4 hours ago
Winter is starting to draw to a close, but we are expecting another snowstorm this weekend. I find myself squeezing in a few last-minute winter picture books before it's time to start looking to spring! These are a few of our favorites as of late, but I also want to point you to my first winter picture book list from last year. I'm glad to add a few more to our favorites pile this year!
The Small Walt Books by Elizabeth Verdick- This is a little picture book series about a small snow plow named Walt. I didn't include them in my last winter picture book post because I find the text a little bit hard to read in that it sounds a choppy when reading aloud...but I'm adding them to this post, because my kids have all loved them. For some reason Small Walt really sticks out in their minds! I think the boys like the vehicle aspect, and the girls think Walt is a cute snow plow. The pictures in all the Small Walt books have a classic, charming vibe.
Small Walt - Walt is the smallest snow plow on the lot, and they think he's too small to be of much help - until he proves himself by plowing the the top of the big hill!
Small Walt And Mow The Tow - Walt realizes he can't help a car that has slid off a snowy road - he needs help from a new friend, Mo the Tow!
Small Walt Spots Dot - In this book, a pesky dog causes trouble while the plows are trying to clear the streets - but Walt likes the little dog and wishes they could keep him.
The Wish Tree by Kyo Maclear - In this book, Charles sets off with his toboggan to find a wish tree, but doesn't think he'll ever succeed...but he does meet some animal friends on the way. The illustrations in this one are modern, but I love they way different parts of the pictures seem to glow!
Learning To Ski With Mr. Magee by Chris Van Dusen - This book is a classic in our house at this point - Mr. Magee decides to go skiing with his "little dog Dee", but ends up in hijinks with a moose! The rhyming in the Mr. Magee books is just wonderful - I love the rhythm of the poems.
Snow Globe Family by Jane O'Conner - This is a cute book about a family who lives in a snow globe, which is located in the living room of another family. The snow globe family longs for the day when one of the big family members will cause a really big snow storm - it's been so long since they could go sledding! My kids find this book amusing, and it's a cute story! There is one illustration of the snow globe dad in the bath tub which my younger kids found a bit scandalizing, but other than that it was a hit.
Brave Irene by William Steig - This book is a classic, but I have actually never read it until this year. In this story Irene's mom makes a fancy ball gown for a duchess, but a snowstorm swirls up and the mom gets sick, so it's up to Irene to deliver the dress. It's a really sweet story, and I like the interactions between Irene and her mom.
The Most Perfect Snowman by Chris Britt - Drift the snowman is a very plain snowman, with no hat, gloves, scarf, or nose, and he gets made fun of by the other snowmen because of it. One day, some kids give him everything he's dreamed of - all the snowman clothes, and a lovely carrot nose! But he becomes the most perfect snowman ever when he's willing to give all that up to help someone else. Really sweet story, with fun and dreamy illustrations.
Cinders: A Chicken Cinderella by Jan Brett - This story is exactly what it sounds like, with vibrant, imaginative illustrations of chicken Cinderella characters! We all thought it was really cute, and a fun reimagining of Cinderella.
Big Snow by Jonathan Bean - In this story, David helps his mom with chores while he waits for the snow to get deep enough to go out and explore. I think this one really captures the excitement of a snowy day for kids.
The Secret Staircase by Jill Barklem - Part of the Brambly Hedge series, this book follows Wilfred and Primrose as they head to the attic to prepare for the Midwinter concert - but they discover a secret staircase, leading to secrets rooms with all kinds of surprises! This might be my favorite Brambley Hedge book, and as always, the illustrations are so cute.
That's all I have to add to our winter book list for now! Non-Christmas winter books are so cozy and fun to read around our woodstove at the end of a homeschool day, and I look forward to continuing to add to our book list as the years go on!
I started this day off by finishing an audiobook while I walked to the mailbox, then I decided to make some salted caramel sandwich cookies. If this post ends up being a little disjointed, it's because I'm jumping up every 8ish minutes to take a batch of cookies out of the oven!
Just Life
She spends most of her day following the warm spots around the house, as you can see from the photos.
Our mailbox is empty this morning, as it's often been lately because apparently they can't get a mail carrier for our route. If I want my mail, I have to go down to the post office so they can give it to me. I made a couple trips down there last week to pick up Valentine's Day packages. Derek and I often skip gifts on Valentine's Day, but this year we both ended up getting each other something. I got Derek this shirt, and he got me a new Chi hair straightener because my old one was desperately old, and was also probably the reason that my hair stylist had to cut two inches of broken ends off a couple weeks ago. Though I'm told only two inches over the course of a year is pretty good for our dry climate here.
Derek made me a really wonderful Valentine's dinner, and decorated the school room and everything. It literally felt like a going out to a restaurant without even leaving the house. It was so sweet of him to go to so much effort, and really unexpected since we usually don't do much for Valentine's Day!
Aside from Valentine's Day, we also celebrated my oldest son's birthday in the last couple weeks. He is twelve. That feels so grown up - I remember being twelve and wanting to be included more in adult conversation at that age. I can tell he is at that point as well, and it's just hard to believe he is growing up so fast. He likes to remind me that he'll be driving in a mere four years. I try not to think about it too much.
On his birthday we went out to a local pinball arcade and let the kids have an unlimited hour of play - it was such a fun outing! My mom has been telling me about this arcade for a couple years, and I'm so glad we finally made it happen. I think Derek and I might make a date night out of it soon. We didn't pay for ourselves to play, and I was a little sorry we didn't, because I really want to try some of the games!
I have not given an update on Lulu here for a while, and she has grown quite alot since we got her. She definitely looks more like an adult miniature dachshund now (which, let's be honest, is still pretty small). Her favorite part of the day is right after Derek lets her out in the morning...she charges in the door and up the stairs, trying to catch me before I get out of bed. If I'm not getting up early, Derek gives her a boost onto the bed, and she races over to me, darts under the covers, and then squirms up until she is laying on her back with her head poking out of the covers right next to my face. Then she'll tilt her head over to me and snuggle for a while, until I sneakily tuck the covers around her and roll out of bed. We don't let her sleep on the beds at all at night, so this one little morning snuggle is the only time she gets. I have to say, having a soft, adorable little puppy dog tuck herself right in next to you is a nice way to be awakened in the morning.
Happy Mail And An Instagram Break
As a mini update on my New Year's goals: I did not paint last week, and I did not work on Ancestry.com. I did, however, receive a lovely letter from a childhood friend, and I wrote a letter, and plan on writing another today if I have the time. I highly recommend letter writing if you can find good people to write to. Since starting my letter-writing project, I've been keeping my own letters rather short so that it is manageable for me to write one per week, and I'm proud of the amount of letters I've stamped and mailed so far. I also forgot how nice it can be to receive a personal letter in the mail back. There is something really special about this form of communication - maybe it's easier to be honest when you are handwriting a letter, and maybe having to wait so long for a reply makes it a little sweeter when you spot handwriting you recognize amidst the junk mail.
Since we're talking about different forms of communication, I also decided to give Instagram another break. I was reading back through some of my old blog posts regarding social media, and remembering how lovely that year was when I wasn't on any social media at all. Even as I dipped my toe back into Instagram last year and have been using it more rarely, I still find myself rather sick of it again. One of the lasting benefits of being off Instagram for a whole year has been that it's much easier to recognize when the algorithm is messing with me, and when Instagram itself is bringing out negative feelings in me. I was feeling that way again recently, and decided to give it a break, until the end of the school year I think. Perhaps you'll be seeing more posts on the blog now! I also still post an occasional Bible verse or article on Twitter if you want to join me over there. Twitter just doesn't suck my time in the same way Instagram does.
Disjointed Thoughts On Wisdom Online
Speaking of Twitter, I saw this tweet over there last week, and it's been swirling in my mind since then:
I think the sentiment here is very true, whether we're talking about marriage or some other aspect of life.
I think it would be better for everyone if more young Christians had the wisdom to recognize when their experience is too fresh, that maybe they shouldn't offer advice until they have more years under their belt. That perhaps they can't have learned any real lessons until the experiences have marinated a bit.
Though age doesn't guarantee wisdom and there are plenty of foolish older people, a real depth of wisdom comes with fearing and knowing the Lord through the storms of life. Wisdom is a potential that might come to fruition as we walk with Christ through a variety of life experiences, good and bad, and those experiences can't all happen in only the amount of years that you can count on two hands. If wisdom comes, it comes with time.
On the flip side, I also think there is a derth of mature, wise Christian women actually sharing advice online - or in person either, for that matter. I wish older women would speak up sometimes, but then I see how they are sometimes poo-poo'ed or shot down when they do. Perhaps they don't speak because there are so few young women who want to hear what they have to say anymore. The gray-headed are not honored in modern America, often not even among Christians, and it's a shame on us.
All these thoughts are very half-baked on my part, but it's something I've been mulling over for a while. I'd love to hear what you think!
I've been severely neglecting my salted caramel cookie dough while typing that out, so I'll finish up now and get back to it!
How was your Valentine's Day, friends?
Have you been baking anything as winter starts to wind down?
Valentine's Day is one of our favorite holidays, and this year I set out specifically to explore all the Valentine's Day books at our library. I found quite a few good ones, and I wanted to share them!
Most of these are about adventures and mishaps with making and delivering valentines. All the books about kids making valentines are cute, but I like that I also was able to find a couple books about married couples doing something special for each other on Valentine's Day.
I did try to find a book about the history of Valentine's Day/ Saint Valentine, but I couldn't find one I liked! Perhaps I'll update this post next year if I find more books that fill in that gap, but for now, hopefully you can find some of the books on this list!
Llama Llama, I Love You by Anna Dewdney - This is part of the classic Llama Llama Red Pajama series. It is very short and sweet, so perfect for the younger set!
Here Comes Valentine Cat by Deborah Underwood - This one was very reminiscent of old comics to me (think Snoopy, from Charlie Brown). Cat does not like Valentine's Day, and he does not like that pesky dog next door - except maybe the dog is trying to be friends? Really simple and cute.
Valentine Surprise by Corrinne Demas - This is a story about a little girl who tries to make her mother a Valentine's card, even though none of her attempts at cutting out a heart turn out right. This one would be especially cute for the younger grades!
Franklin's Valentines by Paulette Bourgeois - Related to the old Franklin TV series, this book is like an episode of the show. Franklin loses all his friend's valentines, but then learns that his friends love him even when he can't do anything for them.
The Biggest Valentine Ever by Steven Kroll - Two mice cannot get along to make a valentine for their teacher - until they realize that their weaknesses may be complimented by the other's strengths if they can work together. I liked the illustrations in this one, and for a bonus, you may get a cute valentine card idea!
Happy Valentine's Day Curious George! by H. A. Rey - Simple picture book about Curious George's Valentine's Day party! Of course George gets in some mischief, as usual. Short and cute!
Little Bear's Valentine by Else Holmelund Minarik - Little Bear books are classics, and in this one, Little Bear has a secret admirer, and travels around to give valentines to all his friends - but he can't figure out who delivered the secret valentine (hint: it was Mama Bear). Really sweet story!
Happy Valentine's Day, Dolores by Barbara Samuels - This one is not one I would typically like, because it involves a little girl being sneaky and snooping in her sister's drawers, and a brief mention of kids thinking the young girl has a boyfriend (I don't encourage my kids to have "boyfriends"/"girlfriends" until they are near adulthood at least). But somehow this quirky little story just worked for me! It is about two sisters who bicker, but in the end they don't forget each other on Valentine's Day.
Ruby Valentine Saves The Day by Laurie B. Friedman - Ruby plans a party on Valentine's Day, but it snows and no one can make it up the mountain - so she brings the party to town square instead! Really cute book with vibrant illustrations,
Ruby Valentine And The Sweet Surprise by Laurie B. Friedman - Ruby turns up with a surprise - a new kitten, Sweetie Pie! But her pet bird, Lovebird, is feeling neglected. The pets try to one-up each other in making a valentine surprise for Ruby, but in the end they find out she can love them both. Pretty cute!
Little Blue Truck's Valentine by Alice Schertle - Little blue truck makes unique valentines for all his friends, but then gets a little sad when he realizes Valentine's Day is over and he didn't get any cards. But his friends didn't forget him after all! Cute, and the illustrations are so colorful!
The Valentine Bears by Eve Bunting - Mrs Bear makes a plan to surprise Mr. Bear on Valentine's Day, even though it falls in the middle of winter when they are both hibernating! Her plans go awry, but Mr. Bear didn't forget about Valentine's Day either.
Snowy Valentine by David Peterson - Jasper travels all over the woods trying to figure out what to get his wife Lily for Valentine's Day - but in the end, he stumbles upon a special gift because of his love for her. Very cute.
Somebody Loves You, Mr. Hatch by Paul Yalowitz - Mr. Hatch, who live s rather colorless life, receives a valentine saying "Somebody Loves You" - he feels so energized by that thought that he reaches out to all his neighbors and does nice things for them. But then he finds out the valentine was actually for someone else...but his neighbors make sure he knows that it's no mistake that somebody loves him. This was a sweet story!
Turkey's Valentine Surprise by Lee Harper - Turkey really wants to surprise his friends with secret valentines, but they somehow always know the cards are from him! This is a really cute and quirky book - my kids really enjoyed it!
Happy Valentine's Day, Mouse! by Laura Hoffe Numeroff - This book does NOT follow the "If You Give A Mouse A Cookie" format, but all the characters from that series make an appearance as Mouse makes them all a valentine - then they surprise him with cookies at the end!
Click Clack Moo, I Love You! by Doreen Conan - My kids love the Click Clack Moo books, and this one was really cute as the farm animals through a Valentine's party in the barn.
Groundhug Day by Anne Marie Pace - This is an unconventional Valentine's story, about animal friends trying to convince Groundhog to not be scared of shadows and stay awake for Valentine's Day. Really cute illustrations!
Do you have any favorite Valentine's Day books that I missed? I know there were a couple I wanted to check out that my library didn't have, so there may be a part two next year!
Happy Valentine's Day (early), friends!
It's been a while since I shared a book post! I might try to write these monthly in 2023, because if I get too far behind, I forget what I read. I'm sure there are a couple books I read and just forgot to include here, but these are the books I finished over the last couple months!
Just a note: When I link books, I'm going to try to link to Thriftbooks whenever I see the book available on there - that's where I get most of my books these days! I love getting a good deal on there. I'll link Amazon when I see a book is currently available cheaper there. Not sponsored links here, just wanted to tell you my thought process.
When Christmas Comes Andrew Klavan - I wouldn't actually call this a Christmas book - it's actually a mystery/suspense book, set during the Christmas season. I thought the detective in this book, Cameron Winters, was a pretty fascinating character, and I'm glad it's being turned into a series!
That Hideous Strength by C. S. Lewis - This is the final book in Lewis's space trilogy, and I'm not going to lie, I'm a little befuddled by it. I'm going to read some literary analysis of it in hopes of understanding it better. The other two books in the space trilogy were much more straightforward, whereas this one was rooted more in medieval legends that I'm not particularly familiar with...though I did notice some connections with Lewis's The Abolition Of Man. That Hideous Strength is basically the fictionalized version of the concepts Lewis presented in The Abolition Of Man.
The Return Of The King by J. R. R. Tolkien - This was a re-read! Loved it as much as the first time, and I almost cried when Frodo left Middle Earth.
Captive by Mary Rowlandson, John Williams, and John Gyles - This book was completely fascinating - it's a reprint of stories published in the 1600s by Puritans who were taken captive by North American tribes. It's actually three books in one, so even though I'm not quite done with it, I'm going to include it since I finished the first "book" within it. It was interesting to read about the experiences of these people who were captured, and their faith in the Lord was tested and came out as pure gold. It's inspiring to read.
A Murder Is Announced by Agatha Christie - I read this for a book club discussion with some friends. I'm pretty sure I read it once before when I was a teenager, so I had an inkling of the solution to the mystery, but there were so many aspects I forgot that it was still surprising. I love all of Christie's mystery novels, and it's been a while since I've read a Miss Marple mystery - she is a fun character!
What I Learned In Narnia by Douglas Wilson - I thought this book presented so many good character traits and lessons from the Narnia books, and it gave me alot to think about. This book was based on some talks that Wilson gave for young people about lessons to be learned from the Narnia books, and I thought he pulled out some really great points. I am almost done reading the Chronicles Of Narnia to my kids, and I think I may have my older ones listen to this book after we finish.
My Life For Yours by Douglas Wilson - This book is a collection of different thoughts about how we can be selfless in our home and family life, based on what happens in different rooms of a house. So for instance, in the kitchen chapter Wilson talks about serving others with mealtimes, the living room chapter is about how we spend our leisure time, etc. Some of the concepts he presents are based in Scripture, but some of the applications are more his own opinion - I agreed with alot of it, but not necessarily all. Nevertheless, it was an interesting book, and challenged me to serve my family better. I love the title, "my life for yours"...that is a worthy goal for my attitude toward family life, and I appreciated all the practical advice in accomplishing that.
The Hypnotist’s Love Story by Leanne Moriarty - I picked up this book because it was the last of Moriarty's books that I hadn't read - I think I was avoiding it because I'm not on board with hypnotism. Thankfully, the hypnotist angle was part of the plot but not to a ridiculous extent. This book was more about a woman trying to form a new relationship with a man who has a crazy stalker...but she finds herself sympathizing too much with the stalker. Overall, it was cute. Content Note: There were some references to (ahem) adult things outside of marriage; it wasn't overly descriptive. The main character does become pregnant outside of marriage too, and I think abortion might have been mentioned (annoying how they always stick that in), but the main character doesn't really consider it.
Becoming Elisabeth Elliot by Ellen Vaughn - I listened to this for a book club, and it was a really close-up look at Elisabeth Elliot's early life, ending shortly after her service to the tribe that killed her husband, Jim Elliot. There is so much inspiration for the Christian life when looking at Jim and Elisabeth Elliot, and this biography was really well done. There is going to be a second volume covering Elisabeth's later life, and I'm excited to read that one because I don't know as much about the second part of her life (aside from the fact that she became a public speaker).
What Is A Woman by Matt Walsh - This book is the written version of the documentary by the same name, but it gives more "inside information", so to speak. There are interviews and stories in this book that weren't covered in the film, and it includes Walsh's perspective of some of the interviews that were in the film. The documentary was really eye-opening to me when I watched it last summer, even as someone who falls on the same side of the aisle as Walsh on gender ideology. I think this book just added more detailed information to the film for those who are interested in this topic. Note: I'd also recommend "Irreversible Damage" by Abigail Shirer - that's a book that fell through the cracks when I stopped sharing reviews on the blog for a while, but I read it a couple years ago and I think it would be a really good supplement to this film and book as well.
Them Before Us by Katie Faust - This book was incredibly eye-opening to me - Faust discusses a child's right to their mother and father, and how modern adults have infringed on children's rights by their self-focused choices. The main premise of this book is that intentionally depriving a child of their biological mother or father - through divorce, sperm/egg donors, gay "marriage" adoption cases, etc. - harms children and violates their rights. This book argues that adults should organize their lives around what's best for children, instead of expecting children to be shuffled around to suit adult desires. It also discusses the ethical problems surrounding how IVF is done, which is a touchy subject but something that we should all think more carefully about. It's hard to argue with the statistics shared in this book, and it gave me alot to think about.
The Blue Train Mystery by Agatha Christie - Another Agatha Christie mystery - I know I've read this one before, but I was surprised by the ending! This is a Poirot mystery, and he's my favorite Agatha Christie detective. I thought this one started slower, and was a little hard to follow, but the beginning chapters are tied in at the end.
Morality For Beautiful Girls but Alexander McCall Smith - This is the third book in the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series, and I love this series - it's like a cozy mystery series with a twist. Each book follows Mama Ramotswe as she solves a series of small mysteries (and sometimes a bigger one) for her clients, all while juggling her family and upcoming nuptials to the owner of the local mechanic shop. This is one of those series that I would recommend for a palette cleanser, something nice to read when you just need to relax and not think too hard! I'm going to continue the series this year.
What have you been reading in January?
I feel like January is always a good reading month for everyone!
A Quote
"It is very difficult to be resigned, left alone, and in sorrowful circumstance; but feeling immovably assured that my God and Father was too wise and loving to err in anything He does or permits, I looked up to the Lord for help and struggled on in His work. I do not pretend to see through the mystery of such visitations - wherein God calls away the young, the promising, and those sorely needed for His service here; but this I do know and feel, that, in the light of such dispensations, it becomes us all to love and serve our blessed Lord Jesus so that we may be ready at His call for death and Eternity."
-John G. Paton, written after his young wife's death on the mission field
You get a bonus book recommendation with this first quote, because I have to point you to John Paton's autobiography - he was a missionary to cannibals in the South Pacific, and his book is so interesting and edifying!
A Book
Another book I'm reading in my morning time is The Excellent Wife by Martha Peace. In our modern world, some women would surely be offended by some of the things she writes, but as far as biblical advice for being a better wife, I don't think I've read a better book. I've been convicted in some way by every chapter so far.
A Bit Of Nature
I'm including this scene from our weekend snowmobiling with my parents recently. Snowmobiling is such a nice way to get outside in the winter! We zoomed around in this winter wonderland in 9 degrees Fahrenheit, but when you're having fun it doesn't feel so cold.
A Recommendation
The kids got some oven-bake clay for Christmas, and they've been having fun making little creations...then I remembered seeing videos about making earrings out of polymer clay, and I got rather sucked in yesterday. I like the earrings on this channel, and this channel explains more. Somehow the process of making these earrings is really fascinating to watch! I kind of want to buy some of my own clay and try it out now.
I'll also include one other recommendation that I threw out there on Instagram the other day - G3 ministries is addressing The Chosen in some of their articles and podcast recently, and I think they make some really good points. Unpopular Opinion: I've been skeptical about The Chosen, because I don't like the premise of putting words in Jesus's mouth that He's not recorded as saying in Scripture for the sake of entertainment (or any other reason, but entertainment seems a particularly frivolous reason). But G3 has a whole other angle, and it's given me alot to think about.
A Moment Of Happiness
On a whim, after seeing a post on Instagram (dratted Instagram! I still have a tolerate-hate relationship with it), I purchased a disco ball. Yes, a disco ball. I saw a post with twirling spots of light sparkling in someone's living room, and I guess I was inspired. I almost immediately regretted ordering it - what was I thinking? It was only $15, but still.
It arrived, and I was determined that I would send it right back to Amazon. But I was still curious about what it would look like in the sun. So before I determined to send it back, I pulled it out of the box, and held it up in front of the sunshine string in from the window.
Immediately the room was filled with flashes of light, dancing on the floors and walls, and I knew right then we'd be keeping it. The kids were fascinated as soon as they saw it, and whenever it stilled they climbed on the chair to give it another twirl. One of my kids was sprawled out on the floor, finishing his language arts work, but every now and then he'd just pause, and look at the ceiling with a peaceful smile on his face.
Was it a frivolous $15? Yes. We can live without a disco ball, of all things. But has it added some sparkle and life to these long winter days? It has, and I'm not sorry I bought it. Seeing the bits of happiness on my kids' faces these humdrum school days was worth it.
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