The Butterfly Effect book review

I had the privilege to review The Butterfly Effect by Andy Andrews for Book Sneeze and what a privilege it was! This book is amazing. Once I started reading it I couldn't stop. It is a very easy read and only took me a short time to finish it. I will have to say it is one of the better books I have read.

The Butterfly Effect talks about how one person made a move over a century ago that still impacts us today. This person is really just an average person whose decision made a ripple that still effects us today. It goes through history to show how this was done. I found this book very exciting and really couldn't wait to see how it ended.

This book really encouraged me and showed the importance of how just a small thing can leave a lasting impression and even change lives of people you will never meet. This is a book that makes you stop and think. I highly recommend this book and am planning on giving this book as Christmas presents this year. It is a great reminder that when you leave this world it does not matter what you take with you, but what you leave behind you when you go.

The Jesus Series DVD Read and Share Bible review

I had an opportunity to review the Jesus Series of Life and Miracles Read and Share Bible DVD from Thomas Nelson. They sent me a complimentary dvd to watch. This dvd was 30 minutes long and followed Jesus on his ministry along the shores of Lake Galilee and Nazareth.

My three oldest children, ages 4-8, watched this along with me. While I think they a good job on the animation, I was a little disappointed by the briefness of the stories they told. They did not go in detail, but instead just briefly touched on the different stories. My kids were familiar with most of the stories, but my 8 yr old said it was a little confusing because they skipped a lot of things or just showed the pictures with no explanation of what was going on. For example they showed Lazarus being raised from the dead, but did not mention what had happened or who it even was. They left out a lot and the stories they did tell where not explained enough. It also stopped at the last supper and my kids did not like this. They thought it was too important to leave out the story about his death and resurrection.

The one thing I did like about this DVD was that it did bring up a lot of questions during the movie and we had many discussions about Jesus' life. I also liked the scripture they included during the movie. Most of the verses where familiar to my kids and it was neat to see them recite them.

Overall, my kids enjoyed the movie and my 4 & 6 yr old want to watch it again. I think it would be a good dvd for those who are just introducing their children to Jesus.

Book review for Living With Confidence in a Chaotic World

Living With Confidence in a Chaotic World by David Jeremiah is a book about finding hope in a world that seems out of control and scary. The author does an excellent job of using scripture to back up his messages and thoughts. I found this book to be very enlightening and encouraging. At first when I started reading this book I was a little hesitant. It started off by talking about all the scary things going on in this world, things I hadn't even thought about, but then he started adding in the scripture. No matter what scenario he was talking about, he always put a biblical spin on things. After reading this book I have found a new kind of hope and reassurance about what is going on in this world today. I would definitely recommend this book. It will give you a new perspective on life.

I am so glad that Thomas Nelson gave me this complimentary book so that I can read it and review it.

Halloween 2009

So, Bailey was home sick on Thursday and I still let her trick-or-treat. She was looking a lot better and she didn't have her fever. The weather was beautiful. Around 70 degrees, partly cloudy and NO rain. Even though I didn't like trick-or-treating when it wasn't actually Halloween, I did like the weather. Today is actually Halloween and it is cold and rainy outside. We always seem to be sick around Halloween. Bella still has her terrible cough (going on 5 wks now), Bailey has a fever that keeps coming and going, Blake just started with a cough, Brian is still not feeling the best and neither am I. I just want us to be healthy again! I am so paranoid with Blake's condition and sickness. I have to make sure to keep him away from potential swine flu symptoms. The nurse actually told me to isolate Bailey when she has a fever. Seriously, try to do that with a 7 yr old. It works for awhile, but eventually they want to be part of the family again :) The nurse told me it would be really bad if Blake got the swine flu since he has a heart defect. I am going to try to get the vaccine later next week if the lines are too long.

Anyways, back to my original post :) After all, it is suppose to be about Halloween! Bryson was Incredible Hulk for his preschool and a dinosaur for trick-or-treating. We didn't get any picts of him being Incredible Hulk :( Bella was Jesse from Toy Story 2, Bailey was an angel and Blake was a skeleton. I can't believe how much Bryson was into it this year. We usually take a wagon with us, but we took the stroller with Blake in it so the kids had to walk the entire time. I never heard them complain though. I had a hard time keeping up with them. This was the first year I was lagging behind them. All the other years I was in front of them and they were the tired ones! Maybe I'm just getting old :) The kids got a lot of great candy this year. We had a ton on trick-or-treaters. I ran out of popcorn by 6:30 and I still had an hour and a half to go. I had to use some of the kids candy to make it till 8:00. Thankfully there weren't a lot of kids after 7:00.

I'm glad the kids had a great time. I had a lot of fun things planned for the kids today, but with them being sick and yet full of energy, I have decided to tackle the house instead. I definitely would rather be making pumpkin cookies and other yummy things. Since we have a very busy day tomorrow and I won't be home much this week, I better get the house into some type of order :) I'm sure it won't last long though.

Going back to work

Ok, tomorrow is my first day back at work since having Blake. I am pretty excited, but a little stressed to see how Blake will do in his nursery class. I will only be working from 9:00-11:30 so he won't be in there too long. On Fridays I will be working 9:00-1:30. I will also be in the same building he will be in and I can check on him whenever I want. I also know the ladies who will be taking care of him and I know they will do a wonderful job. I guess my issue is letting someone else take care of him. Sounds silly, but I love being the one to do everything for him. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE getting "me" time, but he is growing up so fast and I don't want to miss anything. With him being my fourth, I realize how quickly they grow up and there is only a little amount of time when you are the main source of their information. Once they are in school, they get all sorts of other information and their focus changes. Anyways, that in it self can be a whole other blog!! I am looking forward to seeing my friends that I work with and getting back to the "real" world. I have been getting out of the house a lot, but am looking forward to making a monetary contribution, as small as it is, to the family.

So, tomorrow should be an exciting stressful day!! Hopefully more exciting and less stressful :)

Bella's new "do"

Well, Bella has finally decided to get her hair cut shorter than a few inches. I have been wanting her to get her hair cut shorter just to make it easier since she doesn't like to put anything in her hair. So, on Saturday Brian and his brother took her to get her hair cut and donate it to Locks of Love. It looks great!! I can't believe how much older she looks. She seems to be acting differently too. It's amazing how much she looks like Bailey from the back now! I'm glad I didn't go with her since I probably would have cried. She is the last girl to have the long hair. Bailey donated her hair at age 5 also. I am so proud of Bella!!

Bailey's first day of 1st grade

It's hard to believe it has been a whole year since Bailey started kindergarten.  What a great year it has been for her.  She learned to read, do fractions, addition and subtraction, journal and write some amazing stories!  I can't wait to see what this year will bring for her.  She is so excited about school and can't wait to learn.  I think the one thing that really surprised me was her ability to write stories and journal at her age. Her teacher was big on journaling about things and then drawing pictures to illustrate her stories.  I was amazed about the things she would write about.  It was so great to see her get excited about things.  The principle met with us and told us Bailey definitely has a gift with her writing.  She was amazed at the story lines and how she would draw pictures to bring her work to life.  The teacher and principle told us that she is way beyond and above what she should be at that age!!  That is what every parent likes to hear.  That their child is excelling at something.  We are very proud of her and we are of all our children.   I can't wait to see what she will learn this year.  I have the same hopes and prayers for her as I did this time last year when she started kindergarten.  I know that God is watching over her.  I am very comforted in that.  I pray that God will put a hedge of protection around her, that He will give her wisdom to choose the right friends, the strength and courage to stand up for what she believes in and what is right and the ability to recognize evil and despise it.  

I am excited for her as she continues on her journey.  I will be praying for her everyday as I do for all my children.  I will also be praying for her teacher, principle, students and even the bus driver!  There can never be too much prayer.  So, as she gets off the bus today, I will send up a thank you to God for returning her safely to me and for watching over her when I couldn't.  I love you Bailey and can't wait to hear about your day!!