4 hours ago
(I was thinking about doing a post with "Sunday best" spring outfits, but who knows when that will actually happen, so I'm just going to use one of the pictures here!)
Currently...
Reading...A book called The Mistress Of Mellyn by Victoria Holt. If you like Daphne Du Maurier books, Holt's books have a very similar gothic vibe! I like gothic-feeling books in the fall, but somehow they also work for me in the spring. Maybe it's the contrast between the cool, bright air, and the moody book.
Planning...to get back to the gym more this spring. I have been slacking on working out since February, but I was feeling generally yucky the other day, and decided it's time to step it up again. I even had Derek go to our little mountain gym with me and show me how to work some new machines.
Getting...tired of the non-stop spam calls and "we're taking a survey" texts, not to mention the RELENTLESS emails from the GOP even though I've tried to unsubscribe from the emails 20 times since 2020. I'm THIS close to voting for a Democrat out of spite. (I'm also 100% kidding about that. I could never vote for a pro-abortion candidate).
(Got this tumbler as a surprise in the mail yesterday - it makes me chuckle!)Going...a little crazy as a homeschool mom. It's the end of the school year, subjects are dropping off left and right, and my little tribe is DONE. We have three weeks of school left, we finished our math and reading curricula, and it's getting harder and harder to wrangle them in the mornings. I wanted to finish out a couple of my goals for the school year, but I'm strongly considering just giving up and doing some unit studies until we fulfill our days.
Thinking... alot about how we as younger women (let's just say under 40) tend to look at the wrong people for our cues on how we should be living life. 
For instance, on social media we follow aesthetically pleasing accounts, or read words that are well put together, and we want our lives to look just like that. We can even see someone in real life who has it together, or has achieved something we wish we could do, and we think we need to take advice from that person. And so often these pictures of life that we are looking up to are people that are our PEERS - the same age or life stage as us. They really don't have any more experience in life than we do, but they LOOK like they have it together, so we seek their advice and try to emulate them.
But the Bible says we are supposed to be taught by the OLDER women, women who have that life experience and have learned wisdom, what it means to be faithful. Why don't we younger women look to them more? Why do we think that the person who is the same age/life stage as us is qualified to give us marriage, mothering, or homeschool tips when she's right in the thick of it and doesn't have any more perspective than we ourselves do? Why don't we find wise, OLDER Christian women to emulate? I might hash this out more in a future post, but I've been thinking about it.
Taking...a deep breath. It's stuffy in my house, and I just went out on the porch for a minute. The air outside is cool and refreshing, and my breath finally reached the bottom of my lungs. I like Spring more and more as I get older.
Easter doesn't get as much attention as Christmas, or even Thanksgiving, but for those of us who are believers, this is really the most special of holidays - the day we celebrate when Jesus died in our place, took our sins away, and rose from the dead! Easter is the culmination of God's plan of salvation for His people, and there are less distractions surrounding Easter than with other holidays - the focus, at least for our family, is all on Christ. I love that about Easter, and I want to try to build more traditions for our family surrounding Resurrection Day.
We already do resurrection eggs, resurrection rolls, and read the Easter account from the Bible, but I decided I wanted to find some good books that I can eventually add to our collection and read with the kids every year. I requested a bunch from the library, and even bought a few, and we've been working through reading them all over the last couple weeks. The ones below are my favorites, books I'd like to eventually add to our own book collection if we don't already own them!
Arch Books by Various (The Resurrection, The Day That Jesus Died, The Week That Led To Easter, He's Risen, He's Alive!, etc.) - Arch books are thin little paperbacks that cover a ton of different stories from the Bible, and these are a few of the Easter-related Arch Books we own. Each book is told in verse, and usually they focus on one aspect of a Bible story, such as Good Friday, Palm Sunday, or Resurrection Sunday. I like these for a quick reminder for the kids right before bedtime of the significance of different days during Easter week.
The Garden, The Curtain, And The Cross by Carl Laferton - This book tells the story of the fall, and the plan of salvation, incorporating an explanation the curtain in the temple and how our sin separates us from God. It's a beautiful portrayal of how Jesus's death on the cross for our sins allows us to come to God directly, with no mediator except Christ Himself. This was a good springboard for discussing the Old Testament sacrificial system and how Jesus was the perfect and final sacrifice for our sin! It's told in a whimsical way, similar to the Jesus Storybook Bible (but deeper, I thought).
The Tale Of Three Trees by Angela Elwell Hunt - This is a fable about three trees who wanted to be a treasure chest, a mighty ship to carry kings, and the tallest tree in the world to point to God - and how those things were fulfilled in unexpected ways after the trees were cut down. This one makes me cry every time I read it.
That Grand Easter Day by Jill Roman Lord - This book tells the story of Easter morning in a whimsical poem with lines that build on each other - not the most theological book in the stack, but it's a cute, fun one!
The Donkey Who Carried A King by R. C. Sproul - Reilly's grandfather tells him the story of a donkey who wanted to be important by carrying a king, and then got a little too puffed up after he carried Jesus - until he realized that Jesus himself had to carry the burden of everyone's sin to the cross. I love all the discussion questions in the back of this one!
'Twas The Morning Of Easter by Glenys Nellist - This is another one that I would not put in a theological category, but it's a fun version of the events of Easter morning, from the perspective of Mary, and to the same rhythm as the poem "Twas The Night Before Christmas". I enjoyed it!
Jesus Is Alive: The Amazing Story by Carine Mackenzie - As far as telling the account of Easter and why it matters for our salvation, I think this little book is my favorite on this list. It's a very thorough book, telling all the events of the week leading to Easter, and including the gospel at the end! I'm sure we will be reading this one every year, and I would like to collect more from this "Bible Wise" series.
Easter Is Coming by Tama Fortner - This book strikes the perfect balance between telling about Easter in a creative way for kids, while also including truths about sin and why Jesus died so we can be saved! Great for early elementary and younger, with bright illustrations.
We read several other Easter books, but these are my favorites - some books didn't make the list if I felt like they left out important points of the gospel, or if they just didn't stand out to me. I may add to this post in the future as I find other good, Christ-focused books!
I hope you all have a wonderful Good Friday, friends. It's a serious day, remembering how Jesus suffered and died in our place, because of our sin. But as the last book title says - Easter is coming! Hallelujah!
But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Romans 5:8
(Real-life photo of my messy nightstand area.)
As you may remember, last fall I fell into a terrible reading rut, and subsequently there has been a conspicuous lack of book posts on this blog. It's time we catch up, isn't it? Even though it took me forever to get out of my rut, I did finish a few book last year, and I thought I'd share those with you today. More recent reads are coming soon in a separate post!
All Thirteen by Christina Soontornvat - This was a fascinating book about the soccer team that got trapped in a cave in Thailand a few years back. This book is an account of the complicated process of rescuing the boys and their soccer coach from a flooded cave, and it's full of colorful pictures as well! Really well done book, and I enjoyed it alot.
The Tyranny Of Big Tech by Josh Hawley - I listened to this book last fall on the way to the Ark Encounter, and I learned so much about how Big Tech invades the privacy of ordinary people, and how it uses that data to manipulate the masses. It's actually really creepy. If you are trying to give yourself motivation to take a social media break, listen to this for more reasons to step away!
The Last Year Of The War by Susan Meissner - I finally got around to reading a book by Susan Meissner, and I enjoyed it so much! This is the story of two young girls, one of German descent and one of Japanese descent, who meet in a U. S. internment camp during World War Two, and then are subsequently separated when they are sent back to Germany and Japan with their families. It was a sweet story about friendship, and how unexpected life can be. Her characters were really well done, and the ending was sweet.
The Accidental President by A. J. Baime - Sometime last year I became interested in reading more about Harry Truman, after realizing he was thrust into the position of President of the United States when FDR died, during World War Two, and he had to make a decision about whether to use the atomic bomb almost immediately after he became president. He knew nothing about the bomb before FDR died, because FDR basically picked him to be Vice President in name only. Can you imagine being in that situation? This book was more about how he came to be president in the first place, because it really was almost accidental - he basically was chosen as VP because there were no other candidates that would do. I also learned from this book that corruption and election hijinks have been a thing in the Democrat party for a long time. Yikes.
The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins - This was another book I listened to last fall, and I honestly don't remember it that well, which tells you something about what I thought about this book. This is a retelling of Jane Eyre, set in the modern-day south - except the Jane Eyre character is a kleptomaniac, and the Rochester figure is a creepy cheat. That probably gives you a preview about the morality in this book - it wasn't good. I think there were alot of cuss words and perhaps a racy scene or two that I skipped past, but I mainly hated the ending.
Saving Cinderella by Faith Moore - I wrote a little about this book here - I loved it! This book evaluates the Disney versions of fairytales with fairytale symbolism in mind. I would love to use this book as a "movie study" unit with my girls when they get older, maybe comparing the movie versions to the original fairytales as well. Very interesting! Also note: I, like pretty much everyone in my circles, am pretty upset with Disney, and not planning to see any of their new movies or support them going forward. Their creepy agenda is alarming, and shame on them. But we do own the old princess movies (Cinderella, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, etc.), and I do think there is some value in those, so we won't be throwing them out at this time. That's my very abbreviated take on all that.
Popes And Feminists by Elise Crapuchettes - This book was an interesting look at the women of the Reformation, and how the Protestant Reformation validated serving Christ through every vocation. The author presents a case about the way women were viewed pre-Reformation, how women were thought little of if they pursued an "ordinary" life path and were expected to leave their families if they wanted to devote their lives to God through a "career" as a nun. The author draws comparisons with how modern feminisms view the value of women working in the home. I don't feel like I'm explaining it well, but this was a very well done and inspiring look at the role of women in the Reformation, and how the view of women in general shifted as people were able to study God's word for themselves. I listened to it, but I would like to go back and read it sometime with highlighter in hand.
There we are, the last few books I read in 2020! I wish I could balance my schedule a little better to make more time for reading, because this is a pretty low book count for a three month period for me. Summer is coming up quick though, and I'm looking forward to a reading reset then!
What have you all been reading lately?
Resurrection Day is less than a week away, and I thought it would be fun to share a few Easter resources and favorites! These are all the things in the Easter notebook that lives in my brain.
---
This Easter week guide from G3 ministries includes alot of hymns and poems, and looked really good.
Home + Haven Homeschool Community sent out Easter activity printables that we'll be utilizing this week! I can't link to the printable, but go here to sign up for their newsletter if you are interested in future printables!
We have used the Easter guide from Gentle + Classical in the past, and I may pull it out for some inspiration in the next few days.
This week we're going to hopefully use these free Easter lessons, coloring sheets, and audiobook chapters from AIG!
We love making Resurrection rolls, and if you have never done it, it's a great Easter tradition! It really drove home the idea of Jesus's resurrection for my three-year-old last year!
We will be working through our Resurrection Eggs this week too - we have this set, and my kids love it.
I bought these dresses from Walmart for my girls - hooray for inexpensive matching Easter dresses! My boys are going to wear these shirts with kakis. (They still don't mind matching for holidays.)
I get a new Adventures In Odyssey set for my kids for Easter each year (this year we are buying #18-22).
We are going to practice these two hymns this week: When I Survey The Wondrous Cross, Christ The Lord Is Risen Today
I'm listening to this album for Easter week as well!
I'm looking forward to reading my kids these books: The Tale Of Three Trees, The Donkey Who Carried A King, The Week That Led To Easter, He’s Risen! He’s Alive!, The Story Of Easter, Jesus Is Alive: The Amazing Story,
Also, I got the Bible verse cards that are in the picture above from here. I don't know if the associated podcast is good, I just got the freebie!
Are you doing anything to get ready for Easter, friends? We have had a difficult and busy month, and this week feels like a much-needed break and refreshment as we slow down to remember and celebrate Jesus's resurrection!
“Hosanna!”
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”
“Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!”
“Hosanna in the highest heaven!”
Mark 11:9-10
That is what the people shouted when Jesus entered Jerusalem, humbly, riding on a donkey.
They were joyful, thinking he had come to set up an earthly kingdom. They thought he was going to kick out those pesky Romans and declare Himself king right there.
But He had something else in view - He came to die. He suffered the death we deserved as sinners who have rebelled against a holy God.
Jesus is God, and death can't hold Him - He rose again, victorious over death forever! He came to save the souls of all those people who would repent and believe in Him, all down through the ages.
Palm Sunday WAS a happy day. It WAS the beginning of His Kingdom, and His return is coming, when He will reign on the earth as King of kings forevermore.
But that first Palm Sunday? They missed it.
"It should have been evident to everybody that His Kingdom was not of this world. But they were so hysterical that they never got the point of the donkey.
You know, I hate to say it, but so many people through history have been just as mistaken as the mistaken multitude. Just like they thought Jesus was nothing more than a social reformer, there are people today who think the same thing. They look at Jesus as sort of a patriot, a reactionary, a revolutionary, somebody who has got a social message to proclaim, and they forget that Jesus didn’t come to remove poverty from the world...If you think that Jesus came into the world just to heal the social institutions, you’ve missed the point...
His kingdom is not an earthly kingdom, His kingdom is not a kingdom of physical power, His kingdom is a kingdom of spiritual reality; He rules the hearts of men."
-John Macarthur, The World's Rejection Of The King
It's time for another round of me sharing a bunch of Christian encouragement resources that I've been enjoying lately! I have come across so many good links that I've wanted to share the last few weeks, and then when I sit down to write this post, I forget half of them, so this list isn't particularly long, but it's still full of good stuff.
The G3 App - My mind has been on missions lately because of several things, not the least of which is that my cousin is looking to embark on a two-year foreign mission later this year. A couple months ago I noticed that G3 Ministries has an app where you can listen to years’ worth of conferences for free, and the 2019 conference about missions has been especially timely and encouraging for me over the past couple months! I especially liked this message from Paul Washer and a breakout message from Don Currin called "The Mission Of God At Home: Who Is My Neighbor?" (which I can't link because you can only get it in the app)!
Reformation Heritage Books - I just discovered Reformation Heritage Books a few weeks back, and I love this site! There are all kinds of Christian classics, missionary biographies, and Christian children's books for very affordable prices. I could browse on there for hours! I've ordered several books from them, and I just started John Paton's autobiography - it has already made me cry, so I know it's going to be a wonderful book. I heard an interview with the founder of Reformation Heritage Books shortly after I discovered it, and I love his story of being a kid who wanted to start a church library, and what that desire has grown into since then.
A Reminder On Catechizing - I really appreciated this article's reminder on not letting the world catechize your children. It echoed something Rachel Jankovic said in this (paid) webinar about how the world is catechizing our kids constantly, through shows, music, books, etc, and if we aren't actively catechizing our kids in the way they SHOULD go according to God's word, we aren't doing our job. I also appreciated the point that catechesis isn't just a formal endeavor, you are catechizing them by your own example - do you read your Bible daily? Spend time in prayer? Affirm examples of biblical masculinity and femininity? Present church as a wonderful gathering of believers that we GET to be a part of? All that is a also a subtle form of catechesis, and the children are watching.
I hope you all are having a good start to your weekend! I am getting ready to go once-a-month grocery shopping this morning, which always ends up being an all-day endeavor. I learned long ago not to attempt it with all five kids unless I was feeling particularly strong, but I do take one kid with me each time for a special day with mom, and now I can't imagine grocery shopping alone. It's so fun to get a little extra time with individual kids!
Happy Saturday!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
