The Ultimate Prescription

from the back of the book..."Many of the diseases sending us to doctors' offices, surgical suites, and early graves are preventable-and we don't need to be overmedicated to cure them."  This intriguing claim is made by Chattanooga cardiologist Dr. James L. Marcum, author of The Ultimate Prescription.

In this book, Dr. Marcum directly coorelates the cure for many of our (non-acute) illnesses to a health plan based upon the days of creation.  He also details common and prevailing myths and lies that we are bombarded with through both the media and other sources.  While Dr. Marcum definitively supports the use of modern medicine to combat illness, he also strongly proposes a definitive shift toward God's "original Health Plan" in our lifestyles. Among the eighteen chapters, are chapters relating each day of creation and how the particulars of that day's work impacts our health. The last chapters bring it all together in "The Ultimate Prescription" and "The Ultimate Healing."  Also included in this work are appendices dealing with symptoms, diagnostic testing, and treatment.

Dr. Marcum is a practicing cardiologist at the Chattanooga Heart Institute.  I found this book both throrough and very readible.  He presents his thoughts with clarity and in layman's terms.

I recieved a complimentary copy of this book for review by Tyndale Media Center.  The opinions are my own.

The Book of Man

I recently finished reading The Book of Man by William J. Bennett, also author of the literary compilation, The Book of Virtues. 

from the back of the book "Using profiles, stories, letters, poems, essays, historical vignettes, and myths to bring his subject to life, The Book fo Man defines what a man should be, how he should live, and to what he should aspire in several key areas of life:  war, work, leisure, and more....."

This literary masterpiece is divides the writings under the headings:  Man in War, Man at Work, Man in Play, Sports, and Leisure, Man in the Polis, Man with Woman and Children, and Man in Prayer and Reflection.  The pieces in each section range broadly in both period written and style.  The selections span both fiction and non-fiction material.  All, however, are united by messages of noblilty, honor, respect, courage and humility.  There is an overarching sense of elegance throughout these writings.  Bennet did a masterful job in compiling this work.  And while the themes are directed toward men, I, as a woman, found much to be edified by also.

I was given a complimentary copy of this book for review by Thomas Nelson Publishers.  The opinions are my own.

Our Sunday To-Do List

1.  Sunday School and Church this morning (lovely service)

2.  Run by Target to get the (nearly) last of our Christmas presents

3.  Eat Lunch

4.  Celebrate the first Sunday of Advent
(with candles, scripture and songs)

5.  Have a Family Sing Off (Christmas songs)

6.  Put up the Christmas Tree

7.  Finish addressing Christmas cards 

8.  Play a Game

9.  Watch The Next Iron Chef on Food Network
10.  Have Bedtime Ritual by the lighted Christmas Tree

My Seven Wonders of the World

My Seven Wonders of the World are:
 - experiencing love, deep and abiding
 - experiencing soul cleansing forgiveness
 - experiencing grace, unmerited
 - experiencing unspeakable joy
 - experiencing peace that passes understanding
 - experiencing miracles, with eyes wide-open
 - experiencing hope found only in Christ

Happy Thanksgiving to you and your loved ones!

The Wonder of WonderMaps!

Oh. My. We have been blessed to try out an awesome new resource called WonderMaps from Bright Idea Press!  With this program, you can print over 350 maps, ranging from world, regional, historic and state focus, each customized with the details of your choice.  It is so much fun to use and very user friendly.  The possibilities of use with this program are endless.  Not only do the producers provide an list of several creative and exciting potential cross-curriculum uses, but the system also coordinates with both

The Mystery of History and All American History curriculums. 

This year we are using Veritas Press' Old Testament and Ancient Egypt Series and I can see many opportunities to utilize WonderMaps to augment our study.  Also, we are currently reading Little House on the Prairie as part of our night time ritual.  I printed each child a map of the "Heartland" of the United States.  I had them color the states that the Ingall's family have traveled through.  They had so much fun with this and it helps bring into focus the reality of the distance and struggles of the Ingall's journey. 

So, so many fun and creative possibilities!  You can learn much more about this incredible educational resource by checking out the following sites:

http://www.timberdoodle.com/WonderMaps_CDp088-950.html

http://www.brightideaspress.com/

http://www.timberdoodle.com/Homeschool_Geography_s/30.html

http://www.becausemomsaid.com/2011/09/wondermaps-reviews

   

Request a free educational resource catalogue at http://www.timberdoodle.com/Articles.asp?ID=139.

As a member of Timberdoodle's Blogger Review Team I received a free copy of WonderMaps in exchange for a frank and unbiased review.

The Blessing ~ a book review

I recently finished a book that I have long wanted to read - The Blessing by John Trent and Gary Smalley. 

from the front cover - "Giving the Gift of Unconditional Love and Acceptance"

from the back cover - "Children of every age long for the gift of "the blessing" - the unconditional love and approval that come from a healthy relationship with their parents.  This lift-changing gift, essential for instilling a deep sense of self-worth and unshakable emotional well-being, contains five essential elements......"

This updated edition of the book, originally published in 1986,  thoroughly outlines implementing the "five essential elements."  It details the application of each element and offers real-life examples of both individuals who experienced that element and those who suffered the lack of it.  Utilizing personal anecdotes and scripture, Trent and Smalley present their strategies both with clarity and compassion.  In addition, the authors pepper the chapters with noted links to further resources online at their website http://www.theblessing.com/ The reader is left confident that they too, can offer "the Blessing" to each of their own children and to the other significant people in their life. 

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book.  As mentioned earlier, I have long wanted to read it and count it an honor to have it as a parenting/life resource.  It is thorough, but very readable.

I received a complementary copy of this book for review from http://www.booksneeze.com/

The opinions are my own.

in praise

1921. bedtime ritual again

1922. the comfort of rituals

1923. always grace

1924. reading aloud Little House on the Prairie

1925. Stevia in the Raw (I like my coffee even better now, Jennifer!)

1926. rearranging furniture

1927. my office space

1928. our school room

1929. the freshness of repurposed spaces

1930. kids journaling in their night-time journals

1931. looking at their journal entries with them

1932. today's early morning walk

1933. being drenched with sweat

1934. the blessing of a cool shower

1935. new lotion

1936. in our 3rd week of school

1937. antibiotics for strept throat

1938. the sound of my kitchen fountain

1939. the tapping of my computer keys

1940. shutting my eyes

1941. getting a letter in the mail
1942. a dad's homeschool prayer group for my husband to be a part of