Recent reads.

The Connected Child by Karyn Purvis- Kley and I read this book together. We have been licensed for foster care/adoption for four years now, and while I still feel naive and unexperienced compared to many, I am so thankful for all that we have learned and are learning in our training classes (you have to take six credits per year to keep your license up to date). So while I didn't feel like I learned tons of brand new things while reading this book now, it was a good review and refresher. I wish we would have read it sooner. If you are considering adoption and/or foster care, I would highly recommend this book! It talks about building trust and affection, dealing effectively with learning or behavioral disorders, and disciplining in love.

The Power of a Praying Wife by Stormie Omartian- A friend lent me this book awhile ago, and it took me a very long time to get to it, but I 'm glad I did! It had short chapters, about 30, about different aspects to pray for your husband about, so I read a chapter a day during my devotions and finished in a month. I enjoyed it a lot because it prompted me to pray for different areas that I don't usually think of. I would like to read some of her other books too, like the parent one.

Church of the Small Things by Melanie Shankle- I've read several other of Melanie's books, and I have enjoyed all of them. She is funny, relatable, and her books are entertaining and a light read (and I mean light read in a good way). I love hearing other's stories, and she is a great story teller- my favorite part of her books. She is a Christian, but I wouldn't say this book is for a Bible study per say, but more as a fun solo read or one to just talk about amongst friends. I love how she tied it all together in the end- life is about all the small little moments. We need to try to find significance in the daily things. While the big moments are surely defining, we mostly live in the small moments and that's often where God is working in us.