Winner of The Edge of Recall

The winner of the book The Edge of Recall is:

Katrina gdy2shoes23@...

I will be contacting you shortly. If I don't hear from you within 48 hours, I'll draw another name.


On a side note, I'm taking a week off from giveaways because we'll be on vacation on and off this week and I'm not going to be checking my e-mail very regularly, nor updating my blog.

I'll catch you all on Monday the 7th for the next one!

Come to Jesus

In order to watch/listen, make sure you turn off the music on the right.

This song is used in the VBS our church is doing this week, and let me tell you, it's exactly what I needed to hear today.





Weak and wounded sinner
Lost and left to die
O, raise your head, for love is passing by
Come to Jesus
Come to Jesus
Come to Jesus and live!

Now your burden's lifted
And carried far away
And precious blood has washed away the stain, so
Sing to Jesus
Sing to Jesus
Sing to Jesus and live!

And like a newborn baby
Don't be afraid to crawl
And remember when you walk
Sometimes we fall...so
Fall on Jesus
Fall on Jesus
Fall on Jesus and live!

Sometimes the way is lonely
And steep and filled with pain
So if your sky is dark and pours the rain, then
Cry to Jesus
Cry to Jesus
Cry to Jesus and live!

O, and when the love spills over
And music fills the night
And when you can't contain your joy inside, then
Dance for Jesus
Dance for Jesus
Dance for Jesus and live!

And with your final heartbeat
Kiss the world goodbye
Then go in peace, and laugh on Glory's side, and
Fly to Jesus
Fly to Jesus
Fly to Jesus and live!

Giveaway of the Week--The Edge of Recall

This week's giveaway is a new release from Bethany House publishers--The Edge of Recall by Kristen Heitzmann! I reviewed this book for Romantic Times, and it's definitely an exciting page turner.

Tessa Young, an up-and-coming landscape architect who specializes in the design and creation of labyrinths, has immersed herself in the mythological, spiritual, and healing aspects of the elaborate structures.

She also is searching for God and hoping to make sense of the nightmares that have plagued her since childhood. When Smith Chandler, an estranged colleague--with whom she'd half fallen in love a dozen times before catching herself every time--calls to propose a project he claims is the opportunity of a lifetime, she reluctantly agrees to check it out.

Smith is reconstructing a pre-Revolutionary War abbey for wealthy clients. Among its remarkable features is an overgrown labyrinth. Unable to resist, Tessa accepts his offer to work with him. Soon she is immersed in the project of a lifetime. But one evening, after weeks of work in the labyrinth, Tessa and Smith are attacked. While protecting Tessa, Smith is stabbed, and the nightmare begins...again.

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED!

Mistaken Identity Winner!

The winner is......

Pamela!
cepjwms@...

I'll be e-mailing for your address. If I don't hear from you in 48 hours I'll move on to the next random number.

I'll be posting the next book giveaway shortly, so if you didn't win this one, maybe it will be the next one!

Wonder Brains Giveaway

http://www.wonderbrains.com/ is offering a giveaway in which you can win a $50 gift certificate to their store. There are some fantastic items in the store, such as:

Blokus--a great game for families. We have really enjoyed playing it together and have taught it to kids as young as four.

My daughter thinks this magnetic mosaics kit looks very fun.

My son thinks this Dino Digs game would be great--like battleship, archaeologist style?

Follow the Wonder Brains button in my sidebar to sign up for this giveaway--the only problem will be making a decision what to spend it on!

Heavenly Carrot Cake

Made this yesterday and it turned out wonderfully! Full of flavor and the frosting just makes the cake. Slightly labor intensive, but the taste...yum, it's worth it!

Carrot Cake with Lime Mascarpone Icing

This delicious recipe is courtesy of Jamie Oliver and can be found in his cookbook, "Cook with Jamie."

Ingredients
Serves 8 to 10.
1 1/4 cups unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pan
2 cups light-brown sugar
5 large eggs, separated
Zest and juice of 1 orange
1 slightly heaped teaspoon baking powder
1 heaped teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch of ground cloves
Pinch of ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 cup ground almonds
4 ounces shelled walnuts, chopped, plus more for garnish
1 1/2 cups self-rising flour, sifted
10 ounces carrots, peeled and coarsely grated
Sea salt
4 ounces mascarpone cheese
8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1 scant cup confectioners' sugar, sifted
Zest and juice of two limes

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-by-2-inch square baking pan (My note: I used this pan and there was way too much batter, it went all over the inside of my oven. Use your best judgment and use a 13 X 9 pan if you think there's too much batter) and line with parchment paper. Set aside.
2. In the bowl of a food processor, pulse together butter and brown sugar until pale and fluffy. Add egg yolks, one at a time, pulsing after each addition. Add orange zest and juice; pulse to combine. Add baking powder; pulse to combine. Add cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and ginger; pulse until mixture is well combined.
3. In a large bowl whisk egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff. Gently fold in almonds, walnuts, flour, and carrots; fold cake mixture into egg white mixture. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake until golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 1 hour. Let cake cool in the pan 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
4. In a medium bowl, mix together mascarpone, cream cheese, confectioners' sugar, and lime zest and juice. Spread mixture over top of cooled cake and sprinkle with chopped walnuts if desired.

How does $100 to Land's End Sound?

Mom Select is offering an opportunity to win a $100 gift card to Land's End. How handy would that be for your back to school shopping?

Click here to take the Survey by midnight (CST) on June 25 and you'll be entered into the drawing. It's very short--only 18 questions--and you could win a hefty prize!

They are giving away five cards, so that increases your chances of winning as well!

If you're interested in opportunities from Mom Select, you can go to their website at www.momselect.com and sign up.

Book Giveaway of the Week

I had so many interesting commments about this book, as well as quite a few discussions with people about it, so I thought I'd make it available as a giveaway.

This is Mistaken Identity by Don and Susie VanRyn and Newell, Colleen and Whitney Cerak, from Howard Publishers.

Meet Laura Van Ryn and Whitney Cerak: one buried under the wrong name, one in a coma and being cared for by the wrong family.

This shocking case of mistaken identity stunned the country and made national news. Would it destroy a family? Shatter their faith? Push two families into bitterness, resentment, and guilt?
Read this unprecedented story of two traumatized families who describe their ordeal and explore the bond sustaining and uniting them as they deal with their bizarre reversal of life lost and life found.

And join Whitney Cerak, the sole surviving student, as she comes to terms with her new identity, forever altered, yet on the brink of new beginnings.
Mistaken Identity weaves a complex tale of honesty, vulnerability, loss, hope, faith, and love in the face of one of the strangest twists of circumstances imaginable.

A link to my review can be found in the post below.

To enter:

1. Leave a comment on this post, tell me something interesting about yourself.

2. Make sure you leave a valid e-mail address so that I can contact you if you win.

3. For a bonus entry, subscribe to my feed (see right hand sidebar) or let me know if you're already subscribed.

4. Deadline to enter is Saturday, June 21, I'll get numbers via random.org on Sunday to determine a winner.

Wahington's Lady Winner

The winner of Washington's Lady is:

#13 chelleandyg@...

I will send you an e-mail and if I don't hear from you in 48 hours I'll use the next random number from my list.

Thanks to everyone for entering!

Re-Draw for Sisterchicks

Since the winner of Sisterchicks Go Brit! didn't contact me within the time frame listed, I got another random number and the new winner is:

#15 Patty pleblanc_1@...

I'm off to contact the winner, if I don't hear from her within 48 hours, I'll draw again.

Latest Reviews

Beyond the Night


Mistaken Identity


Cory in the House: Newt and Improved Edition


Minutemen

Wine Bags--For More than just Wine!

It's been a while since I had something I could actually think of that works for me (I know, I'm a loser). But today I thought of something that I love!

A little background:


I got this reusable wine bag free at the grocery store a long time ago. I don't buy that much wine, and when I do, it's one bottle at a time so it seems useless to put it in a 6-bottle wine bag. I have four other big reusable bags that I use all the time, and could never figure out what to do with my little wine bag, and I thought that maybe it was getting lonely (well, no, I didn't really think that) but I was frustrated that I couldn't come up with a use for it.





Then I went on a shopping trip to Walgreens, and was planning to go to the regular grocery store for a mega trip right afterward, where I knew I was going to be using all four of my bags. I thought of the wine bag, and decided to give it a try.





Well, what do you know? It is the perfect bag for Walgreens shopping. The little compartments are great for shampoos, toothpaste, all of the little drugstore things I buy there. The cashier was impressed. The lady behind me in line asked where I got my "toiletries bag"!

I just put a few things in here to show you the general idea, but it actually holds quite a number of items.

Wine bags--not just for wine anymore!

Next Set of Winners!

Congratulations to the next two winners of books:

Deep in the Heart of Trouble--Cheryl
#23--shryackmom@...

Danny Gospel--Sarah
#7 Rom8vs28@...

I'm off to contact you, if I don't hear from you in 48 hours I'll go to the next chosen numbers.

Next Two Winners!

The winner of From a Distance is:
#13 cjarvis@....

The winner of Sisterchicks Go Brit! is:

#4 spowell@.....


I'm off to notify the winners! If I don't hear back within 48 hours, I'll give the prize to the next numbers on my random list.

I also wanted to mention that I am using http://www.random.org/ to choose the numbers...it looks like number 4 was a popular number two out of four times so far.

First two Winners!

The winner of The Will of Wisteria is #17:
Michelle--joyfulhutch@...

The Winner of Kill Me if You Can is #4
Ashley--ashley.vanburen@...

I'm off to notify the winners! If I don't hear from you within 48 hours, I will move on to the next numbers on my list.

Giveaway Day 7

I apologize for skipping out on you yesterday. We FINALLY saw the sun after weeks of rain and cold (it's back to rain today) so I spend the entire day outside. Here is my final giveaway in my Week of Book Giveaways. Won't be the final one ever, because from here on, I'll be having a giveaway once a week. Like I mentioned before, I literally have stacks and stacks of books here just waiting for new homes.

Today's book to give away is Washington's Lady by Nancy Moser, from Bethany House Publishers.

It has been said that without George Washington there would be no United States. But without Martha, there would be no George Washington. He called her "my other self."Who was this woman who captured the heart of our country's founder?

She dreams of a quiet life with her beloved George, but war looms...Though still a young woman, Martha Dandridge Custis was a wealthy, attractive widow and the mother of two small children with no desire to remarry. But when a striking war hero steps into her life, she realizes that she is ready to love again. She is courted by, then marries the French and Indian War hero. Yet she wonders whether this man, accustomed to courageous military exploits, can settle down to a simple life of farming and being a father to her children.

Even as she longs for domestic bliss, Martha soon realizes she will have to risk everything dear to her and find the courage to get behind a dream much larger than her own.

Her new life as Martha Washington took her through blissful times at Mount Vernon, family tragedies, six years of her husband's absence during the Revolutionary War, and her position as a reluctant First Lady.

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

Giveaway Day 6

Today's book is Danny Gospel by David Athey, from Bethany House Publishers

Once he'd performed in his family's gospel band, but now most of his loved ones have passed on. Still known as "Danny Gospel," he is living a sedate, quiet life as a postman in a small Iowa town. Soon his tranquil existence is broken open by--a dream, a vision, a sign?--a beautiful woman he is sure is his "beloved." Logic and sense tucked safely out of harm's way, Danny launches a quest to find his true love. Always good-natured, he is a hero on a journey--dreaming impossible dreams and, no matter how much he must suffer, pursuing romance and heavenly glory.


But is his quest really for a vision of beauty--or is it a journey through pains too deep to name and emotions too raw to feel?

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

Giveaway Day 5

Today's Book is Deep in the Heart of Trouble by Deeanne Gist, from Bethany House Publishers

The last time readers saw Essie Spreckelmeyer, she was courting trouble.

Four years later, she's wearing bloomers, leading the Corsicana Velocipede Club, and running her father's oil company—and she couldn’t imagine trading any of it. Even for a husband.

Tony Morgan, the disinherited son of an oil baron, arrives in boomtown Corsicana, Texas, with the intention of rising to the top and proving himself to the world.

His new job with Sullivan Oil, however, finds him butting heads with a headstrong blonde who contradicts his orders, drafts him to represent the company in a bicycle race, and tangles with his ambitions.

Is love around the corner, or are they deep in the heart of trouble?

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

Giveaway Day 4

Today's book is Sisterchicks Go Brit! by Robin Jones Gunn, from Multnomah Publishers.

SISTERCHICK® n: a friend who shares the deepest wonders of your heart, loves you like a sister, and provides a reality check when you’re being a brat.

Two midlife mamas hop over to jolly ole England and encounter so much more than the usual tourist stops. Liz does have a bit of a childhood crush on Big Ben, and she has hoped to “meet” him ever since her fifteenth birthday. Kellie dreams of starting an interior design business and figures Liz needs to be a part of that equation–a calculation that hasn’t added up for Liz yet.

Nothing on the excursion goes the way these two friends had envisioned. They start with a village pancake race and end up being held for questioning on The Underground. Kellie and Liz take a wild tour through the land of C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien and then find themselves swept up, up, and away in a hot air balloon over the Cotswalds. London beckons with the Tower of London, Windsor Castle, shopping at Portabella Road in Knotting Hill, and of course, reservations at the Ritz for a posh high tea.

A few detours along the way and the possibility of being lost in a London fog of wonderment aren’t enough to stop these two Sisterchicks! Each step of their regal journey is lined with evidence of God’s gracious compassion, and both come to realize that God knows their every wish. He is the One who planted every dream in their hearts.

And, oh, what a surprise awaits them when they return home!

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

Giveaway Day 3

Today's book giveaway is From a Distance, by Tamera Alexander, from Bethany House Publishers


What happens when the realization of a dream isn't what you imagined... and the secret you've spent a lifetime guarding is finally laid bare?

Determined to become one of the country's premier newspaper photographers, Elizabeth Westbrook travels to the Colorado Territory to capture the grandeur of the mountains surrounding the remote town of Timber Ridge. She hopes, too, that the cool, dry air of Colorado, and its renowned hot springs, will cure the mysterious illness that threatens her career, and her life. Daniel Ranslett is a man shackled by his Confederate past, and he'll do anything to protect his land, and his solitude. When an outspoken Yankee photographer captures an image that appears key to solving a murder, putting herself in danger, Daniel is called upon to repay a debt. He's a man of his word, but repaying that debt could reveal secrets from his past he would prefer remain buried.

Forced on a perilous journey together, Daniel and Elizabeth's lives intertwine in ways neither could have imagined when first they met from a distance.

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

Giveaway Day 2

Today's Giveaway is Kill Me If You Can by Nicole Young, from Revell Publishers

Patricia Amble might be down, but she's not dead --- yet.Tish has left the Detroit suburbs for her next renovation project: an old log cabin in Michigan's remote Upper Peninsula. And the fun part --- it's the same cabin where she spent her childhood summers. The fresh air and solitude are just what she needs after her flight from romance and her brushes with death.As Tish arrives at her new home, her hope for peace and quiet is shattered when she finds a torn photo of her dead mother with the words "don't ask why" written across her face. Mysterious relatives, old rivalries, and a dangerous drug ring may make this twenty-six-year-old mystery more than she can handle. Tish must put together the pieces of her mother's death or risk losing everything --- including her own life.

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED.

Giveaway Day 1

For my first giveaway, I have the fantastic book, The Will of Wisteria by Denise Hildreth.

From the back:

Charleston blue blood Clayton Wilcott "got religion" late in life; so late, it turns out his kids never took to it. So he's left a provisional will delivered in a highly unorthodox way.

Now they're going to have to honor Daddy's commandments from beyond the grave--for a full year--or be cut off from their substantial inheritances.

The scent of wisteria lingers in the air as the four spoiled Wilcotts battle for their birthright.

Here's the link to my review of The Will of Wisteria

THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED.