Book Review - a new flavor

Hi all!

I'm coming at you today with a very different sort of book review. Normally, I'm a fiction hound. I mean, if there's a story to disappear into, why would I stay in reality? OK, maybe that's a little extreme, but you understand.

Today I'm writing to tell you about an amazing book about to hit the shelves. Memory Making Mom by Jessica Smartt. (Yes, that's how she spells it, not a typo). Before you tune out because you don't have little kids, hear me out. This stuff matters even if you don't have kids. It matters for adult kids. It matters for grand kids. Yes, this author writes as a mother of young children, but she talks about making memories because memories hold the power to bind us together as families, friends, and neighbors. 

The prose is easy to read and the author is super vulnerable, describing her failures right along with her victories. And she's funny too. (You have to read about the Christmas tree, PVC pipe, and fishline. She does not make the reader feel like her life should be pinterest-y, but she does give us small things we can do to make a large impact on the people we love.

I hope you'll check this book out and scoot over to Amazon for preorder (here). Yes, it's not quite available (Mar 5! Less than 2 weeks!), but the pre-order is genius. It actually arrives at your door the day of release or sometimes a day early. :-)

This book is the PERFECT gift for any young mother you know . . . especially with Mother's Day coming up quicker than you think! It's an amazing gift for a grandmother of young kids. It's also a great book for anyone wanting to make memories with the ones they love, chock full of ideas, and backed up with the reasons why going the extra mile is worthwhile. For more info and pre-order bonuses, check out the website here.

So there you go. It's not fiction. But this book addresses the story you are living. What's your favorite family memory from the last year? Mine? Grilling pizzas on the back porch in the cold, with a fire going to keep us warm, with all my kids home, laughing our heads off together. 

Jennifer Fromke writes from North Carolina, where she pines for colder temperatures all year long. Northerners by upbringing, she and her husband of 26 years have raised three Southern-ish children despite their best efforts. Jennifer reviews books at www.Shetalksbooks.com and she offers a free story download on her website: https://www.jenniferfromke.com/contact/.

Harvesting Fruit from the Family Tree

No-no-no ... not the crazy kind of fruit! (Although my family tree has plenty of that.) The helpful kind. The kind that leads you to use an ancestor in your story. 

Pictured here are Ellen and John Lewis, my great-great-grandparents. The photo was taken in 1908 on their 40th wedding anniversary and is still in our family 110 years later.

John was a Civil War vet who mustered into the Union forces as part of the Michigan 7th Cavalry (Yup! Custer's bunch.) on March 2, 1865. He was 18 years old. 

The Michigan 7th Cavalry was engaged a few times after John mustered in, including:
Five Fork, VA, March 30 - April 1, 1865
Duck Pond Mills, VA, April 4, 1865
Sailor's Creek, VA, April 6, 1865
Appomattox Court House, VA, April 8-9, 1865
Even though we don't have any direct evidence that he was or wasn't involved in any of these engagements.

However, he was transferred west at the close of the Civil War to serve during the Plains Indian Wars. He survived, returned to Michigan, and sired the crop of ancestors that leads down to me.

My current work in progress involves a Civil War vet who I've decided knew my great-great-grandfather. How fun is that?!

Pegg Thomas lives on a hobby farm in Northern Michigan with Michael, her husband of *mumble* years. A life-long history geek, she writes “History with a Touch of Humor.” When not working or writing, Pegg can be found in her barn, her garden, her kitchen, or sitting at her spinning wheel creating yarn to turn into her signature wool shawls.

Follow her on Facebook or visit her at PeggThomas.com.

One Isn't Enough -- Guest Post by Jamin Baldwin

ONE ISN'T ENOUGH

Of many things in life one is enough.

One love to last a lifetime.

One confidante with which to bare one's soul and confide one's secret fears.

One God to save our tortured souls from darkness.

But on the other hand . . .

One chubby, baby hand in mine.

One kiss goodnight while wrapped in my Mother arms.

One sunset that is followed by a dawn . . .

Of these things, one is never enough.

   

I stumbled across this scripture:

Philippians 1:3

   I thank my God upon every remembrance of you.

While reading these words I was immediately flooded with an ocean of wonderful memories:

 

Memories of my grandmothers, both gone from this life 11 months apart.

Accompanied by all the smells, tastes and sounds my brain archived away with them.

My emotions overwhelmed, I thought . . .

One sleep over was never enough. One game of Skip-bo. One Christmas decorating the tree in purple or drinking a cup of Red rose tea with homemade pancakes . . . not enough . . .

This got me to thinking of memories and the making thereof. And I wondered to myself am I making good memories? Someday, will someone think back and thank God for the moments that they shared with me?

Today, this is my goal, and every day that I live. You don't have to be extravagant to make a worthwhile memory. To change someone's life forever all you need is a kind word. A gentle touch. A smile. A joke or a listening ear.

Let it be said of me someday with all who knew me . . .

One just wasn't enough.

ABOUT JAMIN

Jamin Baldwin is a new, up-and-coming author whose writing interests span everything from historical romances to poetry and devotions. Along with home schooling her own children, she is also a volunteer in the children’s ministry at her church. The simplicity of country life is an insurmountable influence on all her writing endeavors. Connect with her at: https://www.facebook.com/jaycee.montana

He is Risen...

He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Matthew 28:6

Jesus Has Risen

28 After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.

2 There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.

5 The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.”

8 So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9 Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. 10 Then Jesus said to them,“Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”

Enjoy this Easter with your family and friends...

The Close Knit Family

By Andrea Boeshaar

This is what the Guernsey Wrap is SUPPOSED to look like...
I won't show you what mine looks like!

I'm a novice when it comes to knitting and crocheting. I did, however, manage to knit and crochet scarves for my grandchildren, my daughter-in-law, and a son's girlfriend for gifts last Christmas. But when it came to creating a Guernsey Wrap from a pattern last February, I struggled -- and it's just knitting and purling! But it's enough to get me turned inside out. So I put that project aside for now and decided to make my newly-born granddaughter, Ashelee, a blanket. It's a single crochet stitch -- and crochet goes much faster than knitting, at least for me.

And just as some handmade projects pose challenges, family dynamics can be taxing too. I adore my grandchildren. But....well, you know the old adage: A son is a son till he takes a wife but a daughter's a daughter the rest of her life. I gave birth to three sons and raised them to be independent, hard-working men not mama's boys. A pity in a sense bcause I don't see my "guys" as often as I'd like to -- which means I don't get to see my grandbabies enough either! The fact caused me a lot of pain. But as I knitted the scarves for the grandkids last year, and now as I crochet baby Ashlee's blanket, I realize that my family is just a stitch away. 

The beginning of Ashlee's blanket.

With each single crochet stitch, I think about Ashlee being snug and warm under the multicolored blanket I'm making her. I think about which songs I'll sing to her as I rock her to sleep. Maybe "I Can Sing A Rainbow" -- my mom used to sing that song to my sons when they were little.

 I think about last year's scarves keeping little pink cheeks from frostbite. With each stitch I pray my precious grandchildren will all come to know the Lord Jesus and will live to glorify Him.

Through knitting and crocheting, I've discovered a way to stitch my family and loved ones close to my heart. Then they're never too far away.