Monday, July 29, 2013

52 Weeks Book Challenge

This week I finished book number five in the "Rock Harbor" series. Bree Nichols and her search dog Samson discover a crying infant in the woods outside of Rock Harbor. Bree takes the baby in and begins to search for the baby's mother. While teams scour the forests, Bree finds clues about the missing woman. But she soon discovers something more shocking. Colleen Coble throws the ultimate twist to the entire series in this book. You will just have to pick up this book to find out the shocking secrete yourself.






Monday, July 22, 2013

52 Weeks Book Challenge


This week it was back to Rock Harbor with Colleen Coble's book Abomination. This book opens with a car racing down a back road. The driver is a woman who is bleeding and scared but doesn't know why. In the back seat sleeps a toddler that she doesn't know, in fact, she doesn't even know who she is herself. She desperately doesn't want whoever is after her to find her, whoever that may be, she takes the toddler out of the car and pushes the car over a cliff into Lake Superior. As she is walking in the dark carrying the toddler, Bree Mathews rides up with her son and search and rescue dog in tow. Bree picks up the woman and takes her home. The search begins to find out who this mystery woman is. Meanwhile, a killer named Gideon begins to leave where he is burying  his victims at a Geocaching website for people to find. But one of his "victims" escaped could the mysterious woman be her? Will he find her? This book is very well written. Even this mystery buff was thrown off by the twists and turns in this book. For those of you who like Colleen Coble's work look her up on Facebook. I sent her a message wondering if this book was definitely in the Rock Harbor series because it wasn't listed on the book itself and she answered me back. 

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

52 Week Book Challenge


Well if you haven't figured out by now that I am a fan of anything Amish or Lancaster let me put it plainly....I love anything Amish or Lancaster. Knowing that, it shouldn't be a great surprise to you that when I found out that Amy Clipston wrote books four and five in the Kauffman Amish Bakery Series, I had to head out the my local library to see if they had them. Sure enough I returned with both books. The first, A Life of Joy, brings us back to Lindsay Bedford from book one. Lindsay is still living with her Aunt Rebecca and Uncle Daniel, were she and her older sister came to live after their parents were killed in a car accident. Lindsay is now 18 and is working at the family bakery. She loves the community and her life but is unsure about joining the Amish church. Her older sister, Jessica, returned to her English life shortly after arriving in Lancaster and is pressuring Lindsay to get her GED and go to college. When Jessica calls her to tell her that a close family friend from Virginia has had an accident, Lindsay decides to go to Virginia Beach to help "Aunt Trisha" while she is recovering. The question is, will the return to the English world draw her back or will she return to Lancaster and take up her place in the Amish community she has grown to love?  

In A Season of Love, Amy Clipston takes us into the Amish world of of three young women that are be baptized into the Amish faith. Now they can start courting and begin the steps towards marriage and a family of their own. While Katie's friends find love among the community, Katie isn't interested in any of the young men she has grown up with. Then one day, while working in the family bakery, she begins a conversation with Jake Yoder. Jake and Katie begin a close friendship that quickly turns into something more. The only complication is that Jake is Mennonite and Katie's father forbids her to see him. This is the final book in the series and you just have to pick it up to see what becomes of this beautifully woven love story. 

Sunday, July 7, 2013

52 Weeks Books Challenge

This week I read "The Debt" by Angela Hunt. This book, even though it is fiction, really did make a big impression on me and began to challenge the way I see life and our job here as Christians. The book introduces us to Emma Rose Howard and her husband Abel. Abel and Emma Rose pastor a "mega" church and have a growing television ministry. One day Emma gets a phone call from someone in her past that changes her life in ways she never expected. The author does a wonderful job putting the face and hands of Jesus on a current day man to give us a picture of what the true calling of Christ really should be. 

Little Man Turns 1

One year ago today I was blessed with the most amazing little grandson. 



Zachary Alex Ilczuk Jr.


Yesterday we had a birthday party with family and friends  

balloons......
                & gifts..........
                         & cake!




And today we had a special birthday lunch with 
our own
cake

May God bless this sweet baby boy.