Sometimes I come across things I’d like to share online, but since cutting out all social media, there’s not been a venue for me to do this–until I realized I could just share them here! I’ve been regularly sharing my favorite articles every month, but wanted to expand to other types of media (podcasts, videos, etc) and keep a record of some of my favorite moments of the month. Here we go:

Reads

Books

Dinner for Vampires by Bethany Joy Lenz. This is not normally a book I’d so publicly admit to reading, but as a fan of One Tree Hill in my high school days, it’s exactly the kind of book I’d pick up. That said, I was genuinely surprised by the hopefulness of the book given the context and circumstances described in it. Even if you weren’t a fan of the TV show, it’s a worthwhile read.
Unwinding Anxiety by Judson Brewer. I’m about halfway through this one, but I love a good book about how our brains work. I think the title is a bit misleading because the author addresses more than just anxiety, but I was fascinated by the premise of anxiety being a habit cycle our brains get into and wanted to learn more. As with any secular book about mental health, neuroscience, and habit formation, I always make sure to filter the author’s word through what I believe to be true in Scripture. However, I just love learning about how our brains work and have found this one really interesting so far.

Articles

Building the Habit of Family Worship

Esther Shin Chuang
Christianity Today

An interesting look at family worship habits across the globe, I found this article both realistic and encouraging when it comes to instituting a family worship time.

My Kid’s in the Basement- Help!

PJ Dunn
Lifeway Research

I am a millennial adult who did move back to my parents house after college (for about 3 years). That three years (along with the fact that my parents have just always been extremely generous to me) set me up for a very easy entry into true adulthood and I desire to do that for my own kids. On the other hand, I do see the point this article makes as adult children stay increasingly longer periods of time in their parents’ home (nevermind the fact that this is normal in many other cultures). All this to say, as a parent, this article got my gears turning and I found the advice helpful. I also liked that the writer addressed both parents and local church readers.

Let Us Walk by the Spirit

John Piper
Desiring God

This year, I’ve been praying God would help me learn to walk more by His Spirit and less by my own agenda. I often feel like I have no idea what it means to walk by the Spirit, so this article was helpful and encouraging.

Are You Losing Your Child to Video Games?

Melanie Hempe
Be ScreenStrong

Hempe wrote a thought-provoking article about her son’s video game addiction, and it doesn’t take much convincing at all for me to keep my kids away from screens. While they don’t care right now, I know it will become increasingly harder to keep my kids away from screens. Hempe provides some helpful signs and tips for parents whose children may be addicted to video games.

Be a Lifeguard Parent

Katherine Johnson Martino
The Analog Family

Martino writes about three stages of intervention that (supposedly) promote independence in children and help parents relax a bit more. I say supposedly because while I believe it’s vital for kids to learn independence and have read enough research that supports the premise of articles like this, I can’t say I feel more relaxed because, well, anxiety. But that’s why I keep reading articles like this for constant reminders that it’s good for me and for my kids to let them climb the tree in our front yard without me standing right below them! (See another of her articles, “Seventeen Seconds” for other tips along these lines.)

Raising Screen-Free Boys

Katherine Johnson Martino
After Babel

By the same writer as the article above, this one just confirms my bias that our choice to restrict screentime for our children was the right decision. I don’t say that arrogantly or in judgment of parents who do give their kids screentime- we aren’t complete screen-teetotalers, but I do think that limiting screentime has been one of the most important decisions we have made as a family and has benefitted us all. I have to admit that I’m a bit skeptical of some of her tips in this article, but since our kids are still so young, I’ll have to see how our screentime choices play out as they get older.

Don’t Scratch the Itch

Brittany Allen
Treasuring Christ

This is a shorter article, but I think I highlighted at least half of it. Each day we are faced with the choice to give into temptation or walk in God’s grace and strength to say “no” to that which threatens to ensnare us. Allen provides a needed reminder to continue fighting against the “itch” of temptation.

Watch/Listen

YouTube Workout Channels

For the first time ever, I’ve been exercising regularly and have kept up the habit for about six months now. I just use free workout videos on YouTube, and these are the channels I turn to most:

Team Body Project

I enjoy this channel enough that I’ve seriously considered subscribing to their premium plan (I just can’t justify paying for it when there are literally thousands of free workouts on YouTube). I like this channel because most of the videos are both challenging and are well-rounded (full-body) without making me feel like I’m going to die by the end. Though some workouts are at a higher level, you can check out the videos on their actual website to see the level of difficulty ahead of time, if you want to know what you’re getting into before you start.

PS Fit

PS Fit used to be my go-to whenever I’d get into a temporary exercise routine. There are a lot of dance-type workouts which I used to do exclusively because I hated any other kind of exercise! Now, I use only 2-3 of the same videos when I’m wanting to do something familiar without having to think too much about it.

fitbymik

This is one of my go-to channels for strength workouts. Her workouts are challenging without being too crazy and she’s not annoying!

Get Fit with Rick

I discovered this channel a few years ago when I felt I didn’t have the capacity to do any kind of exercise other than walking. I don’t come to this channel often anymore, because I don’t find it challenging enough, I do use these videos on rest days or when I’m not feeling well but still want to try to exercise a little bit. If I’m just wanting to walk and need a bit more challenge, I just speed up his video to 1.5 or even 2 (I don’t think you can do this on YouTube but I use a different player, which lets me speed it up.)

Things I’m Loving

Our cherry blossom trees have bloomed and our driveway looks like it’s snowed pink flowers. I love all of the blooming things around our house and am thankful for whichever previous owner did that work for me to enjoy!
I have fully bought in to the year-round school calendar. Our oldest is on a three-week break for spring right now and I absolutely love these longer breaks throughout the year, rather than a longer summer. Summer is going to feel squeezed (she only gets 5 weeks off for summer), for sure, but having these more regular long breaks has been much needed every time they come around.
Our kids hardcore pretend-play pretty much all the time, and one of my favorite things to do is ask them questions about whichever story or world they’re living in the moment. This season with them has been the most precious.
I introduced our oldest to the Boxcar Children series and it’s such a joy watching her enjoy the books I loved so much as a kid.

_{Photo by Glen Carrie on Unsplash}