Building Up Our Libraries: James Herriot

Here come another one of my series on Building Up Our Libraries. Meet James Herriot! One of my favorite Authors. Beautiful stories about country life in the Yorkshire Dales of England; which I was fortunate enough to visit once. These stories are about farm and animal life in the sweetest of ways. The artwork is stunningly beautiful and I think your children will find these stories absolutely delightful!

Building up our Libraries:Meet Tasha Tudor

I'd like to start a blog series called: Building up our Library. This topic is very important to me. Yes, it is an investment, but you are investing in your children in an extremely important area of life. Library books are nice, in fact they help us figure out which books are worth purchasing and which are just plain rejects. But whether you find them at the Thrift Store, a special book store or used on Amazon; I can't stress enough the importance of building a quality book library for your children. Make it a lovely place they can go to again and again. We have a rocking chair nearby to enhance the experience!

 Today I would like to introduce you to one of my favorite author's of all time: Meet Tasha Tudor. Her books are not just sweet stories, but works of art and an encouragement for a simpler way of life. We could all use simple. My daughters adore her books, as did I when I was little. I have quite a collection going, not complete, but with each Christmas and birthday, I like to add to that.

(from A is for Annabelle)

(from "Amy's Goose")

(from "the 23rd Psalm")


(from "Five Senses")

(My favorite Tasha Tudor book "A time to Keep".)





(from "A Corgiville Fair")

(our latest to the collection: Pumpkin Moonshine)

(from "The Springs of Joy")

And I just happen to have an autographed copy that my sweet Aunt bought for me for my first birthday. It is still treasured!

My identity

Recently I was tagged on Facebook in this photo taken about 12-13 years ago. Hello young, skinny, carefree girl! Memories came flooding back and it left me with that "what the heck, where did the time go?" feeling. Satan loves to use these times to make us wonder "what have I become? Who am I? How come I don't feel young, skinny and carefree anymore? What is my identity anyway?"

We can quickly spiral downwards while on memory hill. "Those were the days...."

 There is no golden age, no perfect time, no "if only time could have stopped there." 

We have the time that God gives us and we are to make the most of it. If we get stuck in the past, not only are we un-thankful and not content with His current gifts to us, but we forget all the hardships that we were undergoing at the time which we have chosen to forget. We are also blinded to the fact that God has refined our character in vast ways during this time.

What is my identity?

Quite simply, my identity is in Christ. That is who I am, that is who Christ has made me.

 "But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness; which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith.." (Philippians 3:7-9)

My identity is not in the piles of laundry I constantly wash, not in the dishes that never stop, not in the amount of diapers I change in one day, my identity is not in the meeting I forgot about, the morning I slept in and my poor boy missed his early classes, it's not the state of my children's bathroom, the birthday card I forgot to send, the extra weight I carry on my body or the stretch marks from the six children I've had. It's not in the get-away my husband and I have never gone on, the dream-house,dream-job we might pine for. It's not in the fabulous meal I cooked for dinner, the fact that we home-school, that I am a stay at home Mom. My identity doesn't exist in an organized home, how often or not often I workout or diet, the state of my wardrobe, or my bank account.

It is simply...In Christ. How freeing, how magnificent, how glorious! Everything else is RUBBISH. Do you know what rubbish is?? Go look in your kitchen trash can. That is rubbish. It isn't attractive, it is beguiling, it isn't "if only". It's junk, poo, trash, ick!, blech! It is DEAD," it is FINISHED."

"I have been crucified with Christ, it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me, and the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." (Galatians 2:20)

My favorite board books for littles

Here are just some of my favorite board books for little people:

Charley Harper: 123's, ABC's, Colors

Jennifer Adams/Alison Oliver: Alice in Wonderland, Jane Eyre

Jack and Holman Wang: Cozy Classics Pride and Prejudice

Kate McMullan and David McPhail: If you were my Bunny (I sing this one, finish the book and start all over again, Soeren's favorite!)

Eric Carle: The Greedy Python, Have you seen my cat?

(this is Jane Eyre, I think she looks fabulous!)

In Charley Harper's Colors book, this page gets me every time!

This is Isabella's latest birthday present. Pride and Prejudice in the cutest form possible. I love this book!

A wonderful Caterpillar,who, questions Alice...

Charley Harper's brilliant chickadees and Owls. His artwork is some of the finest and I would love to have framed prints of his artwork in my house someday.

What are some of your favorite board books??

PB&B&C Cookies

Made these recently...Peanut Butter Bacon Chocolate Chip Cookies. Start with your favorite Peanut Butter Cookie recipe. Add chopped bacon. Add chocolate chips. So good!

We are enjoying Ballet camp this week. So stinkin' cute!

Other things keeping us busy..

We are potty training..

we are homeschooling and especially working on math skills...

I am getting back into sewing (which was sorely missed!)...

We are missing daddy more than ever...

We are surviving. 

(and yes, cookies are helping with all of that!)

long time comin!

I realize it's been an obscenely long time since I've posted anything, and maybe no one looks at my posts and maybe I do this more for a journal to myself that for anything else. But I don't want to drop it all together and I apologize for my tardiness. Lets see what happened..oh...

I moved...
to Moscow, ID. And we all love it here.. It's gorgeous!!

and we love the people here.

We've had a tricky go of it for summer work, so Jacob is back down in Phoenix helping out his boss for the summer and I am the single mom to six children. We have been busy, which is good and it keeps our minds off missing the coolest man in the world, but I think I wore them out totally and completely and everyone has had a melt down and gone to bed early. I can't complain though, my thankful list is nice and long.

Thankful for Farmers Markets, bluegrass bands and hot, fresh donuts..

My children got to take part in Music camp, which blessed them and especially me immensely!

Thankful for flowers that seem to pop up everywhere here..

for strong coffee...

for free movies in the park...

pizza and movie nights..

chalk drawings my children drew..

watching my children dance in a ball...

seeing my son get up on stage in a trio and sing his heart out..

I think next week, I shall slow down and try to grab some sense of normalcy. Gennevieve has ballet camp, but the rest of the kiddos will get back to Math, a clean house, a Mama that bakes, and sews, and earlier bed times. (crossing my fingers on that last one!)

Well, I had a start..

I couldn't find my favorite mix, so I made it myself and it saved me many a moola! Just mix: dried lavender flowers, marjoram, savory, basil, sage leaves, thyme, oregano. Equal parts I believe. Put it on chicken, put it on baked bread, put it in butter, put it on everything. I'm in love!

Finally Fall in Phoenix

For some reason our tree in our back yard thinks that Fall comes in January. Phoenix is full of surprises like that. We are making the most of it, loving the gorgeous colors, and raking, raking, raking!!!

Mama moments

Mama moments in my day: be they chaotic, funny, challenging or beautiful.