“Train Up a Child “

Or is it “The fruit doesn’t fall too far from the tree”?

Have you ever noticed how your children have picked up your habits?  I recently observed a couple of my daughters standing with their hands on their hips.  Where do you think they got that?  Hmm ….  How about that tendency to hide away in a bedroom when the world has gotten to be a bit much?  Lately I’ve been noticing some definite “Prichard traits” that are surfacing in my children.  We read; we laugh; we tease and use sarcasm far too often; we work hard and help one another.

Raising children is an incredible delight and responsibility.  Not only can I share some of my favorite things about life, but I can be a bad example and lead them into some not-so-beneficial habits.

This afternoon, I took my son with me to a coffee shop for some reading and writing.  Now I’m wondering … is this a good thing or a bad habit?  It’s definitely a "Momma Prichard thing".

What are you showing your kids about life?

Books!

A sweet date for my husband and I is a quick trip from Northfield to Minneapolis to one of our favorite places ... Half Price Books! We know each store in the Twin Cities. One afternoon we actually hit all of them.

Even though we're on a date, we walk in the door together only to separate and go to our favorite sections. I check out the mystery and classic fiction sections, education and parenting books, Christian books and usually end up in the clearance section. Since this sectionof books is more haphazardly organized, I browse more slowly and carefully. You never know what $1.00 gem you'll find with all those other books. Half Price Books also has a great children's section. What a wonderful way to indoctrinate your children into the used book culture!


Used book stores have a unique aura. Unlike an upscale store with it's gourmet coffee and leather stuffed chair most second hand book stores have uneven piles of books here and there amongst the shelves. People slowly scan the shelves looking for that treasured, unusual book tucked in with a number of other obscure titles. Less conversation happens in these stores.


Used book stores don't draw the half-hearted non-readers. In other words, people who walk into the store aren't thinking, "I don't really like to read, but maybe if I got a really cheap book I might give it a try." People who come into Half Price Books are usually pretty serious readers. Often, they're quirky, too. What would you expect of a store with large sections of vintage comic books and vinyl records; with obscure titles on history and science; with every L'Amour or Christie book; with a large section on D & D and paranormal studies? It's a magnet for the out-of-the-ordinary.



Granted, not every couple will see an outing at a book store as a "hot date" which I guess could qualify us as quirky. But give it a try. On your next date, skip the movie or the mall and hit a used book store. You never know......

Currently reading .......

Right now, the books in my Monet book bag are:
Bible (my trusty Thompson Chain-Referenced NIV)
Homemade Money by Barbara Brabec
There's a Business in Every Woman by Ann Holmes
London Mystery Selection
Naked Once More by Elizabeth Peters

In my red backpack are:
Frames of Mind by Howard Gardner
Visioneering by Andy Stanley
College Admissions Together by Steven Goodman
The Ultimate College Acceptance System by Danny Ruderman

On my shelf assigned to library books are:
The Unofficial Guide to Opening a Franchise by Jason Rich
The Official eBay Bible by Jim Griffith
L'Chaim by Susan Goldman Rubin

On my nightstand are:
my cd/alarm clock
yesterday's earrings
my mouthguard so I don't clench my teeth in my sleep.

(I don't read in bed very often. We have a loveseat and a recliner in our bedroom and I'll often sit up and read for a while before getting into bed.)

Reading Tastes

What's an "eclectic reader?" I've seen that term around lately and have wondered if it applies to me. Does that mean one has a variety of interests or just can't focus and settle down? Would you pore over anything in print or carefully select where you spend your time? Is eclectic just an excuse for "passive?" Is is possible to be so broad-minded in your interests that direction and vision continually elude you? Or, is the non-eclectic reader really only narrow-minded and stuck in a rut? Does a passion for a topic mask some weird obsession?


OK, maybe I'm thinking a bit too deeply about my reading tastes. Maybe no one even cares. However, I am amused sometimes by the odd collection that comes home with me from the library. Yes, I do get stuck in a rut and want to read every book by certain authors (and no books by others.) In fact, I have a spreadsheet on the computer listing all the books that my favorite authors have written and am systematically requesting them from our greater library system.


But I also buy/ check out/ read books on such varied topics that my husband can only roll his eyes at me. For example, last week's book purchases included an English grammar for the Latin student, a Redwall book, a Narnia trivia book, and a mystery by Elizabeth Peters. My library bag held 2 books on marketing, Homemade Money, EBay the Easy Way, 2 books on college admissions, a Perry Mason mystery, a Ngaio Marsh novel, and a rather tame novel with a steamy cover and title.

What I'd really love is to have the ability to absorb books without having to read them all. At least with non-fiction. Wouldn't it be great if we could go to be with a book under our pillows and in the morning wake up with the contents stored safely in our heads? Hmmm.....