Favorite Non-Fiction Children’s Author:
Nic Bishop

We just discovered Nic Bishop’s books, and we have been LOVING the gorgeous photography and interesting facts. For instance, I didn’t even know about the osmeterium (a smelly organ that black swallowtail butterflies use to defend themselves by wiping on attackers) until I read his book on butterflies and moths. Each of his books is beautiful in it’s own way, and I recommend them very highly.

Favorite nerdy video:
Doodling in Math: Spirals, Fibonacci, and Being a Plant

This is such a great way to show the relevance of math, and it is really fun to watch. My whole family enjoyed viewing it and discussing the math behind each of the three parts.

Favorite laptop cover:

I’ve been hunting around for the perfect cover for my little laptop, and I fell in love with this one instantly.

Favorite workout:
Zumba, of course!

As many of you know, I really love Zumba classes. This week I signed up to take the instructor training. It is a little (OK, totally) outside of my comfort zone in some areas, but it seems perfectly natural in other ways. I taught cheerleading when I was younger, so hopefully those skills will transfer! I’m sure I’ll be scared to death to start, but I’m looking forward to the challenge. I saw this pin earlier, and it sums up my feelings:

Favorite song for working out:
Shake, Senora by Pitbull w/ T. Pain and Sean Paul

I love dancing to this song in Zumba. My classes have each done different choreography than what is shown in this video, but I’d definitely take this instructor’s class too. It looks fun!

Favorite knitting pattern:
Deep Blue Sea Shark Mittens

How cute are these? They include a pattern for a shark bite victim, which is great too. My kids are in love with them.

Favorite recipe:
Elana’s Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

I know, I know… I’m not the biggest fan of agave nectar either, but these cookies are soooo good. No one ever guesses they’re gluten-free, casein-free and sugar-free. I’ve been all three of those things (gf/cf/sf) for the past 2 1/2 weeks or so, and I’m feeling awesome. The inflammation that I was dealing with in my knees is totally gone, as are my random low-level headaches. I should’ve done this a long time ago.

I hope you enjoy a few of our favorite things from this week! What have you been up to?

One of the reasons that I love reading autobiographies is because I believe strongly in Charlotte Mason’s teaching that “autobiographies… often lift the veil, for the writer may make free with himself.” Even though this book isn’t the kind of book I normally discuss on here, I find it really interesting to read other people’s stories and learn from them. I thought some of you might like it too

I picked up this book with no expectations. Aside from the press attention that occurred during the trial of Warren Jeffs, I knew very little about the FLDS or Elissa Wall.

This book taught me many things about the FLDS sect. Before reading this, I didn’t realize that the “prophet” had such power over the everyday lives of the members of their community. As Walls says early on in the book, “The prophet decides when two people should marry, when families can form, and when families that are not working are to be reorganized.”

She also describes how,

It was common practice to expel men… all that is required is for the prophet or someone acting at his direction to say: “You have lost your priesthood.” The significance of this is enormous for believers, as it creates a culture of fear. If a husband loses his priesthood, his family is literally no longer his. In addition, he has to leave his land and home because his home is owned by the FLDS Church and controlled by the priesthood. Faithful wives and children will accept these decisions and wait to be reassigned to another man.

Elissa’s story helped me to better understand the mindset of someone in the FLDS. I’ve never understand why polygamy was so central to the faith of those in the FLDS. Wall’s explanation of how a man must have three wives in order to attain the highest level of heaven was really eye-opening. This “need” to have at least three wives drives men to do what they can to please to prophet and show how faithful they are. This is the only way that they may have at least 3 wives assigned to them and not have their wives ever taken away. Removal of their wives (and subsequent reassigning of their families to new men) causes men to lose their place in heaven.

In this book, Elissa is honest about what her life in a polygamous family was like. There were parts that were great and parts that they tried to hide. I’ve seen interviews with women who live in plural marriages, but reading it from a child’s point of view was enlightening. It is clear that Elissa really loves her family and that she feels that her mother and father were trying to do their best to walk the line between taking care of their families and doing what they felt they needed to do to ensure them all a place in heaven.

Reading about the psychological impact of cultural conditioning was both sad and fascinating. Many of the teachings were strange and contradictory, but they were accepted. One such is example is that “Warren preached that when a family remarried to another man, God changed their blood and DNA to match that of the priesthood man they now belonged to. If we did not have worthy blood running through our veins, we could not gain entrance into the kingdom of heaven.” Pretty crazy, no?

I saw that other reviewers criticized Elissa because she could come across as immature or unable to take responsibility. It did not come across that way to me. On the contrary, I read it as a book written by a woman who is still young, still finding herself, and still in the midst of healing. I thought that she tried to be honest about her shortcomings. I think that she shared a lot of her flaws and that they made her story more credible rather than less.

I enjoyed reading this book. My one complaint is that I wish that they would’ve made the authorship more clear. I finished the book wondering how many of the words were from Elissa and how many were from her co-author. On GoodReads, Elissa’s name is listed first, but the Kindle edition has her co-author, Lisa Pulitzer first. The book is written as a first-hand account, but the listing of Lisa Pulitzer first makes me wonder how much was reconstructed by her.

Overall, I’m glad that I read this book. It was far less graphic than I expected, and I think she did a good job of explaining her side of the story.

The kids and I have been working our ways through both the Newbery and Caldecott medal and honors lists as part of the #nerdbery and #nerdcott challenges. We’ve already found dozens of new books to love. Sometimes we all agree, and sometimes our reviews are mixed.

Today I’d like to share our opinions on The Biggest Bear, Snow White, and Baboushka and the Three Kings. Each of these books had strong points and weaknesses. My 7-year-old and I had different opinions about The Biggest Bear, so I’ve also included her review here.

The Biggest Bear

My review:
I was really excited when I first picked up The Biggest Bear. The illustrations are beautiful and instantly caught my eye. Despite this first impression, I was a little disappointed once I started reading. The story really shows it’s age. There are many parts of the book that could seem shocking to young kids, particularly those who live a suburban or urban life.

The story follows a young boy who wishes to shoot and kill the biggest bear. He goes into the woods with his gun, but he finds a cub rather than a large bear. Instead of killing the cub, he feeds it and brings home. As the bear grows, he starts to cause mischief, and the boy tries unsuccessfully to lose the bear. The point comes when he must kill the bear. Right before the bear is shot, the bear becomes afraid and runs into a trap. This trap was set by men at the zoo, who are thrilled to welcome the bear into their exhibit. The story ends with everyone happy about the bear going to the zoo.

This book is so gorgeous, but the content is probably a bit above the level of the average picture book reader. Parents who wish to avoid images of children with guns will want to skip this book. I was very disappointed that the consequences of the boy’s choice to feed the bear are never explored. I think this was a missed opportunity. It seems to end on a happy note and the boy’s actions are not questioned.

On a positive note: This book fueled good conversation with my older kids. I initially started reading it with my 1 1/2 year-old (who was drawn to the beautiful illustrations of the boy and the bear), but I decided to bail and distract her once we came to the part where the boy was taking the bear out to be shot.

My 7-year-old daughter’s review:
I like this book. It is a story of a boy who adopts a bear. The pictures are very realistic. I wish that I could draw that well! I thought it was really funny when the bear swam for 2 miles and didn’t get very wet. I like that the bear doesn’t get shot and gets put in the zoo.

Snow White
Also as part of the Nerdcott challenge, we recently read Snow White and the Seven Dwarves by the Brother’s Grimm. There are many editions of this book, and several have won awards. We decided to poke through a few of them and see what we thought.

One edition particularly caught my eye. It was illustrated by Tina Schart Hyman. She won the Caldecott Medal for Saint George and the Dragon, which is another family favorite and an Ambleside Year 1 selection. This particular retelling of Snow White is darker than most, and I wouldn’t recommend it for younger children. If your kids are a bit older and enjoy classical tales, I think this is a great book.

Baboushka and the Three Kings

And, finally, a book that differs in pretty much every way from the previous two. Baboushka and the Three Kings is a story with very simple illustrations, but it would be appropriate for any age. It is far shorter than the previous two books, and toddlers should have no problem sitting through it. It would be a great read-along with young kids around Christmastime when you are discussing traditions in different parts of the world.

I’d love to hear your opinion on these picture books or any others that you’ve read. Some of the other books that we’ve all recently enjoyed include Sam, Bangs and Moonshine, The Voyages of Dr. Dolittle, Hide and Seek Fog and Sylvester and the Magic Pebble. How about you?

I’ve completed my first book for my 2012 reading challenge, and it is a book about…. BOOKS! LOL. I decided to pick this one up after I saw it recommended on a message board, and I really enjoyed reading it.

The Book Whisperer is described on the back cover as “…a primer of the heart on how to make reading magical again”, and I think that is a very accurate description. The author, Donalyn Miller, is a 6th grade language arts and social studies teacher. Through much research, she’s devised a program for her students that empowers them in their reading choices and increases their reading and writing skills at the same time.

The main point that is driven home throughout this book is that students should be able to pick their own reading material (with guidelines for the number of books read in each genre) and that school time should include significant blocks where kids read rather than complete busywork.

One of the things that I really like about this book is that she almost perfectly describes the way that we homeschool. I check out large amounts of books that relate to the units that we do in our other subjects, and let my kids free read from all of the different genres. I try to keep the shelves stocked with library books that I think my kids will like, and they also pick out a large number of books for themselves. I had no idea that I was so cutting-edge, hehe.

Obviously there are parts of this book that are not applicable to homeschooling parents (after all, we are not the target audience), but I still really enjoyed the book. I have placed several of her book suggestions on hold, including The Tarantula in My Purse: and 172 Other Wild Pets (which I think it will be an awesome read-aloud!) I also love Miller’s description of a reading journal where the student and teacher write back and forth in a conversational style about the books that they’ve read. I think it can easily be tweaked for homeschooling, and I’ve been wanting to start a journal with my kids anyways. It reminds me of the notebooks that my friends and I had when we were in middle and high school.

One of the other important lessons that I’ll take from this book is that there is great value in reading children’s literature as an adult. I belonged to a children’s lit bookclub, but I haven’t read with them in several years. She shows how a knowledge of children’s books will enable you to give better recommendations for your students. Thanks to her inspiration, I’ve picked up a few children’s books for myself. I really want to join the #nerdbery and #nerdcott challenges now. We have several of these books on our shelves, so I went ahead and read one of the #nerdcott books today.

If you’ve read this book or decide to read it in the future, I’d love to hear your opinion.

Happy reading!

As I said in my last post, I love the clean start of a new year!

Last year I set a few annual goals, and I had so much fun working at them. My first mission was to knit 52 items, and I totally blew that number out of the water. I completed about 25% more than my goal. Yay!

I also committed to reading 52 books in 52 weeks. I only had to count a few knitting books to hit my goal (…and, to be fair, I spend a lot of time with my nose in a knitting book, LOL.) Considering what a doozy 2011 was, I’m considering this to be a huge accomplishment.

I was reading on ravelry and saw this idea for making 12 lists of 12 things to complete in 2012. I decided to come up with my own list. I’m going to try to find a widget that I can use to keep track of them in my sidebar.

So, on top of my goal to read another 52 books this year, I also hope to complete:

12 items knit from my pattern library
12 items knit for charity
12 gifts knit
12,000 yards knit
12 of my oldest skeins of yarn used up (I’m looking at you, Handspun Bulky)
12 weeks of “cold sheeping” (a.k.a. no buying new yarn – ACK!)
12 classic read-alouds with the kids (in addition to bedtime reading and school reading)
12 books on midwifery or herbalism read cover-to-cover
12 books that have been in my queue or are partially read
12,000 minutes of exercise
12 new homeopathic remedies or herbs that I’ll become familiar with and use
120 green smoothies consumed

Happy 2012!

LOL, OK, not really, but you might think that if you look at my Kindle right now.

For some reason I decided to put both of these books on hold through my library. I had actually checked out How I Killed Pluto… quite a while back (almost a year ago?), when it first came out. It was listed in one of the “new release” emails that I get from the library and sounded interesting. I didn’t get to read it at the time, and I’m glad that I decided to try again, because it was really good.

These two books really complimented each other nicely. In the end, I’ve learned that:

1. Although the author of the Big Bang book is really REALLY not a fan of Christianity, I don’t think that the Biblical explanation of creation is at all at odds with the Big Bang Theory. In fact, it works far better with the Big Bang Theory than it does with the other major contenders.
2. The math that goes into cosmology is super fascinating. Warning: I was a math major before I looked at the job possibilities (Do you dream of being an actuary? Anyone? No?) and quickly switched my major to Computer Information Systems. I may find math way more fascinating than most.
3. Pluto should definitely not be a planet.
4. My kids will be learning about astronomy for the rest of our homeschooling year, because I’m now quite intrigued.
5. If you live in Boulder county, go on the planet hikes! I don’t see one on the schedule for December, but keep checking. They are really cool and you get to see the planets fairly close-up for free. After reading the book about Pluto, I really wished that I had gone on more of the hikes in Boulder county.
6. Astronomers, planetary scientists and cosmologists can be quite witty.

Overall, I give the Big Bang Theory 3 stars (out of 5). The author repeats herself a bit and the book is older (2002), so I had to do some online research once I finished the book to see what changed in the 9 years since it was published. Still, it gave me a good basis for understanding some of the research in the book on Pluto. It wasn’t necessary, but it helped.

I think How I Killed Pluto… is a solid 4 star book. I liked how the author worked parenting discussions into the book, especially since he talked about his wife pumping breastmilk for their daughter and how he taught his daughter baby signs

If, like me, you’re a nerd looking for some slightly scientific reading about our universe, either of these books might be fun to pick up. How I Killed Pluto is more entertaining, but I liked them both.

With
Reimagining the Way You Relate to God

By Skye Jethani

It is rare that I read a popular Christian author and see much of anything new. Sadly, the same topics seem to get recycled, repackaged and replayed. I was (very pleasantly) surprised as I read With, because Mr. Jethani gave me the vocabulary to describe so many issues that are common in the church. Until I read this book, I could explain why I disagreed with many of these tactics, but couldn’t pin down the common thread – control and manipulation. The way that he laid it out really impressed me.

Basically, Mr. Jethani describes 4 different ways that we attempt to control the world around us by using God:

• life UNDER God – where you seek to control the world by securing God’s blessing via rituals and/or morality
• life OVER God – where you use God as a self-help guide… you employ natural laws or divine principles extracted from the Bible to give yourself a sense of control
• life FROM God – where you use God to try to acquire wealth, health and popularity so you can insulate yourself from the calamities that happen to others
• life FOR God – where you try to extract God’s favor and give meaning to your life through faithful service

Mr. Jethani’s descriptions of how these principles are used in the Western Evangelical culture REALLY made me stop and think. I could see myself (both past and present) in so many of the misguided attempts. I thought of all of the sermons that I’ve heard ENCOURAGING these stances, and my little lightbulb in my head kept turning on as I realized why those attempts don’t work.

For the remainder of the book, Mr. Jethani describes a life WITH God, and what that looks like. Unlike the above attempts to control our world and use God, a life WITH God embraces the truth that control is an illusion. Instead of trying to overcome our fears by seeking more control, life WITH God is when we overcome fear by surrendering control to God.

I “clipped” so many quotes out of this book on my Kindle. I am looking forward to re-reading it, because I know I’ll get even more out of it the second time. I highly recommend this book and happily give it 5-out-of-5 stars

For fans of InternetMonk, Chaplain Mike recently reviewed With as well:

http://www.internetmonk.com/archive/prepositions-matter

And now some legaleze:

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Superfoods RX

Sometimes I feel like I’m over-read on the topic of nutrition. Despite this, I really like finding new nutrition books. They help me to keep my focus and remind me of why I make the food choices that I do. Granted, I don’t come across too much information that I haven’t read before, but it is still a great way to keep this topic at the front of my mind. I decided to pick up a copy of Superfoods RX after seeing it highly recommended, and I’m really glad that I did.

Superfoods RX profiles 14 foods that “will change your life”. These foods are beans, blueberries, broccoli, oats, oranges, pumpkin, wild salmon, soy, spinach, tea, tomatoes, turkey and walnuts. One of the things that I really appreciate about this book is that it is really more like 14 food categories, rather than 14 individual foods. So, while pumpkin is excellent, the real point of the chapter on pumpkin is to remind you of why orange veggies in general are so important.

In each chapter, Dr. Pratt (an ophthalmologist, btw) describes a superfood, its “sidekicks” (similarly healthy foods), and explains some of the research and benefits of the superfood. I enjoyed reading a chapter or two at a time, and it really did help me to be more mindful about consuming a variety of healthy foods. It is easy to get stuck in a rut, and I liked that this book gave me some gentle nudges to eat several healthy foods that I like, but I don’t always use in my regular rotation.

I really appreciate that he keeps going back to the reasons why you should be getting your nutrition through the whole food and not through supplements. He mentions the synergy of whole foods over and over again, and I think that is a fantastic message.

The main downside of this book for me was his insistence on low/no-fat dairy and his strong opinions against coconut oil. I happen to be a firm believer in the benefits of full-fat, raw dairy and unprocessed coconut oil. I also wouldn’t recommend the use of canola oil, although he does. Additionally, I probably would’ve nixed soy from the superfoods list, but I can appreciate why he came to the conclusion that he did. Each of these things is easy to adjust for your personal convictions, though, and weren’t enough to strongly sway my opinion on the book.

The second half of this book contains recipes, shopping lists and brand recommendations for each of the superfoods. That part of the book could make it worth buying (rather than checking out from the library) if you need some fresh ideas on how to prepare the superfoods. If you don’t live near a Trader Joes then this section will be a bit less helpful, because he is clearly a big fan of their items.

Overall, I really liked this book. I’d recommend it to anyone who is interested in learning more about the importance of healthy, whole foods. I also think this book is good for those of us who already know why whole foods are important in our diet, but would like a reminder and some fresh motivation for eating our fruits, vegetables and healthy fats.

I’m currently reading The Happiness Project. I’m enjoying it. I kind of like to hear about all of the different things that people adjust in their lives in order to feel happier. I find it particularly fascinating that people often choose to focus on tasks that are the opposite of what other people might choose. For example, some people need to learn to say “yes” more, and others need to learn to say “no” more. Some people need to learn to do one thing at a time, and others need to learn to do everything at once. As I’ve read, I’ve thought a lot about which categories I fall into. I like books that make me think

Also, I really like reading about the small things that people choose to remember. One of the points of the book is that we need to be intentional about remembering the happy times if we want them to have the maximum benefit. I feel like my last 6 months (since my mom was diagnosed with leukemia) have gone by in a whirl, so I want to be more mindful to experience the great times in the moment AND remember them later.

While reading, I came across this quote from William Edward Hartpole Lecky. I have definitely thought this during the past 6 months.

There are times in the lives of most of us when we would have given all the world to be as we were but yesterday, though that yesterday had passed over us unappreciated and unenjoyed.

No kidding. We need to love and live each day to the fullest, because who knows what tomorrow might bring? I’ve been trying to remember to appreciate each day as it comes, rather than looking forward to the way things might be some day, because that “some day” may not look like I plan.

So, on that note: I’d love to hear what you’re thankful for!

I am so grateful for my family.

My 1-year-old made the shift today from calling me “mama” to calling me “mommy”. It is such a little thing, but it is another step down the road to her growing up. Last night she was teething and woke up… I don’t know… a billion and a half times. Each time she woke up, she said, “MOMMY!” …I won’t lie, I would’ve been perfectly happy with only hearing it once or twice while I was trying to sleep, LOL. Still, though, it made me smile when I was in that half-asleep, half-awake state. I think I was dreaming that she needed me to help her put puzzle pieces together, because the kids and I have been working on a really hard Big Ben puzzle.

And, on that note… I am very thankful for the time that I’ve gotten to spend this weekend with my older two. They’re really enjoying doing a big puzzle with me. I haven’t done a puzzle in so long, because the last 10 years of my life have been spent with toddlers running around… and toddlers and big puzzles usually don’t mix. I thought my older two would enjoy trying a puzzle, though, so I picked one up on a whim. My husband took our younger two out last night, so my 9-year-old, my 7-year-old and I had a serious puzzling nerd-fest. It was awesome. It reminded me of a time at my Grandma’s house when I was able to join in on a puzzle with the adults. I remember how grown up I felt, and I recognized the same excitement in my kids. Too cute.

Also, while we worked on the puzzle, I had the chance to sit and listen as my kids pondered the greed of world leaders and the sadness of war. They talked a lot about the wars that we’ve studied in history, from the ancient Mesopotamians to current times. I am thankful that I had the chance to soak in their wisdom. I don’t know how I ended up with such smart kids.

this requires our thinking caps...

And, then, my 3-year-old. How could I not be thankful for her? Today, as my older two worked on creative writing assignments for homeschool, she decided to write a story too. Her story was about a quesadilla. I must admit: She did a very good job of writing out the Q, U, E, S (which looks like a Z, but don’t count that against it) and A. It was so cute, watching her slightly wink her right eye, stick her tongue out, and concentrate on drawing the best possible “Q”. I know from experience that it is too easy to forget about these small steps. When I look at my 9-year-old, it is already getting hard to remember the days when he was this small. Sure, I remember the big things, but the day-to-day memories are starting to fade. Thank God for my journals!

Q-U-E-S-A (although it looks more like "Z-Q-U-A-E", LOL)

So… what are you grateful for today? May you have a day that is enjoyed to the fullest! <3

Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster by Jon Krakauer

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Wow.

I guess I haven’t been doing the lightest of reading over the past few days, but this book definitely has me thinking.

Into Thin Air is a personal account from a man who climbed Mount Everest as part of a commercial climb in 1996. The climb ended in tragedy, with the mountain claiming the lives of many of the members of the teams. The author, Jon Krakauer, attempts to tell his recollection of the events, keeping in mind that everyone lacks clarity when you are at that altitude and your mind and body are deprived of oxygen. He discovers along the way that he misjudged and misremembered events that happened on the mountain, and the story has a huge element of surprise when he learns where he made mistakes.

It seems wrong to say that I “enjoyed” this book, since it is about such a tragic subject. I guess the best thing that I can think to say is that this book was fascinating. Before I picked it up, I knew very little about climbing Everest. I had no idea that an attempt to reach the summit included going up and down portions of the mountain several times, and over a period of 4 weeks. I assumed that it was more like climbing a less-imposing mountain, where you are always camping higher until you reach the summit. I didn’t know that it was much more of a two-steps-forward/two-steps-back endeavor.

I also didn’t realize that helicopter evacuations are not possible anywhere near the top of the mountain, so your options for getting the injured down from the summit are very limited. I guess I had never considered all of the physical limitations that come with that kind of altitude. Supplemental oxygen is a necessity for survival over more than a day or so, and all oxygen must be carried up. That means that if something goes wrong, there isn’t an abundance of time for action.

I would highly recommend this book, even though the subject is so sad. There are still great stories of survival and human strength contained in it. It really underscores the fact that tragedy can happen to even the best climbers. Nature is just such a powerful force.