Gamble in the Devil's Chalk

This is kind of a random one....  I did not actually read the entire book.  I never intended to.  You see Gary Bryant, my father-in-law, was interviewed for this book before he passed away in March.  This book has been such a gift from God.  I loved getting to read stories about Gary from his early days....  Gary was a man who kept his cards close to his chest, so there was so much that I never knew about him. He was an awesome man and truly the best father-in-law a girl could ask for...

This book is about some of the men who were drilling for oil in central Texas (between Austin & College Station) in the 70's.  If you are interested in reading about Gary specifically he is in chapters 32, 33, and 49.

Read:  November 2011
Pages:  571

101 Things You Should Do Before Your Kids Leave Home

I got this book recently when I needed to spend a few more dollars to get free shipping at Amazon.  This book is not exactly what I thought that it was going to be...  it was very Christian centered.  Which I appreciate, but maybe some wouldn't.  

It had lots of fun ideas of things to do with your kiddos from a young age all the way to their teenage years.  I would say get this soon rather than later even though you won't be able to do many of them early....  you will want to know what to plan for.

Some of these I already had thought of...  swimming with dolphins, Laundry camp....

Some it reminded me of what we want to do... go camping, camp inside!

Some where new ideas... teddy bear hunt in the house...

I liked this because each idea was one page.  So I could read it for just a few minutes before bed or just after James had pottied and I knew I had a few minutes before I had to be on accident patrol.  ;)

I want to leave you with a great quote from the back...

The soul is healed by being with children.  Fyodor Dostoevsky


Pages:  213
Read:  December 2011

Favorites of 2011

I think that 2011 was a pretty good reading year for me!  It was really, really hard for me to decide...  I could have added a couple more...  There are way worse things!!  Number one was far and away the #1 though!

Here are my top 5 favorites!

Honorable Mention:  Reason to Believe

5.  The Help

4.  Heaven is for Real

3.  Water for Elephants

2.   Black Heels to Tractor Wheels

1.  The Hunger Games series

Free Spirit's Best Behavior Series

Now as you may know sweet James is a little over 2.5.  At times he tests boundaries like all two year old.  When the needs arises Aaron and I talk to him about using gentle hands, etc.  But when I saw this one the other day at the library, I thought a little reinforcement couldn't hurt {a certain someone may or may not have been in time out numerous times at school for unkind touching recently...}

The first book in this series that I found at the library was Diapers Are Not Forever.  It is still one of my favorite potty training books.  {We have read TONS of those lately!}  I wish I knew about Pacifiers Are Not Forever when we were getting rid of the paci!

Anyway this is another series that I think is great!  We may or may not need the Tails Are Not For Pulling edition around here....

Begin Smart Series

I don't always write about specific series for kiddos books, but this series of books has really grown on me.  They offer books for all age ranges of little ones.  This is awesome for anyone {including a former Reading Specialist!}  Sometimes I am not exactly sure what James should be expected to know/do since I was not an early childhood person....

When James was little we had quite a few of the black and white ones for birth-six month olds.  Those were really some of his favorites!  At the library recently I found the book pictured above {along with 2 others in the series}, and after reading these I can say I think they are great!  I loved all of the fruits and vegetables in the book.  The pictures were great and really gave us a lot to talk about.

Talking about the pictures and not just reading the words in books can be really helpful for little ones.  It can really help improve their vocabulary.  Sometimes I just want to read what it written, but in these sorts of books you just feel like you should do a little more talking.  Exactly what James' speech therapist wants us to do!

If you run across these book, I highly recommend them!

Train and Truck Mice

These are a few of the favorites that we have gotten from the library lately.  When I ask James what he wants to read when it is bedtime, he will often say trainmice!  Which is kinda funny because I think that they are kinda silly.

Just goes to show that just because you as a grown up think it's a great book doesn't mean a toddler will and vice versa!  All I care about is having books in young children's hands.

These are some of those books that are not in print any longer, so it shows how valuable it is to get to the library.  Please, please if you have not taken your little one to the library, give it a try!

PS-  be on the lookout for Christmas time favorites.  I can't wait to find out which ones he likes!

Heaven Is For Real

Y'all I did not even have time to put this in the currently reading column on the blog because I read this book so stinking fast!  I have been really looking forward to reading this book for the last few months {especially since I was not a huge fan of our last two book club books!}  And can you believe this is the December book...it's still November when I finished this!!!  That might just be a first!

This is the story of a four year old boy who during emergency surgery went to heaven.  The book is what he told his parents about his trip.  Y'all this really got me thinking about heaven!  {I am not a fan of thinking of afterlife...}  I loved what this sweet boy had to say about heaven and it makes me want to try even harder to be a better person so I can meet {and stay with} Jesus one day.

One of my favorite parts of the book is how although this little boy is Wesleyan, there are many things that he saw in heaven that fit my Catholic beliefs.  For example, the people he encountered in heaven had halos.

I would definitely recommend reading this one even if you are not ultra Christian.  It is a really feel good book...  I mean it's heaven and a four year old boy.  Does it get any better than either of those?

Read:  November 2011
Pages:  192

Ask Me No Questions

I got this book when I went to a Regnum Christi Night of Reflection at church.  It was written by a consecrated Regnum Christi lady.  I think that the target audience is really young adults.  But that's just fine with me because YA is some of my favorite reading!

This is a story about a single mother and her three very special children.  They are on the run, but it takes most of the book to figure out why.  The mother is doing her best to raise her children to be good Catholic children and it was just nice to read about how we should be living as opposed to how most of us do live.

I liked the book.  It got me thinking about the sanctity of human life {which seems to be on my mind a lot lately.}  I think that you would definitely need to be a strong believer to read this one.

Read:  November 2011
Pages:  265

Inside of a Dog

This is our newest book club book.  Last month we had a non-fiction book and again this month.  Non-fiction is not really my favorite genre as I have discussed before...  I am a bit early posting (we have not met yet) because, in case you haven't guessed, I did not finish the book.  I read all but about 100 pages.

The book is about dogs and how they were domesticated.  In addition it discussed how dogs are the same and different as us.  It really was pretty interesting but became a little redundant.

Each time I tried to tell my husband something interesting that I learned, he let me know that he had seen that on a tv show...  I would not have chosen this book on my own, but it was okay.  If you are interested in learning more about your dog and like non-fiction, you might just enjoy this one.  Otherwise just try to catch the tv show.

I am sooo excited for next month's pick though, Heaven is for Real.

Read:  Nov. 2011
Pages:  368

A Heart Like His

This book is a month long meditation book.  There is a mediation for 30 days.  June is the month of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and it is encouraged that this book be used that month.

I did in fact begin this in June.  I liked the meditations and I like that I can use this book more than one time.  For some reason though this was not really my favorite religious book.  I think that I was just not quite ready yet.  I just felt like I was not anywhere near worthy to be like Jesus.

So my plan is to try the book again next June beginning June 1 and doing it EACH day.  This year I didn't get the book until a few days unto June and then didn't do it each day, so I finished in July.

So I wouldn't say run out and buy it like The Better Part (I have finished 2 of the gospels thanks to that gem!), but you may like it better than me...

Pages:  128
Read: June/July 2011

Library Visits

As James and I reading some library books the other day, I thought I need to blog about this...  we go to the library every 2-3 weeks to check out new books for James (usually 3-5 books/visit).  Y'all this boy l.o.v.e.s his library books.  

Each week he falls in love with some new book.  I always think that we are going to end up having a huge fit about missing one of his books....  luckily though he finds a new book that he falls in love with.  

We generally check out a potty training book (maybe one day we won't need these any longer ;)), a truck or car book, a Caillou book, and a Thomas book.  

Right now he is obsessed with Dumpy and His Pals.  Last time it was a train book.  I love the library because they have books that are out of print like Dumpy, but awesome!  Also it just saves us money.  James already owns probably 200+ books...  we have spent plenty already.  ;)

So if you don't already go to your local library, I encourage you to take advantage of one of our favorite places!

James' Halloween Favorites

James loves reading books about Halloween this year.  These two in particular have been hits.  It has been really fun to watch James start to understand about Holidays a little more this year.  

The Little Critter book is read numerous times each day, and I think that I am going to have to find my other Little Critter books for him.  These seem to be just the right length for a 2.5 year old.  I think that the pictures are also really fun for him.

Pumpkin, Pumpkin is a great book to read if you have been visiting the Pumpkin Patches lately.  

Animals in Translation

This is our October book club book.  It was chosen because Temple Grandin wrote it and we thought that would be interesting.  I will be completely honest....  I only read about 50 pages.  I just could not get into this book.  It would be interesting if you were really interesting if you liked to read non-fiction books that are about animals.

I have decided that I only like parenting non-fiction books.  Otherwise give me the fiction books!  This book was just really dry.  I thought that the information was interesting it was just really hard to get into...

I'd say pass on this one...

Read:  Ha!  Tried to in September 2011
Pages:  372

Mockingjay

This is the last book in the Hunger Games series.  I loved this one so much.  Maybe even more than the first one.  There are some serious surprises in this story!  I don't really want to give anything away.  All I will day is READ.THESE.BOOKS!  My brother literally read the first one in less than 12 hours.

This is my very favorite book(s) that I have read in ages.  Easy to read, awesome story!

Read:  October 2011
Pages:  400

Catching Fire

Y'all this book was soooo good!  I had to wait about 5 days before I could get it this from my sister.  Again I read this book in two sittings.

This is book two in the Hunger Games series.  Spoiler alert!  Stop reading if you don't want to know anything....






Katniss had just won the Games and is about to go on the Victory Tour.  The Capitol is very worried about the districts since a number of them are on the brink of rebelling.  You will grow to love Katniss even more!

Read:  October 2011
Pages:  391

The Hunger Games

Oh my goodness!  I have read so many good books lately and am just so excited!  Y'all I read this book in literally 2 sittings.  Granted one of them kept me up until 2 AM!  So good that I did not peek ahead, just kept on reading.  I really wanted to read ahead, but I knew that would ruin the book for me.

Anyway, this book is set in the future.  North America has undergone numerous natural disasters and a new country has formed...  it consists of The Capitol and 12 districts.  The districts tried to revolt 70 something years ago.  Now each year the Capitol chooses a boy and girl (12-17 year old) from each district to compete in The Hunger Games.  The kids fight to the death in a huge arena.  This event is televised each year {almost like reality tv gone horribly wrong...}.  The main character Katniss is one of the contestants.

My recommendation is that you get in your car and get to the book store NOW!  I cannot wait to read the next two books!  My sister brought them over tonight!  And y'all read these quick, because they are going to be made into a movie!  :)

PS Are you Team Peeta or Team Gale?  Right now I am Team Peeta.

Read:  September 2011
Pages:  384

A Couple from the Bedtime Rotation

I cannot believe that it has taken me soooo long to write about these books.  They have both been apart of the Bedtime Routine {which used to be so much easier....  dang terrible twos!}  for quite some time.  

They are just like what they sound like.  The Daddy Book tells all about different sorts of things that daddies like to do while The Mommy Book tells all about different things mommies like to do.  

I just love Todd Parr and kids do, too!  The pictures are fun and bright and he is always so inclusive in his writing.  I  guess my love for him stems back to my more liberal pre-Mommy days.  Ha!

If you don't own any Todd Parr books, get some now!  One of my personal faves is The Underwear Book!  Early Elementary age kids love it!  

And that is officially the end of my list that I had going....  that means, gasp,  I am all caught up.  So now I just have to finish some books on my bookshelf!  I know you will be sitting on the edge of your seat.  I will try to read fast!  ;)

James Favorites from 2-2.5

I am going to go totally out of order and write first...  Hope you don't mind.  ;)

Right now James is very into trains, trucks, cars, and animals.  So most books that are read over and over in our house are about one of those.  That is really the key for getting kids of any age to read, I think.

Some hits are novelty sorts of books like lift-the flap books and any book that makes noise.  Some of his favorite include those shown below:

There are also quite a few non-novelty books that he likes read over and over!  Some are classics, some are fun songs!  Here they are:

There are quite a few that he still reads found here and here.  It's kinds crazy he has been reading some of these books for more than a year!  It's also crazy that I have more than 50 posts!  I guess I really like to read.  ;)

One Day

I read about this on someones blog and also heard about the movie.  It seemed like a fun book and it really was!

This is a book about a British guy and girl who began hanging out the day after they graduated from college July 15, 1980-something.  Anyway each chapter of the book is what is happening in their lives on July 15 of every year for the next 20 years.  It is totally different than any other book that I have ever read.  I was not a fan of both of the characters to begin with but they both really grow up and grow on you.

I think that maybe I liked it because the main character totally reminded me of myself and I like how she matured...  it was fun to see how they grew up through their twenties and thirties.  Let's face it I am in my mid-30s so I have been through a lot of what they have.  ;)

I heard the movies not great though.  Also be forewarned the ending will make you cry!  I totally didn't see it coming...

This is a good, easy read.

Read:  September 2011 Book Club book for Jan. 2012
Pages:  448

Time for God

This is another quick and easy read by Jacques Phillipe.  The last on that I read by him was good but I couldn't remember what happened.  This one however I totally remember.  Probably because this one is about praying and since that is what my church group will be studying this year, I am really interested in it.

This book basically says that there are many different ways to pray and meditate, but Phillipe just wants you to do it.  All that God cares about is us making time in our busy lives for him.  I loved that.  It really got me thinking that I do need to be better about committing to spending more time each day with God.  If we will just give him a little of our time he will bless us beyond measure and we will actually hear what he is telling us.

This is a good one.  I definitely know that I will go back to it and refresh my memory from time to time.  :)

Read:  May-August 2011
Pages:  120

Parenting with Grace

I finished this book a month or two ago and loved it.  I always hear Dr. Popcak on the Catholic radio station and love the little bits of advice he gives.  So it was a no brainer to get this book to help figure out the toddler days (aka, terrible twos...)  {As I write my son is refusing to nap, he has napped once in the last week!  2.5 is too early to give up a nap, surely!}

This book goes all the way until children are 18 {I think}.  Anyway I read the beginning and the section on toddlers.  It was really good stuff.  It was a lot like the Sears' and attachment parenting.  So if you are more of a BabyWise sort of parent, you most likely won't like this one.  I loved it though.  I reminded me to follow through with James.  For some reason that is so much easier said than done, though...

I think that I need a little refresher read!  Ha!  No one will be borrowing this book from me because it is a jewel!  I highly recommend it!

Read:  May-July 2011
Pages:  not sure because I only read what pertained to us at this time in life

Water for Elephants

Oh my goodness!  I have been dying to write about this book.  This is the story of a young man who is just about to finish vet school when his parents are killed in an auto accident.  Do what does he do?  Why join the circus of course.  Along the way he falls in love with one of the married ladies in the show.  The story is told from his memory as he lives in his nursing home.

Y'all this was such an amazing book.  I loved it!!!  I think that I read in in just 3 days.  I loved how it was told from when he was older.  The ending was fantastic!  Go out and get this one as quick as you can!!

Read:  August 2011
Pages:  368

Safe Haven

This was our August book club book.  {Do you see how close I am to being caught up?!?!?}  I think that I have read literally every Nicholas Sparks book that there is.  Problem is I starting getting them all mixed up in about 2004.  Now for honesty before beginning...  I did not actually finish this one {I know, you are shocked! ;)}

I started reading this one, but then I got to skimming {this happens far to often}.  The book seemed like it was going to be very predictable.  It is about a woman who left an abusive husband.... you see where it's going... and meets a nice man in the little town she moved to.  I felt like I had read this one a million times before.  But when I skimmed to the end, it was way to kooky for me!  And that my friends is all I can say without giving it away.  2 of our girls really liked the book because of the twist that I so disliked.

I would say if you really, really like Nicholas Sparks read it.  But get it from the library.  I do have a hard back copy if you are interested.  :)  I for one am officially done with Nicholas Sparks though.

Read:  July 2011
Pages:  340

Forever

This was the last book in the Firstborn series.  I really liked this one.  It really brought the series together.  I also liked seeing Katie and Dayne's relationship mature and go through tragedy.  Karen Kingsbury always had a letter at the end and I really loved those.  This one really showed me some things that I had not thought about.

I literally finished all 5 books of the series in about 2 weeks.  I was a maniac.  I think that my husband was glad to see me again after that...  he seemed to be a book widower then...  Now I am excited to read the next series, but am going to try to read a few other books on my list before then.  :)


Read: August 2011
Pages:  368

Family

This is the book that Dayne gets to meet his birth family and it is a great culmination to the adoption part of the story.  Katie and Dayne are still trying to figure out just how they will work out in this one.

I feel like it's hard to tell you about these books without ruining what will happen in subsequent books...  Just know that this is a great series and you should totally read it!!!

Read:  August 2011
Pages:  368

Found

This is the third book in the Firstborn series.  In this book, Dayne's birth family learns about him and his father searches for him.  Dayne wants to protect his birth family from his public life, so this presents a bit of a problem.  Of course Katie and Dayne still can't stay away from each other.  Another quick and easy read.


Read:  August 2011
Pages:  368

Forgiven

This is the 2nd book in the Firstborn series by Karen Kingsbury.  In this book, Dayne is searching for meaning in his life and looks into Christianity.  You learn a little more about Dayne's past and it is overall another good book.  I think that I read it in less than 3 days.  Run out and get all 5 of the books in this series.  I l.o.v.e.d them!!!

Read:  August 2011
Pages: 384

Fame

A few weeks ago, James and I were at the library and I wanted something easy to read.... like I could finish it in under a week.  So I remembered that I had read a Karen Kingsbury book a while back {I actually had to go look at past post to remember the authors name...}  I stumbled upon this sweet little book.

I like Karen Kingsbury.  She reminds me of Nora Roberts, but Christian stories.  This book was JUST what I was looking for.  It is the story of a famous A-lister who can't get a small town girl out off his mind.  When she comes to Los Angeles though things don't go the way they are supposed to.  This is the beginning of Dayne and Katie's five book love story.  I can't really tell you much about the books with out giving it all away.

However I will say this series really got me thinking about the paparazzi and I have not bought quite as many Us Weeklys since.

Read:  July 2011
Pages:  368

Cars books

These are currently some of James' favorite books.  {James is currently 2.5 years old}  A friend gave him one in May when he began his H.U.G.E obsession with Cars.  Truth be told I never really was a fan of the Step into Reading sorts of books as a first grade teacher {mostly didnt like the vocabulary and thought they were boring)...  but now I see the value in some of these little jewels.

 Now James is not actually reading {yet, ;)} but these are the perfect length for an impatient 2 year old. The Step 1 books are the perfect length because they are about 1 sentence per page.

Most importantly though, it is just having books about something that your child is interested in!  I have quite a few more books that I want to share that James has been interested in for the last few months.

I am trying soooo hard to catch up { I have at least 5 James books, and 9 of my books that I need to blog about!}, but James is going thru a little I don't want to nap phase and that is my time to blog...

Chasing Harry Winston

I have had this book forever!!! I loved The Devil Wears Prada, so I thought I would give this book a try. I thought that it was a fun, predictable book. Maybe if I were more in the mid to late 20's portion of my life, I would have liked it more. Right now I am in more of the chasing baby #2 spot in life. ;) So if you like chick lit and are currently looking for a husband or just recently found yours, you may like it.

Read: not finished but skimmed June/July 2011

Pages:288

Half Broke Horses

This was our July book club book and I loved it! We had previously read another book by the same author, The Glass Castle. {I was sad to see that I did not post about that book...read.it!} This is the story of Jeannette Walls grandmother. Wow, she was an amazing woman. She had grit that was for sure. Seems like people aren't made like that anymore... It was fun to read about her grandma in the early part of the 20th century... like how she rode a horse from New Mexico to Arizona and it took like 3 weeks! It's amazing how the world has changed, isn't it! Y'all read this book. It was easy to read and fun.

Read: early July 2011

Pages: 288

In the School of the Holy Spirit

I went to a one day retreat back in January with my church and the priest mentioned Jacques Philippe as a great and easy to read author. So of course I bought like three of his books for my weekly adoration session. This was in fact a really easy book to read, but because it was MONTHS ago that I read it, I don't totally remember it... Oops. Guess it did not make that much of an impact. The one that I am currently reading though is AWESOME!

Read: February-May 2011

Pages: 90

Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother

This was the June (?) Book Club book. This book is parenting on steroids. It was one of the first books that I finished in a long time, but wasn't my favorite. Amy Chua tended to over generalize Eastern vs. Western parenting. This book definitely made me feel like a slacker... It is an easy read, but I don't think that I would recommend it.

Read: June 2011

Pages: 256

Reason to Believe

A lady from church gave me this book, and oh my goodness, it is amazing! This is the story of an Australian lawyer who is Catholic but has lost his faith. This story follows miracles in his life as well as miracles around the world. The title has to do with the reason we should all believe that the Eucharist truly is the body and blood of Christ. This is truly a life changing book. If you are Catholic and wonder about Eucharist get a copy of this book. It is amazing!

Read: February 2011

Black Heels to Tractor Wheels

This was such a fun book! It is the story of the Pioneer Woman (she has a blog you should look up!) as she falls in love with her cowboy. She is a twenty something who has recently moved home for a quick stop over before moving to Chicago. Instead this city girl falls in love with a cowboy. She is an great writer. This was a quick and easy read. If you are looking for one more book to read before summer ends, run out and get this one. SWV my copy should be traveling around the campus. ;) This one is supposed to become a movie.

Read: April 2011

Pages: 352

Cinderella Ate My Daughter

This was our April book... The author writes about the "girlie-girl" culture in America. She has been writing about this since before she had a daughter. Now that she has an elementary school student, the author has first hand knowledge of this culture. I did not care for this book at all. It seemed like one big rant to me... I wouldn't recommend it.

Pages: 256

Read: April 2011

The Heretic's Daughter

This was a recent book club book... (aka, I don't know what month because it has been THAT long! :)) I liked the story, but I have a thing for Historical Fiction. It is a story set during the Salem Witch Hunt about a family whose mother is convicted as a witch. I don't usually read about that time period, but I thought that it was really interesting. Not sure how historically correct any of it was, but it was interesting. The only problem was it was a little long, slow, and wordy... Again I did not finish it, just skimmed it because I really liked the story line.

Read: April 2011

Pages:352 pages

The Help

I know that it has been WAY too long! The end of the school year was so hectic! Never fear I have 7 books that I plan on adding and I need to also add the books that James is into right now.

On to The Help, I loved this book! It was so good that I did not actually finish it... March was a very busy time for my family and I did not have a lot of time to read, so I skimmed the second half of the book. When I skim a book, it is usually because I love it and don't have the patience to read it! Ha! This is a story set in 1960's Mississippi. Once girl, Skeeter, sees the way the help is treated and wants to know their story. Skeeter is a wonderful character. I would recommend this book. Plus it is going to be a movie coming out in August. So read it soon!

Pages: 464

Read: March 2011

The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest

So during the end of our trip, I devoured this book. It did not disappoint!

In this book, you learn so much about Lisbeth's past and the dark days of her youth. The book nicely wraps up the story and does not leave you wondering. I don't really want to write much about it because it will give it all away. I will say that there is in fact a happy ending. :)

Pages: 526

Read: December 2010