Before we headed out for our hunting trip I made Craig stop at the library so I could pick up a stack of books I put on hold. Two of which I finished on the trip were so great I have to share them.
The first was recommended by fellow blogger, Tami. It is Sacred Parenting by Gary L. Thomas. Wow. I really love this book. It seems like it was just what I needed. It is a parenting book that doesn't make you feel guilty, but actually commends the work we as moms and dad are doing. It focuses on how children change, shape and define us, and develop our faith and relationship with God. I found myself underlining a LOT. Here are just a few quotes that I loved....
"It becomes a sacred enterprise when we finally understand that God can baptize dirty diapers, toddlers' tantrums, and teenagers' silence in order to transform us into people who more closely resemble Jesus Christ."
"Sacred parenting is a very long journey. It's hard to focus on a task for eight hours, much less eighteen years. The length of parenting means that there will be highs and lows, good days and bad days. Yes, we're going to miss some things. All of us could do better. All of us could do more."
"God cares so much about you that he's willing to risk letting you raise one, two, three or even more of his precious children....God adores your kids, but he is also crazy about you. You're his much loved son or daughter."
"You gain a calm assurance when you walk in the confidence that God will quietly let you know when you start to stray. You don't feel alone, unprotected, or unwanted. It's a very secure place to be, as you rest in God's shepherding care and listen to his voice."
"No matter how exalted our position, if we have kids, the day will come when we'll wind up cleaning up vomit in our underwear at 2:00am."
I could go on, but I won't. Just check out the book. It's a good one.
The other book I finished was The New Birth Order Book, by Kevin Leman. I have heard about birth order stuff and thought I pretty much new what it was all about, but I was curious and had never read the book. It was really eye opening for me especially in regards to my children. I learned that:
1. I have what's called a compliant first born child (as opposed to an aggressive 1st born). He wants to please, and needs approval, and has other characteristics of most all first borns such as: precise, perfectionist, organized and logical.
2. When you have a second child (esp of the same sex as the first born) he is likely to shoot off in an entirely different direction as the first (which mine DID!). The second born looks up at the sibling ahead of him, sizes him/her up, and plans accordingly. This was good for me to read and probably made the biggest impact. Being a middle child myself I realize some of the feelings that Wyatt might have, now and perhaps in future years, and I feel like having this insight will help be to better parent Wyatt. I can definitely see and identify second born/middle child traits with Wy such as: sociable, friendly, easy going, rebel, and slightly competitive. And it encourages me to realize it is normal and ok for he and Will to be very different kids!
3. My third and last born will most likely be what Leman calles the "baby princess" although she may take on some traits of a first born, since she is the first born female in the family. She is most likely to be an attention seeker, quite charming, affectionate, and have an "I'll show them" type attitude. The traits Leman listed pretty much describe Anna to a T, so far.
It was a fun book to read and I would recommend checking it out, especially if find yourself constantly wondering how two (or three) children from the SAME parents can be SO different :)
Other books the kiddos are loving right now....reading them over...and over....
Walter the Baker, Eric Carle (Wy's, fave....he has it memorized!)
The Three Snow Bears, Jan Brett (spin on Goldilocks)
Harry the Dirty Dog, Gene Zion (love all the 'Harry' books)
The Ugly Vegetables, Grace Lin (probably one of my fav's)
Have fun reading!!
2 comments:
Oh my goodness, Lin, I have been looking at Sacred Parenting in the last week. I found it recommended through www.preschoolersandpeace.com and I have it in my shopping cart at Amazon...I am going on a girls trip next week and think I'll run down to Evangel (we no longer have libraries here) and pick it up before I go. Thanks for the great reviews!
My Mom's Group read Sacred Parenting together...I liked the first chapter the best and definitely got some good stuff - it was good for me to reread your quotes.
And at MOPS we had a guest talk about the birth order and mostly everything was based on Leman's book...I need to see if our library has it. I love how she offered ideas on how to help your child through some issues they might have instead of saying this is just how your kid is and you're stuck with it.
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