Encouragement for parents

"A father's instruction and a mother's teaching are a graceful garland for your child's head and pendants for his neck."  (paraphrased from Proverbs 1:8-9)

Be diligent in your parenting.  Pray for your child.  Love your child.  Hug your child.  Teach your child.  Model good behavior for your child.  Encourage your child.

You are weaving a graceful garland to crown your child's head.
You are part of a lovely necklace which will adorn your child's neck.
God is using you to help your child grow to be more like him each day.
The path will sometimes seem overwhelming and dark, but be faithful to your calling.
Endure the road before you, and you will, in time, see God's glorious work revealed.

Blessings,

 

32 Things to Make Using A Cardboard Box

If your kids like to be creative, then you will love this blog post titled, "32 Things to Make Using A Cardboard Box"  It's full of brightly colored pictures, and it's sure to stimulate your imagination.  Though you might be careful showing your children, 'til you are ready to drive to a store to request leftover boxes.  I'm sure they'll want to go get boxes and start creating immediately!

Book Review: The Skin Map by Stephen Lawhead

Stephen Lawhead’s latest book is The Skin Map.  It’s an adventure through time to find a lost roadmap that would be devastating in the hands of wrongdoers.  It’s a bit of history, a bit of fantasy, a bit of coming of age, a bit entrepreneurial, and a bit of suspense.  Reading it feels a bit like watching an Indiana Jones movie.

I’ve never read a Lawhead book, so I didn’t know what to expect.  Neither was I captivated by the title.  But when I read the description on the back of the book, I was hooked.  I love historical fiction, adventure, and mysteries.  I was not disappointed when I started reading the text.  It’s an easy and entertaining read.  I didn’t want to put it down, yet I didn’t want it to end.

Different chapters reveal diverse pieces of the story, so you never know if you’ll open the chapter to be in Prague, London, or Asia.  And you never know if you’ll be in the 21^st century or all the way back to the 17^th century.

Readers will learn about customs, dress, foods, and adventuring.  Readers will be inspired to imagine time travel, suddenly emerging in another time period, meeting long-lost ancestors, dining in a Royal Court, and starting a new business.

The book leaves you at a cliffhanger, so I’m sure you’ll be waiting to read the sequel in the fall.

If you like science fiction, mystery, and adventure, you will like this book!

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Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com <http://BookSneeze.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Pipecleaner fun

I went to a craft & fabric garage sale this weekend and found some really fun craft supplies for the summer.  My 4-year old and I snuck into the stash this morning to do some pipecleaner crafts.  My kids love playing with pipecleaners - they are a relatively cheap manipulative for creativity and imaginative play.  This morning we made:

• tulips - bend the middle of a red pipecleaner into the shape of 2 capital "M"s, then connect the ends of the pipecleaner to make the bottom of the flower.  Attach a green pipecleaner for the stem.
• bumblebee - weave a yellow and black pipecleaner together, then roll it onto a pencil to make a tightly curled bundle.  then bend a black pipecleaner in half and stick it through the pencil hole to make the antlers & stinger.
• snack mix - we filled a bowl with lots of different pipecleaners rolled into curly q's
• inchworms - green pipecleaners rolled on the pencil to stretch out as desired
• butterflies - bend one pipecleaner in half for the abdomen, then shape the wings to attach on either side of the butterfly.
• bunny ears - pink pipecleaners attached to a brown headband.

I should've taken pictures, but she wrapped them in leftover wrapping paper too quickly!

As I type, my daughter is busy being a hairdresser, fixing my hair for the day.  Can't wait to see what it looks like!

Blessings,