Our Thanksgiving feast was less than 24 hours ago and we have already had leftovers a few times, set up the Christmas tree and wreaths on the windows, and watched a Christmas train movie. We began a new tradition of the kids wrestling Gil after all the dishes were done. All were safe until a lip or nose was bumped a little too hard on the floor. I wonder how long it will be until the kids can combine their strength and out-wrestle Gil? I’ve done almost all of our Christmas shopping already, but I have two more books to tell you about if you are looking for some ideas.... Randy Frazee wrote a 90 day devotional for kids called Think, Act, Be Like Jesus. I like it and will gift it to one of the girls for Christmas. It has nice, high quality pages, nice pictures and the length of the daily reading is perfect for my readers. He includes about 30 devos on thinking like Jesus, 30 on acting like Jesus and 30 on being like Jesus. It’s basic and easily understood. It will be a g...

His view of the outside world all shifted within a few months...a new (to me) car that required him sitting in the middle of a bench rather than behind a captain's chair in front of him, him becoming old enough for a forward facing car seat, and an awareness of what we do at certain locations. He has the prime seat in our SUV which allows him to see exactly where we are going and he practices the art of celebrating.  When we pull up to the gym parking lot, he throws both fists and feet in the air and cheers- he knows the childcare room has a good stash of Thomas trains and the gymnasium has open space for wild running. When we arrive at the library, the same thing happens- he knows they have a train table. At the Dairy Bar parking lot- he knows how wonderful their frozen treats taste. At church- he knows they have good toys too. At his friend’s house, he knows he has loads of fun.  It happens at home too. He cheers for his favorite shows on TV, when his trains rid...

So, I have been blogging for a homeschool company and although I can't repost what I wrote for them, I can link to it. Within a blogpost about why I love homeschooling so much , I shared about how my dear mentor taught me "to look" at my kids. She told me about how it made her kids feel a little awkward at times...but she studied their faces in an attempt to remember them at that age forever. I try to do that, but I still seem to somehow forget what they look like. Thank goodness for pictures! There are beautiful things around us all the time and we seem to slip right past them. As for another beautiful thing, I received a gorgeous coloring book for grown-ups. It's called The Time Garden by Daria Song and it has a little story that goes along with it...about a girl and her German cuckoo clock. The images are so pretty, imaginative and detailed. The paper quality is nice. Also, if you'd prefer the book without the jacket cover, you can color in the cover of...