Bücher der Reihe Christian Military Family

Five-year-old Thomas has a lot to complain about. Not only has his father left him in charge of a house full of girls while fighting the war in Iraq, but Thomas also has growing pains in his legs that awaken him in the middle of the night. Then he has an added fear when he overhears his mother talking about moving far away from their grandparents' Texas ranch to live in a city called El Paso. How can they leave the ranch they love to be around city kids who don't know anything about country things? How can he leave his grandparents who need his help? And, how will his sisters Leah, Abby, and Mia, react when they find out they must move into a neighborhood on an Army base?

Life is tough when you're four years old and your daddy is a soldier fighting in a far-away war. But Abigail finds a way to be brave when her grandmothers create a dinosaur costume using magical thread. With the dinosaur snapped to her green pajamas, she promptly names him Rumpus. Although Abigail's own ears don't hear as well as other children's, she quickly discovers that only she can hear the dinosaur's deep voice. Together they begin a year-long exploration of her grandparents's Texas ranch, where their adventures include bottle feeding a baby calf, learning the proper way to call an elk, and finding a suitable tail for a tailless monkey. Singing "Jesus Loves Me" gives the two friends courage while meeting a room full of wild animals. Explaining to Rumpus that Dear Lord is always with us, even though He is invisible, helps Abigail be brave. But will her friendship with Rumpus, and her belief in the Dear Lord be strong enough to comfort Abby the entire twelve months her daddy is away?

Six-year-old Mia misses her daddy who is serving in the military and deployed to Africa. While at Camp Gecko at her grandparents' ranch in central Texas, she learns about Africa and imagines waving to her daddy as she rides around in the safari's Ranger. The best part about Camp Gecko is the new friends she makes -- children from a family of missionaries to Africa! She learns of the hardships of missionary life while they inform people about God. Thankful the seven campers are only pretending to be in Africa, they go bowling, act in funny skits, make animal-shaped cookies, catch frogs, and go on treasure hunts. Also while at camp, Mia beats everyone in shooting wild game and helps discover an escaped lion hiding in the barn. While she is having so much fun at Camp Gecko, what does Mia forget about? How does her brother, Thomas, help her understand that everything will be okay?