A lovely, little book!

Little One, God Loves You by Amy Warren Hilliker is just the right size and length of reading for a young child. It is listed for ages 4 and under but I have grandchildren in ages from under a year to 10 years old and I think it will best fit ages 2 and under. It is so adorable and sweet, it will be a cute read at any young age! 

The illustrations from front cover to back are absolutely beautiful. There are short and single sentence per every page or so and this is ideal for the kind of book it is. 

Giving children God's message of love cannot start too soon and this is a great help in that direction. I think it would also a dear and lovely gift on it's own or tucked into an Easter bag or child-themed gift basket! 

I received this book free of charge from Book Look Loggers in exchange for an honest review. 

Trim Healthy Mama Plan

The Trim Healthy Mama Plan is a beautiful book and it has simplified things a lot from the original, Trim Healthy Mama book.

I have this thing about reading every single page of every book I review and this includes cook books. This is a thorough read and filled to overflowing with pages. Had I not been reviewing,  I may have sipped it more like a tea rather than the gulping down like one of the delicious drinks in the cookbook I reviewed recently.

It still isn't commonly clear to me how to balance S meals (Satisfying) and E meals (Energizing) and Fuel pulls, Crossovers, and so on are not second nature to my diet. All of those are finally making sense and I'm grasping more of how they work the more I read!

The main point of the entire book is the same as the original and is found on page 18 of this book:

"Your body does not burn both fats and carbs at the same time. When you eat a meal, you must always burn the carbs in the meal first."

This idea is explained in deep detail and I loved seeing meal builders - a quick way to see how to pull together which ever meal you are having.

I really liked a lot in this book but I will highlight a few of my favorites:

* It is important to space S to E meals as well as E to S meals 2 1/2 to 3 hours apart. This may not make sense reading it here. . . it sure hasn't to me until now ... but the spacing is excellent even for regular meals. I'm on thyroid medicine and when I discussed my weight gain with my doctor, he gave me some ideas to help me safely lose weight and one important thing was to space eating three hours apart.
* Chapter 12, Thirsty Mama shares a good deal on what drinks are good and those not so good. This is important because it is important to stay hydrated but most drinks are as many calories as meals. There is a more nourishing way and this book shares it!
* The authors place an importance on nurturing your body and your life. They mention (more than once) to allow grace and to not stress.

I'm not on the full Trim Healthy Mama Plan but I am using a good deal of it and I will just see how things go from here!



Harmony Books sent this book free of charge in exchange for an honest review.

Be Humble Stay Hungry Always Hustle by Brad Lomenick

"Becoming a better leader personally doesn't happen on a whim. Or by accident. You have to work at it. You don't develop leaders by accident. You have to be intentional. Remember, leadership is hard work, and thus must be habitual work."

Brad Lomenick

The highest rating we can give books is five but this deserves 10. 

I have been reading books on leadership, motivation, positive living, and success for 27 years. "Be Humble, Stay Hungry, Always Hustle," by Brad Lomenick belongs on the same shelf as "How to Win Friends & Influence People" by Dale Carnegie. For me, I am grouping it with some of my all- time favorite authors like Zig Ziglar, Stephen R. Covey, Jim Rohn, Napolean Hill, Norman Vincent Peale, and Og Mandino. 

One amazing thing about this book is how much wisdom it offers for anyone in any kind of leadership role. The main focus is on creating and sustaining success and it will work for anyone from a mother to the president of a huge organization.

Each chapter is filled with golden gifts of truth to let in, learn from and live out. At the end of these chapters are small and relevant tips from successful people.

Brad Lomenick has done a fantastic job of neatly packing an amazing amount of life's lessons into one book. He takes his readers through the importance of identifying who they are, how they could and maybe should be, and shares the real need for connection and community with others. He guides through creating consistency, establishing habits and breaking past fear. One of my favorite quotes in this book is found on page 120:
"Fear is the calling crippler. Bravery is the antidote." Love it.

I'll close this review with what is the most vital, for me, of everything else. It is biblically sound. The Scriptures included fit right in where they are shared and  guide right to the heart of it all. What is God's call and will you answer it? This book may be a great help on the journey!

Sandy Willoughby received this book from HarperCollins Christian Publishing  in exchange for an honest review.