Connect Faith and Science with Ease {An Indescribable Kids The Wonder of Creation: 100 More Devotions About God and Science Review}

Disclaimer: I received this Complementary Product through the Homeschool Review Crew.

Got a curious science lover who likes to read? I do!

He's been enjoying the book from Indescribable Kids series called The Wonder of Creation: 100 More Devotions About God and Science.

Authored by Louie Giglio with Tama Fortner and illustrated by Nicola Anderson, this hardcover edition is geared towards kids ages 6-10 or so, but can be fun for older readers like mine to dip into as well.

In it, there are 100 devotions illustrated with bright and engaging full-color drawings and, sometimes, striking photographs. The devotions cover wide variety of topics, such as:

• animals--from honeyguide birds to flying snakes to white rhinos

• space--from black holes to volcanic moons to gamma-ray bursts

• people--from optical illusions to brain freezes to our immune systems

• Earth--from rainbow rivers to blue lava to flowing glaciers

• and much more.

Of course, you can read these in order -using the attached book ribbon to keep your place. Or, you can use the table of contents and the the provided subject index to find specific devotions that key into topics of interest. (My son chose to do the former.)

Each devotional is presented as a two-page spread which features interesting scientific information on a specific topic, a faith-based connection, a short Bible verse, a closing prayer, and related illustrations and photographs.

When our copy of the book arrived at our house, I loved seeing my son dive right into it.

In fact, the scenario went like this:

"I think I heard a package getting delivered. Will you check the stoop?"  I said to my son.

"Sure, Mom...It looks like a book." My son handed me the package.

I opened it. "It is a book. YOUR book."

My son then sat down immediately in a chair with The Wonder of Creation: 100 More Devotions About God and Science, and, the next thing I knew, he was marveling, "Mom, how could an animal be that small!" and questioning "How many tons of trash do you think there is on Mt. Everest?"  

 

A bit later, my son asked if we could look up some documentaries on jerbers and the bunny trails began... 

Since then, my son has been reading the book at his own pace between doing other things. When I asked him for his thoughts for this review, he told me:

I have read half-way through the book. It is easy reading. So far, the things I found the most interesting were that:

• there is 11 tons of trash on Mt. Everest.

• there is a human-looking robot on the International Space Station that, origonally walked around on its hands but now has legs, that there is also a robot based off origami that thas two wheels and can flatten itself out to explore crevices, and that there is one named Cube-Shaped Hedgehog that can tumble across asteroids and hop.

• Baluchistan pigmy jerbers are weigh barely more than a penny, are two inches long and have a 3-inch tail, and hope aroud the desert.

 

I found the facts in the book much more interesting than the Bible connections, but some people might like the Bible stuff.

I would recommend this book for others who like to read about random facts and the wonders of creation. I plan to finish reading the book because it is fun to read.

The next day, he was reading the book again, so he is carrying through on that plan.

With my son's experience and commentary in mind - as well as just knowing what kinds of books my older children liked when they were younger, I would definitely recommend this book as a fun, educational, faith-connected read aloud with younger children or a free read for kids who are able to read it on their own. 

It would be ideal for science-loving kids who like to learn across different topics. Bible-loving kids who wish to see how science and the Word connect will also like the book. 

Parents who tend to strew materials which might spark deeper dives will likely find the book piques curiosity and inspires further study -  especially the call-outs in each devotional spread that invite kids to "Explore the Wonder".

Kids and parents who are looking for quick, easy, yet informative bedtime and morning reading and those who gently want to add some STEM materials to their days may also like the book. 

To see what other families thought about the book, head on over to the Homeschool Review Crew to find links to many reviews. 

You may also to engage with Indescribable Kids on social media at:

Facebook (Tommy Nelson)

Instagram (Tommy Nelson)

Instagram (Louie Giglio)

Instagram (Indescribable Kids)

Happy reading!

A Simple Way to Involve Older Children in Almsgiving This Lent (or Anytime!)

When I asked my youngest what he thought we should add to our Pray-Fast-Give chain this year for fasting, one of his first answers was, "Buy food to put it in bags for the homeless."

I knew right away why he had said it.

Last Sunday, as we were on our way home from Mass, we pulled up at a stoplight where a homeless gentleman was standing. It was cold, and we had a blanket in the car, so we handed it out the window to the man, but, sadly, did not have any food, warm socks, or other things on hand to gift him.

So it is that, as a part of our Lenten practices, we are hoping to repeat a Works of Mercy effort that some of our homeschool friends and us got together for during Advent: Making Blessing Bags!

To make the bags, each family that was participated shared what they would be bringing using this helpful how-to as a guide for what the homeless might find helpful or not.

Then, upon arrival at the host house, we set up a "buffet" table of sorts with piles of 25 of each item.

Younger children went in another room and made hand drawn cards and pictures to include in the bags, while older children and parents each stood behind a pile and we passed a bag from one to another, filling it assembly-line style.

It took less than an hour to assemble all the bags, inclusive of the time it took to reassemble the few bags which had zippers break or were just not closing due to the way that space-taking items such as a bottle of water, thick socks, and foot warmers had been put in amongst smaller items.

So, making Blessing Bags truly proved to be a simple project that brought us together as a homeschool community to prepare to help our larger community.

We hope to have another Blessing Bag get together this Lent and encourage you to try it with family or friends.

Among the things in ours, were all the things pictured below, plus tuna and crackers and water.

We pray this idea inspires you in your almsgiving and would appreicate hearing your ideas, too!

6 Questions to Help Prepare for Lenten Fasting

Fasting.

How do you get your tweens and teens to want to fast?

With only one older child here who seems to "get" Lenten fasting and two who now tend, sadly, to fight fasting more and more each year, I have been thinking about how to approach this part of our Lenten practice this year.

I decided that I will start with six reflective questions, see what my family's private and shared answers are, and, then, go from there as we choose fasting ideas for our Pray-Fast-Give chain and personal Lenten practices.

Perhaps the questions will help lead your and yours into more meaningful fasting this Lent, too.

1. Are there habits that we engage in that are destructive to our spiritual health?
2. Which areas of our lives feels unbalanced?
3. What causes discord in our family or disorder in our days?
4. To what are we devoting too much time or not enough?
5. To what materials things are we too attached?
   
6. Where do we think God is asking to to grow or to let go in order to better love Him and others?

My hope is that in reflecting upon and discussing these questions, my children will find plenty of purposeful fodder for fasting during our Lenten journeys.

How do you approach ideas for fasting with your growing children? I would love to hear about it!

May God draw each of us closer to Him as we enter into Lent and place increased focus on prayer, fasting, and almsgiving (service and Works of Mercy.).\

20 Prayer Ideas for Lent

Okay, I admit it: I have not even gotten all of our Christmas books and nativity sets put away and, yet, Lent is almost here.

With the way our life's been rolling, I don't think we'll embrace many of the traditions and customs which we have for Lent in prior years. I do, know, however, that I will attempt to keep my family focused daily on the three pillars of Lent - prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.

Thus, I sat down and quickly brainstormed ideas to suggest to my children for for personal Lenten prayer practices as well as for our collective pray-fast-give chain this year. Although most of these are no-brainers, I am sharing them here in case they might inspire you in deciding what to focus on or add to your own Lenten journey with prayer

1. Attend Mass daily whenever possible.
2. Make a spiritual communion together on days when we cannot get to Mass.
3. Make frequent confessions.
4. Get to Adoration.
5. Spend extra time reading Scripture.
6. Get back to praying the Rosary together more often (as opposed to Mom praying it on her own.)
   
7. Read The Creed in Slow Motion together.
8. Attend all or part of a local Lenten mission.
9. Pray the Stations of the Cross.
10. Make a special prayer notebook and list all of the people in our lives that need prayers. Pray for them daily, and add someone new daily.
11. Return to doing a guided examen at nights.
12. Pray the Jesus Prayer throughout each day.
13. Reflect daily on which of the seven capital sins we have been slave to and pray for an increase in its corresponding virtue.
14. Pray together every time we get into our vehicle, not just the first time each day.
15. Pick someone new each day to offer our challenges and sacrifices for.
16. Pay special attention to the intercessions at daily Mass and choose one to pray for especially throughout the day.
17. Go to bed five to ten minutes early and spend extra time chatting with God.
18. Spend an extra five minutes a day in Spiritual Reading.
19. Notice what world event pops up on our screens at the start of each day and pray specifically for the people involved.
20. Spend several minutes in silence each day inviting the Lord to speak to our hearts,

I would love to hear some of the ways you'll be adding extra prayers into your Lenten journey.

Enjoy Simple Eats with Our Lady of Lourdes

French toast is super easy to make - even if your gluten-free like some of us. So, it has become one of our go-to's for celebrating the liturgical year at home on Feburary 11, the Memorial of Our Lady of Lourdes.

Why French toast? Because Our Lady appeared in Lourdes, France.

And, of course, one of our toppings is always Our Lady's blue(berries).

We also sometimes serve something yellow - such as defrosted frozen mango chunks or chunked pineapple to remind us of the yellow roses at the feet of the apparition of Our Lady of Lourdes.

And to drink? Water, of course, which reminds us of the miraculous and healing spring in Lourdes.

For decoration at the table, we typically put out our Our Lady of Lourdes and St. Bernadette peg dolls from our Marian apparation set.

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Then, if our day is not too jam-packed, besides praying and recalling the story of Our Lady of Lourdes, we revisit a variety of stories or movies, which include:

The Saints Chronicles, Collection 3

Source: Amazon

Bernadette: Our Lady's Little Servant.

Source: Amazon

 Saint Bernadette Soubirous: And Our Lady of Lourdes.

Source: Amazon

Saint Bernadette: the Little Girl of Lourdes.  

Source: Amazon

Our Lady of Lourdes Coloring Book

Source: Amazon

Bernadette, Princess of Lourdes

The Song of Bernadette

If you're celebrating, too, you might consider having an Our Lady of Lourdes Poet-Tea like we did in the past.

Source: Training Happy Hearts

Some years, we even get fancier with our eats, such as they year we hosted an Our Lady of Lourdes Poet-Tea.

We also sometimes play our All Saints Day Build-a-Grotto for Mary game!

Always, we are blessed by our simple eats with the saints.

Perhaps you can enjoy similar simple eats and blessings!

Our Lady of Lourdes, pray for us!

Feast with St. Paul Miki on Feburary 6th

Want a tasty idea for a meal with the saints? 

Make or order Japanese-inspired food.

February 6 is the Memorial of Saint Paul Miki and Companions, Martyrs, who was born in Japan, educated at a Jesuit college, known for his eloquent preaching, and, sadly, crucified with twenty-five other Catholis during the presecution of Christians in Japan in the late 1500's.

If you are unfamiliar with this saint, this brief video can be a good one to watch:

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Last year, before and during our St. Paul Miki dinner, we watched this video, read about Saint Paul Miki and Charles Lwanga in Once Upon a Time Saints, prayed grace, prayed in thanksgiving for the courageous faith of martyrs and the way they often inspire others in faith, and prayed for all those persecuted for faith around the world.

A red tablecloth reminded us of the martyrs...

... and we laid our food out in a cross shape to remind us of how the martyrs met their death.

Our plates and chopsticks were a hodge podge of authentic Japanese ones from my time in Japan years ago. And all of our food was Japanese-inspired - and happily devoured!

Perhaps you and yours can enjoy celebrating the liturgical year at home with a similar saint day inspired meal this year!

St. Paul Miki and Companions, pray for us!

Easy Eats with St. John Bosco

What's for dinner on January 31? 

Italian food!

January 31st is the Memorial of St. John Bosco, and a great day to whip up some easy eats for celebrating the liturgical year at home by focusing on the saints.

You might go green, white, and red to remind you of the flag of St. John Bosco's homeland, Italy. 

We did this a couple years back with a simple dinner of gluten-free pasta,  sauce,  salad greens, tofu balls for our vegetarians, and meatballs for the rest. (The balls reminiscent of St. John Bosco being the Patron Saint of Jugglers.)

Or, like we did last year, you could go with chickpeas instead of tofu balls as "juggling balls".

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To decorate the table, the wonderful Boy Saints for Little Ones - reviewed here - can provide a focal point.

Or, the Encyclopedia of Peg Saints - reviewed here - can be a focal point and offer fodder for a quick oral game of St. John Bosco trivia.

After grace, the Picture Book of Saints can offer a prayer and short bio to share. Or, you can enjoy a longer story about St. John Bosco in the Loyola Kids Book of Saints.

Then,  if you like a movie after dinner - as we sometimes do - Formed has one about St John Bosco.

Simple eats, stories, prayers, a movie...observing St. John Bosco's feast day at home can be filled with delights.

St. John Bosco, pray for us.