Hold On, But Don't Hold Still

 'Hold On, But Don't Hold Still' is an inspiring memoir by Kristina Kuzmic. Kristina shares her story of a life that didn't turn out quite like she planned, but through endurance and hope, turned out to be quite beautiful and fulfilling. When she winds up being a single mom with two small kids, almost destitute, and buried under severe depression, she has a hard time believing that life could ever get any better. She starts to believe that her children would be better off she just ended her life, but through an amazing therapist and lots of hard work, she comes to understand the truth behind that awful lie. 

I discovered Kristina on Facebook. Her witty and heartfelt videos were a source of joy and entertainment for me. I loved how real and raw she was, and that she was willing to discuss the hard truths of being a mom. I have felt the things that she has felt and she gave me hope on some of my hardest parenting days. When she announced that she was publishing a book I knew it was one I definitely need to read, and it did not disappoint. I am a huge fan of hers and promise you that this book is worth the read. 

#IMomSoHard

Have you seen the hilarious videos of the team #IMomSoHard on Facebook? They crack me up and really hit home on what the parenting thing really looks like. They use humor to discuss some of the more messier parts of parenting and womanhood. I especially liked their bathing suit video - I don't even know how many times I have watched that one - it makes me laugh so hard I end up in tears. The women of the videos, Jen Smedley and Kristin Hensley, wrote a book that carries on with their wisdom and humor of their videos. You also get to learn more about their childhood in the Midwest, their college years, and how they met and married their spouses. The book is all about "keeping it real" with no sugar coating. I honestly just love these women and wish that I could be best friends with them! It is my goal one day to go to one of their shows on their comedy tours, but for now I will just keep laughing and enjoying their videos. If you don't follow these ladies on #IMomSoHard then do it, do it right now!

Girl, Wash Your Face

My sister gave me the book 'Girl, Wash Your Face' by Rachel Hollis for my birthday. I have had a lot of friends talking about this book and had heard a lot of mixed reviews, so I was excited to discover it for myself. I honestly loved it. There were some chapters that I identified with more then others, but I thought she did a fantastic job speaking to the inner heart of women everywhere. There was a handful of times where I can distinctly remember having my own "Ah-ha!" moments. There are stories of hers that will stick with me for a very long time. I will keep those to myself however so as not to take away anyone else's moments of self discovery. I thoroughly enjoyed her sense of humor, candid honesty, and intelligent advise. This is a great, quick, feel good book and I would definitely recommend it.

Heaven Help Us

This month's book for book club was 'Heaven Help Us' by Kari J. Rich. This is a collection of memoirs written by a woman who lives in Cache Valley and writes for the Herald Journal (our local newspaper). While some of her stories had me laughing out loud, others made me kind of cringe. While I thoroughly enjoyed her tales of Thanksgiving woes, trying to get to church on time, and stories of how Girls Camp really is, there were also some things that were either TMI or just kind of boring. For instance, an entire chapter does not need to be dedicated to you detailing your workouts at the gym... snooze fest. Also, lusting after the 16 year old grocery boy..... ewwwww. And while I am a sarcastic person myself, sometimes her writing was a little too sarcastic and came off as just plain mean. For example: when she is berating the poor nurses at the hospital and answering them in snarky rude ways. We understand that you are worried about your sick kid and are frustrated, but those poor nurses have long shifts and have to deal with unpleasant people all day long. Maybe I have worked too many retail jobs, but on this one, I thought she could cut them some slack, they really are just doing the best they can. I guess this book was okay. There are some funny moments in it, but I probably wouldn't read it again. I guess you will just have to check it out and decide for yourself.

Heaven is Here

'Heaven is Here' by Stephanie Nielson was another great read from my book club. This book was both heartbreaking and uplifting at the same time, and I don't even know how that is possible. I enjoyed reading Stephanie's thoughts so much, she had me completely captivated by her story and I spent too many nights reading her words late into the night. 

Stephanie Nielson is the creator of the Nie Nie Diaries blog, She is a Mormon girl from Provo, Utah whose greatest aspiration is to be the best wife and mother she can be. When her husband gets a job in New Jersey a family member of her introduces her to blogging as a way to keep her family updated on what is going on in their lives. Stephanie absolutely falls in love with blogging and pretty soon she has many, many followers. 

Stephanie and her family find themselves moving to Arizona where her husband decides to take flying lessons. When her and her husband are in a terrible plane crash it is a miracle that she survives at all. 80% of her body was severely burned and this is the story of her recovery from that accident. As a wife and mother myself, her struggles to do and relearn every day tasks were heart wrenching. But Stephanie is a survivor in every sense of the word.

'Heaven is Here' taught me many valuable life lessons. Don't take what you have and what you can do for granted. Stop making excuses for yourself. Trust in the Lord and everything will work out. Never give up. Do the best you can, and then forgive yourself for your shortcomings. Needing and asking for help is okay. Be grateful for the tender mercies. Treasure your loved ones, for life is short, and you never know what might happen. There are so many more!

This is filled with so much goodness. After I read it I wanted nothing more than to meet Stephanie in real life and thank her for this book. She only lives two hours south of me, maybe I will meet her someday, who knows? I sure hope so. I just want to give her a hug! 

Mary, Martha, and Me

This month I joined a book club and this is the first book that we read. 'Mary, Martha, and Me' by Camille Fronk Olsen is the story of the sisters Mary and Martha in the bible and the relationship they had with Christ. Camille Olsen delves deeper into the story of when Martha rebukes Mary to Christ for not helping her do the work that needs to be done. Mary chooses instead to feast upon the words of Christ. Christ responds to Martha by telling her that Mary has chosen the one needful thing.

This book definitely has some good insights to this story. For the most part I did enjoy reading this, but I was glad that it was a shorter novel because parts of it seemed kind of dry to me. I am one of those people that have a hard time reading "church talk" type books - but if that is your kind of thing than I would think you would really like this book. She had some good points and made me think about the two women and their differing personalities more than I have ever done before. I sometimes had a hard time with this story thinking that Chirst was being harsh to Martha. If she didn't do the work than everyone would be hungry right? This book helped me understand the scenario much better and is very thought provoking.

The Remarkable Soul of a Woman

Today I was in the mood to read something uplifting. So I read 'The Remarkable Soul of a Woman' by Dieter F. Uchtdorf, second counselor in the general presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

In this book President Uchtdorf explains that there are two ways to make yourself feel happy. One is by doing charitable service for others, and the second is by creating. Now, I must admit, that sometimes I feel like the least creative person on the planet. There is a certain quote that I read just after such thoughts crossed my mind. He says, "You may think you don't have talents, but that is a false assumption, for we all have talents and gifts, every one of us. The bounds of creativity extend far beyond the limits of a canvas or a sheet of paper and do not require a brush, a pen, or the keys of a piano. Creation means bringing into existence something that did not exist before- colorful gardens, harmonious homes, family memories, flowing laughter." I just  loved that quote. Who knew that family memories and laughter were actually a type of creation? And come to think of it, they may be some of the best kinds of creation.

This book takes all of ten minutes to read, its that short. But it honestly would be a great little gem to have on your shelf for those days that are going down the crapper. When you are feeling blue and need a little encouragement just whip this little book out and become enlightened and encouraged.