I.M.H.O.

In My Humble Opinion...

(how well do you know your internet acronyms??)

I've had some questions over the years on how we do family worship (devotions, Bible time, etc).  While I think it looks different in every family and there is certainly not any "right" way to do it, I believe it's so important to gather as a family and worship the Lord together.  It brings a "way-far-out-there-God" into our personal lives and also allows us to share our hearts with our children... to let them see our brokenness and need for a Savior, and also our love-affair with our Heavenly Father.

When Travis is here, he tries to get some time with the children in the Word, but more often than not, he's simply not present for a formal time of family worship.  Which means, that time is usually left for me.  It's not ideal and not even really how we would desire it (we really would love for Travis to lead this time), but it's our lot in life... so we work with it.

Simply because I always am looking for fresh new ideas, especially good books, for time with my children, I thought I'd share our routine and the books we use.  

FAMILY WORSHIP UTENSILS:

++ We begin off our time by gathering on the couch.  When the children were younger,

it was simply a 5-10 minute period, teaching them to sit still beside me and listen.

Now that they've learned that, we open to our memory passage and review the verses.

Right now, we're memorizing Proverbs 2.  

We take one verse a week, and go over it day by day.

I usually make up some sort of hand motions or voice inflections to make it stick,

and the girls are always surpassing me in their ability to memorize.

++ We then read from either the Bible, or a children's Bible.

These are the two we enjoy:

The Jesus Storybook Bible

Classic Bible Storybook

While I think both are excellent, I found it nice to have a variation

(especially after you've read through both multiple times).

++ My kids like to read. A LOT.  So, when the Bible stories are short,

or they simply want more, we love to supplement with the "Miller" books:

My parents read these to us while in our younger years. 

The stories are about a Mennonite family who uses experience and story

to help their four children grow in wisdom, prudence, etc.

Storytime with the Millers is a perfect one for younger children (2-5 years). 

We also have Wisdom with the Millers.  The girls have nearly out-read these

so I think we should be buying the others soon.

++ We end the time with song-singing and prayers.

I copied my sister's idea of choosing a new hymn every month,

alphabetically ("A" hymn for January, "B" for Feb, etc),

so right now, we're on "D", since we began in December.

Again, it's amazing how quickly things are engrained in the children's

minds and hearts by simply repeating daily.

And that's that!  Do you have any good book reviews or ideas that you implement??

books, books, BOOKS

Books are probably one of my top favorite gifts to give/receive as gifts when we're talking children.  Forget the plastic junk, give me some lit-ra-chur!!  In fact, that's what Trav and I are giving to many of our nieces and nephews this year: books.

My husband is not a reader.  Yet, after nearly every weekend, he concurs that new books are a must (as we probably average about 25+ books/day with our girls).  That's why we love libraries and thrift store book sections.  Books for the car, books for the play room, books for the bedrooms.

We also just started getting Puzzle Buzz (a younger version of Highlights) magazine in the mail for Bella and those have provided HOURS of entertainment.  Literally... hours.

Without further ado, I'd like to share a solid list of books (& links) that we enjoy and would make great gifts this Christmas, whether for your children or friends.  These books fall between the ages 2-5ish.  Summer is just now starting to sit through all the bigger books that Bella likes.  I firmly believe that reading higher levels of books to your children is GOOD and beneficial.  Read Charlotte's Web and Stuart Little and The Boxcar Children to your 4-year old.  They might not understand every word, but they'll catch more than you think they do, and hopefully create a love for stories & books in their minds.

Books we love:

The Story of Ferdinand

The Story About Ping

Caps for Sale

A Visitor for Bear

Miss Nelson is Missing

Millions of Cats

Fancy Nancy

Heckedy Peg

The Paper Bag Princess

Animalia

Strega Nona

What Do People Do All Day?

The Little Engine That Could

Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel

The Little House

Miss Rumphius

George and Martha

Stone Soup

Emma's Pet

Bread and Jam for Frances

Authors we love:

Chris Van Allsberg

Don and Audrey Wood

James Marshall

Virginia Lee Burton

Richard Scary

Don Freeman

Syd Hoff

David McPhail

Happy reading, everyone, and may you receive lots of books this Christmas!!

book review (& giveaway!): june 2012

My parents have visited the Czech Republic for the past two summers, teaching an English camp for high school students.  They are about to head out again, and in preparation for their trip, my Dad bought my Mom this book:

Under a Cruel Star: A Life in Prague 1941-1968
by Heda Margolius Kovaly

She finished it last week with those familiar stars in her eyes and with a word of encouragement to read it myself.  I did, in a few short days, and have spent the better part of my afternoon weeping for the lives of so many Czechs during the mid-1900's.

The back of the book summarizes well what's inside Kovaly's, a Jewish woman living in Prague during WWII, short (192 pgs) memoir:

Heda Margolius Kovaly's steady gaze at the lives caught up in Czechoslovakia's tragic fate under the Nazis and then during the Stalin era illuminates the chaotic life of a nation.  Kovaly was deported to concentration camps, escaped from a death march, nearly starved in the postwar years, only to be shattered by her husband's conviction ... and his execution.

What the back of the book doesn't say is how you'll fall in love with the Czechoslovakian people, weep for the misery that they endured decade after decade.  You'll come to see and understand why they turned to Communism, and how they later longed for freedom.  You'll love the human spirit to live, the innate fight for what is right, even when evil prevails.  You'll fall in love with Heda and her country, Czechoslovakia. 


While this book is gripping and horrific, it is uplifting in spite of it all.  While Heda shows her reader what she suffered, she uses decency not to get too graphic, which I (a sensitive-stomach-reader) appreciate.  


And because I love learning, especially learning through a GOOD BOOK and memoir, I am doing a GIVEAWAY.  Simply enter a comment at the end of this post, telling me anything you know about the Czech Republic (even if it's that it's in Europe!), and you're entered to win a copy of Under a Cruel Star.  I'll pick a winner on Friday.  Enjoy!

book review: January 2012

First off, let me thanks the many wise women who commented on my diaper-rash-dilemma.  There are some good suggestions that I'll give a whirl!

--------------------------------------------------------------------

M'kay, I can barely contain myself over this book.  Just thinking about it makes me teary-eyed.  Ahhhhh.... I LOVED LOVED LOOOOOOVED it.

These is My Words

Another gift from my Ma for Christmas.  I had heard raving reviews all around, but couldn't find it in any library (for shame!).  A quick synopsis of the book:

A young woman's journaling of her early teens through adulthood/motherhood during the frontier days of living  in Arizona territories.  This story is based off of the author's own great-grandmother's journals, but is mostly a work of fiction, with many historically accurate facts entertwined.  

Sarah, the writer/main character in the book, grew very near and dear to my heart instantaneously.  Her spunk, love for books/knowledge, vigor and will to live are inspiring.  Her honesty and heart are endearing.  I related over so many aspects as she became a wife and mother.  Her life is tied to the military, as well, which  was very healing/helpful to see written down on paper many of the thoughts I have experienced over the years: the extreme swings of emotions towards my husbands job, the feelings of being abandoned, etc.  Too many pages are dog-eared with paragraphs that I need to read over and over again... 

True to my opinion, a good book is one that will make me laugh out loud and weep.  This did both on many occasion.  To put it down was torture, and to say that it has been occupying my mind and dreams would be an understatement.  I absolutely am over-the-moon with this book.  Good thing it has two sequels... but I will sorely miss this book and all that it is.

Of course, I can't just LEAVE you there... empty-handed!!  In honor of the rarity of a GOOD book, I'm giving away one copy of These is My Words to one lucky winner!  To enter the giveaway:

1. Leave a comment below naming your favorite book

2. Leave a separate comment if you're a follower of the blog.

I'll pick the winner on Wednesday, January 11.  Good luck!  Happy reading...

for us women-folk

In teaching our daughters (or applicable to ourselves!) how to control and use our God-given emotions:

Little girls need help sorting out their emotions - not so they can wallow in them, but so they can learn to control them.

We tell our girls that their feelings are like horses - beautiful, spirited horses.  But they are the riders.  We tell them that God gave them this horse when they were born, and they will ride it their whole life.  God also set us on a path on the top of a mountain together and told us to follow it.  We can see for a long way - there are beautiful flowers, lakes, trees and rainbows.  (We are little girls after all!).  This is how we "walk in the light as He is in the light, and have fellowship with one another" (1 John 1:7).

When our emotions act up, it is like the horse trying to jump the fence and run down into a yucky place full of spiders to get lost in the dark.  A good rider knows what to do when the horse tries to bolt - you pull on the reins!  Turn the horse's head!  Get back on the path!  We also tell our girls that God told us if we see one of them with her horse down in a mud puddle spitting at people who walk by, it is our job to haul them up, willing or unwilling, back to the path. ....

 The goal is not to cripple the horse, but equip the rider.  A well-controlled passionate personality is a powerful thing.  That is what dangerous women are made of.  But a passionate personality that is unbridled can cause a world of damage.  If you see a lot of passion in your little girls, don't be discouraged.  It is just wonderful, raw material. ... But don't treat it lightly either - runaway horses can be a very real threat to your little girls.

 Loving the Little Years, Rachel Jankovic (pg. 29-30)

I'm loving this book.  Full of helpful truths on how to love this stage of mothering, difficult though it may be.  This chapter especially struck me, as my Bella is a spitfire.  But, the more I dwelt on Jankovic's words, the more I saw it applying to me.  Us women-folk could always use a lesson in controlling our emotions...

tuesday's treasures

For lack of brain activity making for an inspiring blog post, I'm sharing some of my sweetest blessings, as of late.

1. The one on the left: She's squishy, she coos, she nuzzles perfectly.  And she's sleeping a sound 9 hours at night, wakes up to eat at 5:30, and heads back to bed for another 4 hour nap.  I'm loving this child.

2. The one on the right: She's spunky, she's hilarious, she's my girl.  Bella's very particular about being touched.  She's NOT a touchy-feely girl.  No ma'am.  She'll tolerate her dad's affection about 50% of the time and everyone else... not so much.  But me... her Mama.  She CRAVES to be touched by me.  Constantly crawling up in my lap, nuzzling under my arm, wrapping her arms around my neck and rubbing our noses together... she loves the affection.  At times, it can frustrate me that she's so opinionated about touch, but lately, I've just been soaking up her affection.  It's my sweet spot in life.

3. The both together:


4. My rings:

I got these beauties for Christmas from Trav.  The top is a sapphire, Bella's birthstone.  And the bottom is turquoise, Summer's birthstone.  They're stackable and just so perfect.  I'm not much of a jewelry fan... but these, I love.  Poor Bella, though.  She thinks that "hers" is black.  Daily she tells me, "I want Summer's BLUE one, Mama.  I don't want my black one."  Check out the Olive Bungalow for details if your interested.

5. This book:

Oh my.  *sigh*  I'm sensing a book review coming soon...

book review: january 2011 & a giveaway!!

Last evening, I finished a phenomenal book.  Mostly read while feeding Summer and in the few moments of quiet in the evenings.  It captured my attention from chapter one... all the way until the end.

Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea, by Barbara Demick is a fascinating account of the secret lives of North Koreans.  By interviewing the lives of six North Korean defectors, she creates a mind-spinning book, allowing us - the Western world - a rare peek inside "the most repressive totalitarian regime today."

The title comes from the propaganda signs and songs that litter the North Korean's world:

LONG LIVE KIM IL-SUNG.

KIM JONG-IL, SUN OF THE 21ST CENTURY.

LET'S LIVE OUR OWN WAY.

WE WILL DO AS THE PARTY TELLS US.

WE HAVE NOTHING TO ENVY IN THE WORLD.

Uri Abogi, our father, we have nothing to envy in the world.

Our house is within the embrace of the Workers' Party.

We are all brothers and sisters.

Even if a sea of fire comes toward us, sweet children do not need to be afraid.

Our father is here.

We have nothing to envy.

I'm usually a novel-reader.  Biographies and history books are interesting, but I usually have to force myself to finish them.  Hence, when I began this book, I wondered how long it would take me to finish.  But, Demick beautifully weaves the stories in this book to read like a novel, all the while pumping your brain full of history of the Koreas, North Korean culture, and much more.  I feel very rich in knowledge after reading this.  That said, my father, who rarely reads a novel and prefers to stick to biographies and intellectual books, loved this book as well.  So, best of both worlds.

I highly recommend this book to anyone.  If nothing less, it opens eyes to the world that is bigger than our American dream.  It proves how much freedom, wealth, and abundance we truly have in our democracy - no matter how flawed.  And for me, it created an awareness of what others - in this very day and age - are living through, and surviving through.  Amazing.  Truly fascinating.

Because I so highly recommend this, I will be GIVING AWAY one copy to a lucky reader!  My gift to you!!  Just leave a comment telling me your most recent favorite read and you are ENTERED!  Dead line to enter ends Friday at midnight.  Good luck and keep reading!!

book review: december 2010

I love my piano.  It's a Yamaha Clavinova and was a gift to me the first year of our marriage, funded by our tax refund.  :-)  I fought getting an electric piano, versus an acoustic, but with all the moving that is bound to happen in our lives, it just made the most sense.  Now, I think I could never look back... unless of course, we wanted to get a baby grand.  It never goes out of tune, it is [fairly] light and detachable (great for moves!), and it has a volume lever, for Heaven's sakes!  As if that doesn't say enough, in a house with almost two children...

Like I mentioned awhile back, I bought some new Christmas sheet music to cheer our family and pleasure my fingers throughout this Advent season.  I didn't buy anything too challenging, because mainly, I just wanted to be able to sit down and play without causing everyone to plug their ears through all my mistakes.  I wanted a moderate/advanced level that sounded intricate and lovely.

That's where this book comes in: The Rose Revealed, by John Purifoy.  I'm in love with his music style.  And his song selection.  The last couple years, I've been introduced to some not-as-well-known Christmas carols and have fallen in love with the words as well as with the score.  While in college, my church sang Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence at a Christmas service and I was deeply struck with the somber tone and lyrics.  Another couple favorites have been Infant Holy, Infant Lowly, and He is Born, the Divine Christ Child.  So, you can imagine my elation upon finding this book, which houses all three of those songs.  I highly recommend this book for any avid pianist.

Speaking of Christmas carols, a classic favorite of mine will always be O, Holy Night, as it is for many.  There is something so thrilling and spectacular about the tune, as well as the words.  Oh, the words.  Have you ever truly stopped to think about how miraculous and true the words are???  I've gotta say, one of my favorite times during Christmas is when I'm driving down the road and hear this song come on public, secular radio stations.  To hear the GOSPEL proclaimed through the airwaves in such clear, precise, politically incorrect terms makes my heart leap.  It really is miraculous.

Long lay the world in sin and error pining.
Till He appeared and the Soul felt its worth. 
A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices,
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn.
Fall on your knees! Oh, hear the angel voices!
O night divine, the night when Christ was born; 

Truly He taught us to love one another,
His law is love and His gospel is peace. 
Chains he shall break, for the slave is our brother.
And in his name all oppression shall cease.
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we,
With all our hearts we praise His holy name.
Christ is the Lord! Then ever, ever praise we,
His power and glory ever more proclaim! 

books

We recently received a new bookshelf.  Handmade.  Pure walnut.  Beautiful.  It was a trade - I taught piano lessons to the children and the father made me a bookcase.  I love it.  But now we need to rearrange our living room... and we all know how much I love doing that.  Not.  So, the shelf remains a mess right now, holding our crazy mess of books, toys, and other junk.  

I love to read.  Before children, I would categorize myself as a voracious reader.  I've always read, for as long as I can remember, and I've always loved books.  I even worked on the campus library all four years during college.  But now, ante-children, reading seems like an expensive pastime I can't afford.  Sad, and maybe not completely true, but it's how it feels.  Maybe it feels this way because when I start a good book, I can do nothing else.  I become like a drunkard and am intoxicated by only the characters and their surrounding world... to the point that dinner doesn't get made, laundry doesn't get done, sleep doesn't happen.  And if I can't enjoy and pour over a book in that fashion, I'd rather just not even start.  Again, sad, and maybe not completely wise, but it's how I feel.  All this to say... I miss reading!

I do have a pile of books and lists of titles that I'm dying to read.  For example, here are some on my bookshelf:
Black Arrows: books I scored at a thrift store yesterday
- The Secret Life of Bees (heard it was good)
- The Yearling (good book!)
- The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (a vintage copy)
- The Book of Virtues (LOVE this book - and for only $1.49, what a steal!)

Pink Arrows: books I'm currently trying to read, bits of them during the week
- A Praying Life, by Paul Miller.  Fantastic read so far.
- Crazy Love, by Francis Chan.  Another wonderful book.

Green Arrows: books I want to read, but am afraid I'll get "carried away" by
- A Million Miles in a Thousand Years, by Donald Miller.
- Lone Survivor, by Marcus Luttrell.

The three books x-ed out at the top: books I've already read...
The book on the bottom of the pile to the left: Baby Names book.  Ugh, don't even get me started...

Bella also loves to read.  And I love to read to her.  Really, is there anything better than story time?  We love to visit the library at least every two weeks and bring home treasure after treasure.  Her current favorites?
- anything by David McPhail
- Blueberries for Sal, by Robert McCloskey.
- anything by Sandra Boynton
- and MOST FAVORITE: Corduroy, by Don Freeman.

Oh my word, she loves Corduroy, or "Coh-du-bear", as she calls him.  The mild bit of obsession she has with him might have to do with the fact that Mimi sewed a pair of green, corduroy overalls for Bella's teddy to match Corduroy.  Now she has her very own Corduroy and she takes him everywhere.  She also likes to call herself Lisa (the girl in the Corduroy book).  And every Tom, Dick, and Harry gets a lesson as to how Corduroy found his button and Mimi sewed them on...

Books.  Aren't they wonderful treats??

a slight variation on book review: June 2010

Oh my goodness. Have you seen this book?  Have you SEEN THIS BOOK???

My dear friend/ex-neighbor's mom sent it to me in the mail, once she heard I was expecting, and I am salivating at the number of delicious sewing projects bound in these leaves.  I loved it at first sight, but each time I sit down to pour over every perfectly photographed page... I come to love it more.

I mean, look at this hoody:

... and it's fully lined with flannel.  Can you just imagine my Bella in a precious one of these come fall?

And these booties:

Ummmm... I just want to make one for every.single.baby I know.  Right now.  Right this very instant.

And this pillow:

Does that not fit my style to a T??  The chair, the monkey, the carpet, the pillow... could all be found in my house.  Well, my dream house.

The best part about this book is that about 95% of the projects in it are doable... And I mean doable in the sense that I would actually make the projects because they seem worthwhile.  ANNNNNDDDD... there are four different sewing genres in the book:
1. Mama Sewing
2. Baby Sewing
3. Family Sewing
4. Nest Sewing

Really, I just wish I could pop on over to your home, with my book tucked lovingly under my arm, sit on your cushy couch, and "ooh" and "ahh" over every page - from 1 to 160.  Even if you aren't a sewer, I'm sure this book and I could convince you otherwise.

Una problema: I have this stupid (and I use that term lightly) writing project hanging over my head.  It's due the end of July.  And I have a horrible case of procrastination.  After I finished Gone With the Wind a couple weeks back (and yes, that book deserves its own post...), I solemnly swore that I would not pick up another book, work on my knitting, sew Bella's quilt or any other projects, until this writing assignment is complete!!

Sooo, it's been my lot in life to simply gaze at this book every evening and decide which project I'll tackle first come August 1.

book review: april 2010

It all started with a high recommendation.  From my Ma.  The woman who knows me best.

She called me two weeks ago.  "Jenny.  I just finished this book called, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society and it's just fab-"
"It's called what?"  I interrupted.
She giggled.  I could tell she was feeling a high after reading a good book, as she's susceptible to do.  "The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society and you'll just LOVE it.  It's so you, in every way.  Oh gosh, Jen, you just HAVE to read it.  You'll love it, you really will.  Oooooh!" she squealed in delight.  "Oh I just can't wait to talk all about it with you once you've finished.  Do you think your library might have it??"

I forgot about the book recommendation by the end of our lengthy conversation, that transversed into other areas of our lives.  She rang me the next day.
"Sooooo.... have you got the book yet?"
"No, Ma.  I've been a little busy."
"Gosh darn it, J.  You're going to love it.  Just order a copy on Amazon.  You're going to want your own copy."

And so I did.

Two days ago I picked it up.  And last night, with a full heart, I hugged the book to my bosom after I turned the final leaf.  Picking up my cell, I phoned my Ma.  She answered immediately.  "Did you finish?"
"Oh Ma," I sighed in a drawn-out breath.
Sympathetic laughter.  "Oh, I knew you'd love it."

*******

When such a feeling of love and admiration and connectivity and fulfillment washes over me, it is then that I have the most trouble picking out mortal words from our broken language to describe the why and wherefore  and how I love.  This type of love should not have to be explained.  It simply is, and to try and pick it apart, like meat from a bone, would mutilate the loveliness.

But I will try - for your sake, my dear readers - in hopes that I can encourage you also to pick up this book.  

- If you bask in the English language and get a warm, fuzzy when each sentence read is perfectly constructed ~ this book is for you.

- If you thrill to study human relationships and marvel how every relationship is dependent on the people involved ~ this book is for you.

- If you are tickled by the uniqueness and idiosyncrasies of each individual person ~ this book is for you.

- If you are ravished by history ~ this book is for you.
- If you need/love/want to laugh/snicker/chuckle/howl ~ this book is for you.
- If you are moved by love - in every sense of the word ~ this book is for you.

Have I convinced you?  Not yet, you say?  Take these snippets and see if you can refuse me yet again:

"Your questions regarding that gentleman are very delicate, very subtle, very much like being smacked in the head with a mallet.  Am I in love with him?  What kind of question is that?  It's a tuba among the flutes, and I expect better of you."

"Reading good books ruins you for enjoying bad books."

"When I got up this morning, the sea was full of sun pennies - and now it all seems to be covered in lemon scrim."

"Kit has chubby little legs and a stern face - dark curls, big grey eyes - and she did not take to me one bit.  She has a very forbidding way about her for a four-year old."  (Reminded me of my Bella)

"All my life I thought that the story was over when the hero and heroine were safely engaged - after all, what's good enough for Jane Austen ought to be good enough for anyone.  But it's a lie."

Ahhhhh... I do hope you pick up this book.  But in the off chance that I sang it's praises too highly in your mind, and it doesn't quite live up to it's august name; or if you hate it, or worse yet, find it BORING... please, keep your cheeky opinion to yourself - or out of my earshot.  I couldn't bear to hear my new best friend slandered.

book review: december 2009

"It's just a matter of thinking about somebody outside oneself. Wives must accept and allow their husbands to have the same feelings, cares, and concerns that they have. Assume it. don't badger your husband for female-like expression of feelings - just assume it, and behave accordingly, with understanding, compassion, and support (89)."

I'm not usually into "self-help" books. Or spiritual/devotional-like books. Once, in a blue moon, I'll find one that I like, but usually, I get bored.... and taper out. After much recommendation from my mom & sister, I picked up this book wondering how long it would take me to finish it... i.e. meaning, if ever.

And... after two weeks of reading it only at bedtime, I will highly sing it's praises. A fast, no-nonsense read, Dr. Laura is a Jewish radio host who deals with unhappy married women who complain way too often about their "slovenly" husbands. In this book, she reveals how feminism has invaded our culture to the point where it is no longer about equality and rights for women, but has reversed it's role to now put down men, verbally & emotionally emasculate them, and teach women how to not "need a man".

Convicting to the core, she addressed many issues that ALL married people struggle with: time, nagging, men's feelings, communication, sex, respect, guy time. I guess I didn't realize how deep our culture has it's claws dug into me, into my mindset. I was blown away with how (unfortunately) I related with the women/men who shared their stories. This book has shown me multiple areas I can grow in and I am actually excited to break away from the typical mold of how America portrays marriage. Multiple callers testify to trying just one of her hints found in the book and are amazed at the positive results in their feelings about their men, husbands' demeanor, and the atmosphere in the home.

Some snippets from the book:
"Too many women look at men with a sense of entitlement versus an opportunity for selflessness. Why?"
"You married a man. Always treat him like one and he will always act like one."
I don't know how many of you actually read the books I advise, but I highly encourage you women to either a) find this on Amazon real cheap (my mom picked up this copy for me at the thrift store!), b) store the title in the back of your memory for when you have time to pick up another book, or c) JUST READ IT. Even if you think your marriage perfect, or even if you're not married, there are wonderful treasures of wisdom and knowledge hidden in these pages. So, read on!

good books

"When the language is uninspired and trite, readers are the losers. If we want children to speak and to write good language, they need to hear beautiful language in their stories - the right word in the right place. We want them to meet memorable characters, like Wilbur and Charlotte when they are younger and characters like Sam, Gamgee, and Frodo when they are older."
- Gladys Hunt, author of Honey for a Child's Heart

My dad was wonderful at this. A keen memory I hold dear is my father coming home with some new book to read to us 5 children at night. He always seemed to pick the most magical, the most engaging, and simply the best books to fill our young, adventurous heads with. Books that made us want to go to bed, simply because we could all cuddle 'round Dad and become part of the extraordinary world of storyland. Stories like "The Hobbit," "Tom's Secret Garden," and "Rip Van Winkle."

To read more about choosing the best books to read to your children (or yourself, for that matter!), visit this blog. And to read the rest of the article from the aforementioned quote, visit here.

book review: august 2009

To every man there openeth

A way, and ways, and a way.

And the high soul climbs the high way,

And the low soul gropes the low.

And in between on the misty flats

The rest drift to and fro.

But to every man there openeth

A high way and a low -

And every man decideth the way his soul shall go.

~ John Okenham

Oh... where do I even start with this book?

My dear mother greatly urged me to read this book, "By Searching," by Isobel Kuhn, while back at home a month ago. Once I picked it up, I read it within a couple days, devouring the great spiritual truths revealed to me.

An autobiography of Isobel Kuhn's early life, she writes in such an honest, transparent way that touched me deeply and moved my walk with my Lord from stagnant to "searching" for Him. A mere 160 pages, I know I will read and re-read this book for years to come.

I don't know how else to say what my heart so wishes to relay, except that if you choose to pick up this book, I trust you will be impacted like I was. Although, I hesitate to say too much, because you may then expect too much from this woman's writing. I know that it really was God working through this book to change me and open my eyes. Either way, try and see if it does the same for you!

family

Some precious moments of our girly...

She's been sleeping like a champ lately... oh so nice for both of us.

Since my camera stopped working, I have been trying to use my camera phone more often. Not the same quality of photos, but photos nonetheless.

My dear Ma and Pa left yesterday for the Middle East, where they will be teaching English for nearly 4 months. I'm so proud of them. Once busy parents of five children, now empty-nesters, my parents are striving to not waste their lives and are leaving America to share The Reason for life. Here's a cute pic of my ma on the airplane before they took off. Pray for them, if God places them on your minds.

Trav and I just started our new "read-together" book last night: "The Hiding Place" by Corrie Ten Boom. I read it awhile ago (probably about 10-12 years ago) and wanted it to be fresh in my mind again. We are enjoying it so far. I'm also reading "A Chance to Die: the Life and Legacy of Amy Carmichael" by Elisabeth Elliot. Very good so far. Reading about other Christians and champions of the Faith is so inspiring and encouraging for my walk with Christ. I urge you all to pick up a book that will whet your heavenly aspirations.

an old friend

After you finish reading a book, do you ever find yourself missing the characters? Longing to know what's been going on with them after the book ended?? Hmmm... I know I'm not the only one, and yet I feel silly fessing up. Travis and I have been reading the Narnia series (the first time for both of us!) ever since late March '08. We finished "The Last Battle" (the last in the series) right before he deployed. This finale of the phenomenal series was definitely my favorite, probably because it resonated so deeply with my desire to know and experience the "more" beyond this temporal world. I have been thinking and thinking and thinking about this book so much lately... I really miss it. I miss reading the whole series, actually. Can't wait til Bella is old enough for me to read these to her.

I have encountered other adults that have been enraptured with these children's books as well, and it's no wonder why after reading this great quote by the author himself, C.S. Lewis:

I was therefore writing “for children” only in the sense that I excluded what I thought they would not like or understand; not in the sense of writing what I intended to be below adult attention. I may of course have been deceived, but the principle at least saves one from being patronizing. I never wrote down to anyone; and whether the opinion condemns or acquits my own work, it certainly is my opinion that a book worth reading only in childhood is not worth reading even then.

I think that these children's books are very profitable for adults - maybe even more so than for children, as we may understand and glean from the allegories in a way that children can't yet.
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Bella update:
Doing well... Ibuprofen is helping a lot with the excessive fussiness. Sleep is getting better. She has now come down with an awful cough, lots of sneezing and green snot. Lovely. This poor child has been through the gamut! We're just enjoying lots of down time, snuggling, and extra TLC.

another book recommendation

I had read this book back in high school. I remember it being a good novel, one that was heart-warming and dear. Now, back at my parents' home, I saw it on the shelf and decided to lend my mind to the old story. I was very blessed by the simple story of the cost of following Jesus, no matter what. "An experiment in obedience" is what the main character, Elisabeth, engages in - needless to say, changing her life. I recommend this book, to challenge yourself and your walk with Christ, to remind you that we are to "follow Jesus, though none go with me."

book review: january 2009

I finally finished "The Shack." It took me a lot longer than I thought it would (about a month), primarily because it didn't grab my attention. But I pushed through because (a) I had heard so many polar opposite opinions and views on it, I had to read it to know for myself what was going on in this literary "phenomenon," and (b) Travis and I had committed to reading it together while he was overseas. Travis finished it before I did - if that tells you anything...
I'll keep my book report simple and to the point. I did not care for the book. It was nothing "life-changing" or anywhere remotely close to "The Pilgrim's Progress" by John Bunyan (to which it has been compared). The portrayal of God was theologically correct [in my view] throughout a majority of the book, yet, I saw it as not a complete representation of Whom God is. God was portrayed as a very loving, intimate God (which He surely is), yet His sovereignty or holiness was definitely not emphasize, if even present. That said, there was a lot that bothered me, simply because of my own taste in literature, not because of the theology (yet there was some of that as well).
Although I could see how someone struggling with the idea that God loves them and is not "out to get them" could be greatly influenced and touched by this book, I personally am not there. I see myself more as struggling to know how to relate to God as holy and worthy of all that I am. I struggle not with knowing that He is a personal God, rather how do I keep from being apathetic and blasé? How do I find reverence in my heart? How do I keep my spirit humble and contrite before him continually? These issues are not addressed in the book, thus, my lack of recommendation.
I could go on about how this book is dangerous for the society that we live in, how God is indeed sovereign over evil yet still good, etc., but I said I'd keep it short and simple. So, here you have it.

hook.line.sinker

Yep. I, too, have been hit by the vampire epidemic.

It happened so suddenly, I was caught unawares. But, the Book #1 was on sale at Wal-Mart for less than $8... and I had heard that this teenage vampire series was all the rage...

... three days later...

... I'm on book two, and enjoying my pumping time immensely.

book review: october 2008

Just finished a fun, good book! Recommended by my dad, I started to pluck away at little snippets of the book while I would pump six times a day. This quickly turned in to stealing away longer bits of time to devour the rest of the book. Not a genre that I would usually pick to read, this Amelia Peabody mystery was two thumbs up! It took me about a quarter of the way through the book to really get into the story line, but it was the authoress' style of writing that kept me laughing, thrilled and thoroughly pleased.

The best part about it: it's the first book in a series of ten!!