Books to Check Out

Well, things are looking up in the book department. I've come across some great reads as of late and would like to pass them on.

Baby Has a New Bib

Well, he's becoming less and less like a baby, but that doesn't mean he's a cooperative model. Embroidering the bib was probably easier than getting a good shot of him in it. Here's the best I could do.


Any of you recognize this look of anticipation in seeing the picture on the camera that you're trying to take?


Ok, I'll try holding him and do the self portrait. Drat that didn't work either.


Better, but could we show some enthusiasm?


All right, enough is enough.


So, here it is. I received the bib for my birthday in a cross stitch kit (along with all kinds of other embroidery goodies). I'm not really a cross stitcher so I transferred a pattern from here and voila! It may be ruined in about a week, but it didn't take me that long to do and was good embroidery practice.

My Bookshelf

I get good ideas from other blogs all the time and this one I really liked because I love to read. Our "bookcase" is a curio cabinet my grandfather made for me when I was a teenager. He made one for all of his granddaughters. There are only 2 of us out of 12 grandchildren, but it was no small task considering the craftsmanship that went into the curios.

You'll notice I started organizing our books by color until you get to the bottom shelf. Well, as new books came in, I wasn't about to shift all the books on every row downward to make room for a white book on top! Next time I'll remember to leave a little space on each shelf.

The Secret Garden

What can I say? I'm a sucker for juvenile fiction. I remember watching the movie, The Secret Garden, when I was a lass, but I just have vague memories of a little girl dressed in black, a grumpy older figure and a boy in a wheel chair. And of course, the garden that was forbidden and locked up. This is by far the most delightful book I've read of late. It takes a talented author to have you cheering for the two most disagreeable, spoiled, obstinate children you've ever encountered as the main characters of a book. Maybe it's because I can identify with one of them, the little girl, Mary, that I'm so drawn to the book. If you love gardening, the outdoors, breathing fresh air... any of these, as you know they have the ability to lift your spirits, clear your mind, and set your mind into proper perspective. It certainly is "Magic" to witness this happen to the characters in this book as they discover the secret garden.

Zane's Top Ten List

My son has had better luck with books in this past first year of his life than his mama. He definitely has his favorites and if he could talk or write I'm pretty sure he would agree with the list I'm about to present to you, or list it himself.

10. You Are Brave by Todd Snow
9. You Are Important by Todd Snow
8. You Are Friendly by Todd Snow
7. Care Bears Nighty Night by Quinlan B. Lee
6. Buzz Buzz Busy Bees by Dawn Bentley
5. I'll Find You, Kitty by Richard Powell
4. Garden Colors by Anne Geddes
3. Where Is Baby's Belly Button? by Karen Katz
2. Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You? by Dr. Seuss
1. I Smell Honey by Andrea and Brian Pinkney

Year End Book Review

I've kept track of how many books I've read each year for the last 4 years now. I went from 43 in 2005 to 57 in 2006 to 67 in 2007 to this past year's whopping 29. I don't know if adding a person to our family had something to do with it or maybe that it took me about 5 months to read one of the books. I thought I'd compile a list of the top ten of the year, so I went down my list and marked ones that stood out to me with the intention of going back and narrowing down my big top ten. I shouldn't be surprised to find that I had only marked 9 because throughout the year I kept having a sense that I just couldn't find a good book. So here are my top 9 reads of 2008.

• The Breastfeeding Cafe by Barbara L. Behrmann~ The old saying goes that sex, religion, and politics are subjects that are off limits. Breastfeeding should be added to that list. With my very first newborn whenever asked if I was nursing or bottlefeeding I felt like asking, "Who wants to know?" It seemed there were few who didn't fall into one of two groups: the lactivists and the bottle feeders who have all been scorned by the lactivists. In all the hub bub surrounding how I fed my baby, this book was an encouragement filled with stories of many moms in their nursing ups and downs. Of course there is a strong lactivist bent (I believe there was a reference to formula as "crap in a can"), but it served as additional humor to me along with the anecdotal struggles in the moms' stories.
• What is a Family? by Edith Schaeffer~ Edith Schaeffer is a personal favorite of mine so I eat up anything she writes. The title is pretty self explanatory. This is a good companion book to another one of hers, The Hidden Art of Homemaking.
• A Light Affliction by Maureen Hay Read~I don't miss a day of writing in my journal, so the format of this book resonates well with me (it's mostly her journal entries). I also found it very interesting because the author was my high school English teacher. She journals through a time of sickness when I was her student. I remember her taking a long leave of absence and knew she was very sick, but had no idea the horrors she was going through. The rest of the book, covering a span of about 10 years, is encouraging and challenging as she faces the trials and struggles of everyday life.
• Mistaken Identity by Newell Cerak, Whitney Cerak, Susie Van Ryn, Colleen Cerak, and Don Van Ryn~ It's one of those books where you feel like you're invading someone's privacy, a People magazine cover story, but they wrote the book and it's an amazing story. God sure does work in mysterious ways.
• The Baby Whisperer Solves All Your Problems by Tracy Hogg~ No, not everything did come naturally as a new mother. I had my intincts about some things and stuck to them and I had situations where I wasn't exactly sure what to do. This book helped give some direction and steady ground on those issues I was a little unsure of.
• To Own a Dragon by Donald Miller~ It's about growing up without a dad. I grew up with a dad, but just wanted to read it because Donald Miller wrote it. As expected he didn't disappoint. You'll just enjoy chewing on his thoughts.
• Shepherding a Child's Heart by Tedd Tripp~ This is one I want to own and keep as a reference for all time. Probably one to read once a year. I mean, sheperding your child's heart; what a responsibility and privilege! Wow, I have a high calling.
• To Train Up a Child by Michael Pearl~ A good companion book to Tripp's above. This one is more about training your children in the first year(s); training vs. discipline which is covered more in Shepherding a Child's Heart.
• Hundred Dollar Holiday by Bill McKibben~Highly recommended to anyone who is sick and tired of the rat race of the holiday season and is seeking something simpler. Our family is celebrating the 12 days of Christmas this year as a result of this quick little read because it's not all about the big day of presents. Don't worry, it's point is not to abolish gifts altogether, but to get you to think about the kind of traditions you want in your family for this time of year.

So there you have it; the 9 books I read this year that I truly enjoyed. What was your favorite read of 2008?

Dear Santa

As some of you may know, every year around Christmas time Oprah Winfrey hosts a special episode of her show where she gives away her favorite things to every member of the studio audience; Oprah's favorite things. If I were to do such a thing for my readers this is what I would give to you all. Two differences between Oprah's favorite things and Bethany's favorite things: 1. Oprah actually gives things away, I would just really like to give them away. 2. Oprah gives away things that she personally owns and loves, whereas the one qualifier for this list of things I'd love to give you all is that they're all things I want! So enjoy perusing this list of prizes you would get if I were rich and if you're looking for gift ideas for a certain thirtysomething, crafty girl....

• Where is Baby's Belly Button? by Karen Katz
  
• The Baby Whisperer Solves All Your Problems by Tracy Hogg
• Shepherding Your Child's Heart by Tedd Tripp
• To Train Up a Child by Michael Pearl
• Thomas the Tank Engine board books
• Lamaze board books
• fabric
• scrapbook paper
• paper punches
• yarn
• a sweater
• pants
• tweed trousers
• gloves
• one panel pewter shower curtain
• this rug
• these throw pillows
• this 5x8 rug
• art
• lamp shade
• verse plaque
• 5 picture frames
• outdoor chaise
• silicone whisk
• hair care products
• ginger and sesame salad dressing
• anything from jcasa handmade
• anything from serenitymeadow
• an owl from old school acres
• crest whitestrips
• freezer
• Addi circular knitting needles
  

Librarian Perks

As I was talking to my brother-in-law about the perks of working at a clothing store, he kind of laughed at my feeble attempts at saying that free books and getting paid slightly above minimum wage to be surrounded by books, books, and more books could actually be justified as perks. Mainly because it's only a slight step up from what anybody using the library can take advantage of. Well, to add to my list of perks, I do not get charged with late fees, I can check out more than the 20 items allowed to "regular" patrons, and I can order more than 4 books at a time from other libraries in our system. What a life!


As it stands I have 47 items checked out which includes exercise dvds, a few episodes of the second season of The Office, board books for Zane, books on fig trees that my husband is studying, Anna Karenina, and these four beauties-

Also, I can suggest books for purchase and I'm in love with the Discover America State by State series from this publisher. Check it out.

Wilderness Escape

As I started packing for vacation to Minnesota, I thought back to our first 2 years of marriage living there and all the wonderful memories...


canoeing...


winter camping...


camping out on Lake Superior...

and so much more. Cross country skiing, polar dips, building quinzees, BWCA trips, the list goes on. But I tell you, were it not for these books, I don't know if I would have been willing, let alone eager to experience all this stuff. I wanted to be a pioneer woman ever since I was a little girl reading these stories . Turns out I married a pioneer man at heart and we lived the first season of our marriage in this beloved cabin pictured below with no plumbing, an outhouse 10 yards away, and a lot of warm, cozy memories.



So, Minnesota, here we come! We've missed you and can't wait to play again!

Pillow Project

A finished project can be oh so satisfying, but sometimes the project can be so overwhelming that the finished product is a long time coming. Here's an idea that breaks up the project into small parts that you can feel satisfied about every time you complete a section and then multiply that satisfied feeling when you're all done!

What I've done is knit or crocheted 8 squares and then hand sewed them all together, four on front, four on back. I used a different stitch for each square. The stuffing is an old pillow I had as a child that is thread bare beyond repair, so it has sentimental value. This is also a good way to use up yarn that you don't have enough of for other projects.

Cooking Marathon

One of my favorite things to do is cook a bunch of meals in a day and freeze them for later. If you have a place like this nearby it's quite convenient and extra fun to do with a friend. I've also done it at home and have found that it costs about the same. Doing it at home makes for a long day and a lot of clean up, but on a day like today when I can reap the benefits, it makes it all worth it. Here's what the hubby and I had tonight:

Shepherd's Pie

Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients:
1 Tbs olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 lbs. ground meat
1 cup sliced mushrooms
2/3 cup hummus
3 Tbs butter
1 squash, julienne
1 zucchini, julienne
2 sweet potatoes

Directions:
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Place sweet potatoes in oven and cook for 35 minutes. Saute' onion in olive oil for 2-3 minutes over medium heat. Add meat and mushrooms, cooking until done. Stir in hummus and set aside. Saute' squash and zucchini in 1 tablespoon of butter until just tender. Take sweet potatoes, peel away skin, and mash with 2 tablespoons butter. Grease a 9 x 9-inch casserole dish with butter. Spread the meat mixture evenly in pan. Cover with vegetable mix. Spread mashed sweet potatoes over top. Cover and freeze. When ready to eat defrost and cook in 350 degree oven for 20 minutes. Uncover and let cook for 5 minutes.

It's not your typical Shepherd's Pie, so if it's usually not your thing, you just may like this dish after all. I got this recipe from Jordan Rubin. And when it's all said and done, whether it's your big day of cooking, or cleaning up after any meal, I like to use this to do one of my not so favorite things: the dishes.

Pajamas

Today my favorite thing is staying in my p.j.'s all day while playing with my boy and enjoying the fall like weather. While I don't recommend living in your pajamas, every now and again it's good to tone down any trace of Type A personality you might have and just relax. If you need convincing, read this.