Beautiful Song

Blog

Night Night Sleepytown–another fun bedtime story!

By

We love good bedtime stories and are always adding new ones to our collection. A few years ago, I picked up a copy of Amy Parker’s book “Night Night, Farm. It was an instant hit with Charlotte, and Landon has enjoyed looking at it as well.

Getting Night Night Sleepytown in the mail was a much-anticipated event. We immediately tore open the package and dove into the story of a little town that’s all about saying “thank you” to everyone before heading off to bed.

I really love that it talks about thanking everyone. Being grateful is such an essential skill in life and it’s so important to learn that as young as possible! As we read the book, it offered a great opportunity to talk about why we say thank you, and how important it is and how it makes us feel when someone says thank you to us for helping out. Loved having another opportunity for teaching this to my little people.

My kids love the sweet little animals and the bubble factory is definitely a highlight in the book.

Overall, this is such a great addition to our collection and we’re so thrilled to have it!

Other Bedtime Stories We’ve Read

 

Bedtime Bible Stories My Kids Love

By

Both of my kids love books, and one of our favorite ways to unwind at night is snuggled up on the couch reading a story or two before bed. Recently, I’ve been trying harder to make sure at least one of those stories is a Bible story.  I wanted to share some of our current favorites with you all!

Bible Story Books that My Kids Really Love to Listen To

Since we bought our fixer-upper in February, things have been so chaotic.  With our schedules so out of control due to the late nights and long days, there’s been not much routine and it’s beginning to really wear on us all. Wishing to reinstate bible time before bed with the kids, I was glad to pick up a copy of The Beginners Bible Bedtime Stories published by Zonderkids.

This book was an instant hit with both of the kids. L. is not yet one, but he enjoys the colors and touching the animals (when he isn’t trying to eat the book, anyway). C is absolutely thrilled that it has most of her favorite Bible stories in it–and yes, the cover actually does glow in the dark, a detail that thrills her heart.

I appreciated that the stories were simple without being too “dumbed down” or oversimplified like many of the bible story books we’ve seen for very young children. The prayers are meaningful and easy to explain. And the bible verse included makes a wonderful memory tool, as well.

The book itself is colorful and though a little more cartoony than I typically go for in a bible book, they are catchy and detailed enough to enjoy looking at. This is a book that will definitely remain on our bookshelves (once I get those unpacked again!) for a long time.

Other Bible Story Books We Love

I grew up on My Bible Friends, and I’m so glad that they are still printing these lovely bible story books!  There are five volumes in the series featuring favorite bible stories from both the old and new testament. The words are so familiar and something about them makes them so easy to love to read and hear over and over again.

 

These are typically my go-to books when I want to read a bedtime Bible story. I love the gentle way the stories are told while highlighting the beautiful qualities of strength, trust, courage and faith. The stories are a little longer than the bedtime story book I reviewed above, but I’ve found that even the littler ones still sit happily through each story. C. has a few favorites that we read over and over again–Joseph’s Coat of Many Colors and When God Washed the World are her top two picks!

These are definitely worth having on your shelf if you love Bible stories and are looking for a book that will carry your child from babyhood through childhood!

Recently I also purchased both the audible version and the hardback version of the Jesus Story Book. This one goes a bit deeper than the other two and really paints the salvation story from the beginning to “the end”.  The words are absolutely beautiful and really touch my heart, even as an adult. It’s a great choice if you are looking something for family worship for a larger variety of ages!

Those are a few of the Bible stories we’re enjoying right now. What are some of your favorite versions?

My Summer 2017 Reading List

By

I made a lot of plans for the blog and the 2017 reading challenge last fall. Turns out, I spent winter and through the summer growing a new addition to our family instead.

Hyperemesis gravidarum might sound like just a fancy way to say “morning sickness”, but if you’ve experienced it you will know it is much more than that. Working and trying to maintain some level of stability while experiencing sickness was tough. It took its toll and I had to pare back to just the basics.

My blogging plans were out the window, but I did actually read quite a bit and I can’t imagine a better exchange for my plans than our much-wanted bebe. Our little Rainbow, Landon Scott, arrived in August. He’s healthy, and I am recovering. All is well!

There are dozens of things to update you all on, however, as summer fades ( it was 55 here this morning! Not our normal for the first of September, for sure.) I wanted to recap some of the great or not great things I read this year. With sickness and pain that kept me up much of the nights, I wasn’t up for a lot of heavy reading, so I’ve been checking off the free eBooks I’ve snagged up (Thanks to the Free eBook Alerts group on Facebook!) over the past few years.  That means my list is fiction heavy. This list isn’t complete, so if you want to see all the books I have been reading, you can check out my goodreads challenge page. Are you ready for that list now?

My Summer 2017 Reading List

The Illustrated Book of Sayings by Ella Frances Sanders

I have a weakness for words. Words and sayings are a type of cultural DNA that leaves its traces through regions and generations.  This little book is filled with gorgeous full-color pages that show the saying in its mother tongue, and then in English. The facing page gives a brief history of the phrase and what it means and throws in interesting tidbits that make it not only pretty to look at but an educational and fascinating read.  Featuring common sayings from around the world, it is a great way to broaden your horizons and get a glimpse into a wide variety of cultures.

If you enjoy colloquialism, you’ll love having this on your coffee table as a conversation piece or as a resource for adding new sayings to your repertoire.

Befriend by Scott Sauls

I reviewed this book earlier in the year as one in a series of books I’ve been reading that deal with modern day friendships and relationships. It may seem silly, but I think a lot of us aren’t exactly sure as adults how to create, cultivate and maintain healthy, vibrant and much-needed friendships. I know I feel daunted by cracking the friendship code and I don’t think I’m alone.

I appreciated the way that Sauls headed straight for the heart of relationship issues: you can’t really be a true friend until you get to know THE ultimate friend. Because friendship, like any relationship, is based on love. And love is the one thing we don’t have on our own.

While the book was geared more specifically toward ministry-type relationships, there really is so much that applies to all our friendships and makes this book a good, challenging read for anyone interested in authentic relationships.

Long Days of Small Things by Catherine McNiel

Does anyone become a mother fully prepared for the chaos of motherhood or for the incredible responsibility in brings? I think I knew that there is not much in the early years of motherhood (or ever?) that sound like “quiet” or “time” or “uninterrupted”.  But after nights of little to no sleep, work deadlines that don’t care if you are tired or how much laundry you need to fold, and days of never ending busy, it’s hard to figure out how to practically refill your own heart and soul so you can adequately mother and train your children. I read the pages of this book with tears in my eyes because it really did hit so close to home. It was so practical, and simple, and filled with hope that even though “quiet time” might not look the same as it did before children, it is possible to find a way to reconnect, be refreshed, and refocus on the important things.

It was a refreshing perspective on the little years when you know they go quickly, but they don’t really feel like it when you’re in the middle of sleepless days and sickness and perpetual messes. Definitely a book I will share with other mamas!

Dear Mr, Knightly & The Bronte Plot by Katherine Reay

After much prompting from at least half a dozen friends, I finally snagged The Bronte Plot when it came up on amazon for free last year. I finally read it this spring and while I was skeptical, by the end it won me over. The stories are modern but they give a nod to some of our beloved literary classics in Jane Austen’s collection. The Bronte Plot was interesting, but Dear Mr. Knightly I was definitely my favorite of the two.

Written in letter form, it is real, raw and yet sweet and romantic at the same time. I loved how she tied in so many important things and made the romance clean, realistic and yet intriguing at the same time. I’m looking forward to reading the others by Katherine as soon as I get a chance.

The Swiss Courier by Tricia Goyer

I can’t believe I’ve never read any of Tricia’s books. This is another one I snagged for free ages ago and finally picked up. It was a delightful mix of history, suspense and it had such a fun unexpected twist at the end that I loved!

I don’t often read WWII era books simply because they are often so heavy and devastating and I can’t emotionally handle it very often. It was a great balance of realistic and yet not so heavy that I couldn’t really get into the story and the characters who were a part of it.

I’m already looking forward to my next read (which I was so thrilled to win in a facebook challenge a few weeks ago!), Night Song. I’m sure it’ll be fantastic, too!

Captive of Raven Castle by Jessica Greyson

This is another one of my freebies. I wasn’t sure what I’d think of it because romance is so predictable and sometimes princesses get on my nerves. But the story of the Princess discovering her real identity, her real family, her faith and eventually her love was maybe not unexpected but sweet, tasteful and the story line was fun and interesting as well. Definitely worth picking up, if you are looking for some medieval fiction!

All My Love, Deitrick by Roberta Kagen

This is the one book I wish I hadn’t read. Not because it wasn’t well written. It was absolutely intriguing. It is another WWII era story, and it was so incredibly real and devastating. The whole story was perfect, but the ending was terribly sad and it has haunted me emotionally ever since.

But if you enjoy realistic historical fiction based on fact, don’t mind intense, emotional stories with sad endings, this one is a good one.

The Healer’s Apprentice by Melanie Dickerson

I participate in monthly mail swaps, and this was the book my partner sent me for our “book month”. Right away, it was clear that it was a spin on a classic fairytale. While this made the outcome somewhat predictable, it was delightfully written and I thoroughly enjoyed this version of “Aurora’s” story.

A few places felt a bit forced to fit the theme, but overall, it was good enough that I added all the rest of the books in the series to my amazon wishlist.

Lastly, not a “read” per-say, but another gorgeous book I got my hands on this year:

Tranquility, a coloring journal

You probably remember that last year I went on a coloring book and journal spree trying to find one I actually enjoyed using. Well, Tyndale definitely came up with the winners. The gorgeous coloring journal that focuses on Gratitude was an instant hit for me. And the coloring book for Christmas is perfect for long winter evenings.

Tranquility lives up to its predecessors with just enough creativity to be interesting but enough structure for it not to be overwhelming when I really want to focus on unwinding and reconnecting. The pages are beautiful, the prompts are perfect, and it’s small enough it easily fits into a bag to take with me on hikes or into town for appointments.  It feels peaceful and refreshing and I loved it!

With the holidays coming up, I already have it on my gift list for the person I’m shopping for this year!

So there you have it… a sneak peak at a few of the things I’ve read this year. Stay tuned for a couple more bookish posts in the near future, but for now…

Drop me a comment and talk to me about what you’d like to see in next year’s reading challenge!

Surviving Unemployment by Making Frugal Choices

By

1929087_83553975627_7121985_n

Scott and I after a long day of work at the Aircraft Company.

Extended unemployment is one of the more challenging things that life can throw at anyone. Six months after we married, Scott and I found ourselves facing just that. The aircraft company we worked for in Northern Idaho was hit hard by the tanking economy. Along with dozens of other employees, suddenly we both were unemployed. Neither of us saw it coming and we were completely unprepared.

Our Unemployment Story

Two weeks before, our most reliable vehicle was totaled in an accident and the timing of being unemployed couldn’t have felt worse. We were just getting going in life and had little to fall back on. Living in a small, rural area meant that the extensive job layoffs oversaturated the job market. It was almost impossible to get any kind of job, let alone one that would pay our rent. And with the economy struggling nationwide, it was a bleak time to be looking for work.

Six months later, and with no prospects, we decided to leave. We celebrated our first anniversary in the middle of a small pile of boxes. The next day we started driving across the country with the promise of work and the hope for good opportunities and a better chance of making it back on our feet again. I’m glad I didn’t know then that a few weeks after we arrived, the job would fall through, though it was out of anyone’s control. I’m glad I didn’t know that we’d be more or less unemployed or without enough or steady income for nearly two years.

Those were hard years, and we shouldn’t have made it.  There was more than one time I would find myself with a $20 bill to live off of for an entire month. I can’t tell you how many times I was sure we were days away from living in our car. However, in spite of our circumstances, God took care of us. Somehow we always had just enough to pay the bills.
I’m in no way eager to repeat the strain of living literally on pennies for extended periods of time. But I am grateful for those years and for the opportunities I had to learn to be even more resourceful, careful and to trust that God is Jehovah Jireh. I’m glad that I got a chance to learn that we are stronger than we think.  And more importantly, I learned to never give up.

Being Frugal is a Lifestyle.

I’ve always believed that being frugal was a lifestyle and not a quick fix for hard times, though it certainly helps to have strategies to batten down the hatches when you need to! I’ve always tried to be careful about how I used our money, but our unemployed years took thriftiness to a new level as I learned how to make a little go the longest way possible. I found that it was often all the small ways we saved money that made the bigger difference than simply cutting out one or two big nonessentials.

Scott and I both ended up eventually getting work that made it so we could pay the rent and put better food on the table. Later, I took a leap of faith and started my own business so I could work from home. That meant surviving on one small income for a while until my business started to gain traction and continuing to live as frugally as we could.

The frugal lessons that I absolutely relied on to make it day-to-day during our unemployment are now lessons I use to stretch our income so instead of just making it every month, we can save for the future and be better prepared for unexpected curve balls that life may throw at us. This is still a challenge as cost of living rises and our income has still remained close to the same. I’m still always on the lookout for new information or new tips I can use to reduce our expenses even more so that we have more to save and more to share.

SmartDailyHabits_Quote

Find Your Strategy for Surviving Hard Times

Life is really unpredictable, I know that much. Things can change overnight and make an adjustment in how we approach our finances and money spending habits necessary. Having a strategy for making it during difficult times is important. It helps avoid feeling blindsided, which is one of the worst feelings ever! I want to share a couple of things that helped me while navigating our extended stint with unemployment. If nothing else, I hope this helps anyone who’s out there struggling with limited financial resources to know that you aren’t alone. We’ve been there, and we made it through the worst. You will too!

Start by cutting out nonessentials.

This is one of those obvious things for most people.  But it’s really important to sit down and be really honest about what’s essential and what isn’t. Make a list of the things you absolutely can’t get by without (Rent, Electricity, Water, and Food for example.) and then prioritize what’s left. It can be surprising how much that feels “essential” can be cut out when push comes to shove. Depending on how dire your financial situation is, you may have to cut out more or less. I didn’t have a cell phone for years, and we ate beans, $1 pasta, cabbage and potatoes almost solely for months at a time during the worst of our unemployment. It was tough, but it kept us going.

Reduce Necessary Expenses.

Finding ways to reduce necessary expenses is definitely where it has been at for us. This is what got us through those very lean years of unemployment and then working jobs that just didn’t quite make enough to cover everything, even after cutting out every possible extra.

I may not have to count every cent at the grocery store so that my total doesn’t go over $20, but being careful to compare prices means I have a little extra to put away or to stock up on sales with. But there are so many surprising ways to cut expenses beyond careful grocery shopping that you may or may not know about. Finding resources to help you know what and how you could reduce is such a big deal for me! I was pretty glad when my friend Kalyn finally wrote a book that made it easy for me to make sure I was taking advantage of as many reductions as I could.  It’s just the sort of information that I’ve spent a ridiculous amount of hours digging for over the last 10 years. She’s taken her own years of experience and study and compiled into a book that’s so easy to read. I highly recommend it! Even though I think I’m pretty frugal, I still picked up some new tricks to try (hello, gas price reducers! I’ve never taken time to try to figure those out.)

Make a realistic budget, and stick to it.

Budgeting…yay! I know budgets aren’t always fun, especially when they are extremely limited. But having one is really a good idea, especially when things are tight. Using cash helped us be more aware of what we were spending and we avoided needless debt by knowing exactly what our unavoidable expenses were each month. There are so many resources out there to help you set up a budget for almost any income level. Take advantage of them!

Don’t be ashamed to accept help.

One of the most humiliating moments of my life was calling the electric company to ask them what would happen if I couldn’t pay the bill that month. They were kind and helpful, but it was difficult to have to admit to someone else that we were at that point. In fact, I couldn’t bring myself to find out if we qualified for any sort of assistance for so long that we were in a pretty scary place when I finally got the guts to make those hard calls. If I ever found myself out of work again, I’d immediately start finding out what I could do to give my family a buffer until we got on our feet again. If people asked, I would be more open about how hard it was. I wouldn’t be embarrassed. Because for a little while, I swiped a EBT card instead of my own debit card and every time I felt such shame. Yet if it weren’t for those assistance programs when we needed them desperately, I am not sure we’d have had any food at all.

Be Postive.

When you are in the middle of it, it is so hard to believe that there’s light at the end of the tunnel. Survival mode is exhausting and hard. But do whatever you can to keep your chin up and your heart believing. It helps.

Be Creative.

Not having a lot of money is a great way to find your creative side. Even though you may be slogging through a season where there’s little or no wiggle room for “fun” expenses, there’s still ways to take a break and enjoy a little rest and relaxation. Being careful with money doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy fun times or celebrate events. Stay within your means. If that means eating PBJ sandwiches at the park, enjoy it. If it means splitting a subway sandwich for your birthday, do it. But look for ways you can add a little fun into your life, even if it’s not fancy. And if you are able, plan for these things in advance. I think sometimes I focus so much on penny-pinching even now thatI forget that it’s okay to plan for and save for little splurges too.

Everyone’s journey is a little different. What worked for me might not be exactly what works for you. But I hope you’ll take a moment to share your story with me and tell me what keeps you going when things are rough. I’d love to hear from you!

A Farewell to 2016

By

I always have these grand plans to write a real End Of Year post with all sorts of newsy bits, observations and deep thoughts for the next year. But then I sit down at my computer and suddenly all the words go away.

So instead of observations and lots of words, I’m leaving 2016 with pictures instead.

January

I started the year with trying something new. Donuts were basically a success. Thanks, #altonbrown. #brankshireseat

A photo posted by Chantel Brankshire (@cbrankshire) on

We've been friends for a long time. Love it when we manage to catch them as they go by!❤️

A photo posted by Chantel Brankshire (@cbrankshire) on

February
https://www.instagram.com/p/BA44YXskjz-/

Then there was this face…

A photo posted by Chantel Brankshire (@cbrankshire) on

March

I see spring. #springindixie

A photo posted by Chantel Brankshire (@cbrankshire) on


https://www.instagram.com/p/BCyRjikkj3q/

April

What can I say? We're country bumpkins. ❤️

A photo posted by Chantel Brankshire (@cbrankshire) on

What can I say? We're country bumpkins. ❤️

A photo posted by Chantel Brankshire (@cbrankshire) on

May

This is true beauty. #springindixie #littlethings

A photo posted by Chantel Brankshire (@cbrankshire) on

Nothing like a pillow house with papa.

A photo posted by Chantel Brankshire (@cbrankshire) on

June

That big guy should make a cocoon any day. #lunamoth

A photo posted by Chantel Brankshire (@cbrankshire) on

My little nature girl. Photo credit: @elyssa.z #jacksriverfalls

A photo posted by Chantel Brankshire (@cbrankshire) on

July
https://www.instagram.com/p/BHcLm2bB7Ji/

When you get to help drive the car on the bumpy road back from the Jack river swimming hole.

A photo posted by Chantel Brankshire (@cbrankshire) on

August

Just a girl and her (stick) horse.

A photo posted by Chantel Brankshire (@cbrankshire) on

September

October

These October days swirl away autumn with the wind. #fallindixie

A video posted by Chantel Brankshire (@cbrankshire) on

November

Auntie @samanthajaynefrost brought presents. Minnie was my favorite when I was Charlotte's age.

A photo posted by Chantel Brankshire (@cbrankshire) on

Lots and lots of pies. #brankshireseat #thanksgiving #foodie

A photo posted by Chantel Brankshire (@cbrankshire) on

December

A white Christmas. Charlotte's first sled rides. It's a pretty nice day. #brankshirechristmas

A photo posted by Chantel Brankshire (@cbrankshire) on

Happy New Year, friends! May your days ahead be blessed.

Get Posts By Mail