Review - Booga Booga Land

Booga Booga Land is a silly video which name and concept caught my attention right away.  It's a DVD series which is supposed to follow the same plots as parables from the Bible.  This particular DVD is broken into three episodes which follow the parables of the lost pearl (Squid Sushi Loses His Marbles), the soil and the seeds (Wally the Waiter), and the wedding banquet (The Flaming Monkey).  The main characters are silly animals including Marty the Monkey and Gerard the Giraffe.

I couldn't help but think of Sponge Bob Square Pants while watching the video with my kids.  Same sort of funny humor and pace of story.  But with a Christian twist, loosely.  Unfortunately, I couldn't grasp the message of the three episodes even when looking for it.  For kids, I think it would be extremely hard to learn anything from these stories.  It was a stretch, unlike Hermie and Friends, Veggie Tales, or Gigi videos.  As an adult, I love the idea of using parables and changing them to teach the same lesson but in a different way.  But this video series just didn't do that as I had expected.  But I must say, my kids did enjoy them for the silly humor, fun characters, and humorous events.

I was given this DVD from Tommy Nelson Publishers to watch and review.  All opinions are my own.  I was not paid to do this review.

Church Sign

Gotta chuckle at this one...

Elliot Quote Explained

"He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose."
Faith is being ready to give up all your own desires for God. And it is in giving them up, that you will truly have your desires fulfilled. God is not a spoilsport. He doesn't want you to give up your dream, and have it replaced by something lousy. God wants you to give up your puny little dream, and look up, and see his dream for your life. His dream for your life is the most exciting, most fulfilling, most exciting thing you will ever do. That's because God's dream for your life perfectly matches exactly who you are. God wants your best. He wants the best from you, and He wants to give the best to you.

by Graeme Codrington @ Youth Talks

Elliot Quote

"He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose." -Jim Elliot

Valentine's Parties

I really love Valentine's Day.  And not just because of the candy.  I just love...love!  It's a fun thing to celebrate. 

This year we were invited to Galina's friend Violet's house for a tea party.  Sallina, Violet's mom, is blessed with the gift of hospitality beyond belief.  She loves having people over and we love going there so it works well.

Here's what the spread looked like.  So cute!

Here's Treyton, Elias, and Brielle along with Sallina.

And Miss Violet with her tea.

Boy did Galina get a kick out of all the fancy things!

Brielle enjoyed the food.

Even Treyton got into it!

Mommy even swiped some candy from her baby.

What a fun tea party.

The kids also had parties at their school which I had to miss most of due to Brielle's nap. Thankfully there were a couple moms in each class who were willing and able to volunteer to make it happen. But I showed up at the end. Here are a few shots from those.

Don't you just love celebrating love?

Phone Number Tip

Teaching kids their phone number can be tedious.  But it's important for them to know.  Especially if you are Galina and like to run off and get lost. I read a clever tip somewhere: teach them through song.  Use the tune of "Camptown Races Sing This Song, Do Dah, Do Dah".  I tried it and after two trips in the car they almost had it.  And you'll have it in your head for at least 8 hours, guaranteed.