Books

Before I start rambling and forget: Thanks, you guys- for the kind comments the other day, both for Bri's poor little noggin and for me. Both of us are doing better. Thank you! Today, I ditched the kids and went out to lunch with my precious friend, Lanie. Some of our friends are people we choose, and some are chosen for us by God Himself, and Lanie is definitely a God-sent friend. We stayed out for 3 hours for some much-needed grown-up time. Shockingly, the house was still standing upon my return and now I feel almost like a person again.

And now for the rambling. I have a shocking revelation to make. You will never believe this, but at one time I was half-way intelligent. Back in the days before my vocabulary was reduced to 1st grade level words, and most of my inquiries revolved around somebody's bodily functions/fluids (i.e. "Are you sure you don't have to go? Maybe you should just try to go."), I had me some smarts. My vocab. and grammar skills were... well- in existence at least, back then. Can you believe it? She, user of too many of these: ... , and these: , , and these: ( ) , actually had grammar skills at one time. Do not call me a liar. It's not nice. In school, I loved anything to do with English: English Comp., English Lit., English, English, English. My original plan before my Prince Charming swooped in with his appealing promises of knocking me up five times, moving me to a tiny one-horse town, and offering me this enviable life of leisure as a fat housewife, was to be an English/Reading teacher for hearing impaired kids. I'm slightly hearing impaired (did you guys know that?) and I know sign language, so that seemed like a natural fit for me. Anyway, back to my point, which is: I like reading, writing (other peoples', not my own) and books. I love books. And since I hardly ever have time to sit down and read "**big girl books" anymore , what with homeschooling, laundry, keeping myself stunningly beautiful and my figure in shape by getting in all 11 servings of chocolate as recommended by some association somewhere, I've been forced to turn my reading interests towards my children. In my constant search for good kids' books, I've discovered that there are some highly cruddy adoption books out there. Some great ones, too- but I've bought more than a few disappointing ones. I have a little section on the side of this blog where I've listed a few of the children's adoption books we like (some more than others, and some Bri likes although I'm not a huge fan), but I thought I'd pull a couple of our favorites off the list and share them with you. Feel free to comment and give your opinions of these or add others you like. As always, you're not allowed to comment if you disagree with me and hate my choices. Only people who agree with me are allowed to comment. That is my policy here, and it is strictly enforced.

...Only kidding. You knew that, right?

**(Ha. I originally said "adult books," up there where it says big girl books, but I think that means something slightly different, so I thought it best to edit myself. That's funny.)

The Red Thread: An Adoption Fairy Tale by Grace Lin

This story is so sweet. A King and Queen have a pain in their hearts, and must figure out what's causing it and how to stop it. If you're still waiting to bring your baby home, GET THIS BOOK and read it now (are you catching onto my ever-so-subtle skills of subliminal persuasion there, with the CAPS?). You will definitely identify with the pain they feel. Appropriate for preschoolers.

Three Names of Me by Mary Cummings

I Love this book. My only real problem with this one is I cry when I read it. This is the story of a little girl and how she feels connected to each of her different names. Very touching. This is also suitable for a slightly older child, which is nice. Many adoption books out there right now seem to be geared more toward the little ones.

A Mother For Choco by Keiko Kasza

One of my favorites! There's nothing too difficult for a toddler to understand in this one, so it's a good starter book. The story never mentions words like "adoption," or "interracial," etc., yet it conveys the fact that people don't have to look alike to be a family in a very sweet and simple way.

*I've seen some criticism of this one because of the way Choco starts out with no mother figure or caregivers at all, and then goes around searching for a mother (he keeps looking for one who looks like him) only to be rejected before finding his mom, and also because he says he needs a mother. I understand that some people really have trouble with that. Quite a few adoption books use the word "need" in relation to the child pre-adoption. Mr. Rogers' adoption book is another example. You may feel that sends the wrong message. However, I think the pros of this nice little story, with a very positive overall message, outweigh any cons. Sometimes we parents can be guilty of being too sensitive and overthinking things, you know what I mean? Things that would never occur to our children to get upset over can become huge issues with us.

And these have nothing to do with adoption, but we love them:

Just in Case You Ever Wonder by Max Lucado

Not an adoption book; just a great way to convey a parent's unconditional love and commitment to a child, which every kid needs to hear- adopted or not. Definitely written from a Christian viewpoint. If that doesn't bother you, though; BUY THIS BOOK!

Sidney and Norman by Phil Vischer

I think I may have posted something about this book here before (??). I can't say enough about it. I love it, I love it, I love it. Sorry to gush, but I love it. Every Christian should read this story. I don't mean only for the benefit of your kids. I mean for YOU. Since this is a children's book (written by the creator of Veggie Tales, BTW), it manages to present a profound spiritual truth in a very simple way-which is exactly what it takes sometimes for adults to hear it- that conveys the love God has for us. You will either realize that you are a Sidney or a Norman, or you know a Sidney or a Norman. I am a Sidney and this book blesses me every time I read it to the kids. Helps me remember that God really does love me just as I am. How many other children's books have such a nice bonus as that? BUY IT.

I'll leave you with those for now.

If you have an interest in books too, there is a blog you may want to check out called Semicolon, written by a Christian homeschool mom of 8 who blogs about books (not adoption related). She somehow has time to read grown-up books, too. I'm still trying to figure out how she's doing that.