Summer Reading List: Update
At the beginning of the summer, I posted my very hopeful and ambitious reading list, and by the Lord's grace, I've made it through quite a few of them!
Books I've Read:
The Hiding Place, by Corrie ten Boom. I've already reviewed that book on this blog, but if you missed it, this book is a Must Read. Must. Read.
The Great Physician's Rx for Women's Health, by Jordan and Nicki Rubin. Also an excellent read, and influential in my life in the sense that it's what I'm basing my current eating plan on. Some things I disagree with: such as the author's censure of all pork products and shellfish (citing the Old Testament where God declared them unclean....but he forgot to read the rest of his Bible, where God later admits them into acceptable foods.) The shellfish I have to avoid anyway, since I happen to be allergic to it. Most of the book makes great sense, and I'm trying to follow its advice for the most part.
For Women Only, by Shaunti Feldhahn. Very eye-opening book. If you ladies ever wanted to dig into the mind of a man, this book does so. Based mostly on surveys and interviews that the author conducted, this book enlightened me as to what really goes on in the mind of my husband. I read several of the chapters aloud to Josh, and he acknowledged that this book got it right! So, if you're curious, pick it up and give it a read. I guarantee you'll learn something you didn't know before.
On Becoming Childwise, by Gary Ezzo. This was very similar to Shepherding a Child's Heart, but I found it to be much much more practical in the application and day-to-day scenarios. A couple of the chapters described my parenting boo-boos exactly, and I do believe I blushed reading it. You gain a whole new perspective when you see in detail what you've been doing wrong from an objective vantage point. I still have a couple chapters left of this book, and I look forward to finishing it. It's helping me stop my bad parenting habits and see a better way.
Still to Read:
God Is More Than Enough, by Jim Berg. I've read the first chapter of this and can already see that I. Need. This. Book. I think God whispered into the heart of Dr. Berg all my secret and glaringly obvious shortcomings and then he wrote this book about me! It's like when you sit in church on a Sunday and think the pastor must have known what you were struggling with when he prepared the message. There's a lot of anger in my heart right now, I'm noticing. Seething anger when my schedule gets disrupted, impatience with Noah over things like not taking a long enough nap (!), blowing up at my family over the littlest things.... Also I have fear in my heart; discontent, and other things I like to tell myself aren't sinful. Boy I'm transparent on here, aren't I? Anyway, I can't wait to read this one! But at the same time, this is not a book I want to rush. This is one to bite off in little segments and let the Lord work on me. I would already recommend this book!
I have a couple more books I would like to read, and may add them to my list! I'm thankful for the time I've been able to find to devote to reading this summer!
Books I've Read:
The Hiding Place, by Corrie ten Boom. I've already reviewed that book on this blog, but if you missed it, this book is a Must Read. Must. Read.
The Great Physician's Rx for Women's Health, by Jordan and Nicki Rubin. Also an excellent read, and influential in my life in the sense that it's what I'm basing my current eating plan on. Some things I disagree with: such as the author's censure of all pork products and shellfish (citing the Old Testament where God declared them unclean....but he forgot to read the rest of his Bible, where God later admits them into acceptable foods.) The shellfish I have to avoid anyway, since I happen to be allergic to it. Most of the book makes great sense, and I'm trying to follow its advice for the most part.
For Women Only, by Shaunti Feldhahn. Very eye-opening book. If you ladies ever wanted to dig into the mind of a man, this book does so. Based mostly on surveys and interviews that the author conducted, this book enlightened me as to what really goes on in the mind of my husband. I read several of the chapters aloud to Josh, and he acknowledged that this book got it right! So, if you're curious, pick it up and give it a read. I guarantee you'll learn something you didn't know before.
On Becoming Childwise, by Gary Ezzo. This was very similar to Shepherding a Child's Heart, but I found it to be much much more practical in the application and day-to-day scenarios. A couple of the chapters described my parenting boo-boos exactly, and I do believe I blushed reading it. You gain a whole new perspective when you see in detail what you've been doing wrong from an objective vantage point. I still have a couple chapters left of this book, and I look forward to finishing it. It's helping me stop my bad parenting habits and see a better way.
Still to Read:
God Is More Than Enough, by Jim Berg. I've read the first chapter of this and can already see that I. Need. This. Book. I think God whispered into the heart of Dr. Berg all my secret and glaringly obvious shortcomings and then he wrote this book about me! It's like when you sit in church on a Sunday and think the pastor must have known what you were struggling with when he prepared the message. There's a lot of anger in my heart right now, I'm noticing. Seething anger when my schedule gets disrupted, impatience with Noah over things like not taking a long enough nap (!), blowing up at my family over the littlest things.... Also I have fear in my heart; discontent, and other things I like to tell myself aren't sinful. Boy I'm transparent on here, aren't I? Anyway, I can't wait to read this one! But at the same time, this is not a book I want to rush. This is one to bite off in little segments and let the Lord work on me. I would already recommend this book!
I have a couple more books I would like to read, and may add them to my list! I'm thankful for the time I've been able to find to devote to reading this summer!
Comments
I have often thought that being a mom is a refining process - I realize areas I need to work on that I didn't realize were problems prior to becoming a mom. It's a magnifiying glass of sorts. I have always thought I was a pretty patient person in terms of dealing with other people - even when I was a teacher. I find myself getting angry more easily as a mom. Like you - over really silly stuff at times (like the length of a nap). Obviously I had this problem before, but I am now aware of it. YOu are not alone! I think to some degree that same thing happens when you get married. When you're single, certain character flaws might not be visible that become apparent when you get married.