Book reviews

Except for one brief year when I had a class composed only of boys, I have found my life to hold a fairly even mix of the traditional gender identities. It would make sense that the world would hold an equally even mix of stories and traditions featuring male and...

One of the best pieces of advice I received as a new parent was, when a child was out of sorts, take them outside or pop them in water. Both environments have proven their magical effects time and again as I parent my crew, and I often think of that advice at...

My kids are currently listening to Queen’s Greatest Hits album on repeat. They’re big fans of “You’re My Best Friend”, and we’ve had a bunch of conversations as we drive to field days and swimming and piano about what makes someone a best friend. What character traits...

I’ve been working in children’s and family ministries for over two decades and have been parenting for an almost equal number of years. So many children’s Bibles have come across my desk in those years, and sadly, very few are worth using. The Peace Table, from Shine...

Full disclosure: I practice yoga. It is a respite for me, despite the fact that I often have a toddler hanging off my back as I move from down dog to a lunge into warrior one. I appreciate how there is flux in my practice, never moving through the series of poses the...

Everyday, around 1 pm, you’ll find me cuddled up on my bed with my toddler, reading some books and getting him down for a nap. Everyday, at multiple points in the day, you’ll find me negotiating some sort of sibling squabble that centers around why someone should be...

There are floor to ceiling bookshelves in every room of my home and they are all filled with books that we love. We read a LOT and we quote a LOT and we dramatize scenes from our favorite fiction a LOT. In the mid-aughts of 2000, my three oldest children made their...

Perhaps you, too, have your cell phone in use more than you would like? Perhaps you, too, continue to work on finding ways to leave it behind, only to find that you need to keep it close because you know one of your children or your aging parents will be calling and...

I spend a LOT of time with children; reading with them, tying shoes, hiking, cleaning up with them, and answering their questions. I work really hard at being present to answer their questions and talk about what matters to them, but there are times where I’m...

Twenty years ago, I served as the director of Christian Education in a congregation in the town where I lived. Whenever the kids would see me out at the grocery store, the library, or playground, they would get all flustered because they thought I actually lived at...