Palm Sunday & Easter Book Review

Ever since I first realized that the word “Easter” wasn’t even in the Bible I’ve just had a “eh” feeling about the holiday. It just makes me feel weird that the day we celebrate Jesus’ resurrection is so tightly wrapped in a convoluted earthy-pagany-american holiday. Now, don’t get me wrong. I love Cadbury eggs. I loved getting a new Easter dress as a kid. I absolutely believe your kids will grow up to love the Lord if they believed in the Easter bunny.

HOWEVER.

As a mom who wants to use every second, every event, every story, every holiday and everything within me to impress my kids, I just try to separate Easter from the Resurrection of Jesus.

When Lydia was just a year old, I headed to the Christian bookstore to pick up some books about Jesus’ death and resurrection. I figured there’d be tons of good stuff. But I was very disappointed when I started looking around. Every single solitary book had “Easter” in the title. Yeah, I know, that’s what we call it. But still! Not even one book called, “Jesus is Alive!” or “Alive Again!” or “HOSANNA!” Not to mention you can’t even buy a kids’ book about Jesus’ resurrection any other time during the year. (Just like you can’t buy a book about Jesus’ birth except at Christmas.)

But I’m getting side-tracked. Let’s step off that soapbox and get to the real reason for this post!

I want to share one of our favorite “Easter” books with you. This is one of the books I picked up that day and even though it in fact called Easter, Easter Almost Here!, it’s actually about Palm Sunday. (WHICH IS THIS SUNDAY! Where did the time go?!)

We read this book year round. It’s a great rhyme, fun pictures, cute peek-a-boo cut outs, shiny, sparkly colors and a solid re-telling of the story of Jesus’ arrival into Jerusalem. I like having a book that is about this specific event because it tends to get lumped together with the next week in Jesus’ life.

Lydia and I can practically say it by heart. I’ve even heard her chanting it while playing or “reading” other books.

If you are looking for an “easter” book or a great intro to this important season, I highly recommend this book!

It’s Snowing in Georgia!!

It doesn’t snow here often and when it does, we get excited!

We were at church when it started. So we got to drive home with big fat snowflakes falling everywhere, roofs and mailboxes frosted white with snow. Lydia giggled and oohed and aahed all the way home.

We raced outside to take some pictures. Then took off our dripping clothes to take a nap. Lydia pulled on some snowflake patterned pants. Then we hopped in the bed to read Charlie & Lola’s Snow is My Favorite and My Best by Lauren Child.

Now she’s taking a nap with her white bear she calls Snow Bear. And has been promised that we will build a snowman in the morning. Yup, it’s been a pretty exciting day for Lydia.

“Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow;  though they are red as crimson,  they shall be like wool”. Isaiah 1:18-19

Joyful Impressions: Week 2

I LOVE CHRISTMAS. I do, I love it! And I think I’m passing that love onto Lydia. She is SO excited about everything Christmas. The first morning we had our tree up, I let her watch a Christmas movie while she ate breakfast. She turned around and said to me, “Is it Christmas today?” The tree and the movie were so exciting to her, she thought it was actually Christmas! And I’m pretty sure if it *that* was Christmas, she’d have been ok with it!

One of my favorite things at Christmas are the books. I love books anyway, but I just can’t pass up a good Christmas book. We basically read these books in place of our “regular” books during December. It’s exciting because they seem new and because they’re all about the holiday we’re experiencing.

I’m so ridiculously excited about all my Christmas books this year, that I’m vlogging the Twelve Days of Christmas Books. So, here’s Day One: The Parable of the Pine Tree. After you watch, don’t forget to link up with us…I’d love to hear your favorite Christmas books!

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Want to join in our Joyful Impressions? Just post a fun Christmas-y tradition, craft, recipe or activity on your blog. After posting, just click the Mr. Linky below to add the link to your post. (Not the link to your blog, but to your actual post.) And just to be nice, link back to this post, so others can participate, too!

Then come back and look at the other posts and find some fun stuff to do with your kids!