Favorite Children's Books 2013

Some friends asked me to put together a list of interesting books we've found this year.  I added in a few movies, games, and old favorites as well. Here's what we've been enjoying through the summer, fall, and winter.

The books that transcend all categories below are the YWAM Missionary Biographies.  I highly recommend purchasing the entire series for your family or Church – despite the cost.  It is the best investment we ever made – no exaggeration.  They put all of today’s troubles and challenges into perspective – great reading for moms as well.  You can find the set here.

ALL the Journeyforth (JF) books, available through BJU Press, are excellent and my girls have loved them.  The Arby Jenkins series is particularly appealing to boys, as well as many other titles.  These are a wonderful investment for families, Churches, and homeschooling groups.  Start here for great Christian themed fiction. Most have happy endings – all have Christian worldview.  You can order a catalog here:

http://www.bjupress.com/books/journeyforth/

Some stories below have different religious sensibilities, superstitions, and political ideas due to their cultural context.  The mature themes symbol (**) is due to violence such as the mass graves in A Million Shades of Gray. (Vietnam)

I am not listing the obvious favorites such as The Bronze Bow, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer,  Oliver Twist, Redwall, Chronicles of Narnia, etc.  I’m assuming most parents are familiar with these.  I also have not listed all the JF  books below, but heartily recommend ALL of them.  The Middle School and 9-12’s can be exchanged depending on the maturity/reading level of the child.

*high boy interest

**mature themes

Read Alouds

The Year of Miss Agnes

Caddie Woodlawn

Breaking Stalin’s Nose*

Anne of Green Gables (girls)

The Little Princess (girls)

Heidi

Tchaikovsky Discovers America

Vivaldi’s Four Seasons

Young Readers

A Question of Yams (JF)*

Escape (JF)*

Pelts and Promises (JF)*

Little Pilgrims Progress

Prairie Anna

Carolina’s Courage

The Courage of Sarah Noble

Cora Frear

Squanto, Friend of Pilgrims*

Amy Carmichael (JF)

The Culdesac Kids

The Year of the Panda*

Betsy and Tacey

Nix

Perch, Mrs. Sackets, and Crow’s Nest

A Cricket in Times Square

The Family Under the Bridge

9-12 (many are worthwhile for middle school level as well)

Yang the Youngest * (Chinese immigrants – boys and dads – hilarious!)

Yang the Third Youngest (girl version of above)

Chu Ju’s House (China one child policy)

The Breadwinner* (Afghanistan)

Esperanza Rising (we listened to the audio book together –Mexican immigrants)

Goodbye, Vietnam (South Vietnamese immigrants)

Arby Jenkins series (JF)*  (humorous stories with Christian theme)

Sherlock Jones series (JF)* (kid who solves mysteries)

Peabody series (JF)

Trailblazer series (mostly ebooks now – coincide with lives of missionaries)

Homeless Bird (Indian widow abandoned at 12 years old)

George Mueller (JF)

Red Thread Sisters (Chinese Adoption)

Silent Rescue (JF) (Eric Liddell on a China rescue, WWII)

The Sign of the Beaver

My Sister is a Pop Star (light reading trilogy for girls – but clean)

Ben Carson (Today’s Heroes)

A Father’s Promise (JF) (WWII)

Best of Friends (JF)(learning about Down’s Syndrome)

Middle School

An Angel on the Square (Russian Revolution)
The Impossible Journey (sequel to above)

Mary, Bloody Mary

Beware, Princess Elizabeth

Listening for Lions (British African orphan)

Wings of Gold (JF) (Naval Aviator struggles with living out faith)

Daughter of a Thousand Pieces of Gold (China orphan)

 A Million Shades of Gray**(Vietnam minorities)

Red Scarf Girl (Cultural Revolution)

The House of Sixty Fathers* (WWII Japanese Invasion of China)

Mara, Daughter of the Nile** (Egypt)

A Single Shard* (Korean orphan learns honor)

Diamonds in the Shadow* (African immigrants, thriller)

A Coming Evil (WWII, French Revolution, Ghosts)

Careful Enough (JF) (Chinese missionaries)

The Silent (JF) (school shooting with Christian perspective)

High School

Bruchko (19 year old missionary to South American Indians)

Safely Home (moving story of Christian persecution, Asia)

Peace Child (very violent – missionaries to cannibals)

Tortured for Christ (the Cold War - FREE from VOM)

God’s Smuggler (Behind the Iron Curtain)

Mutiny on the Bounty trilogy**

Uncle Tom’s Cabin

Fahrenheit 454

Tale of Two Cities

In the Land of the Blue Burqa (Afghanistan – great mom’s read, too!)

The Unlikely Disciple: A Sinner's Semester at America's Holiest University  (a liberal Brown student goes undercover to Liberty University – worthwhile read and he has the last interview with Falwell before his death)

Movies

Nestfamily videos – Bible and Historical

Voice of the Martyrs videos – Eric Liddell is our favorite

Anne of Green Gables

The Inn of the Sixth Happiness (Gladys Aylward)

Ben Hur

Mao’s Last Dancer** couple obviously lives together/breaks up, but still good for younger if skipped.

Gifted Hands

The Little Princess (BBC)

The Captain of Castille

Zorro

Pirate movies with Tyrone Powers: Black Swan, Captain Blood

Drums Along the Mowhawk

Gone With the Wind

Robin Hood

A Candle in the Dark (William Carey)

Pearl Harbor Commentary (youtube)

The Secrets of Jonathon Sperry (Christian evangelism)

The Tale of Two Cities **(high school)

Favorite Educational Game

Bananagrams – LOVE this!!!  Big families (more than 6 players) need the double set.

 Blessings, 

Kim

Happy Chinese New Year! (and an answer)

I had so much fun today that I forgot to take pictures! It was wonderful to fellowship with fellow adoptive moms - we've been too closed in this winter and haven't made time for fellowship.   It was great to see Annie's girls and how much they've changed since they've been home.  Lucy is a terror on her new wheels, and they both look so happy!

I love Angie R's boys - they're so funny and always smiling.  I had to take a pic of Angie - can't believe how much weight she's lost.  She looks awesome!

Eva made the cutest "Great Wall of China cake."

The girls all had a great time playing with the little ones and we had a beautiful spring day in the midst of winter. :)

Praising God for such a wonderful group of friends - all with the same heart for adoption.  When we returned home, we got the news that the child we had been praying about was put on hold.  God opens and shuts doors - praising HIM that she'll have a mom and dad and be an orphan no more.

Blessings,

Kim

Faith vs. Finances

A few months ago, I saw an aging out girl on the waiting list.  Nothing new, but this particular child stayed on my mind.  A few weeks later, her file disappeared and I happily hoped she'd found her family.  I was almost relieved - because THIS child tugged at my heart - and we're still recovering financially from our dual adoption a few years ago.

With six children - two in college, and four still to go, it doesn't make financial sense to adopt again.  Hubby works hard and he is nearing retirement.  Our home will need huge renovations soon - all our appliances, roof, even our downstairs air conditioner is nearing 20 years old.  They can't live forever and they are certainly beating the odds!  One upstairs bathroom shower overflowed into my dining room this week, necessitating big repairs, and Katie (along with Jenny) gets braces put on this month. We're tightening our belts to make ends meet.

Where do financial considerations end and does faith begin?  

Because THIS week,  THIS child showed up on the list again...And for lots of reasons, she looks like she belongs here.  And for no reason at all, she stays on my mind more than all the others who are waiting.

I wish these kiddos weren't on the other side of the world, and I wish the bureaucrats, whose meddling has doubled the cost of adoption over the last ten years, would stay out of the adoption business.  But wishing never accomplishes anything, and so this problem will be devoted to prayer.  Please join me in praying for a loving family for this precious child, and pray that our will would align with Christ's in caring for the most vulnerable among us.

Blessings,

Kim

Happy New Year!

We've had a Lego friends, bow and arrow, family filled Christmas.  Followed up by birthdays with Grandparents and cousins.

Fun with big brothers

And enormous amounts of food and Duck Dynasty.  Our New Year's resolutions are to exercise more and eat less.

Starting tomorrow. :)

Blessings, 

Kim

Homeschool Hebrew

I have four happy girls now that I've finally relented and let them learn Hebrew.  We have now firmly entered into the wacky camp of what makes no sense in homeschooling.  As most of you know, I'm a traditional homeschooler, checking all the boxes and making sure all the i's are dotted and t's are crossed.  It it's useful and practical, we study it.  While I love the Hebrew language and studied it many years ago, it hardly makes the most sense for girls with a Mandarin background living in a country that increasingly speaks Spanish.  But they have BEGGED me for quite some time, and Jenny finally made the plea that she wanted to read the Bible in Hebrew. (OT)  How could I say "no" to that?! :)

So I got out my dusty old books and flashcards and brushed up a bit on my own abilities.  Unfortunately, the pace of adult books doesn't quite fit for young children, so we're awaiting our children's books for reading and writing.  In the meantime, they're doing a pretty good job on print letters:

and have even learned a few words.  The "Hu is he," "He is she," and "Me is who," doesn't really seem to stump them, but it will be fun to see my English learners find out that "Dog is fish."  :)  Print is painful in Hebrew, and I can't wait to move on to cursive script which will be much easier for them.  Sarah writes her name in Hebrew on all her papers now and is quite proud of herself.   We'll see how long their interest lasts...

Blessings,

Kim

Thankfulness and Need

I love that Thanksgiving precedes Christmas as we take time to realize our blessings in a purposeful way.  Every year we make a "Thankful Tree," that we fill with leaves of written blessings.  It's hard to compare our Salvation to "sparkly clothes," but they're right there on the tree together.  Jesus is the author of all our blessings - a job, and education, a family - and even sparkly clothes. :)

Maybe it's all the cooking in the cool fall weather, but my girls seem to grow out of everything they own about this time.  So we've been shopping the sales for warm winter dresses, jackets, and shoes.  Thankfully, a good friend with good taste gives us bags of clothes every year, so we only have to buy what's missing. :) Grandma loves to come along as she knows our girls will always agree to join her for fast food.  (unlike Grandpa)

Our local shopping area is decorated with lights and is fun to walk around at night.  Big brothers join us  for pizza in between exams.  It's so fun to have the entire family together and hubby likes the male companionship. :)

We persuaded a policeman to take our picture together as someone is always missing from our pictures.

With all these blessings, it's easy to get lost in every day life and forget about so many who are missing the greatest gift of all - a family.   Much is made about medical and education opportunities, activities and material things for our children, but what all children really need is to know that they are loved and not forgotten.  That their hopes and dreams matter to someone.  That someone cares when they are challenged with homework, make the wrong choices, or get hurt on the playground.  That their shoes are too small.  That they are needed and wanted.

That without them, the crucial job of gravy making won't get done. :)

With the increase in older children on the waiting lists, the harsh reality of how many children age out each month hits home.  Our heart breaks for each and every one that we hear about - and there are many more whose names we never know.  But broken hearts aren't enough, and the magnitude of the problem calls for great prayer.  Prayer that God will raise up more willing hearts, that more resources will be available to those who are called to help, and that cultural conditions will improve so that families can stay together and continue to parent their children - both here and abroad.  That we would readjust our considerations of what is truly important and lean more on the provision of God rather than ourselves.  That we would have the heart of Christ and see as He sees.

Blessings,

Kim

Fall Odds and Ends

Trying to homeschool four children on many different levels (due to English learning issues, etc.) has been a challenge.  The days slip by so that Saturday is here before we know it, and sometimes it feels like drinking out of a fire hose.  When everyone learns easily - the days are easy.  But when everyone struggles with a math concept - on the same day - it can be challenging and frustrating.  So I haven't had much time to blog as any downtime is spent on fun activities, cooking and cleaning, or just peaceful reading.  My morning time in the scriptures has become essential as it is a living Word - full of power - and the source for all my direction and energy.  So what have we been up to?

Ice Skating outside in SC was interesting:  the skates don't "cut" the Pam or whatever slick stuff is sprayed on the plastic surface of the ice rink - so I counted myself blessed that we only had one bruised tailbone when we left.  Disney Princesses was fun only because Sarah and Jenny were in awe of their first "show" - as they likely will be when we attend our first ballets in the coming weeks.

We spent quite a bit of time at the beach in the afternoons this fall.  When school is in and the tourists depart, we have it almost all to ourselves.  It's peaceful and restful - once you're packed and on your way - and a great way to end a busy school day.

We've had plenty of fun homeschool projects which requires constant shopping lists and running to the store for components to make things like earthquake proof structures above and edible cells below.

The writers of our curriculum clearly favor sweets - and we create our own additions such as gummy worms to the edible pudding and cookie soil below.

Katie had a birthday and Jenny showed how creative she's become by "exercising her imagination" - something we learned from Ben Carson's biographical movie, Gifted Hands.  It took me a moment, but if you look at the gift she made, you'll see it's George Washington (on a dollar bill) sailing the Delaware in his (origami) boat.  This is the same child who had zero imagination when she came home.

So she WAS paying attention in US History.... :)

The highlight of our fall was when Sarah decided to make Jesus the Lord of her life.  For those who know this little powerhouse of a girl,  this is not an easy thing.  She is confident, strong, capable, and bright - and not often in need of a Savior from anything.  But God clearly grabbed her attention and drew her to Him - and she asked to pray with me in tears one day.  I thank God for our Bible lessons (from BJU Press) that help me to disciple my children in a consistent way.

There have been some frustrations along the way this year - trying to address everyone's immediate academic needs on a daily basis - and I am trusting that God will give me the strength and wisdom I need to meet them.  But seeing my children grow in their knowledge of Christ and His Word is a blessing that can't be measured.  Providing them with stories of beauty and sacrifice in the lives of such as Eric Liddel, Mary Slessor, C.T. Studd, David Livingstone and more is worth the momentary struggles with long division or percentages.

Our prayer is that we will learn to live a life that abandons self and looks to the needs of others - near and far.  Not an easy thing to accomplish in our very materialistic, "busy," and self centered culture.  God is faithful to work in our lives and change us into His image when we seek him - we are counting on that.

Blessings,

Kim

And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.  Philippians 1:6