Sunday Post ~ 3/9/14

NEWS FROM THE PAST WEEK
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I just saw my first robin of the year!!!  Have you seen any yet?

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This Week's Memes

Monday - What Am I Reading
Tuesday -Teaser Tuesday
Wednesday -Waiting on Wednesday
Thursday -Thursday Thirteen
Friday -High Five for Friday
Saturday -Stacking the Shelves


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Reviews:

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Giveaways:

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Winners:

(all have been contacted by email)

Leap Into Books Giveaway ~ Michele376

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Lovely reading!

Movie Review ~ Love's Enduring Promise

Synopsis:

In this Janette Oke sequel to "Love Comes Softly," the eldest child in an 1800s frontier family, Missie Davis is a bright and beautiful elementary schoolteacher whose love for the prairie is matched only by her passion for books. When Missie encounters Grant, a handsome New England railroad executive, she feels as though shes met a hero from one of her novels. But their courtship is complicated by the appearance of Nate, a mysterious young man who helps Missies family in a time of need. Torn between two worlds, Missie finds herself at a crossroads, forced to choose between the love of two very different men and two very different futures.
 

Cast

Marty Claridge - Catherine Heigl
Clark Davis - Dale Midkiff
Missie Davis - January Jones
Willie "Nate" LaHaye - Logan Bartholomew
Grant Thomas - Mackenzie Astin

My Overall Thoughts:

Sigh......  Loved it!

I didn't think I would like the second in the series as well as the first but I did!  Ten years has passed and Missie is grown up now and has two younger brothers.

She is the town's schoolteacher but has to stop teaching in order to help out her family in a time of need.  Enter "Nate".  Just let me say here:  "What a cutie!!!"  Nate hires on to help with the harvest.   But...there's also Grant, a wealthy railroader who catches Missie's eye.

I definitely knew who I wanted her to end up with but you never know when there might be a curve ball thrown in.

Again, like with the first movie, I cried.  I just couldn't help it.  I was so worried about the father, Clark.  I really didn't now where that storyline would go.

My Favorite Scenes(s):

I loved when Nate saw Missie struggling with the plowing and just couldn't stop himself from coming to help. What a gentleman.

I also loved the Kiss.  Sigh....

Watch This Movie With:

Anyone.  Friends, family, adults, children...

Other Notes:

-  I didn't read the book so I can't do a comparison.

My Rating:

5/5

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Have you seen this movie or read the book?  What did you think?

Stacking the Shelves ~ 3/8/14

Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!

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This week I added the following to my shelf:

Zoe Broussard loves the life she and her husband Pierce have built in her beloved Louisiana hometown, but a series of anonymous notes is making her life a misery--because Zoe has a secret so terrible it could leave the family business in shambles and tear her marriage apart.

Happy Reading!

Movie Review ~ Love Comes Softly

Synopsis:

A young woman on her way to a new life in the 1800's suddenly finds herself a widow. Now she must live with a recently widowed young man and his daughter. Can any of them find love again?
 

Cast

Marty Claridge - Catherine Heigl
Clark Davis - Dale Midkiff
Missie Davis - Skye McCole Bartusiak

My Overall Thoughts:

First, I loved Catherine Heigl long before she was "Catherine Heigl".  I remember watching her in a movie called "Wish Upon a Star" as a teen over and over.

Next, you'll be seeing reviews from me for the entire "Love Series" over the next few weeks. A friend of mine has the whole series of movies and I borrowed them from her.  As I get time, I'll watch and review.

Finally,  I loved this movie.  I can't even put into words how sweet and lovely it was.  Such a nice mix-up from Thor!  My heart broke for Marty in the beginning.  My heart soared at the end.

I laughed at Marty trying to make fried chicken from "scratch".  I cried when little Missie was missing her mother.  I was excited as Clark went dashing after Marty.  It was everything I was expecting and hoping for.  What a lovely beginning to my marathon :)

My Favorite Scenes(s):

My favorite scene is hard to pick.  I, of course, loved the fried chicken scene.  I also loved when Clark went to "church".  The hopeless romantic in me adored the Kiss.

Watch This Movie With:

Anyone.  Friends, family, adults, children...

Other Notes:

-  This movie is very sad in some parts.  Watch if you're up for a good cry.

-  I didn't read the book so can't do a comparison.

My Rating:

5/5

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Have you seen this movie or read the book?  What did you think?

High Five for Friday~ 3/7/14

Five things that made me smile this week :)

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1.  We got our tax refund!  Money, money, money :)

2.  I got highlights in my hair!  I needed something different :)

3.  Kaylee and I got our nails done!  Girl's night :)

4.  I've been catching up on a Hallmark show "When Calls the Heart"!  Loving it :)

5.  It is DATE NIGHT!!!!  I can't wait :)

What made you smile this week?

Lucky is Reading Giveaway Hop ~ Ends 3/21

This blog hop is hosted by

StuckInBooks

Are you feeling lucky?  Are you?

I'm so glad it is March and hopefully the major snow will be done for the year.  Let's celebrate!

Up for grabs is the following book:

Looking for a woman of good character and pleasant disposition willing to learn the ranching business in Arizona territory. Must be SINGLE and prepared to remain so now and forever more. Will be given ownership of ranch. -Eleanor Walker

Disgraced dime novelist Kate Tenney fled the city that banned her latest book for a fresh start at a cattle ranch in the Arizona Territory. She hopes ranching turns out to be as romantic as she portrayed it in her novels.

But what awaits her is a much harder life. There is no room for mistakes on a working cattle ranch in 1895, and Kate is ill-prepared for her new life. She quickly learns that dawn comes early . . . every day. But she is tenacious.

Having been abandoned by a string of men, Kate has no intention of ever marrying. But she didn't expect to meet Luke Adams either. Luke awakens feelings inside Kate she doesn't recognize, and his steady presence is a constant distraction. She has only written about love in the past, never known it herself. But her feelings for Luke stand in the way of all she has to gain if she is chosen as the heir.

Perhaps God brought Kate to the barrenness of the desert to give new life to her jaded heart.

To enter the giveaway:

*Mandatory-  Leave a comment telling me how to contact you if you are the winner.

*Extra-  Follow my blog and leave a second comment telling me that you do :)

The giveaway will run until 11:59pm EST, March 21, 2014.  The winner will be emailed on March 22nd.

For more chances to win great bookishness,

check out these other giveaway hoppers :

Thursday Thirteen ~ TBR Shelf Part 2 ~ 36/14

A list of 13....

"Books On My TBR Shelf - Part 2"

1.  A Penny for Your Thoughts by Mindy Starns Clark

2.  Don't Take Any Wooden Nickels by Mindy Starns Clark

3.  Under the Cajun Moon by Mindy Starns Clark

4.  Whispers of the Bayour by Mindy Starns Clark

5.  Love in Disguise by Carol Cox

6.  Follow the Heart by Kaye Dacus

7.  A Wedding to Remember in Charleston, SC by Annalisa Daughety

8.  The Lady's Maid by Susan Page Davis

9.  Maggie's Journey by Lena Nelson Dooley

10.  Choices of the Heart by Laurie Alice Eakes

11.  Don't Look BAck by Lynette Eason

12.  A Killer Among Us by Lynette Eason

13.  Fairer Than Morning by Rosslyn Elliott

Waiting on Wednesday ~ 3/5/14

 Waiting on Wednesday, hosted by Breaking the Spine,

 spotlights an up-coming release that I'm eagerly anticipating.

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The train to Garber, Texas, is supposed to bring Nicholas Lovelace to the next victory in his life and career. Instead, it gets held up by robbers who are thwarted by the last person Nick ever expected–Anne Tillerton from back home in Prairie Lea. 

Anne’s been working as a buffalo hunter and hiding from polite society. She’s only coming to town to talk their runaway cook into returning. Instead, the woman flees–and leaves Anne with her infant son. With Nick the only person she knows in town who can help, the two form an unlikely team as they try to figure out what to do with the child.

Both soon find themselves stuck in complicated situations. To care for the child, Anne’s forced into polite society–and it’s not going well. Meanwhile, Nick is being pressured on all sides of his business, and being seen with Anne isn’t helping his reputation. Still he can’t quite seem to forget her and must make a choice between the leading of his heart and his plans for the future.

Release Date:  4/1/14

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Waiting Until Next Wednesday,

 

 

Teaser Tuesday ~ 3/4/14

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. 

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My teaser for this week is from:

~Rees glanced quickly over his shoulder--having imagined the sound of footsteps behind him all evening--before lifting each article of jewelry to make sure nothing lay beneath.  He replaced them one by one, endeavoring to leave everything as he had found it.~

Page  7

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Happy Teaser Tuesday!

It's Monday! What Am I Reading? ~ 3/3/14

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What I read this past week:




Click picture for my review :)

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The book I am currently reading is:

Lady Celine Wexham seems the model British subject. French by birth but enjoying life in 1813 as a widowed English countess, she is in the unique position of being able to help those in need--or to spy for the notorious Napoleon Bonaparte. 

When Rees Phillips of the British Foreign Office is sent to pose as the countess's butler and discover where her true loyalties lie, he is confident he will uncover the truth. But the longer he is in her fashionable townhouse in London's West End, the more his staunch loyalty to the Crown begins to waver as he falls under Lady Wexham's spell. 

Will he find the proof he needs? And if she is a spy after all, will he do the right thing?

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Also hoping to read this week:

Callie Duflay just isn’t like the rest of her family. While they’ve built white collar lives, she prefers getting her hands dirty by working with children and local California causes. When Callie learns that a beloved piece of untouched property in her town of Otter Bay may soon be developed, she confronts the architect assigned to the project.

Gage Mitchell may be an easygoing, eco-friendly professional, but he’s not about to back off this job no matter how cute Callie or her pet pooch, Moondoggy, may be. His reasons and hers are noble—both have a heart for protecting God’s creation, and the truth is these two would be perfect for each other outside of this face-off. But will they ever figure that out?

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What are you reading today?

Sunday Post ~ 3/2/14

NEWS FROM THE PAST WEEK
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Settling in for another winter's storm.  Stay safe, everyone!

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This Week's Memes

Monday - What Am I Reading
Tuesday -Teaser Tuesday
Wednesday -Waiting on Wednesday
Thursday -Thursday Thirteen
Friday -High Five for Friday
Saturday -Stacking the Shelves


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Reviews:

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Giveaways:

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Winners:

(all have been contacted by email)

Snow Day Giveaway ~ Georgia B.

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Lovely reading!

Book Review ~ Dawn Comes Early by Margaret Brownley

Title:  "Dawn Comes Early"
Series:  Last Chance Ranch Book #1

Author:  Margaret Brownley
Publisher:  Thomas Nelson
Publication Date: 3/13/12

Pages:  353

Book Description:

Looking for a woman of good character and pleasant disposition willing to learn the ranching business in Arizona territory. Must be SINGLE and prepared to remain so now and forever more. Will be given ownership of ranch. -Eleanor Walker

Disgraced dime novelist Kate Tenney fled the city that banned her latest book for a fresh start at a cattle ranch in the Arizona Territory. She hopes ranching turns out to be as romantic as she portrayed it in her novels.

But what awaits her is a much harder life. There is no room for mistakes on a working cattle ranch in 1895, and Kate is ill-prepared for her new life. She quickly learns that dawn comes early . . . every day. But she is tenacious.

Having been abandoned by a string of men, Kate has no intention of ever marrying. But she didn't expect to meet Luke Adams either. Luke awakens feelings inside Kate she doesn't recognize, and his steady presence is a constant distraction. She has only written about love in the past, never known it herself. But her feelings for Luke stand in the way of all she has to gain if she is chosen as the heir.

Perhaps God brought Kate to the barrenness of the desert to give new life to her jaded heart.

My Overall Feeling of the Book:

This was a sweet story about overcoming our past to embrace our present and our future.

Kate worked so hard to earn Last Chance Ranch.  She believed that land was the only thing that mattered and would never leave.  All she had to do was agree to never marry.

Luke is a simple, hard-working man.  He doesn't have the education that he thinks Kate would desire in a mate.  It takes him a while to accept himself as worthy as the man he is.

I really, really enjoyed the second part of the book where the romance was mainly located.  The beginning of the book had a lot of set-up for the series.  I do believe it was worth it as I'm looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

A Brief Excerpt:

"Lula-Belle leaned over and whispered in Kate's ear, 'That was before they invented passion.'  Kate smiled politely, not sure she'd heard right."

Page  243

The Cover:

There are some discrepancies with the cover.  The ranch house was an adobe building, not a white clap-board house.  It also took place in the desert and I don't think it looks very desert-y.

Other than that I like how the heroine's features are highlighted.  I like being able to put a face to the name.

Other Notes:

~  This is a nice, clean read.


Rating

4/5  Really Enjoyed It!

On to the next book,

Stacking the Shelves ~ 3/1/14

Stacking The Shelves is all about sharing the books you are adding to your shelves, may it be physical or virtual. This means you can include books you buy in physical store or online, books you borrow from friends or the library, review books, gifts and of course ebooks!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This week I added the following to my shelf:

Happy Reading!

High Five for Friday ~ 2/28/14

Five things that made me smile this week :)

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1.  I watched Austenland again Sunday afternoon!  I laughed even more the second time :)

2.  Our dryer is fixed!  I love clean clothes :)

3.  I've had a few night's sleep without coughing!  I love a good sleep :)

4.  We had three baptisms at Church on Sunday!  God is good :)

5.  It is almost March!  I love March :)

What made you smile this week?

Leap Into Books Giveaway Hop ~ Ends 3/8/14

This blog hop is hosted by

 I'm a Reader, Not a Writer & Jinky Is Reading

I am so excited to turn the calendar to March.  How about you?  Are you over this long, cold, snowy winter yet?  How about a lovely book to get us looking forward to "SUMMER!!!"

Up for grabs is the following book:

A good makeup artist never panics. Bella Shaughnessy knows this. She's the resident makeup maven in a family of Boston Irish hair salon owners; she has an artful solution to almost every problem. But Bella feels bruised beyond the reach of even the best concealer when her half-sister runs off with her husband. What could she come up with to cover a hurt like that? Plenty, it turns out. She conceives an invigorating new business idea, and soon meets a cute entrepreneur who can help out. Despite their bickering, they can't seem to stay away from success--or from each other.

To enter the giveaway:

*Mandatory-  Leave a comment telling me how to contact you if you are the winner.

*Extra-  Follow my blog and leave a second comment telling me that you do :)

The giveaway will run until 11:59pm EST, March 7, 2014.  The winner will be emailed on March 8th.

For more chances to win great bookishness,

check out these other giveaway hoppers :