Book Review: Grumpy Moms Takes a Holiday by Valerie Woerner

Are you a mom who is stressed? Worn out? Grumpy? Those moments come to all of us. In Grumpy Mom Takes a Holiday by Valerie Woerner, the author shares some of her trials as a mother and encourages other moms to ignore the world's lies about motherhood and, instead, embrace the energy, joy and peace that can be found in spending purposeful time with God amid the daily chaos that is called motherhood.

Grumpy Mom Takes a Holiday will have you smiling. It will have you laughing. There are moments where you'll say to yourself, "Yes, that's just how I feel." In this helpful resource, you'll learn Woerner's story of how she realized she needed to tackle her Grumpy Mom for her and her family's sake. Then she plots out action steps for you to take so you can rein in your Grumpy Mom. Each chapter also has a Bible verse and a prayer.

One of the best pieces of advice for me came in Chapter 4. This chapter discusses worry--something we moms know a lot about. Woerner puts worry (and our need to control things) into the right perspective by reminding the reader that God is the One in control. As she says, "He is able to love my kids better, discipline them better, comfort them better, and counsel them better than I ever could."

Grumpy Mom Takes a Holiday reminds the reader to trust in the Lord, spend time in His presence, and be open to His plan for your life. In the fourth section, Woerner talks about connecting to your spouse, your friends, and with God. There are tons of helpful tips here on how to connect in all these relationships. The last section is about thriving--enjoying some breathing room, slowing down, and living in the moment. For me, anyway, this is the hardest part. As Woerner says, however, "...with God's help, we're going to choose peace and joy and fulfillment right in the middle of it."

I truly enjoyed Grumpy Mom Takes a Holiday and will hold onto it for future reference. Also available is Fresh Start for Moms: A 31-Day Devotional Journal to Renew Your Joy, which nicely complements Grumpy Mom Takes a Holiday.



Paperback: 272 pages
Publisher: Tyndale Momentum (April 9, 2019)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1496435303
ISBN-13: 978-1496435309

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

Book Review: The Lifegiving Home by Sally and Sarah Clarkson

If you are looking for a heartfelt and meaningful story of how to create a home that is both inviting and warm to family and others, The Lifegiving Home by Sally and Sarah Clarkson is a great choice.

In this joint mother/daughter effort, they share their perspectives on creating a lifegiving legacy in your home through rhythms, routines, and rituals, growing relationships, celebrating life, being in service to each other, and shaping a certain family culture based on love, and combining personalities, history, events, and traditions. This book addresses how we have lost our center in the hectic, busyness of day-to-day life that our current modern, consumerist culture encourages.

The last point mentioned is why I requested to review this book. At the end, however, I can't say I'm any closer to finding a way toward creating the kind of home I've always envisioned we would have. The Clarksons sound like lovely, god-fearing people, whose goal is to inspire others. Sally and her husband founded Whole Heart Ministries in 1998 and Sarah is an award-winning author who also leads workshops on reading as a means to transform a child's mental and spiritual development. They have a clear calling from the Lord to serve others. While one can't argue that more time in prayer and with Scripture is key to making any change, getting from where you are in your crazy life now to the type of home culture you desire is a step-by-step process. While The Lifegiving Home is a vital part of that process, it may not be the starting point for some of us. I have to admit to enjoying Sally's chapters more because they are more conversational, whereas Sarah's style is more academic. Coupled with The Lifegiving Home Experience, a twelve-month guided planner, the reader may have more success creating the home culture she seeks.


Paperback: 272 pages
Publisher: Tyndale Momentum (February 2, 2016)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1496403371
ISBN-13: 978-1496403377

I received a copy of this book from the publisher. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

This book is credited toward the following challenges:

Book Review: Becoming Unconsumed by Lynne Britton

In this touching and insightful devotional for women, author Lynne Britton inspires those of us who have become all consumed with this world to step back, trust in the Lord, and spend time in the Word to build a better relationship with "ourselves, each other and, ultimately, God."

Becoming Unconsumed: A devotional for every woman struggling in today's all-consuming world, will refocus your attention on what really matters: family, friends, faith, and the Word of God. It helps you realize that living in this fallen world, we easily allow our attention to drift away as we get consumed with being everything to everyone.  It makes you stop and think about the messages you are listening to and what you're giving your life to each day.

The book designer, Meghan Mason Design, did a superb job of creating a beautiful and calming cover, complemented by a few carefully chosen fonts inside and out that work well together to create a meaningful reading experience; something I feel is truly important in a devotional. Each day starts off with a Bible verse, then a short reflection by Britton, followed by a prayer. At the end of each day is a page dedicated to any personal notes the reader would like to add.

Perhaps my favorite part of the book is that it grows with you. The first twenty days follow the format above, with the reflections deepening as you go along. On the twenty-first day, Britton invites the reader to reflect on her own. A Bible verse starts the day, and then there are blank lines for the reader to write out her own reflection and response. There are forty days to this devotional, just like the forty days and forty nights Jesus spent in the wilderness where He was tempted by the devil. The symbolism of our wandering in the wilderness here in Satan's world being tempted daily was not lost on this reader. But just like Jesus' journey was not over after those forty days, the reader's journey is not over either. Britton encourages the reader to continue the habits this devotional has inspired, offering another twenty days where she can choose her own Scripture, reflect and respond, because "In Messages, Prayers And Connection, We Thrive." This is Britton's lasting message to her readers, and it is a powerful way to end a devotional that can truly impact your life in many ways.

Becoming Unconsumed by Lynne Britton has already made an impact on my life. I pray it will bless many women around the world and they, in turn, will grow in their relationship with the Lord. I highly recommend it for women from all walks of life.

Paperback: 176 pages
Publisher: Grace & Impact (April 24, 2018)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0692089365
ISBN-13: 978-0692089361

I received a copy of this book from the author. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

Book Review: Love Your Husband Love Yourself by Jennifer Flanders

In Love Your Husband Love Yourself by Jennifer Flanders, the author shares the Biblical view of wives in marriage and how listening to God's Word blesses a marriage and families in countless ways.

Though Ephesians 5:22-33 is considered a controversial portion of Scripture in today's modern world, Flanders shows throughout her book that this is the way marriage was designed to be by our Creator from the moment He created Eve for Adam. Sharing her personal experience as a wife and mother, the author indicates the many benefits if you embrace God's purpose for passion in marriage.

Too often I fear this portion of Ephesians is maligned and used to bring division into a marriage. Here is what it says:

Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything. Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church-- for we are members of his body. "For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh." This is a profound mystery--but I am talking about Christ and the church. However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.

Each person has responsibilities to the other. A wife is supposed to provide for her husband's physical needs and defer to him as head of the family. However, a husband is charged with an even greater responsibility: to take care of his wife and love her as much as he loves himself. In this world of self-satisfaction and being told to consider what we need first and then worry about everyone else, this is not a popular sentiment. But it does make one wonder how different relationships would be if every husband and wife were doing their best to follow Scripture.

What Flanders points out so well in Love Your Husband Love Yourself is that this Biblical view of marriage is not easy. It takes commitment, dedication, and most of all--prayer. Toward the end of the book, she is talking about marriage being a marathon, not a hundred-yard dash. This is so true. We need to keep our eye on the goal and keep moving forward.

If you've struggled with accepting God's purpose for passion in marriage or if you would like to explore more on this topic, Love Your Husband Love Yourself is an excellent resource.

Paperback: 352 pages
Publisher: Prescott Publishing (February 14, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0982626908
ISBN-13: 978-0982626900


I received a copy of this book from the author. This review contains my honest opinions, which I have not been compensated for in any way.

I read this book for the following challenge.