May 13, 2016
Her One and Only
In Her One and Only, after ten years in the NFL, super star Gray Fowler is accustomed to obsessive fans but this all changes when he begins to receive death threats.
About Her One and Only
But when Gray starts receiving death threats from a stalker, his team hires an executive protection agency to guard him until the culprit is caught. Dealing with bodyguards 24/7 is a headache, especially when one of them is a young, beautiful woman. How can a female half his size possibly protect him better than he can protect himself?
Dru Porter is a former Marine, an expert markswoman, and a black belt—none of which saved her from disaster on her last assignment. In order to rebuild her tarnished reputation, she’s determined to find Gray’s stalker and, since relationships between agents and clients are forbidden, avoid a romantic attachment between herself and the rugged football player with the mysterious past.
Yet every secret that leads Dru closer to the stalker leads her even close to Gray. They will only survive if they can learn to trust their lives and hearts in each other.
My Thoughts
I love, love, love this novel! In this novel, we have a super strong female character who is responsible for guarding a rough football player. Now if that alone doesn’t make you want to read it to see what happens lets dive more into the story!
Gray is a very popular football star, women want him, kids want to be like him and men are jealous of him. He seems to have it all, the wealth, the fame and everything a person could want. But slowly, piece by piece we find that he is truly quite lonely. When Dru is charged with his life, he takes it as a joke. How could the big, strong football player possibly be guarded by a woman? She shows him she is much tougher and smarter than she looks throughout the novel. Together they face almost impossible odds as Gray has no idea who could possibly hate him so much that they would want to kill him.
Slowly they unravel the mystery at the same time as they learn to put trust in each other. It sometimes felt like one step forward between them and two steps back but it is the trust and growing love between them that they need to solve the case.
A truly beautiful and unique story that will make you laugh, cry and your heart melt. A fantastic read for the upcoming summer months!
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
Becky Wade is a native of California who attended Baylor University, met and married a Texan, and now lives in Dallas. A favorite among readers of Christian contemporary romance, Becky has won a Carol Award, an Inspirational Reader’s Choice Award, and an INSPY Award.
Disclosure: I received a digital copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.
May 11, 2016
Parenting Can Be Tough, Learn How to Make It Easier
I love my children with all of my heart, the day I became a Mother was one of the best moments in my life. What I wasn’t quite ready for was how hard parenting can be at times. I struggle with wondering if I am making the right decisions, am I building their confidence up while encouraging them to be independent? As if this wasn’t enough, let’s talk about the daily struggles, the name calling, the remote stealing and the general “he is looking at me – I don’t want him looking at me!” that you need to manage on top of just life.
Parenting is tough! As the Mom of two boys, I have had to learn quick what little boys like, how they play with each other and how they learn. They still shock me with the impromptu wrestling matches that make me cringe, the slide tackles while they play soccer that make my heart stop and the sucker punches thrown in (mostly) fun. 95% of the time they are laughing until one of them has decided they have had enough and that is when all craziness breaks out.
Here are some tools I have learned along the way to make the parenting journey we are on just a tad bit easier.
Understand your child’s emotions from their level. While fighting over the remote or a video game can seem like something silly to us, this is something that is important to them in that moment, there are a lot of underlying emotions going on. Trying to understand and talk our children through the emotions is just as important as the solution. Ask the questions about why they feel this way, why it’s important and let them know you understand them.
Set the rules before they play. This is a huge one in our home, before the kids can play on their video games we have rules on how they will share turns and the consequences for not sharing. The same goes for outdoor play. That way neither of them can act shocked or surprised when they break the rules and they have to deal with the consequences (usually video games go off or they need to chose a new sport outside).
Be a role model. Our kids watch us every second of the day, how we react to stress, something we don’t like, when we are sad, happy and everything in between. They also tend to copy our behaviours, even the undesirable ones. I can think of one perfect example, when our youngest was a toddler and we would go driving, I would occasionally yell at other drivers who cut me off, didn’t use signals, ran red lines and so on. It didn’t occur to me that he would pick up this behaviour until he was the one yelling at the other drivers first! Talk about a moment of horror for me. I quickly learned that I couldn’t be yelling at other drivers with him in the car as he was mirroring my actions.
Use television shows to reach your child. Cartoons have this way of reaching out to kids in a way that sometimes words can’t. Some great options are:
Learn all about Sibling Rivalry (a huge one in our home!) in episode one in season one of The Hive: Babee’s Room. In this episode, Buzzabee and Rubee compete over who Babee (their new sibling) gets to room with. Mom and dad must explain to Buzzabee and Rubee that Babee needs to grow up before she can share a room.
Responsibility (a huge topic I think in every home) can be seen in Episode One, Season One of Veggies Tales: Puppies & Guppies/Sorry We’re Closed Today. In this episode, Larry and Laura Carrot want to adopt puppies, but quickly learn it takes responsibility in order to watch over and care for a pet of their own.
What about the important topic of peer pressure as your child grows? Fuller House has you covered in episode six, season one: The Legend of El Explosivo. After getting grounded for sneaking off to Bobby Popko’s house, Jackson realizes he needs to stand up for what he knows is right and not give in to please his friend.
Parenting can be tough, no one doubts it – just remember that you are doing your best and we all have moments where we feel like we fail. Always remember – your child loves you no matter what! Keep up the great job parents!
Disclosure: I am a Netflix #StreamTeam Member and receive perks with this affiliation. All opinions expressed are my own.
May 11, 2016
Hope Toler Dougherty’s ‘Mars . . . with Venus Rising’ Kindle Prize Pack Giveaway
Travel to the small town of Mars, where you’ll find a meddling horse, paper bag floors, and a flying saucer on the town square—in Hope Toler Dougherty’s book, Mars . . . with Venus Rising. Penn Davenport dreams of passing the CPA exam and moving away from the two aunts who reared her after her parents died in a plane crash. When John Townsend—full of life and the joy of living—moves to town, he rattles Penn’s view of herself, her life, and her dreams . . . which isn’t such a bad thing until she falls for him and discovers he’s a pilot.
Celebrate Hope’s Mars . . . with Venus Rising blog tour with a Kindle Fire Prize Pack giveaway!
One grand prize winner will receive:
- A copy of Mars . . . with Venus Rising
- A $25 Amazon gift card
- A Kindle Fire
Enter today by clicking the icon below. But hurry! The giveaway ends on May 18th. The winner will be announced May 19th on Hope’s blog.
May 11, 2016
‘Hunting Hope’ by Nika Maples (Plus a Giveaway and Live Webcast)
At twenty, Nika Maples learned that when hope was all she had, she claimed it boldly while defying all odds to recover from a devastating stroke. The lessons from that struggle are powerful and universal, and she shares those lessons in her new book, Hunting Hope. Doctors warned that she had as little as 48 hours to live, and—if she lived at all—she would never walk or talk again. There was no hope on the horizon. So Nika started to hunt for it. Today, she not only walks, but she speaks to audiences everywhere about the power of hunting hope when a situation appears hopeless. She says hope remains camouflaged in the daily mundane. If we are not looking for it, we will miss it, though it is right before our eyes.
Celebrate the release of Hunting Hope with a $200 Getaway Giveaway (details below) and a live webcast with Nika on May 26!
One grand prize winner will receive:
- One copy of Hunting Hope
- A $200 Hilton gift card to give a hope hunter the chance to rest
Enter today by clicking the icon below. But hurry, the giveaway ends on 5/24. The winner will be announced at the Hunting Hope live author webcast on 5/26. RSVP for a chance to connect with Nika and other hope hunters, as well as for a chance to win other prizes!
RSVP today and spread the word—tell your friends about the giveaway via FACEBOOK, TWITTER, or PINTEREST and increase your chances of winning. Hope to see you on the 26th!
May 10, 2016
Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir Colouring Pages
Remember my post from last week about Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir (that also includes an awesome DVD giveaway)? Now you can print out your own colouring pages for these two amazing characters. Printable colouring pages are one of the best ways I have found to keep my children happy at home!
Click on the link below to bring up the PDF images of Ladybug and Cat Noir. Enjoy colouring with your children and share your colouring with me online.