day7 Whales Tale Baby Blanket Review

"Wrapping your little ones in the love of God."

I was so excited to be chosen to review this beautiful baby blanket from day7 through the CWA Review Crew! Mine came in the mail Monday morning just four days before my 7th child arrives!

My blanket arrived in a nice sealed plastic bag. It comes in three colors, white, (shown above), blue and green. I received the green one. I love it! The first thing I noticed was how incredibly soft it is. My older children  ages 5, 3, and 22 months began to fight over who was going to snuggle with the blanket first.

Here is our 22 month old snuggled up with our new day7 blanket.

The dimensions and care instructions were placed directly in the front so they could be easily seen. You do not want to bleach nor dry clean this blanket. Here is a little more information about the brand new day7 Whales Tale blanket.

About the company from their website:

“By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.”

Genesis 2: 2 & 3

This verse is the foundation of our company.  We are designers, and quilters, and home makers, but above that, we are Christians who desire to share our gifts and abilities.  We want to be able to wrap God’s love around each person, and let them find a soft place to rest.

The founder of day 7 is Myra Harder, who has been working as a designer in the textile industry for the past 15 years. Through her career, her work has produced over 6 quilting titles, resulting in 100,000 copies of her books, she has produced thousands of yards of fabric for top design companies, and she has designed work for over 30 magazines, with 12.5 million copies in print. You will have seen her work on the covers of many top magazines on your local newsstands. However, as she worked, she felt the increased desire to share her faith in her designs, and a small idea started forming in the back of her mind. 2012 brought a decided change on the direction she wanted to create, and today we can introduce you to the first results of her new direction.

100% plush polyester fabric, double sided blanket

Original fabric design, featuring a verse from Psalm 23:3

Large 28″ x 34″ size, to wrap around your little one

Wash in cold water in the gentle cycle, tumble dry at low temperature

Do not bleach, iron or dry clean

Available for $34.99.

If you are looking for a wonderful baby shower gift or for a gift for a special small child this blanket would make an amazing gift! The scripture on it allows you to literally wrap your child in God's love! We were so blessed to get a chance to review this blanket. I can't wait to welcome our newest child and wrap her up in God's Word in this super soft blanket! Buy yours today at day7, or Amazon, or their Etsy shop.

I received a free blanket in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the FTC Regulations. I am part of The CWA Review Crew.

Are You Playing by House Rules? A Review

Joe's estranged wife has just been involved in a horrible car accident. The doctors want to declare her brain dead so they can harvest her organs for another wealthy patient. But the hospital  soon becomes aware that Joe's wife is actually pregnant. Now more than one life hangs in the balance. A spiritual battle has begun for the life of Mary and her unborn child. In walks Robert. An outspoken Christian man with some strong values and heavy knowledge of the Constitution. He even has strong opinions about social security numbers and birth certificates. The hospital bills are growing, the Christian school where Joe teaches is being threatened with lawsuits. How much more can Joe take and will he be strong enough to make the right decisions to help preserve the life of his unborn child if his wife never recovers? Will his new faith in Jesus Christ really help him trust that God has everything in His control including the very soul of his wife? Will God hear his prayers and save his wife and child?

About the Authors:

Darren Grant, has a B.S.Ed. chemistry,M.S. Science Education, and has been a certified science teacher since 1991. For the first twelve years he taught within the public school systems of Kansas and Missouri. He became frustrated with all of the systematic built in problems inherent in public education. He learned first hand while he was a state representative delegate for the Kansas NEA that the problems in public education exist by design. The NEA exists to indoctrinate students - not educate them. He was tired of being part of the problem, so he left and taught for seven years in a private christian school. Darren is still certified, and continues working as a teacher and presenter for Real Ark Ministries.

Cara Grant, B.S. Vocal Performance, worked as a CPhT until our marriage in 1999. Since that time she has devoted her life to raising our six children. In December 2005 they formally launched Real Ark Ministries as an educational ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ. Many of their friends asked what led them to investigate these issues and write this book. It certainly wasn’t an abundance of free time! They had plenty of activity to fill their days with running a small goat dairy, building a debt-free home, raising and homeschooling their six children, and Darren working full time outside the home as a science teacher. In 2000, they began to study freedom, the Constitution, and the Code of Federal Regulations. These topics eventually led them to study socialism, communism, and the New World Order. As they studied, they saw an evil no one seemed to be warning others about: the slavery of the church and the slavery of the common man. After the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare, they felt even more compelled to warn others of the dangers of enslaving our churches and our children.

After a wildfire in Aug. 2011 took their home and most of their earthly belongings, they again evaluated what the most important issues in life should be. In this book, Darren and Cara have only provided a small sampling of the body of knowledge that exists on these two topics. Their prayer is that readers will take the time to study not only the dangers of church incorporation, but also the dangers of social security numbers and birth certificates.

Why social security numbers and birth certificates? Because these documents are the foundational documents for the enslavement of this generation and the next. 

My Thoughts:

I could hardly put this book down! It reminded me a little like some of Frank Peretti's writings as this book shared with the reader some of the hidden powers of darkness that were at work effecting the characters lives. There were many ideas in the book that challenged me such as birth certificates and social security numbers as well as church incorporation, three of the main themes running through the book. A few times I even stopped to look up a website or book or author and was impressed that this book, even though fiction, had real research with real websites that I could go and look up for myself.

This book had a great story and was worth the read if you read the more challenging issues like birth certificates and social security numbers with a grain of salt. However, if you are concerned about government and its role in your family's lives and would love to be inspired and challenged to research more, this is a wonderful book to make you think and research for yourself what is really going on in America.  Do you know what the Constitution really says or are you willing to have your life played out by others using "House Rules"? 

Buy the book here!

ISBN: 978-0983835967 | ASIN:  B009XMDY4U| List Price: $17.99/ 9.99 in Kindle | Format: Soft cover and kindle | Page Count: 370

Or at Amazon.

I received a free copy of this book to review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the FTC Regulations. I am part of The CWA Review Crew.

Thanksgiving Table Cloth Project

This was such a fun project I did last year before Thanksgiving. I had seen this idea somewhere on one of my homeschooling websites, I'm sorry but I don't remember where. But I basically went to the Goodwill and bought an old sheet in a neutral color and some fabric paint in assorted fall colors. I poured the paint onto paper plates to make it easier to apply the paint to everyone's hands and I went around the table having each child press their hand prints in the spot where they would normally sit for a meal. The ones who were old enough signed their own names, (including my silly husband.) I then took a permanent marker and wrote out the Bible verse in the center of the table cloth. "O, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His love endures forever." 1 Chronicles 16:34

Such a fun project and a wonderful keepsake table cloth! Looks like we'll adding some new hand prints this year too!

Hospital Nursing Gown with Matching Little Girls' Dresses and Review

I have just under three weeks left until I deliver my precious little girl via c-section. She will be our third daughter, fourth tubal-reversal baby, and my seventh child!

(Here I am with my six amazing kids who treated me to ice cream on Mother's Day this year. I am about 3 months along here.)

I can hardly believe the baby will be here and that this is all even real some days! I wanted to share my latest project I finished, my very own hospital nursing gown, I made myself!

I was looking on Pinterest and found this great post about making your own hospital nursing gown from The Crafty Cupboard.

I was really excited to attempt to make this hospital nursing gown as I wanted something to look forward  to as I never look forward to having c-sections. After all  this will be my seventh c-section and also my ninth major abdominal surgery.

Disclaimer: I haven't actually sewed anything in YEARS, (except for minor clothing repairs). I haven't tackled a major sewing project like this since before I had kids about 17 years ago.


I pre-washed and dried all my fabric before beginning. I then printed out the hospital gown pattern pieces on my printer.

 I followed the suggestions of a 36 inch length as I am not very tall and that turned out to be a nice length for me. I tapered my cutting to a nice A-line shape as suggested to accommodate my large tummy.

I followed the rest of the blog instructions fairly easily, creating a lovely nursing gown that doesn't fall off my shoulders thanks to snaps in the front and at each side. You can see a better a view of the front here.

I had a little trouble learning how to use the lightweight interfacing around the neckline, but it was definitely worth the effort as it makes for such a nice crisp neckline to attach snaps to. I accidentally ended up sewing my neckline completely together instead of just ironing it out as directed. The directions said to top stitch and I thought it meant to stitch it closed. This made it more difficult to sew the neckline onto the dress so I added an extra step and  sewed purple binding ribbon to the inside of my dress in order to attach the dress to the neckline. It ended up coming out just as nice. I added purple binding ribbon to the sleeves that match the ribbon around my tummy. I think it came out rather nice! Overall, I think the tutorial from The Crafty Cupboard was very thorough and I would definitely attempt to make this dress again.

The total dress cost probably less than $30 including 3 yards of material, purple thread, purple binding ribbon, and velcro, and snaps.

Now for the matching little girls' dresses!

My mother bought me a Simplicity New Look pattern at Wal-mart to make the girls' dresses in size 4 and 6, (along with all the material, it was a very nice birthday present for sure)! Thanks again, MOM!

I just followed the instructions and they were fairly easy to put together. The gathering at the waist was a little tricky but by the time I got to the second dress I got the hang of it. Since I took this picture above I have sewed some little purple bows onto the necklines and added purple ribbons at the waistline to match my gown.

For the infant gown I was inspired by another Pinterest post by Sweet Haute. Lazy Girl Designs has another hospital nursing gown but it didn't have the detachable nursing neckline like I wanted so I ended up going with The Crafty Cupboard's design. But what I DID like about this post was the cute matching infant gown. I basically made a small dress and sewed an elastic into the bottom of it and then sewed it to an infant onesie. I already had a pretty sweater and hat saved from my daughter so I thought it matched perfectly the purple fabric I chose for my dress!

I have two more dresses to make for the girls but I am already looking around at what I can sew next! Well, maybe after the baby comes I hopefully can pick up my sewing again soon. It is such a wonderful way to spend an afternoon! What sewing projects are you working on? 

Clothed With Thunder by Vicki Watson Book Review, Gift Ideas, and Lapbook Horse Study

I had the chance to review one of Vicki Watson's new books Carrie and Bandit and I couldn't wait to read the next book in the Sonrise Stable series with my girls.

INTRODUCING.....

Sonrise Stable: Clothed With Thunder

This is Book 3 in a Series of 4 from the Sonrise Stable series.

A little bit about the book from the website...

"After sitting through a 4-H demonstration on the evolution of the horse, Rosie and Carrie are determined to present the arguments for creation at the club’s next meeting. The demonstration proves harder to put together than they imagined as everyone offers the girls their opinions. The lessons Rosie learns about creation extend into her life in surprising ways as she faces her old adversary, Billy King, who cheated her out of her first trophy with her pony, Scamper."

About the Author: Vicki Watson

My love of horses began when a teenage neighbor offered me my first ride, on the back of her horse. From my 8-year-old perspective, it seemed like the biggest horse in the world. From that moment on, I was addicted. Horses were to become a very important part of my life, although I never could have imagined, at the time, how much God would teach me about Himself and my relationship to Him through these wonderful animals.

The Sonrise Stable series combines my love of God and horses in stories that I hope will help children learn more about both. I have a vision for ten initial books in the series, taking the main characters through one year. Beyond that I'll see where God leads me.

I have been blessed with three daughters and homeschooled each of them through high school. I enjoy trail riding my Rocky Mountain mare, Nikki, hiking, photography, and playing guitar. I work from home as a computer programmer and enjoy the variety and flexibility that allows.

Here is a fantastic trailer to the book. It is very informative and presents wonderful illustrations on the design of horses and how they could not have evolved.

                                    

My Thoughts:

My girls and I were excited to receive the next book in the Sonrise Stable series. This book picks up where the last book left off leaving us delighted to learn how the grandmother was healing from her trail riding accident. This book also jumps right into a heated discussion when the two homeschooled girls, Rosie and Carrie have to sit through a 4-H presentation that focused on evolution. I thought the author did a wonderful job weaving truth into the story as we follow the girls and their progress in presenting their own clever 4-H presentation. There are several life lessons learned as the girls are involved in their parent's decision to attend an auction to buy a new farm and Rosie learns to overcome some hard feelings against an old enemy. The end of the book gives great definitions to dive deeper into the topic of horses and how they are clearly designed by God. The author also gives a website where the reader can learn even more about creation truths. I would recommend this book for any young girl who loves Jesus and horses! Such a great little book!

Oh, and if you check out the Sonrise Stable website you'll see they sell t-shirts and jewelry to go along with the books! Last year I bought their heart shaped locket like the one in the Carrie and Bandit book. I think this necklace would be a great gift to go along with this book if someone were to gift the book to a young girl.

It's labeled as "Blue Ribbon Necklace" and you have to get to the end of the story to know why it is such a fitting necklace to go along with this book! Sorry, I just can't give you anymore details...you have to buy the book yourself! 

Or this t-shirt would make a great gift too!

Purchase your copy today directly from Sonrise Stable here or Amazon.

Like Sonrise Stable Books on Facebook here.

Follow on Twitter here.

You can also subscribe to Vicki's Youtube channel here.

And a homeschooling side note: (because we homeschoolers are always ready to take this to the next level), I found this great little lapbook on sale at Currclick through Free Homeschool Deals just as we were finishing this book. The discount may have expired but at $8 it is quite an in depth lapbook study of horses and worth the price.

Topics include:

All About Horses, Safety on Horses, The Colorings of Horses, Weaning a Foal, Caring for a Horse, Measuring a Horse: “Hands,” The Stall, Accessories For A Horse, Branding, Cowhands, Roundups, Horse Fun Fact, Requires 2 folders.

  Just click this link to get your own!

I received a free copy of this book to review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the FTC Regulations. I am part of The CWA Review Crew.