Little Free Library

I have literally been running all over town the past two years - frequently on commuter paths.  I have seen many of these Little Free Libraries all over downtown Madison,  My Couch to 5K clients have raved about the little boxes popping in our community.  I was told there were books for children and adults and heard about the treasures my friends had found.

The Little Free Library (HERE) mission:
- To promote literacy and the love of reading by building free book exchanges worldwide.
- To build a sense of community as we share skills, creativity, and wisdom across generations
- To build more than 2,510 libraries around the world - more than Andrew Carnegie--and then more.

Basically, you leave a book and then take a book.  These libraries are set in in front of schools, coffee shops, storefronts, bike paths, parks and on sidewalks.  The adorable libraries hold 20-30 books for kids and adults.  The boxes are built from recycled materials are designed and decorated by your volunteer neighbors.  The library inventory is turned over several times a month.  Many of the boxes are decorated with themes in mind and they make the experience even more whimsical 

Pretty cool, huh?!  Go check it out yourself.  Look to see if there is a Little Free Library near you (HERE).  There are dozens in Madison alone. 
I knew that I wanted to experience this for the first time with the kids.  I noticed that one just recently popped up at an elementary school, in our suburban community.

So, I recently asked Little Diva and Little Dude to clean off their bookshelves.  We made a pile of baby books, board books and old treasures that had already been read.  We will use this stash of gently-used books each time we visit the Little Free Library.  We dropped off our first set of books this past weekend and gained two new treasures, which were quickly read through in the Marathon Mommy Minivan.