I enjoy a good read as many of you do too. Here are a few that I am enjoying or have enjoyed lately.
Mere Motherhood by Cindy Rollings I enjoyed reading this women’s homeschool journey with her family from the time she was dating her husband, all the way through her children moving out and starting their own family. The author is a Christian and talks openly about the struggles that arise from being a mother, raising a family, and homeschooling. It was light hearted and a very helpful read as as a young mother myself as she discussed her journey through Charlotte Mason type homeschooling, the resources she used and books she enjoyed and so on.
The Lifegiving Home by Sally Clarkson – This book is so encouraging to me as a homemaker and beautifully captures the importance of our work as homemakers within the home to glorify God in creating an earthly outpost that being rest, restores, and is a beacon of hope. I enjoy that Sally wrote this book with her daughter as they both share their perspective growing up in a loving environment and what it meant to both of them to create that space for themselves and family.
I’ve actually listening to this one on Audible which I love utilizing as it saves my place and is easy enough to listen through my ear phones while cleaning up the kitchen. I started listening to audible and joined using a 30 day free trial with all the bells and whistles for a premium subscription to really see if it was something I would utilize or not, and I love it. You can join with a 30 day free trial, no strings attached! Or if you know you enjoy listening to books, start building an impressive library for yourself or your family for as little as 7.95 a month using my link here! Great for Road trips or errands too.
Devotional Bible and Encouragement – While I try to get in the DAILY habit of staying and being in God’s word at least once a day, I can find 952 other things to distract me away from being deeply fed from daily bread. As we are in the middle of a move, I have been moving slowly through the bookshelves mostly because a spark is rekindled with each book I hold. A memory from that book sweeps me up, or I remember where I was when I enjoyed it last, or it has a special meaning. I came across my husband’s grandmothers books that she wanted to make sure went to us when she passed on. Among those, her daily devotional bible with notes has become a special devotional to me.
The devotional daily bible in NKJV reads easily each day a passage of scripture from the Old Testament, a passage of scripture from the New Testament, a Psalm and a Proverb with a short summary at the end to ponder for the day. I like reading God’s word over many popular daily devotionals because it’s free of others opinions and I can glean with my own thoughts.
Another gem that we acquired from my husbands late grandmother that encourages me often is the Valley of Vision which is a published work of puritan prayers. The Puritans in North America came as early as 1500s and colonized through the 1700s in Massachusetts mostly. They were their own colony escaping Catholicism. What I find most encouraging about their prayers and devotions is that although they were written several hundred of years ago, the struggle that man has with emotions, understanding God, and sin is the same! I also enjoy the rich text and old English language used to write out their prayers and devotions.
Inspiration and Decoration – As I write this, we are exactly one week away from leaving our home of 10 years that was our forever home and although it has thrown my body into flight or fright, I have a tremendous sense of peace that God has placed upon my heart in our next step as renters for a time, and then living on a piece of land that will need our tender love and care. Naturally, I’ve gravitated towards visual inspiration on paper and ink to help settle myself as we move into this next chapter of our lives as a family. There will be more on this topic in the coming weeks as we get a structure erected! stay tuned.
Flea Market Decorating: Creating Style with Vintage Finds Is filled the the brim with quirky and interesting design inspiration and ideas with unusual vintage and antique finds. It features the homes of several avid vintage lovers. From salvaged architecture to dental cabinets as storage in a bathroom, there is inspiration for repurposed uses of otherwise single use items. It also has helpful hints, tips and tricks for sourcing and bargaining when out sourcing unique finds to make your home feel truly special , unique, and reflective of its inhabitants.
Gardening and Homesteading, Etc. – While I am not actively reading these suggestions, I happened upon a few of my forgotten favorites while packing up precious cargo (books).
Dehydrate it, You’ll like it – This book is out of print but filled with useful tips on dehydration, and includes low tech plans on a dehydrator cabinet that if I remember correctly, does NOT include electricity which is a total win in my book, considering the state of affairs – it never hurts to have less one trick ponies and more versatile and primitive tools. I don’t have an amazon link, instead, I have a friend referral link you can use for thrift books to get a FREE book with a purchase of $30 or more, which is well worth it! It’s the only place aside from eBay that I’ve been able to find helpful out of print books. If at first you don’t locate this book, add it to your wish list and thrift books will email you when it is in stock again.
Home Butchering, The Ultimate Guide to preparing any animal – We purchased this book back when homesteading was a dream. We have since utilized this book once to reference how to clean fowl, but ultimately found a rhythm and technique from just going for it and being hands on when others have wanted assistance and in exchange, we receive practice. I do like this book for easy to follow instructions and simple drawings.
Sewing – I have an old version of the Reader’s Digest complete Guide to Sewing which you may could find an older version at a thrift shop, second hand book store, or Thrift books . Similar to butchering, I think that type of skill set is best acquired through practice and experience, but that may just be me.
Herbs and Such – There are a TON of resources on how to wildcraft your own tinctures and herbal preparations. Anything by Rosemary Gladstar is a winner in my book. If you are BRAND NEW to herbs and herbalism, Rosemary’s Beginners guide is a great place to start. For Apple cider vinegar preparations like infusions, the Fire Cider guide book would be a great one too.
Don’t forget to check out my book rec highlight on instagram, or look for topic specific books by clicking on any story highlight, like wild herbs.
