Reading to children from a young age is one of the best ways to develop their language skills, imagination, and love of books. I’ve spent an inordinate amount of time reading to my kids, as it was an integral part of their evening (and sometimes morning) routines.

I am a big believer in the power of books and reading, so it was something I did very gladly, although on many occasion I ended up sleeping myself with the book in my hand, after the umpteenth request of “one more book”.

Here are some of the favorite books that I’ve read time and again with my kids.

“Bizzy Bear” series by Benji Davies

The Bizzy Bear series of books, written and illustrated by Benji Davies, are a collection of interactive children’s books that are designed to encourage children to explore, play and learn. The books follow the adventures of a curious young bear named Bizzy as he goes on various activities such as going to the zoo, helping out at the fire station, and building a rocket.

The books are filled with bright, colorful illustrations and simple text that make them easy for young children to understand and relate to. Each book also includes interactive elements such as flaps to lift, wheels to turn and buttons to press, which makes it more engaging and fun for children to read. The books aim to develop children’s fine motor skills, hand-eye coordination and introduce them to different concepts such as counting, colors and shapes. They are a great way to encourage children to be curious and to explore the world around them.

“123 Count with Me” and “A is for Apple”

“Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site” by Sherri Duskey Rinker

A children’s book that takes young readers on a journey through a construction site before bedtime. The story follows a group of hardworking construction vehicles as they say goodnight to the various parts of the site, such as the crane, cement mixer, and bulldozer. The book is filled with colorful illustrations that bring the construction site to life and make it easy for children to understand and relate to the story.

The repetitive text and rhyming words make it easy for young children to follow along and develop their reading skills. The book has a positive message about the importance of hard work and teamwork, while also promoting the idea of bedtime reading. This book is a perfect addition to any child’s library and a great way to introduce them to the world of construction and the hardworking vehicles that help build our communities.

There is a whole series of books around this theme, and I found most of them to be really good. My son surprised me at around 3 years of age by reciting the whole book by heart, which was an amazing experience for me and a testament to how much he loved this book.

“Tails” by Matthew Van Fleet

A book about different animals and their tails, it teaches children about the different shapes, sizes, and functions of tails in various animals. The book is filled with colorful illustrations and simple text that make it easy for young children to understand and relate to. The interactive elements in the book encourage children to explore and learn through play, making it a fun and engaging way to learn about animals and their body parts. The book is a great addition to any child’s library and is perfect for encouraging an early interest in science and the natural world.

“Oscar the Octopus”by Matthew Van Fleet

An interactive book which features different textures, flaps and movable parts that children can explore as they read the story. The book tells the story of Oscar, an octopus who lives in the ocean and explores the different sea creatures that he meets. The book is filled with colorful illustrations and simple text that make it easy for young children to understand and relate to.

The book aims to teach children about the different sea creatures and their characteristics and habitats. The interactive elements in the book encourage children to explore and learn through play, making it a fun and engaging way to learn about the ocean and the animals that live there. The book is a great addition to any child’s library and is perfect for encouraging an early interest in science and the natural world.

“Press Here” and “Mix It Up!” by Herve Tullet

These are both children’s interactive books that encourage children to engage with the book in a hands-on way. “Press Here” is an interactive book that invites children to press a yellow dot on the cover, which then leads to a series of surprises and interactive experiences within the book. The book is designed with simple illustrations and bold colors that capture the attention of young children. “Mix It Up!” is another interactive book by the same author, that invites children to mix up different colors and shapes on the pages, creating new and unexpected combinations. The book is designed to encourage children to experiment with the illustrations, and to explore the creative possibilities of combining different elements. Both books are a perfect way to engage children’s creativity and imagination, while also helping them to develop their fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination.

These books are not only entertaining for kids, but also educational for them. They help children to develop their language skills, imagination, and love of books. It is always recommended to read with children, to help them with comprehension and to discuss the story and the illustrations with them.

“The Color Monster” by Anna Lllenas

The Color Monster series of books, written and illustrated by Anna Llenas, is a collection of children’s books that aim to teach children about emotions and feelings. The books follow the story of a monster named The Color Monster who is feeling confused and overwhelmed by the different emotions he is experiencing. The books use bright, colorful illustrations and simple text to help children understand the different emotions they may be feeling and how to deal with them. Each color represents a different emotion, for example, the red color represents anger and the blue color represents sadness. The books aim to help children identify and understand their emotions, and to learn to express them in healthy ways. The series includes books such as “The Color Monster: A Story About Emotions” and “The Color Monster Learns to Be Brave”, which are designed to be used as a tool for parents, teachers, and counselors to help children understand and cope with their emotions.

We used one of the books in this series just before my son started school, in order to prepare him for the emotions that he would possibly feel. The other book about basic feelings remained a bedtime staple for several months, and actually helped me to sort out my own feelings together with my son.

I’ve always been hugely into music and dreamed of playing instruments as a young kid. However, for some reason or another, I never went for any classes in a serious way when I was young. I did learn basic guitar which I enjoyed, but never practiced enough to do anything with it. The piano is also much more versatile and enjoyable to play alone versus a guitar. So as a young adult I took some music theory and piano lessons that I enjoyed, but again life got in the way. I do remember having a little wooden toy piano that I definitely used a lot when I was just a few years old, and had a wooden flute, toy air piano, xylophone and harmonica. I loved playing around with them but that was as far as I got.

As I approach my 40s, I’d like to take another serious shot at this. Moreover, I now have two young kids, and I am fully appreciative of the positive impact music education can have on their development. I want to set the example and hopefully they can also learn alongside me.

So, to start off, I need a digital keyboard that feels as close to a piano as possible, and a piano teacher or online learning platform.

This post will serve as my notes for these two tasks.

Best Beginner Keyboards

I focused my research on portable keyboards, as they take the least space, are easy to move around and probably easier to sell when the time comes, or if my plan doesn’t work out.

Next, it’s time to consider brands.

General consensus among piano teachers and players is that you should not go off-brand when buying a piano. There are a number of long-established brands that you are probably familiar with:

• Yamaha
• Roland
• Kawai
• Casio
• Korg
• Nord

Anything beyond these household names is considered off-brand. Some examples are Alesis and Donner. There are many others, typically Chinese manufactured and designed to look good, but with important flaws.

Weighted keys are essential for learning proper technique, so prepare to spend €500 and upwards as that’s where decent weighted keyboards start at.

The reasonably priced Casio CDP-S100 but watch the Youtube reviews by “Piano4ever” (James Pavel Shawcross) who is scathing about the mismatch in weight between the white and lighter black keys on Casio digital pianos. You might also want to find comparative reviews to hear the sounds of this one against things like Yamaha P45 and Roland FP-10. It may be a matter of personal choice but the Casio does not seem to sound that great compared to others – possibly too “tinny” (which some might call “bright”)

Going up the scale (!) the Yamaha P45 is somewhere above the Casio. A lot of reviewers have quite nice things to say about P45 but it’s not a “modern” design and is perhaps getting a little bit long in the tooth.

The most sensible choices for a beginner that wants a quality setup:

• Roland FP-10 (€400)
• Roland FP-30X (€670)
  
• Yamaha P45 (€422)
• Yamaha P125 (€600)
  
• Kawai-ES110 (€600)
  
• Casio PX S-1000 (€500)

Out of these the Roland FP-30X was the best choice for me. The FP-10 is better than the Yamaha P-45, while the FP-30X improves on the FP-10 for a slight increase in price. The speakers at this price point from Casio, Yamaha, and Korg don’t match up in this department.

If we compare the Roland FP-30X with the Yamaha P125, the Yamaha loses out on key-action as well as bluetooth connectivity, the latter being a big issue for me. The Yamaha P125 does seem to be slightly better sounding though. If you tweak the sound qualities, the FP-30X sounds just as good as the P-125. The speakers fire downward and fill up the room a little bit better. It is also the newer model of the two.

The number of sounds available wasn’t a big consideration for me, since these can typically be expanded either by connecting via MIDI to a VST, or by using companion apps that these makers provide. For example, with the Roland FP-10 you get 15 built-in sounds that can be selected using Function+keys. However, if you run the Piano Partner 2 app which connects to the piano with Bluetooth you actually get to select between 35 instruments.

With Roland’s SuperNATURAL Piano technology and the same expressive 88-tone PHA-4 Standard keyboard as the premium model FP-60X, the FP-30X is the perfect home instrument for Beginner players.

Finally, the Roland FP-10 and FP-30X are easy to sell as they are extremely popular among beginners. At worst you would lose a couple hundred euros, lessening the risk of such a purchase considerably.

I would have considered the FP-10 versus the FP-30, where it not for the fact that the FP-30X is a new model that improves in some significant ways on the FP-30, while the FP-10 does not have a corresponding new model.

My favorite keyboard for looks and features, on the other hand, is the Casio PX-S7000, but I would buy this further along the journey as it’s much more expensive and has features that are not necessary at the very early stages. It does look beautiful though, and I especially like the stand that comes with it.

Keyboards for Kids

Since I want to involve my kids in my learning process, I did some research on instruments/toys that might be ideal to get them interested as well.

Here are the best I found:

Korg tinyPiano (€200)

The tinyPiano is part furniture, part introductory piano, and part toy. Definitely on the expensive side, but the reviews are great.

Yamaha Remie (€60)

The best intro instrument, since it has quiz mode and lots of sounds (animals, horns etc) that can keep even the little ones entertained.

Yamaha PSS-F30 (€60)

Great for those kids who already know how to play a bit and want to have some fun with the in-built sounds and accompaniments.

Learning

For learning, I will probably start off with Pianote and also try to find a good local teacher, which shouldn’t be a problem since I live in a major city. There are also several books that I could try, and I also have a Skillshare membership, where I saw a few courses available.

• Music Files – free sheet music
• Hoffman Academy – especially good for kids
• Playground Sessions
• Flowkey

I’ll update this post with progress, but if there are any other adult musical instrument learners out there, I’d love to hear about your experience.

When choosing toys for your kids, it’s important to consider their interests, abilities, and developmental stage. Look for toys that are age-appropriate, safe, and durable. Avoid toys with small parts that could be choking hazards for younger children, and be sure to read the labels and instructions to ensure that the toy is suitable for your child.

Here are the toys that my kids enjoyed the most:

Newborn to 2 Years

For the early years we were very inspired by the Montessori method of teaching, which also incorporates a certain style of toys. In this method toys are mostly made of wood, are educational and tend to have pleasant colors rather than the garish colors seen on some plastic toys.

While we opted to keep our children home for the first 3 years of their childhood, we opted for hiring a qualified tutor who would come home every day to educate them and thus guide them in their early education and play. Hiring the tutor was one of the best decisions we’ve made with our kids, especially after I saw how many cheaper nannies treated the kids when out and about in Barcelona.

I personally dislike the cheap sounds many Chinese toy sets make and have therefore stayed away from them. Both kids were never really big fans of soft toys, and we ended up being gifted a bunch of those that just lay about unused.

• Baby Einstein Drums
• Baby Einstein Musical Toy
• Baby Einstein Baby Dj
• Mattel Mega Blocks
• Woom 1 bike (see notes further below)
• EverEarth Workbench
• Wooden puzzles
• Various Lego Duplo sets
• Educational animal toys
• Animal magnets
• Tangram shapes puzzle
• Wooden kitchen
• Chicco Rings
• Play Doh
• Janod City and Jungle puzzles
• Pretend Doctor Kit
• Tomy Tractor
• Dobble
• Melissa & Doug Cars & Trucks
• Small metal cars (no brand, made in China)
• Trash Truck (son was in love with them)
• CAT Dump Truck
• Various kinds of flash cards (Russian and English)
• Vtech tiny touch remote
• Play tive junior activity cube
• Woomax hammer bench
• Tegu Swivel Bug
• Tegu Vehicle wooden magnet blocks
• Montessori busy board
• Playmobil my first train
• PlanToys Crocodile
• Lego Duplo Train
• Kitchen cutting board and vegetable set
• Janod Magnetic Tiles
• Woomax Xylophone
• Goula Fruit Puzzle
• Vtech baby laptop (not used much)
• Theo Klein 8793 Racing Car
• Learning Resources Tac-Tiles

We put a strong emphasis on art and physical dexterity as well, so I bought a collection of different balls for them to play with, which they used extensively. For the art aspect, we bought a multitude of coloring books, plain drawing paper, and various painting media such as watercolors, crayons, pencils, chalk etc.

2 Years Onwards

From around 2 years of age onwards, I started to really enjoy building with my son. I found this really enjoyable as I rekindled my lost love for building things with my hands and experimenting with electronics. I was a huge Lego fan as a child, but later on I shifted entirely to playing computer games and forgot all about building physical objects.

Some of the sets in the list are recommended for much older kids, but I have found that if you have the time to play with kids, you can do some really advanced things. You’ll just need to find the most appropriate way to get them involved, and more importantly, make sure that they are not harmed by incorrect usage of the toys (e.g. swallowing small parts, or injuries due to unsupervised play with electronic parts like motors, batteries etc).

• Woom 2, 3 onwards
• Learning Resources
  • Scrambles the Fox
  • Botley 2.0
  • Fox in the Box
  • Construction Kit
• Connetix (better than Magnatiles)
• Snap Circuits full set
• Meccano Sets
  • Tractor set
  • Buggy with friction motor
  • Police car with R/C
• Lego Technic Sets
  • Buggy 42124
  • Rally Top Gear 42109
  • 4X4 X-treme Off-Roader 42099
  • MINDSTORMS Robot Builder 51515
• Nene Toys Sudoku
• Diset Sudoku
• Wooden traffic signs
• Addo Play Wooden clock
• Djeco Step by Step animals
• Play tive cash register
• Waytoplay Highway
• Wooden abacus

You also need to take into consideration the differences in character and interests between kids. My son displayed an amazing capacity to concentrate for longer periods right from a very young age, whereas my daughter had more of a wild streak so it was easier to do more physical play with her rather than tasks requiring a lot of sitting down and thinking. This diversity was also great for me as I got to explore more activities rather than simply repeating the same things with both kids.

While as a parent it’s a good thing to strive for a sense of equality between kids, for most people it is simply natural to be more interested in doing things the first time around, hence the first child has an advantage. On the other hand, parents tend to experience a sensation of being much wiser in their behavior around the second kid onwards, and may also have gotten rid of that over-protection instinct or unhealthy fear of the child getting hurt in some way or another. This usually works to the advantage of the younger siblings as they get a bit more freedom. All this to say that each kid’s experience and your interaction with them as parents will necessarily be different.

The Montessori Method

Montessori is an educational approach that was developed by Italian physician and educator Maria Montessori in the early 20th century. It is based on the belief that children are naturally curious and capable learners who are driven to explore and discover their environment.

In a Montessori classroom, children are given the freedom to choose their own activities and work at their own pace. The environment is carefully prepared to allow children to learn through hands-on exploration and discovery. Materials are designed to be self-correcting, so that children can learn through trial and error without the need for explicit instruction.

The Montessori approach emphasizes the importance of developing a child’s independence, self-discipline, and self-motivation. It also places a strong emphasis on respect for the child’s individual interests and learning style.

Why We Chose Balance Bikes

Donating Toys

Donating old toys to a worthy cause is a great idea. There are many organizations that accept toy donations, such as toy drives run by schools or local charities. These donations can help bring joy to children who may not have many toys of their own. Additionally, donating old toys is a great way to declutter your home and make space for new items. It’s also an environmentally friendly way to dispose of items that you no longer need. Overall, donating old toys is a kind and generous act that can make a big difference in the lives of others.

In Barcelona, I recommend donating to Ilusions Solidaries.

Here are some notes on family inheritances. This can be a heavy subject for many families, and now that I am both a child and a parent, it makes sense to think about the topic and try to plan early.

We start off with the fact that parents owe nothing to their children financially.

Most parents would have given way more than their kids can ever hope to equal in terms of love, care, shelter and financial assistance while they were growing up. This is just the nature of things. It’s the role of a parent to do so.

Once the kids leave their parents’ house to start their own life, provided there are no obvious impediments (e.g. disabilities) they should be independent. Even if they don’t physically leave the house due to some reason or cultural norm, there should be a cutoff point around the 18-20 years old mark.

Parents should strive to teach their kids how to manage their finances from an early age. Ideally, they should also show them how they can make money and instill an entrepreneurial spirit – even if they eventually end up getting a job and not do their own thing.

The easiest way to manage an inheritance is to split it equally between the children. But it’s not always such an easy strategy. One obstacle is the fact that inheritances rarely consist of purely cash assets. With other types of assets, valuations can complicate matters a lot. There might also be items being passed on that have a big sentimental value to members of the family, so it becomes very tricky quite quickly.

One other option is to not leave any inheritance or to leave all assets to a charitable trust, possibly managed by the kids. Typically this kind of option is chosen by parents worried that an inheritance will cause issues between the siblings or that the sudden influx of money will somehow corrupt them. While I think these are perfectly acceptable options, they wouldn’t align with my way of thinking. I think money is a great enabler, and if children are well educated from an early age in the school of life, an inheritance (or living a childhood with no financial worries) will not affect them in a negative way. 

100% of the negative cases I’ve seen concerning money and inheritances were because of the parents never really giving their kids a well-rounded education (typically because they were too busy working and amassing a fortune to actually spend time with the kids), so the end result was not surprising.

Another consideration is when not all siblings have been equally fortunate in life. What do you do when one child is objectively in a more needy state due to a disability, unfortunate event etc? In these cases, if all members of the family have a good relationship between them, it is quite understandable to make sure the more needy child has their needs covered as a first priority.

Communication between the parents and children about their inheritance plans is always essential and helps to avoid conflict down the line.

I’ll keep expanding this article over time, but if you have any input on this topic it would be great to hear for you in the comments section below.

Further Reading

• Family Wealth: Keeping It in the Family – Hughes Jr E

Note: This list is just a small taste of books that have played an important part in my life. I’ve read hundreds of books and it has proven to be impossible to keep a definite updated list of favorite books. 

Here’s the one biggest catalyst for most of my successes in life: being a voracious reader. My weapon of choice is the Kindle, I’m constantly on the lookout for new books and articles and sending them to my Kindle for reading later. Coming from a small and pretty isolated island I can definitely say that if I hadn’t read so much I would never have enjoyed the success in life and business that I have.

Although I have three University degrees, I must confess that I skipped most lectures, simply because I felt they were too boring for me. Instead, I spent time in quiet places devouring book after book on the topics that interested me most.

So if you want to be successful and don’t yet have a habit of reading, start now, read something daily, and allocate time during the week for extended reading sessions of 45 minutes to one hour.

Extra bonus tip: Make sure you keep a blog/journal/diary where you can write down new concepts that you learn or ideas that you get while reading.

I speed through lots of books every year but many times I have trouble recalling the ones I’ve read if, for example, someone asks me for a quick recommendation.

It’s also good to have a handy list of books read because it happens that a few months or years down the line you want to revisit a book you’ve previously read, or a specific topic. The answer to these situations is of course to keep a list of books that you read.

I’ve used Goodreads to try and build a virtual bookshelf of sorts, however, it’s been very difficult to maintain, mostly since I read a lot of books every year. My average is around 6-8 per month. So instead, I’ll be trying a different approach and just listing the most impressive books I’ve read about the several topics I’ve gotten into over time.

If I had to ever quit using my Kinde and install a library in my home, you can bet these books will be populating its bookshelves.

Religion & Spirituality

• Waking Up and The End of Faith by Sam Harris
• The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins
• The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle
• Religion for Atheists by Alain de Botton
• New Seeds of Contemplation by Thomas Merton
• The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh
• Meditation for Beginners by Jack Kornfield
• Why We Believe in God(s) by Richard Dawkins

I would also encourage reading books from Bible scholar Bart Ehrman, he has several good ones.

Business

• The 4-hour workweek by Tim Ferriss
• Anything You Want by Derek Sivers
• Rework by DHH and Jason Fried
• Remote by DHH and Jason Fried
• The E-Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber
• Built to Sell by John Warrillow
• Deep Work by Cal Newport
• Work the System by Sam Carpenter

Psychology & Behavioral Economics

• Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
• Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely
• The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey
• How to Win Friends and Influence People and How to Stop Worrying and Start Living by Dale Carnegie
• The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by Mark Manson
• Mindwise by Nicholas Epley
• The Chimp Paradox by Steve Peters
• The Paradox of Choice by Barry Schwartz
• Fooled by Randomness, The Black Swan, and Antifragile by Nassim Nicholas Taleb
• Outliers, Blink and The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell
• Essentialism by Greg McKeown

Philosophy

• Genome, The Rational Optimist and The Red Queen by Matt Ridley
• The Antidote by Oliver Burkeman
• A Guide to the Good Life by William Irvine
• The Republic by Plato
• Meditations by Marcus Aurelius

Investing

• Money Master the Game by Tony Robbins
• Principles by Ray Dalio
• Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki
• The Richest Man in Babylon by George Clason

I would also recommend going through the investing curriculum for other great investing books.

History & Future

• Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari
• Homo Deus by Yuval Noah Harari

Health

• Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker
• Sleep by Nick Littlehales

Sports & Sports Psychology

• Which Comes First, Cardio or Weights? by Alex Hutchinson
• The Champion’s Mind by Jim Afremow and Jim Craig
• The Brave Athlete by Simon Marshall and Paterson Lesley
• Winning Ugly by Brad Gilbert and Steve Jamison
• The Inner Game of Tennis by W. Timothy Gallwey

Economics

• The New Confessions of an Economic Hit Man by John Perkins
• Misbehaving by Richard Thaler
• Economics in One Lesson by Henry Hazlitt

Biographies

• Steve Jobs and Leonardo da Vinci by Walter Isaacson
• Giocare da Uomo by Javier Zanetti

Politics

• Political Order and Political Decay and The Origins of Political Order by Francis Fukuyama

Science Fiction & Fantasy

• Check out these Science Fiction and Fantasy lists on Goodreads

Looking for more books? While I continue to update the list above, check this great list of books, and this one too, many of which I’ve also read and can recommend.

I’m also working my through this collection of great essays.