The Lord's Prayer, commentary by Rick Warren

Each page of this beautiful picture book has a small portion of the Lord's Prayer with a brief commentary by Rick Warren and a short, one sentence prayer.  Its full title is "The Lord's Prayer Words of Hope and Happiness".  It was illustrated by Richard Jesse Watson.

Book's description:

This iconic prayer is paired with flowing illustrations by award-winning artist Richard Jesse Watson and thoughtful insights by bestselling author Rick Warren, resulting in a book that rejuvenates the familiar prayer for a younger audience. Using poetic scripture from the King James Version, The Lord’s Prayer: Words of Hope and Happiness helps familiarize children with real biblical text while also presenting contemporary illustrations and insightful words that make this beautiful prayer come alive.

Suggested age range is 4-8 years old for this hardback book, but you can stretch it down to 3 and I read it to my 11 year old, who wants to know why I keep reading him "kids' books".  So, the 8 year old upper limit is probably about right. :)

I like that this is a larger book so you can enjoy the detailed illustrations, and I also liked that it comes with a dust jacket, because I can see this being a favorite handed down to grandchildren.  There is an introduction for the parents, which basically says it is our responsibility to not only teach the child to pray, but to pray with him.  Hence, this book.  The Bible passage as a whole is printed at the end with a brief word about prayer that can be read to the child.   I would love to have several copies of this book for gifts, as it is appropriate for many occasions - Christmas, baby showers, or birthdays.

Here are some more views of the inside.  I apologize for my busy table cloth in the background!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers <http://booklookbloggers.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Say & Pray Devotions by Diane Stortz

Say & Pray Devotions - First Words, Devotions, and Prayers features short devotions and lots of labeled illustrations so your little one can practice identifying objects and words on their own! This book is a great tool to start a devotional time with little ones, as it will help you teach them about God, and the labeled pictures will help start a life of faith.  Amazon's description suggests 4-8 years old for this, or preschool through third grade.

I think this colorful board book would be perfect for the short attention spans of the 1-3 year old crowd.  It has a theme, title, and one or two sentences on the left-hand page, and short verse and short prayer on the right.  Each page has bright illustrations by Sarah Ward with the objects named for learning purposes. 

Several daily activities, such as teeth brushing, eating meals, and playing are included, as well as views of the playground, zoo, beach, church and more!  With twenty devotions in all, this book would make a great start to your day, or a nice bedtime read as you cuddle with your toddler.  It would also make a great Christmas gift for your children!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers <http://booklookbloggers.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Still Chewing

My first post on this oral fixation, The Need to Chew is Real, covers some of the 'whys' of the issue.  You may want to read it first.

We have tried so many things to keep it under control in a socially acceptable way!  It is not an easy task, but with diagnoses figure out, we have more in our "tool box".

He still chews the gum when stressed or bored, and especially when he needs to concentrate for school work.  We buy it by the bucket!  We have tried sugar-free bubble gum, but its not the same texture - not as hard, so not as effective.


We do the snack tray on occasion, but not daily as we did a couple of years ago.  Rereading my own posts reminds me to get some more lemon candies, but the rest of the snacks - pretzels, peanuts, suckers- we do usually have on hand.  We have added potato chips to the mix of crunchy choices since that first post.

So what works and what doesn't?  This will be different for every child, I'm sure, but here is our experience.

Works most of the time:
Food and gum, as described above.
Drinks, especially with a straw or in a Camelbak bottle

Works occasionally:
Chewies, such as Chewelry
Other chewy toys, like Chew Stixx
Jewelry that shouldn't really be chewed on
Pencils, pens

What he really wants in his mouth and defaults to if not provided continuously with the above:
Fingers
Headphone wires
and other things that should not be in his mouth

His poor thumbs are a little bit better than they used to be, but the skin picking issue is real.  He picks at the skin with his fingers, then back in his mouth they go, all day long.  Sometimes we put band-aids on to cover, and then he picks at the band-aids...which is better, but doesn't break the habit (compulsion?).  If his thumbs aren't being assaulted, its because his hands are busy with keyboard and mouse while his mind is busy with a game and the headphones are on, which means the wire is in his mouth.  I don't think he will actually get electrocuted should he break through to the insides of the cord, but it does make for more headphone purchases.

The only possible fix I can think of is coating fingers and wires in nasty tasting stuff daily, but since I don't think he can control this thing (perhaps this is his stim?), it would be cruel.  I did try putting clear polish on his thumb nails (and generously missing so it got the surrounding skin), and it didn't make any difference.

Could this issue truly be a stim?  Has anyone else dealt with such a compulsive chewer?

Welcome to the Sensory Blog Hop -- a monthly gathering of posts from sensory bloggers hosted by The Sensory Spectrum and The Jenny Evolution. Click on the links below to read stories from other bloggers about what it's like to have Sensory Processing Disorder and to raise a sensory kiddo! Want to join in on next month's Sensory Blog Hop? Click here!

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Brave Girls Devotional

Are you ready to be a Brave Girl?  The hardback book of 365 devotionals is written for ordinary girls who desire to be closer to God.  Five fictional girls, Hope, Glory, Faith, Honor and Gracie, take turns presenting gospel truths throughout this fun, pink volume.  Each day of the year starts with a title, a Bible verse, a short modern bit about how to apply the verse, and end with a "prayer pointer", or prompt.  From the official description:

 This devotional includes a year’s worth of readings with amazing stories from Scripture, lots of fun quizzes and illustrations, and powerful truths such as:
I always have the power to love others because God loved me first. I can talk to God about anything, whenever I need to! God loves me for who I am, even when I’m different from everyone else. God can use someone small like me to do big things with Him.

Written by Jennifer Gerelds and Tama Fortner, and illustrated by Aleksey and Olga Ivanov, Brave Girls 365 Devotional would be appropriate for girls ages 8-13, I think.  Its fun and modern, yet reminds me of the daily devotional books and pamphlets I read growing up and into young adulthood.  The slick, pretty pages are high quality and the cover is sturdy, and a pink ribbon page marker is attached.  The quizzes and writing prompts within make it more interactive.  I think pictures will do better justice than trying to describe it further myself, so here you go!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers <http://booklookbloggers.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”