By Nicole

I'm tweeting (ack!) step by step updates on a bleeding armadillo cake for my friend's wedding.  Follow me, if you dare.  Be careful. It'll probably get messy.

Before I even opened Running for My Life , I knew that it was a story with a happy ending.  I made it to the part where Lopez was traveling to America to meet the couple that would be his adopted/foster parents before I peeked ahead and looked at all the pictures.  If you can stand it, I recommend waiting until the book has ended to check out the pictures in the middle.  So many surprises are ruined if you peek ahead too early.  When I was in the middle of Lopez’s story, it was so hard to believe the wonderful things that would happen in his life.  The tragedies he witnessed as a child were unthinkable.  I cried as I imagined my own child undergoing even a fraction of his pain and suffering.  The heartbreak and hardship Lopez survived was astonishing, but it is his resilient spirit and love for God throughout it all that totally won me over.  The anticipation of watching God’s plan unfold in his life was so strong, that I could hardly put th...

Ack!  I'm not writing it.  The list.  The list of all the things I need to get done.  The list of all the things that are happening in August.  The list of runs I need to get in before my next half.  The list of blogs I need to write (reviews, race recaps, garden and chicken nonsense, family fun).... yikes!  I started a list without even thinking about it.  Once parentheses start, nothing good can come of it...  I have to stop. There will, someday, be a meaningful blog post out of this woman.  But not today.  I have too many things to do and lists to avoid writing!

Whew!  Two book reviews in a row!  I am a busy reader.  But this book was SO very worth it.  Since it's written for children, it is a super easy read.   Not sure how I would read it aloud to a group of kids... I almost cried at every story!  Beth's storytelling is so down to earth and the subjects so compelling, I couldn't hardly put this book down.  But the material was so deep and heart wrenching for me, that I did have to stop and take a couple breaks.  Orphans, children in poverty, kids who struggle daily with challenges that most of us can't even fathom.... those stories pull so strongly on my heart strings.  So what?  What can I do about it?  What should I do about it?  What can our kids learn from it?  How can they help?  Those are some of the questions I asked and tried to answer as I made my way through each story.  I am planning on sharing this book and the DVD leader's guide with the children/...

I recently finished reading Nancy Mehl's book Inescapable .  So good! Below is the trailer from Litfuse. About the Book: Lizzie Engel is used to running away. At eighteen, she left her Mennonite hometown, Kingdom, Kansas, with plans never to return. But five years later, the new life she built is falling apart. Lizzie knows she's being followed, and she's certain the same mysterious stranger is behind the threatening letters she's received. Realizing she'll have to run again, the only escape Lizzie can manage is a return to the last place she wants to go. Once she arrives in Kingdom, Lizzie is confident she'll be safe until she comes up with a new plan. In reacquainting herself with the town and its people--especially her old friend, Noah Housler--she wonders if she judged her hometown and her Mennonite faith too harshly. However, just as she begins to come to terms with her roots, Lizzie is horrified to discover the danger she ran from is closer than ev...

Celebrate with Beth by entering her Kindle Fire Giveaway and connecting with her during the Author Chat Party on 7/31! Tales of the Not Forgotten Blog Tour This is such a good book.  Click on over and check it out.  Come back here on the 27th for my review!