Thanksgiving {2015}

Another Thanksgiving in the books! It was a super low key one and we LOVED it! Matt's sister had originally invited us but Matt has to work today so we couldn't go. Instead, my Mom came her for a week and we enjoyed a visit with her. Matt's grandparents came over for breakfast and then we literally rested, ate, and watched football. It was just right. Matt took some pictures and he got some great ones!! 

My mom wanted a couple of updated pictures with Mason and these certainly fit the bill! 

Mason wore this silly shirt for the day. :)

See you again next year, Thanksgiving! 

The Five Times I met Myself by James L. Rubart {Book Review}

"What if you met your twenty-three-year-old self in a dream? What would you say?" is the tagline for the book, The Five Times I Met Myself, by James L. Rubart. That certainly intrigued me and I wanted to read more. 

This book tells the story of Brock Matthews' whose life is in a bad place. He is going through a lot in his business, his marriage, his parental relationship with his son, etc. He learns of lucid dreaming and he uses this strategy to see if he can change and help his life. 

The story goes through various times when Brock utilizes lucid dreaming to go back and speak to his younger self and talks with him in an effort to make things better. In some of the situations, his attempts are successful and make certain aspects of his life better and at times, other areas are made worse. 

This book is a bit complex with a great deal of "roads" to follow in attempts to figure out what is real and what is a dream. I will be honest, I had a hard time following along with the book but once I got into it, I did enjoy it for the most part. 

One of the things that held me back from loving this book was that I do not think that I'm a big fan of attempting to change your dreams. I don't know if it's a real-deal option but I don't like the thought of it, overall. 

That thought aside, I think this book makes you think and it fun to keep up with for the most part and for that reason, I liked it. 

Thanks, Litfuse for letting me read this book in exchange for this review. 

Stop and Smell Your Children by Leah Spina {A Book Review}

I am about to sound like a broken record but that's okay. I have been enjoying parenting, mom-encouraging type books so much lately. Stop and Smell Your Children: Laugh and Enjoy the Little Years was icing on the cake and a breath of fresh air!

At first, I was a little skeptical because, I mean, Stop and Smell Your Children just sounds weird! But you guys, I'm powerless to resist reading a "mom" book so I chose it anyway. I'm so glad I did!

First, I feel like so many books on parenting and motherhood are just a bunch of steps you should take to make awesome kids. But this book? IT IS NOT THAT!!! 

Leah is a real mom. She is in the trenches like me raising her babies and she shares from the depth of that! 

A few things I loved about the book...It was such an easy read. Leah divided the chapters beautifully and each one was just enough for that moment. Not too long, not too short. Each chapter started with a quote and I just enjoyed that so much. This book would be PERFECT for a mom's group to read and discuss over a period of time. Each chapter ends with questions that are basic yet thought provoking and I think they are just right for a variety of moms. 

What I loved most about this book is that Leah just truly shared from her heart on what it was like during her first pregnancy, what it was like to miscarry, what it was like with a toddler and a newborn, what it was like to have an assisted birth and then a natural one. 

She deeply shares about how important it is as mothers to just STOP and enjoy the little years. Our babies won't be little for long and we as moms have plenty to teach and show them but most of all, they just need our love. 

I think this book would be a great gift for an expecting mom or new mom. It would be a great secret sister gift to share with a mom friend.

Leah, write another book please! :)

**Thanks for the book, iRead!**