Friday Night Fun

My daughter went to The Muny tonight so me and my son decided to spend the evening together.  We had fun playing mini golf and he enjoyed the batting cages at Swing Around Fun Town.  We stopped and got nerd slushies from Sonic and ended the night with a movie and popcorn at home. :):):)  

Shades of Mercy - A Book Review

Shades of Mercy  is a very sweet coming of age story about Mercy, a fourteen year old girl, who believes she has her life planned out.  In a few years,  she and her long time friend and recent boyfriend Mick will go off to college together, then once finished with school, they can get married, and live happily ever after. However, Mercy dreams come crashing around her when a friend of hers and her boyfriend disappear.   This isn't a normal young love runaway, at least in the eyes of Mercy's friend's father. When he finds out that the girls boyfriend is from the local Maliseet tribe, his prejudices come to a boil and sets the whole town on edge. Mercy hopes that everything will be resolved soon and then things can go back to normal. Sadly, that isn't what happens when her boyfriend Mick, who is also Maliseet, is charged with a crime.

The struggles Mercy's deals with are presented in such a realistic way. She is innocent to the ways of prejudice and still young. Mercy is written in such a way that you feel for her. You watch as she holds out hope for her dream to still come true and for everything to blow through. It was refreshing to read about a real teenager that has respect for her parents and who was raised in a loving home, not a teenager that was full of angst. I enjoyed that about the book.

The book was a little slow at times but overall it was a good read.  It dealt with a very heavy topic and handled it nicely.   The book focused on one summer in Mercy's life and I really liked that.   The ending left it open for the series to continue on and to grow with Mercy. 

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

Harvest of Gold - A Book Review

Harvest of Gold by Tessa Afshar is the sequel to Harvest of Rubies.  It picks up right where the first book left off and continues the story of Sarah and Darius.  Even though the main characters are Sarah and Darius, much of the book tells the story of Nehemiah and the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem.  You can see how the love of Sarah and Darius parallels with the rebuilding, which I found very intriguing.

The author really has a unique way of penning a novel that makes the reader feel like they are part of a time period that is long past.  This book gave biblical insight and encouragement and humbled me at how awesome our God is!

If you have not had the chance to read any books by this author I encourage you to do so.  I have not read one that I haven't loved yet.  They are well written, fast paced and keep your interest all the way through.  The historical references are amazing and the characters are well developed.  I can't wait to read more of Tessa's writings!


MORE ABOUT HARVEST OF GOLD:

In Harvest of Gold (Book 2) the scribe Sarah married Darius, and at times she feels as if she has married the Persian aristocracy, too. There is another point she did not count on in her marriage-Sarah has grown to love her husband. Sarah has wealth, property, honor, and power, but her husband's love still seems unattainable.

Although his mother was an Israelite, Darius remains skeptical that his Jewish wife is the right choice for him, particularly when she conspires with her cousin Nehemiah to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. Ordered to assist in the effort, the couple begins a journey to the homeland of his mother's people. Will the road filled with danger, conflict, and surprising memories, help Darius to see the hand of God at work in his life-and even in his marriage?

A hidden message, treachery, opposition, and a God-given success, will lead to an unlikely bounty.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Tessa Afshar was voted "New Author of the Year" by the Family Fiction sponsored Reader's Choice Awards 2011 for her novel Pearl in the Sand. Her book, Harvest of Rubies was nominated for the 2013 ECPA Book Award in the fiction category and World Magazine chose Harvest of Rubies as one of four notable books of the year. Her novel, Harvest of Gold was nominated for the 2014 Christy Award. Tessa was born in Iran to a nominally Muslim family, and lived there for the first fourteen years of her life. She moved to England where she survived boarding school for girls and fell in love with Jane Austen and Charlotte Bronte, before moving to the United States permanently. Her conversion to Christianity in her twenties changed the course of her life forever. Tessa holds an MDiv from Yale University where she served as cochair of the Evangelical Fellowship at the Divinity School. She has spent the last fifteen years in full-time Christian service in New England.

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

Harvest of Rubies - A Book Review

A Harvest of Rubies by Tessa Afshar is the first book in a series of biblical fiction set during the time of the Jewish exile in Babylon.  The book tells a fictional account set during Bible times.

Sarah has taught herself to read Persian.  Her cousin, Nehemiah, cup-bearer to the king, helps Sarah learn a place at the palace as the queen's scribe.  At first she is terrified, but she loves her positions, and feels like she is proving her worth through her hard work.  When she solves a mystery for Queen Damaspia, the queen does a good deed for Sarah by fining her a royal groom, Darius.   Sarah is scared of marriage and does not know anything of feminine ways and it doesn't take long before she makes a mistake and shames her husband.  Darius leaves her at his estate and leaves to stay at court.  Sarah now has no work to hide behind and she is doing her best to hide her love for her husband.  

This book is full of so much emotion.  It includes drama, mystery, faith and romance.  I was a little disappointed that this book was not more biblically accurate.  I know when writing christian fiction based on real Bible characters that  not everything will be true to life, but a lot of times, if written well, it will give you a deeper insight to what life might of been like during those times.  This however had more fiction characters and the whole story was not based on the Bible.  

Besides that, I did enjoy it and still consider myself a Tessa Afshar fan!

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

Laugh Out Loud Pocked Doodles For Girls - A Book Review

Q:  Why did the bird go to the hospital?
A:  To get some medical tweetment.

Q:  How do you know when it's been raining cats and dogs?
 A:  When you step in a poodle.

Q:  Why did the lady sing lullabies to her purse?
 A:  She wanted a sleeping bag.

Q:  What's a great book geared for girls ages 9-12?
A:  Laugh Out Loud Pocket Doddles for Girls!

This little book is so much fun and will have your little girl laughing out loud and probably the whole family as she begins sharing the jokes with all of you!  Don't think that this is just a joke book though.  It is so much more.  As the name of the book states it is a doodle book.  It fits it's name as well as being the perfect size to fit in a pocket making it a great take-a-long book.  It would be great for road trips or anytime where you have to sit still.  Or what about those boring moments?  You know the kind I'm talking about..."there's nothing to do, I'm bored"  Perfect for that too!  This book is sure to keep them entertained.

There are 240 pages.  Each page has a joke and a partial picture.  Your child can use their imagination to finish the picture or if they need a little prompting there is prompt at the bottom of each page to get you started in the right direction.

All the jokes are clean.  I found nothing inappropriate.  The author does state that body noise and body fluid jokes are the best so if this is something that you do not find humorous and something you do not want your child laughing about you might want to pass on this book.  Not a problem for our family!

I love how it sparks the imagination and encourages creativeness.  Not only will your child be entertained, but they will be using their mind to draw unique pictures!

***Thank you to Revell Publishing for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for my review.

Laugh Out Loud Pocket Doodles For Boys - A Book Review

Q:  How did the marching band keep their teeth clean?
A:  With a tuba toothpaste.

Q:  What did the pool say to the lake?
 A:  Water you doing here.

Q:  What's the best kind of dog to shoot hoops with?
 A:  A Basket Hound.

Q:  What's a great book geared for boys ages 9-12?
A:  Laugh Out Loud Pocket Doddles for Boys!

This little book is so much fun and will have your little boy laughing out loud and probably the whole family as he begins sharing the jokes with all of you!  Don't think that this is just a joke book though.  It is so much more.  As the name of the book states it is a doodle book.  It
fits it's name as well as being the perfect size to fit in a pocket making it a great take-a-long book.  It would be great for road trips or anytime where you have to sit still.  Or what about those boring moments?  You know the kind I'm talking about..."there's nothing to do, I'm bored"  Perfect for that too!  This book is sure to keep them entertained.

It has well over 200 pages.  Each page has a joke and a partial picture.  Your child can use their imagination to finish the picture or if they need a little prompting there is prompt at the bottom of each page to get you started in the right direction.

All the jokes are clean.  I found nothing inappropriate.  The author does state that body noise and body fluid jokes are the best so if this is something that you do not find humorous and something you do not want your child laughing about you might want to pass on this book.  Not a problem for our family!

I love how it sparks the imagination and encourages creativeness.  Not only will your child be entertained, but they will be using their mind to draw unique pictures!

***Thanks to Revell Publishing for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for my review.

My Sing-Along Bible - A Book Review

My Sing-Along Bible created by Stephen Elkins is a great little book for young children.  The illustrated book comes with a music cd.  There are 50 Easy-to-Read Bible stories and 50 Fun Bible songs to go with each story.  There are also two extra bonus songs on the cd to help memorize the books of the Bible.

I really like the set up of the book.  For each Bible story there is a "Let's Read" section that tells the Bible story in storybook form.  It includes a biblical reference in case you want to read the story from the Bible as well.  Then there is a "Let's Sing" section for each story.  At this time you would listen to the corresponding song.  The book includes the words so you can sing along.  There is also a little section entitle "Little Lessons" for each story that let's you know what concept is being taught.  For example, the story of Balaam's Donkey has a "Little Lesson" entitled God can do all things!  The illustrations in the book are bright and colorful and will appeal to young children who have yet to learn to read.

I would highly recommend this book!  I think it would be a great resource for Sunday School Teachers, Children's Church Leaders, Mom's, homeschoolers, Grandma's....you name it!  The songs are fun and have catchy tunes and you will find yourself singing the songs long after the cd has stopped!

What better way to begin teaching your little one about God than through this great book and cd.  I'm sure it will make a lasting impression on them and the enjoyment that will be experienced will be memories in the making!

If you would like to order your copy of My Sing-Along Bible you do so by clicking HERE.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:  Stephen Elkins is a songwriter, Grammy Award-nominated record producer, and bestselling children's author with millions of copies sold.  He is owner and founder of Wonder Workshop, whose purpose is to grow better kids by giving them a moral compass that reflects God's will and by raising their educational level through the creation of quality juvenile books, cds, and dvds.  Stephen lives in Nashville with his wife Cindy.  They have three kids.

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

Hearts Made Whole - A Book Review

Jody Hedlund is one of my favorite christian fiction authors.  I may even dare say my number one favorite!  I have never read a book written by her that I have not LOVED.  She is so unique in her writing style.   She can turn words into pictures and feelings like no other author.  Her stories bring me right in and always pull at my heartstrings.  She writes in an elegant way and I love how she always includes a deep faith in her stories.  If you are big on romance, let me tell you, her stories have it...more than once, in this book alone, did I find myself holding my hand over my heart and sighing with a smile pulling at the corners of my lips.  The things she writes in the way of romance melts my heart and she does it in such a proper way.  Everything remains wholesome with no fear of compromising your christian morals.

In Hearts Made Whole the story starts with Caroline and her siblings watching on as her father's boat sinks and he drowns.  Her father had trained her in running the Windmilll Point Lighthouse and she is confident in her abilities and is determined to raise her twin brothers and two sisters, one of whom is very sick.  It is 1865 and people do not like the idea of a woman running the lighthouse.  When the inspector hires a new light keeper, a man, Caroline is told she must find a new place to live.  She has no place to go and no job and four other people depending on her to provide for them.

Ryan Chambers was injured in the Civil War.  The war left him with a mangled arm and a lot of guilt from the battles he fought.  Due to his injury and the pain he still suffers from, he has become addicted to opium pills and strong drink.  He is incapable of running the lighthouse and soon discovers that he needs Caroline's help.   She agrees to stay on, thankful to still have a place for her family to stay, and train Ryan.  It seems that someone wants Caroline away from the lighthouse and they will go to extreme measures to scare her away.

I loved the character of Caroline!  She is such a gentle soul with a forgiving heart.   She is always putting others before herself and sacrificing her own needs.  Ryan is so troubled and Caroline helps him heal, but it seems like trouble keeps finding them and shocking circumstances threaten to keep them apart forever.

I highly recommend this book!  It's a great read and is going on my shelf of favorites!

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

Daily Painting - A Book Review

The Daily Painting by Carol Marine is a great book!  It is filled with beautiful paintings and useful information.  The author gets you on the path to creating your own masterpieces.  I am fairly new at painting and this book was great for me.  It was just what I needed to get my creative juices flowing and not only that it gave me so many tips and pointers that will help me as a painter! 

I have been sketching for years and I have aspired to paint for some time now, but I have struggled getting my pictures to look right.  The idea in this book helped so much.  The focus is to take it down to smaller sizes which allows you to work with one object at a time rather than whole pictures.  Once you get the smaller images you can work on building larger pictures with more items.

It is very easy to understand for the beginner and I think it would also be a beneficial book for someone more experienced, especially individuals who have not had any prior training.

I really enjoyed the book and I know I will be referencing back to it many times.  It covers everything you can think of regarding painting including colors of paint and the surfaces to paint on.   Now I feel more confident in painting and I am looking forward to creating my own masterpieces!

You can also check out the author's website at http://www.dailypaintworks.com/artists/cmarine


***This book was provided to be through bloggingforbooks in exchange for my honest review.

Love's Rescue - A Book Review

Love's Rescue by Christine Johnson is the first book in the Keys of Promise Series.  The prologue of this story grabbed my attention and pulled at my heart strings.  It is 1846 and Elizableth is 16 years old.  She wants to be seen as a women and she takes her little brother Charlie out on the sea to go sailing.  A storm arises and their boat goes down,  Rourke O'Malley comes to the rescue, but Charlie pays a dear price.  Skip forward 4 years and the story begins.

When her mother dies, Elizabeth heads home to the Florida Keys.  She is traveling with her aunt and a servant girl and once again she finds herself on a ship that is going down and once again Rourke O'Malley comes to her rescue, the one man that she has tried to forget.  When she arrives at home she is faced with a bitter brother who is paralyzed and blames Elizabeth for his condition, the servants do not respect or obey her and her father seems to have some secrets of his own.  On top of that he is trying to arrange a marriage for Elizabeth and she wants nothing more than to go after the man who holds her heart.

After the prologue I really struggled with this book.  I thought with the way I was intrigued in the beginning that I would be pulled in throughout the whole book, but that was not the case.  I struggled with connecting with the main character Elizabeth and just had a hard time getting into the book.  I love books that are rich in history and this book was, I just needed more from the characters.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Christine Johnson is the author of several books for Steeple Hill and Love Inspired and has been twice named a finalist for Romance Writers of America's Golden Heart award. When not writing, she loves to hike and explore God's majestic creation. She and her husband, a Great Lakes ship pilot, split their time between northern Michigan and the Florida Keys. Learn more at www.christineelizabethjohnson.com.

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

Bible Dominoes - Review

Bible Dominoes is a fun game that will help your 3-7 year old develop counting and matching skills.  The rules of the game is pretty similar to the regular game of dominoes except that it is geared for young children.  Colors and/or numbers need to be matched up and the first person to use all their dominoes win.

What I like about this game is that it is made perfectly for small hands.  The "dominoes" are sturdy, colorful and the perfect size for little kids.  No small pieces to worry about either!  The pictures on the dominoes are super cute and appealing to the age group it is intended for.

There is a small booklet included that has Bible stories in it, but I was a little disappointed with it.  It is a paper booklet and each story is very short.  Since this is geared for younger children it won't take long for the booklet to be tore up.

The thing I was most disappointed in with this set is the lack of Bible knowledge shared.  When I initially requested this game I thought it would be a game that was not only fun, but would teach Bible stories.  I was definitely wrong about that.  Other than the counting and matching there is no other learning aspect to the game.  I would of loved to see a game that incorporated some age appropriate Bible trivia or other Biblical knowledge.  I do think that it would be easy to come up with some sort of biblical learning curve while playing the game.  For instance, when the domino with Joseph and his coat of many colors is played you could either share the story of Joseph or ask a question regarding the Joseph.

Overall, I thing it is a very nice game that little kids would enjoy, but as a homeschool mom I would of loved to see a more educational curve to this.

***This game was provided to me through Kregel Publications Blog Tour Review Program in exchange for my honest review.