"Don't be afraid grandma. Just think of dogs and us instead."

One thing we always do with the children we love from the time they are born is comfort them, encourage them, show love and kindness to them. As they grow up we are able to see how they took this comfort, encouragement, love, and kindness they received and incorporate it into the way they respond to others. Today I want to share with you one of the times I was able to see and experience this with my grands.

Christmas Book Review - Give Confident Faith & Family Fun with Blue Dragons, Red Pandas, Hoopoes & More!

 

I know, we have not yet celebrated Thanksgiving, but have you started thinking about Christmas gifts for the children you love? If so, or even if you have not really made any decisions yet, how would you would like to give a gift which combines science projects, art projects, cooking activities, and games with fun facts, colorful photos about animals - many of which you have never heard of before, and quotes from scientists - this is a gift which will engage the entire family in fun and learning together AND, most importantly, hand down a confident faith! Take a look at the Life on the Goldilocks Planet series of books.

crafting with grandma - Jesus Loves Me I Spy Bottles

Christmas will be here before we know it, so if you are looking for a special craft/gift idea you could use to involve your grandchildren in making to celebrate   how special and loved they are to you and to Jesus, consider making Jesus Loves Me I Spy Bottles! I found a link on  Pinterest for making I Spy Bottles, and thought you could make them unique and special for Christmas by doing the following things -

"I Do NOT Like That Song!!!"

I know, it isn't even  Thanksgiving yet, but Christmas really is just next month, so I am thinking about it. This "thinking about it" has me delighting in the memory of a certain song and the fantastic response of my grands to it! 

Today is National Family Literacy Day

Today is National Family Literacy Day - a day well worth celebrating for sure! NationalToday (dot) com says, "Families across the country come together to celebrate National Family Literacy Day on November 1. Reading has many benefits and even more so when it comes to children. Families have so much to gain from reading together. Besides helping young children develop good vocabulary skills, it provides valuable family bonding time. National Family Literacy Day also serves as a platform to appreciate the empowerment effort of literacy programs." Let's look at some literacy facts - did you know . . .

What Do Your Grands Call You?

What do your grandchildren call you? Are you, Grandma, Nana, Memaw, or something entirely unique? A friend told me his grandchildren called their grandma, "G-Money" - they didn't know why, and a reader once told me when her grandchildren were little they called her, "Dave" - again, no one knew why! When my grands were little they called me, “Ga” - I loved being “Ga”! Now they call me, "Grandma" or "Grandmother" and I love both of them, too!

Christmas Book Review - When Digz the Dog Met Zurl the Squirrel

I have one more book from Penguin Random House to share with you - When Digz the Dog Met Zurl the Squirrel by Chris Pine and illustrated by Chuck Groenink. If you and/or a child you love has a dog, especially one who might be annoyed by squirrels in your yard, then this is the book for them!

Today is National Knock Knock Jokes Day

Do the children you love have a great sense of humor and love jokes - knock knock jokes in particular? If so, then today is a day to celebrate with them as it is National Knock Knock Jokes Day! The earliest variation of the knock-knock joke can be traced back to the 1900s. According to Merely McEvoy, the joke began around 1900, and it started with the question, “Do you know Arthur?” to which one would naturally ask, “Arthur who?”. The person telling the joke would then reply, “Arthurmometer!” I don't particularly "get" this knock knock joke, but let's learn a little about knock knock jokes and then I'll share a few which you are free to share with the children you love . . . 

Christmas Book Review - Frostfire

If you are looking for an unique story book with beautiful illustrations to give to a child you love this Christmas, consider the book, Frostfire by Elly Mackay from Penguin Random House - it is both unique and beautiful!

October 31st - An Opportunity to Share the Love of Jesus! Don't Waste It!

This post is a repeat - I share it each year in case you did not see it, or want to find it again this year.

Yesterday I wrote about the "Halloween Dilemma" and how we need to be wise. I wrote about how it gives us the opportunity to have a conversation with our grandchildren about who Jesus is and why the focus on evil and gore at Halloween is not something we want to be part of the things we do this time of year. But, having said this, I do believe Halloween does offer us an unique opportunity to share the love of Jesus with our neighbors and all the children who knock on our doors October 31st.

Christmas Book Review - An Anishinaabe Christmas

I am so happy to share with you another book from Penguin Random House which is sure to be a book the children you love will want you to read to them again and again! An Anishinaabe Christmas by Wab Kinew and illustrated by Erin Hill has a wonderful story about family, tradition, heritage, and Christmas!

Today is National Oatmeal Day

Today is National Oatmeal Day - and since oatmeal is the world's most versatile and familiar foods, it is well worth celebrating! Let's look at some interesting facts about oatmeal - did you know . . .

The Halloween Dilemma . . .

When it comes to Halloween, I have always felt a bit of a dilemma. As a child it was harmless. I dressed up as princess, a Japanese girl in a kimono, etc . . . simple  costumes with no focus on gore or evil. My siblings and I trick-or-treated to the neighbors' homes on our street and always felt like we really "scored" with our buckets of candy! After all, it was really all about the candy!!!

Christmas Book Review - Busy Betty & the Perfect Christmas Present

Don't you love it when the children you love are old enough to realize they want to give gifts to the people they love? And, when they decide to make something special the gift is ever so much more wonderful! In the book Busy Betty & the Perfect Christmas Present, author Reese Witherspoon and illustrator Xindi Yan combine to make a delightful book for the children you love!