World Book Day - Dressing up Plans!

Next week is World Book Day and S's nursery are planning a week of activities to celebrate. This is the part where I'm really glad I'm self employed, because it means I can juggle my plans for the week and join them for a trip to the book shop next week.

We love books in our house; S has way more books than cuddly toys at the end of her cot, and I'm in trouble if we don't have at least five stories before bed each night (usually with singing and actions these days). The favourite by an absolute mile is still Dear Zoo, which S loves to read - even though the copy in her cot has long since had a mass escape and the only animal left in the zoo is the dog (and a rather toothless lion).

And of course, the highlight of World Book Day is getting to dress up as your favourite book character. Unsurprisingly, a recent survey found that Harry Potter was the most popular character for children to dress up as, with the Gruffalo coming second.

S is a little small for Harry Potter just yet, but she does absolutely love the Gruffalo. She was even lucky enough to be given a Gruffalo costume for Christmas. But it's very warm in nursery, and the Gruffalo suit is very thick (with a big padded tummy).

Other favourites among the girls were characters such as Snow White and Tinkerbell - possibly more to do with getting to dress up as them, than the actual characters. I think everyone here knows my feelings on dressing little girls as princesses though, so those are out.

Characters from Lord of the Rings are also still popular, especially Gandalf and Golum... I'm sorely tempted to dress S as Gandalf just for the hilarity of seeing her in a big white beard... but I don't think she'd enjoy it too much! Shame... Maybe when she's older.

It's reassuring to find that the likes of the Famous Five, Rupert the Bear and even Popeye are still on the list - proof that good characters can stand the test of time, but still not really suitable for a girl toddler.

In the end I think we're going to go with the toothless lion from Dear Zoo. S has been perfecting her ROAR, complete with cheeky grin... Watch this space for a gazillion photos!

S in her lion suit, perfecting that roar.

Survey results provided by Fancy Dress Ball