It’s time for soup – Winter Farm Share Week 12

It’s time for soup with fresh warm wheat bread for dipping in Winter Farm Share Week 12. I couldn’t think of anything else with a refrigerator full of root vegetables and this week’s share of potatoes, carrots, corn, chopped tomatoes and spinach. They all landed in a big bowl of Vegetables and Beef Soup for…

Category: Food, What's for Dinner?

REVIEW: Chance Harbor by Holly Robinson

Contemporary women’s fiction at its best, author Holly Robinson excels at emotional storytelling that teaches lessons in forgiveness. When one event after another unravels this family, you’ll root for their success as well as dread what may happen next, all the while hoping the book will never end. Recommended Read! Widow Eve MacLeish is cleaning…

Category: Books, Contemporary Romance 2016 Reading Challenge, Reviews, TBR Mountain Range Challenge 2016

REVIEW: The Made-From-Scratch Life by Melissa K. Norris

A blessing at the right time, THE MADE-FROM-SCRATCH LIFE by Melissa K. Norris opens your eyes to a simpler way of life, possibly lessening your emotional burden with the light you’ve been seeking. It’s a good combination of gardening advice, preserving what you grow, cooking, homesteading and how all of that mixes with faith and…

Category: Books, Food, Garden, Reviews, Sustainable Household, TBR Mountain Range Challenge 2016

Nimisila Reservoir in Winter

Nimisila Reservoir in winter appeals to me as much as seeing it in summer. There’s something magical about escaping our habit to hibernate in Northeast Ohio when there’s a hint of early spring in the air. I can go back through several years of photographs in the winter and always find some at a lake…

Category: Life through the Lens, Travel, Travel Highlights

TBR Challenge 2016 – Promises Kept by Scarlett Dunn

A historical western mail-order bride novel with a surprise twist, Promises Kept by Scarlett Dunn creates expectations for the rest of the series. Western historical fans will rejoice in a new series to follow, especially since the third book will release April 2016. TBR Challenge 2016 – Theme: Recommended Read (a book that was recommended…

Category: Books, Reviews, TBR Challenge 2016, TBR Mountain Range Challenge 2016

REVIEW: America’s First Daughter by Stephanie Dray & Laura Kamoie

In America’s First Daughter by Stephanie Dray & Laura Kamoie, you’ll feel happiness, anger, frustration, joy, sadness and relief for the characters as you follow them through this fascinating, yet often heartrending, time in American history. An amazing piece of fiction based on an enormous amount of historical research, this novel will churn your emotions….

Category: Books, Reviews, TBR Mountain Range Challenge 2016

Lettuce Bouquet – Winter Farm Share Week 11

I was so surprised by our Lettuce Bouquet in this week’s farm share. It feels like spring! We received two beautiful leaf lettuces that still had their roots. That’s what I call fresh picked. I loved that and hope it happens again because next time I’m going to plant them. More great fun was the…

Category: Food, What's for Dinner?

Contemporary Romance for Newbies

Contemporary Romance for Newbies, our topic in the Contemporary Romance Reading Challenge 2016 ( #ContRom2016 ) is prefect for me. Contemporaries are a sub-genre of romance I’ve come to love. But I came into them kicking and screaming. I did not want to read Contemporaries. I didn’t want reality. I wanted to be in another…

Category: Books, Contemporary Romance 2016 Reading Challenge

REVIEW: The Promise of Forgiveness by Marin Thomas

THE PROMISE OF FORGIVENESS by Marin Thomas is an unusual, character-driven relationship story in a desolate setting that reflects their inner turmoil. This novel will inspire raw emotion and capture your heart. Ruby Baxter and her fourteen-year-old daughter Mia leave Missouri and arrive in a small, desolate town in the Panhandle. The letter from her…

Category: Books, Reviews, TBR Mountain Range Challenge 2016

Pickles Potatoes Pintos – Winter Farm Share Week 10

Pickles Potatoes Pintos sounds like a ditty and sometimes I feel like dancing when we pick up our farm share! First idea for the menu this week from our Vegetarian Pilot share from Fresh Fork Market is a beef rump roast with carrots and potatoes. One look at those lovely small potatoes and the ginormous…