I’ll never forget the day several years ago when a friend walked in and commented on a pile of clean laundry lying on our family room floor. “Your laundry is on the family room floor!” she exclaimed with an odd sense of excitement. “Yeah… this is where we fold our laundry. This load finished a while ago, but I haven’t had time to fold it yet,” I replied. She continued by telling me how relieved it made her feel to know that someone else wasn’t living in a magazine-worthy home and that my relaxed attitude about said pile helped her eradicate thoughts that she is failing or can’t have people over because her home isn’t a picture of perfection. There also was the time that a family friend heard we were hosting a large dinner event at our home shortly after moving into our current neighborhood (our seven kids ranged from one to eleven years old at the time). She seemed shocked we would do such a thing, since we hadn’t had time to decorate or get fully settled, but honestly, it never ...

  Maybe you've wanted to teach your kids how to memorize scripture, but just don't know where to start. Perhaps you desire to train your kids in godliness, but you are bogged down by breaking up arguments and constant whining from your kids. If you are a parent of young kids and either of these scenarios ring true, this book will point you in the right direction and give you the tools you need to move forward.  I heard Susan Hunt speak at a conference many years ago, which is how I was made aware of this little gem. When I first opened this book, which appears to be like any other picture book for young children, I quickly realized it wasn't just another picture book and that this resource was going to help me teach and guide my kids. I believe My ABC Bible Verses is what set the stage for giving me practical direction in parenting and in utilizing God’s Word to do so.   THE CONTENT The book is laid out in 26 stories, one for each letter of the alphabet. Each letter has a...

I was ranked twelfth in my class in high school when I graduated and was honored at a special banquet that year. Throughout my school years I was an academic achiever, always working hard and posting high grades. As I set off for college everyone expected great things from me (or so it seemed from my perspective), and I did too. Would I be a genetic counselor? Would I pursue medicine? Was it journalism or graphic design? Would I major in dance? But when it was time to declare my first semester major, I was completely confounded. I ultimately landed on “undecided” as my major. I switched schools after one semester and then haphazardly declared graphic design as my course of study. That clearly was not my calling and so, the following semester, I just as unthoughtfully chose journalism education. It was just before this semester that I had met and started dating a charming, joyful young man named Jack. Being fully honest with myself, I knew what I really wanted to be was a wife and a mom...

  I signed Jack (our oldest child) up for baseball when he was about six years old, because that’s what I thought you’re “supposed” to do. Just getting to the first practice was daunting and eye opening. At this point, Jack was the oldest of four kids, so you can imagine waking kids up from naps, packing peanut and butter and jelly sandwiches (because, of course, practice was right at dinnertime), and trying to bring something to keep the three younger kids occupied during the practice. It was chaos. My husband came straight from work and met us at the baseball fields. For an hour or so, we wrangled the kids, helping them eat “dinner,” while keeping them from falling off the metal bleachers, chasing them around to keep them within eyesight, and helping them to the bathroom when needed. I’m sure I was potty training one kid and nursing another. You get the idea. While Jack did a great job that baseball season and showed potential, everything in my heart was saying, “NO WAY.” So, we ...