How good and pleasant it is...

...when brothers live together in unity! Psalm 133:1

Children's Book Monday

Do you think the library ladies are weary of labeling and adding books to our section of the holdshelf? I hope not. Because as we scan the book carts for our last name, running our fingers down the spines until we find the ones set aside for us, and as my children peek under the rubberbanded labels to see what gems await, I am thankful for the book recommendations of friends.

Join Elise at A Path Made Straight as she shares fabulous book picks at her weekly Children's Book Monday. (And maybe go back some other day of the week, too, to learn with her.)

And now, may we share with you...

The Mr. Putter and Tabby series

by Cynthia Rylant
illustrated by Arthur Howard

Cynthia Rylant's books are old friends of ours. My boys are special friends with her quirky Poppleton. And Henry and Mudge strike a cord with my animal-loving girl. But I'm most attracted to old Mr. Putter and his old cat Tabby and their gentle balance of adventure and calm.

Our family has been acquainted with Mr. Putter and Tabby for years, but this summer, we set out to read the entire series in order. (Each book stands well on its own, but this seemed the best way to re-acquaint ourselves with them!) We bring home the next one or two each time we come from the library. We laugh together as Mr. Putter and Tabby run races and pick pears and make soup. We relax together as they watch birds and eat muffins and nap. And when we finish one, we delight that each is short enough to read over and over...and that there is a whole series to devour!

When I read, I rarely take time to study the pictures, but in this case, I cannot imagine the story without the illustrations or the illustrations without the story. They blend together as one. Truly a marvelous partnership.

I don't know the recommended reading level and it really doesn't matter. I look forward to sharing in the next tale as much as my young ones. My two-year-old and my husband chuckle just the same. A good story is not bound with age-restraints. In fact, even if you have a tiny babe or your children are grown, venture into your library's children's section and treat yourself to a dose of Mr. Putter.

Joyful reading!
Kristin

All Things Small

also titled: It's the Theme of Our Summer... and I Don't Have to Like It!

What do a tall jar, a mesh cage, a glass bowl, a matchbox, and cupped hands have in common?

Why, they have all played home to Maddie's summer menagerie, of course!

I imagine her love of all creepy, crawly creatures stems from a different motivation than a boy's. She has a tenderness in her heart for all things small and wants to care for them. The summer breezes have lured the children outside often in the past weeks and it is a rare day that Maddie does not adopt someone (not something, mind you, as they all have feelings and personalities!). Maddie has played host to a pair of lightning bugs, a beetle, six frogs (friends, she says), a moth...worms, who got out in the house and were found under the window...slugs, who got out in the house and have not been found...a pill bug. She is anxiously waiting for the summer crop of swallowtail caterpillars to arrive on the bushes so she can choose one to raise into butterfly-hood as she did last year.

Alas. Death accompanies life and my compassionate one has experienced many heartaches, the most recent being the sudden death of her beloved pet fish.

Tender hearts are not easily comforted.

Kristin

The Feet of Jesus

I pivoted on my heels, turning to the refrigerator to gather food for bedtime snacks, careful not to upset Benjamin who was camped out at my ankles. The routine was the same as many evenings past, but this night, he whimpered and reached. Brian, watching nearby, knelt down with extended arms, but Benjamin turned from him and continued to gaze up at me. Brian commented, "He would rather sit at your feet than accept a substitute!"

And a picture formed in my mind...

Should not I be as Benjamin? Accepting no substitutes. Waiting at the feet of Jesus, desperate for Him.

Gazing, yearning...

"I seek you with all my heart...my soul is consumed with longing." Psalm 119:10, 20

Kristin

Life Imitating Literature...Again!

excerpted from The House At Pooh Corner
(Oh, we do so love A. A. Milne!)

"Now one day, [the friends] were all playing Poohsticks together. They had dropped their sticks in...and then they had hurried across to the other side of the bridge, and now they were all leaning over the edge, waiting to see whose stick would come out first."

A Weakness

Motherhood has taught me something.

I'm a lousy pretender.

I can read a story, bounce on the trampoline, lead craft projects, sing a lulluby or sing at the top of my lungs, give a push on the swing, do puzzles...

But when I'm asked, "Mama, will you play with me?"...

I'm at a loss. How about you?

Kristin

Still Listening...

I continue to ponder what it means to be still in the Lord.

Physical stillness does not belong to this season of my life. Solitude cannot be found. Not in the early morning hours when even a whisper rouses my light sleepers. Certainly not in the heat of day when the backdoor ushers happy souls to the yard..and back in...and back out. Not in the evening when Daddy arrives home amid squeals and stories. Then dishes and children need scrubbing...and the day is done.

This is the movement of life. Not chaos. Not movement to stay busy or for distraction, but movement nonetheless. And He knows. If my 6-year-old can pray while swinging from the bars of his bunkbed, can I not seek Him as I move through life, too?

Perhaps.

Kristin

Hers, Mine, Yours (Summer Giveaway #1)

UPDATE: The winner is Commenter #22, Sarah Klingensmith. Visit her at www.xanga.com/sarahk04. Congratulations, Sarah!

I'm a jeans girl in winter and a sundress girl in summer. Last year when I was great with child and huge and continuously hot, I lived in a black sundress my sister-in-law loaned me. This year I was out of luck since dresses don't work for me with a nursing babe!

But when Line Rothman, founder of Glamourmom contacted me to review another of her company's products for nursing moms, I was thrilled! Glamourmom (http://www.glamourmom.com/) carries a variety of tanks for pregnant and nursing women. They also have pajamas, swimsuits, baby bodysuits...and a tankdress!

Nursing clasps blend in with the adjustable shoulder straps so while nursing is as easy as ever, the dress does not scream "I can nurse in this!" to the casual and fashion-conscious observer. With a cranky, teething eight-month-old (wanting to nurse constantly in this sticky heat-- ugh!), it is a great staple around home. When I need to dress it up a bit, I throw on a cute jacket.

Now, for the "Yours" part: Glamourmom is offering one reader a free item of her choice from the online store! There are things for non-nursing women... and babies, too! Or think gift!


There are three ways to earn entries:

• Earn 1 entry by commenting on this post.
  
• Earn 1 entry by blogging about this contest! (Feel free to use my button in the right sidebar to link back to me.) Don't forget to leave a separate comment with the link to your post.
  
• Earn 1 entry by sharing this contest with your friends on Facebook. Again, be sure to leave a separate comment telling me you did so.
  
  

The contest runs now through Friday, July 3 at 12 noon (EDT).

Watch for my second Summer Giveaway later in the season!

See! The winter is past;
the rains are over and gone.
Flowers appear on the earth;
the season of singing has come.


Song of Songs 2: 11-12

9 Things I Learned From My Dad

Intelligence is not the same as common sense. Dad loves to point out how smart people often did dumb things. It was frequent dinnertime conversation at home. Like the time my friend drove on the exit ramp of the highway or when my brother walked miles down the beach without sunscreen and ended up in the emergency room or when I cracked an egg on his lap (last week)...it boggled his mind!

Never pay someone to do something you can do yourself. (If you don't know how to do something, learn.) My dad never pays someone to change the oil, cut the firewood, paint the house, build his barn...he always learned how to do it himself or found a friend or book to teach him. I think I've inherited his frugal tendencies, because I cringe when I have to shell out money for something I think, possibly I could figure out how to do!

Saturdays are sacred. Dad works hard at the office Monday through Friday and Sunday is family day so Saturdays are THE day to get house or yard projects done. If something happens to prevent him from getting an early start (or to cut his day short), he is famous for saying, "The whole day is shot!"

A small sacrifice is huge in the eyes of your child. I asked Dad to take me to a church roller skating event when I was 13 or 14. I know he didn't want to spend that Monday evening hanging out at the roller skating rink with a bunch of teenagers, but he did it, and I'll always remember it.

Spending time with the Lord is priority. Dad leaves for work early in the morning and, though I only recall him grabbing breakfast on occasion, I remember him pausing to read his Bible on the couch before walking out the door.

If you don't know the words to a song, make them up! Dad led the worship at our church for several years when I was a young teenager. If he forgot the words, he kept singing anyway. On the drive home, we would laugh at the new phrases he wrote, but they sure sounded pretty good on the spot!

US Route 50 runs 3073 miles from Ocean City, Maryland to Sacramento, California. This fact made an impression on my dad so we heard it approximately 3073 times while growing up!

Turn off the lights when you leave a room. "Who's in the dining room?" he would say. Interpreted: Why are the lights on if I can't see anyone in there?

Beans are good for your heart. Enough said.

Kristin

We are overflowing

...with books! Check the bookshelf in my sidebar regularly for new additions as the pace of our reading is swift this summer.

Armed with a list, we brave the sticky heat for a weekly trek to the library so we are humbly begging for any and all book suggestions! My family will thank you.

Life Imitating Poetry

Forgiven

by A. A. Milne

I found a little beetle, so that Beetle was his name,

And I called him Alexander and he answered just the same.

I put him in a match-box, and I kept him all the day...

(...and now he rests in the matchbox on her dresser as she sleeps!)

Listening...

When does one find the time to be still when each day runs at a constant pace? When does one be still before the Lord, listen to His still, small voice?

Perhaps there is no need for physical stillness and every need to be still in Him in the little moments. Perhaps it is in those seconds that I sense Him most.

Perhaps I can hear Him while I am steeping my tea between storybooks. Perhaps I can hear Him as I walk to the mailbox. Perhaps I can hear Him in those bleary hours of the night when I am nursing a teething baby.

Perhaps.

Kristin

Life Lessons

In June of 2005, my mom and I began a term as co-editors of our local homeschool newsletter. It has been our delight and our obsession! This year, we felt it was time to move on. For our last issue, we each wrote good-bye articles. Though that audience was made up of homeschool moms, I realized that the ideas I expressed can be applied to all moms so I'm sharing it with you!

Seasons of Serving

Homeschooling is about learning. It is about gaining wisdom and ultimately growing in the knowledge of Jesus and His way. While teaching my children, often I have been the student, too! While preparing to finish serving my term as co-editor, I’ve been reflecting on lessons learned—lessons that must be continually practiced and drilled, lessons that He must review with me daily.

To everything there is a season. When I signed on as co-editor four years ago, I was the mother of a 2 ½ -year-old and a 1-year-old. My belly has swelled twice more and, with it, my obligations. Each time circumstances changed, I mourned the loss of what I once had. Not that I wasn’t thankful for new life or new opportunities but I struggled with shifting responsibilities. With two children, we filled our days with play and crafts and nursing and naps. With three, I played while nursing, did crafts with napping babe in arms. As the oldest began kindergarten, we added math and phonics to the mix. Four children finds us staying home more. When we do venture out, it involves inventing creative ways to juggle an infant and heavy bags while clasping little hands to cross the street. There are days when caring for the needs of the two youngest souls while teaching two older souls is overwhelming, but when I begin to grumble or feel sorry in my circumstances, I remember that this is a season. Life may be different in a year—in a week—but this is my lot for right now. “There is a time for everything, and a season for everything under heaven.” (Ecclesiastes 3:1)

Serving brings joy. Whether it is serving as newsletter editor, serving my family’s meals, or simply buttoning a toddler coat or wiping a tear, giving of myself to others ultimately brings reward. It is rarely easy and I don’t always do it well, but battling the inclination of my flesh cultivates that joy. Does it come naturally to smile after an intense day, to overlook little boy antics at bedtime when I’m exhausted? Does it come naturally to pack my husband’s lunch for the next day when I would rather be reading on the couch? No, but Jesus said, “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” (Matthew 25:40)

Do the next thing. I am an organizer and a list maker. I am also a scheduler and a worrier, and when my lists grow long, I panic. Same goes for schoolwork. I look at all the things I want or need to teach my children and I get frazzled. I’m slowly recognizing the need to just “do the next thing.” Do what God has for me now instead of looking towards the next hour or day or month or school year. Do what He requires of me next instead of trying to (unsuccessfully) tackle everything at once. This doesn’t require abolishing my lists, plans, and calendars. It simply requires that I do the next thing and then leave it up to Him as to how, or if, I’ll accomplish the rest. “Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.” (Matthew 6:27, 34)

And now my season of serving as co-editor has come to a close. The Lord is leading on. I pray for His guidance as we all seek to do the next thing.

Kristin

First

"What?! There is more to life than nursing?"

"Intriguing. Maybe I'll give it a try."

"Whoa! That was not at all what I expected!"

"Now that I'm used to it, it's not so bad. But, please, no more for awhile!"

NOTE: What a joy it has been to delay solids for Benjamin (and all of our babies) and watch him discover food on his own!

Kristin