Reading, Writing & Pondering

Do you have a little extra belly fat? Do you need to lose just a few pounds? If so, then Dr. Kellyann Petrucci's new book, The 10-Day Belly Slimdown may be just what you are looking for. Dr. Petrucci is a naturopathic physician and weight-loss specialist who often works with celebrities. The 10-Day Belly Slimdown primarily offers a short term plan for those who want to lose 10 pounds or less. She starts off the book explaining the eating plan and who it will and won't work for. She tells readers just what to expect and why she believes the plan works for people. There are a lot of recipes that look quite good, shopping lists, and meal plans for the 10 days to make it all work together. Bone broth is a key component of the eating plan and she offers several recipes for making your own bone broth. Dr. Petrucci shares a lot of success stories to helps readers see that the plan is doable and can work for them. However, the plan involves more than just eating her recommended...

I honestly think many of us struggle with occasional anxiety and bouts of worry in our day and age. Even though we know God is there, it isn't always easy to default to faith. Trade Your Cares for Calm by Max Lucado offers solid advice and encouragement to focus on God instead of fear. Trade Your Cares for Calm does take content from several of Lucado's other books on fear and enouragement and compiles some of his best tidbits into this inspirational book. There are 10 chapters of Lucado's encouraging words. Each chapter has Bible verses, gorgeous nature photos, and stories and tips on keeping worry under control. There are also pages to journal to help figure out why you are worried and how to start to think differently about your problems. The ribbon marker helps you keep your place so you know where you left off. Trade Your Cares for Calm would be a great book to keep or to give as a gift to someone facing worrisome challenges--medical struggles, financial prob...

Gratitude In Motion is the true story of Colleen Kelly Alexander. Alexander is a regular person like you and I--except she has survived some truly big challenges in her life. Alexander survived both a lupus diagnosis and brain surgery. Then, not long after marrying the love of her life, Alexander was riding her bike home from work when a truck driver ran a stop sign and then ran her over. I can't imagine surviving that, but she did. Not only, did she survive but she went on to continue her athletic challenges in various races. Gratitude in Motion is her story of survival through unbelievable life challenges--and is nothing short of AMAZING. Through Gratitude in Motion , Alexander's story is told candidly and shows just how resilient a human being can be. I have a bit of a squeamish stomach when it comes to medical details so some parts were a bit too detailed for me. However, in telling those details, it is clear how much Alexander truly went through and survived. I hav...

From the outside looking in, Roman Valesco is a successful Los Angeles artist. He has it all--money, fame and just about any woman he wants. On the Inside, Roman has some demons he is wrestling with from his past. Grace Moore, his newly hired personal assistant, intrigues Roman. Roman doesn't think Grace is really his type. Grace also has a past she would rather forget and would rather focus on making her dreams come true. Is it possible for this couple with so much baggage to be able to form a relationship? Francine Rivers has written one of my most favorite series of all time, The Mark of the Lion . Her writing is powerful and beautiful but sometimes painful to read. As the author shares in her ending note, many people in our culture today come from broken homes and/or damaged relationships. For me, The Masterpiece , started out to be rather painful to read as I could well relate to Grace and her history with abuse. It brought up some painful memories for me, even though I ...

I have to be honest, Lincee Ray is a new author for me. I wasn't familiar with her blog, but when I saw this book, I had to find out why she hates green beans--which I love. I am so glad I did! Why I Hate Green Beans made me laugh out loud a few times and was a great "curl up with my cup of tea" read. Why I Hate Green Beans shares Ray's story from her early school days until the present. Throughout the book, Ray shares her story and some of the challenges she has been through--just like she is talking with me and having tea right along with me. . .Wait make that a Dr. Pepper for Lincee. She shares both her good times and her hard stuff. Most importantly, she also shares how she overcame that hard stuff. Don't we all have hard stuff of one sort or another to overcome? She also reminds readers of how we need to look to God and trust Him to help us through the hard stuff. Yet, Ray isn't preachy. Instead, she truly seems to share from her heart. She also sh...

Toren Daniels disappeared eight months ago. His wife and children have started living a new and better life without him. Toren was a good man--until his temper got the better of him. Then he comes back, seemingly from the dead, and shows up on their doorstep.  It is a shock to everyone. Most amazing, Toren doesn't know where he was. He only knows he feels different. Toren has also seems to be more patient and kind. He seems to be the man he always wanted to be. He seems to be transformed. But is he really? The Man He Never Was is a fresh take on the classic tale of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. It was interesting but it was a tough read for me. Honestly, I really wanted to like this book, but I didn't like it very much. It got kind of strange for me in the end. Maybe it was just too deep for me, I don't know. The last part of the book was really different. I know it is fantasy but I just had a hard time finding any of it believable. At the same time, though, I did like...

When God Made Light is Matthew Paul Turner's second children book he has written and illustrated with David Catrow, following their book, When God Made You . Both of these books are beautifully written and illustrated favorites at our house. When God Made Light is written for ages 3 to 8, but it is a great book to read at family storytime. Through lyrical prose, Turner tells how God made light and how that light helps the world around us. Then he shares how the light helps us to flourish as the light of God shines from within us. I especially like that this book has children in it of another color than me in the illustrations throughout When God Made Light . The community where I live is made up of a wide variety of people as I live in a town with a large university. I like that my family can see children of all backgrounds represented in our books as they see children of all colors in our community. At the same time, I think we could all use books like this. God made peop...

"If a man born without arms or legs can be the hands and feet of Jesus, so can you." I find this quote from the back cover of the book to be quite convicting. Be The Hands and Feet by Nick Vujicic is one of the best books on evangelism in today's world that I have read in a long time. Be the Hands and Feet is divided into three parts. In the first part, Letting Your Light Shine, Vujicic shares his story about how he felt called to share the Gospel and ways that he has done so. In the second part, Build a Team, Vujicic shares how to become a mentor, how he mentors people to share the gospel and ways that he has a large outreach. In the third section, Finish Well, Vujicic shares how his father modeled living for Jesus and prayed for him as well as his father's battle with cancer and how his dad continues to live for Jesus each day and share His love with those around him. This seems to be quite a personal book in many ways. Vujicic shares many of his spiritual ch...

Like many other people, one of my goals for the new year is to eat healthier. Power Plates by Gena Hamshaw looked like a book that could help me with that goal. Power Plates is divided into these sections: Breakfast, Salads, Soups, Bowls, Skillets and Stovetop, and Bakes. Hamshaw also starts out the book with a great introduction to just what she has included in the book for recipes and what you can expect from the book.  She says that she has tried to create recipes that offer "sustained energy and balanced nourishment." Power Plates offers 100 recipes all total. Some of the featured recipes include: Every Day Breakfast Tostadas, Spelt Biscuits with White Bean Gravy, Guacamole Quinoa Salad, Protein Packed Ceasar Salad, Mulligatawny soup, Smoky Red Lentil stew with Chard, Sushi Bowls, Deli Bowls with Smashed Chickpea Salad, Barley Risotto with Butternut Squash and Sage, Creamy Curried Lentils and Quinoa, Black Bean Enchiladas with Roasted Butternut Squash, and Sweet ...

Often times people think the "lucky people" catch all of the breaks in life. They don't see the work that goes into those "breaks."  The Book of Mistakes by Skip Prichard follows David, a recent college graduate, as he navigates the world of work and life after college. Along with the story of David, we follow the story of an ancient manuscript that holds powerful life lessons for everyone if used correctly. As the Book of Mistakes begins, David is disheartened and stressed, living a life he isn't really sure he wants to be living. However, he doesn't know how to live the life he wants to either at this time. Then one day he meets a mysterious young woman and everything begins to change. It doesn't happen all at once, but throughout the book, we follow David as he changes his life through learning some ancient lessons one by one. Little by little his life begins to change. The Book of Mistakes is a sort of modern day parable that is packed wi...