My Top Books of 2009!

Ah, the joyous part of having a blog is once in a while getting to talk about books! I love books, fiction, non-fiction, biography, mystery, historical, you name it. Historical biography is my favorite but I don't come across a good one very often. Here is my list but not necessarily in a ranking order. It would be like choosing a favorite child, I just can't do it.

The Aunt Dimity Series
The Aunt Dimity Series by Nancy Atherton is a wonderful escapist mystery series. My dear friend Laurie takes credit for starting me on these books. It starts with Aunt Dimity's Death and progresses to Aunt Dimity slays the Dragon. 14 books in all at the moment. Despite the titles the books are very cozy reads, much like a modern fairytale. There is nothing predictable about these mysteries that usually span two generations a little history. The main character takes up residence in a quaint village in England in the first book. That is what perhaps adds so much to the charm. I spent many a late night reading "just one more chapter!" The only caution I would give is that these books dabble in the paranormal and the main character has a wondering eye.

1776 The Illustrated Edition

David McCullough is probably my favorite author. He is a unbiased historian who writes history the way we all wished our high school text books had been written, as stories. Not facts, dates or isolated situations but stories with real characters and real life. In 2006 he replaced 1776 a book covering the year 1776 in American History. More recently he came out with 1776 The Illustrated Edition. The illustrated edition includes paintings, drawings, letters and maps in with an abbreviated text from the original book. Also included are large parchment type envelopes with even more documents that are beautiful copies of the originals complete with torn edges and the occasional hole. It is not a cheap book and not one you want to leave lying around, but a fantastic treasure trove. Keep all history geek jokes to yourselves please.

Potatoes Not Prozac

This one came recommended by my friend Sarah. It is Potatoes Not Prozac by Kathleen DesMaisons. She also published another book with a very similar message and program called,
The Sugar Addicts Total Recovery Program. I recommend either book. The gist is that the author after studying recovering alcoholics for years came to understand that sugars can also cause addictions in people. In stead of pouring over the obvious fact of how bad sugar is for us she gives a step program for overcoming it and tips to help along the way. She treats it as seriously as one would a rehabbing druggie while explaining things simply. I read the book and will wholeheartedly admit I'm an addict. Don't think you are? Starting taking note of how often you eat sugar (even in the form of white bread). The beginning of the book the author provides a way to quiz/test yourself. Did it change my life? No, but only because I'm too weak to win at the moment. Will this book change my life some day, I sure hope so.

"Don't' Make Me Count to Three!"

This book falls under the parenting category and is by Ginger Plowman. I heard her speak at a conference a while back and got around to picking up her book this year. For those of you who are familiar with Tedd Tripp and Shepherding a Child's Heart this is the same message but much more digestible and practical! Ginger communicates the idea that children shouldn't be punished for action but for intent or heart as she calls it. A child trying to steal a toy should be disciplined the same was he would be if he truly stole the toy. The flip side of the coin is that there should be no punishment if the child somehow obtains the toy but was not intending to steal. Sounds simple doesn't it? Where is gets hard is in addressing the child and teaching him/her to understand why they did what they did. Teaching children to analyze their actions and use that to make wise decisions.

Pioneer Woman Cooks - Recipes from an Accidental Country Girl

A cookbook! What would a book list from me be like without a cookbook? I only buy (or ask for Christmas in this case) cook books that I can learn from. If it only has recipes I just get it from the library and copy out recipes I want to try but lately people have come to realize that cookbooks can be so...much...more. And this cookbook is so much more! Every recipe has step-by-step pictures of how it should look. WHY DIDN'T SOMEONE THINK OF THIS BEFORE!

Also included are pictures of the daily life on a cattle ranch. Pioneer Woman is a city girl who married a cattle rancher and overnight became an isolated ranch wife. Now some-teen years later she has a popular blog http://thepioneerwoman.com/ where she shares her photography, ranch stories, homeschooling tips and recipes. I could be this women! Except for the ranch, I must tell Chad to get working on that. Her funny and heartwarming stories along with lots of pictures are spread throughout the cookbook to break things up a bit. No lie when I say I have caught grown men reading this book. Grown men who don't cook, or read. This book is THAT interesting.

America's Providential History

The title explains this book well. I found it very interesting and worthwhile. It resembles a textbook and some schools and homeschoolers use it as such. Beginning with ancient history, the book presents a providential view of significant events leading to the establishment of America. Examines the Reformation, the Pilgrims, the role of the clergy and church, the Christian foundations of education and economics, and the development of liberty. Cites primary source documents that show our nation grew from Christian principles and reveals how to bring them back into the nation today.

Already Gone
by Ken Ham & Britt Beemer
Already Gone is the published results of a study done of adults who had left church after being raised in it and their reasons for doing so. The study found that 2/3rd of children who were raised in church leave and do not return. The study also found that the more a child participates in Church activities the more likely they are to leave. The book gives the results of the study, theorizes why and gives solutions. This book is a must read for anyone concerned with the next generation or involved in children's ministry.

1491 New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus

by Charles Mann

1491 covers a part of history that our High School textbooks misrepresented and skipped over. That of the Native Americans (North and South America) before the arrival of Columbus. We are raised through school and movies to believe the Native Americans were few, primitive, and "one with the land". This book disputes that myth and explains what most experts now believe. That is that the population was much larger, extensive and advanced than we were taught. They were also heavily involved in managing the land and did not just leave it to nature. An example is that the Amazon Rain Forest is very infertile soil but areas have been found that are very fertile where the Natives used compost to improve the soil to grow crops. And that some experts believe that a vast part of the Amazon was agricultural land. The soil is still fertile hundreds of years later. The books sites many original writings from the early explorers.

Nathaniel is 3!

Nathaniel is turned 3! We had a party on Saturday for his friends. I wished I had gotten a picture of them, but I wasn't thinking at the time. So sorry! Nathaniel has a Blues Clues cake and enough balloons to go around.

The cake before it was demolished

Is he singing Happy Birthday to himself or pledging allegiance?


Blowing out the candles

On Sunday we had a family birthday party. Aunt Debbie brought crowns for the kids to wear.


Tim and Aunt Debbie

Presents!

We have a Piano

We bought a piano! My friend Natalie is a piano teacher and just last week I asked her to keep her eyes open for a cheap piano that would suit our family. That very evening she forwarded an email to me of this piano. Long story short - we bought it. We decided we and our friends were getting too old to move heavy objects so we hired movers.

Watching the movers unload.

5 minutes after the movers left.
Note that Nathaniel is playing with his elbows. Another 5 minutes later he starting driving trucks across the keyboard.

Little Mozart

It's a good thing he is cute...

It is a good thing Nathaniel is cute. Some days it's the only thing standing between a comfortable life in the Baker house and being shipped off to Timbuktu. I will make my case.

On Thanksgiving morning while preparing to load the van, the kids were in various states of dress and preparedness. Nathaniel was outside and dressed to go while Timothy was inside but wanting to be outside. He was looking through glass storm door at Nathaniel and trying it push it open. Nathaniel tried to close it. I told Nathaniel to leave it alone. I turned my back for a minute and then heard a cry of pain from Timothy. I whipped around just in time to see Nathaniel pushing hard with both hands to shut the door while Tim's fingers were under it. No need to explain my reaction and ensuing punishment and crying. You can figure that out on your own. So, Timothy's fingernail proceeds to turn black and blue over the next two weeks and then it starts to die. It takes another week or so to start falling off. I know this is a gross story and I assure this it the worse part and I do not have pictures of the finger. So after several days of the fingernail hanging on only by just a little bit I catch Nathaniel looking at it with a very fascinated gaze while trying to hold Tim down. I tell Nathaniel if he touches the fingernail I may pull a Bill Cosby ("I brought you into this world and I can take you out of it and make another just like you"). Ok, small exaggeration but the Bill Cosby portion was communicated in a very firm "DO NOT TOUCH THAT!" I turn my back expecting to be obeyed and once again to hear a cry of pain. Unbelieving and feeling a sence of de'ja vu I whip around to see Tim in pain and Nathaniel gazing intently at a small fingernail held in his fingers. I will leave the next few minutes to your imagination but know that Nathaniel is still alive at this point. I treated poor Tim's finger (now nailless) with alcohol and wrap it in a band-aid. The band-aid didn't last too long of course. Two days later the finger is infected and showing signs of possibly going septic. After a day of debate about going to the doctor we finally get the puss squeezed out, with much pain and discomfort on Tim's part. I tried to tell him the pain was Nathaniel's fault even though I was the one squeezing his finger at that time. The infection looked much better the next day and has been improving all week. So, today when Tim's fingernail is starting to grow back and the infection is almost gone Nathaniel shuts the door on Tim's fingers....

again.

The blue eyes and mischievous grin are sometimes the only thing that keep that boy alive...

Christmas Vesper Service & Cherub Choir

What would Christmas time be without children's programs at Church? Here is the Cherub Choir at ours. Nathaniel was in it because his Sunday School class preformed two songs. I circled him just to help you out. I was too busy taking pictures to see all that was going on. But I got to see several videos after the fact that were worthy of America's Funniest Home Videos. One kid ran around on stage and two fought over the microphone with Nathaniel right in the middle. Better than any comedy movie I have seen in a long time!

Zoo and Plane museum

While Chad's parents were here we visited the zoo and the plane museum. Both places were cold. The zoo because a lot of it was outside and the museum because they must not heat it.

Nathaniel roared at the Lions and the big one roared back! Both kept roaring back and forth as if to be challenging each other.

The Tigers and the snakes. For some reason I'm ok with my kids being close to a Tiger but not a snake.


Here is the plane museum. I didn't find it too exciting but the kids really liked the area where they could crawl in and out of the cockpits and pretend to fly planes. They could even play with all the knobs and buttons.

Christmas with the Bakers

Chad's parents came to visit this last weekend to celebrate an early Christmas with us. The kids had a great time opening presents. This Tonka truck was supposed to be Nathaniel's but Tim claimed it by sitting in it every chance he got. He even sat in the truck while leaning over the edge and driving other cars on the floor. Tim is our wheel boy.

Gingerbread Houses

Today Ella came over and we decoraded Gingerbread Houses. I purchaced pre-made house kits, it was a life (and sanity) saver. They really had a great time doing it. I was suprised, while I thought they would have a good time I didn't think they would spend as long as they did doing it. Poor Tim only got to watch and occasionaly eat a candy that rolled his way. Oh, and the kitchen floor is now sticky like a cheap movie theather floor.

The final product, well not really, Nora decided to spend another 15 minutes on hers.

Chad's Deer

My Deer Slayer has done it again! He shot a doe last Thursday night southeast of Wichita on the property of a family friend. He made a shot from 30 yards through the doe's lungs with a 357 magnum pistol. Chad spent Saturday and Sunday butchering it and yes, it is once again hanging from the swingset. After butchering two deer in three weeks Chad has had enough and is done for the season.

Christmas card photo shoot

We can't have any more kids for the simple fact that getting a family picture for a Christmas card is about impossible. I design cards as a hobby and spent October and November designing other cards for friends and family and taking pictures. I wasn't worried about doing mine, I would get to it. So today I clean up the kids and haul them over to our friends the Changs to use their studio and take a picture of the three kids for our Christmas card. It was positively the worst photo shoot ever. I took 150 pictures and I don't think I will even get one good picture out of those. Why? See for yourself.

This is what happens when I tell Nathaniel to put his arm around someone. In two year old boy language this apparently translates to "put some one in a head lock".

Then there is Timothy who was in full Temper Tantrum mode.

This is where he just gave up and threw himself on the ground. This is pretty much how I feel at the moment. I'm not sure there will be a Baker Christmas card this year.