Girls To Grow

Nurturing moms in their walk with God

The 5 Best Books I Read This Winter

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Thanks for stopping by the blog on this last Friday in March! I always enjoy talking books and reading so that’s what we’re doing today.

My reading goal for 2022 is to average one book a week. So far I’ve finished 19 books which means I’m ahead of schedule. Only six of them were non-fiction, so I’d like to up the count on those next month.

Listed below, in no particular order, are the five best books I read this winter. Let me know if you’ve read any of these!

This post may contain Amazon affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a small commission from qualifying purchases at no extra charge to you. Thank you for supporting Girls to Grow through your purchases!

Here's a list of the five best books (fiction and non-fiction) that I've read over the past three months.

1. Praying the Scriptures for Your Adult Children by Jodie Berndt. I’ve mentioned this book on the blog before. It includes chapters on specific topics related to our adult children. At the end of each chapter, the author shares brief prayers based on specific Bible verses. Not only did I find those prayers helpful, but I was also inspired to look at my own daily Bible reading through the lens of prayers I can pray for our daughters.

2. A Bride Most Begrudging by Deeanne Gist. This story is set in colonial times, which is not a time period I read about very often. Due to circumstances beyond her control, a fine lady from England finds herself the unwilling wife of an American farmer. This sounds like a familiar and overused plot, but I really liked how this story developed.

3. Doing Life with Your Adult Children by Jim Burns. I think you see a theme here for the type of non-fiction books I’ve read! The subtitle for this book is great – “Keep Your Mouth Shut and the Welcome Mat Out.” There is lots of practical advice for parents to use when dealing with situations that may arise as our children step out on their own.

4. Until Leaves Fall in Paris by Sarah Sundin. This one takes place in Germany in World War 2. The main female character owns a bookstore – and any story that has a bookstore for a setting is pretty much a winner for me! I liked how there was a bit of suspense at the end as well.

5. Crisis Shot by Janice Cantore. I used to read a lot of this type of book – it involves law enforcement and/or lawyers or politicians and unsolved crimes. This is the first book in a series of three. [Just a note: I wouldn’t necessarily recommend the third one due to some of the subject matter related to the crimes.]

Honorable Mention: I really enjoy memoirs. Danielle Walker’s Food Saved Me is a good read. She talks about her struggle with an autoimmune disease, how doctors were unable to help her, and the part that a healthy diet has played in restoring her physical wellbeing.

Have you read any good books lately? If so, please share in the comments below. I’m always looking for recommendations!

Related posts:

The 10 Best Books I Read in 2021

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Some of the links in this post are Amazon affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a small commission from qualifying purchases at no extra charge to you. Thank you for supporting Girls to Grow through your purchases!

Happy 2022!! I hope you’re enjoying the weekend as we start off a new year. We were with friends till about 10:30 last night, then came home to ring in the New Year. We’re spending January 1st getting things done around the new house.

In last week’s subscriber email, I shared the top ten blog posts on Girls to Grow in 2021. (You can sign up here if you’d like to be on the list to receive those emails.) I’m just going to take one more quick look back at last year through the lens of the books I read.

2021 was the first year I kept a list of all the books I read. I think I’d tracked the number of books before but never the actual titles. I read 49 books – almost made it to an average of one per week!

Over the last six weeks or so, I missed reading. With moving and all the projects that needed to be done, along with our girls coming home from college and celebrating Christmas, I didn’t make the time. However, I finished my last book while we were on vacation this week and it ended up being in my top 10!

So here are the ten best books I read in 2021. The list is a mix of fiction and non-fiction and goes in order of how I read them throughout the year.

The ten best books I read in 2021

1. Fast. Feast. Repeat. by Gin Stephens. I was curious about intermittent fasting and this book got me started on that eating plan this year.

2. The Cul-de-Sac War by Melissa Ferguson. This is a cute modern-day fiction romance. I actually just gave it to my 19-year-old daughter for Christmas as my girls like actual copies of books they enjoy rather than just e-reader versions.

3. The President Will See You Now: My Stories and Lessons from Ronald Reagan’s Final Years by Peggy Grande. I’m a big Ronald Reagan fan and I thoroughly enjoyed this book! It’s written by the woman who was his executive assistant after he left the White House and is very poignant and moving.

4. Unscripted by Davis Bunn. I’ve read many of Bunn’s books and this was a good one.

5. Chasing Shadows by Lynn Austin. Nikki encouraged me to read Lynn Austin’s books a while ago and I’ve read several. This one that released this past summer was a favorite.

6. Empty Besting by Kristi Huss. I’ve read several books on the empty nest and I really liked this author’s perspective.

7. The Knowledge of the Holy by A.W Tozer. This one was so good I read it twice in 2021. The chapters are short but offer so much insight into God’s character.

8. The One You’re With by Lauren K. Denton. Here’s a fiction story where the main characters are an older married couple! Loved that I could relate to their season of life.

9. Lady Jayne Disappears by Joanna Davidson Politano. I just discovered this author a couple of months ago and highly recommend her books. I think I’ve read all but one now. This is the one I just finished and it was excellent. Each story has a bit of romance and a bit of mystery. They’re all set at specific periods in history.

10. The Next Right Thing Guided Journal by Emily P. Freeman. If you enjoy journaling or would like to give it a try, this is a great book to use. The prompts are very thought-provoking. I completed the journal for 2021, and just ordered a new one for 2022.

What’s the best book you read last year? I’m always looking for new books to read!

I plan to be back to regular blogging next week. I loved what another blogging friend shared this morning – let’s hold loosely to our plans and tightly to Christ in 2022. Here’s to a great year ahead for all of us!

12 Best Parenting Books for Moms

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This post contains Amazon affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a small commission from qualifying purchases at no extra charge to you. Thank you for supporting Girls to Grow through your purchases!

I tend to collect parenting books.

Rearing Godly children is something I’m passionate about, so it’s hard for me to pass up a book that might present a principle in a unique way or encourage me in my role as a mother.

Here I’m sharing twelve of my favorite parenting books from the many that I’ve read over the years.

[My own little disclaimer: There are few books outside of the Bible that I would agree with 100%. And while I definitely recommend the books on this list, that doesn’t mean that I endorse every single word that the author’s written.]

Check out this list of 12 books that can help moms learn and grow as they parent their children

1. On Becoming Babywise by Gary Ezzo and Robert Bucknam, MD

I’ve heard lots of different opinions on the scheduling and sleep training ideas presented in this book. All I can speak to is my own experience. I followed many of the authors’ suggestions with both of our girls and they were sleeping through the night at an early age. Having a simple schedule to follow gave me a lot of confidence as a new mom.

2.  Raising a Happy, Unspoiled Child by Burton L. White

I enjoyed the basic parenting principles in this classic book. It’s broken down into chapters that cover the first three years of a child’s life and talks about how children develop at each stage.

3.  Making Home Work in a Broken Society by Paul Chappell

It’s hard to raise Godly children in a culture that leans away from God. This book reminds us that by following Biblical principles in our homes we can still have families that love and serve Jesus.

4.  John Rosemond’s Six Point Plan for Raising Happy, Healthy Children

John Rosemond is one of my favorite parenting authors. His advice is so practical and his writing style is down-to-earth.

5.  Different Children, Different Needs by Dr. Charles F. Boyd with Robert A. Rohm, PHD

This book helps you evaluate your own personality style as well as that of your child. Then it gives you pointers on how to effectively parent based on those individual personalities.

6.  On Becoming Childwise by Gary Ezzo and Robert Bucknam, M.D.

This book generally covers ages three through seven of your child’s life. That’s one of my favorite segments of parenting! Included are 15 principles to help you parent well through this season.

7.  Making Children Mind without Losing Yours by Dr. Kevin Leman

First of all, what a great book title! Dr. Leman uses humor to help us see the lighter side of parenting, yet includes reasonable solutions to many of our parenting dilemmas.

8.  Passionate Parenting by Cary Schmidt

If you’re parenting teenagers, this book is for you. It’s full of helpful advice and also showed me that many of the parenting struggles I faced during my girls’ teen years were shared by others!

9.  The Pursuit of Godly Seed by Danny Kenaston

Here’s an in-depth parenting book that covers all the basics in regards to having a solid Christian home. It’s not a light read, but worth investing your time in.

10.  The Power of a Praying Parent by Stormie Omartian

Nothing has inspired me to pray like having children! This book is a great reminder of the impact we can have on our children as we cover every area of their life in prayer.

11.  Middle School:  The Inside Story by Cynthia Tobias and Sue Acuna

If you have a middle schooler, I’d encourage you to read this book. The authors are experts in dealing with children in this age group and offer plenty of practical advice and encouragement.

12.  Boundaries with Kids by Dr. Henry Cloud and Dr. John Townsend

Just like the other books in the Boundaries series, this one helps you set reasonable limits where needed so that your child can develop personal responsibility.

A book that almost made the list: Making the “Terrible” Two’s Terrific by John Rosemond. Another very practical book on dealing with some of the issues that make parenting this age group a little scary 🙂

As I reviewed these titles, I noticed that I’m drawn to books that help parents teach their children personal responsibility. How about you? Have you read any of these books? What other parenting books would you recommend? Let me know in the comments below!

Originally posted September 2010. Updated September 2021.

Saturday Salutes ~ God’s Plans, Calming Psalms, and a Reading Update

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Much has happened in the last couple of weeks! My husband and I celebrated our 28th anniversary on July 27th. Our daughters have been away at camp all this week, so we took a quick overnight trip to Kiawah Island. It’s been nice to have time for just the two of us!

Now I’m ready to welcome our girls back home this afternoon. It’s only three weeks until we drop our oldest off for her freshman year at college. I’m trying to process all that while preparing our youngest for her junior year of high school which starts on August 19th.

Here are some helpful posts I found over the past few weeks.

Jennifer asks Are Your Deadlines Flexible to God’s Plans?

Briana lists 4 Questions to Ask Yourself to Prune Away What Hinders Growth.

Danielle gives us 7 Psalms to Help Calm Anxiety.

Chelsia shares 5 Ways to Be Supportive of a Spouse Who Travels for Work.

And if you plan to travel with your children, Cori has Our Favorite Things to Do in NYC in the Summer with Kids.

Here’s an update on the books I’ve finished lately.

Both of my non-fiction books were re-reads. The Next Right Thing by Emily P. Freeman and Give Them Wings by Carol Kuykendall and Krista Gilbert were just what I need for the month ahead!

I read two fiction books. Effective Immediately was the third book in The Agency Series by Chautona Havig. I really enjoyed Love Starts with Elle by Rachel Hauck.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

This post may contain affiliate links, which means that if you click on a product link and make a purchase, I’ll receive a small percentage from any sales.  This does not affect your price in any way.

Saturday Salutes ~ Grumpy Moms, Organizing, and the Books I Read in March

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I didn’t share any videos last Saturday, so I thought I’d link a couple today. These two performances are from my daughters’ fine arts competition earlier this month.

This is my younger daughter’s sacred piano solo. She got 3rd place.

This is one of two songs their high school choir sang. They received first place.

Here are a few good posts I found this week.

MaryEllen shares 5 Reasons You’re a Grumpy Mom (And What You Can Do About Them!)

Sarah has a comprehensive post on Organizing Essentials – A Guide to Organizing Everything You Own.

Read about how to Create a Christ-Centered Home at Creative Home Keeper.

Elizabeth has 21 Cute and Easy Easter Treats for Kids.

It’s almost strawberry season here, and these Strawberry Shortcake Trifle Cups look like a great way to use some of those strawberries!

I didn’t finish as many books as I thought I would in March. Part of the reason is that I’m re-reading Heaven by Randy Alcorn and it is loooong.

I did read two books, both fiction, and the first one is also a re-read.

Stepping Heavenward by Elizabeth Prentiss is a book that I enjoy more each time I read it. I always see some new truth that didn’t stand out to me before. I’ve read this book multiple times, and it’s an all-time favorite of mine for sure!

I also enjoyed The Book of Hours by Davis Bunn. It was a very entertaining read.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend!

Make Time for Advent in Your Home This Christmas

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It’s finally happened!  After thoroughly enjoying our Thanksgiving break, the Christmas spirit has started filtering in around our house.  (Well, our girls already had it; I was the one who was lagging behind!)

As we cruise through this last week of November, I have a question for you.

What do you want most out of the Christmas season this year?  Yes, I know we all mean to slow down and really celebrate the meaning of Christmas.  I hear lots of talk about keeping things simple, spending time with family and friends, and soaking in the sights and sounds of the holiday.

Yet in spite of all our good intentions (mine included!), it’s so easy to get caught up in all that Christmas brings.  From the concerts to the parties, cookie swaps to gift buying, we can breeze right through the season without ever making time to mark the real reason for Christmas with our families.

No matter what time of year it is, I always appreciate opportunities to put Deuteronomy 6:6, 7 into practice.

“And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:  And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.”

Today I get to share a resource that can help us do just that!

I was given the opportunity to review Unwrapping the Names of Jesus:  An Advent Devotional by Asheritah Ciuciu.  Just seeing the pretty packaging got me into a Christmas frame of mind!  Moody Publishers thoughtfully included several Christmas cards.  Each is designed with a name of Jesus on the front, and a related verse and message on the inside.

Check out this Advent Devotional

Besides the beautiful cover, I like the layout of this book.

The content is broken down into four one-week sections.  Each section focuses on one of the four weeks of Advent – Hope, Preparation, Joy, and Love.  On Sunday, you could light a candle, if you wish, and read aloud with your family the devotional provided for the first day of the week.  It includes a theme verse, a Scripture passage to read, three discussion questions, and a Christmas carol to sing together.

Following that are five brief devotionals, to be done Monday through Friday.  Each one has a reading, a challenge, a prayer, and verses for further study.  At the end of each week is a list of activities and service-oriented projects.  You and/or your family could choose one or more of these to do.  They provide ways to put that week’s theme into action.

I’ll be honest – December is a hard month for us to have time together as a family.  Both girls play basketball at their school.  That means games twice a week, and some late practices other nights.  They’ve got a piano recital and a band/choir concert scheduled.  In a perfect world, we’d sit down to supper together most nights, but that’s just not happening often these days.

However, now that I have this book in my hands, I feel like making Advent part of our Christmas this year is doable.  It will only take a few minutes to go through each day’s reading.  I’m determined that we’ll find a way to make it happen!

Check out this Advent Devotional

If you’d like to check out the inside of the book, go here to read an excerpt.  Moody Publishers is graciously offering a 40% discount on the book to my blog readers if you buy the book through this link, and use the promo code ADVENT40.  (You must use the link provided in order for the discount to apply.)  It’s available in hardcover or an ebook version.

[Note: As I was putting together this post, the book was on backorder through the Moody Publishers website.  I’m hoping that will have changed by the time this post is published, but I wanted to let you know that it’s also available on Amazon.  Though the discount code won’t apply on Amazon, the book is still very reasonably priced.]

I also wanted to say that you could totally do this study on your own!  In fact, I’m considering doing it by myself each morning before going through it with my family in the evening.  I love the idea of focusing on Jesus in December, and anticipating the day that we celebrate His birth.

If you already celebrate Advent in some way, I’d love to hear about it!  I’m excited about getting into this book, and can definitely see this becoming a family tradition.

Moody Publishers provided me with a complimentary copy of this book.  All of the opinions expressed in this post are my own and I was not compensated for this review in any other way.

7 Books I Read in July

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Making it a goal to read four fiction books last month helped me get more books read in July!

 
This first non-fiction book is from my 2016 reading list.

Planet Middle School by Dr. Kevin Leman.  This book had some helpful advice for parents of middle schoolers (though I feel that Dr. Leman is occasionally crude in some of his language and stories.)  I would recommend Sue Acuna’s Middle School:  The Inside Story if you were looking for an excellent book on parenting this particular age group.

I read two other non-fiction books in July.

Unstuffed by Ruth Soukup.  I really wanted to read this book after thoroughly enjoying Living Well Spending Less.  In Unstuffed, Ruth did a great job of dealing not just with decluttering in every area of your life, but in learning what to value and how to choose the possessions and pursuits that matter the most to you.

Be Satisfied by Warren W. Wiersbe.  I read a chapter of Ecclesiastes each day for a couple of weeks and used this as a companion book.  It really helped bring out some of the truths Solomon shared.

Here are the four fiction books I read last month.

Sweet Olive by Judy Christie.  This is the first book in the Trumpet and Vine series and is a small town story about interesting characters with just a little bit of mystery.  I enjoyed it so much that I moved on to the second book in the series!

Magnolia Market by Judy Christie.  This book was as good as the first one, and I’m hoping there will be a 3rd!

Miriam by Mesu Andrews.  Read my complete review of this book here.

The Witnesses by Robert Whitlow.  My husband and I have enjoyed several books by Whitlow, and I really liked this one as well.  The story switches back and forth between current day and Nazi Germany.

Have you read a good book lately?

Book Review: Miriam by Mesu Andrews

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I’ve been hearing Old Testament Bible stories since I was a toddler.  I know well the story of how God used Moses to deliver the children of Israel from Pharaoh.  I also know about Miriam – how she watched over her baby brother’s basket in the Nile River, how she led the women in praising God after crossing the Red Sea, and how she joined Aaron in criticizing Moses over his choice of a wife.

 
Mesu Andrews writes a captivating story of what might Miriam’s life might have looked like during the days of the plagues and the Israelites’ subsequent flight from Egypt.  I appreciated the research that went into this book and how the author wove other recognizable characters – such as Eleazar and Hur – into the storyline.

While the developing of the details in Miriam’s life are fictional, reading this book helped me consider those parts of the lives of Bible characters that are not revealed to us.  God chose to tell us a segment of their stories, but many of the things that happened in their lives – the daily struggles, their hopes and dreams, their understanding of how they fit into God’s plan – are not given to us.  Yet we know that they were people just like us, with strengths and weaknesses, times of faith and periods of doubt. 

I believe the overarching lesson of this book is learning to trust God – something I certainly need to be reminded of every day!  I look forward to reading more of Mesu Andrews’ books in the future.

Blogging for Books provided me with a complimentary copy of this book.  All of the opinions expressed in this post are my own and I was not compensated for this review in any other way.

5 Books I Read in June

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My reading list is unusual this month in that I read more fiction books than non-fiction.  That almost never happens!

The first book is on my 2016 reading list; the other four were not.  All three of the fiction books were read just before or during our vacation week.

 
1.  Fervent:  A Woman’s Battle Plan for Serious, Specific, and Strategic Prayer by Priscilla Shirer.  This book on prayer reminds us of who our real enemy is and the importance of using prayer to defeat him.  Each chapter deals with a specific prayer topic, and includes verses to use in developing your own prayer for each situation.

2.  I’m Happy for You (Sort Of….Not Really) by Kay Wills Wyma.  This was a re-read; I just felt like I needed to be reminded of the truths that Kay shared in this book.  You can read my extensive review of this book here.

3.  The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin.  I actually got this young adult book to preview for my teenager, but ended up reading the whole thing myself before I passed it on to her.  It’s a Newberry Award winner, and quite a clever little mystery.

4.  The Patmos Deception by Davis Bunn.  Reading a story set on the island of Patmos was interesting and thought-provoking.  I’ve always related that location to the apostle John and his writing of Revelation, but it was neat to realize that it’s a place where people actually live today.  This book seemed a little slow at points for me….but maybe that’s because I ended up comparing it to my next read.

5.  Gold of Kings by Davis Bunn.  This was an entertaining read, with lots of adventure and mystery.  I really enjoyed this one!

What have you been reading lately?

3 Books I Read in May

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Except for February, I think this is my year of underachieving when it comes to reading!

I finished three books in May; the first was on my 2016 reading list, but the other two were not.

 
1.  Age of Opportunity:  A Biblical Guide to Parenting Teens by Paul David Tripp.  The author encourages parents to use the teen years to prepare their children for the life ahead of them rather than to see it as a season just to be survived.  He deals a lot with promoting their spiritual growth and maturity, which begins by living a Godly example before them.

2.  What a Girl Needs from Her Mom by Cheri Fuller.  I thought this book covered the mother/daughter relationship very well!  It talks about all the different ways we can develop our relationship with our daughters.  The author has good insight into issues we will face with them.  Much of her focus is on keeping the lines of communication open.  I had gotten this book at the library, but I bought a copy for myself so that I can read it again from time to time.

3.  Living Beyond Your Capacity by Paul Chappell.  This was a helpful read about viewing the Holy Spirit as a person and acknowledging all the roles He plays in our spiritual walk as well as appreciating the work that He does in our lives.

What have you been reading lately?