Book Review: The Haven by Suzanne Woods Fisher

I was so delighted when I saw this book come up for review! I really enjoyed the first book in the Stoney Ridge Seasons series, and found myself eagerly waiting for the next book to be published. It is here and it was worth the wait!


The second book follows the second sister in the Lapp family, Sadie. She has just come back from visiting Julia and Roman, and she arrives back at the farm with a big surprise! (I won't tell you what it is - you'll have to read it for yourself :-) She is greeted with not one, but two romantic interested which, for such a quiet reserved person, is a lot to handle. Besides all the drama and action in her life, the book also follows the rest of the family, which is another thing I love about the books. Everyone in the family is so unique and they are such great, deep characters. I am already looking forward to and guessing what's going to happen in the next book!

Thanks and thanks again to Revell publishers for a free copy of this book to review.

Available August 2012 at your favorite bookseller from Revell,

 a division of Baker Publishing Group.

Bible Stories Gone Awry!

Yesterday I was talking to Eóin about what he learned in junior church. He went through what they did in class and when he got to the Bible story, he said it was about an oven. It took me a few minutes to think of what the story could be, and then I asked if it was about Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednigo. He said yes, and we kind of went through the story again. When I asked him why he thought they didn't get burned up, he said, "hmm maybe they forgot to turn the oven on" ;-) I think this story needs a little more review!

Book Review: A Most Unsuitable Match by Stephanie Grace Whitson

Fannie Rousseau's sheltered life is about to come to an abrupt end. Faced with being alone, and tired of keeping up the appearance of wealth, she decides to leave it all behind on a journey to find a mysterious aunt she has never met. With only her faithful maid and friend Hannah beside her, she heads off to the wild west.
On her travels she meets up with Samuel Beck, who is in love with God and wants to tell everyone he meets about him. An unlikely friendship blossoms and maybe something more, but they are from different worlds and each brushes the possibility aside. But maybe God has bigger plans than either of them could have imagined.

I really enjoyed this story, even though it was a little slow getting into it. I have found that with this author's books in the past too. But once you get into them, it's worth the read. One of my favorite things about it was that although it has romance in it, the whole plot doesn't revolve around that aspect. In fact the main characters are not even together for a lot of the book. I loved the characters and the individual journeys they take.

Thank you to Bethany House Publishers for a free copy of this book to review. 

Book Review: The Doctor's Lady by Jodi Hedlund

Priscilla White is looking forward to her life, serving God in India. She is the perfect candidate, dedicated to God and burdened for the souls of others.

Dr. Eli Ernest is on the road, raising support for his work among the Native Americans in the West. Headstrong and rugged, he is the perfect candidate for work in the harsh conditions.
But the perfect candidates are not perfect enough for the mission board - they are not married and the board decides to no longer send single candidates to the field.
With their dreams of serving God and winning people to him looking more bleak, by the minute, Priscilla and Eli join together in a marriage which will allow them both to serve God. A marriage by name only, for the purpose of winning souls.
But on the harsh trip out West, they are challenged by hardships which will test their commitment to their cause and to their marriage of convenience.

I really did enjoy this story, especially the descriptions of the journey out west during that time period. I live just 20 minutes away from Liberty, MO and love to imagine the trip along the river that people took back then. The struggle between Eli and Priscilla creates a tension that keeps the pages turning to see what will happen with them. Between that and all the physical hardships, there is enough to hold your attention for the whole read!

Thank you to Bethany House Publishers for a free copy of this book to review.

If you were the only person in the world...

Aidan's class was learning about the first family that God made. His teacher asked "If you were the only person in the world, what would you do?"

Some kids would play with the animals but Aidan said "I'd be naughty." I think I believe him :-)

Later, they were talking about Cain and Abel being brothers. Aidan said, "I have a brother too, but we have a sister too so we are better than them."

They are getting to that age when we kinda dread what they are going to say in class ;-)

Father's Day Funnies

It's been pretty busy around here trying to keep up with a mobile little girl who loves mischief! I also have been spending my evenings trying to clear out the basement so blogging has taken a back seat. Time for a bit of catch up.

Eóin's class at church made these cute booklets about their dads and Eóin's gave us a good laugh. Here are some of the things in his book (It was fill in blank - his answers are bold):

My daddy is 4 years old. He has black hair and blue eyes. He is 7 feet tall.

My daddy works at the front yard. At his job he plants flowers.

My daddy loves to eat scrambled eggs and toast.

My dad likes to wear underpants.

My dad us SO strong, he could lift a computer.

My dad really loves mommy. (awwww)

If my dad had time he would go to work.

He is smart because he knows how to get pants on.

If I could give my dad anything, it would be a big dinner like a chicken butt. (nice)

They love their dad :-)