The Book Post

Well, the new book list feels a little overdue. It's taken some time to put together, but with recommendations from various places and a perusal of what's already on my shelves, I think I've got a good collection for the year ahead.

Photo by dimensionsguide.com 

I've been asked how I choose my books for the year, and how structured my plan is. Well, there's no major method or grand plan it all. I've taken a few recommendations from World magazine to broaden my horizons. If a friend whose opinion I trust raves about a book, I'll probably add it in. I also know my needs and try to make sure they are represented; for instance, I need to stay envisioned for the different tasks and roles in my life, namely homeschooling and mothering, so I try to make sure a couple good books on those subjects are in there (in addition to making sure that I'm reading my Bible - no other book is better!). If I'm trying to grow in a particular area, say Bible memorization, I'll make sure I read a book on it (and try to implement what I read). I've learned that I really benefit from reading good biographies, so I tend to have one or two of them, particularly to read before bed. Reading something heavy or that requires a lot of thought is not great for me to get into before bed - I start doing "the Nod" and end up missing stuff! Same with fiction - that's relaxing/sleepy reading. I also make sure I check our bookshelves, since we invariably add a few pieces to our collection throughout the year.

As for the plan...there really isn't any. I basically read what I want to, what I feel I need to, and occasionally, what I've been told to. :) The book list is mainly just a tool to keep me from wandering aimlessly and bored in between books, and to make sure I read some of those excellent books that make a flash on my radar without forgetting about them. I occasionally veer from the path and pick up something not on the list; maybe I'll add it in, maybe not. I think this past year I've added about 4 books that weren't on there at the beginning of the year, plus probably another half a dozen or so that never made it to the list for one reason or another.

Photo by wtfisupwithmylovelife.com

So, with all that said, it would probably be good to share a few things about the books I read this year. Of them all, there was one I didn't read - Overcoming Sin & Temptation - though it was not for lack of trying. It's supposed to be an updated reworking of John Owen's Mortification of Sin, but I couldn't really get ahold of what had been updated for modern readers. Now granted, I am not the brightest bulb around (a childhood of reading The Babysitter's Club and Sweet Valley High will do that to a mind), but I couldn't really...get it. I could read the words and understand most of them but putting it all together made my brain ache. There are others, though, that found it excellent and were really blessed by it, so don't let my experience put you off. I'll probably go back to it another time when I'm feeling more mentally capable.

Photo by  graphicshunt.com

I really enjoyed reading A Mother's Heart, by Jean Fleming. The first half was so encouraging and convicting, and is probably something I'll be coming back to on a regular basis. The later portion of the book seemed to be more practical memory-making tips, which was less helpful, but still good stuff. I'd definitely recommend this to any mother - brand new or at it a while.

I picked up The Book Thief  on recommendation of a friend, and it was pretty good. Written from the point of view Death during World War 2 in Germany, it was definitely well written and an interesting perspective, but just didn't really grab me. I read to the end, put it down and thought "Okay, what's next?", rather than "Oh, wow!" I'd be interested to see what anyone else thought?
The Help was excellent, of course. Like everyone else this year, I read the book in a couple of days and enjoyed the movie. I'll be reading anything else Kathryn Stockett writes.
My biggest recommendation is, without question, Bonhoeffer. It's big and intimidating, but don't let that stop you - it gives you plenty of time to get to know this amazing man of faith. Based on the title, you kind of already know the ending (Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy), but the path he takes from privileged child of an influential family to a prisoner at the end of a piano wire is worth the investment it takes to read.
So, there we are. So many books, so little time. I guess it's time to get started...:)

Multitude Mondays, a day late

I have been deliberately quiet in the blog-o-sphere last week, as I wanted to enjoy this break from the norm as much as possible. It does mean, however, that catching up can take a while...

So thankful for:

• finding out on Christmas Eve that we are expecting a new little Gayner (watch out world!)
• finishing all Christmas gifts in time
• a lovely family walk
• going to church on Christmas morning
• even though we had a water leak, it wasn't messy or overly horrible
• even though I burnt part of our Christmas ham, it was still salvageable and edible
• even though our water problems meant we couldn't go visit some of our favorite people, we enjoyed spending time together at home:
• Toby and I saw Sherlock Holmes and had Chick Fil A for dinner (a real treat!)
• we received a free pull-out couch for our study, and helpful neighbors helped to move it in
• we received free bunk beds to replace the boys' worn out ones
• we took the kids to the Walter's Art Museum
• we spent time organizing our study
• we went out to breakfast
• we spent time with my parents and the "Christmas, Round 2" they brought with them!
• I went shopping with my mom - and found men's pants for $4! I still can't quite get over that one...
• Her Majesty kindly refunded us money we hadn't known she borrowed - always a nice surprise!
• In all the joys and blessings of our holiday, I am so thankful that He came - our Emmanuel came to be with us, with me.

 

It looks like Christmas

For the first time in a long time, Christmas has been more about the waiting, the looking, the anticipation this year. Though the to-do list remains, it doesn't weigh on my heart and mind nearly as much as the 8-pound baby boy we celebrate. He continues to clear a path to the manger...

For the kids, by the kids

We have something on a Christmas tradition around our house – one I'd like to see the end of, quite frankly. It goes like this: around December 23 or 24, Abigail decides she wants to do some Christmas shopping and buys gifts for her parents and siblings. So Toby takes her out, fighting last minute crowds, to try to find something meaningful and inexpensive. Then, the other kids realize what's going on and they want to go shopping too, but there is no way either of us is willing to head back out into the fray. Therefore, they are somewhat disgruntled.

I had a different idea this year: what if they started making gifts ahead of time? They all liked the idea, so I met with each of them individually to see what they wanted to make. Some of their ideas were pretty off the wall, but with some guidance, they've each come up with some cute gift plans for their siblings that they can do mostly by themselves.

Abigail has made Anna and Ellie each a scarf. Honestly, I don't think it gets much easier than this, folks. We measured a piece of remnant fleece from JoAnn's, cut and fringed. It took us maybe 15 minutes to do both. If you've got any really last minute gifts to give, let it be this!

 Anna's made a dolly scarf for Abi (well, for the doll, really, but you get the point) and some mittens for Ellie. The mittens were basically a matter of borrowing a pair of Ellie's gloves and tracing the pattern onto an old sweater, cutting and sewing. Because Anna's not too experienced with the sewing machine yet, I helped with the stitching. The other thing she made was this little hat for Dan. While again I did the machine work, she cut out the little star and did the hand sewing. This is what takes most of the time, anyway.

I think I'm most excited about Noah's gifts. For Abi and Anna, he's made knitting needles! So cute! Helpfully, the girls do actually knit, and I think they'll really like these. We took some wooden dowels that I had set aside in my craft closet (originally bought at JoAnn's, I believe) and gave them a gentle sanding. Then we rubbed them down with some leather wax. Once Noah chose the buttons he thought the girls would like from my button collection, I used the hot glue gun to stick them on. To be honest, I've seen this done with polymer clay, which would probably work better, but I really wanted to stick with what I had on hand for this one. I'm really happy with how it all turned out!

Clearly, we have more to do, but I'm pleased with the "jump" we got on things, relatively speaking. I'm looking forward to seeing what else their creative juices inspire.

So, how does everyone else handle joy of sibling gifting? Inquiring minds want to know!

Christmas Knitting

Slowly but surely, we're getting there...

Dan's vest is complete:

The pattern is Kid's Vest from More Last Minute Knitted Gifts. Yarn is the wonderful-to-work-with Spud & Chloe Sweater, color Chipmunk. Perfect.

I'm currently working on a matching one for Noah. I'm not sure I'll finish in time, but we'll see how it goes.

And...

A sweater that even the fuss-budget likes!

Pattern is Drive Thru, downloaded on ravelry. Yarn is all Cascade 220 Heathers.

I had to modify it quite a bit: Abi is such a skinny minny that I made it up for size 8, which fits her perfectly around the body, but left the waist and arms very short. I added about six inches ( six inches!!) to the length for both the body and arms. Love.

I'm still working on Toby's Man Vest, and I don't think I'll finish before Christmas. Now that I'm at the final stages of finishing the neck and armholes, I'm running out of yarn. I'm not confident that I've got enough to finish, but I'm that somehow it'll last. Who knows - the widow's oil didn't run out, so maybe God will sustain my yarn supply? Knitting in faith, this is.

For the little girls...

...there are a couple new items that might be of interest...

...in the shop.

Multitude Mondays

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.

James 1:17

• Seeing Ellie really swimming on her own
• Seeing Anna really give her best at public speaking
• fun Christmas parties
• our new Senior Pastor!
• celebrating my Mom's 60th birthday at her surprise party - that was actually a surprise!
• watching the kids play Red Rover from my spot by the fire
• how the big kids so often let the little kids win
• babies that sleep in your arms
• the end of Christmas shopping
• waking up early in a cold, quiet house
• fresh coffee

 

Finding the counter

I have years of experience battling the paper pile. I think most people do, and most people wage war on it in a number of ways. Me, I've long used the "Pile and Hide" tactic: the one where it sits and grows and breeds until company comes over and you quickly sweep it all undercover until it can be weeded through. Then, of course, you realize that this is multi-phased operation, since you eventually unearth it all and have to go through old mail, overdue bills and forgotten invitations (and this may take a while).

Needless to say, this method was not ensuring much success. In fact, it seemed to be working as a double agent - the problem only ever got worse, instead of better. But one day, I was looking at Pintrest and found an idea. (I don't remember who did it, but I'm sure you could find it if you really wanted to.) I took the idea, went for a shopping trip to Target, made a few little tweaks of my own, and this is what I came up with:

Contained within my handy-dandy counter file are about 10 or so files suited to my needs: "For Action" (for bills to be paid or anything that needs to be dealt with), "For Filing" (since our filing cabinet is in another room, it seemed sensible to have a holding place for all those papers), "Homeschool" (to keep track of our current curriculum, possible future curriculum details, and any extra school-related forms), & "Sales and Circulars" (for all the sale & coupons that come through the mail - those that I might actually use, that is) to name a few. I also keep in the box my Thankful journal, my weekly/monthly planner (when it's not in my bag) and my "Brain" - basically a glorified daily to-do list in a composition book.

Honestly, it makes me happy. I like the feeling of having a place for it all, and a place I can find it all in to boot. It's been easy to keep in order, too. When a file gets a little thick, I go through and deal with it, whether that means throwing out old stuff, using the current or moving the "keepers" to a permanent file.

As it turns out, I seem to have found a counter top under all that mess. I had almost forgotten it was there.

Multitude Monday

In no particular order:

* Toby staying home from work to care for me and the kids when I didn't feel well

* Only being in bed for a day before feeling lots better

* doing some Christmas-gift making with the kids

* being invited to a friends' house for dinner, and having a wonderful time!

* taking the kids to see the Abingdon Lights (if you're local, try to visit!)

* frost on the ground

* a good doctor's report for a friend

* money to cover the bills, and then some

* remembering how He reached out for me...

Trying to Breathe

It's happening.

Despite doing my best to keep on top of all that comes with the Christmas season and all that we've turned it into, I'm gasping for air.

I don't yet feel like there's no time (I think I've got another couple weeks before that feeling slides in), but it's more that everything's happening at once. In a family of 5 children, 3 of which are homeschooling, there's a general, everyday sense of keeping those juggling balls in the air, but adding in the extra shopping, the extra cooking, the extra self-imposed craft deadlines (how's that for a joykill?), the parties and events, the decorating, and the determination to do fun things with the kids rather than sidelining them for my whirling-dervish routine, has steadily been working at edging out the whole purpose of why we do this.

And why do we do this? Not the "Jesus is the Reason for the Season"- this, but the crazy-this? Is Jesus the reason I make myself crazy with the to-do list? Not really. He never asked for all this, never suggested that the calendar overflow along with the cup. I think I do it because I like it. I like seeing people, cooking, making things for myself and others, and trying to make this time of year special. But I'm finding that when it's all about me, what I'd like to accomplish and do, then it's no longer about Jesus. And, I have to face it; I'm not a worthy substitute.

So, am I going to stop the world and get off for a while? I don't think so. After all, I really do enjoy a lot of what I'm doing. But I'm going to be more selective, weighing the worth of my investments to their eventual payoff. Part of me wants my kids to say when they are grown, "Christmas, growing up, was really fun and full of excitement", but if that's all they say, then I've essentially humanized the holiday and lost its wonder and power. What I'd love to hear is, "Part of the reason I love Christmas now is because my parents showed me the joy of Jesus". If I'm not careful, what they'll really say is, "My mom made Christmas an exercise in chaos and the need for anger management because of overestimating her abilities and underestimating the need for peace." Who wants that?

I want to see Jesus this Christmas. I want to look expectantly to Christmas morning, not for stuff under the tree, but for the baby who came to save me from all the nonsense I would attach to His birthday, and so much more. I want my kids to see Jesus, too – to find Him more wonderful than the tree and the lights and the gifts. So everything I do to make this time special must point to Him, since He really is the reason for this season. I'm confident He'll fill my lungs with breath and my heart with the love I need for this task.