Picturing Heaven - Book Review

Picturing Heaven: 40 hope-filled devotions with coloring pages, written by Randy Alcorn and illustrated by Lizzie Preston is a beautiful book!  It by far, passed my expectation.  When I received it in the mail and began to flip through the pages I got so excited!  Such beauty!  The illustrations are amazing.  Each have gold details already filled in.  I think this was very fitting given the title.

To be honest, I was hesitant to color in it!  The pictures seemed so perfect just the way they were and I didn't want to take away from it.  I soon seen that adding a little of my own color and creativeness just enhanced the page!

The devotions that are included are just as beautiful as the pictures.  What better way to unwind at the end of the day then with a devotion that sets your mind on the promises of God.  Coloring also helps me relax so the coloring pages paired with a devotion is the perfect way to set my mind at peace and concentrate of the things of God.

This would be a great gift to give to someone who enjoys coloring or to just treat yourself!

***Thanks so much to Tyndale Publishing for providing me with a copy of this beautiful book in exchange for my honest review.

Coloring Christmas Devotions - Book Review

Coloring Christmas Devotions is the perfect book for the upcoming holidays!  It is the perfects size to take  on the go or curl up with at home.  Each page offers a short devotion or scripture.  On the opposite side there is a fun Christmas scene to color.  The verses are quoted in NKJV.  The pages are thick enough to use markers or gel pens without fear of bleeding through.  If you do not like coloring in book form, the pages are perforated to make it easy to remove and color more easily.

Each Christmas season I try to find a good devotion book that helps me step back from the hustle and bustle of the season and focus on the true meaning.  This book is perfect for this season.  The pictures are beautiful,the devotions are meaningful and the price is reasonable.  You can get it from CBD for $6.99!

As the holiday season is fast approaching now is the perfect time to pick up this great book.  While your at it you might as well pick up a couple to give as gifts!

*** Thanks to booklookbloggers.com for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review!

Draw 50 Sea Creatures - Book Review

I've always wanted to be able to sit down and draw whatever I want without it looking like a two year old did it. Truth is though,  I am not artistic when it comes to drawing. Lucky for me there are plenty of books out there that help.

Draw 50 Sea Creatures is a great book to help anyone who can hold a pencil to draw fish, sharks, dolphins and more. The book takes you step by step until you have a complete drawing. It starts with simple shapes and slowly adds detail.

Now, I'll be honest. I've already admitted that I'm not an artist, but my penguin definitely looked like a penguin and my fish and turtle were recognizable as well. Now they weren't as good as the examples in the book, but definitely better than anything I could accomplish on my own.

This is a great book for all ages, however, I do think younger kids would enjoy it the most.

***Thanks to bloggingforbooks.com for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

An Amish Christmas Love - Book Review

Do you know that there are only 103 day left before Christmas! How can that be! It seems like we were just celebrating the new year! 

Summer is always my favorite season, but as the weather starts turning cooler I always find I have more time to read. 

An Amish Christmas Love is a book composed of four novellas by some of the best Amish fiction authors. 

The four stories included are:  Winter Kisses by Beth Wiseman, The Christmas Cat by Amy Clipston, Snow Angels by Kelly Irvin and Home for Christmas by Ruth Reid. 

They are quick reads and sweet little stories that will quickly put you in the Christmas spirit. This book would make a lovely gift for anyone who enjoys reading Amish fiction. 

Herr is a short description of each story:

Winter Kisses by Beth Wiseman

Three generations of Stoltzfus women are all living under the same roof. At twenty-five, Naomi has never been married, and both her mother, Barbara, and her grandmother, Ruth, have recently been widowed. Each nursing broken or lonely hearts, they also each have potential suitors. When a storm on Christmas Eve forces the three couples to take shelter in the basement of the Stotlzfus homestead, secrets are revealed, hearts are opened, and all three potential grooms drop to their knees for very different reasons—a proposal, a prayer, and an epiphany.

The Christmas Cat by Amy Clipston

Emma Bontrager is spending her first Christmas alone after her husband of 45 years, Henry, passed away in July. Although the Amish don’t normally allow animals in their homes, a big, fat, orange barn cat keeps coming into Emma’s house. She shoos the cat away, but it continues to appear in her house, settling on Henry’s favorite wingchair. But the cat isn’t the only Christmas visitor: a group of young people help bring the Christmas spirit to Emma, reminding her that love and hope abide.

Snow Angels by Kelly Irvin

As a young man enjoying his rumspringa, David Byler gave his heart to an Englisch girl, but he eventually realized he couldn’t give up his Plain faith and family for her, so he let her go. He’s found a new love in his Bee County Plain community, Molly Shrock. Molly has been patient, waiting for the man she loves to love her back. Just as he is ready to propose, David makes a startling discovery: Bobbie McGregor, his Englisch love, is back. Will Molly’s prayers for a Christmas love be answered?

Home for Christmas by Ruth Reid

When a misdirected GPS sends Ellie Whetstone to the wrong address, she inadvertently finds herself breaking into the home of Amish man, Ezra Mast. Ellie hopes to fix up the house left by her aenti and sell it quickly, but a series of run-ins with Ezra and his young daughter have her questioning whether a hasty sale is the right move. Could this new place with its slower pace be the right home for Ellie?

***Thanks to booklookbloggers.com for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. 

Bringing Maggie Home - A Book Review

Kim Vogel Sawyer has been one of my favorite Authors for quite sometime.  Bringing Maggie Home is her newest novel and it was a little different than what I'm used to from her, but it was still an enjoyable read.

When Hazel was 10 years old she was picking blackberries with her little sister.  Hazel turned her back for just a few minutes and just like that her sister was gone.  The little girl was never found and no one really knew what happened to her.  The tragedy shaped Hazel's life and she never got over being responsible for the loss of her little sister.

Almost 70 years later, Hazel faces her past when her granddaughter finds pictures of Maggie.  The sister that no one knew Hazel even had.  Meghan is an investigator and decides to call on her partner for help in solving the case of what happened to Maggie.

Hazel's daughter and Meghan's mom, Diane, has a lot of bitterness towards her mother.  As she learns more about her mother's past she begins to realize why her mom was so overprotective and why she did some of the things she did.

In their search for Maggie, relationships begin to heal and lives are changed, but will they get to the bottom of what happened all those years ago?

The book jumps around from past to present and from the different character's point of view.  I liked this set up and it made the book much more interesting.  The mystery of what happened to Maggie kept me enthralled and I couldn't wait to find out what really happened.

I would definitely recommend this book!

Thanks to bloggingforbooks.com for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.