Post by Lauren Baker, our fearless marketing events manager

After logging over three thousand miles on the road this spring, the #nodtourbus has arrived back home in Chicago!

It’s been an amazing adventure – we visited 7 cities over two months and met so many of our fun customers on the road. This was our third tour with the #nodtourbus, and a really special one at that! When we heard we would be turning the bus into a bookmobile with our Little Golden Books collaboration, we couldn’t be more excited! We all loved the idea that we would be bringing the nostalgia of a bookmobile back from our childhood. And even better, we would be able to support our friends at Milk+Bookies. For every Little Golden Book sold at The Land of Nod through the end of June, our pals at Random House Children’s Books will donate one to Milk+Bookies, to help a child in need.

The bus is a terrific way for us to find some of the local favorites in new cities we’ve never traveled to before. We love finding all the hidden gems and sharing them with our customers. It’s so fun to bring Land of Nod products along with us to bring our store experience to life. Each of our stops in this tour included books, storytime, bookmark crafting, and, of course, play time!

Hodgepodge Coffee

The bus first made its stop at Atlanta back in early April. We stopped for delicious ice cream at Jeni’s Ice Cream in Decatur. Then we headed to the creative space of Hodgepodge Coffee. Next up was the very fun art playground Farmhouse in the City before we headed to Avalon for a busy stop in front of our friends at Crate and Barrel. That Sunday, we spent the morning at our pal Lay Baby Lay’s home for a play date with friends, before we ended our tour at Yeah Burger (and what a great burger it was!).

Charlotte Farmer’s Market

The second weekend, the bus traveled to Charlotte, N.C. Our first stop was at Small Hands Big Art, where the kiddos were treated to crafts inspired by Little Golden Books, played in teepees and enjoyed storytime! We spent a beautiful Saturday morning at the Charlotte Regional Farmer’s Market before heading to Discovery Place in the afternoon. The rain couldn’t stop our fun on Sunday at the Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden, and our final stop at Imagination Children’s Theatre in downtown Charlotte.

&Pizza

Next up for the bookmobile was our nation’s capital, Washington, D.C. We started in D.C. at &Pizza in Brookland. Saturday was spent at the adorable neighborhood art space, The Little Loft. We continued onto the Torpedo Factory Art Center with special guest storyteller, Rebecca from Not So SAHM. Sunday began with a delicious stop at Uprising Muffin before our final stop at Market Common with our friends at Crate and Barrel.

Smith Playground

We continued on to Philadelphia for our fourth city on the tour. Friday, we made out first stop at the magical space of Baldwin’s Book Barn with special storyteller Susan Hutchinson from the blog fleurishing. Saturday, the bus was downtown for a stop at the activity center Nest Philly before a fun filled afternoon at Sister Cities Park. On our final day in Philadelphia, we stopped at America’s oldest confectionery, Shane’s Confectionery on Market Street, before ending our weekend with an amazing stop at Smith Memorial Playground.

Brooklyn Central Library

Next up was the exciting weekend we spent in New York City! (Yes, we drove a big bus around New York City!) Friday, the bus stopped for a visit at our friends Crate and Barrel on Madison Avenue. Saturday morning, we visited the lovely Textile Arts Center in Manhattan before heading over to the Brooklyn Central Library to take part in their Bike the Branches event. Sunday was a beautiful day spent at the Brooklyn Flea in Willamsburg. Our awesome pal, designer Erin Jang from Indigo Bunting, joined us for an extra special afternoon of crafting in the sunshine.

Beehive Art

The following weekend we headed on up to Boston, MA. We visited the awesome folks at Mucky Kids Art Studio in Cambridge on Friday. Saturday was a busy morning spent at Flour Bakery in Boston, before heading over to Beehive Art Studio in Wayland. On Sunday, we ended our weekend at the delicious and hilarious Cupcake Mojo in Weymouth.

The Picket Fence Boutique

Our final weekend on the tour was in Pittsburgh, PA. The bookmobile first stopped over in the Shadyside neighborhood at The Picket Fence Boutique. Saturday morning we headed over to the beautiful and creative space of The Mattress Factory Museum, before a delicious afternoon spent at Le Cupcake Shoppe on Capital Ave. Sunday, we headed on over to Wexford, PA for a stop at Soergel Orchards, before our final stop at the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh.

Thank you to everyone that came out to visit us and helped us work toward our final goal of donating 5,000 books to Milk+Bookies. You can still be a part of our tour by purchasing a Little Golden Book from our website and stores. Don’t forget for every Little Golden Book purchased from Nod, Random House Children’s Books will donate one to Milk+Bookies! Help us reach our final goal of 5,000 books!

Have an idea for a great location for the #nodtourbus this fall? Email us at nodevents@landofnod.com.