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This week in books: Week 17
 Lies Women Believe and the Truth That Sets Them Free by Nancy Leigh DeMoss - I've had this book sitting on my shelf for almost two years and hadn't even so much as cracked it open until the other day. And once I'd cracked it open, I could hardly put it down. While there were many lies in the book I didn't believe, there were many that I realized I have believed or am believing. And these have reared their ugliness in doubts, worries, fears, frustrations, and stress in my life. God does not want me to live in bondage to these things but it is only through the Truths in His Word and through understanding who I am in Christ, that I can have freedom and walk in joy and victory. I do have to mention (you knew it was coming, didn't you?) that the only thing which bothered me about this book was the fictionalized journal entries from Eve. I thought they subtracted from the book rather than added to it and could have been omitted without the book losing any of its strength. However, that said, this little minor bothersome part is not enough to deter me from heartily recommending this book. No matter what age you are or what season of life you are in, I would highly, highly recommend this book. It is a must-read for every woman; the Truths from God's Word which it contains could truly change your life.  The Spotless Bride: The Beauty of a Holy Church Dwelling in a Pagan Culture - As Christians, we are called to walk in holiness, to be "in the world, but not of the world." As such, there should be a marked difference in us because we are to be the spotless Bride of Christ. This CD challenged and inspired me to truly desire holiness and purity in my life--that I might be a testimony to the world and bring glory to the Lord! I would highly recommend this CD.
Read With The Girls:
 Twenty and Ten by Claire Huchet Bishop - During the German occupation of France, twenty French children are sent to a refuge in the mountains. When 10 Jewish children are brought to the school, hiding them seems like a game--until the Nazis arrive, and ten lived depend on the cunning and courage of twenty. This book was an easy read and kept Kathrynne and I quite captivated. A few of the parts were cheesy or unrealistic, the writing wasn't the greatest (it was meant to be written from the viewpoint of a young child, though, so I think that is the reason), and I edited some of the parts to be more appropriate for a three-year-old (some of the children were rather unkind and selfish in parts so we either read it and discussed their lack of God-honoring behavior or I just omitted some of it as I was reading it). Despite these few things, overall, it was a good read. Bible Reading:Finished 2 Kings and am almost finished with 1 Chronicles. I'm hoping to make it to Psalms by July. We'll see! What have you been reading this week? Any excellent recommendations?Labels: Reviews
Review and Giveaway from More Than Alive
Last year, I stumbled across a new company called More Than Alive. When I dug around their website, I was thoroughly impressed. Not only did they carry my favorite vitamins, they also had a large selection of other products, helpful articles, and delicious healthful recipes. The owners, Vlad and Joy, contacted me a few months ago about possibly reviewing some of their products and you better believe I said "yes"! I had been eyeing this Berkey water filter for some time so was thrilled to have an opportunity to try it out. After a few months of using this water filtration system, we are sold. Not only does the Berkey do an incredible job of filtering, but it is so easy to take care of and refill. Since we only have a small family right now, the Berkey Light is perfect as it holds 2.75 gallons--we only have to refill it once every other day as opposed to multiple times per day like we had been doing with the Brita pitchers. Best of all, for the price, this is an excellent deal--you no longer have to pay for bottled water and you don't have to worry about replacing filters! Plus, this system is much less expensive than water distillation systems or Reverse Osmosis systems: With respect to cost per gallon of water, calculated upon the cost per gallon for replacement filters and energy costs, Distillation systems and RO systems properly maintained typically cost between 35-65 cents per gallon. A Berkey system typically costs about 1.6 cents per gallon. (Read more here.)
Water is so good for you, but water that contains harmful chemicals is not going to do you any good. Knowing that our water has been filtered through such a high-quality filter has brought great relief to me; I don't have to worry about nasty contaminants in our water anymore! Berkeys come in a variety of sizes, the largest of which holds up to six gallons of water so no matter your family size, there is a Berkey for you!  More Than Alive also sent me a bunch of their organic herbal teas to try out. As a tea aficionado, was I ever excited! And I have loved their teas--especially the Peppermint Leaf. I've never been much for peppermint tea, but there's something about this tea that I've become addicted to; in fact, I normally drink one to two cups of it everyday and have almost polished off the huge bag they sent me! Once again, their tea prices are extremely reasonable--and they always give you a little extra just because they are generous like that. They just added some new flavors and, I must say, I think I'm going to have to buy some of this tea to drink the next time I'm having a "blah" day. Doesn't it just look like the perfect remedy? ---------------
For those who are interested in placing an order, More Than Alive has graciously offered to give a 10% discount on any order placed through Saturday from my blog readers if you use coupon code k2c9w at checkout. I would heartily encourage you to check out their website--they have many, many wonderful products to choose from and their customer service is also excellent. You will not be disappointed in this company.
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And now for the giveaway... Who wants to win some delicious organic tea? Two winners will have the opportunity to choose two pounds of tea from More Than Alive. Here's how to enter to win:
::Visit More Than Alive and choose which two flavors of tea sound most tantalizing to you.
::Come back here and leave a comment with your top two tea picks (please include your name and email address or blog address so I can contact you if you win!).
:: I will randomly choose two winners on Monday and will announce them next Tuesday.
::This giveaway is only open to residents of the U.S. Labels: Giveaways, Reviews
This week in books: Weeks 13, 14, 15, and 16
After a rather long and unplanned sabbatical from much reading, I'm finally able to post another This Week in Books feature. Here's what I read the last few weeks: The Growing Homeschool: Integrating Babies and Toddlers into Your Already Busy Schedule While the layout and organization of this book could use some improvement, there were many helpful and encouraging thoughts and ideas shared. If you are a mom who is trying to juggle homeschooling with toddlers, you'll especially find this book insightful. The Strenuous Life - As some of you know, Teddy Roosevelt is a man I greatly admire. At the homeschool conference, my husband found this little reprinted book of a speech Roosevelt gave when he was still alive. Jesse quickly snatched it up for me knowing I would be thoroughly excited. And I certainly was! Since then, read it once and then he read it aloud to me as well. What an inspiring man and message! Here's the closing paragraph: "I preach to you, then, my countrymen, that our country calls not for the life of ease but for the life of strenuous endeavor. The twentieth century looms before us big with the fate of many nations. If we stand idly by, if we seek merely swollen, slothful ease and ignoble peace, if we shrink from the hard contests where men must win at hazard of their lives and at the risk of all they hold dear, then the bolder and stronger peoples will pass us by, and will win for themselves the domination of the world.
Let us therefore boldly face the life of strife, resolute to do our duty well and manfully; resolute to uphold righteousness by deed and by word; resolute to be both honest and brave, to serve high ideals, yet to use practical methods. Above all, let us shrink from no strife, moral or physical, within or without the nation, provided we are certain that the strife is justified, for it is only through strife, through hard and dangerous endeavor, that we shall ultimately win the goal of true national greatness."
You can read the full speech in its entirety here. That's it for the book reviews today. Hopefully, I'll be able to carve out more time for reading over the next few months so that I can be more faithful about posting this weekly feature. And maybe it will even go back to being a weekly feature! Bible Reading:Finished 2 Samuel, 1 Kings, and am working my way through 2 Kings; I need to pick up the pace as I've been moving rather slowly through this recently and only getting in 1-3 chapters per day as opposed to my goal of four chapters. What have you been reading recently? Any terrific book recommendations for me? (Not that I need to add to my already-huge stack of books waiting to be read, but I'd still love to hear!) Labels: Reviews
This week in books: Week 12
 Heaven at Home: Establishing and Enjoying a Peaceful Home by Ginger Plowman - I recently received a copy of this book and devoured it this week. Ginger's encouragement to make our homes Christ-centered havens to proclaim the glory of God to the world was refreshing and uplifting. Her style of writing is easy-to-read and much of this book I found to be spot-on Biblical. My only "beef" with the book, if I had one, would be the section on structuring your child's day and disciplining your child. While I'm all for Biblical discipline and I also think order and routine are very helpful to young children, I failed to see her talk much about enjoying your child and delighting in the calling of motherhood. I'm anxious to see if she addresses this at length in Don't Make Me Count to Three.
That said, if you are looking for encouragement as a wife, mother, or homemaker, I think you will find much challenge and inspiration in this volume. Audios:I listened to these two podcasts from Sovereign Grace Ministries this week and was thoroughly challenged by them--highly recommended!
Bible Reading:
I finished 1 Samuel this week, currently reading 2 Samuel and on track to complete my goal of reading through the Bible this year!
Currently Reading:
Beloved Bride by Bill Potter
In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan
No Excuses by Kyle Maynard What books have you been reading? Any great recommendations?Labels: Reviews
This Week in Books - Weeks 9, 10, and 11
Once again, I've gotten behind in posting what I've been reading, so here's what I've read over the last three weeks:
(No pictures of the books as Blogger is being fussy and won't post them for me.)
The 15-Minute Meal Planner by Emilie Barnes and Sue Gregg - I was really excited to read this book hoping that it would give me further inspiration to be more organized and efficient in the kitchen. Sadly, I found it to be rather boring, tedious, and lacking in new-to-me information and I ended up skimming a lot of it. If you are completely new to healthy eating or kitchen management, I'm sure there might be a lot of useful information in it. However, I found it to not live up to its name--it includes a lot of information on things one should be doing and should not doing when it comes to healthy eating, but this book was short on practical, real-life, down-to-earth, "how do I plan a healthful menu in a matter of minutes?" type of help. If you've read it and feel differently, I'd love to hear. Maybe I just had too high of hopes for it and that's why I was disappointed.
Feminine Appeal by Carolyn Mahaney - I loved this book and would highly recommend that all Christian women get a copy and read it. It would also be excellent to go through with your older daughters or in a group of a few women--like I had the privilege of doing the last few months! I especially appreciated Carolyn's encouragement for us to remember the reason why we do everything we do--that our lives might be a testimony to the world of the glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ. Read the foreword and first chapter here. Hand That Rocks the Cradle: 400 Classic Books for Children by Nathaniel Bluedorn - As we're in the process of building our library and looking for wholesome read-aloud books, I thoroughly enjoyed this collection of 400 classic book reviews. The reviews are alphabetized by author and each is given a rating of the level recommended to read it to. I added a long list of books to our library list from this book and was very inspired to continue making reading a high priority to our children--even when they are young. Read the introduction here. See sample pages of this book here.Bible Reading:Finished Ruth and Judges and am trying to get back on track with reading four chapters/day as sickness threw me off. Labels: Reviews
This Week in Books: Week 8
 The Adventure of Missionary Heroism by John Lambert - We finished reading this recently-reprinted volume as a family this week and would highly recommend it. What's more thrilling than exciting stories of courageous men and women who left earthly comforts and sacrificed all to bring the Gospel to uncivilized tribes of savages and cannibals? This book is brimming with fascinating stories to keep the whole family on the edge of their seats!  The Endurance: Shackleton's Legendary Antarctic Expedition (DVD) - We checked this DVD out from the library and Kathrynne and I watched bits of it everyday while folding laundry. Though I've studied quite a bit on Shackleton and this incredible story, I never cease to be amazed and challenged each time I hear it. This film uses real photos and film footage as well as many excerpts from eye witness journals to tell this amazing story of men who braved more cold, hardship, and setback than we can even possibly imagine. (Note: The film does contain a few crude expressions.)
 Stop Dating the Church: Fall in Love With the Family of God by Josh Harris - This small book is very thought-provoking and much-needed in this day of superficial "Christianity" where going to church has often become just another good deed to check off our to-do list. I especially appreciated Josh's points on what to look for in a Biblical church and felt they were right on. This book motivated me to think about what I can do in this season of my life to contribute to our local church in a God-honoring fashion. You see, ever since I was old enough to remember, I was very active in our local church. Since becoming a mom, I've been unable to do much of what I used to be able to as far as serving in the church goes. Sometimes I think it is easy for me to not go out of my way to look for opportunities to minister in our church Body because I'm busy with mothering. At this season, God hasn't called me to be spending a few days each week ministering in other family's homes or serving every week in the music ministry or being in charge of the kitchen during church dinners--all things I did back before I had children. However, that doesn't mean I can't do anything. God used this book to convict me of selfishness on my part in not making more of a conscious effort to see what I can do. This book sparked many ideas of things I can do which I haven't been doing as faithfully as I should--praying for our church leaders and fellow Believers, going to church with an attitude to minister and serve, and seeking to be an encouragement to those who seem weary and burdened.
It might not seem like much, but I can do something. God hasn't called me to be a lifeless, useless "lump on a log" in our local church during this season of mothering young children. I'm part of the Body of Christ and I need to remember that all members are to be working together for the glory of God!  Where's Mom? The High Calling of Wives and Mothers by Dorothy Kelley Patterson - I loved this book and would recommend that all wives and mothers--or anyone who hopes to be such--read this little book. It was an encouragement to me to press on, even during the difficult days, even when it seems like I'm doing the same thing over and over and over... It is worth it because what I am doing is the most important work I could be doing right now! By the way, you can read parts of this book online here.Bible Reading: I finished Deuteronomy this week and am almost finished with Joshua as well! Just this week, I have started journaling a bit during my devotions and it has blessed and strengthened my heart so much to be writing down how God is using His Word to uplift and encourage me. Why did I ever stop doing this in the first place? Labels: Reviews
Supermom's Simple Guide to Healthier Eating
If you're anything like me, you want to do the best job you can at providing wholesome, nourishing foods for your family. Sometimes, though, the thought of figuring out how to do this can be daunting. You're already drowning in dirty dishes, dirty diapers, and dirty laundry and you feel that you have no time or energy to add in cooking wholesome meals from scratch to your schedule. Never fear because my friend, Erica Johns, also known as "Supermom"--and she is an amazing woman!--is here to help you. She just released a brand-new course to help you babystep your way to better nutrition.  Let me tell you, as we seek to make improvements little bit, by little bit in our family's diet, Erica's course, Supermom's Simple Guide to Healthier Eating was extremely encouraging and inspiring to me. From the basics of where to start and how to go about implementing changes without spending lots of time and money to do so, to delicious recipes and helpful resources, Erica covers it all! More than just lots of practical help and information, what you will take away from this course is down-home encouragement--you can do this! Instead of leaving me feeling flustered, frustrated, and burdened down like many healthy-eating books I've read in the past, Erica's simple tips, ideas, and suggestions gave me great excitement about continuing on towards healthier eating and making slow and steady changes in the right direction! After reading through this course, I knew so many of you would want to get your own copy. I asked Erica if she'd be willing to offer a really great deal for my readers. You know what? I think she knows my definition of "a really great deal" because click here to see what she cooked up.Not only is she offering you her course at a discounted price, she's also generously throwing in her ebook, Supermom's Guide to Simple Salads, plus a bunch of other great freebies. All for--get this--only $8.97! Now that's what a I call "a really great deal"! It's a steal-of-a-deal, in fact, and you will get every penny's worth and more for that price. Go here to read all about her course and to get in on this special offer. The $8.97 offer is only good through Friday so don't delay! Labels: Reviews, Special Offers
This week in books - Week 7
 Get More Done in Less Time (by Donna Otto) - This was one of the most motivational books I've read in a while and would highly recommend it. Donna's style is engaging and encouraging; she makes you feel like "Yes, I can do this!" Well, at least that's what happened to me.
I've used a planner for as long as I can remember, but in the past two years, I've fallen out of the habit of really utilizing one much more than a daily to-do list (I use Franklin Covey daily planning pages and that's about it). I also have a separate binder with our schedule and a home cleaning schedule in it that works pretty well, too. Because of both of these, I suppose you could say I was fairly organized and had a decent plan and framework in place. However, I've really been feeling like having more organization in my life could allow me to, well, get more done in less time. That my lack of organization and forethought in a number of areas was wasting precious time and energy. There are so many things that I want to do, would like to do, or hope to do, yet my days are already quite full and I'm often running behind. Donna's ideas and inspiration gave me hope that there's room for lots of improvement. I just have to stop making excuses and start doing it. My husband and I recently went out on a date and one question I asked him during the course of the evening was, "How can I best be your help meet during this season of our lives?" I thought he'd respond that I could give him more words of affirmation (his love language), or that he'd really like for me to help him research and complete this, that, or a number of other big projects he's currently working on. Instead, he surprised me by saying, "The way you can help me the most right now is by focusing more on managing our home well."
Woah! That's all? Really? As we talked more, I realized just how much a well-running, organized home is a blessing and help to him. I guess I knew it was somewhat important, but I never thought of it as the most important way I can help him right now. Armed with this knowledge, I've re-prioritized a number of things and am setting out, with God's grace and enablement, to be the best home manager I can be. Donna's book couldn't have come at a more timely moment--especially her ideas for utilizing a planner to be more organized. With Jesse's encouragement, I purchased more planning pages from GraceWorks and set aside every Saturday morning to go to a nearby coffeeshop and have a two-hour "retreat" to plan and prepare for the next week. I've only had one planning session and I've already seen a major improvement in my overall organization and our home has been running so much more smoothly. I feel like I have so much room for improvement, but I'm excited to become more organized so that I can get more done. As I learn and implement things, I'll be keeping you all posted!  What's the Difference? Manhood and Womanhood Defined According to the Bible (by John Piper) - I really liked the first half of this book which was defining manhood. In this day and age of weak and wimpy men, Piper gives a clarion call for men to rise up and be gentlemen, Godly men--leaders of their homes, their families, and their churches. I loved his concise and Biblical viewpoints on what makes a man a true man--it's not egotistical authoritarianism, it's humble, self-sacrificial servant-leadership. The second half, on womanhood, disappointed me. It wasn't so much that I necessarily disagreed with it, I just thought it was lacking. I sensed that Piper was trying hard to not offend anyone anymore than he must. In this "walking on eggshells," I felt he failed to hold up the glorious, noble, and worthy calling of women to be help meets, mothers, daughters, women of valor and virtue, as God created them to be. It is a glorious, magnificent calling and I would have loved to see that brought more to light. Bible Reading: I finished Numbers this week and am on track to finish Deuteronomy in the next few days! Labels: Reviews
This week in books - Week 4, 5, and 6
You'll have to pardon me because I skipped out on posting This Week in Books for two weeks--I got busy with other things and never got it done. So here's the run-down on what I read/listened to during the past three weeks:  The Best of the Entrepreneurial Bootcamp: Twenty Messages Explaining a Real-World Vision for Biblically-Principled Entrepreneurship and Families Working Together is a series of CDs I listened to in little snippets of time while cleaning, cooking, and exercising over the last two months. It is packed to the gills with information, encouragement, inspiration, and practical ideas. The biggest challenge I took away from all of these CDs was a motivation to instill self-discipline and a strong work ethic in our children--even from a young age. I was also very inspired to be looking more for practical, specific ways I can further my husband's good name and make my first priority in life to be his help meet (more on what God is teaching me regarding this in a later post). I don't highly recommend something unless I truly feel it is exceptional, but I would highly recommend this series. It is well-worth the investment.  Family Fellowship by Jonathan and Maranatha Owens was an interesting and quick read. Most of the information was based upon To Train Up a Child and other resources by No Greater Joy so I was quite familiar with it and didn't feel like there was anything really new in it. However, I did appreciate their encouragement to parents to really focus on reaching the heart and building relationships with your children--not just emphasizing outward obedience. I was inspired to work more with Kathrynne on having a servant's heart and taking initiative (hopefully, I'll be sharing a post on this in the near future).  The Family Manager by Kathy Peel was filled with lots of helpful tips and encouragement for homemakers, wives, and mothers. I appreciated Kathy's acknowledgment of the important role homemakers play and her challenge for us women to devote ourselves to really becoming more skilled and proficient in managing our homes and families. I disagreed with Peel's promotion of egalitarian marriages and also thought this book, while mentioning God occasionally, overlooked a huge reason for why we as Christian women are to love our husbands, love our children, and be managers of our homes--so that our marriages, our families, and our homes can shine the light of the Gospel to the world. Despite these differences with the author, this book does have some good ideas and if you are struggling in area of home management, you'd probably find some worthwhile tips and help. Watched/Read and Didn't Like:Becoming Jane - I enjoy the Jane Austen movies, so thought I'd enjoy this one, but I found it boring, disappointing, and well, just not something I'd recommend because there wasn't really any good substance to it. Just a pretty blah movie. The Judge Who Stole Christmas by Randy Singer - My husband and I read almost zero fiction aside from a few legal fiction books. We recently picked up a few by Randy Singer and really enjoyed them so I was hoping this would be just as good. It was another disappointment. Again, no substance, some slightly crude language, and just a boring plot with no real substantive meaning. I kept reading it because I was hoping that the end would be a real zinger. Not so. And this is why I think I should just avoid fiction altogether. Bible Reading Update:
I've been slowly plodding through Numbers the last few weeks and am happy to report I should finish the book tomorrow! Hopefully I'll then be able to pick up the pace in my read-through-the-Bible-in-a-year plan after that. I had been doing really well at reading 4 chapters per day, but I found that I had to take it a bit slower in Numbers since most of the chapters were quite long and detailed. It's been awhile since I've read that book! So that's what I've been reading, listening to, and watching the last three weeks. What about you? Any great recommendations to send my way? Labels: Home Management and Organization, Reviews
Voddie Baucham: "Christians will not win the culture war until they remove their children from Government Schools."
(This post was supposed to be This Week in Books: Week 3 - I kind of got long-winded in the first review, though!)
 Jesse and I watched the two-DVD set, The Children of Caeser by Dr. Voddie Baucham this past Sunday. Like we have found all of his materials to be, these messages were thought-provoking and Scripturally-sound. Dr. Baucham's thesis is that Christians will not win the culture war until they remove their children from Government Schools. I know this is a touchy subject and I've made a lot of folks upset in the past with how dogmatic I am that Christians should have no part in the government school system. However, I would challenge any Christian to give me a Scriptural basis for sending young children away from their parents for eight or more hours a day to be indoctrinated by a system which is anti-God. You can search the Scriptures high and low, but it isn't there. If we don't have a Biblical basis for why we do what we do, how can we call ourselves Christ-followers? As parents, it is our responsibility before God to train up our children. We are called by God to shape their world view. How can we do this in our children's formative years if we are barely even spending any quality time with them at all? Devoid of parental involvement and oversight, peers, humanistic teachers, the media and modern entertainment industry, and a variety of other forces will gladly take our place. I know that those last two paragraphs were really strong, maybe blatantly over-the-top strong for some of you. Please know that it is not my intent to offend, but to really encourage you to think Biblically, to use Scripture as your Guide for all of life and practice. And lest you homeschoolers think you get off the hook in this post, let me say a few words to you: It is not enough for us to just pull our children out of the public school system or to remove wrong influences. No, we need to be filling our children's lives with the good, the wholesome, the God-honoring. Sometimes I think we become complacent in thinking that as long as we avoid humanistic philosophies or corrupt peers, our children will be okay. We wrongfully assume that being a homeschooler means our children will automatically turn out alright. I've been around homeschoolers long enough to know it doesn't work that way. As parents we must be ever vigilant. We must constantly be praying for our children, constantly modeling a God-honoring life before them, constantly pouring into them God's Truths, and most of all, to be raising our children to be Godly adults.My goal as a parent is to work myself out of a job. I want to raise my children up to submit to my authority so that they learn, at an early age, to submit to God's Authority. I want to train them to make wise decisions now with my guidance so that someday they will look to the Lord for guidance. Jesse and I pray without ceasing that our girls would love the Lord with all of their hearts. Yes, we want to protect them from the evils of the world. Yes, we want them to be pure. Yes, we want them to be wise and discerning. Yes, we want to see them succeed in life. But all of that is not enough - all that is meaningless, in fact - if they do not love the Lord with all their hearts. Homeschooled or public schooled, it really doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things, if they are not sold-out, impassioned soldiers of the Cross of Christ. And so yes, we feel very strongly that God has called us to homeschool our children, but it goes so much deeper than academic education. We are called to train up these precious little ones that God has given us to be shot out as well-equipped arrows - to pierce through the sin and darkness of this world, to mightily impact our culture for the glory of God. Related: If you are unfamiliar with Voddie Baucham, I highly encourage you to listen to this sermon and also, if possible, to buy a copy of his book, Family Driven Faith. It was by far one of the best books I read in 2007. Also finished this week:Healthy Habits - 20 simple ways to healthier living. Simple ideas and a quick read. I was challenged to make more of an effort to cut back on sugar consumption. Sweet and Sugar-Free An All-Natural Fruit-Sweetened Dessert Cookbook - Lots of great-looking recipes, some which I've added to my list to try soon. Definitely worth checking out if you have a sweet-tooth but are hoping to cut back on sugar. Exodus - I am so enjoying reading straight through the Bible again! And reading around 4 chapters per day seems to be the perfect length. I have been amazed, once again, at just how normal the heroes of the Bible are - falling into sin, struggling again and again - and yet God used these very human people for His great glory! [ Note: I'm closing comments to this post because I know this is a hot topic and I don't have the time or desire to moderate a debate on the subject right now. I do encourage you to examine your own life and your own family's decisions and actions in light of Scripture, as this DVD series has caused me to do. Feel free to email me privately if you have any comments.] Labels: Hot Topics, Mothering, Reviews
This week in books: Week 2
 Baby's First Foods: A Mother's Guide to Whole Grains and Family Nourishment by Theresa Powers is an easy read and a helpful resource for young moms who are looking for some ideas for introducing healthful foods to their young child. The author covers when to start your baby on solid foods and the best foods to introduce first, how to prepare your own baby foods, a two-month full menu for food introduction, and recipes for the family which your baby can also eat. There were also a number of healthful recipes for the whole family and in-depth information on making bread from whole grains. The last chapter included tidbits of wisdom from older women on journaling your baby's life stories, raising children in the Lord, using cloth diapers, and a few other helpful ideas. Most of the book was made up of information I was already familiar with and I found some of it to be a bit disjointed (the last chapter especially). I also would tend to disagree with some of her thoughts on the introduction of solid foods (I know I'm in the minority, but so far, we've opted not to introduce solid foods until closer to a year with both of our girls. Call me a "crunchy" breast-feeding mama!). But overall, this book would be a good resource for a young mom who isn't familiar with making your own baby food from scratch or for a mother who wants to encourage her family towards more healthful eating. Just for fun: What have you been reading this week? Any recommendations to send my way? Also, for those of you who are moms: I love to hear when you introduce(d) solid foods to your babies. Early? Later? Am I in the minority here as far as waiting to introduce solid foods until closer to a year? (Just as a little reminder, this is just a light-hearted discussion about what worked for you and what you chose to do. As always, comments which are questioning or criticizing myself or other commentor's choices in parenting decisions will be deleted.) Labels: Reviews
Tuesday review and giveaway: Extend-a-Bibs
Last week's winner: Miss Ashley from PA
 All of you with little people at your house are going to love this giveaway from Seams of Love. They have graciously offered to give away one of their practical and versatile Extend-a-Bibs.Let me tell you, this is the best bib I've ever come by. Audrey Stucker, the mom who came up with this innovative bib idea, sent me a bib for each of my girls and I am hooked. There is no going back to normal bibs again.  These adorable bibs come in a variety of colors and serve a dual purpose - the front snaps up to form a crumb catcher for snack time, then you can unsnap it for a full length bib that extends to over 17" long - almost like an apron. Made up of two layers of ultra soft, absorbent flannel, you will love these bibs. Try them and I'm guessing you decide you'll never go back to anything else again, too! To enter to win your own Extend-a-Bib:::Visit Seams of Love and pick your favorite bib fabric or item from their website.
::Come back here and leave a comment telling us what product you liked best (be sure to leave your email or blog address so I can contact you if you win!).
::I'll leave comments open until Saturday and will post the winner along with next Tuesday's giveaway.
::This giveaway is open to U.S. residents only. Labels: Giveaways, Reviews
This week in books: Week 1
Many months ago, I tried to follow Catherine's example and start doing a "This Week in Books" series. With complications in my pregnancy and then having a newborn, I fell woefully behind on all reading so I abandoned my great intentions. With none of the above excuses now, I am embarking again on this series of highlighting and posting short reviews of what books I read each week. I might also throw in some family-friendly movie reviews every now and then or children's books we've read, or any other types of media our family finds wholesome that week. This week I read through two books - both which I'm excited to tell you about:
 Deceptively Delicious - This cookbook doesn't really count for much actual reading but I wanted to mention it anyway since I enjoyed it so much. Though I'm not fond of the name ( deceiving anyone - even for the sake of getting them to consume vegetables - is not God-honoring) and there's some psycho-babble parenting stuff you'll need to wade through, this book is packed with great recipes and inspiration. The premise of the book is to hide various vegetable purees in everyday foods that your children like and readily - muffins, pancakes, brownies, etc. - and thus boost their nutritional value. Most of the recipes looked not only appetizing, but also quite good for you. I'd probably adjust them somewhat since I'm more a believer in the full-fat, whole-foods approach (ala Nourishing Traditions), but the recipes would be very easy to adjust. Most of all, this book provided inspiration to an already-experimental cook. I wouldn't have ever thought to put pureed beets in pancake batter and make pink pancakes but you bet I'll be trying that now. Or, pureed spinach in brownies? I'm also game. And since I have a knack for finding produce markdowns, my brain is spinning at how I can buy them all up at rock-bottom prices, fill up my freezer with purees, and get way more nutrition into myself and my family than I ever thought about before!  The Busy Mom's Guide to Simple Living - I think I've been living under a rock or something, but I've never seen or heard of this excellent book until I stumbled across it at our local library. I snatched it up and was ever so glad I did! Brimming with wisdom, advice, ideas, and much food for thought, this homeschool mother of seven covers a whole lot of ground in this simple little volume. I was inspired, challenged, convicted, and motivated. I appreciated Jackie's home organization ideas, her heart for ministering to others on a limited budget, her humility and realness, her sage advice to keep it simple and focus on the most important things in life, and her simplistic ideas for baby-stepping your way to better nutrition. Like usual, I didn't agree 100% with everything she said and some of the financial information was outdated, but the overall message of this book is timeless. I especially enjoyed all of the resources and books the author recommended; I added a bunch of them to my ever-growing to-read list. For any mother who feels like she wants to improve as a family nutritionist and home economist, who would like to be stretched in her thinking as far as necessities go, or who could just use some home management ideas, this book is definitely worth your time. What have you been reading recently? Any must-read recommendations for me?Labels: Health and Nutrition, Homemaking, Mothering, Recipes, Reviews
My all-time favorite devotional book
 We discussed Bible reading plans earlier this week and it reminded me that I have never recommended my favorite devotional book. I'll admit that many of the modern devotional books I've seen look more like "fluff" than anything, however, Daily Light on the Daily Path is anything but fluff. In fact, it is just straight Scripture divided into a theme for each morning and evening of every day in a year.
For any of you mamas who are at a season in your life when brushing your teeth is an accomplishment (anyone else been there, done that?!) and the thought of reading a whole chapter of the Bible in a day might seem daunting, I highly recommend you check out Daily Light on the Daily Path. After Kaitlynn was first born and I was trying to learn to juggle two littles I confided to my mom that my biggest struggle was finding quiet time to read God's Word. She encouraged me to just try to find five minutes each day to pray and read through the Daily Light verses. In the busy non-stop tiring days and sleepless nights a few months back, those five minutes were a real balm to my spirit. I've now been able to go back to more extended Bible reading and prayer (well, at least normally I get in more than 5 minutes in a day!), but I still love to pull out the Daily Light any time I'm needing some extra encouragement throughout the day. This great devotional book isn't just for those who feel like they are barely surviving, I highly recommend it for anyone who wants to incorporate more Scripture into their lives on a daily basis. Set it on your nightstand and read it first thing in the morning and last thing before you go to bed. Or, put it by your table and read it aloud before breakfast and dinner. Or, do as I do sometimes and read it along with your morning Bible reading. It's versatile, it's simple, and it's life-changing. By the way, do you have a favorite devotional book? Tell us about it!
Graphic from Art.com
Labels: Faith, Reviews
Seasons at Home magazine - Special offer!
 One of the new things we'll be featuring here is a weekly review and special offer for my blog readers only. I'm so excited to introduce you to a great line-up of companies and products I love and offer some limited-time specials, too! Today's special offer comes from Seasons at Home magazine - a brand-new full-color 76-page magazine for women and young women who love all things domestic. I have to tell you, when I got my copy of this magazine in the mail, I was so excited. It is a beautiful magazine put together by Christian moms and women and covers a vast variety of home-centered topics. Each issue is packed from cover-to-cover with delicious recipes complete with pictures, step-by-step craft tutorials, decorating ideas, preschooling and homeschooling inspiration, creative gift and hospitality ideas, old-fashioned family fun, and there's even a special section devoted to encouraging young women. And did I mention it's done in full color and on high-quality paper? There are even pull-out patterns for various craft projects. You can't but help to be inspired through the pages of this delightful magazine and, if anything, the pictures of mouth-water recipes are enough to motivate you to whip out your apron and get busy baking! Special Offer!For a limited time, Theresa Powers, publisher of Seasons at Home magazine, has offered to give away a free issue of this lovely magazine to any of you who order a one-year subscription. PLUS, you'll get a free copy of the 28-page ebook, Making Bread with Whole Grains. Here's how to get this special offer:Go here and add the one-year subscription to your cart. Then click on the box at the bottom to add the holiday issue. When you go to checkout, type in coupon code CPBW101.
And, that's it! If you long to make your home warm and inviting, subscribe today. I promise that you won't be disappointed.Labels: Reviews, Special Offers
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Lies Women Believe and the Truth That Sets Them Free by Nancy Leigh DeMoss - I've had this book sitting on my shelf for almost two years and hadn't even so much as cracked it open until the other day. And once I'd cracked it open, I could hardly put it down.
The Spotless Bride: The Beauty of a Holy Church Dwelling in a Pagan Culture - As Christians, we are called to walk in holiness, to be "in the world, but not of the world." As such, there should be a marked difference in us because we are to be the spotless Bride of Christ. This CD challenged and inspired me to truly desire holiness and purity in my life--that I might be a testimony to the world and bring glory to the Lord! I would highly recommend this CD.
Twenty and Ten by Claire Huchet Bishop - During the German occupation of France, twenty French children are sent to a refuge in the mountains. When 10 Jewish children are brought to the school, hiding them seems like a game--until the Nazis arrive, and ten lived depend on the cunning and courage of twenty.
