Made for a Purpose Book Review

Summary: Christian themed book all about helping children learn God's Purpose while learning about animals along the way.

Details: Beautiful watercolor painted images full of realistic texture, color, life, vibrancy, and beauty.  Each page in itself is a masterpiece from an Artistic standpoint.  Kristie Wilde is both author and illustrator which makes this quality even more spectacular because of all the work, time, and imagination she had put into her book.  This is book One of her Joyful Creation Series, and if it's this good, you know the next books to come will be amazing too.

My Review:  I got this book for my 7 year old son, who has just this year in school gotten to the point of being very confident in his reading skills, to the point of willing to read out loud for us to hear him.  He has had a hard time finding books that he enjoys reading, so as a Mom I am always on the hunt for the next book to give him pleasure, joy and confidence in his reading.  He loves turtles with a capital LOVES LOVES LOVES TURTLES!!!!! attitude.  Even though this book has many different animals in it, it has turtles on the front and that helped my son desire to read this book. Not only had Kristie given us a wonderfully well written children's book, 19 artistic masterpieces in watercolor, but she has added her own sense of humor into the font of the book as she gives us some information about each animal.  It is not just a Christian Children's book, but rather an Educational Christian Children's book.  Both my 7 year old and my 10 year old have enjoyed reading this book often since receiving it in the mail, which has been such a blessing to me, as they struggle with a love for reading.  I am very grateful to authors who know how to captivate children on so many levels with their imagery, storytelling, and keen sense of sharing information children want to learn about in book form for said children.

Here is a link where you may purchase this book if you want to enjoy it as well.

To comply with the Federal Trade Commision's regulations, I must mention as part of every review given thanks to BookCrash, that the publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of the book, through BookCrash, in exchange for an honest non biased review.

Strange Lands: Heroes of Distant Planets Book 1 book review

Genre: Fantasy

Plot:  Allen, the Boy has the whole world in his hands: well he at least thinks he does in his head.  However, when that world comes crashing down things seem to go from bad to worse, to scary.  When life is taken from him, Allen is left to fend for himself in a wheelchair and voiceless.  There is some good, Allen's Uncle becomes the reason he lives.  In this new quest to help and save his Uncle Allen finds a whole new world, Strange Lands, filled with fear, magic, and mystical creatures.  

My Opinion:  Let me start by saying I'm not normally a sci/fi book lover.  It has to be the right type of fantasy book or right type of scientific book for me to want to read it, and then enjoy reading it.  I'm more of a historical fiction, Christian, hallmark happy story type reader.  So when I say that I like a fantasy book, that is big for me.  This book is written perfectly for ages of youth in their tween/ teen years.  It is easy enough to read and understand all the many new creatures, with new names, powers, their connection to Allen and his new life.  Strange Lands is a fun book, which is good, because I'm not a fan of deep dark scary books.  That said, it is a little too much fiction, and is a bit too wordy when descriptions are being used to really be fully enjoyed by adults...unless you enjoy fantasy whole and encompassing.

Interesting Details: Swimming is key to this whole book.  Allen is a great aquatic athlete in the very beginning, and he continues to swim throughout the book.  I found that very endearing and fantastic, because it reminds me of my youth: swim team, life guarding, swimming with my friends, siblings, parents, etc.  Allen is full of fear, he opening cries, and yet is constantly finding himself building up his courage, bravery, and confidence.  Something all tweens and teens are doing in real life.  A great example.

Amazon Link: You can buy the book here through the link below.  It is not an affiliate link, but the direct link to Strand Lands: Heroes of Distant Planets Book 1 on Amazon.

To comply with the Federal Trade Commission's regulations, I must mention as part of every review; that the publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of the book, through Amazon, in exchange for an honest non biased review. There are no affiliate links, nor payments made for this review.  I have posted a review on Amazon as well.

Business School Project

My children are home schooled. It is a family adventure we're loving!  As part of school my kids have been challenged to come up with 3 business plans, build them, execute them, and run the businesses to test the following: 1. Which business earned the most money, 2. Which business did I enjoy the most, 3. Which business was the most thought out/ well planned, 4. Which business ran the smoothest?

They have been given 1 month to plan out all 3 businesses, then one month to built each business, and then they will get 1 month to run each business.  This business class will help them be ready for the real world, help them be more respectful to businesses now, be more aware of niche businesses, and takes the place of the Science Fair this year.

Starting in March the first business will be hand crafted/ hand painted jewelry my children have put together to sell.  They are making earrings, bracelets and necklaces.  They have made earrings before to help pay for different summer camps, so the addition of bracelets and necklaces are a new venue for them.  Below is a sneak peek at some of their products.

Moving from Broken to Beautiful Through Forgiveness Book Review

When you feel Broken down...let Yvonne Ortega teach you how to move from this broken state to a beautiful light hearted state through forgiveness.  Her novel Moving from Broken to Beautiful through Forgiveness shares her personal life's story of how she suffered, hated, begged God for revenge and justice, and was able to find peace of heart through forgiving her ex-husband for all the abuse he put her through.  Her story is unique to her, but one that many feel they have experienced in some degree as well.  Ms. Ortega knows how to reach everyone, for we all have experienced something that has caused us to hold onto anger, hatred, or a grudge, we have all felt broken down at some point in our lives.  With the 12 steps that she goes over in this book, you learn why forgiveness works, what it is, and why it is so important for your health, your love, your sanity, and for God to work on you.  She goes over scriptures that tell us God's stance on forgiveness, and what He wants us to do.  This book is short, but full of amazing nuggets of gold very precious to life.

Light as a feather floating on air...I chose this book so that I could give it to someone I care about a lot.  I felt they could use what was said, even though I had never read it before, to benefit and better their life.  I wanted them to feel light as a feather, as they were going through some very crazy, deep, not so happy stuff in their life.  Yet, when I started reading it, I realized there is so much that I can learn from God about forgiveness.  I didn't realize how much weight I was holding onto from various things that have happened to me over the years that I have been reminded of.  This weight is from not forgiving others for their wrong doings to me, or their wrong doings to someone in my family.  I haven't really ever thought about this weight, or how it has been affecting me.  Happiness is important to me!  I love feeling light as a feather floating on air as I take on the world!  But that can't always happen, feathers don't float in the air when it's raining, or storming, or snowing.

Beauty is more... for women especially we feel a need a deep desire to be beautiful.  To be beautiful all the time!  We feel judged about pretty much everything: wife-hood, mommy-hood, education, house, pet, shape of body, food we eat, where we shop, how we parent, etc.  That list could go on and on and on, do I sound like a broken record yet?  This isn't new, to most of you, it isn't new to me.  And we just saw and heard all about the Women's March USA 2017, that caused quiet a bit of controversy all over the country.  The scriptures tell us God's point of view on beauty, and what true beauty is.  Ms. Ortega really understands how to help us open our eyes and take a long, hard, deep look at our selves, she helps us open up all those forbidden closets we've locked up inside us.  She helps us understand how to heal, how to move on, how to successfully move forwards in life, how to be Beautiful.  Because Beauty is more than how we look.  In her book, Ms. Ortega has left us journal space to write down our thoughts, feelings, and experiences to help us move through the forgiveness process towards beauty.

I highly recommend this book to anyone to everyone.  It is worth the read!  Worth the time put into yourself!  And if you like this book, check out her other books in this series.

To comply with the Federal Trade Commision's regulations, I must mention as part of every review because of BookCrash, that the publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of the book, through BookCrash, in exchange for an honest non biased review.

Black Cherry Spinach

Black Cherry Spinach

1 cup Cran/Grape juice

1/2 Banana (fresh)

1/2 cup Black Cherry Greek Yogurt

8 tsp Oatmeal (dry)

2 tsp Ground Flax Seed

2 tsp Almond Meal (unblanched)

2 tsp Ground Chia Seed

1 scoop Super Greens (red powder)

1/3 cup Blackberries (fresh frozen)

1/2 cup Strawberries (fresh frozen)

1/3 cup Spinach (fresh frozen)

*Blend until smooth.  This will be a beautiful black cherry color, and a medium thickness of smoothie.  Makes 1 serving!  This is a bit tart, so my kids didn't like it.  If you are not a fan of tartness, you can add any of the following to make it taste sweeter: 1/2 banana, 1/2 cup Apple juice, 1 tbsp Agava juice (similar to honey but thinner, and not so sugary).  Enjoy~

Orange Mango Twist

The last smoothie recipe I posted was Orange Mango.  It was super yummy, and made a funky amount 2 and 1/2 servings.  So today I'm posting what I did with that 1/2 serving to make it a full serving.

Okay here goes~

Orange Mango Twist

Take the half a serving of the Orange Mango and add the following
2 tbsp oatmeal (dry)
1/2 cup Greek Yogurt Vanilla flavored
2 full sized carrots (peeled, steamed: I got this amazing product that allows me to steam single servings of vegetables so I steamed the 2 carrots then threw them into my smoothie warm)
1/4 cup orange juice (I like the lots of pulp)
1/2 banana fresh
*Blend until smooth. This will be a thicker smoothie, white-ish peach in color with little carrot glitter if you have a Ninja blender like me. Makes 1 serving. Now since I added a warm carrot to this smoothie I had to chill the smoothie until I was ready to eat it...just keep that in mind.

Curse Breaker: Enchanted Book Review

Genre: Fantasy

Plot: Boy with special powers is trying to live his life, help his brother, and keep a secret protected, but he works for a powerful man and an odd group of people.  The people who he works for care about him and want to keep him safe from bad people, but they've broken his trust and can't get him to talk to them.  Something bad happened in the land, and magic has called to the boy, now the ghosts from that incident are also asking for the boy to help them, their only issue is that they can't talk to him.  Can he solve the mystery before he runs out of time?  Can he solve the mystery, keep his secret, and help his brother into collage?  The boy has a really rough life, with too many people asking too much of him, but can he endure and come out conqueror in the end?
 
Sexual Content update: Though I put that there is some sexual content let tell you what I mean.  There are no sex scenes, which is great for me, because I'm not a fan of those.  However the main character is drawn into sexual thoughts about a beautiful woman.

My Opinion:  Let me start by saying I'm not normally a sci/fi book lover.  It has to be the right type of fantasy book or right type of scientific book for me to want to read it, and then enjoy reading it.  I'm more of a historical fiction, Christian, hallmark happy story type reader.  So when I say that I like a fantasy book, that is big for me.  Now for the cliche' I really did enjoy this book, I was constantly finding ways to sneak in and read it during my days over the Christmas/ New Year's holidays.  One of the reasons I really enjoyed reading is because there was a wonderfully well planned history of where Sarn (the main character) lived, his back story, and why things were the way they were.  However, this backstory was interwoven into every aspect and chapter, so you don't get the whole picture until the end, just puzzle pieces throughout the book.  Melinda's characterization is very much in the same level as Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter.  You get to know each Ranger who works with Sarn, their individual quirks, ticks, and cares on thejob.  Sarn's world is divided into when he's on the job and when he's off the job, so when the author mixes the two into one, she is very successful!  The ghosts mentioned in the plot summary are my favorite characters of the whole story, they frustrate me, I like them, feel sorry for them, and wish I had power to help them communicate with Sarn while I was reading.  When an author captures your own imagination and sucks you into the story as a character, you know they are very talented, and have worked hard at their skills.  My only issue with the book, that kept me from giving it a 5 star rating, is that Sarn is a really rough life, too rough to be realistic in my opinion.  I feel like there was so much bad happening to him that when something good did happen, it was glossed over just a little bit.  Much like Harry Potter, my issue is the same; so much bad happened to Harry too, but he had those periods of regular life too, just not enough to make it realistic.  I would have liked to see more good, or at least longer periods of time between each trial that happened to Sarn for my own personal reasons.

Interesting Details: This book review is from the ebook version.  It is totally worth getting, because you can read it so much faster, and anywhere you go, easier than carrying a book around.  I used the Amazon Kindle Unlimited app on my phone to read this ebook version.  It was perfect.  It automatically kept my book mark whenever I stopped.  It also let me know how far along I was in each chapter and in the book as a whole, so that I knew how fast I was reading.  The auther Melinda Kucsera has an amazing imagination.  The way this novel is detailed it can compete with Lord of the Rings and even Harry Potter in the way that as you read this book comes to life.  You are thrown into the book as a character shadowing the main character, but are able to float around watching those whom the main character Sarn interacts with.

Amazon Link: You can buy the book here through the link below.  It is not an affiliate link, but the direct link to Curse Breaker: Enchanted on Amazon.

To comply with the Federal Trade Commission's regulations, I must mention as part of every review; that the publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of the book, through Amazon, in exchange for an honest non biased review. There are no affiliate links, nor payments made for this review.  I have posted a review on Amazon as well.

Orange Mango Smoothie

Orange Mango Smoothie

1 banana fresh
1 1/4 cup orange juice (I chose with pulp)
1 cup mandarin oranges (I used canned and drained them before adding them)
1 cup mango slices (fresh)
1 cup Pineapple (fresh frozen)
1 scoop Super Greens (red powder)
1 tsp Unblanched Almond Meal
1 tsp Ground Chia Seed
1 tsp Ground Flax Seed
*Blend until smooth.  This is a thin smoothie and makes 2 1/2 servings.  In fact stay tuned to find out what I did with the 1/2 serving to make it into a full serving.  This smoothie has been husband approved!

A Servant Like Jesus Book Review

Let me start that the 5 star rating came from my kids, not just me...

First of all Dan Sharp is a great illustrator, his characters are beautiful, bright and vibrant! Perfect for a kid's book. The story that Ms. Mancini had brought to life here in "A Servant Like Jesus" is a cute sweet learning story for all children. We used it during story time at school, which was perfect because it's about a classroom. My 7 year old learned to read this year, and when he saw the book in my stack of workbooks he 1. asked if we could start with that book, 2. asked if he could read, 3. started reading before I was completely ready to start school today. 

LET ME TELL YOU WHAT! I wanted to cry because he has been fighting reading for a year and a half, so for him to give me 3 amazing surprises all based around a book I could cry. He loved the characters, (especially the Crab Charlie, because my 7 year old LOVES crabs), he loved the story, loved the message about Jesus (since we're celebrating Christmas right now, and he's looking for more ways to be like Jesus), and best of all loved going back through the whole story to find the hidden Bibles on each page. In fact he re-read the book after school was over just because he loved this book so much! To show you how amazing this miracle is, he has currently only read short level 1 readers with 10 or less words per page. This book is 32 pages long with an average of 12+ words per page.

My 10 year old loved this too, we all took turns reading together which was a great family experience! It was a reading without tears, without being angry or stressed or frustrated by any of us. My kids already want me to start looking for more books like this, so Ms. Lee Ann Mancini please keep writing more!

To comply with the Federal Trade Commision's regulations, I must mention as part of every review because of BookCrash, that the publisher has provided me with a complimentary copy of the book, through BookCrash, in exchange for an honest non biased review.

A Stranger for Christmas book Review

A Stranger for Christmas by Carol Lynn Pearson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Two years ago my Mother-in-Law introduced me to an amazingly inspirational Christmas Tradition. She buys a new Christmas book each year to read during the month of December, leading up to Christmas. I love that idea! Well last year I found another fun but wonderful Christmas tradition of having 25 Christmas stories wrapped in a box, and each night before bed, my children open a book and we'll read it together. For some reason this year I just CAN'T WAIT for Christmas. So during the summer I went to a book store and bought a bunch of Christmas books for myself. A Stranger for Christmas is one of those books.

Let me tell you, this is a very fast read, in fact I read it in 30 minutes while my children were eating lunch on a Sunday afternoon. Yet, despite the amount of pages, what you get out of this short little book will stick with you for so much longer. The author did a marvelous job of bringing her characters alive on the pages. Each of those sweet and sassy ladies are so unique and classy in their own ways. The mission they explore is one that each of us should tap into, especially during the holiday season, not just for Christmas, but why not for Thanksgiving too! Maybe even Halloween too, how can you be more of a friend to a stranger during these family centered holidays?

"Who would take in a stranger for Christmas?" That is the message of the Christ child...who would let the Son of God join them for Christmas, for His birth, for their life? I know Thanksgiving is right around the corner however I'm really feeling the need to fill my soul with the Christmas spirit right now. I'm truly enjoying all the Christmas books that I have to read.

FYI: curl up with a cozy blanket and a box of tissues!

View all my reviews

Photography Training

Recently I have started working on my photography training again.  I've been out of touch with both my camera, my editing software, and my "eye" for my product images.  Linkedin (the online professional network) has some amazing career training that help refresh, refine, and update your training.  If you haven't checked it out, I highly recommend it.  You want to search Linkedin Learning, with a 30 day free trial, you can choose a monthly payment or annual payment option.  Plus once you've completed the training it updates your profile automatically!  Wonderful! Seriously, you'll love what you find!  I've already learned some great new tips for making my photography stand out even more!  I'm super excited! Now to get some great looking products to shoot...

Halloween Smoothie

This smoothie is a 3 step process!

Step 1:
1/4 cup Mandarin Oranges with juice (I used canned)
1 cup Pumpkin puree (chilled tastes better than room temp)
1/2 cup Carrots (steamed and chilled or canned because they're soft)
2 tsp Ground Flax Seed
1/4 cup Orange Juice
*Blend until smooth.  Then pour into 3 separate glasses.  This is the base color of the tri-colored smoothie.  Keep in fridge between steps.

Step 2:
1 cup Mango (fresh frozen)
1/2 cup Apple Sauce
1/4 cup Oatmeal (dry, minute oatmeal is my preferred)
1/3 cup Apple Juice
1/4 cup Orange Juice
1/2 cup Pineapples (fresh frozen)
*Blend until smooth.  Then pour on top of the orange base.  This will be the thickest layer, so it may sink slightly into the orange base, but most will stay on top.

Step 3:
1/3 cup Cauliflower (fresh steamed and chilled)
1/4 cup Cucumber (peeled, chilled, and chopped)
1 cup Coconut Vanilla Greek Yogurt
1/4 cup Almond milk
1 Banana (fresh)
*Blend until smooth.  This is the final layer. Pour on top of the yellow middle layer of smoothie.  It will be more creamy than the other 2 layers.  After enjoying the beautiful colors, I actually mixed all 3 layers together with my straw to enjoy them flavor mixture better.  Enjoy~

Swing Set

The other day I saw a really creative way to make a swing set.  It held 4 swings, and even had a little kiddie slide off to the side.  Our homeschool group went on a field trip to a Pumpkin/ Gourd patch which is run by the Grandparents of this family run business.  So here are the pictures of what I got.  This gives you an idea of how to build it.  In my mind, not only is this super creative, it saves space, and is actually easy enough to re-build for yourself.

Here is the layout of the Swing: 3 pieces of wood,
4 metal strips, 8 hooks, 4 swings, etc

Each of the pieces of wood are roughly this wide.
 So a 6x6 or an 8x8.

Here is the layout of the hooks for the 4 swings.

Here is the metal strip with screws bolting the top wood into place.

Strawberry Pumpkin Smoothie

Strawberry Pumpkin Smoothie
1 cup Orange Juice
1/2 cup Berry Aloe Juice
1 cup Papaya 
1 cup Pumpkin Puree'
1/2 cup Cranberry jelly (like what you use at Thanksgiving)
1 cup Strawberry Greek Yogurt
4 tsp Ground Flax Seed
3 tbsp Ground Oatmeal
1 cup Strawberries (freshly sliced and frozen)
1/2 cup Raspberries (fresh frozen)
*Blend until smooth. Will be creamy and a bit tart. But delish! I got my Hubby's approval on the taste!

Pumpkin Papaya Smoothie

Pumpkin Papaya Smoothie
1 Banana (fresh)
2/3 cup Orange Juice (no pulp)
1/2 cup Berry Aloe Juice
2/3 cup Cauliflower (freshly steamed, and chilled)
1/2 cup Mango (frozen)
1/2 cup Papaya (fresh or canned)
1 cup Pumpkin Puree'
*Blend until smooth. I found this to be too thick so I added the following 2 ingredients.
4 tsp Ground Flax Seed
1/2 cup Orange Juice
*Blend until smooth. You will taste the pumpkin and the papaya most. Enjoy~

Pumpkin Peach Smoothie

 Pumpkin Peach Smoothie
1 Banana (fresh)
1/2 cup Cauliflower (freshly steamed and chilled)
1 cup Orange Juice (no pulp)
1/2 cup Berry Aloe Juice
3 tsp Ground Flax Seed
1 scoop Chia Seeds
1/2 cup Peaches (fresh frozen)
3/4 cup Pumpkin puree'
1/4 cup Apple sauce
*Blend until smooth and creamy. Will be a thicker smoothie. The Chia Seeds make my pictures not as appealing in my own mind. But that's due to the type of blender that I have.. Makes 2 servings. I ate the second serving the next morning, and noticed a little bit of separation from the thick smoothie part and the juices I added. Easy to stir back together before drinking though.

Blackberry Beet Smoothie

Blackbeet Smoothie

1 banana (fresh)
1/2 cup Beets (freshly steamed, peeled, chopped and chilled)
1/2 cup Cauliflower (freshly steamed and chilled)
1/3 cup Cucumber
3 tsp Ground Flax Seed
1 scoop Chia Seeds
1 cup Blackberries
1/2 cup Pomegranate/ Plum juice
1/2 cup Berry Aloe juice
*Blend until smooth. Makes 1 serving. Enjoy~

Raspberry Beet Smoothie

Rasbeet Smoothie

1/2 cup Pomegranate/ Plum Juice
1/2 cup Berry Aloe Juice
3 tsp Ground Flax Seed
1 scoop Chia Seeds
*Blend until smooth.
1/2 cup Beets (freshly steamed, peeled, chopped, chilled)
2/3 cup Cauliflower (freshly steamed and chilled)
1/3 cup Cucumber (peeled)
*Blend until smooth.
1 cup Greek Coconut/ Vanilla Yogurt
2 cups Raspberries
*Blend until smooth and creamy. Makes 2 servings.

Cranberry Beet Smoothie

Cranbeet Smoothie

1 Banana fresh
1/2 cup Berry flavored Aloe Juice
1/2 cup Pomegranate/ Plum Juice
*Blend for 30 seconds.
3 tsp Ground Flax Seed
1 scoop Chia Seeds
1/2 cup Beets (steamed, peeled, chopped, and chilled overnight)
1/3 cup Cranberry Jelly (like what you serve at Thanksgiving)
1/3 cup Cauliflower (steamed and chilled overnight)
*Blend for 2 minutes or until smooth and creamy. Most of these ingredients aren't cold enough to make a frozen smoothie texture, but it was cool enough for me to enjoy it just as it was. However you can chill the mixture to your liking. Single Serving!

Washington D. C.

Recently we went on a family trip to Washington D. C.  Aside from seeing the amazing monuments like the WWII, Lincoln, Washington, White House and Capital building; we were able to go see the Air and Space Museum, and the Natural History Museum.  It was really cool because our family love the Night at the Museum movies based in those museums.  Below are just a handful of the pictures I took, that as a teacher really stuck out to me to use for different unit lessons.  Enjoy~