Created 'Just Right' - Look What Lives in Asia!

 

Yesterday I wrote about one of the "Created 'Just Right'" books (Look What Lives in the Americas & Europe!) Today I'm happy to let you know about one more book in the series - Look What Lives in Asia!   This is a picture book filled with full-color photos - two of each animal, and some interesting, fun facts about each one as well.

Fun with Grandsons - Making S'more Pops!

Today I am remembering ten years ago when I was blessed to spend a couple days with two, too-sweet-for-words grandsons (although I never am truly at a loss for words when it comes to telling how sweet they are :-)!) We had so much fun! One of the things we did was make s'more pops (you'll find how to make these at this link).

Dr. Seuss Quotes - Just for the Fun of It!

The month of March is Dr. Seuss Month, so, I thought I'd share a few quotes to get us ready for my Month of Dr Seuss Quotes!

Created 'Just Right'! Look What Lives in the Americas & Europe!

 

As I shared over the past couple weeks, during covid my grandsons and I wrote 12 books about animals, so last year I took the animals from these books and put together a series for young children (although everyone loves picture books about animals, so all ages will enjoy them!) Today I am happy to let you know about the book - "Look What Lives in the Americas & Europe". This is a picture book filled with full-color photos - two of each animal, and some interesting, fun facts about each one as well.

grandma's cookbook - Today is National Banana Bread Day!

My family enjoys banana bread . . . for good reason; banana  bread tends to be moist, soft, and flavorful . . . in short, it is a tasty treat for sure! So, when I discovered it is "National Banana Bread Day", I had to share this bit of news with you! Days of the Year (dot) com says, "Banana bread first started to become popular back in the 1930′s, during the Great Depression. Cultural historians suggest resourceful and creative housewives of the era created the recipe as a way of not wasting over-ripe bananas. In fact, the riper the bananas, the better the taste of the banana bread, so it ended up being a very clever creation! It is traditionally known as a 'quick bread', but is actually more like a cake in both texture and flavor."

Yes! VBS Does Make Solid Dollars & Cents for Your Ministry!

Please share this post with the Children's Ministry Leaders in your church . . .

There was a time, not too long ago, when nearly all churches budgeted for VBS. Most considered it (and rightly so) a part of their evangelism budget as VBS was one of their biggest evangelism outreaches of the year. In many churches it was their biggest outreach of the year. Then in the years leading up to COVID more and more churches stopped using VBS - far, far too many stopped any ministry opportunities to children in the Summertime. Then COVID hit and pretty much all churches stopped offering VBS - and everything in person for two years. Last year some churches were starting to plan for VBS again, and this year even more churches are taking a serious look at VBS. I am very happy to see this as VBS is a fantastic way to reach into your community - it is one of the best and most effective ways you are able to make use of the money you budget for evangelism. Why is this? Consider the following . . . 

Created "Just Right!" Look What Lives in Australia & New Zealand!

 

If you are looking for a series of books for the younger children in your life (ages three through seven), then check out the "Created Just Right" books!  During COVID my grandsons and I put together the twelve books in the Life on the Goldilocks Planet series which help us see how animals show us God is real because He made everything "just right". In these books (which I have shared with you before), you find full-color photos, fun facts, along with crafts, science projects, and recipes for the entire family to enjoy as they learn about the animals and discover how they help them have a confident faith. These books (The Life on the Goldilocks Planet series) are ideal for children ages four through fourteen - and the entire family.

Today is National California Day

Today is National California Day - my husband is from California, we met on an active volcano in California - yes, there is an active volcano in California . . . Mount Lassen - and we lived there a few years when our children were young, so I personally find the silly laws and interesting information about California to be, well, interesting! Whether you live in, or have lived in California or not, I hope you find this post interesting, too. Let's start with the silly laws, did you know . . . 

VBS 2024 - SCUBA from Group Publishing

Yesterday I wrote about how it is the time of year where I post my VBS reviews on my other blog - today I posted my review of SCUBA from Group - it is, in my opinion, the best VBS of 2024. Please share this post with the Children's Ministry leaders in your church.

Hand Down a Confident Faith with Grasshopper Mice, Laughing Kookaburras, Jawfish & More!

When my grandsons and I began the Life on the Goldilocks Planet books, I thought maybe we would write two books. But, we continued to find interesting animals and wrote more books. As we neared the end of the series, I was afraid by the time we reached book 12, we would run out of the really interesting animals. However; I was so pleasantly surprised to be able to fill book 12 with not only interesting animals, but surprising animals as well! Just look at the animals you will find in  Grasshopper Mice, Laughing Kookaburras, Jawfish & More!  -  Grasshopper Mice, Glasswing Butterflies, Bee Hummingbirds, Servals, Laughing Kookaburras, Spectacled Bears, Cuban Painted Snails, Hooded Seals, Marbled Polecats, Keas, Jawfish, and Green Basilisk Lizards!

crafting with grandma - Purple Minions

Several years ago when my grandsons were younger I crocheted purple minions for them - the previous year I crocheted Perry the Platypus' for each of them. I thought I'd show you a photo and give you a link to the pattern in case you want to make one . . . maybe for a birthday, Easter, or even Children's Day - which is a real holiday and is the second Sunday in June; you have plenty of time to make them by then if you want to!

grandma's cookbook . . . Strawberries & Cream Pie!

February is the Great American Pie Month, so if you are looking for a tasty pie to try this month, consider making a strawberries & cream pie - this is a family favorite so I'm sharing the recipe for the pie with you today!

It is Time for VBS 2024

It is the time of year where I share my VBS reviews. I used to write my reviews for this blog and for  Christianity Today's Your Church Magazine  - I'd typically review about 16 kits each year. Now, especially after COVID, there are not 16 publishers still producing VBS, but there are some. I no longer review them all - I choose the VBS kits which I believe are the best based on my years of reviewing curriculum and then share my reviews with you. This year I am reviewing VBS from Group Publishing. You will find my full post at this link - please share it with the Children's Ministry leaders in your church.

Learn About Creatures You May Never Have Heard of Before with Aardvarks, Coelacanths, Colugos & More!

Have you heard of the Coelacanths? They are considered to be a "living fossil" because they were thought to be extinct for millions of years, but then people started finding them - a few at a time - in the Indian Ocean. Coelacanths are enormous - for a fish as they are about six feet long. One of the most unexpected things about them - other than the fact they still live in our oceans today, is the moms are pregnant for five years! Yes, FIVE years!