Song Stuck on the Brain: You Are My Sunshine - the song I sing to all my babies. :)

God Made You Just Right 

Board book

by 

Jill Roman Lord, Author 

& 

Amy Wummer, Illustrator

MY TAKE:

Small but a Fighter!

When my niece told me her baby boy would be born with physical complications I felt my heart catch. Then I told her what I knew was true in my heart. Jesus was holding her baby in the palm of His hand. However he was born, God had a plan for this little boys life. Numerous conditions were presented and ruled out. The final diagnosis, Tetralogy of Fallot. This beautiful little premie boy had a hole in his heart that would not close on it's own, he would need open heart surgery. Possibly more than one. In addition, he also has dextrocardia - his heart grew in on the wrong side of his chest. (I tell him that means his heart will always be in the 'right' place.) He also has scoliosis. He is the most beautiful and precious baby I've held in years (beside his cousin of course!)

Because of his heart conditions his breathing is labored and he struggles to keep fluid off his lungs. Eating is a challenge and a feeding tube has to load him with calories to help him grow big and strong so he can handle surgery. It hasn't been enough. So in just a few days they will perform his first surgery - a band on his pulmonary artery to ease his labored breathing so eating is not such a challenge. 

Cousins only one month apart in age. No matter how
big or small - God made you JUST right!

When I was offered the chance to review God Made You Just Right by Jill Roman Lord, I immediately thought of my tiny heart baby. What a perfect book to reinforce the message I wanted him to grow up with. Despite your differences physically - God made you just right and you are loved. I signed up immediately. When the book arrived, I held 2 month old Max in my arms and read him the simple story, showing him the pictures as I went. He was enthralled. He SMILED! And my heart soared! A sweet, simple message with colorful images. It was perfect. 

They don't use the term "half-sibling".
God made them just right as brother
and sister this way. 

After reading it the youngest I began to think how this very simple message is important to all of us. Max's cousin Ryan is a month older but double in size. He's a large strong baby. At 3 months his head measured 17.5 inches - only 2 inches smaller than his four year old big sister! Large heads and tall frames run in his family. He will most likely always be much bigger than his friends for many years. He'll get teased for his big head (despite him being adorable) and he needs the reminder that God made him large for a purpose too. 

Our family is one built of love more than blood. There are adopted siblings, half siblings, foster siblings and family that's family because we chose to make them that way. That is becoming more common every day and I'm glad to see God's message being shared in such a sweet way. 

ABOUT THE BOOK:

A bright and cheerful reminder that God made each of us special and unique

Here is a message that every parent will want to share with his or her child: You're brilliantly created and there s no one else like you! With easy-to-understand descriptions and simple, rhyming text, Jill Roman Lord shares the message that God created each of us in just the right way in a manner that even the youngest child will understand. Bright and engaging illustrations from Amy Wummer pair perfectly with the text and enhance the appeal of the book. Ages 2-5.

Jill Roman Lord

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Jill Roman Lord is an author, a freelance writer, and nurse anesthetist. She enjoys running with her golden Retriever, Poppie, in Charlotte, NC, golfing with her hubby and son, sipping coffee, shopping with her girls when they’re around, traveling, and hanging on the back porch with family and friends

ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR:

Amy Wummer

Amy Wummer is an award-winning children’s book illustrator of over fifty titles. She received the Highlights for Children Cover of the Year award in 1998 and 2007, the 2006 Paterson Prize for Books for Young People, Highlights for Children Illustrator of the Month award in October 2003 and November 2007, and was a 2002 Gold Medallion Book Award finalist.

I received a free copy of this book from Wothry Kids/Ideals in exchange for my honest review.