Fantastic Parenting Book!

Dr. Tony Evans has written so much more than a parenting book!

Raising Kingdom Kids is a well written book that gives you practical step-by-step inspirational ways to mold your child. The book is filled with personal knowledge and biblical principles. This book has helped me grow as a parent both spiritually and mentally. This book gives great insight into equipping our children and giving them the firm foundation they need. This is definitely a book you will want to read!

Note: A copy of this book was sent to me by Tyndale Publishers for review. This review is an honest portrayal of thoughts and ideas that are my own. This review, like all my reviews, reflects my honest opinion.

Simplify: Ten Practices to Unclutter Your Soul

Great job by Bill Hybel in putting together a book that shares 10 practices that can help unclutter our soul. In the book there are 10 practices, each in its own chapter, that talk about going from a bad trait to a good trait.

I recommend this book! It is encouraging, helpful, and practical. At the end of each chapter there is homework in that requires action. This is quick read, but reading it chapter by chapter, doing the homework and giving it time to “digest” works better.

Great book to share with anyone trying to “Simplify” their lives.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the Tyndale Blog Network http://tyndaleblognetwork.com/ book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

Summer Reading

There is nothing better than "Beach Reads". What books have you read this year that would make great summer reads?

Here are a few of the books that I have read and loved!

* Bridge to Haven by Francine Rivers

* Trouble in Mudbug by Jana Deleon - Very cute book, but a few scenes you can skip over!

* Truth Stained Lies and then Distortion by Terri Blackstock 

* The Wedding Dress by Rachel Hauck

* Frame 232 by Wil Mara - This is a very enjoyable book about the J.F.K assassination. A wonderful twist on a well heard event.

* All of the Tradd Street novels by Karen White! These are some of my favorites? They take place in downtown Charleston, SC.

* The Hope Beach series by Colleen Coble is great. The first book is Tidewater Inn.

If you have books you would recommend, let us know!

Catherine

New Years Resolutions

Every year many of us make resolutions, most tend to be..lose weight, start exercising, go to church regularly, be more organized, read my bible daily, be a better wife/mother/friend and so on. It seems that most are to add better things to your life. Which is great and much needed, but I am sure that if you are anything like me resolutions are forgotten or broken before January is even over. Most of my resolutions are grandiose.

A few years ago I begin looking at things differently. Instead of making resolutions to add something, I decided to try to drop something. What is one thing I can stop doing that would make my life better?

One of my friends committed to not eat in her car. What this one thing did was make her no longer stop for junk food runs any longer. She ended up losing weight in the process of saving money, eating healthier and having a clean car.

I have committed that I won't read before doing my Bible readings or study. That way if I get tired I don't neglect God.

What is one thing you could stop doing that would make life better? Take time today to figure out what you can stop doing.

Happy New Year!

Preparing your heart for Christmas

If you are looking for a book that will help you get your heart ready for Christmas then you will really enjoy this book. I loved the conversational style of The Women of Christmas by Liz Curtis Higgs. It was amazing to literally take the story verse by verse. Liz brought out a lot of ideas that made me really think about some of the facts of the Christmas Story in a different way. I also learned a few new things.

I actually used this book at my church as an Advent Study and followed her suggestion of using the movie The Nativity as a companion video for the book.

The actual book focused on three very important women within the Christmas story - Elizabeth, Mary and Anna. Her descriptions and explanations brought the characters to life and truly made you "walk" in their shoes.

I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to go deeper into the lives of those women within the Christmas Story.

Thank you WaterBrook for sending me this copy in exchange for only my honest review.

Definition of a Believer

A. W. Tozer said: "A real Christian is an odd number, anyway. He feels supreme love for One whom he has never seen; talks familiarly every day to Someone he cannot see; expects to go to heaven on the virtue of Another; empties himself in order to be full; admits he is wrong so he can be declared right; goes down in order to get up; is strongest when he is weakest; richest when he is poorest and happiest when he feels the worst. He dies so he can live; forsakes in order to have; gives away so he can keep; sees the invisible, hears the inaudible, and knows that which passes all knowledge."

How can you have fun with your family

One of the things that I like best about my family is that we love to laugh. It never fails when it is bed time and we are about to doze off, my daughter will come into our bedroom and drop down on the bed and begin telling us about her day.

Somehow, before it is all over. we are laughing, not just a little bit, but the kind of laughing where you are crying and can't breathe. Another thing that ends up happening is that my daughter will take a picture, video or recording of our craziness. Then she will play it for us and we will start laughing all over.

We are always looking for someway to have fun. I can thank my husband for that because he is completely crazy.

My daughter is constantly taking pictures of us randomly. I love that we take silly pictures as well as "good" pictures. Some of my favorite pictures of my family are our crazy pictures. One of the things that really makes me happy is that my daughter loves these pictures as well.

What kind of memories are you making with your family? What are the things that your child will remember? So many people spend money, instead of time, and I can assure you, those memories will be gone. Thing about ways to have fun with your family this fall.