Rating: 
Summary: A "must read" for all parents......
Review: In this hectic, fast paced world that our children are growing up in....this wonderful book made me stop, take pause and reflect on the kinds of choices being made that fill my children's days as well as their minds. While reading it I kept thinking how ironic it is that our adult culture is currently embracing Eastern cultural thinking and ways of life through the books we've made best sellers...calming fountains we buy to bring the sounds of nature into our homes...even bead bracelets we wear to bring calmness/serenity/good health to our being. Yet what are we doing to our children? Dashing through their childhood from one planned activity to the next and spending hours in front of electronic equipment with no human interaction. Mitten Strings for God made me think hard about the importance of "conscience parenting"..and reminded me of the wonderful things that unfold in life when you slow down. It is a "must read" for all parents. Thank you, Katrina Kenison.
Rating: 
Summary: BUt what to do
Review: It was a nice peek into the author's "privledged" life but what can most of the rest of us do to create more spirituality with our kids. I prefer hands on action books. For real ideas I read BEliefnet.com's parenting and family stuff. They have a daily page of tips for parents that feeds my imagination and spirit as a parent. This book left me feeling a little diminished. It's also got a Christian slant.
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining, inspiring, and filled with thoughtful ideas!
Review: Katrina has written such a beautiful book. I often pick it up to read chapters over again (and the recipes are delicious!). She includes stories from her own life of things that worked and the sometimes hilarious ones when things went bad (cat peeing on the floor and she lost it in front of the children). And who among us hasn't packed our children in the car to see some children's entertainer, only to realize later that we would have had more fun snuggling up and reading to eachother at home? Because she shares her humbling parenting mishaps, it's easier to consider her advice in the stories when she seems like such a perfect parent. She offers practical and thoughtful ideas for slowing down, connecting, and really being present with our children.This is my favorite book to give to mothers with young or school-age children. Buy an extra one -- you'll want one to loan out so you can still keep your own. Enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining, inspiring, and filled with thoughtful ideas!
Review: Katrina has written such a beautiful book. I often pick it up to read chapters over again (and the recipes are delicious!). She includes stories from her own life of things that worked and the sometimes hilarious ones when things went bad (cat peeing on the floor and she lost it in front of the children). And who among us hasn't packed our children in the car to see some children's entertainer, only to realize later that we would have had more fun snuggling up and reading to eachother at home? Because she shares her humbling parenting mishaps, it's easier to consider her advice in the stories when she seems like such a perfect parent. She offers practical and thoughtful ideas for slowing down, connecting, and really being present with our children. This is my favorite book to give to mothers with young or school-age children. Buy an extra one -- you'll want one to loan out so you can still keep your own. Enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: I'd give this a 3.6 rating on a scale of 1 to 5
Review: Katrina Kenison can make magic. This short and easy series of thoughts on mothering was able to go down all the better for it's brevity (the boy's napping - let's take 5 and read a couple of pages!). It's brevity causes it to lose nothing for gravity and richness - it only serves to make her thoughts more precise, more clear. I've enjoyed adding things to our own life (like the brownie who lives in the kitchen) and will happily look for more of her work.
Rating:
Summary: A MUST FOR MOMS
Review: Mitten Strings For God: Reflections For Mothers In A Hurry by Katrina Kenison is a series of meditative thoughts. Inspirational and life-affirming, it offers reminders of what is of lasting value, such as grace, love, tranquility. Ms. Kenison writes, "I can only bring peace to my children when I possess it myself." The mother of two energetic young sons and former editor of The Best American Short Stories anthology, Ms. Kenison well knows the pressures under which contemporary families exist, the whirlwind activities generated when one wants only the best for children, and the frenetic treadmill involved in being a working wife/mother. Nonetheless, the author has suggestions for discovering oases of serenity as she intersperses personal experiences with philosophical wisdom. Her writing, which is as simple and true as that of Anne Morrow Lindbergh, bears rereading and contemplation. Ms. Kenison brings a sense of reawakened pleasure to the sometimes harried family evening meal, as well as a profound joy found in the ordinary. "Only by slowing down do we make time for one another," she writes. "Only by stopping long enough to observe our surroundings can we bring shape and meaning to our lives." How simple. How true. - Gail Cooke
Rating:
Summary: A MUST FOR MOMS
Review: Mitten Strings For God: Reflections For Mothers In A Hurry by Katrina Kenison is a series of meditative thoughts. Inspirational and life-affirming, it offers reminders of what is of lasting value, such as grace, love, tranquility. Ms. Kenison writes, "I can only bring peace to my children when I possess it myself." The mother of two energetic young sons and former editor of The Best American Short Stories anthology, Ms. Kenison well knows the pressures under which contemporary families exist, the whirlwind activities generated when one wants only the best for children, and the frenetic treadmill involved in being a working wife/mother. Nonetheless, the author has suggestions for discovering oases of serenity as she intersperses personal experiences with philosophical wisdom. Her writing, which is as simple and true as that of Anne Morrow Lindbergh, bears rereading and contemplation. Ms. Kenison brings a sense of reawakened pleasure to the sometimes harried family evening meal, as well as a profound joy found in the ordinary. "Only by slowing down do we make time for one another," she writes. "Only by stopping long enough to observe our surroundings can we bring shape and meaning to our lives." How simple. How true. - Gail Cooke
Rating:
Summary: This NEVER leaves my nightstand...
Review: So often in the midst of sibling rivalry, dirty laundry, homework and lessons, I forget the real reason that I am a mother. Anytime I feel myself losing focus on my role as mother, I pull out Ms. Kenison's soothing words. Her quiet, simple style reminds me to enjoy these most precious years with my little ones. This is one book I recommend to EVERY mother I know.
Rating:
Summary: Enjoyable and Inspiring
Review: This book puts into words all of the thoughts I have had over the years. We all know how to give our children the gift of a simple childhood. We just have so many competing pressures in the world that sometimes it is difficult to take a step back from all of the confusion. But this is something that many more mothers are trying to do. We are quietly taking back our families from the materialism, commercialism and competition that seem to be invading our lives. Reflections For Mothers in a Hurry can clarify these goals and remind us of the real reasons we have chosen motherhood. My grandmother has always told me to "enjoy the children". This book shows us the way to do just that. This book is very affirming and spiritually uplifting. Easy to read, the chapters are really independent reflections, each treating a different subject. There is no need to read it non-stop, though it is hard to put down. I bought two more copies, one for a new mom, and one for my friends. We are going to pass it around for inspiration and to share something we mothers all have in our hearts.
Rating:
Summary: I would put a copy under everyone's chair
Review: This book spoke so strongly to me that I told all my friends I would put a copy under all of their chairs if I was a tv talk show host! As a mother and preschool teacher, each page has a message I can use to change my life, and therefore, change the lives of the children I love every day. Katrina Kenison crawled into my mind and painted my thoughts with beautifully descriptive, yet simple prose.
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