"The Life Giving Home" Book Review

"Home is a place of ministry.  Redeeming words, thoughts, and actions are shared and taught, the wisdom and instruction of God is passed along, and God's love is offered to all who come under its influence." - Sally Clarkson

This is what I want for my home - for it to be a place of ministry, a place of wisdom and instruction, a place that is full of God's love.  But, honestly, sometimes "life" gets in the way of my plans.  I get overwhelmed with the everyday, mundane tasks of life and forget my mission and my ministry.

Giggle Moon Review

Disclosure - Per FTC Regulations, I am disclosing that I received product(s) from this company/website, free of charge, for review. I was in no other way compensated for my review. The views expressed in this review are my own, honest opinions and any claims should be verified on the sponsor's site.

You guys!  Its time for another Giggle Moon review!  I love this company so much!!!  Their heart for designing beautiful clothing is explained on their website:

"The purpose of Giggle Moon is to glorify God thru love, joy, and laughter.  We strive to bring joy into all the lives we encounter.  Our clothes are designed with much love and thought."

"Pressing Pause:100 Quiet Moments For Moms To Meet With Jesus" BookReview

As a mom of three littles, I'm busy.  Some days I'd even used the word "overwhelmed." And its often hard to find time for an extended quiet time.  By that I mean, my quiet time may be an hour long, but it will be broken up into 15 minutes here, then breaking up an argument, changing a diaper, bandaging a skinned knew, cuddling a crying toddler, 10 minutes there, then getting a snack for a hungry baby, finding a kindergartener's lost shoe, cleaning up the apple juice on the floor, etc.  That's why books like "Pressing Pause" are so helpful!

"Loving My Actual Life" Book Review

As a stay-at-home mom/homeschooling mom, sometimes its hard to love my actual life.  I get bogged down in the minutia, overwhelmed by the huge "to-do" list.  So when I saw Alexandra Kuykendall's book, "Loving My Actual Life: An Experiment In Relishing What's Right In Front Of Me," I knew I had to read it.

"Life Verse Creative Journal Set" Book Review

As you've seen before - if you read my blog or follow me on Instagram, I'm a huge fan or Bible journaling!  God loves our creativity!  And He loves when we use it to worship Him and draw closer to Him!  So I was thrilled at the prospect of reviewing B&H Publishers new release, Life Verse Creative Journal.

"Having A Martha Home The Mary Way" Book Review

I'll be honest. I wasn't sure I'd enjoy this book.  Its a book on homemaking/housekeeping and this is an area I struggle with.  I'm not the most disciplined when it comes to house cleaning and chores. But I was pleasantly surprised.  This book is so much more.

"Hands Free Life: 9 Habits For Overcoming Distraction, Living Better,And Loving More" Book Review

As a book reviewer, I'm blessed to be able to choose the books I'd like to review.  That's why, most of the time I post glowing reviews.  After all, who picks a book they think they're gonna hate, right?  But every once in a while I review a book that doesn't "thrill" me.  Sadly, this was one of those books.

"Live Fearless" Adult Coloring Book Review

As I've mentioned before, adult coloring is all the rage right now!  And its not hard to imagine why.  We live in a fast-paced, stress-filled world, and coloring is a stress-reducing activity.  But adult coloring has also become very popular in the Christian community.  Bible journaling (drawing in the margins of your Bible. (You can see examples of my Bible journaling pages on my Instagram account.) With this cross-over appeal, its not surprising that Christian coloring books are becoming popular.  Margaret Feinberg, however, has gone a step further - combining adult coloring with an actual Bible study!

"Wonderland: A Coloring Book Inspired By Alice's Adventures" Book Review

Alice's Adventures In Wonderland has a special place in my heart.  It was the first book I ever read to my little girl (before she was even a year old), so when I had the opportunity to review this coloring book, I jumped at the chance!

Adult coloring books have become all the rage!  Their intricate designs offer hours of stress-relieving fun!  (Adults are beginning to see why kids love to color so much.  It lowers blood pressure, relieves stress, and calms the mind.)

Protecting Our Kids: Keeping Kids Safe From Physical And Sexual Abuse

As a mom to three young children, their protection is ALWAYS on my mind.  Because they are still young, they are still pretty insulated.  But no matter how hard my husband and I try - or how hard every other mom and dad on earth tries - we can't watch our children every minute of the day.  And so, its EXTREMELY important to teach them safety tips that will keep them from danger.  With that in mind, I thought I'd share with you, my precious readers, some of my favorite tips and resources (from the experts) for protecting our kids!  I go over these tips during homeschool time, ask them questions and give them scenarios to help them be prepared!

Let me start by giving you a few statistics. (Stats taken from netgrace.org , safelyeverafter.com , and https://www.nsopw.gov)
1.) 1 in 4 women and 1 in 6 men have been sexually abused as children.
2.) 1 out of 4 children are physically abused.
3.) 90% of child sexual abuse occurs by someone the child knows.
4.) It takes less than 1 minute for a predator to lure a child away.
5.) Approximately 1.8 million adolescents in the U.S. have the the victims of sexual assault.
6.) Not all perpetrators are adults - an estimated 23% of reported cases of child sexual abuse are perpetrated by individuals under the age of 18.

NKJV Teen Study Bible Review

If you read my blog, you know how much I love a study Bible!  Seriously!  I can't get enough!  I love the notes and explanations in a study Bible.  They really help you dig into the Word!  So what could be a better gift for a teenager than a study Bible geared towards them!  The NKJV Teen Study Bible is just that sort of Bible!

All of the study helps in this Bible are geared towards teens - their problems, their questions, and their life...

NIrV Minecrafters Bible Review

I don't have any little "minecrafters" in my house, but I have lots of friends who do, so I jumped at the opportunity to review this new Mincrafters Bible (releasing June 7, 2016)!  One thing that really helps kids learn the Bible is being able to intereact with it.  This Bible helps accomplish that in a way that will keep your child entertained.

With the NIrV (NIV Reader-Friendly) translation, this Bible is easy-to-understand for young readers.  And throughout the Bible are full-color pages with unofficial Minecraft activities.  For example, their are challenges like building Solomon's Temple (1 Kings 6), planting crops (Mark 4), and create a stable and a manger (Luke 2, Matthew 2).

If your child is into minecraft, they probably want to play whenever they can (like most other video games).  If they're gonna play, why not have them read a Bible story and complete the challenge. Use their hobby to help them engage more with God's word!

I received a copy of this book, free of charge, from Zonderkidz, in exchange for my honest review.

Great Mother's Day Gift Ideas

*Note - I had planned to post this review much earlier, but my oldest came down with a NASTY bug.  When I finally had her nursed back to health, she lovingly shared the bug with me.  Haha!  I considered not posting, but then I thought of how many folks forget Mother's Day, so I thought it would come in handy.  Also, to be honest, as a mom, I much more prefer to be surprised with a gift on a day OTHER than Mother's Day.  It shows that my loved ones appreciate me even when they aren't required to!  So pick up one of these fantastic books for your mom and hold it as a "just because" gift. Your mom will love that!

Mother's Day is coming up!  (Yay!) Does anyone else wish Mother's Day was on a Saturday instead of Sunday?  Seriously, what mom gets to sleep in and enjoy breakfast in bed when you have little kids to get ready for church?  But I digress. Every mom wants to feel appreciated, so I thought I'd give you guys some great gift ideas for that sweet mama in your life.

1.) The Mother Letters (Revell Books)-

"Safe House: How Emotional Safety Is The Key To Raising Kids Who Live, Love And Lead Well" Book Review

There are thousands of Christian parenting books out there.  And I've read quite a few.  Some I've loved.  Some I've hated.  And some I've marginally agreed with.  I've found that its always good to take a parenting book with a grain of salt.  After all, no two parenting situations are exactly the same.  I enjoyed Joshua Straub's Safe House because it focused on something that I need to work on - emotions.  I often find myself getting emotional when my kids disobey - getting angry, frustrated, exasperated.  But I know that if I respond in my emotions, then I'm not teaching my children good behavior.  (Have you ever seen your kid have a hissy fit and you realize that they are modeling you?  I have.  And its painful.)