Relax with a Great Book

I read two books this summer. One with my daughter which I actually really enjoyed called Poison Wood Bible. It was for an English assignment - summer reading so I can't really say I was relaxing with a great book but I love that I have the time to spend with her. She will be off to college next year and its these little things that I love, reading to her and discussing what we read then helping her with ideas once in a while when she gets stumped on an assignment. I will miss these days for sure.

This is the other book I read. Its called the Husband Project by Kathi Lipp.
This summer my focus was our marriage, it started back in May. I was looking for ways to build our marriage up because we will sort of be empty nesters next year. Our younger two are seniors this year. I hear story after story about how hard marriage can be once all the kids are gone, how couples are disconnected etc.
Well the dear Lord had a different plan because my husband was injured so the book got put on hold. I did start it a few weeks ago when he went back to work after being off 2 1/2 months. Its 21 days of focusing on him.
For me this could not have been a better time. When you truly care for someone, helping them shower, changing sheets several times a day, their pretty much every need, its very depleting. I really just wanted a vacation. I realized I needed to still focus on him. He is still healing, he is still working through the let down of the summer and some major life changes.
At first he just was really surprised by all the neat ideas, some dates, some helpful situations like doing a pipe order, which is a side job of his, while he was at work, some cooking of special meals etc.
I am not completely done. I had to start spreading it out because he figured it out and it became an expectation. I don't want that out of the book. So now I am doing a couple a week.
I admit it takes a lot of time and planning to pull all of it off. Some of them I had to modify because I don't dress up, wear make up etc. So I changed the project to suit us.
I really enjoy the idea of focusing on him. It helps me from focusing on the wrong things and it really has been improving our marriage because it improves our attitudes towards one another. 

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Martha Home the Mary Way Book Giveaway

Just a reminder, don't forget to enter my giveaway
It ends soon
You will love this book

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Martha Home Mary Way Book Giveaway

I am giving away one copy of Sarah Mae's new Book

I posted some more information about the challenge, links to her blog earlier today. I wanted to do a little more and provide you with a copy so that you can participate in the challenge. I will be posting the days challenge and accomplished task, so you can follow along for the 31 days if you would like, you can also participate along with her Blog or mine until your copy arrives.

If you have cleaning tips of your own, supplies you love, I would love to hear all about it, leave me a blog post comment.

Raising Grateful Kids in an Entitled World Book Review

Raising Grateful Kids in an Entitled World- Kristen Welch

Its been a very long time since I had read a parenting book, or a book about families, or teens or anything like that. I wasn't quite sure where this book would fit for our family personally because I have a student in college, and then two juniors in High School. I am so thankful for so much of what was said. The real truth behind so much of what we are seeing in the world today. Sometimes I think we are fortunate to at times have less than some, even in the midst of having so much more than most of the world. My children understand American Struggle. They live without central heat and air, in Texas. They live with the real possibility of having to miss things in life because there truly is no money, not even the $10 needed for choir dues at times. They are also able to learn so much, how to work hard, how to save their own money for things like Mission Trips and Church camp. They learn what is truly important the good lunch in their bag at school or the Mc D's they would love to stop and get. 

One thing in our family that we truly focus on is service. I always want them to see what it takes to run a community. How they can help others, how they can serve at school and church and even in the world. While they may do without a lot of what their friends have they truly see how much they have daily to make life better through their acts of service. It helps them be compassionate, loving, caring, responsible young adults. 

There have been so many times were I am sure I am messing it all up. I feel bad when they get so little at Christmas, or when we can't take a single vacation in the summer because home repairs have taken everything extra. Then I think of what they do have, a parent that works from home quilting and sometimes subbing so that I can be the volunteer at the field trip, so that I can take them to and from school most days instead of them having to ride a bus with kids that make them uncomfortable. How many conversations we have in the car going to so many volunteer days and church events/activities. There isn't much I don't love about our life, despite some hard ships. 

One really important thing that I learned that I am failing my husband in is having a child centered home. I hadn't really thought about that before. I put the kids above nearly everything. My daughters school schedule pretty much trumps my plans with my husband. After reading this book I felt pretty convicted. I realized that the reason that I don't go on anniversary dates or a get away is that I am too worried they won't get what they need done. It really made me evaluate and for once we actually left with school in progress, with my daughters schedule full to the brim. Our son even called after dropping him off at college and said that classes didn't start until Tuesday, he had nothing to do. We were both tempted to go get him but then we stuck to our plan- time for us.

I love this- I think we do a really good job in this area, however I know with friends its hard to always know what they see otherwise. This is probably my second favorite point among all the great real life stories and ideas. For us our kids just have $10 non internet phones, even our child in college. We just decided that its all they truly needed and our phone bill could not be the same amount as our food or utilities bills. We do have the rights to their passwords on any device and I check text messages and such at random. While that may not work for every family it has worked great for us.
I really recommend this book to anyone with children, or even grandchildren. It helps you truly look at the inner makings of your family. There are ideas at the end of each chapter that are age appropriate, to meet you at the stage or stages that you are right now, also potentially to help you be thinking about the next stage. It helps you realize how much we forget and take for granted in America. We have so much and can give back so much. Kristen has a wonderful Blog you can follow at We are that family, she is also on Facebook, right now you can get her book through various online sources such as Amazon, Barnes and Noble etc. There is a really low preorder price of $10. If you purchase it and read it come back and let me know what you think. I am thankful that it refocused us on looking at the every day parts of life we need to be Grateful for in the midst of chaos that often strikes.

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