The Adam & Eve Project by Donna Dawson

For the second time, I've had the privelege of reading one of Donna Dawson's books to review.  Wow!  I don't know if I've just been shopping for the wrong genre of literature or if she truly is a one-of-a-kind novelist, but I suspect it's the latter.

I cannot say enough about Donna's writing style.  There is so much detail, in both books that I've read so far, that I just feel drawn right into the story.  It is obvious that Donna puts alot of time and research into the writing of her novels.  Each character has a distinct personality, unlike many books I've read where the characters all just blend together.  And the plot is ever changing and moving~ always holding your interest.

This particular book, "The Adam & Eve Project", is about a committee of world leaders who scheme together to create a perfect human race.  The story spans several decades, beginning with World War II (and Hitler's reign) and ending with modern times.  The story revolves around the  goal of this particular committee and the many children that have been kidnapped to help meet this goal (through genetics and human manipulation).  This is not a book for wimps~ it will keep you guessing 'til the very last page!

"The Adam & Eve Project" contains drama, suspense, murder, government intrigue, and the ultimate means to freedom~ salvation through Christ Jesus.

If you are looking for a book that will hold your interest and give you something to think about long after you've turned the last page, then I highly recommend "The Adam & Eve Project".  I wait with anticipation for her next novel~ "Vengeance"!

Quick Supper Ideas

Sometimes I am so well-prepared and have nice suppers ready for my family.  Other times, we are rushing through the day, and our suppers are more of an after-thought.  For days like that, I love to have quick and easy recipe ideas~ things that are easy to prepare but taste like you actually spent some time in the kitchen!

This evening, I made a quick supper, using a recipe from Kraft's Food & Family magazine.  If you don't subscribe to this magazine, I would highly recommend it~ it's FREE and has some great recipes and ideas in it.  To get yours, go to www.kraftfoods.com/signup and get yours today!  Since my husband and oldest daughter both gave this one a "thumbs up", I thought I'd share:

Taco Bake

Recipe Rating:

Prep Time: 15 min

Total Time: 35 min

Makes: 6 servings

1 pkg. (14 oz.) KRAFT Deluxe Macaroni & Cheese Dinner

1 lb. ground beef

1 pkg. (1-1/4 oz.) TACO BELL HOME ORIGINALS Taco Seasoning Mix

3/4 cup water

3/4 cup BREAKSTONE'S or KNUDSEN Sour Cream

1-1/2 cups KRAFT Shredded Cheddar Cheese, divided

1 cup TACO BELL HOME ORIGINALS Thick 'N Chunky Salsa

PREHEAT oven to 400°F. Prepare Dinner as directed on package. While Macaroni is cooking, brown meat; drain. Add taco seasoning mix and water to meat; simmer 5 min. STIR sour cream into prepared Dinner. Spoon half of the Dinner mixture into 8-inch square baking dish; top with layers of the meat mixture, 1 cup of the cheese and remaining Dinner mixture. Cover. BAKE 15 min. Top with salsa and remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Bake, uncovered, an additional 5 min. or until cheese is melted.

 

Also, I have to share this week's freebie from Homeschool E-store (those of you who already know me from my other blog, know that I'm always bragging about E-store!)  Anyway, this week's offering is called "Menus on a Dime: Quick Dinners"~ click on the link in my sidebar and download your copy today!

Living On A Dime's Quick Dinners eBook is the third in the "Menus On A Dime" series of booklets. It is designed to help you with meals you can prepare in 20 minutes or less. Quick Dinners includes 24 recipes, 34 tips, 10 menu plans, dessert ideas and a weekly menu worksheet. Using these easy dinner plans, you can be in and out of the kitchen faster and at a much lower cost than eating out!

With resources like these available, there's no excuse not to have nice meals on the table for our families, right?! 

PR Info & Disclosure Policy

Thank you for your interest in Reviews & Reflections. I'm glad you stopped by.

My name is Heidi.  I am a stay-at-home, work-at-home, homeschooling mom to three great kids. 

I work for The Old Schoolhouse Magazine as their Special Projects Manager.  A large part of my job is heading up the TOS Homeschool Crew. The Crew is a large group of product reviewers who primarily review homeschool curriculum and products. It's viral marketing at it's best! 

In addition to my work with the Crew and TOS, I enjoy reviewing books for lots of publishers and book review programs.  My policy is you can never have too many books!

I previously blogged at Homeschoolblogger.  I blogged there for almost 5 years, before deciding it was time for a change. Since moving to blogger at the beginning of 2010, my blog has increased in readers (gaining new followers on a daily basis). My blog posts feed through to my Facebook account, where I have over 500 friends. 

If you are interested in having your product reviewed at Reviews & Reflections, please e-mail me. My family and I love trying out new products.  So far, in addition to lots of books, we have reviewed food, furniture, video games, bath & body products, toys & games, and much more. Our interests are books (of course), things related to homeschooling (curriculum, resources, etc.), anything to make our house look better or be more organized, toys, games, video games, and things having to do with planning and travel.  I include my children's thoughts in my reviews - making them more personal and appealing to a wider range of readers.If you would like to read any of my previous reviews, please click here for book reviews and here for product reviews). I do not charge for reviews.  I do, however, require a full-version sample of the product to be reviewed (these products will not be returned).

I am also willing to do giveaways.  Previous giveaway posts can be seen here. I prefer if giveaway items are shipped directly to the winner; but will consider other arrangements as needed.

Sponsorship and ad hosting will be considered, based upon the product and/or website and how much it appeals to me and/or my readers.  Ad buttons must be 125x125 (no larger).  Cost of hosting ads is $12/month or $100/year. 


I look forward to hearing from you!



This policy is valid from  January 10, 2010

This blog is a personal blog written and edited by me, Heidi Strawser. This blog does not accept any form of cash advertising, sponsorship, or paid topic insertions. However, we will and do accept and keep free products, services, travel, event tickets, and other forms of compensation from companies and organizations.

This blog abides by word of mouth marketing standards. We believe in honesty of relationship, opinion and identity. The compensation received may influence the advertising content, topics or posts made in this blog. That content, advertising space or post will be clearly identified as paid or sponsored content.

The owner of this blog is compensated to provide opinion on products, services, websites and various other topics. Even though the owner of this blog receives compensation for our posts or advertisements, I always give my honest opinions, findings, beliefs, or experiences on those topics or products. The views and opinions expressed on this blog are purely the blogger's own. Any product claim, statistic, quote or other representation about a product or service should be verified with the manufacturer, provider or party in question.

 The owner of this blog would like to disclose the following existing relationships. These are companies, organizations or individuals that may have a significant impact on the content of this blog. I am employed by  The Old Schoohouse Magazine and head up the TOS Homeschool Crew (product review team). I am also in reviewing relationships with the companies linked from my sidebar.


To get your own policy, go to http://www.disclosurepolicy.org

Knowledge Box Central

Last week, I shared a review that I did for Homeschool E-store, focusing on products by Amanda Bennett. This week, I thought I'd share another review~ this one focusing on products by Knowledge Box Central. Wow~ did I ever have fun reviewing these products! (As a matter of fact, we're still using many of them!) Jump on over to Homeschool E-store and check them out for yourself. (Since I wrote the review, they have uploaded some new lapbook kits~ Thanksgiving games and Astronomy games~ for preschool and early elementary ages.) Knowledge Box Central

Author: Heidi Strawser

September 19, 2006

I am really impressed with the products by Knowledge Box Central. My children and I added lapbooking to our homeschooling last year; we all love the hands-on approach to learning, and I can see a significant improvement in their ability to remember things since using this approach. Even though I find lapbooking to be a wonderful addition to our schooling, I will admit that the planning and actual construction of a lapbook can take a huge amount of research and time.

Knowledge Box Central has provided the perfect solution! They have created lapbook kits which contain detailed instructions on how to assemble the lapbook, layouts so you know exactly where to place each mini-book within the lapbook, and the actual mini-books (all you do is cut them out, assemble according to the directions, and add the appropriate information). In addition to all that, they also include an "Information Packet" filled with all the information you need to complete the mini-books; so, the research is all done for you! If, however, you prefer to do your own research, or have your children do the research, a list of websites for further study is also included.

The best thing about these Knowledge Box Central Lapbook Kits is that they are available for immediate download at Homeschool E-store (

Another Knowledge Box Central product, also available at Homeschool E-store, is copywork books. Copywork is a new concept for me; but the more I read about it, the more I see the benefits of adding copywork to our school routine. Homeschool E-store has 11 copywork books by Knowledge Box Central available. These range from topics of interest to early elementary students (such as "Child’s Garden of Verses" and "Aladdin and the Wonderful Lamp") right up through topics for high school students (topics related to government, etc.) By using these resources in your homeschool just 2-3 days a week, your child(ren) will "come to learn and possibly even memorize some of the greatest literature from our history."

Knowledge Box Central also offers notebooking pages. Homeschool E-store currently has these available in a basic set and an Egyptian-themed set. These pages are wonderful for elementary-aged children who do a lot of notebooking. Each page has a nice color picture on it, as well as lines to fill in with information on the topic. Again, these notebooking pages really take the planning and preparation time away from the parent, so that you have time to focus on the fun part of school.

If you are not familiar with the products by Knowledge Box Central, or if you are looking for ways to make your job as a homeschooling parent simpler or your school days more fun, please take the time to check out these great resources at

www.homeschoolestore.com)! In our homeschool, we aren’t afraid to "go off on rabbit trails"; if there’s something my girls decide they want to learn more about, we can download a lapbook kit and get started right away (no shipping charges or long waits). Homeschool E-store currently has 15 lapbook kits available, including a MEGA starter kit full of ideas and templates. Some topics available are: butterflies, math facts, ancient cultures (several different ones available), the heart, automobiles, famous American Women, and many more.http://www.homeschoolestore.com/catalog/index.php?cPath=46_721&sort=xa&page=1

 

 

 

Amanda Bennett Unit Studies

AMANDA BENNETT UNIT STUDIES, Etc. Review by: Heidi Strawser, for Homeschool E-store and HSAdvisor

 

Date: September 26, 2006

Does your family enjoy unit studies? We are not a "unit-study-only family" but I love the idea of unit studies and we have done several unit studies in the past. A unit study is a great way to escape from the routine of ordinary school days and study something interesting and fun.

Anyone who is familiar with unit studies has probably heard of Amanda Bennett. To me, her name is practically synonymous with the term "unit studies". Amanda has written many unit studies for homeschoolers. Her topics are about as broad as the imagination- from the Ocean to Lighthouses, from Horses to Trains, from Patriotic Holidays to American Government, to name just a few. Homeschool E-store (www.homeschoolestore.com) currently has 13 of Amanda’s unit studies available for immediate download. The great thing about having these unit studies available in e-book form is that you can use them directly from your computer or save them to disc or jump drive for later use. I like this approach better than a "paper book" because Amanda includes many internet links in her studies (for further research); you can direct-link through your computer, rather than typing the web addresses into your browser. Each unit study is written for two levels- there is a daily lesson plan for Lower Level (elementary) and Upper Level (junior and senior high)- so you can use these studies with various age-levels at one time.

Another great product by Amanda Bennett is her notebooking pages. Homeschool E-store currently has six of these notebooking page sets available, corresponding to several of Amanda’s unit study topics. These notebooking pages are basically blank 8½ by 11" sheets, each containing a graphic that is theme-appropriate. I love them because they are a great value, as well as being a timesaver for me.

What happens though, you might ask, if your child is interested in a topic that Amanda hasn’t written a unit study for yet? That was a question in my mind until I found a great book by Amanda called "Unit Studies 101" (http://www.homeschoolestore.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=46_611&products_id=725). In this book, Amanda explains the unit study approach and why it is so effective; then she goes on to explain how ANYONE can write a unit study of her own. She gives a "roadmap for success" and explains exactly how to research and organize. She includes reproducible forms, a huge list of possible topics, and even a cross-reference to the Dewey Decimal System. Thanks to this book, even I could write my own unit study!

Homeschool E-store has another wonderful Amanda Bennett resource available- her "Unit Study Journal" (http://www.homeschoolestore.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=46_611&products_id=724). This is a 105-page printable journal full of fill-in-the-blank forms to correspond to your unit study. This book will help you keep track of your unit study progress, make record keeping simple and efficient, and because it is available in digital format, you only have to print the pages that you need or desire to use. Some of the pages in the journal include: Spelling & Vocabulary, Books That We Used, Favorite Finds, Our Projects, Field Trips, and many more. Having this book available in digital format makes it so much more cost-effective, as you can print as many copies as you need.

One more Amanda Bennett product that I just love is a new Bible study book that she has written for preschool through second graders, called "First Steps in Faith" (http://www.homeschoolestore.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=46_611&products_id=720). This is a 203-page study focusing on the Gospels and the life of Jesus Christ. There are 92 simple story lessons, each containing the scripture reference, some corresponding questions, illustrations, and internet links for online resources and coloring pages.

Some things that I’ve come to appreciate and expect from Amanda Bennett are her detail-oriented approach and her use of famous quotes in her books and unit studies. I know I won’t be disappointed by any Amanda Bennett purchase. If you’ve never used any of Amanda’s great resources, I encourage you to take the time to look over them now at https://www.homeschoolestore.com/catalog/index.php?cPath=46_611&sort=xa&page=1 - you’ll be glad you did!

*You can also visit Amanda's blog~ on it, she shares some great ideas, seasonal activities, and specials!

 

 

Redeemed by Donna Dawson

"Redeemed- the novel" is the first fiction book by newcomer Donna Dawson. It is the story of a young girl named Heather and her battle with the demons within her; and, of course, her eventual overcoming of those demons, and "redemption" through God’s grace and mercy.

 

Although I am not very familiar with the whole demon realm (nor do I want to be!), I thought that the battle was very well portrayed in this book. Of course, good conquers evil in the end; but the struggle to get to the climax is long and hard. Prayer is a powerful weapon; as is the love of a family and friends.

Something that I was reminded of while reading this book, is that we all face demons (whether "real" or of our own making) each and every day. And, there is only ONE person who can cast those demons out of our lives. Satan himself, as powerful as he may be, has nothing against God! So, the little things that can be demons in our lives~ such as our time or our money/possessions~ really have no hold on us at all, if we release them and put our focus on God.

I

I really enjoyed this book and the author’s writing style. It was unlike most of the fiction books I read, but it really held my attention to the end. Donna is wonderful at painting word pictures and uses so many descriptive adjectives that it’s so easy to picture things in your mind while reading. I was drawn into the streets of Toronto and into the lives of the characters.’m sure we’ll be seeing more of Donna Dawson’s work on bookstore shelves in the near future! In the meantime, pick up your copy of "Redeemed~ the novel" at www.Amazon.com.

Little Bitty Baby Learns Greek

I am singing the praises of a book called "Little Bitty Baby Learns Greek" by Johannah Bluedorn. Because of the title and the fact that this is a board book, you would probably think that the target audience is babies and preschoolers. However, I’m an adult, and I LOVE THIS BOOK! The first page of the book explains what will be contained in the rest of the book.......there are 24 letters in the Greek alphabet and there is a single page devoted to each letter. It shows you the correct formation of the capital and lower-case forms of each letter, as well as the proper pronunciation of the letter. It explains the exact sound that the letter makes in a word (Greek is a phonetic language, so each letter has a sound of its own, with vowels having a short and long sound). Each page has a drawing (with the letter incorporated into the drawing); the picture in the drawing represents a word with the same sound as that page’s letter makes. For example, the Greek letter Beta sounds like the b in book - that page has a picture of a little boy reading a book, and on the book is the Greek letter Beta (the capital form of Beta looks just like our capital B). The book ends with a quick reference page, listing all the Greek letters, upper and lower-case forms of each, and the sounds they make.

Yes, I believe that a young toddler could learn basic Greek by having this book read to him by his parents. However, I also think that any age person who would like to start a study of Greek would greatly benefit from this book. Because it is a board book format, it is very sturdy, and will hold up to lots and lots of use. If you or anyone in your family has an interest in the Greek language, and you’re not exactly sure where to start, I would highly recommend adding this little book to your home library. It’s a book that everyone in your family will pick up and look at, and the drawings are great! Johannah Bluedorn has done it again! (See also: "Little Bitty Baby Learns Hebrew" and other titles, by clicking on the link below)

Trivium Pursuit