Miles from Where We Started Review

Miles from Where We Started by Cynthia Ruchti is a book I loved! I love road trips and camping! I enjoy meeting new people and seeing new sights. This book takes you on a road trip, but you travel through a whole range of situations involving a troubled marriage and a foster child with a big personality.  A trip like this one comes with many adjustments and so does marriage. Add in a child who has his own difficulties and you have extra challenges, but also humor, real life, and another perspective. So much of life is revealed as they travel down the road, through their own memories, and even into the future. They see more than they planned on and learn lessons they didn’t know they needed. There is so much wisdom woven into their journey as they meet others who share with them. They learn they need people, each other, just as the slogan for their camper is, “Just add humans.” I loved this story, the people, the hope, and the restoration within it. I will share it and I will read it again.

A Sparkle of Silver Review

A Sparkle of Silver by Liz Johnson stirred up emotions in me by bringing up memories of caring for my elderly parents and grandparents. Millie, as her grandmother’s caretaker, has lots of decisions to make to care for her, but not lots of money. Millie has to work hard to make ends meet and they don’t always. So when a chance comes along to look for a fortune, she has to do it. And she has to enlist help. Will the help prove trustworthy? Will their relationship turn to friendship? Or more? Or will their pasts interfere with it all?

This book delivers a touching story of love between the generations, mystery, history, and romance. It has much to say about trust and forgiveness, too. How the lives of the characters are all intertwined is so intriguing. This is a great read and I can’t wait for more in this series.

Review of The Daniel Generation

I have heard Jolene Erlacher speak before and so was excited to read this book. It is engaging and relevant to those in ministry, but also to anyone trying to relate to young people. I found it to be a resource for growth for myself, too. I urge you to get a copy for yourself.

The Daniel Generation is a book that all church leaders and anyone working with young adults should read. It will teach how to engage the next generation and help them be like Daniel was as he served in an ungodly culture. It has practical suggestions and Biblical principles to guide you in standing for your Christian values in a constantly changing culture., Besides helping you to teach these principles, they will guide you to growth as well. This book puts the emphasis on the remnant rather than on success in numbers. It emphasizes the relevance of God’s Word and the reliance on the Holy Spirit. It is well-written and to the point. This is a great resource and one I plan to give to others, as well as read again for myself.

Do Grandparents Have Favorites?

Do Grandparents Have Favorites?

Of course, grandparents have favorites. Let’s get real. We all like some people or some things more than others. Grandparents are human. There is a connection with some grandchildren more than others. Lots of things can affect this. You may have access to some children more than others. A closer proximity may bring closer bonds. You may share something specific with some of your grandchildren, like a love for books or a hobby or activity. Those things may make you grow closer. Sometimes a certain personality of a child draws you closer or may push you apart. A certain child may have a special love for you and that will make you have a more intimate connection.

Some children may not seem to like you as well as other people so your relationship will not be as close. Some children have mannerisms or behaviors that may be distasteful to you, and it changes the relationship or minimizes it a bit. It doesn’t mean you don’t love the child. We love all our grandchildren. It just means a different relationship with them.

My grandparents had over 30 grandchildren. They didn’t know all of us well. We were all different ages from different places and spent varying amounts of time with them at different stages of their lives. My parents had 10 grandchildren of different ages, too. They were much more elderly and facing health challenges when my youngest was born. They were different grandparents to her than to their oldest grandchildren.

It’s not wrong to feel a special connection to some of them. It is a gift. Anytime you can connect well with a young person is a blessing. Both they and you need it. It is a good thing.

But if in having favorites, you play favorites, you may hurt someone. My dad loved all his grandchildren, but he had a special place in his heart for his oldest grandsons. He sometimes bought them more than his other grandchildren. That was obvious favoritism and my children were sometimes bothered by it. Or I was. I try not to show favoritism. I want them ALL to believe they are my favorites. They are all loved by me and I want them to know they are all special to me.

My oldest granddaughter always wants me to proclaim her my favorite. She tries every time I am with her.  I tell her she is my favorite oldest granddaughter. And I mean it!

Each of my grandchildren are unique with special gifts, talents and personalities. I enjoy them immensely. I try to do things for them and buy gifts uniquely for them. I want them to know I accept them and want them as part of my life.

If I have favorites, I will never tell. Some might know or think they know. Hopefully all of them at some point will think it is them!

The Cumberland Bride by Shannon McNear Review

I love The Daughters of the Mayflower series, and The Cumberland Bride by Shannon McNear is a fantastic addition. You immediately step into the story of what it was like to travel in 1794 into the frontier of western Kentucky. Travel was hazardous at best, and add to it that it was a move with all they could take with them packed on their animals. Their guide is an intriguing individual with some secrets of his own. All of these things make it a tough journey, but there is also conflict with the Indians brewing.

The story is rich in history and you feel like you are with them on their journey. But it is also a satisfying story with the depth of the characters making you feel like you know them. The conflicts and solutions are wrapped in vivid detail and real emotion. History, romance, and a good story- what's not to like?

 This is the kind of story that makes history real and alive. I would recommend it to others.

“I received a complimentary copy of this book from Barbour Publishing and was under no obligation to post a review.”