My bff and I are finishing up a 21 day fitness challenge. We texted each other every bite we ate and when we worked out. We also shared our starting weight, measurements and pictures...then again at the end of each week. The accountability has been nice. Coincidentally, I received Trim Healthy Mama Cookbook during the first week of the challenge, which was a great help when it came to preparing healthier meals for myself and the family.  Flipping through the cookbook, I immediately noticed the beautiful images, the high quality way the book was made. (Strangely, I love nice paper and books made with attention to quality.)  I was excited to get hard copies of drink and smoothie recipes floating around online. I feel armed with 496 pages of recipe ideas to get me through the slumps of “what’s for dinner tonight?” moments.  As far as the cookbook itself, I do have to say that this isn’t something for someone who has not read the first Trim Healthy Mama book....

My husband, Gil, recently read a good book he would highly recommend to other husbands...or those wishing to become a husband. Darrin and Amie Patrick co-wrote this fun book, an easy-to-read, yet encouraging guide to helping husbands develop skills to love his wife well.   I can tell when Gil likes a book. He moves it from room to room in our house- from the bedroom, to the living room, to the dining room- where ever he will sit for a few minutes and read a few pages. Also, he reads me quotes he appreciates from the book.  Of all the quotes from the book that seemed to really cause us to think, the best one is: ”Community is diverse, disturbing, and challenging, unlike affinity, which is bland, reinforcing and safe.” (58) We speak a lot about community in our own lives and ministry. We get the importance of having a strong community around ourselves, but using the terms “diverse, disturbing and challenging” brought true community into new light for me. It’s ...