Note to self:

Living with roommates in a house makes you do things you would have never thought to do on your own. For example: have a gilmore girls marathon...still ok with not doing that. Have a crazy green surprise party for an awesome girl's birthday...yup that one was fun! Breakfast club :)...getting turtles also very happy, but that thing you did last night...ya the trying fake nails for the first time...ya that was DUMB! Don't ever do that again. They made your hands hurt and were almost impossible to get off (unless I would have wanted them to stay on...then I'm sure they would have popped right off).

Max On Life

I recently just finished reading Max on Life. I love anything written by Max Lucado, so this book seemed like a no brainer. This book was inspired by all the questions the author receives in his office every day. One thing I liked was that the questions were not rephrased or sugar coated. Neither were the answers. Lucado didn't seem scared to lose readers with his answers. He was more concerned with being biblically correct than politically correct. He shares tender, compassionate answers to people who are genuinely searching and hurting. He shared not just proverbial, hypothetic answers but pieces of his own life. That coupled with the amazing applicable verses form truly inspiring advice and guidance.

This book was formatted very well. It's broken into categories including hope, hurt, help, heaven and hell, and relationship advice. Each page relates a different question and answer. One of my favorite quotes from this book is, "They may be out of God's will but not out of his reach." When I read that I actually stopped, got out a pen, and underlined it. It was a huge encouragement to me. This book is full of quotes that remind us that God is in control

I received this book for free as part of the booksneeze program with Thomas Nelson Publishing. I was not required to give a positive review.

Wonderful features :)

This is my first Bible review. I'm kind of a Bible collecter. I have big ones, little ones, leather, hardcover, paperback, ESV, KJV, NKJV. Actually, this is my first NKJV. I sometimes look it up online to compare and study, but now, I simply have to go to my bookshelf. It's not my favorite translation, but I like having it around for comparison and study. This Bible is very nice. At first, I was a little skeptical that it was paperback, and though it did arrive a little bent (i blame the post office) it is well made and will stand the test of time. It also has the Nelson publishing lifetime Bible guarantee. Which guarantees quality for life. The is also very strong, which is usually a problem for bibles and me. NOW, on to the real things that make this bible different. It's the Take Action Bible. The "subtitle" is "Together we can change the world," and it goes on to say that the Bible recounts many stories of God taking ordinary people and calling them to act. Whether it be going, giving, teaching, or simply using your talents to serve God, this Bible challenges you to do exactly what God has called you to do. Its stories, recounting modern day servants of God, show that action was not just a thing of "bible times." Each story is followed up by a simple devotional that makes you think about how you could do something similar in your own life. If you don't know where to start, they have even included 52 ideas for service. Imagine God's people doing one thing a week to show his love, compassion, mercy, and justice to a lost world! I highly recommend this bible, and I will recommend it to the youth I work with who really want to do something with their lives for God :)

I recieved a free copy as part of the booksneeze program with Thomas Nelson Publishing. I was not required to post a positive review.

Are you sure it's only been a week?

This has been one of the longest weeks of my life. Not sure why exactly. It hasn't been particularly hard or easy. I DID get to sub EVERYDAY this past week which is VERY exciting. Every day that Im in a classroom, I get a reaffirmation that this is EXACTLY what i want to do for the rest of my life. I began the week teaching fifth grade. It was fun. It's an age group I really enjoy. We had an assembly which was one of the most interesting of my life. It was a motivational speaker...and...well...I'll just leave his website here for you guys and let you decide what you think (http://www.thescaryguy.com/). It was definitely an experience...but it feels like it was a year ago. On Tuesday, I got to sub for my cooperating teacher! SOOO I had my third graders! I miss them so much. I let them have a quick Q & A time since I haven't seen them in forever. One little girl asked, "Where do you work?"...fail... lol. They are just ASTOUNDED that teachers get PAID to hang out with them all day. Then came Wednesday....thats the day I was a middle school and high school music teacher. That was interesting. If you don't know, Im NOT musical. Not at all...not in the slightest way. And the teacher prepared for that, which meant I literally did nothing all day. It was one of the days i hated with i was in school. There was a sub so our teacher just gave us busy work and sent us on our way, but I'm sure they didn't feel that way at all...I did learn that even if i was musical I would never want to be a music teacher. The class sizes are HUGE. Thursday, I had one of the best behaved second grade classes I have ever seen. It was a day where I actually felt like I was just hanging out and having fun, and yet maintained complete control of the class. I would have said that they were the best class I have ever subbed for, but then came Friday. I have never in my life...in all my hours of observation, field work, student teaching and subbing...seen a class that worked so well with a substitute. There was not one instant of frustration. Then today, I got to come to beloit for a wonderful morning at the ladies tea :) overall a great week....hmmmm...apparently this post doesn't want paragraph breaks...

My Review of The Final Summit

After reading The Final Summit by Andy Andrews, it seemed to me that this book was confused as to whether it was a novel or a nonfiction, Christian, inspirational volume. I did find the history fascinating, with characters like Abraham Lincoln, Anne Frank, Joan of Arc, and a little known story about a man named Eric Erickson, but in the end I felt that the book really missed the mark. While reading, my brain was screaming "Glorify God" or "Seek God" to the question that had been posed by the archangel Gabriel, but I was sorely disappointed when the author presented his answer. I was also disappointed with phrases like "the Boss" to describe God. While all of the statements the author made were true, I found a brilliant opportunity had been wasted.

The book's good points were obvious, extensive research on the part of the author, wonderful word choice, and some great moral lessons. The author hit some themes that struck me anew and made me think. I just feel that Andy Andrews failed to hit this one home.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.

Another Book Review!

Combine Spanish and reading...and you have combined two of my favorite things and made me very happy. Because my readers primarily do not speak Spanish, I will write my review of this book in English. I know you all are very happy with that decision. I just completed Verde by Ted Dekker. Of course, the English version is called Green. This is the fourth book in his Circle series. The author still refers to the series as a trilogy, calling Green, "Book 0," but that's not really something I can do. Now, on to the book, because I read it in Spanish, it took a considerable amount of time, but, while I'm not saying it was an "easy" read by any means, the author writes in a way that I could use context clues and understand what was going on without pulling out a Spanish dictionary. The storyline kept me gripped enough that I wanted to keep reading even when I found it difficult.

The first three books stand in my mind as three of my favorite all time books. This book, though good, does not yet join them in that ranking. I may have to read in English to pick up on all the little nuances written into this book. I would also need to review Saint, Showdown, and Sinner, as they have a HUGE role in this book. I usually find if fascinating that Dekker can tie all of his books together, but I found it kind of annoying in this book. Overall, the book was a very fun read, and the translation was very helpful to keeping my Spanish skills sharpened.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher...

Love?

This week, my world turned upside down. God asked me who I loved more. Him or a friend. I know that sounds...juvenile, but it came to the point where God asked if I would really say goodbye to Him or them first. He probably asked me this question months ago, but i pushed it away. I assured myself that loving this person was what God would want. I kept telling myself that love is "reaching out and holding on so someone else will know that love is in the not letting go." I kept telling myself that I needed to be a picture of Christ's love to them. And i still believe all of that, except...i needed to love God more than anything else in my life, and i wasn't doing that. My heart was completely and solely focused on something that wasn't God. And my loving, perfect, holy God is jealous. I never understood that before. I never understood how God could be perfect and loving and be jealous. Then i read somewhere that my God is jealous for the ultimate best for us. That best is Him. Does that make Him wrong to want us to be wholly and completely consumed with Him? No. So...as hard as it was, and as much as I've cried already. I said goodbye to a friend i dearly loved...maybe someday, God will give them back...when my heart is wholly and completely His.

Adventure in Home Ec

That's right! Yesterday I got to teach home ec....o well, now its called "Life Tech." The first two hours was with my 7th graders. That was really fun. They were designing their dream bedrooms. They had some crazy ideas...like one girl wanted to put a lap pool in her room and have her bed on a raised platform. I told her she should consider making the platform her bed is on pretty big, so she doesn't fall off in her sleep and drown. Then, the next few hours were with 8th grade, who pretty much think they rule the world....moving on. The last two hours were with sixth grade. We had to cook. I wondered how cooking with about 40 sixth graders was going to go. And the answer was...def overwhelming...They have to check in for every part of the recipe. Needless to say I really respect any teacher who can get a group of 20-25 sixth graders to cook, eat, and clean in less that 45 min.