Ok, guys. To all of you who have left a comment entering this contest…you rock my world. You are the reason I don’t feel like the nerdy kid on the kickball field. Thanks for joining in. To those who haven’t yet “entered” my contest, just leave a comment saying you’re in.

To start this thing off, simply leave a comment saying what book you are reading first. (If you’ve already finished a book since entering the contest, give me your title, your total, and what your’e reading now in the comments.) Once a week, I will have a reading contest post, and everyone can update in the comments about your progress.

Happy reading, everyone!

Is there anything more satisfying than walking outside and picking food from your backyard? I think not. This was the haul a few days ago. They were delicious!

I know a lot of kids are gearing up to head back to school already, but not us. It’s still summer to us, and will be for a while. Yesterday, I was at a discount bookstore in Turkey Creek, and they were having a huge sale. I got tons of books for the kids. When I got home, Kyra wasn’t sure where to start. I had Encyclopedia Brown, Cam Jansen, Mary Kate and Ashley, Katie Kazoo, Hank the Cowdog, and lots more popular kids series books. I brought home biographies of Daniel Boone, Eleanore Roosevelt, and Harriet Tubman. I had classic kids’ books like “My Side of the Mountain”, “The Borrowers”, and “Pippi Longstocking.” I was so excited. Two bags full of books for forty dollars. I didn’t even make it out of the children’s section, and I was there for an hour.

So, while she’s excited about reading, she and I started a little reading contest. Whoever reads the most books by the end of August wins. (I’m assuming that you realize that, considering the length of adult books compared to children’s books, this contest is majorly skewed in her favor.) As a super awesome bonus, if she reads 30 books by September she wins a date with me to Wasabi and Menchies…two of her favorite places. That’s a lot of books, but I’m sure my little bookworm can do it if she wants to badly enough.

So…anyone want to join our contest? If you have any kiddos that want to read with us, let me know, so I can give Kyra a little extra excitement and motivation.  All you have to do is read books. You can’t count anything that you’ve already finished. If you are currently in the middle of a book, you can count that one. When I post a blog post asking for an update, you can give me your total and titles in the comments. You can read whatever type of book that floats your boat, but for kids’ books to count they need to at least be chapter books.  We will run this thing on the honor system, and the winners (if we have children participating, we will have an adult winner and a child winner) will be announced on September 1st, and will receive an Amazon gift certificate. Kyra and I will obviously not be included in the prizewinning portion.

So, who’s in?

To view the post below this one, you will have to contact me (use the contact me button at the top of the page) and I will email you the password. The reason for this is because when I posted my other story, I got lots of searches bringing kids who were looking to plagarize a story for school. I’d like my stories to stay my own. However, if you would like to read it, contact me and I’ll email the password.

I have been reading a lot more lately than I have in a long time, thanks to the Kindle app for my iPhone. I absolutely love it. It solves one of my biggest reading problems of the last…well, since I was nine. I can read in the dark after I go to bed, without keeping anyone else awake, because my iPhone screen is backlit. These late night reading sessions have been awesome.

So, what have I been reading? An interesting mix of classics, for the most part. One great thing about Kindle books is that most of the classics are free.

Here is a list of what I’ve read recently.

Girls In Trouble: A Novel by Caroline Leavitt – This was just a random novel that was recommended by the ever so helpful Amazon. I downloaded the first chapter for free…a wonderful feature of Kindle where you can download a sample before purchasing a book…and got hooked. This was a book about a girl who gave up her baby in what was supposed to be an open adoption that went wrong. I enjoyed it a lot, but it did kind of get a bit cliche.

Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe –  I had read this book at least once when I was a kid, and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it again. My reason for picking this book was because I remember it making me want to work the land and build things when I read it as a kid, and I thought it would put me in the mood for gardening. It did! I put in my little garden while I was reading this book. What I was actually very surprised about when I reread this book as an adult was the theology in the book. It was chock full of really great theology. I was so impressed. I read one passage out loud to Chris one day, and he said that someone could get saved by reading that passage alone because it so clearly presented the Gospel. I highly recommend a rereading of this great classic for all of you, and I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised at the things you may have missed when you read it for school.

The Swiss Family Robinson by Johann David Wyss -  Another book that I read (multiple times) as a kid, and wanted to revisit. This was another book that I read for motivation to work. The Kindle edition that I read actually had a part of the book that wasn’t in the edition that I read in school…the family traveling to another island and meeting a missionary and a shipwrecked mother and children who returned to the family’s island with them. It’s interesting the little differences in some of the editions of books.

The Mysterious Island by Jules Verne – This book was a new one for me. I had actually never heard of it before, but it was in my latest favorite genre of books…shipwreck books. I was kind of hooked on them. I found “The Mysterious Island” to be the most exciting and intriguing of the three shipwreck stories I read. It definitely had a more exciting plot. It chronicled the escape of five men to a deserted island where they lived for several years. I was very into this book, and would tell Amy all about it. She laughed at my excitement in the retelling. I really got into it, and I was actually very sad when it was over. I LOVED this book.

Around The World In 80 Days by Jules Verne – I loved “The Mysterious Island” so much that this next book was chosen because it was by the same author. Jules Verne was a really good author, and I enjoyed both books very much. I love the way he weaved a really exciting story into the main plot. Kept me turning…well, tapping…pages.

When The Darkness Will Not Lift: Doing What We Can While We Wait for God–and Joy by John Piper – This was a short book by one of my favorite preachers on the topic of depression. I found it to be very encouraging, and the short chapters were easy to read. If the topic is one of interest to you, I highly recommend it.

A few that I read recently that were not included in the “summer” reading category:

Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God by Francis Chan – I read this book quite a while back, upon Amy Jo’s recommendation. It is fantastically eye opening. It will make you feel convicted and energized at the same time. Reading this book made me feel ashamed of myself for my self-centered, materialistic lifestyle, while, at the same time, motivating me to do more to help others. Most of all, it gave me a new awareness of just how much Jesus loves me. My Bible study group recently went through this book together, and it was really challenging to us all. We really enjoyed it, and I’m sure you would, too.

Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit by Francis Chan – I have turned into a big Francis Chan fan lately. I really like his books, his preaching style, and his passion. This was the second book of his that I have read, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It is, of course, about the work of the Holy Spirit, but I really appreciate the different angle that Chan looks at the topic from. He asks the reader to set aside their already held beliefs about the Holy Spirit for a bit, and approach the subject with complete objectivity…to see what they would take away from the Scripture if they took Scripture alone without any other teaching. I found it fascinating, and am eager for some of my friends to read it as well. I have it on cd if anyone is interested in listening to it.

The Furious Longing of God by Brendan Manning – I read this book when I was feeling very lost. I was in the midst of some serious depression, and a lot of things were really going wrong in my personal life. This book was so encouraging to me. It helped me to really feel like God loves me, and he is not angry with me. If you ever hear me praying, “Abba, I belong to you.” under my breath, this book would explain why.

I hope you find my book suggestions interesting. If you read any of them, let me know. If you have any recommendations for me, please share in the comments. I would LOVE to have them!

O frabjous day! Callooh! Callay!

Okay, so that line from Jabberwocky doesn’t have anything to do with being excited about summer, but Amy has somehow inserted it into my vocabulary as an expression of joy.  I suppose I’m chortling. In my joy.

We are having a wonderful summer so far. Amy Jo came for a visit to help me paint the kids’ new playroom last week, and we had an impromptu celebration of the first day of summer on the day she arrived. We took all six kids to the park and let them swim in the lake. When we got home, we let the kids bake Kyra’s birthday cake. They all worked together to follow the directions on the cake mix, and had help only in putting the cake in and taking it out of the oven. While they were busy making the cake, Amy and I went out in the backyard and built a firepit and cut and sharpened sticks. When it got close to dark, we surprised the kids with roasting hot dogs, marshmallows, and making s’mores. My friend, Claire, and her two kids came over and joined us. We also had root beers and cream sodas in glass bottles. That somehow made it a lot better. Amy and I had fun making the fire. We thought we were all that. After we ate, we sat around in the dark and told stories and sang songs. Also, there were lightening bugs and a warm summer breeze. It couldn’t have been much better.

I make a motion to begin each summer for the rest of our lives this way. Can I get a second?

Since then, my days have been filled with painting a playroom, cleaning out kids’ clothes and toys and numerous trips to drop stuff off at Goodwill, gardening, eating watermelon, popcicles, and peaches, going on an all day date with my husband, and kicking back with the kids.

Life is good.

Summer is great.

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And Other Assorted Photographic Hijinks

Before I share the photos I took of my eldest son, I think I should give a little information about my Elijah. Elijah is six. He is energetic, funny, super smart, often antisocial, and quite introverted. He is the sweetest six year old you’ll ever meet, but most people don’t know it because he won’t talk to you you, look you in the eye, or generally acknowledge your existence. We’re working on it. In the meantime, an activity…such as a backyard photo session…which is pretty fun for his siblings, is akin to having teeth pulled for Elijah. He tried to cooperate. He even wanted me to take his picture. He just had difficulty….you know…smiling. It’s harder than you might think for a six year old introvert. So, without further ado, I give you…”Incredibly Awkward Photographs of an Extremely Beautiful Boy”.

Grumpy Look

Painful Forced Smile

He momentarily snapped under the stress.

The stress left him feeling…irritated.

Have you ever seen a deer that has been shot? They generally bite their tongue in pain. I think Elijah…is…in…pain.

He might be sick.

He’s awfully cute when not being tortured.

For this rather pleasant looking photo, I simply told him to stop trying to smile and just look “nothing”.

I think he’s got some bark up his butt.

What’s this!?! A genuine smile!

He started scooting further and further up the tree, trying to hide among the leaves.

He’s just so sweet without the grimaces and groans.

Not the prettiest smile in the world, but I had to share these chin dimples.

Finally! A photo I love. This is my Elijah. Quiet. Sweet. Loving. A good, good boy. In this photo, I can glimpse the young man he’ll soon be.

Now that’s a good looking boy!