As a busy mom of twins, I wanted to like this book - I really did. I just couldn't get into it. I felt like I was doing something wrong in my own family, because I am not finding God's hand in every little event in life. I did enjoy the stories and testimony she shared, it just wasn't my cup of tea.

Simple lessons taught through the messiness of family life
I cupped the steaming cup of coffee in my hands listening quietly to my daughter's latest recount of  my grandsons and their exploits, and smiled.
"But Mum... I'm saying things to my kids that I could never have imagined would ever come out of my mouth. After all, who else has to tell their boys not to lick the floor? Why do they even do that?"

The painful truth is that family life little resembles the soft, watercolour scenes we often see painted in the movies. It's exhausting, full-on and messy.

It's something that Betsy Snyder shares in her book, Stepping on Cheerios- Finding God in the Chaos and Clutter of Life.You'll read about the author's experiences as she and her husband raise four small boys- one plus triplets. Betsy deals with 'neon-blue, glitter gel toothpaste smeared into the rug, hieroglyphic pencil marks along the hall and scratched furniture from assorted swords and ninja tools. (And you thought yours was the only home with Ninja warriors!)

You'll also find sane advice and plenty of bandaids, both metaphoric and real. You'll be presented with advice like... 'No-one can do it all', 'Less comparing please', and 'Nurture something with your kids'.. lessons in faith learned through the messiness of family living.

And you'll be reminded that there's something very special about the seemly overwhelming challenges of life with energetic young ones . 'And then God smiles, light breaks and the darkness rolls away, so that God can declare, "That's good!" 'Who will enjoy Stepping on Cheerios?
Do you struggle with the creative chaos of living with energetic little ones? Have you been bruised to the bone by stepping on Lego or maybe even believe the blocks are embedded in your feet? Have you entered your living area to discover metres of dental floss, duct tape and assorted containers assembled for a 'speriment? Yes? Then you'll relate to this book.

Betsy has written in a light, journaling style, noting the fun and messy exploits of her kids as well as the faith lessons she has learned in the process. It's makes the book easy to pick up read without feeling that you're reading out of sequence or context. The lessons are light and easy to live from and learn.

About the author
Betsy Singleton Snyder became a mother later in life, is a pastor and wife to a husband who served in US House of Representatives. She certainly found her life had changed dramatically when she found herself with 4 children, boys, within 21/2 years.

If you'd like to learn a bit more about Betsy and her book Stepping on Cheerios, you can listen to her conversation on YouTube where she shares, "What we get is not always what we want, but what we most need, is making it through the hard and fun stuff that happens in our families - that crazy, messy tangled ball of people who are learning to practice forgiveness, grace and love."

I laughed, I nodded and I loved this book. It was a really nice book to relate to, as a mom. I was finding myself in agreement, nodding and thinking “oh, that’s my life!” it was real, it was authenticate yet, held tales that moms resound with. It was personal to this author, she gave a piece of her life in writing this book. As the reader progresses they can feel her heart and mind on the pages. Through good and bad the author provided her stories of motherhood to those that could use a laugh.

Overall, moms of faith and moms even struggling with faith will find this book charming. The siren call of motherhood will sweep them through the stories and moments that will have them thinking they are in the book.

I am SO thankful for this book! It is such a refreshing change from the "usual" mom books. I have a full review written up that will go live on my blog on June 18th, but suffice it to say, I loved loved loved this book! If I could hug the author, I would hug her breathless. Such a good book, highly recommended!

Stepping on Cheerios

Finding God in the Chaos and Clutter of Life



by Betsy Singleton Snyder

Abingdon Press

Christian , Religion & Spirituality

Pub Date 04 Apr 2017

I am voluntarily reviewing Stepping on Cheerios through Abingdon Press and Netgalley:

In this book the author tells of her belief that God cares less about obedience and more about imagination.

She talks about the difficulty often found in becoming a spouse in the unexpected craziness of this world.

She goes on to talk about difficult pregnancies and the challenges of fitting a life around bed rest.

This book reminds us too that though there are secrets we keep from one another we can keep nothing from the Lord.

The author reminds us too to watch what we are saying around kids, because at some point they understand what we are saying. We are reminded too that whoever parents children, they all belong to God.

We are reminded of the importance of valuing ourselves at the stage of life we are currently in.

I give Stepping on Cheerios five out of five stars and would recommend it to all you busy Mom's out there.