A Perfect Pet For Peyton Review & Giveaway (5 Love Languages)

I am a big fan of the Gary Chapman books that teach you about the Five Love Languages.  It was such a blessing in our marriage to read those books, determine the ways in which we naturally show love and the ways we wanted love to be shown to us.  It was no great surprise to see that my husband and I were operating in VERY different languages and it explained the basis of so many conflicts of not "feeling loved".  By being more purposeful in speaking the other's language, it has made DRASTIC improvements in the way we communicate our love for each other.  Even now, when we are going through a stressful time period and we don't feel "connected" enough to each other, we can often see that we are slipping back to OUR ways of showing love and NOT showing it in each other's language.  A simple shift in "speaking" and we are quickly back on track.

I'm thrilled to be currently reading the Five Love Languages of Children (will be reviewing that book early in April).  I'm trying to soak in as much as I can from it because it's something that has been on our hearts as parents lately----truly reaching in and grasping the hearts of each of our individual children. 

Gary Chapman (and Rick Osborne) has written a book specifically for children that I absolutely LOVED reading!

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About A Perfect Pet for Peyton: http://www.5lovelanguages.com/resource/a-perfect-pet-for-peyton/

"This wonderfully imaginative children’s hardcover book by bestselling authors Gary Chapman and Rick Osborne, featuring four-color illustrations (with hidden details!) by Wilson Williams, Jr., will help children learn the importance of love. Based on Gary’s highly successful The 5 Love Languages®, A Perfect Pet for Peyton tells an entertaining and playful story of five children who each, with the help of Mr. Chapman and the unique pets at his special emporium, discover their own personal love language. Children and parents alike will experience firsthand the power of the love languages as they cuddle up and spend precious time together reading this book over and over again."

My opinion:  LOVED it!  It's one of the best children's books I've had my hands on in a long time.  It is absolutely ENGAGING.  Isn't that what we REALLY want when we sit down to read with our children?  The illustrations (by Wilson Williams Jr.) grabbed our attention and we literally couldn't wait to turn the page.  Each page also has interactive illustrations that have you searching for hidden insects or looking for specific other things.  The font and sporadic colored text is visually engaging (which is fantastic for BUSY boys!).  The story itself is fantastic.  We follow Peyton,his twin sister Penny, and their friends on a birthday adventure to choose their own perfect pet.  Through the story, we learn that everyone needs love shown in different ways and how our personalities are all unique.  Penny's perfect pet seems strange to Peyton.  By the end of the story, they all have found their perfect pets and each of the five love languages have been explained.  The best part of the book is the quiz at the end.  You can sit down with your child and ask a few questions and begin to find which areas your child feels the most loved. 

As a parent, I give it two thumbs up!  My children give it two thumbs up as well!  Of course, my middle child happens to love the book since he shares the same name as the title! 

Best of all, between this children's version of the book and the current book I'm reading that explains in detail reaching in our children's hearts and speaking their language, I'm looking forward to seeing what kind of changes take place in our family.  I know that our marriage was greatly affected in a positive way by discovering how to reach our spouse.  I can't wait to learn more about each of my children and speak their individual love language.  For anyone that knows our family personally, and as with most other families, our children are DRASTICALLY different!  This mom needs all the help she can get since I KNOW that my own language isn't necessarily the same as each one of my children!

One reader can win a copy of this book, A Perfect for Peyton.  Just simply leave a comment on this post.  I want to keep it simple!  Be sure to leave your name and an email address so I can contact you if you are the winner.  Giveaway will end on April 9th and will be chosen by random.org. 

Required fine print:  “Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”