Sierra Jensen Volume 1 Book Review

I decided to read this book for review thinking it would be a good read for my daughter as she is getting older.  I do enjoy reading young adult books at times, but I was very disappointed in this volume of books. 

The Sierra Jensen series has 12 books in all.  Volume 1 consists of books 1-3. 

Book 1:  Only You, Sierra

Book 2:  In Your Dreams

Book 3:  Don't you Wish

I know that I am an adult/mother reviewing a young adult book and I am sure my review reflects my age, but I am a mother and I have to go on what I feel is a good read for my daughter.  The Sierra Jensen series is not it.  I found Sierra very immature and shallow.  Some of the "excuses" she gives her parents and those in authority  are dishonest which is definitely not something I would want my child to pick up on.  The writer tries to portray Sierra as a strong and mature christian and with everything else I read I found those passages hard to swallow.  Plus there were parts of the book that were just plain boring.  I would not recommend this book to young readers.    

I also want to note that before I began reading the series my 13 year old daughter started to read it.  She read about 9 chapters and then quit.  She found it boring and was disturbed by the way the Jensen family played along with grandma when she was confused and having memory lapses.  I teach my children never to lie even if it makes someone else feel better a lie is a lie and she felt that their playing along with grandma was dishonest.   


**I recieved an e-copy of this book from Waterbrook Multnomah in exchange for my honest review.

Craft Time

I've been spending a lot of my time crafting lately.  Here is a sample of what I've been up too! :)

Bethany helped me make these waxed dipped pine cone fire starters!  I love the way they look in this basket.  I can't wait to sit them next to the wood burning stove and toss some in when I start a fire this winter.

 We also dipped some wax ornaments.  These were made from styrofoam sheet cut outs.  The cut outs we used were cookie cutters!  I love making these!  So much fun.  I still have to put finishing touches such as jute hangers on them and maybe some ric-rac embellishments on the gingerbread men!

Our house smells so good!  A mixture of Mocha and Apple pie!  Smells like fall!

I've also made a bunch of homespun coasters and some pot holders/hot pads.

Believe it or not that is not all.  I've also been making hair bows, aprons, "upcycled" denim skirts, baby gowns and homemade laundry detergent kits.  We are going to be selling all these homemade crafts at a homeschool craft fair in October.  I guess if my stuff does not sell my family and friends will get a homemade Christmas this year. ;)

Billy Graham Said What?

I love reading quotes and for a good part of my adult life I have read quotes by Billy Graham via the Internet.  I know when it comes to the Internet that sometimes people are misquoted so I was excited to find a book that was composed only of Billy Graham's quotes put together by his son Franklin Graham. 

The book has over 100 topics that are listed alphabetically.  It covers about every topic you can think of from abortion to worship.   At the beginning of each topic it begins with a key Bible verse, then the quotes on the topic follow.   Some of the quotes were very familiar to me while others where knowledgeable information that every child of God knows, then there were some quotes that I would stop, read again and sit and meditate on the words of wisdom that were just shared with me. 

I would recommend this book as a resource.  It is not the kind of book to sit down and read from front to back.  Instead, I feel that it would be best read in bits and pieces.  With it being categorized into topics, it makes it easy to find the area in which you are looking for, the topic that may be helpful to you at the right moment.   

Here are a few of my favorite quotes that I found on the pages of the book.

"God does not comfort us to make us comfortable, but to make us comforters."   Billy Graham

"The will of God will never take us where the grace of God cannot sustain us."  Billy Graham

"The Spirit of God Takes the Word of God and makes the Child of God."  Billy Graham

**This book was provided to me by the publisher through booksneeze.com in exchange for my honest review. 

A Must Read!

Out of Control by Mary Connealy - The Kincaid Brides Book 1

Julia Gilliland is a young lady that loves geology and loves to explore caves in search of fossils.  Exploring gives her a chance to get out of the house and away from her father.  She feels at peace with herself and a closeness to God when she is exploring.   She is determined to find proof that there is a God.  All she has to do is find the fossils to prove the Great Flood of Noah's Day.   If she does this her father surely will see her as a special and she will earn his love.  But one day as she is exploring, a mysterious intruder steals the rope she uses to climb out of the cave.

Rafe Kincaid is a man that seems to be in control of everything.  His ranch, his brothers, his life.  But Rafe is struggling with a painful past.  A time when he was out of control and was not the man he should of been for his brothers.  He is determined never to feel that way again.  So he stays away from the one place on his family's ranch that brings back the painful memories...the cave.  One night he decides to go back to the cave, one last time, in hopes to find peace with the place that ruined his and his brother's lives when they were young boys.  A women screaming was the last thing he expected to hear.  He must save her.  Then with a kiss lives are changed.

I had never read any of Mary Connealy's books before I read Out of Control and I will assure you that this may of been my first read of hers but it most definitely won't be my last.  

This book has it all.  Love, humor, suspense, inspiration, and mystery.  It had me on the edge of my seat in suspense, laughing out loud at the banter between Rafe and Julia, and reflecting on the greatness of God and how he is always present.  From the highest mountain top to the lowest dwellings. God is there.  In the good times of our life and in the bad times.  God is there.   When we are in control and when we are out of control.  God is there.

I give this book 5 stars!!

Thanks you Bethany House Publishers for providing me with this amazing book to review in exchange for my honest review!

Book Review: Life, in Spite of Me

Book Summary:

She wanted to die. God had other plans.

Overwhelmed by wave after wave of emotional trauma, Kristen Anderson no longer wanted to live. One January night, determined to end her pain once and for all, the seventeen-year-old lay across train tracks not far from her home and waited to die.

Instead of peace, she found herself immersed in a whole new nightmare.

Before the engineer could bring the train to a stop, thirty-three freight cars passed over her at fifty-five miles per hour. After the train stopped and Kristen realized she was still alive, she looked around—and saw her legs ten feet away.

Surviving her suicide attempt but losing her legs launched Kristen into an even deeper battle with depression and suicidal thoughts, as well as unrelenting physical pain—all from the seat of a wheelchair. But in the midst of her darkest days, Kristen discovered the way to real life and a purpose for living.

My Thoughts:

Wow!  What a moving book!   This is an excellent read.  What a wonderful testimony that Kristen has to share.   As she tells her story you feel like you are there.  The intensity I felt when she tells of her suicide attempt was gut wrenching.  I felt as if I were there, watching this horrific event take place.  As she continues to share her story of recovery and redemption my heart ached for her and rejoiced with her when she found true peace with God.  

When I wasn't reading this book, I was thinking about it.  I would highly recommend this book to anyone.  It is not just a book for young people who are depressed and have suicidal thoughts, it is also a great book for people of all ages no matter where they are in their walk with God.   It will encourage you greatly as you see God's grace and Him moving in Kristen's life.  God's love, forgiveness and grace is available for all who desire it.  No matter what you are going through you are not alone. 

**I received this book free of charge from Multnomah Books in exchange for my review. I was not required to write a positive review and all opinions I have expressed are my own.

The Best Salsa Ever

Not to toot my own horn or anything.....but, I made THEE best salsa ever this summer!  Yummy, slap your momma good.   After my yummy discovery I canned, and I canned.  After all, I must have enough to last me through till next summer.  I might have to hide a few jars just to insure that I will have some come February and March.  Or better yet, maybe someone should hide a few jars from me.  I seriously love the stuff.  Give me some tortilla chips and a bowl of my delicious salsa and I could eat it for all 3 meals.  Okay, maybe that's a little bit of an exaggeration.  I don't usually eat breakfast. 

Enough of my humble rantings.  Since good things are meant to be shared here is the recipe!

Ingredients:

8 Cups tomatoes, peeled, chopped and drained

2 ½ cups chopped onions
1 ½ cups green peppers
1 cup jalapeno peppers, chopped (use more or less for personal taste)
6 garlic cloves minced
1 tsp pepper
1/8 cup canning salt
1/3 cup vinegar
1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce
1 (12 oz) can tomato paste

Drain the tomatoes as you are chopping them and drain them several times while they are in the pan before you cook them.  This is a VERY important step.  Drain, drain, drain and then drain again. This will give you a nice chunky salsa.

Mix all ingredients together and bring to a slow boil for 10 minutes.

Fill hot jars with salsa, put hot lids and rims and and process in a hot water bath for 10 minutes.

Bittersweet...

I love working in my garden and gathering the harvest.  After a long dry and hot spell the garden is about done producing.  Besides a few tomato plants and a few pepper plants that are still producing the main thing that is growing abundantly is the weeds.  It amazes me that we have gone weeks without cutting the grass, but some of the weeds are waist high in the garden.   So it is time to cut it down, mow it over and plow it up.  Bittersweet.  That is the word that describes the way I feel about it.  Funny how something that brings me such joy in the spring and the summer will also bring me such joy to be done with it. lol 

The harvest surely was bountiful this year.  The best ever!  I added up and I canned 126 jars of garden produce this year!  Thank the Lord!  That's not counting the produce that was put up in the freezer.  So even though the gardening season is about over, we will be enjoying it's blessings all winter!

Tomorrow I'll share with you the yummy salsa recipe I came up with this year.  I found a recipe, tweaked it to suit my taste and the results were perfection!

The Harvest of Grace by Cindy Woodsmall

The Harvest Of Grace is the third book in the Ada's House Series.  I did not realize when I got this book that I would be reading the third book of a series that I have never read before.  That didn't matter at all.  This is a great "stand alone" book and I am sure a great "3'rd installment" as well.   It drew me into the character's lives and I will be heading to the library ASAP to pick up the 1'st and 2'nd books of the series.  That is one of the things I loved about this book.  It captivated my interest so much and I became so attached to the character's that I want to know more about their history.  Beginning with the very first chapter it had my attention.  I couldn't put it down and to tell you the truth, it cost me a few hours of sleep. :)

One great thing about this book is that if you decide to read it without reading the whole series it has a nice summary at the beginning of the book.  It tells "The Story So Far" giving a brief description of The Hope Of Refuge and The Bridge of Peace (the first two books in the series).  That way you have a little history and a little knowledge of some of the characters you will be reading about.  It also has at the back of the book, a list of the main character's  and a description of each.  I found this extra helpful and found myself flipping to the back of the book a couple time as I began the story to see who they were and how they were related.

One of the main points of this book is God's forgiving grace, accepting that grace, and giving that grace to other's who have done you wrong as well.  It's not always easy but with a lot of prayer we can forgive those who have hurt us.   This book is such a pleasant reminder of that.  I would definetly recommend this book as it is a great read and an encouragement in your daily walk with Him.

**I received this book free of charge from Multnomah Books in exchange for my review. I was not required to write a positive review and all opinions I have expressed are my own.

Rate this review for a chance to win a free book!!!

What the World Needs...

Sometimes you run across something so good it just needs repeating.  One of my friends posted this tonight on their Facebook:

It is a much nobler thing to be a good wife than to be Miss America. The world has enough women who know how to be smart. It needs women who are willing to be simple. The world has enough women who know how to be brilliant. It needs some who will be brave. The world has enough women who are popular. It needs more who are pure. We need woman, and men, too, who would rather be morally right than socially correct. ~ Peter Marshall

1950's Birthday Party

Bethany wanted to celebrate her Birthday with a 1950's party!  What a blast we had!  We had 50's music, poodle skirts, ice cream floats, bubble gum blowing contests, drag races, 50's charades and to top it off we had each person write down a few sentences to Bethany using 50's "lingo" so we can put it in her scrapbook.   The party was a hit and Bethany declared it the best Birthday she ever had!  Here's a few pictures of our fun time.

My sweet Bethany all decked out in her 50's outfit!

My wonderful neice Katy!  Isn't she pretty!

The whole gang!  I absolutely love this photo!  I told the girls to look at Dakota like "he's so dreamy"  It took a while to get the right expressions.  Sister and cousins had a bit of trouble thinking that way. Hee! Hee!

Charades!

Bubble gum blowing contest.

More charades!

The Birthday cake!

Another one of my pretty girl!

Bethany and her cake!

Drag races with hotwheels and straws.

Dakota is so goofy!

The girls!

Who wants an ice cream float?

Bethany insisted that Daisy had a poodle skirt too. lol!