Book Review: Seasons of Glory

This was a great way to finish the end of the Remnant Series by Lisa T. Bergren. I read the first two books of this series again before I read this as a "refresher". It took me a little bit to get into the first book, but I'm glad that I continued on because this series did not disappoint.

Lisa's style of writing is very vivid and you can feel the characters personalities as well as the very descriptive situations that they get themselves into. This whole journey that Andriana, Ronan, and the gang was worth journeying on. The battle of good versus evil will always continue and it's nice to have a series that is safe for all readers.

For anyone that has read series like the Hunger Games, Divergent and the like, I think they would also enjoy reading this series. Action pact, extreme chase, and love story all in one. I highly recommend.

Simply Calligraphy: Review

I haven't done calligraphy in a very long time. I gave up after I decided to use an ink well and a quill pen. I was 16, so let's just say it's been a VERY long time.

I was excited when I got this book because I do a lot of art journaling and I have always loved reading old letters hand - hand written with parchment and quill. This book was very easy to follow. I practiced the instructions in a separate notebook. I love that it also includes guided practice - think when a child is learning to write. It helped a lot. I used my Micron pens to practice with and I will definitely not be afraid to pick up a pen and ink well again :)

Behold the Man

I was intrigued when I read reader reviews from other sites. A fictional novel about the ministry of Jesus?

I was a little skeptical at first but continued to read on. 

This is the third book in the series "The Jerusalem Chronicles". I have not read the first two ("Jesus Wept" & "Take This Cup", and I found it easy to follow along in this book. 

Each book is written from a different viewpoint regarding basically the same period of time--the few years between when Jesus' ministry begins until His death and resurrection. Jesus Wept is primarily written from Lazarus' perspective, and Take This Cup is the perspective of a young boy, Nehemiah, and his family. Behold the Man is written from the perspective of Claudia (Pilate's wife) and Marcus Longinus, a Roman centurion, with glimpses into the thoughts of Pilate and Claudia's servant as well.

This was an enjoyable, interesting read. A very different look at the trials of Jesus. Sometimes I think we forget about the people that witnessed this event, that were not either acknowledged or minimally acknowledged in the Bible. 

4x4

I'm always looking for new books in the "health" genre that haven't already stated things over and over again that other books have.

While this book shows similar things from other books, I like how Erin has it laid out that there are 4 main rules:

1. Remove starches after 4pm
2. Limit/ remove alcohol
3. Limit/ remove added sugars
4. Limit/ remove sodium

Sounds simple right? It was for the first hour for me. Temptation and will power extremely hard for me.

Also, don't be fooled by the 4 minute workouts. You still be will doing 20-30 minutes of work outs, but they are in 4 minute bursts called Tabata. Simple moves....but exhausts your body in a good way. I didn't know 4 minutes of working out could be so exhausting.

Cats in Paris: Review

I love cats. I love coloring. I love the fact that coloring books for adults have become this huge thing in the last year. Combine two of my favorite things and I am in heaven. There were lots of different pictures to color in this book. All different kinds of cats. So this will take me quite some time to color...(please see one example - not completely finished - below...) I also like how some of them are simple, like the one I tested because you can get really elaborate with the color schemes and create your own backgrounds.

Jesus Today: Review

Jesus Today: Devotions for Kids is about Jesus and His amazing Love for you. It's also a book about hope. Some kids may think that hoping is just wishful thinking. But the hope Jesus offers you is something you can hold on to - knowing it will never let you down. Because Jesus will never let you down! No matter what is happening - whether you are happy, scared, angry, or sad - God is always in control, and He is always good.

That was an excerpt from the Introduction of Jesus Today. This book is supposed to be be for kids, but as a 30-something year old, I enjoyed reading through each of the devotions myself. Sometimes, things just need to be spelled out in the most simplest ways. A way that a child can understand. Some things in the Bible are already difficult to understand, let alone trying to understand it from an adult point of view. The devotions are short, sweet, and provide just enough Bible verses to remind us as a Child of God that He is always there.

There are 150 devotions, each very short. Each devotion has approximately 3-4 versus to show us God promises. There is also a Scripture text in the back of the book, and a cute little blue ribbon to mark your page.

I think this would be a great book to read with a child at the end of the day, for bedtime devotions. Even as an adult, I'm thinking about keeping it at my nightstand for nightly bedtime prayer.

Landscape Oil Painting Review

I love to paint. And I love to find new techniques. I'm a novice...in no way an expert painter. But I like to express myself.

It's been years since I had painted with oil. I've wanted to learn to landscape paint for the longest time. I wanted to head out into the open with my pallet, paints, and the wild, blue yonder in front of me, whispering what it wants to tell me.

This book was well written. It showed great tutorials and explained the steps to paint the picture. To me, it felt "dummied down"- meaning, that even a beginner would be able to understand what was being said. That's big when you are learning a new project. I think a lot of people are intimidated by painting/drawing in general, and I think anyone would feel comfortable getting this book in their hands and taking on the challenge to work with oil paints. It's one of my favorite mediums that I've wanted to express with and now I get to more. I'm grateful that I was able to review this book.