Book Review: Bittersweet Surrender by Diann Hunt

Carly Westlake is living the dream. She spends her days at a spa (okay, so she owns the place), she's dating a hunk, and she's surrounded by chocolate—milk chocolate, her favorite—that she uses for the chocolate facials that made her spa famous.
But when long buried secrets threaten Carley's business and her friendship with business-partner Tom, she fights like crazy to keep the dream—and the illusions—afloat.
It takes a miracle of grace to get Carley to finally make that bittersweet surrender to love and real life.


I enjoyed reading Bittersweet Surrender.  The story had some great elements to it.  The characters were well developed and the descriptions were very good.  The story had originality.  I honestly don't think I have read another book that is set in a chocolate spa.  The book had some very serious, heavy, elements to it but at the same time made me laugh out loud.

The story was predictable.  At times it seems like it went on and on about one particular part of the story, but then there were others that I didn't feel like were resolved as much as they should of been.  All in all in was a very enjoyable read.

I received a complimentary copy of Bittersweet Surrender from Thomas Nelson for the purpose of writing a fair and honest review.  I received no other compensation.

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Review: Big Book of History

The Big Book of History is a fold out 15 ft timeline from the first day of Creation to the present day.  In this book your child (recommended ages 7-12)  will discover:

• the birthdates of conquerors, kings, inventors, scientists, and famous men of God
• wars and wonders of ancient and modern worlds
• the 969 year old man who shared the true history of the world with Noah
• the first ancient inventions and discoveries of chocolate, yo yo's, batteries, movies and so much more

Through a color coded timeline with yellow marking Biblical/Christianity, orange marking word events, red marking civilizations/empires and green marking inventions/technology, plus interesting facts and photos, your child will love using this book just for fun or as an educational resource.


"The Big Book of History is a really cool book!" That's according to my son Nicholas (9.)  As soon as we opened the box he had to open it up and start exploring.  And of course we had to unfold the whole thing to see how long it really was.

I couldn't get the whole thing in the picture!

Here are some closer pictures of the inside:

  The Big Book of History is right up my son's alley.  He loves history and loves timelines.  This book presents a lot of fun and interesting facts and figures many of which you wouldn't find on a regular history timeline or even in most history textbooks.  You do not have to unfold the entire book in order to read it.  It opens in such a way as you can unfold it or read it like a regular book.  The Big Book of History is a wonderful addition to any home or homeschool library.

I received a complimentary copy of The Big Book of History from New Leaf Publications for the purpose of writing a fair and honest review.  I received no other compensation.

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TOS Review: Maestro Classics The Story of Swan Lake

Maestro Classics mission is to, " cultivate a love of music through education and joyful performances."  Their Stories in Music series which can be enjoyed and appreciated by people of all ages introduces great music, classic stories, and helps develop listening skills.  Both entertaining and educational, this series has won 45 national awards.  Available titles include: Peter and the Wolf, The Soldier's Tale, The Story of Swan Lake, Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel, My Name is Handel; The Story of Water Music, The Tortoise and the Hare, Casey at the Bat, The Sorcerer's Apprentice, and Juanita the Spanish Lobster.  We recently had the opportunity to enjoy The Story of Swan Lake from Maestro Classics.

From the website: "The Story of Swan Lake, Tchaikovsky’s greatest ballet score, is the tale of a prince who falls in love with a beautiful princess. The princess, however, has been turned into a swan by an evil magician, and only the prince’s love can break the spell. This narrated version of the classic tale for children is sure to delight all who love ballet and enchanting storytelling.

A 24-page activity book included with the CD contains a biography of Tchaikovsky, information on acoustic and electric guitars, sheet music and words for a sing-along song, explanation of major and minor keys, puzzles and more"

There are seven different tracks on the CD including: The Story of Swan Lake, Tchaikovsky's Life, Speed Metal Swan, About the Music, Tchaikovsky Wrote A Great Ballet, Want to Have Some Fun, Prepare to Perform,  and Tchaikovsky Wrote A Great Ballet Sing Along.  Total running time for the CD 54:02 minutes.

Also included on the website are Homeschool Curriculum Plans to go along with the CD completely free!  Find activities and ideas in the areas of History, Science, Geography, Language Arts, Art, Music and Math to turn listening to The Story of Swan Lake into a Unit Study.  You can find Curriculum Plans for all the available CD's by clicking here.  Also available on the website are lesson plans for Music Teachers and Home Projects.

You can purchase The Story of Swan Lake and other available titles as a CD (including the 24 page activity book) for $16.98 or as an Mp3 Download (with a pdf download of activity book) for $9.98.  There are samples of each of the CD's on the website to listen to before you buy.  Click here to order or listen to the samples.

Christian 4 and Lily 2 Christian is really concentrating hard on the music!

We loved the Story of Swan Lake!  The CD is both educational and enjoyable, not just for the children, but for me also.  It is wonderful for listening to in the car on long trips or for enjoying on a rainy day.  I love that it is really teaching my children to recognize and appreciate classical music. I clicked on the sample as I was writing this review and as soon as the intro started to play my 2 year old said, "Mom, that's Swan Lake!"  I think it is wonderful that Maestro Classics has added the Homeschool Curriculum Guides to go along with the CD!  My boys especially liked the activities and discussions we had  about cross bows.  They also love the activity booklet.  I have to admit that the Speed Metal Swan track was not my cup of tea, but my boys thought it was really cool and played the "air guitar" along with the music.   


To see what other crew mates had to say click here. 

I received a complimentary copy of Swan Lake for the purpose of writing a fair and honest review.  I received no other compensation.

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Favorite Recipes: Chicken and Broccoli Alfredo

Chelsea and I made this and the whole family loved it!  Quick and easy to prepare and it tasted delicious!  I have never been a big Fettuccine Alfredo fan but I loved it with chicken and broccoli.

1 box uncooked fettuccine
2 cups fresh broccoli florets
1/4 cup zesty Italian dressing
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into bite sized pieces
4 oz cream cheese cubed
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
 1 2/3 cups milk

Cook pasta according to directions adding in broccoli in the last 2 minutes of boiling.  In the meantime add Italian Dressing and chicken to a nonstick skillet, cook chicken until no longer pink (5 minutes or so) stirring occasionally.  Add in remaining ingredients.  Bring to a boil stirring constantly for 1-2 minutes until sauce has thickened slightly.  Remove from heat.  Drain pasta/broccoli add sauce and toss pasta.  Serve.

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TOS Review: Z Guide to the Movies

Zeezok Publishing believes, "It is better to build children than to repair men." They work to provide quality literature and educational books for teaching the next generation. They have products in categories such as American Government, Character Building, Curriculum, Great Musician Series, Presidential Series, and Z Guide to the Movies. We had the opportunity to use and review one of their new products Z Guide to the Movies.

What exactly is a Z Guide?  A Z Guide is an easy way for you to incorporate movies into your curriculum.  Each Z guide falls within a specific time period in history and contains 10 activities that build around the movie.  The guides are specific to a certain version of the movie but the guide tells you which version was used and most can be found on Netflix or through your local library.  Each Z Guide will begin with a topic overview and movie synopsis.  The first activity is a series of review questions.  The other activities can vary depending on the guide but each one will contain at least one hands on activity, world view activity, and a Film Maker's Art activity.  The answers are included with the Guide.  They recommend completing 2 activities per day to complete the Z Guide in a week, although you can adjust that to suit your own family or choose not to complete all of the activities.  Z Guides are intended as a supplement not as a core curriculum.  To see a sample Z Guide click here.

 Z Guides are available for elementary, middle and high school age with the majority of them being for high school age students.  Each Z Guide is $12.99 for single use or $49.99 as a classroom license.  You can choose to purchase as an ebook download or as a CD to be shipped.  If you are interested in purchasing the movie to go along with it, many are for sale on the Zeezok website.  To see the list of available Z Guides click here.

Chelsea (14) and I had the opportunity to review the Z Guide for Jason and the Argonauts.

We borrowed the movie from Netflix and dove right in to the activities in the Z Guide (35 pages.) Day 1's activities were to answer 25 review questions about the movie (we did that orally) and complete a worksheet learning more about the Greek Gods.  Day 2's activities were to complete a creative writing assignment about the Knights of the Round Table meeting Jason and the Argonauts and planning a modern day expedition to obtain the Golden Fleece.  Day 3 had a crossword puzzle and a What If activity.  Day 4 was a "brains and brawn" set of scenarios to figure out and an activity to design a recruitment poster for the Argonauts (we skipped this as Chelsea had no interest in it.)  Day 5 had a worldview activity and the Film Maker's Art activity.  The guide finished up with a series of family discussion questions and additional resources for further study and then of course, the answer key.

I think the Z Guides are a great way to use some wonderful educational films to further your studies.  There is a lot of freedom in how much of it you use and when you as a family decide to complete the activities.  Even though it is set up to be completed in a week, you could draw it out much longer if you chose.  You do not have to complete all of the activities as they stand alone and do not build upon each other.  The student is not told what to think but allows for their own well researched and thought out opinions.

I would love to see more Z Guides added in for the younger ages or that would allow for more muti age learning. 

To see what other crew members had to say click here.

Ireceived a complimentary copy of the Jason and the Argonauts  Z Guide for the purpose of writing a fair and honest review.  I received no other compensation.

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Libraries

The first year that I homeschooled, we lived in an area that had an awesome library system.  The size, selection, programs, ability to request things for free from other libraries, online card catalog, and ability to request books from home and pick them up at the desk were a homeschoolers dream.  The next year we moved back to a small town with a teeny tiny library, no online card catalog, no programs, and interlibrary loan costs money.  They are trying to do better and add to their selection, but it is a small town library and does not have the same resources as one in the "big city."

One thing that may be helpful to those like me in a small town is that in addition to using your small town library, most larger libraries will allow you to purchase an out of town resident card.  If you head into the "big city" every couple of weeks you could visit the library and check out books regularly.  Also, many bigger libraries have ebooks, audiobooks, music, and even movies to stream available that you can check out from home!  Our "big city"  library card allows you to check out 5 digital items at a time.  This has been wonderful for me.  I check out some of the newer audiobooks for Alex so he can listen to the same books that Nick reads.  I also have been able to read many books on my Nook that I would have never been able to buy.  If you are in a small town, or just haven't visited your library lately, it may be worth checking in to.

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New Pictures With A New Camera

Back when Chelsea was a baby, I couldn't wait for her to hurry up and do things.  I couldn't wait for her to reach the next milestone whether it was rolling over, crawling, walking, potty training etc...I didn't take the time to sit back, relax, and enjoy the present.  Now, 15 years later, I look at all of my children and want to freeze them right where they are.  Even though I am much better at relaxing and enjoying my children, time is going way too fast!  I cannot believe that this year I will have a 15 year old!  Sometimes I wish I could just make time slow down and be able to hold on to it just a little bit longer.


Anyway, I got a new camera for Christmas this year (yay!), so I thought I would post the first pictures of the children in 2012.

Chelsea (almost 15)

Nick (10 next week) and Alex ( 8)

Anthony( 6)

Christian ( 4 1/2) and Lillian (2 1/2)

Emelia 10 months( walking with her new toy)

Emelia 10 months (I posted 2 pics of her cause this outfit is too cute not to)

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