Stitch Fix #2

 OK, so I tried Stitch Fix again since I took Dressing Your Truth.  I made specific requests and I feel that they did take into consideration many of them.  I truly do not like to shop and I wanted to see again what they sent me.

I just love opening surprises!  It's like Christmas.  I received 5 items: 3 shirts, 1 cardigan and 1 pair of pants.  The colors were gorgeous although two of them did not follow my color card.  But thankfully, the one item I liked did!

Here is what I received.  What do you think I picked?  I chose something that I could wear with multiple things and what I really needed.  You guessed it, the cardigan.  It's the coral color.  I tried it on and fell in love.  One thing I learned from Dressing Your Truth is that you need to LOVE what you have to wear. 

I am not easy to please and I truly appreciate the time and effort that Miranda made to put together this Stitch Fix.  I was very honest with what I thought of each piece so hopefully that will help them to better style my Stitch Fix.

And since I'm not planning to shop much this summer, I scheduled my next Stitch Fix for August. 

You can read all my Pros and Cons from my last Stitch Fix HERE.

Are you ready to try it out?  Read the directions below and get started for FREE!



Here is how it works:

1. Sign Up and Complete Your Style Profile After signing up you can start immediately on your Style Profile. We need to know your size, shape, style, price preferences, and lifestyle to get your Fix right. It’ll take about 10 minutes.
2. Schedule a Stitch Fix Pick a date, and we’ll send you a box of 5 clothing and accessory items we’ve hand-picked just for you. Schedule monthly, or as often as you like—it’s your call. You pay a $20 styling fee up front, which serves as credit toward anything in your Stitch Fix shipment.
3. Try it all on Try on everything we send you—you never know what you’ll like until you see it on. Pair it with items already in your closet. Each item includes style cards with ideas and inspiration on how to wear it.
4. Decide Take 3 days to decide what you’ll keep. Pay for just what you want to keep, return the rest in our pre-paid mailing bag at any USPS mailbox. Keep all 5 items and you save 25% off the entire shipment.
5. Check Out Give us feedback on your Stitch Fix shipment—our secret (styling) sauce gets better over time if we know what did and didn’t work for you. 

Sign up for Stitch Fix today!!

When Calls the Heart...A Telling Silence DVD Review + Giveaway!!

When Calls the Heart (A Telling Silence) has two stories combined in one movie.  The town of Coal Valley is still reeling from the mine explosion taking several men from the community and leaving devastated families.  Elizabeth Thatcher is a young teacher who left her affluent life to be where she belongs by helping these families move ahead and look toward a bright future.  She loves her students and is concerned for young Rosaleen who has not spoken since her father was killed.  One day Rosaleen goes missing and Elizabeth is desperate to find her.  She enlists Jack Thornton, the town constable and close friend to help her.  In the midst of this little girl's disappearance, Jack discovers that one of the widows has some whale oil in her shed which looked to be the cause of the church fire that occurred three months prior.  All of these events are swirling around with secrets being kept and Elizabeth and Jack sorting out their feelings for each other as well as for the friends that they are trying to protect.

It's another great family movie filled with mystery and hope for a small town.  Elizabeth has a heart of gold and makes everyone in her path feel loved and respected.  She is always ready to fight for her students and give up her comforts to sacrifice for those she has come to love in this small mining town rocked by tragedy.  It's fun to watch her interaction with her students, the parents, the townspeople and of course, Jack Thornton.


When Calls the Heart...A Telling Silence Trailer





GIVEAWAY:

Please fill out the form in the link below to enter the giveaway for this movie.
Giveaway ends Saturday, June 7.  US only, thanks.

ENTRY for WHEN CALLS THE HEART DVD

*I was given a complimentary copy of this movie from Edify Media, Inc.  All opinions are my own.*

PRESS RELEASE:

“A TERRIFIC SERIES FOR THE ENTIRE FAMILY”

-Dove Foundation

 

“absolutely beautiful and very entertaining”

-Movie Guide

 

When Calls The Heart

“A Telling Silence”

AVAILABLE NOW

 

From the Television Series inspired by the writings of Janette Oke

 

 

Nashville, Tennessee- When Calls the Heart “A Telling Silence” is produced and directed by Michael Landon Jr. and inspired by the best-selling books by Janette Oke.   A feature length film made from episodes of the When Calls the Heart television series, When Calls the Heart “A Telling Silence” tells the story of Elizabeth Thatcher (Erin Krakow), a young high society teacher fighting to make a difference in a prairie town in a part of the Western Frontier known as Coal Valley.   Almost immediately, she can tell that something is wrong.     The church was burned to the ground a month after a local mining accident and the only man left to investigate the crime is the Canadian Mountie, Jack Thornton (Daniel Lissing).  Meanwhile, the head of the mine is scheming to control the town, including the pastor who seems to be losing his faith along with his church.   The stakes are raised when a young girl goes missing and the town must come together to find her.  Distributed by Word Entertainment, When Calls the Heart “A Telling Silence” will be available to purchase in Christian Retail April 22nd, 2014.

 

 

Synopsis-  Feeling sorry for 8-year-old mute Rosaleen Sullivan, teacher Elizabeth Thatcher (Erin Krakow), reaches out to the little girl as they share lunch. But when Elizabeth is called away and then returns, Rosaleen is missing! Meanwhile, constable Jack Thornton (Daniel Lissing) discovers evidence that Cat Montgomery may have been involved in a suspicious church fire. Could the two cases be related?

 

Michael Landon Jr. – Director:  Michael Landon Jr., son of the late television legend Michael Landon, has been in the film business for over 25 years.  With two of the highest rated films in the history of the Hallmark channel, and several top ten releases targeted to the Christian market, Michael has become known for creating heartfelt, inspiring films that connect to the family.  He has developed and/or produced, directed, and written screenplays for Fox, CBS, NBC, Disney, Sony, Lifetime, and others.

A Woman of Fortune by Kellie Coates Gilbert Book Review

 

Claire Massey's affluent life comes crashing down when her husband, Tuck, is arrested for fraud in Kellie Coates Gilbert's new book Woman of Fortune, A: A Texas Gold Novel (Texas Gold Collection).  Claire and Tuck Massey, who have been married for 20 years have built a beautiful home in Texas and throw large parties for the elite of society.  Claire thrives on travel, the latest fashion and connecting with her three grown children.  Tuck is a cattle broker and keeps his business to himself.  No one saw what was to come.  Tuck is arrested for fraud which leaves his family to pick up the broken pieces.  Claire's life is turned upside down.  But Claire's resilience gives her strength and hope to move forward with her life and make better decisions for the future despite the constant challenges she faces.

 

This was an amazing book told by an author who witnessed a real life cattle fraud case and the devastation it caused.  But Kellie Coates Gilbert takes a new twist and molds her character to show grace under pressure.  This book is full of contrasting emotions: grief, hate, joy, sorrow, confusion and peace.  When all is stripped away, the true self is revealed.  Claire had deep roots that kept her strong through the storm.

Be sure to check out the BOOK LAUNCH party with lots of fun and great prizes on June 3.

 

A Woman of Fortune Book Trailer

*I was given a complimentary copy of this book by the author. All opinions are my own.*


Check out my review of Kellie's other excellent book Mother of Pearl!

42 Simple and Healthy Dinners by Brandy Ferguson, Stacy Karen and Emma Swanston Book Review

42 Simple & Healthy Dinners (42 Days to Fit) by Brandy Ferguson, Stacy Karen and Emma Swanston is a great little book of recipes for dinners that can be simple and healthy for your family.  The book is divided into categories for beef, fish, poultry, pork and vegetarian options.   All of these recipes focus on the whole food or real food diet.  Each recipe has a list of ingredients, a list of instructions, a color photo and a short personal story for making the meal delicious for your family.  Every meal is refreshing and made with food you will enjoy eating and having as part of your regular diet.

I recently finished 42 Days to Fit and I loved that program.  This recipe book would be a great compliment to that program, but could also stand alone especially if you want to incorporate real food into your menu planning.  There is nothing like eating a well balanced dinner that is made with yummy food that is good for you.

I tried the Garlic Lemon Chicken and Pasta.  I really liked being able to pull some ingredients from my garden!  It was delicious and a perfect meal with plenty of flavor. 

Be sure to check out this new book and start making healthy dinners for your family!

*I was given a complimentary copy of this book by the author.  All opinions are my own.*

Lifestyle Medicine

Hi Friends- I love going to visit my sister and brother in law.  They always give me so many things to think about in regards to my health.  Both of them eat special diets...like gluten free, dairy free and sugar free.  Yikes!  I eat all that, but I wonder what would happen if I cut out some of that stuff.

My brother in law is a doctor with a  passion for helping people learn to take care of their bodies by what they eat and how they live rather than poking them with a needle or giving them a drug.  He has started writing a monthly newsletter with great topics.  Be sure to subscribe HERE. 

Not only that, whenever we visit, they make fabulous food for us.  I never imagine when you strip away all of that, there is another world of possibilities.  I really want to move our eating habits to mirror more of what they do.  

For breakfast they made this yummy sweet potato hash from Nom Nom Paleo.

For a dessert they made this crust (from Nouveau Raw) and used it as a topping over strawberries with a yummy whipped coconut topping (found in Nom Nom Paleo's new cookbook).

And be sure to follow Dr. Wagner's Lifestyle Medicine News to Use Facebook page.  I was talking to him on our visit and he's planning some great new ideas to add to his platform.  I look forward to all he has to share.

Also, here are some books he recommended to me that I put on hold at the library:
*Eating on the Wild Side by Jo Robinson


*Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation by Michael Pollan


Happy Eating!!

My firstborn is 5! (Well, 5.5 now!)

I usually post on my children's birthday, but I can't believe I missed this one so now my son is 5.5 years old.  Here is his 5 year old letter and pictures.

 

 

 

Dear Shrade,                                                                                          11/27/13

I can’t believe you are 5 years old today!  I remember when I first found out I was pregnant with you that I was already thinking about you when you would be 5 years old since that is the age of students I had.  On the day you were born I was so excited for you to come and I was pretty nervous.  In the last several years I have watched you grow into a creative big boy.

This year you were able to do so many new things.  You started reading in January, but really started with more confidence just this past month.  You went camping with daddy on the 4th of July and went hiking in the mountains.  You went to Day Camp for a week and VBS for a week.  You had a blast with your cousins in Bend for our family reunion.  You also rode on the Amtrak train with Grandma Linda.

One really exciting thing for me was starting Homeschool PreK with you.  You actually didn’t want to.  You wanted to go to “school.”  But I tried to make it fun.  I am amazed at how much you have learned- writing your name, drawing, more cutting and gluing and reading.  I see you learning new things everyday and I’m so proud of you.

You absolutely adore your little sister and want to play with her all the time, chase her and copy her.  You still have strong emotions, cry a lot and sorry to say, you still suck your food, but chew apart water bottle straws.

You love working with daddy, playing in the garden, cutting paper, drawing, spinning in circles, Cubbies and playing at the park.  You always want to go somewhere.

What I love most is that you still want to cuddle with mama!  I love you, buddy!  Love, Mommy

Organizing shoes

Making cookies with mom

Elephant from Cubbies on our cabin trip

Drawing people for the first time

Camping with grandma and grandpa

His babysitter

"Making" breakfast

 

100 Days of Summertime by Jennifer Tankersley from ListPlanIt

 

 

100 Days of Summertime by Jennifer Tankersley from ListPlanIt

 

I absolutely love books that spell everything out for me step by step.  That is what Jennifer does with her 100 days books.  She breaks down the long list of to-do's for the season and makes them easy and manageable as well as fun.  In 100 Days of Summertime, you will get a calendar from Memorial Day to Labor Day.  Each day there is a little task, inspiration, a list to make, a party to plan or dates to make for the future.  She has lists for every part of your summer and lots of great ideas for graduations, weddings, summer camping, outdoor fun, indoor fun, traveling, and fall projects to think about and more!  You will be motivated to get moving and going to make this a successful and enjoyable summer.

 

You can get this book for only $5 (download) by using this code: 100DAYS3OFF.

 

Get your summer started!!

 

100 Days of Summertime by Jennifer Tankersley

Coupon code: 100DAYS3OFF

 

*I was given a complimentary copy of the book for review.  All opinions are my own.*