Christian's Hope Book Review

I looked at the description of the book and thought it sounded interesting but it was a historic fiction so I wasn't interested.  I read the description a second time and decided that I still wanted to read it.  Christian's Hope (Return to Northkill) by Ervin R. Stutzman was the third book in the series that I hadn't read but I was eager to start reading it!!

When Christian Hochstetler returns to the Amish after seven years in captivity, he finds that many things have shifted. Captured as a child during the French and Indian War, Christian has spent much of his life among Native Americans, who cared for him and taught him their ways. Now that Christian is home, his father wants him to settle back into their predictable Amish life of farming, and Christian's budding friendship with Orpha Rupp beckons him to stay as well.
Yet Christian feels restless, and he misses his adoptive Native American family--who raised him as their own son. When faced with a life-altering decision, will Christian choose the Amish identity that his father desires for him? Or will he depart from his family and faith community yet again?
Christian's Hope tells the story of the younger brother of Joseph and son of Jacob, whom readers have come to love in the first two books in the Return to Northkill series. Based on actual events and written by a descendant of the Hochstetler family, Christian's Hope brings the sweeping epic of the Return to Northkill series to a soul-stirring end

I have not read the other books in the series so this was my first book getting to know these characters and what was going on.  It was a little of a slow start for me because I had to get to know all the history of the characters but I jumped right into it and couldn't put it down.  Christian is fighting between his birth culture of the Amish and the one that he grew up in with the Indians.  There is a lot of talk about how all of the "white" people hate the "savages" which I think was a little repetitive after awhile and I would rather be showed instead of told over and over.  The book was made up three parts and I felt that it got much faster paced in the second and third section.  After going through the whole book, it was a good read which I enjoyed.  I wish that I got to read the first two books in the series but I will have to add them to my reading list.  I hope that you check out this book soon and let me know what you think!!

**I was provided a copy of the book to read from the publishers but all opinions here are my own.

An Amish Family Christmas Book Review

I was so excited to have the opportunity to get to read the third and the fourth book in the Charmed lift series in a row because it is so hard to leave things unfinished and what could be better then a Christmas book!!!  Love the Christmas books because there is always so many things going on with the holidays and the families that you are never bored.  An Amish Family Christmas: A Charmed Amish Life Christmas Novel by Shelley Shepard Gray is the fourth book in the Charmed Amish Life series and a wonderful next step with the great characters.

Ever since his father died in a tragic fire, Levi Kinsinger has felt adrift. Newly returned to Charm, Ohio, Levi is trying to fit into his old life, only to discover he seems to have outgrown it.
But when Julia, his young widowed neighbor, asks for his help with a Christmas project, Levi finds a sense of purpose for the first time in months. She and her daughter are new to Charm and could use a friend, a job Levi takes personally. Soon enough, friendship grows into attraction, but Levi can’t help having doubts. There’s something about Julia that doesn’t ring quite true…

Like Levi, Julia Kemps has survived her fair share of hardships—but only by hiding the truth of her past. Being an unmarried mother in an Amish community was unthinkable. Feeling hopeless, Julia did the only thing she could do: she moved to a new town and pretended to be a widow. But meeting Levi, she’s hopeful for the first time. Little by little, she begins to imagine telling him her darkest secret, and eventually…perhaps even sharing her life with him.
Christmas is a time for family, and as the holiday draws closer, Julia and Levi will have to face their pasts together…in order to find the healing, support and love they so desperately desire.

I love Levi and enjoyed his homecoming to the small town.  He left after having a hard time dealing with his fathers death.  While living in Pinecraft, Flordia, he learned and grew a lot but came home as soon as he got the call from his family.  There was an adjustment to having all his family around him again with all their opinions so he moved out on his own to try to have a better start.  With lots of hard work, he was burying himself in the family business and still not making a life for himself.  He ends up meeting his neighbors and starts to fell connections to this new neighborhood beyond just his family ties.  I loved to watch both Levi and Julia grow in this neighborhood and begin to count on others again.  A wonderful holiday story that lifts the spirits and opens your heart.  I hope that you enjoy this book as much as I did!!  I know that if you check out this book and all the other books in the Charmed Life series, you will enjoying these page turning stories.  Make sure you pick them all up so that you have them all when you start because you won't want to wait to get started on the next book!!

** I was given a copy this book from the publishers but all opinions here are my own.

A Sister's Wish Book Review

I was so excited to see that the next installment of this great series was out because I really enjoyed the first two books in the series a lot.  The Charmed Amish life series introduces the third book in the series with A Sister's Wish: The Charmed Amish Life, Book Three by Shelley Shepard Gray.  I couldn't wait to get to this book and I love how it followed along with the theme of the other books in the series.

Amelia Kinsinger is the perfect Amish woman—at least according to her neighbors. And while Amelia takes pride in her role as homemaker, she’s also harboring a secret: She’s been in love with bad boy Simon Hochstetler for as long as she can remember. Too bad he’s about as far from “perfect” as an Amish man could get… but that’s exactly why she’s so drawn to him.

Life hasn’t been kind to Simon. He ran away from an abusive home at fifteen and things went downhill from there. Eventually, Simon landed in prison. But the experience changed him. Now back in Charm as a grown man, he’s determined to make a new life for himself and not think too much about his wild past…unless it pertains to Amelia.

He’s loved Amelia for years. To him, she represents everything good and kind in the world. When he realizes that she returns his affections, he starts calling on her in secret, even though her older brother Lukas—who just happens to be Simon’s best friend—has made it perfectly clear that Amelia deserves better. Simon disagrees and believes he’s the only one who can truly make her happy.

But when Amelia gets hurt, it sets off a chain of events that forces them to consider their future together—and face their past mistakes. There’s a chance for love… but only if Simon dares to trust Amelia with the secrets of his past.

It was a great next book in the series which started right where the other books left off.  I really liked the first two books but this book was so much better for me because it was many resolutions that you were waiting for after the first two books.  I enjoyed the relationship between Simon and Amelia and watching them both blossom.  The great characters and great writing really come to great resolutions in this book.  There are lots of twists and turns in this book including a hospital stay and finding lost siblings.  It was an emotional book that had me waiting to find out next.  I hope that you pick up this book and the others in the series to enjoy soon too!!  I think that you will love them as much as I have because my only complaint is that it was over too soon.  The great news is that the had the next book in the series to read next!!  Stay tuned for that review soon!!!

**I was given a copy of the book by the publisher but all opinions here are my own.

Cook's Country Eats Local Cookbook Review

I grabbed this book while I was at the library and I was excited to read it.  It quickly got moved to the bottom of the pile because I found so many recipes that I couldn't live without.  I had to start marking the ones that I wanted to copy down but I came up with so many that I actually made a few notes and added to my list of books that I might want to buy soon!!  Cook's Country Eats Local: 150 Regional Recipes You Should Be Making No Matter Where You Live by Cook's Country has lots of great recipes that you might want to check out for yourself.

150 Regional Recipes You Should Be Making No Matter Where You Live

From Maine’s hearty Joe Booker Stew to pineapple-packed Hawaiian Fried Rice, this collection of recipes brings bold local flavors and tried-and-true cooking techniques home—no matter where that may be. Home cooks will discover little-known spe- cialties and revamped classics in each of the four chapters: New England and the Mid-Atlantic, Appalachia and the South, The Midwest and Great Plains, Texas and the West. Colorful local history and anecdotes from Cook’s Country’s tasty travels bring the recipes to life, and illustrated maps and a list of test kitchen–approved hot spots show you where you can try the inspiring original dishes today. Step-by-step photography illustrates key techniques, and full-color photos for every recipe showcase the beauty of the collection. From tailgate staples like Southern Football Sandwiches and Wisconsin Grilled Brats and Beer to old-school sweets like Hollywood’s Tick Tock Orange Sticky Rolls and New York’s Bee Sting Cake, Cook’s Country Eats Local puts an array of flavorful, diverse American dishes within reach—no road trip needed.

I made a list of a ton of recipes that I couldn't live without and the top of the list is a Spiedie Chicken marinate which I hope to make soon.  I normally get a big bottle of the marinate from my parents as a Christmas gift because we love to enjoy it on the grill in the summer.  It makes a mess if cooked in the house so hoping that this recipe might be nice inside too!!  I guess we will see if it just adds to or replaces the other marinate!!  There are a ton of dishes that sound fabulous as well as a long list of desserts (because I always love the treats).  Some of the great meal recipes include Iowa Loose Meat Sandwiches, Crispy Beef Taquitos, Jo Jo Potatoes, Sweet Potato Biscuits, Dilly Casserole Bread, Ballpark Pretzels and New England Bar Pizza.  The desserts that shined for me was the Wellesley Fudge Cake, Summer Blueberry Crumble, Blackberry Jam Cake, Moravian Sugar Cake, Tick Tock Orange Sticky Rolls, St. Louis Gooey Butter Cake, and Kringle.  I added it to my list of books that I might buy if my husband gets another free book through his job as a thank you gift because I didn't have book on my list last time and he missed the deadline so I was super sad!!  This is a great book even though the last thing you might need is another cookbook, check it out at the library so that you don't put it on your shelf but you just might end up buying it anyway when you make a list of the recipes you like!!  I hope that you check out this yummy cookbook and see some of these great recipes yourself.

Menu Plan Monday 10/24

Monday- Chicken fries, Buffalo Chicken and homemade fries
Tuesday- Pasta with garlic bread and sausage
Wednesday- Spicy Honey Mustard Chicken
Thursday- Chicken and Rice Casserole
Friday- Paninis and leftovers
Saturday-Breakfast for Dinner
Sunday- ?

Last week was terrible to keep on track because of my sick husband so I made notes on last week's menu with all the changes.  I ended up working every day last week including Saturday and Sunday.  I made french dip sandwiches on Saturday.  So we gave up and bought pizza on Sunday before I had to go to work.  We ended up with hash browns one day for lunch and pancakes for dinner so it was all over the place.  I was exhausted and just couldn't imagine doing any more cooking and we were really out of leftovers by the end of the week.  I am hoping that with my husband on the mend that we might have a better week this week.  Too much leftover lasagna from his parents visit so we are taking it off the menu this week because I don't want it again so soon!!  Hope you enjoy your week and have lots of tasty meals!

40 Days to Joyful Motherhood Book Review

I was excited to see the cover of this "colorful" book because it shows some beautiful pictures and provides both devotions and coloring book to nourish mom.  40 Days to a Joyful Motherhood: Devotions and Coloring Book to Nourish Mom by Sarah Humphrey seemed like a book that would interest me because I am a mom and after a library program with coloring, realized that it is very relaxing.  I was hoping that this would be a great match for me.

Wouldn't it be marvelous if mothering came with a concrete set of instructions—an easy recipe we could follow? Instead, motherhood challenges women to find their faith, their true selves, and their family through daily doses of trial and error. It is a brilliant and healing time of life that is full of joy, pain, and beauty with a small side of crisis (and humor). What mothers do not know, they learn. And through this lifelong process of learning, they nurture and care for the most precious gifts on earth: children. In a modern society where moms often have a full and busy plate, these 10 minute daily devotions focus on six key topics of motherhood: • Self-acceptance • Self-care • Reconciling with grief, hope and expectations • Generosity • Presence • Forgiveness In addition to the devotions, these beautiful pages are adorned with handmade illustrations to help you refresh from long days or even occasional sleepless nights. So, grab your colors and a little quiet time for yourself while doodling at the kitchen table. You will be grateful you did!

I think that the title was a little misleading for the book.  The book was mostly about early motherhood and how to deal with lack of sleep and making a new life with kids.  I was looking for more uplifting information about any stage of motherhood.  The book has an introduction from the author and one from her husband and then goes into the substance of the book.  There was a introduction to each section and then one devotion for each picture.  Just getting to the actual coloring and relaxation part was a little more involved then I expected.  It is also specifically set up as one a day which is a lot for busy moms to get to done in a day.  There were about 42 pictures to actually color through the book and many had words and other things on them that didn't make them the relaxing pictures that I was expecting and not all were full page pictures but rather things that you should writing information on so it was more of a journal with coloring on them.  I thought getting some uplifting thought and then coloring while thinking about it would be good but I didn't really see that for me because some of the topics were tougher like miscarriage (day 13) or how our body changed (day 14).  It wasn't the book that I was looking for but I like the idea of an uplifting message with a page to zone out and color to relax but if you are looking for more of a devotional for new mothers, this would be a perfect fit.

**I was provided a copy for my review but all opinions here are my own.

The Healing Quilt Book Review

I was excited to get to the last book in the Half Stitched Quilting Club and meet the new quilting students and see Emma and Lamar's next chapter in The Healing Quilt by Wanda E. Brunstetter.  I really enjoyed getting to know the new characters and visiting with the old ones!!  I hope that you check out this book and others in the series.

Retired Amish newlyweds Emma and Lamar Miller have decided to buy a winter place in Sarasota, Florida. But it wouldn’t feel like home if Emma didn’t take her quilting materials and offer classes. Wounded and hurting people have a knack for finding their way to her classes for some quilting therapy: Jennifer, a pregnant new mom; Mike, a charter boat owner; Erika, a wheelchair-bound teen; Kim, a waitress; Noreen, a newly-retired widow; and BJ, an artist facing illness. And when Jan, visits from Indiana, romance is also added to the class discussions.

I enjoyed this book and getting to know the new Florida setting for the quilting classes.  Every time there is a quilting class offered, Emma and Lamar meet more people who are hurting or need help.  Through their support and friendship, the people of the class grow and heal.  This time was no different with needing jobs, stronger marriages, health issues and more.  The characters in the book spend 6 weeks learning to quilt and end up with so much more then just quilting but their lives are changed.  If you don't know how that could possibly happen, pick up this book and check it out for yourself!!  I hope that you enjoy this book and the others in the series as much as I did!!  I hope that you add this book to your reading list.

I almost forgot to share the great recipe at the end of the book!!

Emma's Raisin Molasses Cookies

2 c raisins

1 c shortening

1/2 c sugar

2 eggs

1 1/2 c molasses

4 c flour

3 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

2 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp ginger

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Rinse and drain raisins.  In a mixing bowl, cream shortening and sugar.  Add eggs and beat well.  Blend in molasses.  Sift flour with baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and ginger.  Blend into creamed mixture.  Stir in raisins.  Drop by teaspoons onto greased cookie sheet and bake for 15-18 minutes.  Yields 6 dozen cookies.