View the blog
Rosita Valdez and the Giant Sea Turtle
at
www.rositavaldezbook.com
Come on an adventure with eight year old Rosie and her friends as she meets a giant sea turtle in a cove of the Pacific Ocean. Watch and learn with Rosie as she struggles with truthfulness and as she jumps into action when crisis comes to the cove.
View the blog
Biblical Character Lessons for Children
at
www.kidbiblelessons.com
Weekly Biblical lessons in a fun story format. These topical lessons can be used to help children grow in their faith. A great resource for personal devotions, family Bible study, and church sunday school lessons.
Book review from MoreofHim
More Of Him
http://www.moreofhim.net/2013/05/book-review-giveaway.htmlSunday, May 19, 2013
Book Review & Giveaway!!!
MY REVIEW:
This is an adorable children's book! Rosita is a sweet little girl with a big imagination yet she is also a sweet friend and a kind little girl with her family. I like her helpful nature and how her parents have her doing her chores and school work as a part of the story. Homeschooling children would especially relate to this! :) I like how we really get to know Rosita through the little things like the fact that she struggles with math but enjoys her writing. I love her relationship with her Grandmother and how they share special moments together.
Rosita has two little friends that she goes swimming with at cove. While playing hide-and-seek, Rosita finds the giant sea turtle. He's a gentle fellow and she has great fun with him. Unfortunately, her two friends struggle to catch a glimpse of him!
The story has a surprise ending that will have you and your children talking. I think this would be an excellent book to include in your homeschooling or to just read to your children or grandchildren over the summer! It's an excellent book that I just know a child in your life would love!
*This book was provided to me for my honest review by the Bohlsen Group
Now for the really exciting part...I have THREE copies of this adorable book to giveaway!! I'm so thrilled to be able to do this! I will pick my winners on Sunday, May 19th!! You must be a follower of More of Him either on Google Friends or Bloglovin! Just enter on the Rafflecopter below!!
Article for Mygoodparenting
Mary Bowman was kind enough to ask me to write an article for her blog. You can find it here on her blog: http://mygoodparenting.com/2013/05/15/our-childrens-spiritual-education/
Or her it is in it's entirety:
Our Children’s Spiritual Education
by Robin Fuson
We love our children and we want them to benefit from a good education. Some of us homeschool or put them into private school. Many of us have our children in public school and are involved in what they are learning. We attend parent teacher conferences and volunteer in their class rooms or on field trips. We spend hours helping them with homework, reports, and science projects. Once in a while our homes become a disaster zone when the science project blows up. You may feel, as I do, that it is alright as long as they got the concept of that project and they help clean it up. These things show our children’s academics are important to us.
What about their spiritual education? Have you thought long and hard about shaping their beliefs? Wouldn’t it be great if they grew up and believed as we do? We need to be involved in this area as well. We take them to church and Sunday school. Some of us have them in church clubs where they are taught more about the Bible and learn verses. These are wonderful tools to help us in this area but there is more to it than that.
We are responsible for nurturing them in spiritual areas. Deuteronomy 6: 4-7, Psalm 78:1-7 112:1-2, and Joel 1:3 tell us to teach our children all about God and His word. This is so the next generation will know the Lord. This next generation is our children who will in turn teach our grandchildren and so on. There is nothing more important than teaching our children to have a relationship with the Lord.
It is not just knowing about God but trying to understand who God is and forging a relationship with Him. How do we go about sharing God in a way that they want to have a relationship to Him? We start by relaying the stories in the Bible when they are small. Recount the lives of great people of the Faith like Noah, Abraham, Joseph, David, Esther, and Rahab. Make the stories exciting and real. Then, as they get older have them read about the disciples and apostles like Paul and Silas. When they see you reading your Bible they will understand it is important to you and a way of life.
There are resources you can put into your children’s hands to help them grow closer to the Lord. Make sure the length and subject matter is appropriate for their age and understanding. There are great books and blogs that your children can read for themselves. DVDs and CDs are good tools to introduce and incorporate into their devotional times.
Devotions are times a person spends with the Lord. They don’t have to be long and boring. They just need to have a point. A regular set time is the best, but any time spent is beneficial. Reading, studying, and learning God’s word is beneficial. God speaks to us through His word. We cannot have a relationship with Him if we are not talking to Him and He to us. He speaks to us through His word and the Holy Spirit. We then talk to Him in prayer through the Holy Spirit. The more we listen and talk to Him, the closer we get and the relationship grows.
The Spiritual Education of our children is vital for their well-being. There is no time like the present to start shaping or strengthening their spiritual lives. I have a resource you can use at: www.kidbiblelessons.com. On this blog I have spiritual lessons written in a story format. Most of the stories use animals to teach a Biblical character lesson. At the end of each lesson is a verse they can memorize corresponding with the lesson.
Rosita Valdez: And the Giant Sea Turtle
is the first book in a fictional series that your child would love. It entertains while teaching Biblical characteristics through the life of a young girl. You can find it on Amazon, Barns and Noble, and Westbow Press.
is the first book in a fictional series that your child would love. It entertains while teaching Biblical characteristics through the life of a young girl. You can find it on Amazon, Barns and Noble, and Westbow Press.Article for Western Mass Women Magazine
I wrote an article for Western Mass Women Magazine. You can find it under the section Mommy and Me in the March/April edition. You can read it's entirety here or go to the link:
http://www.westernmasswomen.com/home/index.php?option=com_content&view=section&layout=blog&id=37&Itemid=123
Make
it part of your conversation, your life. While you are cooking, talk
about the first time you made a special meal or learned to cook. Have
your child help you make the bed and talk about where the linens came
from or tell them about your first bedroom set. Talk about the first car
you drove. Using everyday activities to create a time of remembering
and sharing your heritage, makes it part of your life. You will find
very quickly that you are a good story teller, because you will hear
your children say: “Mom, tell me about the time you…”
Children love to hear stories and have them repeated over and over again. When you read to them or tell them about yourself, you are bonding. Your social, academic, political, and religious views come through. If you want your child to grow up thinking like you, talk to them. If they get to know about you, they will want to talk about the really important things in their lives later on.
About Robin Densmore Fuson:
With 30 years’ experience as a teacher, Robin Densmore Fuson is currently working on a series of chapter books for grade-school children. Formerly an AWANA missionary, she and her late husband ministered to over one hundred churches worldwide, taking her to places as far as Ukraine and Russia. Now in Colorado, with her husband of one year, she has three married children and ten grandchildren.
Learn more about Robin at: www.robindensmorefuson.com
http://www.westernmasswomen.com/home/index.php?option=com_content&view=section&layout=blog&id=37&Itemid=123
Why Storytelling Matters
Robin Densmore Fuson, Contributing Writer
In every culture you will find story tellers. They are the ones who preserve the culture and heritage of the people groups. They are the wise ones who know the worth of history and learning from the past. In villages around the world, you can find children sitting around an aged man or woman telling stories of the old days. They capture their attention with vivid word pictures. Wouldn’t it be marvelous to see this in our culture? Where children learn about who they are and where they came from? I think it can be done. We all have the capability to do this with our children. Children love stories, and who better to tell those stories than their parents? As parents, we need to be free to tell our stories and our grandparent’s stories to our children. You may be shaking your head and saying you do not have the time or you are not a storyteller. Why not give it a try?Make
it part of your conversation, your life. While you are cooking, talk
about the first time you made a special meal or learned to cook. Have
your child help you make the bed and talk about where the linens came
from or tell them about your first bedroom set. Talk about the first car
you drove. Using everyday activities to create a time of remembering
and sharing your heritage, makes it part of your life. You will find
very quickly that you are a good story teller, because you will hear
your children say: “Mom, tell me about the time you…”Children love to hear stories and have them repeated over and over again. When you read to them or tell them about yourself, you are bonding. Your social, academic, political, and religious views come through. If you want your child to grow up thinking like you, talk to them. If they get to know about you, they will want to talk about the really important things in their lives later on.
About Robin Densmore Fuson:
With 30 years’ experience as a teacher, Robin Densmore Fuson is currently working on a series of chapter books for grade-school children. Formerly an AWANA missionary, she and her late husband ministered to over one hundred churches worldwide, taking her to places as far as Ukraine and Russia. Now in Colorado, with her husband of one year, she has three married children and ten grandchildren.
Learn more about Robin at: www.robindensmorefuson.com
Pegacorn and Black Cat
Once upon a time there was a flying unicorn which some refer to as a pegacorn or unicus. His name was Aegeus, which means protection and shield. Some of you may want to refer to flying unicorns as alicorn, but for our story we will just call him his name, Aegeus, which is pronounced Uh-Jee-Us. His best friend was Caspar, a regular black house cat.
Aegeus and Caspar went everywhere together. Caspar would jump onto Aegeus’ back and wrap his front paws around Aegeus’ collar he always wore. Aegeus would run and flap his wings, and off they went soaring through the air.
Caspar loved to fly with Aegeus. Cats never get higher than the highest tree or building. This was something special for Caspar. Caspar was never afraid because Aegeus took good care of him, making sure he wouldn’t fall off.
During one of their adventures in the sky, an eagle was watching them. This eagle had been watching them for some time. The eagle craved Caspar for supper! He loved the taste of cats and couldn’t resist the beautiful black cat on the back of the flying horse.
The eagle planned his move. He swooped down just as Aegeus was in a curve turning around. At just the right moment, he knocked Caspar off. Caspar fell like a stone. The eagle dove after Caspar and caught him in his talons. Aegeus also dove after Caspar and knocked him out of the eagle’s grasp. Back and forth they fought over Caspar. Caspar thought he would be a goner for sure! Closer to the ground they got. Then Aegeus landed in a sprawl with Caspar on his back! Amazing catch! The eagle almost grabbed Caspar, but Aegeus spread his wings and knocked him away. Caspar darted under a thorn bush. The eagle advanced to where Caspar was cowering, but he couldn’t reach him.
Aegeus asked the eagle why he was attacking the cat. The eagle made his pitch, “I love to eat cats, and I want so desperately to eat the beautiful black cat you carry so proudly on your back.”
Aegeus replied, “You cannot eat him because he is my friend and a really great cat. I won’t let you!”
The eagle saw he was going to have a fight on his hands so he suggested,"I’ll tell you what I’ll do: I’ll leave this beauty alone if you bring me another beautiful black cat."
Aegeus was astounded! How and where would he get another cat? How would he willingly bring a cat to be eaten by this fierce eagle? How should he save Caspar? He knew if they got away it was just a matter of time, and the eagle would strike again! Then he had an idea. “Alright, I’ll get you a cat, but you must promise not to hurt Caspar!”
The eagle inclined his head and said, “I promise.”
Aegeus took one last look to where Caspar had vanished, and with a mighty flap of his wings took off. He hoped his plan worked. He flew to the village and hoped he could get in and out before anyone spotted him.
He was in luck, no one spotted him. At the cottage, he quietly opened the door and went in. At the room in the back of the house was a bed in the corner. On that bed was what he had come for, a soft, stuffed, black cat that looked amazingly like Caspar. A while back, while flying overhead, he had spied a young girl playing with it.
He snatched it up in his strong jaws and quietly left the cottage and flew back to where the eagle had Caspar pinned down. Stopping far away, he dropped the fake cat and said, “Here is the cat you asked for. Let Caspar go and we will be off.” The exchange was made before the eagle knew of the deception.
Caspar jumped on Aegeus’ back and away they went faster than before. The eagle approached the fake cat and thought it was dead and was disappointed. He wanted to chase it. Soon he realized he had been tricked! Off he went to find them!
Aegeus took Caspar to a hiding place. Then he told Caspar what he had done. Caspar was so relieved that a real cat had not been injured. Aegeus knew there was a little girl who was by now missing her stuffed cat. He knew he needed to do something about that.
Together they flew to the cottage. Aegeus had never interacted with people before, but he knew he had to this time. He knocked on the door. The mother and the little girl answered. They were amazed to see a unicorn and with wings! Aegeus could not communicate with them so he just stood still and looked at them.
Caspar knew what to do. He walked up to the little girl and rubbed against her legs. He started purring very loudly. Picking him up, she exclaimed, “Mother look! He looks just like Midnight!” The little girl ran to where she thought her stuffed cat, Midnight was, but it was gone! “Mother where is Midnight?”
Aegeus had been listening carefully and that is when he whinnied. The females looked at him and he stomped the ground. They went to see what he was doing. Aegeus used his hoof to draw pictures in the loose dirt near the door. He drew an eagle chasing the cat. That is when Caspar meowed. Aegeus pointed his hoof into the house. Through pointing and pictures he was able to give a pretty clear story of what happened. At that moment, the father returned home. He was surprised to see the four of them in what appeared to be a conversation.
Mother explained what happened and Aegeus and Caspar nodded in agreement. Father asked where the cat Midnight had been left. Aegeus indicated to the Father that he should climb on his back and he would take him there.
He took the father to where he had left the cat. Father picked it up and put it inside his shirt for safe keeping. They were half way to the cottage when they saw the eagle. The angry eagle swooped at Aegeus, trying to scratch is eyes. Things were different this time because Aegeus had a passenger that was ready for the eagle. He had a rope and lassoed the eagle. He quickly grabbed it before it knew what was happening and stuffed it into a leather bag he had over his shoulder. Carefully he held the bag tight enough so the eagle could not move yet loose so it would not get hurt.
When they got back to the cottage, Father took the eagle into the barn where he had a cage. He placed the whole bag into the cage and shut the door. Soon the eagle was loose from the bag but safe inside the cage. Father was known all around to be the best eagle trainer. He now had a new eagle he was excited to train.
The eagle was very angry, but was relieved he was still alive. He didn’t know it yet, but he would be well cared for and would learn from his new owner.
The little girl got her stuffed cat, Midnight, back. The family said goodbye to new friends. Aegeus and Caspar were free to fly to new adventures once more.