Author: cvegnad

Heart Dancing

iRead Book Tours

What would you do if your heart stopped dancing?

Heart Dancing

About Heart Dancing

Brian, his wife Christine and their 14 year-old daughter, Savanna, are a typical all American family. Their lives begin to unravel when a dark secret from their past threatens to destroy them. Divorce seems imminent unless they can discover a miracle.

Savanna refuses to stand by and watch her family self-destruct. A mysterious young woman and her dog show Savanna how to look past the physical and see the spiritual side of her situation. A leap of faith and willingness to change her perspective gives Savanna a new view of her life, her values and her purpose.

But can the adults give up their stories about the past that are tearing them apart?

Brimming with inspiration, transformation and empowering messages, “Heart Dancing” is life changing. It also introduces the 4 step process called Story Alchemy, which is used to transform the stories that threaten the Hartt’s peace and happiness.

My Thoughts

Heart Dancing is a story that so many can relate. Savanna’s family is in a deep crisis, a crisis many teens and adults can relate to. This crisis arose from decisions that were made many years ago that still haunt Christine and Brian. This haunting affects not only their relationship but now their daughter. Their family starts spiraling out of control and Savanna feels so many emotions that it is hard for her to understand and cope with them. Forgiveness is not always easy and even harder is to move forward from hurt. Each member of their family must learn to heal, understand and move forward.

An interesting concept from this book is in the form of Miracle Tokens. Miracle tokens are pieces of inspiration, wisdom and advice that you would give out to those you love or even strangers.

I found the beginning of the novel slow to start and I had a hard time reading through each story but I was happy that I pushed on through the first half of the book as I began to love the story and it was well worth it.

You can purchase a copy of the book on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Rating: 4/5

About the Author

Kathryn Eriksen is known as the “Story Alchemist.” She has touched many people with her inspirational books, blog and articles about living your best life. A lawyer by training, she transformed her own life story from anger and frustration to love, joy and peace through the use of the same techniques that she shares in “Heart Dancing.”

The Giveaway!

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Disclosure: I received a digital copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

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Through Waters Deep by Sarah Sundin

Litfuse Book Tour

In Through Waters Deep, it is 1941 and America teeters on the brink of war.

Through Waters Deep

About Through Waters Deep

Outgoing naval officer Ensign Jim Avery job is to escort British convoys across the North Atlantic in a brand-new destroyer, the USS Atwood. On shore, Boston Navy Yard secretary Mary Stirling does her work quietly and efficiently. She is happy to be out of the limelight. Yet despite her reserved nature she never could back down from a challenge. When evidence of sabotage on the Atwood is found, Jim and Mary must work together to uncover the culprit. A bewildering maze of suspects emerges and Mary is dismayed to find that even someone close to her is under suspicion. With the increasing pressure, Jim and Mary find that many new challenges and danger awaits them.

My Thoughts

I love a good historical novel and this is another huge hit set in World War II just prior to America entering the war. Sarah does an amazing job capturing the emotions, stress, tension and fear that arose in America prior to the country entering the war.

Mary, the most unlikely hero, personally challenges herself to step out of her comfort zone to help solve a mysterious case before tensions crack and disaster strikes. Everything that makes her the perfect secretary is what makes her the perfect ‘spy’ (I use spy in a loose term). Mary transforms in this novel and it is beautiful to witness as she struggles on her journey and the freedom she finds at the end. The mix in of a little bit of romance by Jim’s character tops off a completely heart warming, exciting and beautiful story. A story that reminds us that there is always much more to a person then the outer features or the fears that people hold against others.

You can find more reviews on the Litfuse Blog Tour page. You can purchase a copy of the book here.

Rating: 5/5

About the Author

Sarah Sundin is the author of With Every Letter, On Distant Shores, In Perfect Time, and the Wings of Glory series. In 2014, On Distant Shores was a finalist for the Golden Scroll Awards from both AWSA and the Christian Authors Network. In 2011, Sarah received the Writer of the Year Award at the Mount Hermon Christian Writers Conference. A graduate of UC San Francisco School of Pharmacy, she works on call as a hospital pharmacist. During WWII, her grandfather served as a pharmacist’s mate (medic) in the Navy and her great-uncle flew with the US Eighth Air Force in England. Sarah lives in California with her husband and three children.

Disclosure: I received a digital copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

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DinoTrux Are Here and Ready to Build! #StreamTeam

netflix

Dinosaurs are strong, powerful and oh so popular. Dinosaurs captivate our imagination as we try to imagine just what these powerful creatures would have been like. What better way to capture these fantastic creatures then in an animated series by DreamWorks called DinoTrux?!

DinoTrux: A Netflix original series

DreamWorks Animation brings to life the popular and award-winning children’s book series by Chris Gall. DinoTrux features imaginative characters that are hybrid dinosaurs and construction vehicles (awesome, right?!). The series follows the unlikely friendship between Ty Trux, a massive Tyrannosaurs Rux, and his tiny friend Revvit, a razor smart Reptool. Together the DinoTrux build a bigger and better world. All of this is threatened by D-Structs, the biggest and baddest DinoTrux, who is determined to ruin all that they make.

Netflix and DreamWorks have done it again with a fantastic new children’s series that not only your children will love but you as well! The DinoTrux are adorable, funny and unstoppable. I especially fell in love with Tiny Tool, he is just too cute! I would not mind having a little friend like him at all.

With the summer coming to an end (hard to believe but the weather is already cooling!) this new series will arrive in perfect time to keep your children entertained on those long rainy summer days as the series is set to launch this week on August the 14th. I can definitely see this new series becoming a quick family favourite loved by all.

Check out this fantastic trailer of this new hit series set to launch August 14th on Netflix:

Disclosure: I am a #StreamTeam member and receive perks with this affiliation. I was granted early access to this series in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.

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Centreville with linky #WW

Centreville #WW

Summer is always busy in our home with lots of family birthdays so I haven’t been participating in #WW the last few weeks but my linky is back! Join us on our adventure to Centreville Amusement Park in Toronto (and check out more of our fun here).

Centreville #WW

Centreville #WW

Centreville #WW

Centreville #WW

Centreville #WW

Centreville #WW

Centreville #WW

Make sure you link up below so that I can come visit you too!

 

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Putting Family Fun First at Centreville

Putting Family Fun First at Centreville

Family time is special time in our house. We always make sure we do one small activity a week together (usually hiking, biking or swimming) and once a month a larger bonding activity (which usually involves some travel). Finding the right venue is extremely important for family bonding – you can’t enjoy each others company if you are miserable waiting in lines or can barely hear each other over the crowds.

This past weekend, we spent the day at Centreville on Toronto Island. This was our first time experiencing the ferry and Centre Island (even for me who grew up just north of Toronto!) and we were all excited. We weren’t quite to sure what to expect but we were ready for our special adventure and our mission to get on as many rides as possible and capture a selfie doing it.

Putting Family Fun First at Centreville

When you are looking for a family friendly venue or attraction to take the whole family to like Centreville Amusement Park, here are some helpful areas to look at before deciding where to go:

A family oriented environment like Centreville is important to encourage bonding, learning and fun. Not only are there opportunities for fun but with lots of benches, breaks and nature everywhere you go, you can really focus on family and enjoying each other’s company. There is no pressure and you can just take your time at each area and even step away from the amusement park to take in some pretty spectacular views of Toronto.

Putting Family Fun First at Centreville

A relaxed pace. One of the very first comments I made to my husband was that I felt like we had stepped off the ferry into another time. People were riding bikes, roller blading, ducks were walking across the grass and above all there were no angry guests, no shouting and no loud noises. This is so different from what I am used to at any amusement park and I LOVED it. It truly made the difference to us as a family.

Putting Family Fun First at Centreville

It is so important that there is something for every one of all ages. My kids are seven years apart so planning activities for them can be hard. We have been to several places where they can’t go on rides together (one is too small, one is too big or maybe they just aren’t interested). This never happened at Centreville. Our eldest took his little brother on the brand new Toronto Island Mine Coaster, they played mini putt, we went on The Centreville Train ride together and even went down the log flume ride (and I still deny that I screamed the whole way down). It was an incredible experience for us a family, we have not laughed like that in a long time. And with over thirty rides to choose from, we were never once bored and actually stayed four hours longer than we had originally planned to.

Putting Family Fun First at Centreville

A variety of food choices located conveniently near the attractions. We like to pack light and always have since our eldest was a baby. I prefer to only bring refillable water bottles and some small snacks so that I can enjoy my day just as much as my kids. Centreville had a conveniently located centre space (which resembled a small town square) that sold a variety of refreshments, drinks and meals. Located just outside the attractions (and under a five-minute walk) was a delicious restaurant, Carousel Cafe, that accommodated my boys love of meat and my need for a vegetarian meal (their spicy black bean veggie burger is incredible!!). We were able to sit outside on the patio right by the water, watching canoes go by and ducks swimming while we ate and planned our afternoon.

Putting Family Fun First at Centreville

Quiet spaces to rest, for when the little ones get tired after all the walking and rides. I’m lying a bit here because this was a must for my husband and I, especially after lunch! It was extremely hot on the day that we visited Centreville so it was nice to just sit down in the shade by the water edge or even by the splash pad area.

Putting Family Fun First at Centreville

The cool factor is always a must. My son and I were on a mission to get a selfie on each and every ride we went on. We hit up each ride (except for the windmill as my stomach can’t quiet handle the circular motion) in the park and managed to snap a selfie on over half the rides. The log fume ride and the Toronto Island Mine Coaster were by far some of the wilder rides but the Centreville train was exciting as it passed by Far Enough Farm. Far Enough Farm definitely added a great late afternoon treat as we walked through and met the animals. It was awesome to see how much the animals loved their farm handlers, at one point we were calling to Darby (the Centreville horse) who ignored us but when Darby’s farm handler called, the horse came trotting over excited to see him.

Putting Family Fun First at Centreville

Tips for Your Next Trip to Centreville:

  • Arrive early to take advantage of the small line ups for rides. While the boys never waited more than five minutes for a ride, when we first arrived they were able to go on the same ride over and over because not too many people had arrived yet.
  • Make a mission for the day! For my eldest son and I, this was to snap as many selfies as we could mid-ride. We had so much fun snapping these photos.
  • Pack light and enjoy the amenities. When you pack light you have less to worry about and can just relax and enjoy yourself.
  • Buy the all day ride pass – it is worth it. The rides are so much fun and I can still picture my kid’s faces as we went on the rides together. Since there is no admission fee to get into the area you are already saving a lot so take advantage of this.
  • Use the Far Enough Farm experience to educate your child about animals and the need to love and protect them.
  • We noticed some pretty awesome historical signs up in the park, like the one near the Carousel ride. Check them out with your older child and when you get home do some research about Centre Island and the ferry. You may learn some new and cool facts.

Putting Family Fun First at Centreville

Have you been to Centreville and if so what is your favourite memory of Centreville?

This post is generously sponsored by Centreville, but the images and opinions are my own. For more information please visit www.centreisland.ca.

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