Review: Walking with God in the Season of Motherhood

     Walking with God in the Season of Motherhood is touted as "an eleven-week devotional Bible study." I have to admit that as a mother of 4 young children  (and a fifth on the way), this devotional has taken me longer than the allotted 11 weeks to complete! However, I  have enjoyed the journey into scripture as it applies to my life as a mom. This devotional offers practical topics and calls mothers into a deeper relationship with Christ. As author Melissa B. Kruger writes in her introduction, "The goal of this study is not necessarily to figure out specific parenting techniques or strategies but to walk with the Lord in the busy season of motherhood and let His presence infuse and shape our lives." The focus is on the mother's relationship with God and how that time spent with Christ will positively affect her marriage and family.
     The main ideas of the book are:
·         Understand and pursue your purpose as a mother
·         Live out your true priorities
·         Entrust your child to God
·         Bear the fruit of the Spirit in your everyday interactions
·         Recover from Perfect Mom Syndrome (PMS)

     I love that all the scripture verses are printed out within the pages of the book. This makes it easy to grab the book when I have a few minutes or to throw it in the diaper bag to read while out somewhere. The book includes blank spaces for reflection upon scripture or ideas presented in the book. The author writes in an easy to follow manner and instills the importance of making time for God in our daily lives.
     I have enjoyed this study and would recommend it to others.


I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

The Pizza Bible

I have been browsing through The Pizza Bible by Tony Gemignani. The author is an 11-time World Pizza Champ and he shares his recipes and tips for making great pizzas. This book covers 9 different regional styles of pizza. It is well laid out and has great photos. 

I enjoy making my own pizzas but have been wanting to find a good crust recipe. I was hoping this book would be my solution to finding a great recipe and for some tips about how to make an amazing pizza. Unfortunately, The Pizza Bible isn't exactly what I was looking for. The crust recipes call for ingredients that you can't get at your local grocery store. The author even tells you that some things will have to be shopped for online. Additionally, Gemignani says about his crust, "From today on, I want you to make pizza dough that rises in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours- preferably 48 hours." I don't plan that far ahead! To his credit, Gemignani also gives some ideas for freezing the dough. 

If you are good at planning ahead and don't mind spending a little extra money on ingredients and supplies, this may be a wonderful book for you. 

*I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

Review: A Love Undone

I just finished reading A Love Undone by Cindy Woodsmall. Though she is a New York Times and CBA best selling author, this was my first time reading one of her books.

About This Book

A husband and son abandoned to forge a path alone.
A young woman who sacrificed her dreams.
How will the God of grace and hope help them find their way?
At nineteen years old, Old Order Amish Jolene Keim was on the brink of happily-ever-after when everything changed, stealing the future she expected and burdening her with an unbearable decision. For the next ten years, Jolene throws herself into family life—and then she meets Andy Fisher. The horse trainer and father to a sweet nine year-old challenges her and holds up a mirror to issues Jolene has been unwilling to face.

Andy is cautious about his deepening friendship with Jolene, but he believes she knows the truth about him – that he is a grass widower. As a man whose wife has abandoned him six years past, he is unable to divorce or remarry according to the Amish ways. Andy has wrestled with God concerning his reality, and he had found peace with the solitary future facing him…until he met Jolene.

As Andy and Jolene find themselves confronted by difficult choices, will they trust in God's guidance—or will the allure of their deepening friendship only lead to further temptation?

Review:

I read a lot of books set within the Amish life but this one had several unique elements. First, Andy (the main male character) is a grass widower. His wife left him and that makes him unable to remarry because of the high standards of the Amish community. Second, Jolene (main female character) makes the difficult and sacrificial decision to raise her siblings. And third, one of those children has some disabilities due to a childhood injury. These plot twists set this book apart from the many others I have read.

I enjoyed reading A Love Undone and look forward to reading more of Woodsmall's books in the future.

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

Book Review- God Gave Us Angels

     God Gave Us Angels is marketed for children ages 3-8. I was curious how the author, Lisa Tawn Bergren, would deal with the topic of angels in a kid friendly way. Little Cub is "Lookin' for angels," so Papa Bear gives his cub Biblical information about angels.

          -Angels are all around us, but invisible most of the time.
          -Angels serve God and do what He wants.
          -Angels are messengers .
          -Angels guard or fight for God's people.
          -Angels worship God, but are not to be worshiped or prayed            to.
          -Angels don't really wear halos.
          -Angels sometimes are in disguise (a test to see if we will                care for those in need).
          -Angels live in heaven and sing praise to God.
     This is a well written children's book. I enjoy the simple way Bergren handles a weighty topic and the colorful artwork by Laura J. Bryant. My only complaint is the use of "Imbisible" for Little Cub's version of "Invisible." I would prefer my kids read and hear the correct spelling and pronunciation of a word. However, this is definitely a book I will share with my children.

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

In This House We Will Giggle

 I just finished reading a book called, In This House We Will Giggle by Courtney DeFeo. The book was not what I expected, but I absolutely loved it! I have already started recommending this book to friends and it would make a great Christmas gift.

The author lays out 12 virtues we would love to see more of in our home- joy, love, forgiveness, faith, patience, perseverance, respect, responsibility, service, humility, gratitude, and generosity. She recommends focusing on one virtue each month, giving examples, practical activity ideas, memory verses, and scripture to study for each virtue.

I love that with almost every virtue DeFeo reminds us of the bigger reason we attempt to instill godly virtues into our children and homes. She writes, "My passion is not to produce good little Christian kids but to help raise a generation of kids to light up the world for His glory."

I was also reminded over and over that attitude and behavior starts with ME! I am the example of joy, love, forgiveness, etc. for my children and I play a huge role in setting the tone in our home.

I feel both humbled and inspired after reading this book. Now I am excited to share these 12 lessons with my 4 kids and husband during the next year and hopefully in the years to come.