Authors and Publishers, I am happy to receive ARCs and published children's, middle grade, and YA books for review. When I finish it, I will review it. If you need the review posted in a certain time period, please let me know and I will move it to the top of the stack. Please note: my reviews are honest, but they are my opinion. If you don't want that, please don't ask. Email Me for reviews.
Last weekend, 2 of our granddaughters came over for a little while. They rode horses and then my husband washed down the horses before putting them up. Our youngest granddaughter had so much fun playing in the mud that when she left, she was only in her shirt and diaper. Boy, was she a mess!! This picture was taken after she had been splashing in the water. She was laughing because she thought it was so funny!
Saturday Snapshot is hosted by Alyce of At Home With Books. To participate, just post a picture that you, family, or a friend have taken. The amount of captioning is up to you. Pictures must be clean and appropriate for all eyes.
No April Fool's jokes for you today, just a fun Friday Fill-In. Have a great weekend!
1. I can't believe it's April already.
2. Drinks for everyone.
3. How can I get all this done in just a month?
4. Chicken soup with vegetables was the last thing I cooked.
5. Six of one half a dozen of another is a saying I use all the time.
6. Oh my gosh; nonono!
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to relaxing at home, tomorrow my plans include our 2nd day of PRIDE training and Sunday, I want to clean out the middle bedroom to turn it into a baby room!
By Josephine Angelini
Publication Date: May 31st 2011 by HarperTeen
How do you defy destiny?
Helen Hamilton has spent her entire sixteen years trying to hide how different she is—no easy task on an island as small and sheltered as Nantucket. And it's getting harder. Nightmares of a desperate desert journey have Helen waking parched, only to find her sheets damaged by dirt and dust. At school she's haunted by hallucinations of three women weeping tears of blood . . . and when Helen first crosses paths with Lucas Delos, she has no way of knowing they're destined to play the leading roles in a tragedy the Fates insist on repeating throughout history.
As Helen unlocks the secrets of her ancestry, she realizes that some myths are more than just legend. But even demigod powers might not be enough to defy the forces that are both drawing her and Lucas together—and trying to tear them apart.
I'm late with my Salon post, but it's been a busy weekend and I really wanted to write about this, so I couldn't pre-write and schedule the post ahead of time.
This is a book blog and I don't often share personal information with you, but there are times when I want you to get to know me better as a person, which I think is important in the blogging community. So, I'm taking the opportunity to let you into my world a little bit today.
My husband and I embarked on an emotional journey yesterday. We started the process of adoption. Yesterday was our first training class. We will go again next Saturday, then 2 weeknights and one more Saturday to fulfill the training requirements. We will also be undergoing a home study along the way. This decision has been a long time in the making. You see, my husband has 2 children from a previous marriage and they have given us 5 beautiful grandchildren, but I've always wanted a child of my own. Unfortunately, after many years of trying, lots of doctor visits and tears, we just aren't able to do so on our own. Yes, we could go the in-vitro route, but it's expensive and not 100%. We decided just to keep trying and if it happened, it happened. Well, it hasn't, so here we are.
One of my teachers adopted a little boy last year, and she introduced me to Sans Pareil Center, who we are working with. Sans Pareil does adoption with CPS as well as private adoptions. Private is very costly, so we are going foster to adopt through CPS. Our desire is to get an infant, foster until the CPS case is closed and then officially adopt him or her. No, we don't have a gender preference. We will be happy with whatever the Lord blesses us with. We have been told that the process should go quickly, it will be emotional, sometimes stressful, but worth it in the end. I will keep you posted.
One thing I do want to share with you is One Cause. One Cause provides adoptive parents a way to raise funds for adoption related expenses in an easy way. It allows people to earn contributions while shopping online. Part of the money that is spent with everyday merchants is given back to the adopting family, from the National Adoption Foundation. I'm sharing with you, the letter I sent to friends and family.
Dear Family and Friends,
We want to share our exciting news with you! We have decided to expand our family through adoption and are busily getting ready to welcome our new child!
For us, the difficult part of this process - other than the waiting - is the expense. As some of you may know, adoption expenses include agency fees, legal fees, document preparation costs, travel expenses and more. We have been saving some, but are still seeking ways to raise more funds for our wonderful venture.
We recently learned of a program through OneCause and the National Adoption Foundation that we think will help us make our adoption dream come true. OneCause is a nontraditional fundraising program that will help us earn the funds we need through everyday opportunities, such as shopping at hundreds of name-brand merchants online or in stores and catalogs, through purchasing gift certificates, by using the OneCause credit card, or through a variety of other easy programs.
We're really excited about this program and wanted to let you know that you can participate and help us build our family by becoming a member of OneCause. There's absolutely no cost or hassle to you - just do what you do every day and we will earn credit toward our adoption costs!
Here's How You Can Help
1. Become a registered member of OneCause. Simply go to www.onecause.com and register as a OneCause member. This only takes a minute and you'll be on your way to helping us out.
2. Once you have registered, find the "Dues Crediting" field at the bottom of the online registration screen. You will see a field called "Benefiting." Enter our registered email address and your contributions will automatically begin to benefit us.
Our registered email address is: shelcows@sbcglobal.net
3. Begin shopping at hundreds of OneCause merchants online, in stores, and through catalogs. You'll earn a merchant contribution on each purchase, a percentage of which will go toward our adoption credit. Remember to begin all of your online shopping at OneCause so we earn credit!
4. Consider signing up for and using the OneCause Visa card for all of your purchases. On every purchase you make with the card - no matter where you make it - the National Adoption Foundation earns a 1% contribution, part of which goes toward our adoption. To sign up, go to visa.onecause.com or call 1-800-297-1286 and use code 28B8. Once your card arrives, be sure to activate, register your card, and start shopping!
5. Ask us about other OneCause opportunities to help us earn adoption credit!
That's all there is to it!
Please call or email us with any questions you may have regarding our situation. We are always excited and happy to talk about this wonderful adventure. When our child arrives home to us, we will contact you with our happy news. Thank you so much for helping us bring our child home.
Thank you!
Willie and Shelly Burns
Register with OneCause and help us build our family! www.onecause.com
1. Why does it always seem darker before the dawn?
2.Too much is equal to not enough, for some people.
3. My favorite breakfast includes waffles with strawberries.
4. Exposed was the last book I read that I absolutely loved.
5. I am SO glad today is Friday and it's only a 1/2 day with kids.
6. Sleep would make me feel better right now.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I'm looking forward to possibly visiting friends who just had a baby, tomorrow my plans include PRIDE Training, for adoption and Sunday, I want to work outside!
When I was a classroom teacher, I used Stuart Murphy's MathStart books to teach math concepts to my children. Well, Mr. Murphy is back with a new series to help children learn skills important for school and life, called the I See I Learn series. Thanks to Charlesbridge Publishing, I was fortunate to receive two of the books in the series, for review.
About the Book: Sometimes Percy gets upset. He scowls and stamps his feet. But when he learns to take a deep breath, count to ten, and talk about his feelings, he can calm down. When Percy's not upset, he can have fun again!
My Thoughts: This is a great book to use with young children and teach who deal with frustration, being grouchy, being cranky and/or being angry. It is all about emotional skills and what a child can do to deal with those appropriately and ultimately become happy again. Children can relate to Percy because he feels as they would when they're upset. Through the story, Percy teaches children how to stop being upset. The colors are vivid in the illustrations, the pictures eye catching, and the print large enough for a read - aloud to children or for older children to read themselves.
I can see this book being used in classrooms and/or counselor's offices with children 2-7. It is recommended for 2-5, but I think older children, maybe up to 2nd grade would enjoy it if used as a read - aloud to spark discussion. One of the things I love about Stuart Murphy's books is the discussion questions that he adds at the end. You won't have to come up with questions on your own, because they are provided for you.
About the Book: Camille loves to build sand forts at the beach. But it's hard to build a big fort alone. Camille and her friends make a plan. They find that they can get more done--and have more fun--when they work together.
My Thoughts: Where Percy dealt with emotional skills in children, Camille's Team deals with social skills. It teaches children how to work together. There's even a plan that children can follow: make a plan, work together, and share the fun. In Stuart Murphy fashion, the pictures are vivid and eye catching, exactly what children like to see.
Again, there are discussion questions that lend themselves to opening up a classroom discussion or even a discussion with your young son or daughter. This is a great series to help young children learn important life skills!
I am pleased to say that Rodeo Houston has come and gone for another year! Not that I don't enjoy my volunteer time out there, because I do, it's just that it takes SO much of my time, that reading and blogging get put on the back burner. I'm glad to be back in the blogging world and am anxious to share with you many of the books that I've been receiving for review.
"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.
This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:
Publication: April 5th 2011 by Margaret K. McElderry
from Goodreads:Curses and cons. Magic and the mob. In Cassel Sharpe's world, they go together. Cassel always thought he was an ordinary guy, until he realized his memories were being manipulated by his brothers. Now he knows the truth—he’s the most powerful curse worker around. A touch of his hand can transform anything—or anyone—into something else.
That was how Lila, the girl he loved, became a white cat. Cassel was tricked into thinking he killed her, when actually he tried to save her. Now that she's human again, he should be overjoyed. Trouble is, Lila's been cursed to love him, a little gift from his emotion worker mom. And if Lila's love is as phony as Cassel's made-up memories, then he can't believe anything she says or does.
When Cassel's oldest brother is murdered, the Feds recruit Cassel to help make sense of the only clue—crime-scene images of a woman in red gloves. But the mob is after Cassel too—they know how valuable he could be to them. Cassel is going to have to stay one step ahead of both sides just to survive. But where can he turn when he can't trust anyone—least of all, himself?
Love is a curse and the con is the only answer in a game too dangerous to lose.
I received an ARC of this title in the mail and I'm anxious to read it as I loved White Cat, the first book in the series.
Last weekend we celebrated my nephew's 2nd birthday. Those of you that have followed my blog for awhile know that I absolutely adore this little guy! He is the spitting image of my brother when he was a baby, with the exception of the light hair. We had his party at one of those indoor jumping facilities. Everyone had a blast, but the best part for me was watching him enjoy this pizza. Even after the cake was brought out, a gift overnighted from his aunt in Florida with his favorite cartoon character on it, he still wanted the pizza. I'm not sure if he ever ate a bite of that cake!
Saturday Snapshot is hosted by Alyce of At Home With Books. To participate, just post a picture that you, family, or a friend have taken. The amount of captioning is up to you. Pictures must be clean and appropriate for all eyes.
