A special invitation for Moms!

Back in 2009 I shared a review for the book Real Moms...Real Jesus by Jill Savage.  You can see my review here.

This was a wonderful book I enjoyed very much. The book shows examples from Jesus' life that we as moms will be able to relate to.  He understands what we go through as Mom's in our daily lives.  I am excited to be able to reread this book and participate in an online book study with Hearts at Home beginning in January led by the author on Facebook in a private group. 

Feel free to join us!  You will be blessed!  We start the discussion on January 9 so there is still time to pick up a copy of this book.

Have a day of blessings!

2009 Book #48: The Church of facebook by Jesse Rice

The Church of facebook by Jesse Rice is the latest book I've finished reading.

In case you haven't noticed, Facebook is extremely popular right now. What started as a social network for college students has turned into a "community" for all ages. This book explores the aspects of Facebook that has made it so popular in such a short amount of time.

The author takes what I found to be an interesting approach with this topic. He does not speak against Facebook. He includes many historical examples as well as psychological studies and applies these situations and lessons learned from them to the Facebook phenomenon.

I enjoyed reading this book. It was different from many books I read in its focus and style. I learned some new information by reading it.

We need to consider the ramifications of participating in online communities. Are we being our true selves or pretending to be something we aren't? Are we being intentional in our interactions and relationships? Some times we need to stop and consider how we are spending our time online. This book has caused me to think about my online relationships in a new way and the relevance of them to my life.

Thank you to David C Cook for providing this copy for review.

Have a day of blessings!

25 Things

I was tagged on Facebook for this "25 random things" list and thought I'd post it here too. :)

1. I lived in the same house from the time I was born until I left for college.
2. My favorite pet ever was my dog named Bambi Taylor. She was an Eskimo Spitz. She got bit by a rattlesnake and died.
3. My second grade teacher is my husband's great aunt. She gave me her "Mrs. P" apple at my wedding shower to hang on my classroom door.
4. I love baking and trying new recipes.
5. I like to take surveys online and through the mail.
6. I love strawberry limeade slushes at Sonic.
7. One of my hobbies is writing cards and letters. I am part of two "cheer mail" programs--one for brain cancer patients/survivors and one for the elderly.
8. I have a huge collection of cards and stationery. I use a lot but like to buy more too when I find it for a good price. :)
9. I love the music of Stephen Curtis Chapman and have been to two concerts.
10. Reading is one of my favorite things to do. I keep a list of the books I've read.
11. I enjoy hanging the laundry on my clotheslines. It is relaxing thing for me. (I'm actually surprised I enjoy it as much as I do!)
12. I'm so thankful I was able to attend and graduate from ACU. I made wonderful friends and have great memories of my time there.
13. I taught elementary school for three years. I taught 2nd grade, then 1st grade, then 2nd grade in a private school. I still keep in touch with some of my students, too.
14. My husband is my best friend. God knew exactly what I needed when He brought us together at ACU.
15. I have been to New York City twice with my high school choir, and we sang in Carnegie Hall.
16. I love blogging and have made so many great friends!
17. I had a miscarriage in 2003.
18. I don't have any television shows I watch weekly. (Too much garbage in my opinion!) I miss the old ones like Cosby, Full House, and Family Matters.
20. I like going to the dentist. I was never afraid because of the wonderful dentist I had as a child, Dr. Cox.
21. My son is so precious to me! He has taught me so many things.
22. I have not traveled much at all. There are only a couple places in the world that are high on my list of places to see.
23. I collect Precious Moments figurines.
24. I want to get back in the habit of donating blood. At one time I did regularly because the blood mobile came to our church on Wednesday nights.
25. I am turning 30 this month!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"The LORD is in his holy temple; the LORD is on his heavenly throne." Psalm 11:4

Facebook and our week

Are any of you, my readers, on Facebook? I have an account there and have enjoyed finding new friends there. It is amazing all the people you can find from high school or college! It's a fun way to connect with old friends I think. Email me your name if you have an account and I can find you!

Hope you are having a good week. Monday night we went shopping. The boys went Christmas shopping and I just went out by myself. I went to a couple stores, got a shake at Sonic (I was sad they don't have banana pudding anymore!), and picked up a gift at the mall for my Mom. Caleb was so cute when they got home and he was being secretive and telling me not to come in the garage. After he had gone to bed I saw in the garage a new ironing board hanging in place of my old one. My husband took me and showed me and said it wasn't part of my Christmas and he just wanted to give it to me. He knew I needed a new one! Tuesday morning I said something to Caleb about it and he had to call and tell Daddy I had found it. We spent a couple hours Tuesday morning making Christmas treats....chocolate covered pretzels, peanuts, and peanut butter crackers. Caleb was so excited to show Daddy what we made when he got home. Tuesday night "we" (but mostly my husband while I fixed bags of the other stuff) made "puppy chow." We fixed gift sacks to take to various people and a tray for Daddy to take to work. It has been sleeting here also. Caleb thinks it is going to turn into snow by morning.

I'm still working on my Christmas cards. They are addressed and written. I need to print the Christmas letter to go inside now.

Have a good rest of the week!
~~~~~~~~~~~~
"The LORD is the strength of his people, a fortress of salvation for his anointed one." Psalm 28:8