Book Review : The 13th Tribe by Robert Liparulo

I joined a blogger program to receive, read and review books. Great. Free books.

I began to read Robert Liparulo's book, "The 13th Tribe".  Great.  Christian Fiction. Suspense. Page turning adventure.

Then I moved and began a season of extreme busyness by taking care of many children.  Great.

But...not so productive when it comes to following through on an agreement to finish a book and review it.

Now I've moved again. Now I can review again.  Now I will review a book I finished months ago.

For now, I rest.

Sometimes you are so tired. So, so, so tired. Sometimes the tiredness is a physical exhaustion from not enough rest over a period of time and/or over-exertion in some form.  Sometimes it's an emotional and mental exhaustion from dealing with life's challenges and the hurt and pain you and and others around you experience.  Sometimes it's a combination of both and it brings you to your knees. Either way, you might be so tired...that as you are half-awake thinking about how tired you are, you grab a bowl.  Then you kind of think, a little, about how you really should get more bowls because there never seems to be enough that are clean. Or maybe you should just clean them.  Then you realize that you are about to pour coffee into that bowl.  Finally, you remember your thoughts about being tired and realize that today is a good day to do very little.

Got Lice? To RID or Not To RID..that may be your question...

When we received our first foster children, five in one night, we received a whirlwind. The phrase "trial by fire" really doesn't even come close to the multitude of things we dealt with and the obstacles that seemed to continually come up.  It seemed more like "trial by fire...and hurricane...and earthquake."  One of the crazy things we dealt with was lice. Very bad cases of lice in four of the five children. Oy! In addition, we found this out at about 9:30 at night and it kept us up until after 1:00 in the morning after being exhausted from moving and settling in to our new home over the previous few days. I knew I should have stopped unpacking and taken a good nap that day!

When I heard the word "lice", my brain raced for data to comprehend the situation. The most I knew about lice was that in my elementary school years there was an annual check for this and someone stared at your scalp while using a comb to move your hair around. Sometimes, one or two kids went home that day and everyone wondered if they would get "cooties" from them when they returned. Maybe they lived in nasty dirty homes, I thought. Oh, and let's not forget that while growing up I was frequently reminded not to pick up dirty bird feathers because they might carry "lice" the ever elusive bugs I didn't quite understand. But rest assured, they were nasty and no one wanted anyone near them!  

My knowledge of lice today has grown significantly as we had to get rid of these nasty critters in what ended up being six children and three adults, and more than one time. Unfortunately, I became much more familiar with them than I wanted; it even became personal. The first time I had them felt so awfully itchy but the bugs hadn't been found. Then one day I scratched my own head to find one. Later when my husband helped comb my hair and found...too many...I almost fell to the floor sobbing tears of disgust and weariness. For weeks we washed everyone's bed sheets, clothes, towels, pillow cases, mattress covers and anything else they may have come in contact with; we washed in the Sanitary cycle of the washer. My two large tables were stacked over a foot high with laundry to fold on a daily basis.  I didn't know what I was doing and wore myself out doing what I could.  One thing I knew; I did not and would not use RID, or any other chemical treatment.  Despite the fact that I had no medical directive allowing it's use on the children from a physician, I didn't want to use the harsh chemicals directly on the scalp for anyone, let alone these children whose bodies had already been dealing with too many chemicals and malnutrition.  Your skin is your largest organ and putting these chemicals on the scalp of these children was not something I was willing to compromise on!

What to do? The first night we tried apple cider vinegar wash, we combed with a comb borrowed from a neighbor who had dealt with lice, we tried hot ironing and we blow dried hair and we used mayonnaise and olive oil.  Lice was removed from two boys (from the combing), but the two girls still had it...bad. 

We kept combing and combing and combing and finding new tips that seemed to help in the overall crusade against these jumpy critters (yes, they DO jump! I watched them on jump on a pile of JUST CLEANED clothes and almost fell over, again, crying). 

Then, we took in another girl who had been dealing with lice for months and we were told that she had undergone her THIRD chemical treatment, at least.  This last one supposedly started the scurrying escape of over a hundred creepy crawlies.  Hmmm... that's really, really...not good.

So, finally we took steps that eradicated lice from a home with 15 people living in it!  Maybe you are dealing with it now or maybe you know of someone who is.  I'm going to share the steps that we took that I believe contributed to the final HURRAH moment of feeling lice free!  These are all natural methods that we used and I never spent a penny on lice medications or shampoos.

1   COMB, COMB, COMB! We bought lice combs and quite a few of them!

• Not Recommended:
• The cheap plastic ones? Don't bother, they break and they don't work.  
• Robi Electric Comb? Personally, I don't think it's worth the money. Sure it's fun to know that the little critters get zapped when hit by the electricity. But, it kept stopping because of dandruff or other things that got in the way.  Plus, we found the tines to be too short.  It was OK for the boys short hair, but a pain for the girls long hair.
• Recommended:
•  A good lice egg and nit comb with metal tines. We have the Nit-Comb which is the gray-blue comb with a long handle. They sold these with shorter tines (shown) and longer tines at a local pharmacy. I haven't seen them at any major retailers.  We also used a kit of two combs and a little brush from Walgreens or Wal-Mart. This was a kit of combs only and no RID. One had smaller tines than the other so we alternated usage to get big bugs and to get tiny sticky eggs.  I've checked online briefly and found one that looks promising called Nit Free Terminator.

 

2. All the females began pulling hair back tightly into ponytails and/or braids if possible, and then hid the hair under a secured handkerchief head covering.  The reason for this was two-fold. One, keeping our own hair tight and covered prevented new bugs from getting onto our scalp. The tight hair makes it hard for them to hold on, from what I understand. But hey, if there is a handkerchief in the way...all the better right?  The second reason was to keep whatever was still on our heads from getting on anyone, or anything, else.  

3. Wash all towels, clothes and bedding in your Sanitary cycle at home. The hotter the better. 

Initially, we washed all bedding, towels and clothes every day on the hottest cycles.  I also bagged up dirty clothes and linen to drop straight into the washer. Not everything because kids helped here also. 

Anything I couldn't wash sat in the hot Texas summer sun. However, after a few weeks of this being too much laundry for so many people (abnormal day was already 4 loads), I loosened up. I had two large dining tables covered with 1-2 foot high piles of dried, cleaned laundry. It was also ALL bagged out of the dryer and brought to the table. That was...a lot. Anyway, after awhile I would work on everyone's hair at bedtime. Their heads had conditioner with tea tree oil in it and the girl's hair was pulled tight into a bun overnight. Their heads laid on towels that I would wash instead of all the bedding. This ended up being fine. 

4.  COMB again!

5.  Natural Hair Spray Bug Killer. 

      Recently, I made my own mix of apple cider vinegar with several drops of tea tree oil and a little water in a spray bottle.  I sprayed this onto our hair to kill what wasn't caught by the combs.  My ritual became to spray this prior to combing because the apple cider vinegar is supposed to help loosen eggs and the tea tree oil is supposed to help kill the bugs and growing eggs.   

     You may want to do this outside, if you can, because the cider vinegar is strong smelling. Also, you may want a more watered down option for young children especially if they have had bugs for awhile and have open wounds.  If there are open wounds from the lice eating scalp, or any other reason, the vinegar will burn.   

     Personally, at nighttime I sprayed my hair, combed it through, then pulled it back into a tight bun and sprayed all over again.  With my hair pulled tight I could spray more onto the scalp itself where the bugs would be. Then I used a towel over my pillow to protect the bedding from the oil.

6.  COMB again!

7. Tea Tree oil in shampoo.  I also added tea tree oil in condition and combed this into our hair overnight but it was hard to really work into the scalp for those of us with longer hair.  Recently lice showed up again out of the blue for two of us. We hadn't had it here for months and suddenly it showed up. I switched to the spray at night instead of tea oil conditioner.  If you have a sensitive head, you may want to use the tea tree oil in conditioner option instead of spraying.  Once the hair is pulled back tightly it is easier to work it onto the scalp itself.  I'm not convinced that it is foolproof in killing the bugs, but it does seem to be a very effective part of the solution.  Many people swear by it for prevention as well. I prefer it mixed in a carrier like the spray or shampoo or conditioner.

8. COMB again!

Seriously, we combed as often as we could.  Combing meant having a bowl of water nearby to drown the critters and remove the eggs off the combs.  Sometimes it's hard to identify whether or not you have combed out an egg or if it's dandruff. However, the eggs, which look white on the hair, look like round dark spots between the tines when you hold it up to the light. Grown bugs will be on the comb and you'll want to drown them quickly!

Everyone has different ideas of how to get rid of the bug.  Some may say that I did too much and others too little. This is what I chose to do and it worked.  So, "to RID or not to RID?" For me, I don't believe RID works. More importantly, I believe the chemicals are highly dangerous neurotoxins and don't belong on the scalp or anywhere near me, let alone the children.  

If you should start to feel itchy often at the base of your head or on the crown...have someone check you!

I chose to NOT RID and still eradicated these nasty things!

 

Book Review : The Love & Respect Experience : A Husband-Friendly Devotional that Wives Truly Love

A generally good book for spouses willing to work on and improve their marriage.

Emerson Eggerichs best-selling and life changing book “Love & Respect” has been followed by the book “The Language of Love and Respect: Cracking the Communication Code with Your Mate” and now a Love & Respect devotional tailored to be enjoyable for both husbands and wives.  This lovely imitation-leather bound book is a great addition and can be beneficial in keeping the concepts learned from the book and / or seminars alive and worked out in marriage.  

Book Review : When the Hurt Runs Deep - Healing and Hope for Life's Desperate Moments by Kay Arthur

When the Hurt Runs Deep: Healing and Hope for Life’s Desperate Moments
by Kay Arthur

    When I think of someone trying to bring hope during times of another’s great distress, I tend to anticipate trite words and an inability to connect with the sufferer and understand real deep pain and heartache.  Maybe it’s because I’ve seen several well-meaning people say things to hurting friends or acquaintances that don’t bring any real hope or healing to a situation.   Because of this, when I speak to others to encourage them in tough situations I am conscientious to consider their pain as very real and something I may or may not be able to relate to.  I don’t always know what to say either, but when I can relate to the person and/or to the situation, it makes the conversation much more meaningful.  In addition, it brings about great opportunities to share how Christ has worked in my heart to heal me and how He continues to be my source of peace and strength during challenging times.   In this book, readers get a glimpse of Kay Arthur’s personal life and the pains she has experienced.   She connects with the reader and you get the sense that she shares from the heart.        

WHO is HE and WHOSE are you?

2013 REVISION:

When God leads you to His word, He may use different means.  At times he calls me to lead something, like a Bible Study, instead of just studying on my own or even joining a group This happened when he brought me to the study Anointed, Transformed, Redeemed which includes teachings from Priscilla Shirer, Beth Moore & Kay Arthur. I was blessed to share this study with other mom's in the first study, then later with more women and eventually with two teen foster girls who ended up giving their life to Christ. - Yay God!

There are several part of this whole study that ministered greatly to me, however, there was a part of the first session that was especially moving and inspiring.  Years later, it still resonates powerfully in my soul as I return to it.

Here, Priscilla Shirer talked about the anointing of God that David had in his life.  She shared how all of us who believe and trust in the Lord have the Holy Spirit, with the power of God, residing in us.
Through the Holy Spirit we are empowered to do His will in our lives and to stand against the enemy.

At one point Priscilla goes on a long and powerful exposition of who God is and who we are as a child of His. He is the one deserving of all my praise and the one constant who can help me me in all situations. Below are the words she stated so powerfully.  I read this again and again, even out loud!

May you too may be reminded, blessed and encouraged in Who He is and Whose you are!

He Is…..
The First and the Last
The Beginning and the end
The keeper of creation
The creator of all
He’s the architect of the universe
And the manager of all time

He always was, always is and always will be.
Unmoved, unchanged, undefeated and never undone

He was bruised but brought healing,
He was pierced but eased pain,
He was persecuted but brought freedom
He was dead and brings life
He is risen to bring power
And he reigns to bring peace

The world can’t understand Him
Armies can’t defeat Him
Schools can’t explain Him
And leaders they can’t ignore Him

Harold couldn’t kill Him
Nero couldn’t crush Him
The new age can not replace Him
And Oprah can not explain Him away

He IS Life,
HE IS Love,
HE IS Longevity and He IS The LORD
HE IS Goodness, kindness, faithfulness

And HE IS GOD
HE IS holy and righteous
and powerful and pure

His ways are right,
His word eternal
His will unchanging
And His mind is on us

He is our savior, our guide,
Our peace, our joy, our comfort
Our Lord and He rules our lives,

I serve Him because His bond is love
His yoke is easy His burden is light
And His goal for us is abundant life.

I follow Him because,
He Is the wisdom of the wise
The power of the powerful
The ancient of days, the ruler of rulers,
The leader of all leaders,
His goal is a relationship with me

He will never leave you, never forsake you
Never mislead you, never forget you,
Never overlook you and
Never cancel your appointment is His appointment book.

When you fall He’ll lift you up,
When you fail He will forgive you.
When you’re weak He’s strong,
When you’re lost He’s your way
When you’re afraid He is your courage,
When you stumble He will steady you,
When you’re hurt He Is going to heal you,
When you’re broken He will mend you,
When you’re blind He will lead you,
When you’re hungry He will feed you,
When you face trials He Is with you,
When I face persecution He shields me,
When I face problems He will comfort me,
When I face loss He will provide for me,

And when we face death
He will carry us all home to meet Him.

He is everything for everybody,
everywhere ,every time,
And in every way.

He is your God

and that sister’s is who you belong to.

Book Review : Outlive Your Life by Max Lucado

     In Outlive Your Life Max Lucado sends a message that underscores vital aspects of living as a follower of Christ and remains Biblical and purposeful in his approach.  His message draws frequently upon the book of Acts and relates the lives and work of those in the early church to our lives today.  Throughout the book the reader is encouraged and challenged to recognize their opportunity to make a difference in the world we live in and the need to keep Christ at the center of what we do.

FREE print outs for paper toys, buildings and more

Found this link on another blog. Numerous items are available to be cut, folded and printed into toys or 3D designs.

Paper Toys

What can you print?

Here are a few of the options you'll find :

Neuschwanstein Castle
White House
Shakespeare's Globe Theater
Santa Maria
Great Wall of China

Awhile back I had found another site for free paper projects.

Check out The Toymaker

ENJOY!

Cooking shows and cooking techniques...Cast Iron Skillets

     Hmm...I am up early this morning and catching up on a few PBS cooking shows that I had had recorded on our computer.  Something occurred to me.  I can watch a great simple recipe being made and then try to replicate and end up with problems that really end up due to technique.  This is something I'm trying to pay more attention to now so that I can know the little tips and tricks to actually have food brown properly, for example.

      Here's an example of what occurred to me...it has to do with using cast iron or enameled cast iron in cooking. And no, it's not that fact that shows always show immaculate cookware that seems to be new out of the box every time. Sigh...that seems kind of fun though. Anyway, if you've tried cooking with cast iron you'll know that it takes it longer to heat up and once it does the heat is retained much longer than most other skillets, pots etc. You may have also noticed that getting the right temperature can be tricky which I believe has to do with how long it takes to heat up or cool down.

     In watching numerous types of cooking shows (despite not having cable or satellite TV) I have noticed a common thread. They always cook on gas stoves. Oh, you've noticed it too? That happens to work great for me as I do own a gas stove and really hope to never be without one!  (However, it does make me wonder how people adjust with electric stoves.)  What I have yet to see though, is someone explain and show how high the flames should be at different temperature recommendations when they are cooking.  Ok, I do realize that the knobs say Hi and Lo and have various points in between to choose from. Yet, when I cook I notice that the flame variations just aren't as simple. If I go too far on the knob I end up heating cast iron so high that while the first batch of browning meat, for example, may be fine, the second begins to get burned and all my great browned bits in the pan turn to black before getting a second batch down.  Have you noticed this too?  I'd love to hear someone's thoughts about how get the flames to the right heat to begin with.  Perhaps it's a trick to heat up and then reduce heat just a little after starting the cooking process?  Hmmm....

What I've done to compensate when this happens is to make sure the second batch begins where there was no meat prior and is thus almost surely to burn soon.  I move the food a bit at first to pick up the bits there and then situate to brown. I know this isn't technically proper as the food should just be set on the hot oil or butter and not moved in order to get a nice caramelization.  (Is that a word?) 

I love cast iron and enameled cast iron and will continue to perfect my technique to get proper temperatures. It may just be one of those things that you have to practice and practice.  Here's to happy cooking with cast iron!

Book Review : same kind of different As me. / Ron Hall & Denver Moore with Lynn Vincent

WOW!  Seriously, wow!  I must begin by telling you that as much as I love to read, few books have truly captured my attention that were not fantasy, mystery or suspense of some kind.  A few historical fiction novels have been delights over the years, but I cannot recall one non-fiction book that captured my heart and moved me to laugh and cry and pursue others to join me in appreciation.  There are books that are interesting to read, books that are well done, books that keep you up late and night and books like this one, that are all of these and also tug at your heart.   I laughed (out loud), I cried (tears streaming down my face) and I smiled.

This true-life story centers around two men from two different worlds, the woman who made a difference and a God who works in mysterious and gracious ways.  One man a wealthy art dealer and another who grew up the poorest of the poor in America, their lives collide. Their lives were vastly opposed and only God could have woven the tapestry that unfolds in this story.  

25 Random Things About Me

These were originally posted on Facebook about a year and a half ago...It seems there are a lot of things in life that I thought couldn't or wouldn't happen...and then they did.  Do you think God knows some things I don't? OK, maybe like EVERYTHING!

1.    I never wanted any pets, ever.  Somehow I ended up being the one to run out and pick out our dog Roxie. I even left church early and drove an hour away!  Then, I had to get chickens!  We lost one of them to our neighbors dog, but we currently have seven running around our yard. Hoping to have eggs in just a few weeks.  Roxie does amazingly well with the chickens too!

2.    Growing up I hated going to the garden to help my dad. It mostly meant pulling weeds!  Now, I am enjoying the planning of my own garden. So far it’s  mostly been container gardening, but I’m hoping to branch out to raised bed square-foot methods this year…if only I can keep the chickens from using the dirt for a dirt bath.

3.    I never thought I’d live long enough to get married, let alone have children. I’m about to celebrate my 11th wedding anniversary and we have five children! Isn’t God amazing!?

4.    My personality is one that loves quiet and peacefulness.  Chaos and clutter drive me CRAZY!!  Boy, has God been growing me in this area!  Somehow I have five children, I homeschool them, I work with lots of people through the ministry and we frequently have guests over to the house, and even teens once a month.  J

5.    I learned a lot about how to behave in a professional manner by seeing my dad interact with clients growing up. His office was in our home for many years and I learned by observing. (Wonder if he knew? Wonder how much, and what things, my kids pick up from observing me!?)

6.    I remember playing kickball in the back yard. It was the best and I was never picked last. J 

7.    Growing up  I played or participated in at some point; softball, basketball, volleyball, cheerleading, canoe racing, golfing, gymnastics, ballet/tap/jazz, swimming, tennis lessons….and I don’t even like sports! (Though I did enjoy gymnastics and dance for a little while, and swimming while I could.)

8.    I had more than one boyfriend tell me that they would never leave me and that anyone who did was a fool, then they left.  Hmmm….

9.    My husband tells me he loves me at LEAST 10 times a day.  If I don’t remember to give him a hug, often enough, he stops me by staring until I do. 

10.    The first thing I want in the morning is a fresh hot cup of black coffee. (Sweet coffee would make me sick in the morning!)

11.    I was a single mom with two kids from two different dads and was sure I would never find ANYone would want me as a wife, help me raise my boys and love me the way I longed for.  It wasn’t until I gave my life COMPLETELY over to God’s hands and control rather than my own did my life start to change dramatically.  I truly was satisfied in the Lord, then he blessed me abundantly and I met a wonderful man who loved the Lord and would stay. J

12.    As soon as my head clears up from this fog…(mom’s of multiple small children know what I mean)…I will start writing again, and hopefully finish several books! (regardless of whether or not anyone else reads them)

13.    I wish I had another daughter.  We casually have discussed adoption someday. We’ll see what God has for us in the future…

14.    I prayed that my last child would be another girl, so Liana would have a close sister. I also prayed for a very CALM and EASY baby.  Wooaaahhhhh….God has a sense of humor, and he definitely knows better than I do.  I couldn’t love Riley any more than I do. He is so much fun and so cuddly…but…just look for the Jungle Baby video in my posted items if you haven’t already seen the video clip.

15.    After years of struggles personally and as a single mom, then just being a mom, and also a homeschooling parent, I have realized that the hardest things in life are the most rewarding.

16.    I wish Daimeian’s mom had a chance to see the man he turned into, and I wish I’d had a chance to meet her.

17.    I love to cook and bake…but only because I really want to eat something good and because I enjoy serving my family and friends.

18.    I used to have this skinny little (12yo?) girl that came over to my apartment in MN all the time. She’d play with Tyler, dance and bounce and laugh and talk, talk, talk, talk. Now I have a 12 yo son to do all that for me, except he plays with Liana and Riley. J

19.    I wish cheese wasn’t so high in fat! I LOVE almost all kinds of cheese.

20.    It was really nice when the EPP team at Dell got an ice cream cake for my birthday.  However, there isn’t much I just really don’t like, but mint chocolate chip ice cream is one of them!

21.    I started having plant based allergy problems with bananas, cantaloupe, some avocados and other raw fruits and veggies AFTER Riley was born.

22.    I’ve tried allergy shots twice for well over 2 years each, and they didn’t help me.

23.    I’m hoping to move back to MN someday.  Although, I do wonder if I’m completely crazy when I hear HOW cold it is there this winter!

24.    For some reason, I suddenly remember my friend Kristine and how she got bit by a squirrel. To hear her tell the story will make you laugh ‘till you cry. 

25.    One of the things I  would most love to do would be to sit in a cool room with warm clothes by a desk (in a CLEAN and QUIET ROOM and HOUSE) with a fresh cup of coffee, rain hitting the windows or snow falling outside, and me reading a book or writing something.  (Maybe Daimeian could praise and worship songs in the background….)

Book Review : Never Let You Go by Erin Healy

If you like fiction, if you like mystery, if you have enjoyed fictional stories based on spiritual battles then a special welcome to Erin Healy’s first solo authored book, NEVER LET GO. Erin Healy has co-written two other books with my favorite author Ted Dekker. Her style is her own yet the suspense and twists will feel familiar to Dekker fans.

Lexi Solomon is a single mom struggling to make ends meet and is faced with tough decisions that could seriously affect her life and that of her daughter. Her troubles are familiar to many who have fought the road of parenting alone and to many who have fought demons of the past. Yet, there is an element that most of us don’t see as clearly as it is presented to Lexi. How will she handle it? Who will help her?

Garden Summary 2008 - 2009

It seems like I'm always trying to learn more about something.  Lately I've been pretty focused on learning more about gardening and yard care; gardening methods, gardening tips, landscape design, perennial plants that are drought hardy for the Texas area, and natural pest control.  My goal is to garden  and take care of our yard using natural and organic methods. I also want to provide our favorite veggies and herbs so that they will be on hand when I want to use them, they will taste better, they will be healthier for our family and eventually (after the initial cost to setup the garden) they will save us money at the grocery store.

I began my journey into gardening with several pots and my husband built up a retaining wall for a raised bed on either side of the sidewalk leading up to our house.  I had great success with tomatoes, peppers, rosemary and mint in the raised beds and success in pots with basil, chives, rosemary and lemongrass.  I've tried my hand at making our own earthbox.  This method just didn't work. I may try it again with some amendments, but maybe only one box instead of several.  Last year, I had slightly raised beds utilizing some wooden shelving that had been in our garage to hold videos.  They made neat rows and gave me some structure to get started.  Around this time my husband and our sons worked to build a fence around the garden area to keep out the chickens and to eventually provide a nice place to sit and enjoy the plants.

2008 Garden - Here are a few pics of the raised beds with the video shelves and plants in pots. 

Homemade Earthbox type container.  There is another bin under the soil. It is upside down with the top 2/3's cut off and holes drilled through. The center of the bin below is cut to fit a pond basket. The soil fills in the pond basket and is supposed to help wick the moisture to the roots.  I followed online directions but did not have much success with the plants. May try again with better soil amendments. Then again, maybe not.  

Slightly raised beds.  These were set in the fall of 2008 but not truly implemented until 2009.  The wood had been used for video shelves on the wall of our garage when our non-profit library was housed there.  The soil here is a mix of compost (partially unfinished) and native soil.   Plants in this mixture did pretty well. Would have been much better with a better regimen of fertilizing, mulching and watering.  These are elements being implemented now, in addition to building greater soil and utilizing natural disease and insect cures/repellents.

First shot of the potted plants in 2008.  Lantana and Basil.

I later learned how to properly care for basil, prune after every (or most) 2 sets of leaves on a stem.  This way the basil grows bushy and large. Without the pruning it will get tall and spindly. 

The Lantana did not survive the final shot of TX heat in this container. Will try again when I have a place to put on in the ground, or possibly another larger container.

Cilantro, sage, basil and Roma Tomatoes.  After trying cilantro for a couple of years I found out that in needs to be planted in the fall. It is a cool season herb and will bolt when the heat hits.  So...they sell it in the spring. Why? Things that make you go hmmm.....
 This picture was taken in October.  The basil got woody and the Roma's had hardly any fruit mature through the summer. I started too late for one thing.  A week or so later my husband picked all the green tomatoes and they ripened in my window sill over the next few months. I was amazed at how long some of them lasted.

Lemongrass, more Roma Tomatoes and more basil.  The Lemongrass died last fall or winter.  I am hoping to get new transplants but missed the window for doing so this year.

Finally, the beginning of our compost piles.  The cinder blocks are straighter now and are filled with dirt. Every year we get tomatoes that grow up all over the place. In the prepared beds where compost was used, in and around the compost pile and even in the cinder block holes or near by just coming up out of the ground.

Here are some cherry tomatoes that just grew up out of the ground near the compost pile, behind our shed.  They got tall and were falling all over the place so we grabbed miscellaneous pies of wood and string to try and hold them all up.  That didn't work too well but we had plenty of cherry tomatoes!  We had also had a cantaloupe plant growing out of the compost. Unfortunately, the one melon we got from it was disgusting in taste.

2009 Garden - Tomato, cantaloupe and zucchini plants planted in the shelving raised beds.  We had to try to keep our backyard chickens out of the veggies. They still got in as they pecked their way through the plastic and they ate up the melons, squashed and destroyed the plants and were an overall menace.  The peppers last year gave me only a couple of very tiny rewards.  Also, as you can see, Bermuda grass is a horrible weed. It is what our lawn is and it invades with a voracious appetite.

Most of this area got fenced in.  It was a mess trying to find scraps to cover and kill the grass.  However, in the back, along the fence, you can see several tomato plants along the fence.  Lots of green but little to no fruit. What fruit we did get was eaten by birds.

NOTE: Plant tomatoes in FULL SUN. These were too shaded to produce fruit.  I've experienced before so I don't know why I thought that location would work for them last year.  Will not try that again.

Finally, my loving and darling husband worked with our wonderful sons to build this fence around the garden area to keep the chickens out.  The door needed to be finished here and the taller segment will be part of what will be a covered sitting area.   Unfortunately, we would later find out that the chickens would find a way in by getting under the shed. This led to another problem with them roaming all of our backyard.  Just a couple months ago my husband penned them so we don't have that issue anymore. However, I do have a beautiful garden area to work with now!

Book Review : Thomas Nelson's Complete Book of Bible Maps and Charts, 3rd Edition

•    Colorful maps and charts
•    Chronological representation of all books of the Bible
•    Short yet concise overview for each book of the Bible
•    Easy to use reference book for individual or small group study
•    Reproducible maps and charts available for sharing in a large group study

Thomas Nelson’s Complete Book of Bible Maps and Charts, 3rd edition, met and exceeded my expectations as a handy resource book and possibly a text for a basic Bible Survey course.  This book could assist my children, my husband and me in personal study Bible study by providing additional insights and information to go along with the reading of the text.

The layout for each chapter is easy to read and covers information on the following components for each book of the Bible;  introduction, authorship, dates, themes and literature structure, the book at a glance (via a chart) and an outline.  If the authorship or dating of the book has more than one commonly held school of thought, different views are explained in brief.  

Following these consistent points of coverage, each chapter highlights various points for further study.  For example, Genesis includes subsections such as;  “The Six Days of Creation”, “God’s Creative Work”, “The Garden of Eden”, “Two Adams Contrasted” (Adam of Genesis and Jesus in the New Testament) and “Ages of the Patriarchs”.  Ruth includes subtopics called, “From Outsider to Royal Ancestress”, “Ruth-A Foreshadow of Redemption and “A Distinguished Descendant”. 

Numerous charts and maps are included throughout the book.   You will find maps on the patriarch’s journeys, Jacob’s life, David’s life, David’s kingdom, the return of the Jews from exile and so many more.  As far as the charts go, in the book of Hosea there is a chart showing Israel’s relationship with God as depicted in prophecies from Jeremiah and Ezekiel and the similarities with Hosea’s relationship with Gomer.  Psalms includes a chart on the images of God referenced.  Prior to the coverage for each gospel there is a detailed harmonization of the gospels that covers multiple pages.

Finally, Thomas Nelson also provides free content for some of their books when you purchase them.  Apparently this sometimes includes an eBook copy.  In the case of this book, ll the maps are provided as free downloads.  This free content can be used by your eBook reader (Kindle or Sony Reader) or just downloaded to your computer. 

One thing that I really wish was included but  wasn’t, however I don’t know of any reference book that does include this, is an alternate possible (and probable) location for Mt. Sinai (search for the movie “Search for the Real Mt. Sinai” to find out what I am referring to).   Regardless, this book serves its purpose well.  If you are looking for in-depth study, this is not it. If you are looking for a starting point for further study on any book of the Bible, this is a great option. I love how easy it is to use and the fact that introductory coverage is provided for every book of the Bible.  The price is right too!  Unlike many other reference books found in the Christian bookstores, you probably won’t see this title in the bargain bins anytime soon.

At the time of this review Amazon does not have sample pages posted. If you want to see sample pages you will need to search for the title at Christianbook.com. 

I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255   : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising