This article contains affiliate links.

Our son turns five this month.

He has certainly been an amazing blessing in the lives of my husband and I.

We prayed to become parents for years.  Then, when he was born he had a rough start, many friends and family prayed for his healing.

He is one of our miracles.  He is compassionate, funny and definitely one of a kind!

He’s not a big “toy kid”.  He loves playing hide and seek, tag, and telling jokes.

He is a model of living life simply and gratefully.  He wants to know who might come and visit everyday.  He wants to visit his Gram and hang out with her.  He LOVES his cousins. He often follows me around and I find myself suggesting he “go play with his toys”.

As his mother, I need to remember what’s on the top of his wish list:

Spending time with me. Spending time with his dad.  Spending time with his family.

Nothing makes him happier than me giving him my undivided attention . . . even if I’m knocking the ball he is holding out of his hands.  Actually, he loves that.  He thinks it’s hilarious.

God has blessed us with an incredibly amazing soul.

But anyway . . . I’ll stop with the mushy stuff!
There are some gifts that he would love to get for his birthday.

So, if you are shopping for a five-year-old . . .here are Xavier’s recommendations

Ben Ten Play Watch

There was a 10 minute window I found to take a nap the other day . . . I seized it.  I fell into a pretty “deep” sleep for a nap.  Within a minute I heard a loud noise and jumped up.  I thought someone got hurt.  My son was walking towards me and I quickly asked:

“Is everyone okay?”  He was in mid sentence by then.

He had something very important and exciting to tell me.  That something important was that:

“The Ben 10 Watch is now available at Toys R Us!!!”

Really?  That is why you ran up here?

Apparently the loud noise I heard was him busting my door open.  This news could not wait one more second.  Clearly, this is HUGE.

I told my husband this story and instead of a sympathetic reaction, I got:

“Hon, you gotta understand, Ben’s watch helps him turn into . . .”

I then began to block him out.  Clearly no one understands how much I need a nap!

The Ben Ten Watch

Rocket Fishing Rod

Did you know it helps you catch REAL FISH???  I know, because Xavier is super excited about this.  It’s actually number one on his list!  His Aunt Theresa is on it – she’s going to be a hero this weekend!

Play-doh Doctor Drill n’ Fill 

I took our son to the Target toy section because he honestly doesn’t ask for much – but people are asking me for ideas.  He said he wanted this.  I said, “really?”.

Rush and Rescue/ Lights & Sound Vehicles

The first one he started playing with was a fire truck. He has more fire trucks than I can count.  I love how much he loves the “rescue squad” vehicles.  It is so endearing.  We got a post card from the local “rescue squad” asking for donations and he carried it around for a week because it had a picture of an ambulance on it.  He makes my heart smile!

Mickey and the Roadster Racer Plush Toys

Me: You already have a stuffed Donald
Xavier: But we don’t have this stuffed Donald

Me: (hand to forehead and sigh)

This happened the same week he tried to take a giant Minnie and Mickey stuffed toy home from the crisis pregnancy center where I volunteer.  He was pretty bummed he couldn’t bring them home, but he handled it well.

Aeromax Super Fire Hose with Backpack

Xavier’s favorite thing to do is play with water.  He loves to “do the dishes”, play with his water table, play in the tub, squirt the hose – you name it.  If there is water involved, he is happy.  He also loves “rescue work” – from playing firefighter to talking about Paw Patrol – he loves an everyday hero.  So, he didn’t pick this out – but when I saw it, I thought “Xavier would love this!”.  Aunts and Uncles, anyone looking for a gift suggestion?  Here it is!

The post A 5 Year Old’s Wish List appeared first on Prayer Wine Chocolate.

As a young school student, maybe around the age of 11, I often wondered what I was supposed to think about when I prayed. I thought of asking a priest if I should picture the words of the prayers, as if I was imagining them written across a chalkboard . . . or, should I be thinking of something else? Jesus’ face perhaps?

What strikes me about this memory the most are not the questions I had, but the fact that I did not think of asking my parents those questions.  My faith is the greatest gift my parents gave me.  They taught me to pray before meals, before I went to sleep at night, to go to Mass every Sunday, to pray the Rosary, participate in the Sacraments, and so on.  Yet, I did not think of asking them how to pray.  Perhaps if I saw a book laying around called “77 Ways to Pray with Your Kids“, it would have hit me – hey, ask mom or dad, she (or he) bought that book!  Maybe.

Praying with a 3 year old

At this point in my life, I a am still in motherhood bootcamp.  My oldest and only (so far) is a very active 3 year old.  He is starting to say the prayers he hears my husband and I pray, but I use the term “say” loosely.  When he prays “Bless Us, O Lord” or the “Our Father” I think we can identify about five English (or any human language) words.  In short, he has absolutely no idea what he is saying.

How 77 Ways to Pray helps 

By page 19 of “77 Ways to Pray . . .” the author, Jerry Windley-Daoust, had both assured me that I was doing some things right and gave me a handful of ideas that would help me work with the Holy Spirit and guide my son to a closer relationship with Jesus. Windley-Daoust also provides awesome ideas including craft or craft-like projects (table triangles, placemats, paper prayer chains and thanksgiving murals to name a few) and really provides approaches for all age groups and attention spans.  The book focuses on three main age groups (3+, 7+ and 13+) but also includes baby prayers and really enriches the reader as well.  When I almost drew pictures of hearts on the page that collaborated prayer and chore time, I knew he had walked a mile in my shoes.  As a stay-at-home parent, the author experienced the old adage “necessity is the mother of invention” and came up with many ways to truly be his children’s first teacher. The brevity of the book makes it easy to use as a reference, but also recommends other works to refer to on the journey to nourish your child’s soul.

As a practicing Catholic I found the book to even provide a few new lessons on my own spiritual journey.  Even though I was educated in Catholic schools from first grade to graduate school, I had never heard the term Lectio Divina and was compelled to look it up.  I was also extremely impressed with how rooted in Scripture so many activities were.  I found myself visualizing ways to incorporate short prayers found in the Bible to connect with a teenager.  For example, as a runner, I know a cross country race is extremely nerve wracking.  How awesome would it be to find “I can do all things through him who strengthens me” Philippians 4:13 left by your mom or dad in your lunch or sports bag before a meet.  My point is, the book not only offers great ideas, but also stimulates more ideas in the reader.

Although the work gives great advice for any Christian family to use, the work stresses the importance of the Sacraments and the challenges that come along with them.  Although I am sure many Christian families have to find a way to reach the teen that no longer wants to go to church on Sunday, Catholics have the added challenge of, “why can’t I just ask God for forgiveness directly”.  77 Ways gives suggestions on how to deal with these unique, but common, questions.

There are also small pieces of advice that I absolutely love in this book.  For example, “walk to Mass”.  I remember complaining when we walked as a family growing up.  But, how much does a walk calm a soul – or allow a little one to burn off energy?  It’s meditative.  Another reminder that Eucharistic adoration is better to attend for ten minutes than no minutes at all.  From “God’s mailbox” to a prayer journal, having this book is just one tool that will help parents who truly desire to nurture the souls in which God has entrusted them.

Now that I have read the book . . .

I’m excited to make a visit to adoration today (although it will only be 10 minutes), look into the prayer apps that “77 Ways to Pray . . .” recommends, and really start considering the prayer rug suggestion for my “constant ants-in-pants” son!  Having this book as a reference will really help our family through the years.

 If you are interested in learning more about how to purchase 77 Ways to Pray with Your Kids, Click here: 77 WAYS TO PRAY WITH YOUR KIDS

How do you pray with your children?  Are there any activities that really excite your children and refresh your prayer life?  Please share!!

The post 77 Ways to Pray with Your Kids (Book Review) appeared first on Prayer Wine Chocolate.