Sawyer has decided that he has too much school work to do. I agree, he took on a pretty heavy load this year, but I don’t think it’s “too much.” I have to constantly remind myself that he is not quite FIFTEEN which means that (big breath) even though I went over, and over, and OVER all of this stuff with him before I bought any of this year’s homeschooling materials, I REALLY should NOT have based any of my descisions on his input. Now I’m frustrated and he’s frustrated. The kicker for me was when he, yes HE, planned out his year to include geometry, algebra II, biology, chemistry, Spanish and early 19th century British literature ~ on top of the Beautiful Feet Books Ancient History I told him we were going to do this year.
One of his chief complaints with history is that he doesn’t understand why he has to spend so much time studying something he couldn’t care less about. That’s definitely not the attitude toward history that we’ve tried to foster in him. I’m disappointed, and concerned, that this is the attitude he’s showing these days.
So, I guess I’m going to have to re-think what we’re doing for history this year. When the kids were little we did a lot of delight-directed learning and unit studies. I’ll have to look into that again. Maybe we can come up with a plan to complete world history this year without having to start over after Christmas break ~ I definitely don’t want to have to buy a new curriculum.
Kristine at Mama Archer’s Blog wrote about the 12 Days of Christmas. She writes,
The Twelve Days of Christmas as a celebration and festival is old and steeped in traditions from Christian cultures around the world. For many, the idea of the 12 days as a length of celebration is based on a sequence of verses in the Holy Bible (Matthew 2:1-12), and a belief that it may have taken 12 days for the three kings (also called wise men or magi) to travel to Bethlehem.
It’s an excellent post ~ you can read the whole thing here.
The Minor Protection Act by Jodi Cowles
It is December 1st, time for the FIRST Day Blog Tour! (Join our alliance! Click the button!) The FIRST day of every month we will feature an author and his/her latest book’s FIRST chapter!
This month’s feature author is:
and her book:
The Minor Protection Act
Musterion (December 1, 2005)
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Jodi Cowles caught the travel bug when her parents took her on her first international flight at six months of age. Since then she’s been in over 30 countries. Along the way she’s gotten locked out of her cabin on an all night train to Kiev, helped deliver a baby in Indonesia, taught English in South Korea, gone spelunking in Guam, hiked the Golan Heights and laid bricks in Zimbabwe. Her interest in politics stems from hunting Easter eggs on the south lawn of the White House as a child. For her 30th birthday she ran the LA Marathon and promised to get serious about publishing. Jodi resides in Boise, Idaho and this is her first novel.
AND NOW…THE FIRST CHAPTER:
If the politically correct set was searching for a poster couple, they would need to look no further than Erik and Roselyn Jessup. In college they lit up doobies while attending passionate speeches about legalizing marijuana and freeing Tibet. Erik was even arrested once for helping break into an animal research center. Roselyn bailed him out. After five years of dating they decided to tie the knot. Seven years later, after Roselyn had enough time to get established in her career, she gave birth to their pride and joy, Jayla Lynn Jessup.
Both had satisfying full-time jobs that left them only enough time to pour themselves into Jayla. They attended every event at school, even if it meant working overtime and paying the after school program for a few extra hours. When Jayla made the principal’s list or won a spelling bee, they were cheering, and filming, from the front row.
Jayla began junior high at a brand new school with a brand new curriculum. It was being called “progressive” in the papers; the first program of its kind implemented in California with plans for a nationwide rollout over the next 10 years. Praise poured in from around the country, applauding the straight talk about sexuality and focus on tolerance.
Erik and Roselyn were thrilled to have their daughter in this groundbreaking program. Granted, it took several phone calls to district authorities to accomplish the transfer and Roselyn had to drive an extra 30 minutes each morning to drop off Jayla, but it was quite a coup to brag about in their circle of friends.
Jayla turned 13 two years into junior high. For her birthday she told her parents she wanted to order pizza and hang around the house – there was something she needed to tell them. Over pepperoni and Coke, Jayla calmly informed them that she’d been discussing it with her friends and teachers and had decided she was gay.
Though she had never had a girlfriend, or a boyfriend for that matter, Erik and Roselyn were quick to affirm her decision and let her know she had their full support. Roselyn applauded her daughter’s honest, courageous move and told Jayla how proud she was. Erik was also supportive and went so far as to tease Jayla about her best friend Sara.
There weren’t too many lesbians in her junior high and Jayla had a pretty average experience, but she attracted attention when she entered high school wearing the rainbow buttons specially purchased by her mother. Soon she was 15 and seriously involved with Carla, the 17-year-old senior who was President of the Gay Pride Club. When Erik and Roselyn saw the relationship deepening they sat Jayla down and had a heart to heart “sex talk,” encouraging her to be responsible and safe, and only to have sex if she was truly in love.
She was. However, when the year ended Carla left for college on the east coast and broke off the relationship in a letter.
Jayla was heartbroken. Erik and Roselyn were quick to comfort, as any loving parents of a shattered teenager, but their answers seemed hollow to Jayla, their comfort cold. At 16 she began dabbling in drugs – a first for her.
By the time her senior year began the family bond that was once so strong had disintegrated to the degree that she seldom spoke to her parents unless it was to strike out in anger. She had not entered into another dating relationship, as much as they encouraged her in that direction. Rather, she seemed withdrawn from the world and spent endless hours either locked in her room or suspiciously absent. Finally, Roselyn had enough and took her to a doctor who prescribed an anti-depressant for teenagers that had just been released on the market.
By Christmas the medication seemed to be working. Jayla was coming around, spending more time at home. She seemed calmer and more at peace. They were even beginning to talk about college. But New Year’s morning they found her dead, her anti-depressant bottle and a quart of vodka laying empty in the trash and a mass of journals and letters scattered around her in the bed.
Erik and Roselyn were devastated. Jayla had been their whole life. They dove into the letters and journals, trying to make sense of it all. What they found only served to inflame their anger. Some boy named Nick had been telling their daughter that she was a sinner, quoting Bible verses that said her sexual preference was an abomination before God. Jayla’s journal was full of self-loathing, page after page about her relationship with Carla, page after page of rambling, agonizing pain. Why was she made like this if homosexuality was a sin? Why would her parents have supported her if it were an abomination? Why had she listened to the seventh grade teacher who told her experimentation was the best way to determine her sexuality? What was wrong with her?
They could hardly stand to finish it but they read every word. In the end their grief found relief, as it so often does, in bitterness and hatred. The day after Jayla’s funeral, attended by hundreds of students from Jayla’s school, Erik and Roselyn met with the District Attorney. A year later, bitterness not yet assuaged, they went to see a lawyer. In the culture of America, where there is rarely tragedy unaccompanied by litigation, they found a willing law firm. Someone would pay.
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Trish’s Take
Wow ~ this book held my interest from the very first page. The storyline is intriguing ~ the idea of a family being sued for their beliefs, and the American government trying to outlaw Christianity?! Our knee-jerk reaction may be one of disbelief, “No way. Not in America!” ~ but Jodi really put forth a compelling, plausible scenario.
This story is in-depth and fast-paced. If you enjoy books that take a possible modern-day situation and make it seem real, you’ll love this one. I know I did!
P.S. Jodi, thanks so much for the signed copy!
I have 79 more photos to choose from, but I think this one is THE one:
Tamara at Training Hearts is hosting a giveaway to honor her blogoversary ~ she has been blogging for 3 years! Wow ~ way to go, Tamara!
The prize is the cutest angel bear from Build-A-Bear. Most people don’t know this, but I L.O.V.E. teddy bears. They’re the one collection from my childhood that I still have ~ and I still add to it.
If you want to enter the drawing, click here to read Tamara’s post and the rules. It’s really simple to enter ~ although if you don’t enter, that just means a bigger chance for me to win! 
This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Allianceis introducingAURALIA’S COLORS
(WaterBrook Press September 4, 2007)
by
Jeffrey Overstreet
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Jeffrey Overstreet lives in two worlds. By day, he writes about movies at LookingCloser.org and in notable publications like Christianity Today, Paste, and Image.
His adventures in cinema are chronicled in his book Through a Screen Darkly. By night, he composes new stories found in fictional worlds of his own. Living in Shoreline, Washington, with his wife, Anne, a poet, he is a senior staff writer for Response Magazine at Seattle Pacific University.
Auralia’s Colors is his first novel. He is now hard at work on many new stories, including three more strands of The Auralia Thread.
ABOUT THE BOOK:
As a baby, she was found in a footprint.
As a girl, she was raised by thieves in a wilderness where savages lurk.
As a young woman, she will risk her life to save the world with the only secret she knows.
When thieves find an abandoned child lying in a monster’s footprint, they have no idea that their wilderness discovery will change the course of history.
Cloaked in mystery, Auralia grows up among criminals outside the walls of House Abascar, where vicious beastmen lurk in shadow. There, she discovers an unsettling–and forbidden–talent for crafting colors that enchant all who behold them, including Abascar’s hard-hearted king, an exiled wizard, and a prince who keeps dangerous secrets.
Auralia’s gift opens doors from the palace to the dungeons, setting the stage for violent and miraculous change in the great houses of the Expanse.
Auralia’s Colors weaves literary fantasy together with poetic prose, a suspenseful plot, adrenaline-rush action, and unpredictable characters sure to enthrall ambitious imaginations.
Visit the Website especially created for the book, Auralia’s Colors. On the site, you can read the first chapter and listen to jeffrey’s introduction of the book, plus a lit more!
PRAISE
“Film critic and author Overstreet (Through a Screen Darkly) offers a powerful myth for his first foray into fiction. Overstreet’s writing is precise and beautiful, and the story is masterfully told. Readers will be hungry for the next installment.”
–Publishers Weekly
“Through word, image, and color Jeffrey Overstreet has crafted a work of art. From first to final page this original fantasy is sure to draw readers in. Auralia’s Colors sparkles.”
-–Janet Lee Carey, award-winning author of The Beast of
Noor and Dragon’s Keep
“Jeffrey Overstreet’s first fantasy, Auralia’s Colors, and its heroine’s cloak of wonders take their power from a vision of art that is auroral, looking to the return of beauty, and that intends to restore spirit and and mystery to the world. The book achieves its ends by the creation of a rich, complex universe and a series of dramatic, explosive events.”
-–Marly Youmans, author of Ingledove and The
Curse of the Raven Mocker
My cousin has released a new book! The title is The Combat Trauma Healing Manual. Chris works with Campus Crusade for Christ ~ he’s the Military Ministry Associate National Director for Disciplemaking. His wife, Rahnella, who also contributed to the book, is the Military Ministry Associate National Director of Staff & Troop Care.
I know a couple of my friends who read my blog are wives of military chaplains. Ladies, if you would pass the information along to your husbands that this resource is available, I would really appreciate it. I think this workbook will be invaluable in the work that our military ministers do. I also think that in areas where there’s a large concentration of military members ~ Little Rock, Fayetteville, and Colorado Springs are cities that spring to mind, but I know there are a lot more ~ this manual can be very useful to the non-military-based ministries that care for soldiers, airmen, sailors, Marines, etc., etc.
I know that the media frequently broadcasts reports about soldiers who return home from a deployment in a war zone (i.e. Iraq) only to find their lives turned upside down. Combat trauma (aka PTSD) is very real, very dangerous, and very prevalent among our military members who have experienced time in hostile environments. Most military members are hesitant to speak out about the trauma they have experienced, for a plethora of reasons ~ anything from simple pride to fear they may be put into a mental institution or kicked out of the service. Campus Crusade for Christ’s Military Ministry was formed to help address these difficulties. Chris and Rahnella, as well as the other contributors to The Combat Trauma Healing Manual, have a deep desire to help the members of our military who have so bravely sacrificed for our country. And not just in the most recent conflicts ~ their ministry reaches out to all veterans of every conflict.
If you are interested in reading more about this manual, please click here.
Are we really on assignment #10 in Blogger Friend School already? Wow! I know I haven’t done all of the assignments, but I didn’t think we were that far along yet.
We’re sharing favorite Christmas/holiday cookie recipes this week. I don’t have pictures of my cookies like Tamara does, but you probably already know what these recipes look like when they’re baked!
Blossom Cookies
1 3/4 C. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 C. shortening
1/2 C. peanut butter
1/2 C. sugar
1/2 C. brown sugar
1 egg
2 Tbs. milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1 bag Hershey Kisses
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Mix together flour, baking soda & salt. In a separate bowl, mix shortening, peanut butter, sugar, brown sugar, egg, milk & vanilla. Add flour mixture a little at a time , mixing well after each addition. Form into small balls, and roll in (white) sugar. Bake for 6 minutes. Remove cookies from the oven; place a Hershey’s Kiss in the center of each cookie, using the Kiss to slightly flatten the cookie. Bake 2 minutes longer. Cool on pan 2-5 minutes before removing to cooling rack.
If you make these cookies, be careful. They are seriously addicting! I think this mix makes a couple dozen cookies ~ you’ll be surprised at how quickly they will disappear!
This next recipe was given to me by one of the best baker/cookie maker moms I’ve ever met. I know it’s not technically a holiday cookie recipe, but they truly are the best chocolate chip cookies I’ve ever had ~ the recipe merits being shared.
The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies Ever
1 C. butter
1 C. brown sugar
1 C. granulated (white) sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
2 C. flour
2 1/2 C. blended rolled oats (measured before blending)
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2 C. semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/12 C. chopped nuts (optional)
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Cream butter & sugars. Add eggs and vanilla; blend well. In a separate bowl, mix together flour, blended oatmeal (oatmeal flour), baking soda, baking powder and salt. Add to creamed mixture; mix together well. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts (if using). Let the dough rest for a few minutes (if you’re in a hot & humid climate, you can place the dough into the refrigerator for a couple of minutes). Spoon tablespoon-fulls of dough out and roll into balls. Flatten with the back of a spoon. Place 1 to 2 inches apart on cookie sheet. Bake for 8-10 minutes ~ remove from oven before they begin to turn brown (unless you like crunchy chocolate chip cookies ~ if you like crunchy cookies, let them bake until they begin to brown a bit). Cool on cookie sheet for 5 minutes, then remove to cooling rack.
The second part of our assignment this week is to share a special memory about baking Christmas/holiday goodies. One of my fondest memories is from when Roger was a 1st lieutenant (or maybe he was a captain by then?) in the Air Force. We were stationed at Reese AFB in Lubbock, Texas. We couldn’t afford to go to Colorado (home) for the holidays, so we stayed in Lubbock. We hung out with our also “financially challenged” 1st lieutenant/young captain friends, who couldn’t afford to travel for the holidays either. My friend Stacey lived just down the street. That year Stacey decided that I needed to learn how to bake cookies. We spent a couple of days in her kitchen baking cookies. I think we ate the majority of the dough before it could ever be baked, made one enormous mess after the other, had a couple of good-natured cookie dough and frosting fights, and let our very young children eat way more sugar than they should have. It was the most fun I’ve ever had baking!
My verse this week is Galatians 2:20:
I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
If you would like the opportunity to receive a free, brand new copy of For Parents Only by Shaunti Feldhahn and Lisa Rice, click here. Read the publisher’s blurb and my review ~ instructions for entering the free book giveaway are at the end of my review.
- Shaunti Feldhahn is known for unlocking the mysteries of relationships for men and women. Now she turns to a parent’s relationship with a child, particularly a child of the opposite sex. Drawing on the results of a nationwide survey of kids and teenagers, she explores questions such as:
What do moms need to understand about the “tough and tender” boy who values respect over love?
What do dads need to understand about their daughter’s need for affirmation?
What are the six biggest pet peeves teens have about their parents?
Understanding the answers to these and other important questions can help parents make the holidays a time of celebration and unity, not strife and friction.
For Parents Only offers a unique look into a child’s mind and frees readers to communicate in healthier ways as they discover that understanding their kids may not be as complicated as they think.
Shaunti Feldhahn is the author of For Women Only and numerous other books, with sales totaling nearly one million copies. A nationally syndicated newspaper columnist and public speaker, Feldhahn earned her master’s degree at Harvard University. She and her husband, Jeff, have two young children.
Lisa A. Rice is the associate editor of Christian Living magazine, the mother of two teenage girls, and a screenwriter and producer.
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Trish’s Take
I’m not one who usually recommends parenting books. There are so many reasons why I don’t recommend parenting books that I won’t even go into them now ~ it would take me days to list them all.
For Parents Only has received glowing reviews and recommendations by well-known “experts” such as Les & Leslie Parrott, Dennis Raney, Lisa Welchel, and Jim Daly (the president of Focus on the Family). Shaunti Feldhahn and Lisa Rice, the authors of For Parents Only, did a LOT of one-on-one research, going straight to the source ~ teenagers themselves. Their questions to teens, and their interpretations of the teens’ answers to those questions are interesting.
The authors offer practical advice for communicating with your teen effectively, as well as insight into how teens these days think. They interviewed and surveyed over 1,000 teenagers while putting together the information they share ~ the efforts and research they put into this book are monumental and laudable.
The only thing about this book that I have an issue with is the noticable lack of biblical, foundational Scriptural support for the advice that is given. I can’t say that I found any of their methods unbiblical ~ but this book is written from the point of view of psychology, “the study of man,” rather than a biblical stand point of the study of God and what He tells us in His Word.
While I won’t say you shouldn’t read this book, I will advise you to read it with caution. Take into account the rare mention of God, His Word, and Scriptural support. If you’re having a very difficult time communicating with your teen, For Parents Only may very well give you a new understanding of how your teen thinks. It may also help you with your listening skills. You may even have an “Ah-ha!” moment or two while reading this book. Lots and lots of teens were interviewed, and they were asked very indepth questions. What may surprise you is the openness, honesty, and truthfulness of the teens when answering some very probing questions. I do believe that is all well and good. There’s nothing wrong with trying to understand where your kid is coming from. The only caution I would give you is that while you may learn some great skills and insights from this book, you need to make sure you compare what is written here to what is written in the Word of God. He is our source of all things ~ even the ability to understand or communicate well with our teenagers!
Post Script: Thank you to Liz Johnson and Multnomah Books for giving me the opportunity to read and review For Parents Only.
I have 2 brand new copies of For Parents Only to give away. Thank you again to Liz Johnson and Multnomah Books for providing the books for this giveaway, as well as the envelopes and postage to send the books to their new owners!
If you would like a free copy of For Parents Only, simply send me an email. On Tuesday, December 4, I will draw from a hat the names of 2 winners from the emails I receive between now and then.
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Jodi Cowles caught the travel bug when her parents took her on her first international flight at six months of age. Since then she’s been in over 30 countries. Along the way she’s gotten locked out of her cabin on an all night train to Kiev, helped deliver a baby in Indonesia, taught English in South Korea, gone spelunking in Guam, hiked the Golan Heights and laid bricks in Zimbabwe. Her interest in politics stems from hunting Easter eggs on the south lawn of the White House as a child. For her 30th birthday she ran the LA Marathon and promised to get serious about publishing. Jodi resides in Boise, Idaho and this is her first novel.
If the politically correct set was searching for a poster couple, they would need to look no further than Erik and Roselyn Jessup. In college they lit up doobies while attending passionate speeches about legalizing marijuana and freeing Tibet. Erik was even arrested once for helping break into an animal research center. Roselyn bailed him out. After five years of dating they decided to tie the knot. Seven years later, after Roselyn had enough time to get established in her career, she gave birth to their pride and joy, Jayla Lynn Jessup.
