The Warren & the World is Story Warren’s weekly newsletter, providing a round-up of our favorite things from around the web as well as a review of what was on our site over the past week. We’re glad you’re here!
Around the Web
What Love Looks Like at 2:07 A.M.
- “Mumma, I frowed up.”We wake to the pitiful words of a filthy tiny girl who promptly throws up again all over our bedding and my maternity jammies.
It’s 2:07 in the morning.
This is what we do without exchanging a word: I take care of the girl—washing her sturdy, small body in warm bath water, then finding clean jammies and snuggling while he takes care of her sheets and the carpets, opens windows, and starts the laundry. Together we make a warm little bed on the floor next to our bed with the old toddler bed mattress, we switch sides of the bed so I can be closer to the little sickie, and then we are all back asleep, exhausted. It’s our sick kid rhythm, developed over the years, and in particular over this past two weeks of on-again-off-again stomach flu for one tiny.
Nearly 16 years ago, we built our love on the set times of our togetherness: Let’s meet after class, let’s go out for a date tonight, and I’ll see you at 8 o’clock, okay? We went for long drives and talked about the future together. An unrepentant morning person, I signed up for 7:50 A.M. classes, and, even though it went against his natural night owl tendencies, he woke up early just to eat breakfast with me. At that point, love looked like 7:20 in the cafeteria, black coffee in hand.
Don’t Worry, You Won’t Be a Perfect Parent
- I am the absolute worst potty trainer in the history of planet earth. My kids, even though they are smart and clever, don’t seem to catch on to the concept of using the toilet until they are much older than average. I try everything, read everything, use crazy techniques (Once I tried floating Cheerios in the potty, don’t ask how it went.) and still they don’t figure it out on my timeline. I think it’s God’s way of reminding me I’m not perfect.
4 Principles for Parenting in a World of Video Games
- I’m also disappointed when I see people fail to fully appreciate just what a privilege it is to receive an education, own a library of books, and have access to so many resources in the English language. But I’m afraid this squandering is likely to get worse, not better. The generation coming after us has never known of life without video games, electronic devices, and iPhones with countless apps.
Before the Birds and the Bees
Tim Challies writes at his blog about the “tech talk” parents need to have before the birds and the bees talk—the one that warns our children about the dangers of the internet.
- It wasn’t that people were out looking for bad stuff, but that the bad stuff came looking for them. Once they saw it they became intrigued by it and once they became intrigued they found themselves captivated. I have heard of young children—very young children—who developed interests in dark things from dark places all because of something they stumbled upon when they were online. The sad fact is, as we use the Internet we will, at times, be faced with such things. So, too, will our children.
Around the Warren
Here There Be Dragons
Glenn McCarty looks forward to the next year—full of its unknowns—with expectation.
- Is there anything like the unknown which feels quite as, well, dragon-ish?Here we are just over the doorstep into a new year, just as Bilbo himself stood on the doorstep of the Lonely Mountain, anticipating a journey into the bowels of the earth to encounter the fearsome dragon Smaug. “Dear me, what a fool I was and am!” Bilbo says, cursing himself as he ventures into terra incognito that first time. He knows what’s coming, and he fears it.
When I think about the year ahead, sometimes I feel like labeling it
Hic sunt dracones. I don’t know what dragons lie in my own path, but the thought of facing them, like Bilbo anticipating his encounter with Smaug, fills me with a certain amount of dread.
“…a strong desire to live…”
Words from the excellent G.K. Chesterton; art from the excellent Paul Boekell.
Delightfully Didactic Dead Possums
Loren Eaton reviews Taryn Souders’ Dead Possums and revels in its ability to tell a good story as well as teach.
- For some time, critics have pooh-poohed didactic children’s literature, calling it stilted and stuffy. I wish they would read Dead Possums. At its heart, it’s an educational book, a novel dedicated to some of the finer points of basic math. But it’s also a novel with characters and conflict, plot and pacing, settings and similes. While Souders pays ample attention to facts and themes, she never forgets the fundamentals of storytelling and shows a great talent for penning slapstick hijinks.
Ellen and the Winter Wolves
We’ve got an extended preview of Jamin Still’s new book, Ellen and the Winter Wolves, for you today!
Something to Do with Your Kids
We like stories here—you may have noticed—and we’re always looking for ways to get you and your family telling stories. If you need a little silliness, how about some online Mad Libs?
And Something to Watch
There’s a version of this video without the ’80s-metal soundtrack, but I promise, the music makes it even better.
Thank you for reading. We’re on your side.
You can find her at carolyncgivens.com or on Facebook or Instagram at @carolyncgivens.
- The Warren & The World Vol 11, Issue 32 - September 30, 2023
- The Warren & The World Vol 11, Issue 31 - September 23, 2023
- The Warren & The World Vol 11, Issue 30 - September 16, 2023
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