The Hardest Peace Book Review and Giveaway

About the book:

Kara Tippetts knows the ordinary days of mothering four kids, the joy of watching her children grow…and the devastating reality of stage-IV cancer. 

In The Hardest Peace, Kara invites readers to see the grace of the everyday in all seasons of life and to live well even when the living is hard. This book is an invitation to join her in moving away from fear and control and toward peace and grace. Just as the thousands of people who read her blog know, Tippetts explores the hardest questions of life with rare beauty and honesty. Most of all, she draws them back to the God who is present, in the ordinary and the suffering, and shapes every life into the best story of all.

About Kara:

Kara Tippetts and her husband, Jason, have four children and are planting a church in Colorado Springs, CO. Cancer is only part of Kara’s story. Her real fight is to truly live while facing a crushing reality. She blogs faithfully at mundanefaithfulness.com.

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Review:  I knew from reading the description that this was a book I wanted to read.  I wanted to know her story, her faith, and how she handles hard times.  I wondered how I would handle such a situation.  Would my faith sustain me?  Would God really be enough for me?

 

Kara Tippetts is a brave, faithful, and Good-seeking woman.  Her story will draw you in and her dependence on God will intrigue you to keep reading.  She humbly describes with honesty the difficulty of her journey with cancer- her brokenness made beautiful through the grace of Jesus Christ.  

 

This book is not just for those affected personally by cancer.  We all have life situations we struggle to endure.  Kara will have you thinking deeply about what is important in this life and how you will choose to live it.  I love how she turns to scripture to reveal truth in her life.  This is definitely a book you will want to read.  Thank you Kara for giving us the privilege to share in your journey.

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I just recently listened to Kara and her husband, Jason, on the Focus on the Family Daily Broadcast.  You can find this broadcast on Living Faithfully with Cancer HERE (Part 1) and HERE (Part 2).  

 

You can hear more from Kara on her blog, instagram, and twitter:

Kara’s Blog: mundanefaithfulness.com

Follow her on Instagram: http://instagram.com/tippetts

Follow her on Twitter: https://twitter.com/mother_to_many

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GIVEAWAY:

Flyby Promtions has generously provided a copy of Kara Tippetts' book The Hardest Peace for you to WIN!  Just use the easy peasy Rafflecopter widget below to enter.  Giveaway ends 10/22 at 12AM ET.  (US and CANADA Only)

 a Rafflecopter giveaway

"Disclosure (in accordance with the FTC’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”): Many thanks to Propeller Consulting, LLC for providing this prize for the giveaway. Choice of winners and opinions are 100% my own and NOT influenced by monetary compensation. I did receive a sample of the product in exchange for this review and post. 

Only one entrant per mailing address, per giveaway. If you have won the same prize on another blog, you are not eligible to win it again. Winner is subject to eligibility verification.”

Adventure Bible for Toddlers Review

Book Description

The Adventure Bible for Toddlers starts children ages 2-5 on the journey of a lifetime, teaching them about the Bible’s great stories and themes. It helps young children grow in their relationship with God using stories and art from the wildly popular Adventure Bible Storybook. With ten beautifully illustrated and beloved Bible stories from the Old and New Testament, this sturdy padded board book will stimulate toddlers’ minds and fill their hearts with love for their heavenly Father.

About the Author
Catherine DeVries is a writer and editor. She has been influential in the development of many bestselling children’s Bibles and Bible storybooks including The Adventure Bible, The Beginner’s Bible and the Jesus Storybook Bible. She is also the author of My Time with God and many articles that have been published in professional magazines and journals. Catherine lives with her husband and three children in Colorado.

Review:  The Adventure Bible for Toddlers is a great starter Bible.  The stories are very short, but are a great starting point for little learners who are just beginning to understand the truth found in the stories of the Bible.  I like that before the story begins it tells you the book, chapter, and verses the stories were taken from, so you can go back and read them the verses from the Bible or learn more about the story yourself.

There are colorful illustrations on every page, depicting the story, and one of my favorite features is that it is a board book!  It has a nice plushy cover and back, with board book pages in between.  Perfect for small, sometimes messy hands.  I will say though I let my baby play with the book and it got a little wet from his slobber, making some of the pages stick and come off a bit.

Overall, I think it is a great resource for beginning to share your love of the Bible with your child.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers <http://booklookbloggers.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” 

#VSSportBra Review

I received a beautiful pink striped box in the mail with complimentary products to review from Influenster and the Victoria's Secret Sport line.  The #VSSportBra Vox Box contained the Incredible Sport Bra, Knockout Crop work out pants, and coupons to share with friends. #VSSportTester

I love Victoria's Secret bras and was very excited to try out their new sport bra.  I have one of their sport bras already, but this one was appealing to me because it had a lot more padding and support.

I am finally starting to get back into working out after having my baby (8 months later), lol.  Before I was pregnant, I started a running plan (even though I really had never ran in my life), but dropped it right after I found out I was pregnant.  So...now I'm starting it back again!  I ran pushing Eli in my jogging stroller in one hand and the leash of my dog in the other.  It is possible!  And of course, I wore my new VS Sport Bra out to test!  Here's what I thought...

The Incredible by Victoria's Secret Sport Bra fit me pretty well.  I may have gotten the band size a little larger, but it is pretty true to size.  Like a lot of sport bras, it was a little difficult to get over my head.  I think I would LOVE the new Incredible Front-Close Sport Bra because it has a front zipper to secure the bra.  No more trying to pull a tight bra over your head.  Great idea.

I didn't love the color I received.  I would have much preferred a solid color for matching purposes, but some people may like the flowers.

I thought the Incredible Sport Bra was very comfortable while running.  It gave me great support and didn't show my sweat.  Overall, I really liked the #VSSportBra.

I got the Victoria's Secret Knockout Crop Pants in size small.  I would definitely purchase a size bigger; they seem to run small.  Sports pants are supposed to be tight, but I think these were just a little too tight.  This may be because they come up to mid stomach and that is where all the leftover baby weight is currently residing.  When I ran it pushed on my stomach and was a little uncomfortable.

Besides getting the wrong size, I think the pants are great.  I love the crop style.  They were easy to run in and the body-wick feature kept them cool and dry even though it was hot and I was definitely sweating.  I actually really liked the gray color and the texture of the fabric (very smooth).

Overall, I really enjoyed both products from Victoria's Secret Sport line.  If I had the right size and could pick out my colors then I would be a happy fitness mama.  Thanks Influenster!!

"This is a sponsored blog post. Influenster provided me with complimentary Victoria's Secret products to test and review as part of a contest." If you would like to join Influenster to test new products and share your opinions, then add your e-mail address in the comments and I'll send you an invite!

Dolphin Tale 2 Promo & Giveaway

Dolphin Tale 2 is coming to theaters this Friday, September 12th!  It looks like it is going to be a great film that the whole family will enjoy.  Check out the trailer below (and scroll further down for a GIVEAWAY)!

September 12th is not only the opening of Dolphin Tale 2, but also Homeschool Day!  While Little E is too young for schooling, we are considering homeschooling in the future (so it's great to see what is out there).  Homeschool Movie Club has a free Dolphin Tale 2 Curriculum available HERE!

I checked the curriculum out and think it is a great resource for kids, whether homeschooling or not.  It has five different lessons that feature dolphins and the ocean; relating them to the movie along the way.  It contains videos, facts, activities, and experiments for both elementary and middle/high school students.  I know when I was younger, I loved dolphins and many of my friends wanted to be marine biologists when they grew up.  I think Dolphin Tale 2 will get your kids excited to learn more about dolphins and this is the perfect resource to expand their knowledge.

My absolute favorite part of the curriculum is the Classical Conversations PDF that is included.  You start with a topic (in this case dolphins) and then come up with questions that relate to categories such as geography, math, and even bible.  My friend's nephew goes to a Classical Conversations meeting locally with other kids and my friend says they learn so much.  After seeing this curriculum, I can understand why.  It is jam packed with a TON of great information...your kids will learn so much about dolphins!!!

Now on to the GIVEAWAY!  You can enter to WIN a Dolphin Tale 2 T-Shirt and Sunglasses!  Just use the easy peasy Rafflecopter widget below to enter.

a Rafflecopter giveaway
 

"Disclosure (in accordance with the FTC’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”): Many thanks to Propeller Consulting, LLC for providing this prize for the giveaway. Choice of winners and opinions are 100% my own and NOT influenced by monetary compensation. I did receive a sample of the product in exchange for this review and post.

 Only one entrant per mailing address, per giveaway. If you have won the same prize on another blog, you are not eligible to win it again. Winner is subject to eligibility verification."

Skintimate Mandarin Burst Shave Gel

I received a free full size can of Skintimate Mandarin Burst shave gel to review from Crowdtap.  I actually already use Skintimate daily for shaving, but was excited to test out the new scent.  #SamplingSkintimate

The Mandarin Burst shave gel has hints of mandarin orange, lemon, and lime.  I usually go for flowery smells, but I absolutely love this scent.  It is refreshing, light, and tropical.  It reminds me of summer...something I would love to take with me through fall and beyond.

 I have tried other shaving creams (cheaper) in the past and they just aren't as good.  My old shaving cream came out as a foam and did not spread well.  It kind of disappeared when I put it on my legs.  This Skintimate product comes out as a gel and foams up as you spread it around your legs.  The coverage is really good...I don't have to use very much of the product to fully cover my legs for shaving.

I think this is a great product for keeping legs moisturized and protected during shaving.  I would definitely recommend it.    

My #SkintimateHappyLegs after using Skintimate Mandarin Burst

Check out Crowdtap.com to review products and have your opinions heard!

Treasury of Bible Stories Review & Giveaway

 

I received Treasury of Bible Stories by Kelly Pulley free to review.  I am really excited to tell ya'll about this book because we thoroughly enjoyed it..and have another one to giveaway! :)



This book is a collection of illustrated rhyming bible stories for young readers.  It contains twenty stories, beginning with "Tricked by a Snake: The Slippery Story of Adam and Eve" and ending with "He Has Risen: The Magnificent Story of the Resurrection".

I promise he does look at the book when we read it to him....it's just when the camera is out he has to smile for it!  Lol.

My Review:  As a new mom, I'm always on the look out for books that will cultivate a love of God and reading.  This is the perfect one!  The artwork in this book is amazing.  So colorful and engaging, the pictures will draw your child right in.

I was surprised at how well thought out and executed the rhymes were...they are fun and tell the stories perfectly.  This is a great way to share biblical lessons with the whole family!  My husband, who most of the time could care less about the different reviews I have going on, said, "Make sure you give this book a great review!"  We both have really enjoyed reading this book to Little E.  I know it will be a favorite for years to come.

The best part is that we have been provided the opportunity to give one away!!!  Just enter below using the easy Rafflecopter widget!  :)
a Rafflecopter giveaway

"Disclosure (in accordance with the FTC’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”): Many thanks to Propeller Consulting, LLC for providing this prize for the giveaway. Choice of winners and opinions are 100% my own and NOT influenced by monetary compensation. I did receive a sample of the product in exchange for this review and post.

Only one entrant per mailing address, per giveaway. If you have won the same prize on another blog, you are not eligible to win it again. Winner is subject to eligibility verification.”

Get to Know JESUS by Nancy I. Sanders : A Book Review

The "Get to Know" series of books by Nancy I. Sanders are a collection of Bible Hero (Jesus, Mary, King David, & Apostle Paul) biographies for kids.  They explore the life and character of these biblical figures through scriptures, timelines, and pictures.

I was sent the Get to Know JESUS book free to review.  This is the perfect book report material for a child.  Right away I was drawn in by the colorful illustrations, photographs, and text bubbles.  It starts with the history before Jesus was born and his birth, then goes through his life, death, resurrection, and the future.  A neat feature are the color coded icons throughout the book that relay important facts and information.  There is a word bank that explains the definition of vocabulary words used throughout the book and Eyewitness Accounts from people who saw what happened and then told about it.  I also love that it gives scriptures for the children to look up to connect it with what was already shared.

I would highly recommend this book to any elementary or middle school child.  The life of Jesus is displayed in a really fun, engaging way that will draw any child or adult in.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers <http://booklookbloggers.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”