Here are some good books that I have read lately. I don't have time to give all of the details for the reasons that I love them but I wanted to pass on the titles and some thoughts...
Can you see that I have a baby coming in a few days? I am trying to get all of the blogging in that I have missed all summer. :)
And one of the main reasons that I wanted to share more books is because the last time I was in Tennessee to visit my parents my mom had the book Elizabeth Prentiss, by Sharon James. It shocked me to see it in the kitchen. So I asked her where she got it and how she heard about it. Her response was that my aunt Mary Sue had heard about it on my blog and bought for them to read as sisters... I love it! :)
1. Faithful Women and Their Extraordinary God by Noel Piper. A must read. Very easy and quick. All chapters are about different women so this is easy to put down and not be lost when you pick it up again. Our women's group study will go thru this beginning at the end of this month.
2. The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom. I know that most of you have probably already read this but I had not. I bought it while on vacation and could not put it down. I was so struck when the Ten Boom family was taken to a concentration camp and her father was told that he could be released if he would change his ways. And his response was you can let me go but I will do it again. (Referring to housing Jews during the Holocaust.) They were not Jews themselves but Dutch Reformed.
3. Free Grace and Dying Love by Susannah Spurgeon. A small book of devotionals that are excellent. So encouraging and thoughtful. The end of the book has a biography of Mrs Spurgeon. She led an amazing life. She was very sick at times yet she set up book funds for poor pastors and ministered to her husband and twin sons thoughtfully. This is a very fast and enjoyable read.
Thursday, September 06, 2007
Wednesday, September 05, 2007
I Failed!
I am expecting my third child on Monday by scheduled c-section. I am a little anxious about the process of knowing when this child will arrive. But I am thankful that I do know the time and the place!
As we have prepared for the arrival of the next West child, we have completed many projects around the house. You see, we went on vacation at the beginning of August and while we were away we began to discuss how we could make our home look better and be more beautiful. We knew that when we arrived home we would have 30 days to complete these jobs. Here is a small list of the goals: paint our kitchen cabinets, take down a chain link fence, replace fence with a picket fence, re-do flower beds, make new flower bed, order new twin beds for David and Sally, switch rooms with them, and POTTY TRAIN SALLY.
Many of you know that we used the book Toilet Training in a Day, to potty train David. He was a champ. I read the book and told him what it said and he did it!!! It was great. He was trained in a day, had a few accidents that week and we have never looked back! Wonderful experience. He was 22 months old at the time.
Well, Sally was 19 months old and we decided it was time to try, right? She is old enough and girls train faster, right??? and we have another child on the way, so we don't need 2 in diapers, right???
NO! I re-read the book and did all of the little things needed to teach her and encourage her to potty train. And she looked at me like I was speaking another language! She just turned her head to the side and did what I said for the most part... and then she had an accident. So I repeated the process to her and she tried and then she had an accident. This is how it went all day long! She could have cared less! She had accident after accident. When it was time for her nap, I put her down and I sat on the couch and CRIED!
It was awful. I tried to think of things to blame it on, like Ryan called 2 times while I was trying to teach her, she is teething, she... she...
Well, really all I could chalk it up to was that she was too young. It just wasn't time. And she did not have to accomplish this for me to be a successful mom.
It was a complete day of pouting for me. I had the worst attitude. It was terrible! I felt like such a complete failure. Many of our friends call us for advice on how to potty train, how to get your child on a schedule, how to discipline and the list goes on. Most of the advice we pass on is from faithful older parents that we trust who use Godly wisdom and instruction to train their children. BUT now I have to tell others that I FAILED!
I must say that this has been a true lesson in seeing the pride of my own heart. I am so humbled by the fact that I tried something with my child and it was an utter failure and that it is okay. She is normal and loving and whinny and all girl but she is just not potty trained. And that is okay. I had to repent and pray that I would have a humble heart when it comes to children. I know that I don't have all of the answers. I am supposed to look to older women and seek their advice, be faithful with what Christ has given me and realize that I will fail.
As we have prepared for the arrival of the next West child, we have completed many projects around the house. You see, we went on vacation at the beginning of August and while we were away we began to discuss how we could make our home look better and be more beautiful. We knew that when we arrived home we would have 30 days to complete these jobs. Here is a small list of the goals: paint our kitchen cabinets, take down a chain link fence, replace fence with a picket fence, re-do flower beds, make new flower bed, order new twin beds for David and Sally, switch rooms with them, and POTTY TRAIN SALLY.
Many of you know that we used the book Toilet Training in a Day, to potty train David. He was a champ. I read the book and told him what it said and he did it!!! It was great. He was trained in a day, had a few accidents that week and we have never looked back! Wonderful experience. He was 22 months old at the time.
Well, Sally was 19 months old and we decided it was time to try, right? She is old enough and girls train faster, right??? and we have another child on the way, so we don't need 2 in diapers, right???
NO! I re-read the book and did all of the little things needed to teach her and encourage her to potty train. And she looked at me like I was speaking another language! She just turned her head to the side and did what I said for the most part... and then she had an accident. So I repeated the process to her and she tried and then she had an accident. This is how it went all day long! She could have cared less! She had accident after accident. When it was time for her nap, I put her down and I sat on the couch and CRIED!
It was awful. I tried to think of things to blame it on, like Ryan called 2 times while I was trying to teach her, she is teething, she... she...
Well, really all I could chalk it up to was that she was too young. It just wasn't time. And she did not have to accomplish this for me to be a successful mom.
It was a complete day of pouting for me. I had the worst attitude. It was terrible! I felt like such a complete failure. Many of our friends call us for advice on how to potty train, how to get your child on a schedule, how to discipline and the list goes on. Most of the advice we pass on is from faithful older parents that we trust who use Godly wisdom and instruction to train their children. BUT now I have to tell others that I FAILED!
I must say that this has been a true lesson in seeing the pride of my own heart. I am so humbled by the fact that I tried something with my child and it was an utter failure and that it is okay. She is normal and loving and whinny and all girl but she is just not potty trained. And that is okay. I had to repent and pray that I would have a humble heart when it comes to children. I know that I don't have all of the answers. I am supposed to look to older women and seek their advice, be faithful with what Christ has given me and realize that I will fail.
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