January is nice for some specific reasons.  The flurry of the holiday season is over, some of the kids are usually sick (not nice) but it means we are home more and they are in bed early, and there are a few less meetings at night.  That means a little more…time.

So, often before bed, Jeff and I have been conducting our own nightly “Book Club.”

Right before Christmas he picked up the Ted Dekker/Frank Peretti thriller – titled House. 

He reads me a chapter in the evenings while I finish up kitchen work.  I usually beg like a child, “Oh please…just one more chapter?”  or say, “That’s all you’re going to read?”  Somehow, it makes the drudgery of picking through turkey bones or washing up stray dishes pass a little easier.

The book itself is rather strange (er…really, really, really strange),  but I love sharing this time and hearing his voice. A book that is read aloud sounds different than one that is read silently.  I find that I respond more – chuckle or grimace along with the inflections as he reads.  He does “voices” and accents.  He plays the big scary guy really well, but struggles with the role of self-centered country music starlet.

Perhaps, given time, he’ll grow into the role.   

Maybe your husband would like to do this too?  Let him choose the book (!) and sit back and enjoy.  Or – if like me you can’t sit still - clean up the kitchen or fold laundry or knit a baby hat.   It’s just another way to spend time and grow together – and that’s always a good thing.