When Did I Turn Into A Detective??

Look at her.... all angelic....all innocent....all holy looking....

DO NOT BE FOOLED!!

This child has had a horrible cold all week. The problem is that with this particular child, it's hard to tell just how sick she really is because she has become quite the capable actress. Meryl Streep has nothing on Jenna.

Example of conversation this morning ( this was after I told her she WAS going back to school ):

Jenna ( insert sickly and weak voice here ): "I'm really really sick Mom "

Mom ( insert responsible and caring Mom voice...not ) : "Go eat something so I can give you some medicine - I don't like to give it on an empty stomach "

Jenna ( answering way too quickly ) " I already ate something "

Mom ( raising eyebrow ) "Oh?? What did you have? "

Jenna (slightly raising her eyebrow ) "why do you want to know? "

Mom ( suddenly turning into Nancy Drew ) "So....if I were to go downstairs and look in the sink...would I find an empty cereal bowl? "

Jenna ...squirming and looking like a deer caught in the headlights.

Mom " Get downstairs....eat some breakfast....NOW! "

Motherhood is not for wusses.

A Book Review.....

Book Synopsis:

The novel is set in the American Northwest. The main character is Mackenzie Philips, a father of five, called "Mack" by his family and friends.
Four years prior to the main events of the story, Mack takes his three children on a camping trip to Multnomah Falls and Wallowa Lake near Joseph, Oregon. Two of his children are playing in a canoe when it flips and almost drowns Mack's son. Mack is able to save his son by leaving his youngest daughter Missy alone at their campsite. After Mack returns, he sees that Missy is missing. The police are called, and the family discovers that Missy has been abducted and murdered by a serial killer known as the "Little Ladykiller". The police find an abandoned shack in the woods where Missy was taken, but her body is never found. Mack's life sinks into what he calls The Great Sadness.
At the beginning of the book, Mack receives a note in his mailbox from "Papa", saying that he would like to meet with Mack on that coming weekend at the shack. Mack is puzzled by the note - he has no relationship with his abusive father, who left when Mack was young. He suspects that the note may be from God, who his wife Nan refers to as "Papa".
Mack leaves his family and goes alone to the shack, unsure of what he will see there. He arrives and finds nothing, but as he is leaving the shack and its surroundings are supernaturally transformed into a lush and inviting scene. He enters the shack and encounters manifestations of the three persons of the Trinity. God the Father takes the form of an African American woman who calls herself Papa, Jesus Christ is a Mideastern carpenter, and the Holy Spirit is personified as an Asian woman named Sarayu.

My Review:

I really....really....really wanted to LOVE this book. It's right up my alley and it's a subject matter that intrigues me. That said, there were many parts of this book that just didn't resonate with me. I like the idea of having "GOD" be both male and female. That worked well in my opinion. However, the 3 persons in one God thing....well, since we know that the church didn't come up with that idea until the council of Nicea....I kept struggling with that as being "FACT" in this book. On the other hand, I kept smacking myself and telling myself to read it as a story and not get caught up on specifics.

There is so very much to LOVE about the book - I like the idea of forgiveness - even for those that do HORRIBLE things. I like the idea of God always being around us.....I like the idea that heaven is really unimagineable to us......

I just wish I had loved this book more.....SIGH.

I'm tossing my hat in the ring!!!

I'm entering Mama's BEST LOVE SONG PLAY LIST competition!! I have a feeling that most of the songs I've selected Mama has never heard of - this might hurt me in the competition....I must add I am prepared to poop in her purse should I be penalized for it!