I knew I wanted Baby A to have access to a lot of picture and board books, but we have enough to fill her bookshelf five times (I keep them in a closet for rotation), and storage space at the summer apartment is limited. I had to choose carefully what to bring along.
If you ever find yourself in a temporary move or extended vacation, here's a smart way to pack up your books:
1. Figure out how many books you would like to bring with you. If you are on an extended vacation, consider the weight they will add to a suitcase, and how quickly you or your child may tire of the book.
2. Sort all books by season. Make separate piles for summer, fall, winter, spring, and all/no specific season. Seasonal books were not restricted to holiday or with a season theme--any books with storylines specific to a time of year were placed in the appropriate pile. Ex: Jamberry by Bruce Degen is a picture book poem about berries, inspired by Degen's berry-picking childhood summers, so it was placed in the summer pile. The all/no specific season will most likely be much larger than the rest, so you may want to break it into sub-categories, such as animals, bedtime, counting/colors/shapes, etc.
2. Sort all books by season. Make separate piles for summer, fall, winter, spring, and all/no specific season. Seasonal books were not restricted to holiday or with a season theme--any books with storylines specific to a time of year were placed in the appropriate pile. Ex: Jamberry by Bruce Degen is a picture book poem about berries, inspired by Degen's berry-picking childhood summers, so it was placed in the summer pile. The all/no specific season will most likely be much larger than the rest, so you may want to break it into sub-categories, such as animals, bedtime, counting/colors/shapes, etc.
3. Choose books from the all/no specific season pile that you'd like to bring with you. Combine those with the books from the season most appropriate to your new home. Add or take away from the pile based on the number (or poundage) of books you've decided to bring with you.
4. Prepare the boxes. If using a cardboard box (I prefer diaper boxes for books), tape the bottom of the box with three slightly overlapping strips of tape along the bottom and halfway up each side. Line the bottom of the box or the entire box with plastic bags, or stack the books in plastic grocery bags before putting them into the box. Top the box with a plastic bag, as well. This will help protect them from water and dust.
If you are packing books into a suitcase, line underclothes/socks along the bottom of the suitcase, and pack books on top of them. Try to create a flat surface. Keep lightweight and activity books in your carry-on bag.
5. Pack up the books: 10-20 pounds of books in each box, with a detailed label of what kind of books are in each box. Cover the label in tape so that it does not smear. Color-code the box(es) going with you with duct tape so that they are easy to spot should they become mixed with storage boxes.
Luckily, we are storing the books we did not bring with us at my parents' house, so Baby A will still enjoy them whenever we visit them.
I also happened to score this little cardboard display shelf at my recycling center! Now Baby A's books can be rotated between her bookshelf and this (which is tucked out of sight) to keep her books exciting this summer.
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