We Have A Winner!

I'm a little late, but just wanted to publish the results of the One Wintry Night Giveaway!

It is....

Laura Fincham!

Congrats, Laura!

And thanks to Tommy Nelson for the opportunity to give this away!

Book Review: One Wintry Night

I was so excited to get the opportunity to review "One Wintry Night" by Ruth Bell Graham!

Here's a snippet of the publisher's description that piqued my attention:

 A classic Christmas picture book, One Wintry Night tells the story of a mountain boy who is injured in a snowstorm and seeks refuge in a cabin. While he waits out the storm, the woman who lives there tells him the Christmas story. In a magnificent blend of a contemporary setting with the history of God’s redeeming love, Ruth Graham created a wonderful and unique version of the Christmas story. Breathtakingly illustrated by renowned artist Richard Jesse Watson, One Wintry Night is the perfect gift for the young and the young-at-heart that will fascinate both those who have heard the Bible story many times and those who know only a few details.

I was particularly excited about the way that Ruth Graham wove together the whole of the Bible to tell the Christmas story. She recognizes that all of Scripture speaks of Jesus, from Genesis to Revelation. Since this is something I am attempting to teach my children, I was so excited to find a Christmas book like this!

Since my girls are on the young side for a book like this, I chose to begin the story at bedtime on December 13 and read one chapter every night, ending the story on Christmas Eve. I will say that my two year old didn't quite have the attention span for this story -- the word to pictures ratio is probably a bit much for her age group. 

Speaking of the pictures...they are absolutely breathtaking! This is probably one of the most gorgeously illustrated children's books I have ever seen.

If you've got kids in the 4 years old and up range, I would highly recommend adding this to your Christmas book collection!

And I can help with that! Thanks to the generous folks at Tommy Nelson, I have one copy of the book to giveaway.

To enter, simply follow the instructions on the Rafflecopter below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I received a copy of this book for review from Tommy Nelson. All opinions are my own.

My First Hands On Bible -- Tyndale Press

So...a long time ago maybe even more than a year???  I received a copy from Tyndale Press of, "My First Hands On Bible" to review. And seriously...how embarrassing is it that I am only just now getting around to reviewing it? (Don't answer that.)

Anyway, the lovely people at Tyndale have been gracious enough to not kick me out of their program, so I thought it was high time I hold up my end of the bargain!

We absolutely LOVE this Bible! I could drone on for paragraph after paragraph about all of attributes, but let's just bullet point it for you, k?

• It uses actual Scripture. This is a big one for me! I don't mind story Bibles, but there is something about the actual Word of God -- it's powerful! And I want it in my children's lives from an early age. This Bible uses select verses from the NLT for each story.
  
  
• It's HANDS ON! I know, I know...Captain Obvious. But what makes it hands on is that they have written suggestions in the margins of every story for simple activities you can do to get your kids interacting with the story while you read it. For example, when you're reading Noah's Ark, they suggest having your kids, "Walk like an elephant, hop like a kangaroo, and run like a deer." I know some people are naturally just creative like that anyway, but I'm kind of the type of person that NEEDS TO HAVE IT SPELLED OUT FOR ME. So this is great!
  
  
• The Jesus Connection I love this aspect of the Bible! At the end of every story, they've got a short couple of sentences explaining how Jesus fits into the picture. Because we can see Jesus and the story of God's redemptive plan in every part of the Bible, I am thrilled to have had someone put it into children's terms to help explain that to them...because, again...I need it spelled out for me

I would probably put this in my top two children's Bibles that I have seen and used. It's meant for children ages 3-6, but they also offer Hands On Bibles for the older kids as well.

This Bible is available for purchase on the Tyndale website.

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This review copy was provided by Tyndale House Publishers. All opinions expressed are strictly my own.