by Kimberly | Aug 8, 2018 | Books, Kids r Readers 2
Now that school has begun for both of my boys, I have more time to blog.
I thought I’d start by telling you some of our favorite read aloud books this summer. I started with longer books (like Farmer Boy and Trumpet of the Swan, but my younger one wasn’t into it). So, we will try again later.
But, picture books still rule in our home.
Little Wolf’s First Howling This is a good reason to have friends who love to read. I was recommended this book by two of my friends who have girls. My boys died laughing at this. We had so much fun reading it together!
The Circus Ship I heard about this book on a podcast that Sarah MacKenzie was being interviewed on. We totally enjoyed it – and we adults love the tale too.
When the Cows Got Loose This was a fun story with bright colors.
Dino-Racing What a perfect story combination for my boys: dinosaurs and race cars
Motor Goose My boys still love mighty machines, so this was a great one to read one afternoon.
Muncha Muncha Muncha – You gotta have ways to make your kids eat more vegetables, right?
At bedtime, we took turns reading a little bit of Farmer Boy, Where the Sidewalk Ends, and Frog and Toad
What did you read this summer with your kids?
This time last year: I gave you a review of my favorite book I read in 2017.
Two years ago I gave you some tips on how to survive Mondays – but really this applies to every day of the week!
Three Years Ago: I talk about farmers markets and cookbooks
by Kimberly | Feb 27, 2018 | Books, Kids r Readers 2
The time has come to share our favorite February read alouds. The more time our boys spend reading books, the more they enjoy them. Don’t think we never let our kids watch TV because we spend a lot of time watching their favorite Netflix shows.
But we also read, play outside, run errands, do chores, dance, ride scooters, etc. But, we do enjoy boys.
So, here we go!
Are You Ready to Play Outside . A friend of mine suggested this book as she quoted it in her instagram caption. I’d not heard of it. It is 10 years old. And I think it is really cute. It can also teach our kids about not complaining and enjoying things even when the circumstances might not be perfect. And to enjoy doing things together!
100 Things I Love to Do with You . I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and especially the rhyming part of it. I think this would be a good book to do a “bucket list” for your kids for the summer.
The Monkey and the Crocodile . We read this twice in one donut outing. It was super fun and the illustrations were unique
Baby Wren and the Great Gift What a sweet spring book written by our favorite author. Read the whole thing, my boys enjoyed it as we went further along in the story.
Pete the Cat and the Missing Cupcakes Yes, it is another Pete the Cat book. I even took this book to read to my younger’s school and they enjoyed it as well!
For more books for February you can check these out:
Read Aloud Revival February Books
Barnes and Nobles List
Raising Lifelong Learners February List
by Kimberly | Nov 21, 2017 | Books, Kids r Readers 2
I’ve been influenced by Louie Giglio’s ministry since college. That’s the time that Passion started, went to One Day 2000, all the Passion music throughout seminary, then just a few years ago we moved to Atlanta and I got to attend some events at Passion City Church.
If you’ve heard much of Louie’s preaching – you know he loves God and Jesus and the Cross. You also will quickly learn that he loves space, science, stars, galaxies, etc.
And I want my boys to be influenced by writers and teachers who love creation and the God who created it. That’s why Indescribable is such a good book. Of course its a bit over their heads (I think this book would be good for grade school kids), but it is still a wonderful resource to have.
If you want to use it for family worship time, it would be a good “topical study” book. There are 100 devotions for kids (of all ages!). He includes good illustrations that kids will be able to understand. There is a Scripture and prayer. This would even be a good tool for homeschooling parents.
Thanks to Tommy Nelson Mommies for the book. All opinions are my own. And if you’d like a chance to win, just a leave a comment about your favorite part of science. I love weather!
by Kimberly | Nov 21, 2016 | Books, Kids r Readers 2
I didn’t always love to read. I went to a Christian school and read when I had to. I remember reading Sweet Valley High, John Grisham novels, and The Babysitter’s Club. Also, started reading the Bible and Max Lucado books when I got to high school. I didn’t read any of the classics growing up – I waited and have read some as an adult.
Now, I love to read, and I want to make sure my children read well as they grow up. It is such an important discipline, it can be fun, and will prepare them well for adulthood. I’ve teamed up with my friend Leah Finn to provide yall with some tips on how to raise kids who love to read. Most of her children are older than mine and are reading on their own. Believe me, even if your kids aren’t reading on their own yet, you can still instill in them a love of books and reading.
- Let them pick out books they are interested in. Even if it is silly/not high literature (as long is it is appropriate). There is great joy in going to a library and being able to bring home a stack of books that you like. Kids love it and it helps them be interested in the books. How this is illustrated in our family is that for our older’s 4th birthday, he went on a day-date with Daddy. This year they went to our local library and picked out lots of dinosaur books. He came home and was all excited about reading and looking at the dinosaur books. One bit I would add is maybe pick out one or two for them each week in a different genre. This might broaden their horizons to the classics, biographies, or just a different topic.
- Read aloud classics and quality books. This is where they can get their “good” books in. Use voices and expressiveness to engage their interest. Read Aloud Revival is a great resource for finding books to read aloud. Kids are never too old to be read to. I love walking down the stairs most mornings to find my husband reading to our younger son. This is some great bonding time for them in the early mornings. And I love the time when I’m putting my older to bed, when I get to read aloud to him. Right now we are almost finished with Little House in the Big Woods and I’m eager to complete the series with him. I’ve also read some of the Narnia series with him.
- Use audiobooks to squeeze in extra reading time This can be in the vehicle while you travel, during rest time, while coloring or playing with legos, etc. I need to get better at this, and I think it will come as they get older. But, I do have the Narnia series on audio cd and I adored listening to them as an adult, and then read all the books (which I hadn’t done as a child).
One of the ways I’m always introducing new books to my children, is by being a part of Tommy Nelson Mommies. This month, we were given One Small Donkey. This book is great for preschoolers. It is told through the voice of a small donkey about the journey of Mary and Joseph to Bethlehem. It is a fun little story and teaches some truths about Jesus, creation, and worship at the manger. It takes some liberties, but it really is just a cute story you can read with your children. You can read it to them, then read the Bible story of the same account, talk about different aspects of truth and Christmas with your children.
If you would like to win this book for your own family library, just leave me a comment about which one of these tips above you incorporate into your parenting – or one you would like to include. Thanks Leah for helping me with this post, and thanks Tommy Nelson for the book.
by Kimberly | Nov 4, 2016 | Books, Kids r Readers 2
I love NCIS. Longmire. CSI. Law & Order (back in the day). Blue Bloods. Leverage. I love crime shows that usually get solved in a short amount of time. They take finding clues and knowing how to interpret those clues.
In some ways, the Gospel is the same. Faith is given to us. It is a gift from the Spirit. But, we can also investigate and prove true the claims of Christ. We can know that Jesus really existed, died, and rose again. And we can teach our kids something similar.
We still need to pray that they would indeed be given grace and faith to understand and love and surrender to Jesus and the Gospel. But, giving them tools to understand the gospel and know it is super helpful.
Cold Case Christianity is a new book that will be helpful in teaching your kids, I’d say especially boys before they reach the teenage years. It has help from a real detective and a real believer, with good diagrams and helpful questions for them to ask questions about Jesus for themselves.
This will encourage them in their walks with Jesus.
Thank you Litfuse for sending me the book. All opinions are my own.
by Kimberly | Oct 6, 2016 | Books, Kids r Readers 2
Our days are filled with so much. From the time the alarm goes off (before 6 for me) until I crawl into bed (usually between 10-11 at night), so much happens.
I get my older on the school bus while it is still dark.
I read all my social media, blogs, emails, etc – get everything cleaned out.
I spend time in the Word to fuel my mind and soul for everything that will come my way that day.
I sit with my husband for a little bit before he gets ready for work.
I run and errand and play at the park with my little.
We do lunch with the older gets home from preschool.
I work, play, cook, clean during naptime for the younger while the older gets to hang out with me.
The gym comes later in the day as we sing songs while sitting in ATL traffic, play and workout, and have more fun in ATL traffic on the return trip.
I cook dinner (or buy fast food).
I head upstairs to put the kids to bead.
Right now, our bedtime routine, which is usually me because my mister works retail, is still hard, but getting better. Everything in parenting is for a season and I see that more and more. In parenting, things always change – like the weather in Carolina. We brush teeth, change diapers, and sit down to ask some catechism questions, say our Bible verses, and read a story out of whatever book we are reading. Some times this process goes better than others, but you never know.
5 Minute NIghttime Bible Stories from Tommy Nelson has been a really good resource for us. Our boys are 3 and 4. They don’t have long attention spans at that night, but we expect them to sit still and listen. These have been a dose of truth with teaching them Bible stories and encouraging them to pray at the end. We did enjoy the colors and pictures. The stories were more than one page, so the boys could turn the pages. But, it wasn’t too long that they lost interest The authors asked questions to involved the kids in each story (to appeal to different learning styles).
I think it is always a good idea to end the day with learning about Jesus, praying, instilling a restful peaceful truth of the gospel into your children. Sometimes our nights aren’t so peaceful, but we work toward that with much grace!
This post is sponsored by Tommy Nelson and they are giving you a copy! Answer the question – what is one tip you could give to other parents on bedtime routines!
