S Club Mama

Today we remember those who have served so bravely in our armed forces to protect our freedom throughout the years. My dad served in the Navy, my sister currently serves in the Air Force. Another of those soldiers was Chris Kyle, a Navy SEAL, who served four tours of duty in Iraq before coming home and finding his way back to his family. I'm sure you have heard of him. Kyle is portrayed by Bradley Cooper in "American Sniper." My husband and I had the opportunity to watch this movie together in our home. I don't want to give a lot away in the plot, but this was a really powerful movie for me. Seeing circumstances portrayed from Iraq in the years after 9/11 were more than I expected. Kyle's service and how that service to our country (and ultimately us as US citizens) affected him mentally was heartbreaking. Imagining how his wife and children handled his service was really impacting to me as a mother. image via Grace Hill Media We really enjoyed watching th

Reviewing " Food52 Genius Recipes " by Kristen Miglore was really intriguing to me. I'm a new cook. I have taught myself everything I know about cooking in the last 5 years, I'd say. I'm not great but I've learned to bake bread and make pies and I throw together one heck of a pan of ham sammies. So the subtitle of this cookbook was really exciting for me: "100 recipes that will change the way you cook." I don't have one certain "way" so if these can make me a better cook, why not try?  image via Food52 website It took me awhile to work in a recipe from this cookbook due to time obligations and ingredients on hand. I don't have wine vinegar, muscovado sugar, steel-cut oats, hulled raw pumpkin or sunflower seeds, red quinoa (or any other kind), pistachios, scallions, a waffle maker (really need to get one, though), nuts of any variety other than peanuts, tahini (have tried to find it in a few stores with no luck), fava beans, fl

The Berenstain Bears have provided my generation and my kids' generation with some of the best social stories available. They have helped us with teaching our children respect, contentedness (the Gimmes), the dentist, and doctor, among other things. I have really enjoyed the newer Living Lights stories, helping to teach faith to our children. I was excited for an Independence Day story, " The Berenstain Bears' God Bless Our Country " by Mike Berenstain, for my children. We don't have many for the 4th of July (if any?) so I thought this would be great. I liked how they told about the Revolutionary War and why it was fought. I loved the "Li-bear-ty Bell," just cute and cleaver. image via BookLook However, I did not like that the book quoted the Old Testament when talking about America. It called this country a land flowing with milk and honey. While this is the Land of Opportunity, that Scripture specifically is referring to the Promised Land/Israe

I love pop culture. I grew up in the Saved by the Bell, N'Sync vs. BSB, Rugrats, Daria, MTV era. In my family, we watched tv all the time; I hardly remember it being turned off. Now, not saying that's right or wrong, but it's definitely influenced my life. I've had many influences between childhood and college and adulthood, but pop culture really does intertwine still with my life. I love movies and watching tv, although I'm finding it harder to find things that I deem appropriate for me. image via BookLook The Bible and God have changed my life drastically, but I still enjoy pop culture. I enjoy watching the tv show Bones, Marvel and DC comic movies, reading to my kiddos about Star Wars. Of course, "The Bible in Pop Culture" by Kevin Harvey caught my attention. I've read books and articles about how Christ is reflected in Superman and Star Wars, so I thought I'd enjoy reading more about that phenomenon. Turns out a lot more than superher