Books of the Week – Oct. 24, 2009

We have found so many good books lately, I honestly don’t know where to begin.  I try to keep these posts short so they’ll actually get read, but this one may be a tad bit longer. :)

My favorites this week:

In the Woods: Who’s Been Here? and Around the Pond: Who’s Been Here?, both by Lindsay Barrett George, who is also the illustrator.  These are both fabulous books if you have a nature-lover in your home.  They feature a brother and sister who take a walk in the woods and around a pond (which is also quite woodsy), and find different signs of wildlife.  Each page has a beautiful picture, (for example, of a white feather floating) and the question “Who’s been here?”.  The following page shows the answer (a great blue heron).  They are just beautifully done and hold M’s attention very well.  They appeal to us grown ups quite a bit too! :)

M’s favorite this week:
Bumpa Rumpus and the Rainy Day by Joanne Reay and Adriano Gon.  This is a book for when you are in a silly mood; it’s a lot of fun!  Bumpa Rumpus wakes up on a very, very, extremely, rainy day and listens to all the sounds the rain makes – plup-plup from the gutter, tik-tik from the glass, tom-tom on the roof, and ta-toosh on the grass.  Every page is filled with fun sounds and it has an overall great rhyming rhythm.  It’s pretty fun to read out loud!  I have to admit I’m happy when M picks this one. :)  There is a fun *sorta-surprise* ending too!!

And one more!  This is the one I’m most excited about because I bought it from the sale cart at our library for 50 cents!!!We’re Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen and illustrated by Helen Oxenbury.  I should mention, anything by illustrated by Helen Oxenbury is sure to be a good book.  I haven’t found one yet that we didn’t absolutely love.  This is a classic, and I’m sure many of you have read it.  If you haven’t, read it as soon as you can!  This adorable family goes on a bear hunt through tall, wavy grass, a deep, cold river, some swampy mud, and on and on.  Each part of their trek has a great sound effect that goes along with it - “squelch squerch” through the mud.   And of course, they are not afraid, not one tiny bit… until they actually see a bear. :)  The ending is just terribly exciting if you are a 3 year old boy!  This is on our top ten list and I’m so happy to have found it at such a bargain!
Go here for more book reviews!
Have a beautiful day! :)

Prayer Posts – good idea?

 

I have had this thought going through my head lately… actually plaguing me at times because it wasn’t something I was sure I wanted to take on.  I also wasn’t sure how well-received it would be.  So here goes… give me your feedback, please!

I’m thinking of having a weekly prayer post – somewhere that anyone who wishes can link to or leave a comment with their prayer requests, and know that others will pray for them.

Sometimes it’s just easier for some reason to confide in online friends than in “real life” friends.  Sometimes the emotions are just very raw, and the typing it all out helps more than actually speaking the words.  Sometimes it’s just nice to have one more place to go to ask for prayers, even after having asked people we know to pray for us.

Here’s the format I have in my mind, but I’m totally open to suggestions too!  I’m thinking of having some scriptural quote or possibly a passage from a book – mainly having to do with motherhood, wife-hood, and/or just basic Christian life; some sort of food for thought.  Then listing my prayer requests for the week.  I will probably be able to keep this fairly short (think bullet points) most weeks, but of course we all have weeks where we need extra prayer for crises or special circumstances.  Then I would either open it up for people to leave prayer requests in the comments, or if there’s enough interest, a McLinky for others to link their own prayer posts to. 

This would be for prayers of petition, intercession, thanksgiving, etc.

(And I PROMISE to not be long-winded in them! :)  )

I’m also thinking of actually setting up a second blog to use specifically for this once-a-week post.  I like the name “Where Two or Three are Gathered…”.  What do you think?  (It’s a reference to a Bible passage about prayer.)

So… any takers?  I feel like this is something that’s been laid on my heart; I am a *pray-er* and I know many of you are too!  Let me know your thoughts!

Have a beautiful day! :)