Together: Growing Appetities For God | Book Review

I am so happy I stumbled across Together: Growing Appetites For God by Carrie Ward.  In Ward’s book she talks about giving our kids the “appetite” for God’s word.  Which, I know this is something that I want to instill in my children.  But, what do you do when you have trouble reading the Bible yourself or you are not as educated about it as you would like to be?  Well, that’s where this book comes in.

Carrie Ward helps us mothers that are wanting to show our children the path to a relationship with God, even when we, ourselves, are still taking those beginning steps on our paths.  I am in that place right now, where I am still learning all the greatness that God has placed in the Bible.  Her solution to this problem is, read the Bible with your children. 

Ward wanted to teach her kids about what wonderful stories were in the Bible and she discovered there was no better way to do this than to read the Bible itself.  She found it could be  a little overwhelming when she did the math trying to find out how long it would take her to get though the ENTIRE Bible in just 1 chapter a day.  Ward’s findings were…it would take 8 YEARS to do so.   Although overwhelmed at this finding she never let it discourage her and started a daily worship time during breakfast with her kids by reading 1 chapter a day.  5 years later they finished.  During that journey she discovered some wonderful things happening to her family.

There were some days when she though her children weren’t listening to her read but, after breakfast they would then depart from the table and act out what she has just read.  This gave her heart such joy to see that God’s word was making a difference in their lives.  She was also amazed at how God was helping her to learn all the while she was teaching her kids.  Sometimes reading the Bible aloud can help more than anything. 

I love how this book it written.  It’s straight forward, simple to understand, and a really quick read.  Which is great when you are the mother of young children.  You can get support and tips from Carrie Ward in a small potent package.  This is a wonderful book for helping any mother get started with reading the Bible with her children. 

So, what did Carrie Ward plan to do when she finished the Bible?  Well, she was going to read it again. 

I leave you now so that I may follow in Ward’s footsteps and start reading my way through the Bible with my children. 

*I received a complimentary copy of this book from Moody Publishers for the purpose of this review. *

Praying Circles Around Your Children | Book Review

Praying isn't always easy but, the ones we should be praying for the most are our children.  There is no right or wrong way to pray but, when it comes to our kids we want so much for them we can feel like we are doing it wrong.  In comes Praying Circles Around Your Children by Mark Batterson.  He shows us an easy way to make sure we get everything out of our prayer time regarding our kids.

Physically circling something in prayer is a wonderful way to put your complete intent into it.  But, you can achieve that without "physically" circling someone. According to Batterson,  "Drawing prayer circles is a metaphor that simply means 'to pray without ceasing '"  So...no need to walk in circles around your children unless you feel the need.

In this book Batterson lists the 5 Circles of prayer that you can and will be making for your kids.  Along with what they are and why you use each one.

1. Circling the Promises of God
2. Making Prayer Lists
3. Creating Prayer Mantras
4. Forming Prayer Circles
5. Praying through the Bible

He explains what each circle is and how they become habits when praying.  You don't have to do all 5 of them all the time but, you can combine the circles that you need for a specific purpose, child, or issue.  Each time you pray you might need 1 circle or you might need them all.  

These are just suggestions and methods of how you can pray and Batterson encourages you to find the ones that work for you and to also figure out others that God might be pointing you towards.  

I know that this has helped me with praying for my children.  The habits (yes, they will become habits if you want) have helped me feel more at ease when I pray for my children.  I was always worried about whether I was doing it right.  I don't have those worries anymore!  I just continue to pray circles around my children.  

*I was given a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher for the purpose of this review.*

God Gave Us Christmas | Book Review

Christmas is one of my favorite times of the year and I want to make it a magical time for my children.  I also want to keep the true meaning of Christmas alive and show my kids that this time of year isn't all about receiving presents...it's so much more.  Christmas is the celebration of God's only son's birthday.

God Gave Us Christmas by Lisa Tawn Bergren, with art from David Hohn, is a wonderful explanation of a topic that kids wonder about during this time of year.  Where did Christmas come from?

Little Cub is getting ready for Christmas with his Mama and wonders "Who 'vented Christmas?"  When Mama informs Little Cub that God is the one that invented Christmas, not Santa, Little Cub wants to set out on a journey to find God.

Little Cub doesn't exactly find God but, he finds that God gives us everything.  This journey leads them across their frozen land and shows Little Cub that God gives us everything.  Including the reason for Christmas, Jesus!

Along the way, Mama shows Little Cub that God gives us all...from the lights dancing in the sky, to frozen icebergs and, of course, the King of Kings.  Jesus is the true reason for Christmas and in today's society we have lost the true meaning of Christmas.

This book helps to show our children what we are celebrating and why.  We get so caught up in buying presents and rushing around that our children are getting the wrong message.  This book helps spread the real message of God's love.  He loves us so much that He sent Jesus to Earth and gave us Christmas to celebrate his birth.

This book is beautifully written with amazing illustrations and I plan on making this a part of my Christmas tradition.  I want my kids to know what Christmas is all about.  It's about the only present that matters...Jesus!!!

"I received a copy of this book from the publisher for the purpose of this  review."

The 5 Love Languages of Children | Book Review

Image Credit: Books A Million

Kids are a mystery.  You never know what is going through their heads and what they are going to do next.  The one thing that still evades most parents is how are children showing you they love you especially if they don’t say “I love you” very much.  Well, that’s where The 5 Love Languages of Children comes in.

Gary Chapman, PhD (author of The 5 Love Languages) teams up with Ross Campbell, MD to bring you a new book on the languages of love your children speak and how to speak those languages back to them.  It’s time for parents to become multilingual.

Things you will learn in this book:

• What the 5 different languages are and  a description of each.
• How to identify which language is your child’s primary.
• How to effectively discipline your child without affecting their love tank.
• Using the different languages as applied to learning and anger.
• How to apply the strategies in a marriage or single parent family.

This book should be given out to EVERY parent when they have a new baby.  Granted, according to the authors, it may not necessarily apply to them until they are around the age of 5 but, it’s worth reading since it will help you become a better parent and better understand why your children are acting a certain way.

Chapman and Campbell explain everything in a way that the reader has no problem understanding and can relate to.  It is very easy to implement all of the strategies included in this book.  They even include a list at the end of the 5 love language chapters to give you ideas of how to use that language to speak to your child.

While I was reading this book I came to realize what the language of one of my children was but, since my other one is under the age of 5, it’s still undecided.  According to the book children under the age of 5 are still using all of the languages to show love without having a primary one.

I know that it has made a difference in my parenting just in the short time I have been using these methods. I can speak a language that shows my child that I love him using the language that means the most to him.  I have even realized what MY love language is and how to make sure I use my language combined with my children’s.

If you want to find out your Love Language or your children’s there is a short test you can take over at the 5 Love Language website.  Have fun….I guarantee it will change your parenting and possibly your life.  I know it has for me.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher for the purpose of this review.  

Rainy Days with Family

Image Credit Silent Shot

I woke up this morning to a wonderful day.  It's a rainy day.  I know that to most people this would be a horrible day but, I have always loved rainy days.

Rainy days are meant for staying home, playing games with your kids and just spending time with family.  Most of the time we don't get to do that but, there are times when we just don't do it.  We have the time but, decide that there are more important things instead.  The computer is calling...there is a show on tv we want to watch....there will always be something that we need to do.  Our kids are the most important thing in our lives.  At least they should be.

Kids grow up so fast and if we don't take advantage of the rainy days then we will regret them always.