fresh fall spin on a classic nursery rhyme!

• Happy Halloween, Daniel Tiger! a Lift-the-Flap Book  by Angela C Santomero

Put on your costume and join your friends from Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood for a Halloween celebration in this board book with flaps!

It’s Halloween in the Neighborhood of Make Believe, and Daniel Tiger and his friends can’t wait to celebrate! Come along with Daniel, Katerina Kittycat, Miss Elaina, O the Owl, and Prince Wednesday as they pick out their creative costumes and march in a Halloween parade! This board book features lift-and-reveal flaps on each spread.

• Apples and Pumpkins by Anne Rockwell

A little girl spends a glorious fall day picking apples and searching for the perfect pumpkin in this Classic Board Book edition of a timeless favorite.

In this Classic Board Book version of a perennial favorite, a young girl shares in the joy and excitement of the fall season. “When red and yellow leaves are on the trees,” she goes with her parents to a farm where they pick apples and choose “the best pumpkin of them all.”

This board book edition of a beloved story is both familiar and fresh—just like a fall day.

• The First Thanksgiving: A Lift-the-Flap Book  by Nancy Davis

Nancy Davis recreates the excitement and wonder of the first Thanksgiving– how the pilgrims came to America and how the Native Americans taught them to plant and then joined them in a Thanksgiving feast. Parents can use the simple text and the bright, graphic illustrations of this lift-the-flap book to introduce a very young child to this holiday.

Copies were provided by Simon & Schuster to facilitate this post. Post contains affiliate links.