So Many Good Books

During our first week back to homeschooling our big girls another mom from church shared with me R.C. Sproul Jr.'s book When You Rise Up: A Covenantal Approach to Homeschooling. This book was a charge to parents based on Deuteronomy 6. It was not new information for me, but a good review and encouragement as we journeyed back to homeschooling. After reading Sproul's book I felt refreshed and renewed in my commitment and approach to homeschooling our children.

The kiddos and I have been reading some great and fun books through our homeschool curriculum this school year. Each day the children spend time reading quietly to themselves and I spend time reading aloud to all the children. Reading aloud together has provided a great opportunity for us to cuddle together on the couch each day and talk about vocabulary and content. This is my favorite time each day, provided I have gotten enough sleep the night before and emptied my pre-read aloud coffee pot for the day. We are currently reading Understood Betsy by Dorothy Canfield Fisher. It is a delightful book that touches on several significant topics of loss, grief, fear, hope, purpose, and family. The vocabulary is rich and the character development is fabulous. The children and I have had a wonderful time talking through the sweet main character Elizabeth Ann and comparing and contrasting her fears of living with a new family to their transition to our family. What a blessing this story has been during our read-aloud times each day. The children can hardly wait to read the last three chapters!

I am really enjoying my early morning hours reading after Nic gets off to work and before the children crawl out of bed. I just love reading! I am half-way through reading Wounded Children, Healing Homes by Jane E. Schooler, Betsy Keefer Smalley, and Timothy J. Callahan. This book has been tremendously helpful to me in understanding what has gone on in our home during the past two years and the needs and hurts our big girls came home with. Every page I read I find myself learning and understanding more and more about where we have been and where we are now. I am challenged and encouraged. I am only six chapters into it now, but I really wish I would have read this book before our most recent adoption, though it was only published in 2009. I find in it such a clear presentation of the needs our hurt children home home with and such an insightful and hopeful message for parents. It was recommended to me this summer by Barb over at Losing My Mind and I'm finally getting around to reading it now. Don't take as long as I did to check out this book!

While I love reading, I have had to remind myself with each book, article, and blog, to take every thought back to Christ and to hold it up to His Word. I am encouraged to hold on to what is useful for teaching and encouraging and in-line with the Bible and I find that I can easily let go of methods and admonitions that fall short of God's Righteous standards for us. I hope that as you read through these book recommendations you also read them in light of God's Word.