Momma Don't You Worry

Momma Don't You Worry by Louie Lawent, is a cute, quick e-book for young children (ages 5-7).  It's a catchy poem with some cute illustrations that I think kids and parents will both like!


In Momma Don't You Worry, a young boy, who feels he is all grown up at the ripe, old age of 6, doesn't understand why he must stay by his mom. So he tells his mother not to worry about him so very much. Of course, as children are prone to do, he wanders away to look at something else and ends up lost.

As a mother of three, I remember this phase very well. Oh, who am I kidding. I still have a 9 year old who doesn't always stay by me even when he should. But it's hard to explain to kids why they are still little kids when they feel so grown up inside.

It's a quick read, and one I think a child could memorize easily and be able to "read" along with as well. (Side note: memorizing books and reading along with them is actually a great step towards reading, which many kids at the 5/6 mark are working on, so this book serves a double bonus!)

I would have loved to have read this book to my kids at that age, and still read it to my 9 year old now so that maybe (ahem, in parking lots) he'll still hold my hand even though he thinks he much too grown up to do so! ;-)

Note: Mr. Lawent approached me and asked me if I would be interested in doing a review for him. I said yes and was given an electronic copy of the book to look over, but as always, all opinions and thoughts are my own!

Hello October.

Umm, yes, can someone please tell me when October showed up? Because I swear it was August or something like that last week.

Alas, it's October. (and no, I do not yet have any Halloween costumes made. Because I'm procrastinating). Anyway, since I last wrote we've had at least 3 more illnesses come into this house. 2/3 kids are on some sort of medication and the third child now has a sore throat. All of that aside, I've actually been able to accomplish a few things! Yay!

Last week I finished reading Made by Hand: Searching for Meaning in a Throwaway World by Mark Frauenfelder. I was sent the book by Kim, who said she read it and was kind enough to lend it to me!

So I just think this is a wonderful book that has made my dream for chickens become even more serious than it was before! Because chickens are cute and practical and I think everyone should have some! I will admit thoguh, at times I was torn: keep reading or stop and go try what Frauenfelder was talking about (yes, I now want to make some instruments, do some wood carving, build something, make something, anything, everything!). This is a book I want to keep forever and ever. But I also want others to read and love it. I think I need to buy two copies of this book. One to keep and one to share. I loved it just that much. (And also, I want to go and check out all the books and blogs and other things he mentions so I really do need to have a copy to keep!). This is going to be a book that leads me to more books, that lead me to more books, and so on and so on. And I love those sorts of books as well.

To date I haven't yet tried anything specifically talked about in the book. Because of life. But that's okay. This book isn't a how-to guide. It's more of a motivational book - his main message is get out there and do it. You will screw up. It won't be perfect. And that is not only okay, but really really great. And just to prove that, he doesn't just talk about his successes, but shares the stumbling that took place along his journey! I just loved the whole book. One of my favorite quotes in the book came from Mister Jalopy (one of Frauenfelder's friends)

People are afraid they are going to screw something up, that they're going to ruin something. And unfortunately, it's valid -- they will. You will scrw stuff up. Things will be broken. But that's one step to overcome to get on the path of living this richer life of engagement, of having meaningful connections to the objects around you. It's that necessary step you have tot take - the courage to screw things up - so you're able to fix things, or make stuff from scratch or to refurbish stuff to live according to your standards.

Wow. That spoke to me. Because I get it - fear of failure holds me back. It holds back others I know. Failing is scary and I believe we are taught from a young age something to be avoided at all costs. And I think we'd be much better off if we threw that kind of thinking out the window. =)

So you should absolutely read this book. Then you should overcome fear of failure. And just get out there and do. Because doesn't that sound like so much fun? =)

Live To Tell

Live to Tell: A Detective D.D. Warren Novel

by: Lisa Gardner



Finished: May 22, 2010
5 stars

Live To Tell is a book I could NOT put down. Hook, line and sinker from the moment I read the prologue - I needed to keep reading. This is a book with several twists and turns. Just when you think you know who did it, another twist. Another clue pops up that makes you rethink, wonder, and try to figure out who really did it!

Gardner is a talented author who clearly knows her audience. She keeps your hooked, she adds twists, the characters draw you in and you want to see what happens.

Detective D.D. Warren is a dedicated Boston detective and has been for 12 years. She works hard. Does her job well. And is the kind of woman who you know, in the end, will always get her man so to speak. However, for all her success in her career, her personal life is lacking. This is starting to bug her - and in fact the book opens with her finally on a date, only to get interrupted to report to a crime scene. At first glance, it looks as if a father has decided to murder his entire family and then commits suicide himself. However, a few days later an eerily similar crime takes place and what once looked like an open and shut case is no longer.

Danielle is a pediatric psych nurse. As a child, she was the lone survivor of her father's killing spree - in which the rest of her family is murdered, he commits suicide and she is sparred. She struggles with why he left her, and yet at the same time, doesn't really face what happened that night. As the anniversary of her family's deaths approaches and the crimes mentioned above center around where she works - it is becoming increasingly harder for her to try avoid facing the past.

Victoria is the mother of 2 children. Her oldest son Evan, who is 8 years old, suffers from some very severe mental illness. He goes from being a very sweet a loving child who enjoys watching the History channel to a very violent child - and tells his mom multiple times he wants to kill her.Victoria's husband has left (with their younger daughter) because he doesn't feel they are safe in the house with Evan. Victoria is a mom who is just trying to do the best for her son that she can. She clearly feels his issues must be because of something she did and it's almost like self-punishment for her to try to deal with him alone. She doesn't get much sleep - Evan doesn't sleep much. She has to lock up knives and other items that Evan could use to hurt her or himself.

As these key player's lives become intertwined and meshed together, it's hard to put the book down. My heart broke for all the suffering that takes place in the book. I won't lie - this book is not all sunshine and roses. It's most storms and thorns. And yet, it's hard to walk away, it's hard to stop reading. The characters become friends. I felt concern for them and needed to see how it all ends.

I highly recommend this book. I will definitely be looking for more D.D. Warren books and reading Gardner in the future.


*Please note, I was given this book to review from LibraryThing through their LibraryThing Early Reviewers (LTER) program, which has absolutely nothing to do at all with this blog.