Home Is Where the Mom Is: A Christian Mom's Guide to Caring for Herself, Her Family, and Her Home

Shelly Burke
Shelmar Publications (2003)
ISBN 0972384200
Reviewed by Kelli Glesige for Reader Views (9/06)

If you are a stay-at-home mom, this book is for you!  Shelly Burke is a registered nurse and a stay-at-home mom herself, and her goal in writing “Home Is Where the Mom Is” has been to help another stay-at-home mom improve all areas of her life while remaining committed to God, her family and her home.

Shelly Burke appears to be a very knowledgeable writer and has completed a wide array of research in putting together “Home Is Where the Mom Is.”  The “Appendix of Resources and References” used to compile the book is quite sizeable and allows the reader who wants to delve further into a certain subject to do just that.  The book is very well-organized, has an extensive index, and covers a great deal of information.

This comprehensive resource is broken into three sections: “Taking Care of Yourself,” “Taking Care of Others,” and “Organizing Your Life.”  Each section offers complete and in-depth information relevant to the section.  Shelly Burke will show you how to make decisions based upon Christian principles and what you know about your unique family.

So many aspects of being a stay-at-home mom are covered, including:
          Caring for your own spirit, mind, and body first so you can meet your family’s needs.
          Maintaining your relationship with your husband.
          Developing a philosophy of parenting.
          Dealing with extended families.
          Keeping finances in proper perspective.
          Setting, keeping and working toward attainable and realistic goals.

At the end of each chapter, goals are offered and additional Bible verses are listed to further accommodate the intended purpose of the chapter.  And, Shelly Burke writes with a pleasing sense of humor too!

I highly recommend this book to all new mothers and stay-at-home moms, but if you have been a mother for some time, you can find helpful information also.  This is the type of book you read and then refer back to when a certain area of life needs a refresher.  The book is so well-organized; one should have no trouble finding a particular subject.  To add to the benefits this work will bring, Shelly Burke is a Christian and refreshingly writes her book from a Christian perspective.  “Home Is Where the Mom Is” is a resource I recommend all moms have in the home to refer to often.

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