A story unfinished (Beacon Hill Press)

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I read A Story Unfinished: 99 Days with Eliot, in exchange for honest review from Beacon Hill Press. The story was written by Matt Mooney. I received a paperback version of the book. This book is also based from a Christian Perspective.

Mooney and his wife had a son, who lived only 99 days. I wanted to read the book because the description touched me deeply. I had two miscarriages before: The second miscarriage hurt me the most. I also thought about Kalen, when I read the book. Kalen has a global development delay and a heart condition.

The book starts out with a beautiful introduction. Mooney's wife, Ginny, finds out at 30 weeks, Eliot has a genetic disease and birth was not possible. The Mooney's knew if Eliot lived, his future was uncertain. This was a lot to take before Eliot was born.

The book was hard to read at times, but it was also a good read. Mooney discussed the fears of being a first time father, while being enrolled in law school at the same time. He discussed the challenges of being a husband, while moving from job to job, not to mention serving in ministry at church. One of the funniest passages was when Mooney discussed buying a 3-pack pregnancy test to ensure Ginny was really pregnant (pp. 17 to 18).

Then, the book starts to discuss the pregnancy by weeks. On page 49, we reach 30 weeks. Ginny and Matt have an appointment for a 3rd ultrasound. The passages was hard to read. The Mooneys learned their unborn child had a hole in his heart; enlarged kidneys; clinched fists. The Mooneys were going to have a special needs child, who would need open heart surgery. The genetic disease was called Trisomy 18 or Edwards Syndrome, in which a child had 3 chromosomes, instead of two.

Next, Mooney added his blog posts from before Eliot's birth to his one month birthday. That was the best part of the book, tracking the progress of the family. I also loved the family photos, which started after page 96. Eliot died on October 27, 2006. The family released 99 balloons in the air, one for each day of Eliot's life.

Great Aunt Died: A lesson in financial management

Last week, my great-aunt, Margie, died. She was 64 years old. She left behind two daughters; one granddaughter; one grand son; and one great-grand daughter. Not to mention, 6 living brothers and sisters, and a host of other relatives. We have a big family. Yet, death can bring problems: Financial problems

I been taking financial management classes at church for the past year. My aunt had no life insurance and no burial insurance. She may have some money hidden, provided they can find it. Her children and some of her siblings are in debate about the funeral plans, but the family simply does not have enough money to pay for funeral expenses.

One daughter, who was staying with her, and now us, wants cremation because it is cheaper. Another relative wants a burial. One daughter wants to buy her mother new clothes and a wig for the burial, but does not want to contribute to the funeral costs.

My aunt has money in the bank, but did not add anyone as a beneficiary, so the money is untouchable until the death certificate is provided. The funeral people said it will take a week for the certificate to process.

Since one of her daughters is now living here and my uncle, was my aunt's unofficial power of attorney, my house has been the hub spot for relatives and planning.

The family has saved some money by allowing me to do the programs. I have done church programs before, so a funeral program would be easy.

My biggest issue was trying to figure out the names of all 10 great-aunts and nephews. My great grandmother had 10 kids. 6 are living. 4 are dead. (My grandma, great-aunt, and two great-uncles). I thought about doing a small family tree with the greats and my great aunt's kids, but I am having trouble squeezing in 10 names on Word, Powerpoint, and Canva.

Of course, the death brings up another issue: I have to take my kids to a funeral. Two special needs kids to sit still over an hour. I been hunting down social stories, but I noticed not too many are online.

Please pray for my cousins and the family during this time.

Stacie

Hym and Hur Book Review (Tomoson)

I read Hym and Hur, in exchange for honest review from Tomoson. The book was written by Phillip Frey. I received a free code on smashwords to obtain the book.

About the book:

The book is about Hym and Hur, a young couple, who never ages, and who have been together for more than 100 years. They have magical abilities. The couple loves to play tricks on others or do good deeds. You also have Death, who helps Hym and Hur do their dastardly deeds. All pranks have to be approved by Death, which is the plot of the book. Death approved a plan, with major consequences for humans. Hym and Hur, try to make things right, which may or may not get them in trouble.

My Review:

I loved reading the book. The beginning was hilarious, where Hym and Hur was discussing pranks to pull on humankind. Some ideas was no one dies for a day or for a day, every human gets bad luck. Of course, Death has to approve the request. Death tells them to pick one person, who will be blessed with the ability to save people from dying, via touch. Hym and Hur can cancel the deal anytime. That is the beginning of the book. Hym and Hur have to select one person to accomplish this task. Do a good deed. You know what they say, If the deal is too good to be true, leave it alone.

The chosen person is Archie, who is a painter. Archie is also in a relationship with Sarah. Sarah is not happy with Archie's line of work. Sarah wants Archie to get a real job, making more money. She is supporting him, such as paying his rent for his apartment.

Of course, Death has other plans to allow Archie to not only, save the dead, but raise the dead, which Hym and Hur did not consider part of the original deal. Should have read the fine print. LOL

This was a good, quick read. I enjoyed reading the book. The smash words version was under 25 pages. I wanted more. I wanted a part 2. I wanted a series. As soon as the book got good, it had ended. One of the last scenes, were Death was present, I wanted Archie to be apart of it, but he was not. I wanted Archie to have a knock out battle with Death over something. or the realization, he can save lives. Maybe he could solve the mystery of how he got his new "powers". I don't know but the book was excellent.

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

The Offering by Angela Hunt

I read The Offering  by Angela Hunt, in exchange from Litfuse. The book is published by Howard Books.


My Review:
I chose this book because I liked the description. Mandy Lisandra is a wife to Gideon and a mother to Marilee. Mandy works part-time at a Cuban grocery store for Mama Isa (father-in-law's sister) and her father-in-law. The family has bills to pay, especially for private school for Marilee. She is also worried about her husband, getting deployed at anytime, not to mention getting hurt or killed. Mandy wanted to earn money as a surrogate for a childless couple. Mandy got the idea from a customer, who visited the grocery. The customer was a military wife, who learned military wives make good surrogates or gestational carriers. (I think surrogacy is a good idea to help out infertile couples. I am also thinking of selling my eggs to help out others.) At first, Her husband and family thinks she is nuts for wanting to carry another couple's baby, but her husband thinks it's a good idea later.

Her husband, who is in the military dies, while she is pregnant. She gives up the child, but wonders later, if she gave away her own biological child, versus the surrogate's child. A question arises: if the baby is hers, will she take the baby from the only family the baby knows?

The family Mandy chose was from France. Simone and Damien Amblour want to have a child, to inherit the family's winery. Damien's other kids do not want to take over. Simone and Damien have used gestational carriers before, but each resulted in early miscarriage (that was hard for me to read. I had two miscarriages). I almost really lost it when Mandy was spotting, shortly after getting pregnant.

The book was a good read. I liked the scenes. Very descriptive. Easy to get lost in. I love the family dynamics between Gideon, Mandy, and Marilee. I also love the dynamics between Mandy and her in-laws, and the customers at the store. Like the nudist, who frequents the store.  There is also a river reference, which is not explained until a few chapters later. I got confused at first because I had no idea what it meant. The river reference is another way for saying goodbye. I also like how the book is Christian-based. God is mentioned multiple times throughout the book. The book is very good. I read over 100 pages immediately.

About the book: copied from Litfuse
After growing up as an only child, Amanda Lisandra wants a big family. But since she and her soldier husband can't afford to have more children right away, Mandy decides to earn money as a gestational carrier for a childless couple. She loves being pregnant, and while carrying the child she dreams of having her own son and maybe another daughter. Just when the nearly perfect pregnancy is about to conclude, unexpected tragedy enters Mandy's world and leaves her reeling. Devastated by grief, she surrenders the child she was carrying and struggles to regain her emotional equilibrium.

Two years later she studies a photograph of the baby she bore and wonders if the unthinkable has happened---could she have inadvertently given away her own biological child? Over the next few months Mandy struggles to decide between the desires of her grief-stricken heart and what's best for the little boy she has never known.

About the author:copied from Litfuse

With over four million copies of her books sold worldwide, Angela Hunt is the bestselling author of more than one hundred books, including "TheNativity Story". Hunt is one ofthe most sought-after collaborators in the publishing industry. Her nonfiction book "Don't Bet Against Me", written with Deanna Favre, spent several weeks on the New York Times bestseller list. Angela's novel "The Note" (with sales of over 141,000) was filmed as the Hallmark Channel's Christmas movie for 2007 and proved to bethe highest rated television movie in the channel's history. Angela's novels have won or been nominated for several prestigious industry awards, including theRITA, the Christy Award, the ECPA Christian Book Award, and the Holt Medallion. She often travels to teach writing workshops at schools and writers' conferences, and she served as the keynote speaker at the 2008 American Christian Fiction Writers' national conference. She and her husband make their home in Florida with mastiffs. In 2001, one of her dogs was featured on Live with Regis and Kelly as the second-largest dog in America.Facebook Fan Page:
Website:
















Angela Hunt is celebrating the release of The Offering with a Nook HD Giveaway and an Author Chat Party on Facebook {6/5}.

One winner will receive:

• A Nook HD
  
• The Offering by Angela Hunt 
  

Enter today by clicking one of the icons below. But hurry, the giveaway ends on June 4th. Winner will be announced at the "The Offering" Facebook Author Chat Party on June 5th. Connect with Angela for an evening of book chat, trivia, laughter, and more! Angela will also share an exclusive look at her next book and give away books and other fun prizes throughout the evening.

So grab your copy of The Offering and join Angela on the evening of June 5th for a chance to connect and make some new friends. (If you haven't read the book, don't let that stop you from coming!)

Don't miss a moment of the fun; RSVP today. Tell your friends via FACEBOOK or TWITTER and increase your chances of winning. Hope to see you on the 5th!

Darkness Before Dawn

I read Darkness Before Dawn, in exchange for review from Litfuse. The book was written by Ace Collins and published by Abingdon Press


About the Author: (copied from Litfuse):

Bestselling author Ace Collins has written more than 60 books including novels “Swope’s Ridge” and “Words of the Father”, as well as the nonfiction “Stories Behind the Best-Loved Songs of Christmas”; and “Lassie: A Dog’s Life”. His books have become movies and network television specials. Ace Collins has sold more than 1.5 million books during his career and makes his home in Arkadelphia, Arkansas. AceCollins.com

Find out more about Ace athttp://acecollins.com.


I chose this book because I loved the description. The book is about Meg Richards, a nurse, whose husband is killed in a car accident by a minor. He was on his way home to see his wife. It was their anniversary weekend. The same night he dies, she also finds out she is pregnant. Meg starts to hate God and wants revenge against her husband's killer. I have not finished the book yet, but this book is moving so far. Some scenes were hard to take in. One, in particular, was Meg rushing to the hospital to view her husband's body. Another, was the scene with her mother, right after the funeral. That scene also started Meg thinking about revenge. The third scene, which stood out, was in the hospital, where the doctor told her she was pregnant, right after viewing Steve's body. Meg does not understand why her husband had to die. He had a good job, well-respected, a community leader, worked in the church, and was a Christian. 

I had to start re-reading the book this morning. The scenes and imagery was powerful. This book was one woman's account of her emotions during a storm. But, with each storm, a rainbow appears. Storms don't last always. (I will update this post, once I finish the last half of the book).

Tales of the Defended Ones Book Review

I reviewed Tales of the Defended Ones, in exchange for honest review from Litfuse. The book was written by Beth Guckenburger and published by Standard Publishing. I received a paperback version of the book.


About the book (From Litfuse's website)

Ben and Joseph lose their mothers, but find a family looking just for them. Antonio is rescued from what seems like a hopeless situation. Caitlyn dares to trust that truth will set her free. Jorani is delivered from slavery into the arms of grace.


Follow these real-life stories as they take you on a journey to foreign places and extreme struggles. Travel through their challenges and see the hand of the great Storyweaver – our Defender God shielding and defending the defenseless in the amazing ways only he can.These are the tales of the ones left wounded and weak-ones made whole and strong . .


About the author (From Litfuse's website: )


Beth Guckenberger and her husband, Todd, are the founders of Back2Back Ministries which communicates a lifestyle of service by sharing the love of Christ and serving God through service to others. Guckenberger travels and speaks regularly at women’s and missions conferences, as well as youth gatherings and church services. In addition to her children’s releases in the Storyweaver series, Guckenberger has written two mission-minded books. She has also partnered with Standard Publishing on the mission content in its 2013 VBS program. The Guckenberger family lives and serves in Monterrey, Mexico


My Review:


I started reading the book today, uninterrupted for about an hour or so. I was halfway through the book before I realized it. The book talked about God's love through adoptions and mission work. The children faced real struggles at an early age. Death of parents and abuse was covered in the first three stories. I chose the book because I loved the description. I am also reviewing more Christian-based books. I wasn't sure of the book at first, but I am glad I was selected for the blog tour I was completely moved by the time, I got to Antonio's story. Ben and Joseph's story was first. They was adopted from Africa. Ben's mother had tuberculosis. Ben also was malnourished. Joseph's mother was pregnant and worked for an elderly lady. She went into labor, headed to a clinic to deliver the baby, and died during child birth. She left Joseph with her employer, but after a week of not hearing from Joseph's mama, the employer took Joseph to the orphanage. Both boys were adopted by the same family


My emotions took a turn for the worse, when I read Antonio's story next. I was in tears. Antonio lived in Mexico. He had epilepsy (with seizures). I used to have seizures, in addition to both of my sons having seizures (Brad grew out of his, Kalen still has them). Antonio's mother had no support because people avoided her. Antonio was also kicked out of school because his teacher could not handle his disorder. His father was not around much--then he died. His mother was also facing cancer. She was worried that when she died, no one would care for her son. She also thought about taking Antonio to heaven with her. An neighbor noticed Antonio and called a case worker. The case worker called a home, which took in kids, no one else wanted--especially those with mental and physical disabilities. I cried when I read how the mother wanted to take Antonio to heaven with her because no one wanted to care for her child. As a mother of special needs children, I was hurt, sad, and definitely empathetic. I hope that when I die, my kids will not be split up and will have a happy home. My family offers little support and their father offers little support.


Next, I read the story of Caitlyn. She was bullied at school. She was being abused, but protective of her mother. Behavioral problems also occurred. She did not want to be taken away from her mother. Her mother's boyfriend was beating her. Her mother was pregnant and on drugs. Her brother was born with drugs in his system. Her brother was taken away, when he was born because of the addiction. both siblings were adopted by the same family.


Finally, the book talked about Jorani. Jorani, who was a girl, lived in Cambodia, in a river village. Her parents died in a traffic accident, months prior. She and her sisters lived with Grandma, who was ailing, and Jorani had to help care for the younger ones. She took on small jobs to help feed her siblings. Jourani heard about a jobs, in the city; went to inquire about one, and he started her into child slavery. When she was no longer useful, she was homeless. Her granny started feeling better and started searching for her granddaughter. Jourani's story had a beautiful ending.


At the end of each story, the author provided a space for you to journal your thoughts and answer a question. This would be great for small group studies. The book is also written in easy-to-understand language. This book was a quick read because I was so engrossed in the story. The author also provides an interview with Joseph and Ben, at the end of the book.

Farfalla: a story of loss and hope by Vanita Oelschlager

http://www.vanitabooks.com/

I read Farfalla, in exchange for review from Netgalley.Com. The book was written by Vanita Oelschlager and published by Vanita Books. First, I loved the graphics. They was amazing. The book tells the story of Little Beetle and the caterpillars. Little beetle plays with the caterpillars over the summer. One day, little Beetle notices the caterpillars are gone and misses his friends. His mother tells him about how caterpillars change. Towards the end, there was one cocoon left, and the little beetle names the butterfly Farfalla. The rest is for you to read.

The words were a little advanced for my boys, but I loved reading the book for myself. The book is a great read.

Death and Life

Wrote this in church on Sunday, after the sermon. The assistant pastor was discussing how he lost a child, which made me cry. I had two miscarries, which affected me deeply, so I understood his lost. Pastor O also discussed how people should rejoice in their lost. Thank the Lord, no matter what they are going through. Look for the good in the bad.
Some days I want kids, who are fully potty trained and an speak a bunch of words. I want to know what they are thinking and I don’t have to deal with major meltdowns and medications. Definitely no seizures. I want my kids to have friends, and not be excluded.


Yet, I can give thanks to God because it could have been worse. Brad could have died on the table at birth because the placenta got caught in his lungs, but God pulled him through. My grandma died the day before Brad was born (November 8, 2000). My great grandma died months before (May, 2000). Maybe he could have been seriously injured after having multiple seizures. Kalen could have had the same thing happen during his petit mal seizures.


I don’t know if my kids will ever deal with drugs, alcohol, or sex. I don’t know if my kids will ever date, get married, have girlfriends, go out on dates, or have kids.
I also have to think once again about the miscarries. I never planned on having kids. If I did, I only wanted two or three. If my two miscarries did not happen, Kalen might not have been here, but since they died, I do have a greater appreciation of both Kalen and Brad. I still hate labor and delivery. I am still not naturally maternal. I love my kids more. Thankful for them more. Appreciate them more. More protective of them more. Through death, it brings life. It brought me my youngest son and it also brought life to me.

Maternal Notions

I am not naturally maternal. It took me years to learn to like and love my oldest. I had to work hard to like and love my youngest during my pregnancy. I did not have too many maternal role models growing up. My mother was passive and let my grand mother do the raising and discipline, though we lived in the same house. I fear and respect my grandmother for her leadership, even though I did not appreciate it until after she died. She was worst than I was. She fussed, she cussed, she disciplined. and she blamed others for her mistakes. I remember once she accused me of stealing her jewelry. I don't wear a lot of jewelry. I don't care too much for jewelry. I never stole anything from her in my life (to my recollection). I fussed at her because I did not do it. Might not been the best move, but she was wrong. She eventually found her jewelry in the spot she left it in. No apology. She was silent. I never understood some of her actions when she was diagnosed with cancer. She quit her job, with good insurance BEFORE the chemotherapy began. I think she quit the same week she was diagnosed. I felt she should have worked until she could not work anymore. Cancer treatments are expensive and her diagnosis was not a preexisting condition. I think she was diagnosed in 1997 or 1998. Trying to get insurance after diagnosis is hard. Mama Areletha died the day before Brad was born (November 8, 2000 and Brad was born November 9, 2000).

I feared and respected my great-grandmother for her leadership and punctuality. She was never late to an appointment and I try not to be either. She died in 2000, while I was 4 months pregnant with Brad.  I do not fear my mother. She does not have excellent leadership. She never disciplined us. She is more like a sister or aunt, rather than a mother. I do have resentment towards her because she never stood up for her oldest kid (me), while other relatives picked on her. If you don't try and protect your kids, when others do them wrong, my mind can not process that. I am not the best mother in the world. I still have a lot of issues to work on, but I hope my kids do not feel about me, like I feel about these people I am related too. I just don't have a lot of love or respect for most of my biological family.  If I die today, send my kids to their father. I don't even trust them to watch, protect, and love my kids.

Why?

My oldest is autistic. My family does not treat him well. They blame him for everything that breaks, that ends up missing, etc. Some members have told me that they can not wait for Brad to go back to his daddy for the summer. My child grew up in Georgia, raised by me and his father and his father's family. He is not used to my side of the family. It has only been less than a year since Brad has been here and I don't feel my family is more accepting of special needs. My mother would not even accept my gift of a "proud grandma of an autistic boy" license plate cover. My uncle Eugene thinks autism can be cured with a belt and all his issues is not mental. No one has even offered to keep Brad for the night or day. He is not potty trained. He breaks things. He has melt downs and temper tantrums. They all seem to show favoritism towards the baby. Either you keep both or keep none. Not going to have Brad wondering why his brother went to an aunt, uncle, cousin house and he was not. I want him to feel welcomed where ever he goes and so far I am not getting that. Can't wait till I get my own place. He will always be welcome there. I don't want to die and have Brad here, and they treat the baby 100x better than his oldest brother because Kalen 'normal'. On the other hand, what if Kalen has a learning disability/disorder because autism may be genetic. I definitely do not want my children to suffer at my family's hands.

On the other hand, even though Kalen and Brad have the same father, Brad Sr. do not claim Kalen. I don't want Kalen going to his father, only to be treated badly. Whether my kids are with my family or my ex's family, I don't want them to be treated unfairly. I also don't want them separated (one child in one state and another child in a different state). I want the brothers to grow up and be raised together.