Betsy's 2011 Books

One of my personal goals for 2011 was to completely read six books. As a little background I'll say I have read a lot in the past and have always considered myself a reader. However, after having my kids, my reading material had turned into blog posts, magazine blurbs, emails, and facebook status changes. I never had much time to read a lot at a time so I just read things that I could complete in the few minutes I had or could read on my iPod while nursing in the middle of the night (that's when I did the majority of my blog reading in 2009 and 2010!) I didn't know about the Kindle application back then, so I thought that's all I could read on my awesome handheld device. And whenever I pulled out a book to read, I didn't finish it. I'd have half a dozen books on my nightstand that were only partially read. I'm thinking maybe becoming a mom shortened my attention span?!

When 2011 rolled around, I had just watched a series of DVD's by Dr Caroline Leaf on the brain, and I was convicted that I needed to challenge my brain more. I thought that one good way would be to set a goal, along with our other yearly goals, to get back to my roots and completely read through some good books. I had no idea what to read at that point, but I just set the goal. A few days later I was talking with the sweet lady with whom I signed up for Thirty-One, and she asked me if I'd made a reading list. I responded, "Well, no, not yet." And she said, "Well you have to read Redeeming Love." When she said it was a fictional book, I said to myself, "Yeah, I'm not into fiction... too bad." Anyway, she encouraged me to make a book list, so I started working on it. I never came up with much of a list last year, but I did end up reading a total of 8 (eight) books. EIGHT. BOOKS. Wow! I couldn't remember when I'd last read a book through since having kids, but setting a goal for myself obviously worked. Maybe I'm a deadline-driven kinda girl?! (Duh. I know that I am.)

I wanted to document the books I read in 2011 so that I don't forget... so here goes:

I started out with Parenting by the Book by John Rosemond. It was eye-opening to read about how our society's parenting philosophies have largely been shaped by "psycho-babble" over the past 40 years. One huge takeaway was Dr Rosemond's encouragement for parents to rise up and take the rightful place of godly authority in their home.

I went to the bookstore and looked at Redeeming Love with plans to purchase it. When I saw it was [ahem] almost 500 pages, I shuddered. Um, no, I said. There's no way I can hang onto a fictional book for that long now that I have kids. Back in high school, maybe. Not now, though. So I put it back and left. I probably didn't snag a chocolate truffle at the Border's checkout before I left.

Next up, I read a blog that mentioned the book Parenting is Your Highest Calling and 8 Other Myths That Trap Us in Worry and Guilt so I checked it out from the library. Good read and though-provoking. I started feeling pretty empowered after completing two whole books. It felt good to return this one to the library knowing I had read it all the way through. I felt like I think an injured marathon runner would feel after recovering and getting back to racing. (Is that a strange analogy?! Maybe. But since I am training for my first 5K, running is on the brain.)

By then it was about Mother's Day. Steven got me an iPad. (score, baby!) I loved it, but I didn't really know all I could do with it. Steven loaded a Kindle app on it, and soon after, he had purchased Redeeming Love for us to read. "Us" you may ask. Yes, us. I had started working out on our elliptical during naptime, so Steven suggested that I could use the iPad and read during that time. I tried it, and I was hooked. So, I started reading Redeeming Love. Steven started around the same time, reading on his iPhone. We couldn't stop. It is a captivating story that is based on the book of Hosea in the Bible. Now I understood why Trilby had said I had to read this book! Excellent and highly recommended.

So, apparently I can read a fiction book. And pretty much enjoy it. I loved Francine Rivers' style of writing, so I decided to read a couple more. I read The Scarlet Thread during our beach getaway in June. Loved it.

Then I read The Atonement Child in late summer. It is a story about a girl who was raped and became pregnant. It grapples with some very deep issues, and helped me to have a new perspective on women who have crisis pregnancies. This was especially timely since I completed volunteer training and had begun sporadically volunteering at the Charlotte Pregnancy Resource Center.

These last three books were ones I read throughout the year, picking them up from time to time, and putting them down for days or even weeks. I finished all three of them during the first week of January 2012.

The first one is Made to Crave by Lysa Terkeurst. It was a challenging book about feeding your emotional cravings with God instead of food. Hmmmm. I am a somewhat emotional eater, as was Lysa, so this really encouraged me to search my heart and make sure that I am allowing God satisfy my deepest needs. Kinda hard to read and keep reading since I have to keep eating. Just kidding. (sort of.) ;) But it was worth the read and very thought-provoking.

I also read A Love that Multiplies by Michelle and Jim Bob Duggar. This one was pure delight. I am a big fan of the Duggars and had read their first book a couple years ago. I especially enjoyed A Love That Multiplies because it contained lots of practical advice on how they run their household, including homeschooling and discipline tips.

Finally, my last book of the year was When People Are Big and God is Small: Overcoming Peer Pressure, Codependency, and the Fear of Man. This one reads like a textbook at times, but it was a very impactful book! I think many people struggle with fearing man more than God, and I am definitely included in this bunch! The author encourages believers to fear men less and love them more, all the while seeking to grow in the fear of the Lord. That is my prayer. I will give this one my "Best Book of the Year" award because it had the greatest application to my life and my particular struggles at this point in my journey.

I am so thankful that somehow I was able to read all these books. Here is my reading wish list so far for 2012:

Boundaries for Kids by Henry Cloud and John Townsend
Approval Addiction by Joyce Meyer
Strong-Willed Child by James Dobson
Love Languages for Kids by Gary Chapman
Her Daughter's Dream by F. Rivers
Her Mother's Hope by F. Rivers
Friendships for Grownups by Lisa Whelchel
One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp (started reading this last year and didn't finish.)

I'd appreciate any other suggestions!