“Where Treetops Glisten” by Goyer, Sundin and Putman.

This book was set in the time period of WWII and although it contains 3 separate stories, they all involve the same family members so it links the book together.

I loved all three stories. They were light reading with romance and Christmas cheer. I loved that they had such strong family ties/memories and believed strongly in God. I would highly recommend this book!

About the book: 
The crunch of newly fallen snow, the weight of wartime
Siblings forging new paths and finding love in three stories, filled with the wonder of Christmas
Turn back the clock to a different time, listen to Bing Crosby sing of sleigh bells in the snow, as the realities of America’s involvement in the Second World War change the lives of the Turner family in Lafayette, Indiana.
In Cara Putman’s White Christmas, Abigail Turner is holding down the Home Front as a college student and a part-time employee at a one-of-a-kind candy shop. Loss of a beau to the war has Abigail skittish about romantic entanglements—until a hard-working young man with a serious problem needs her help.
Abigail’s brother Pete is a fighter pilot hero returned from the European Theater in Sarah Sundin’s I’ll Be Home for Christmas,trying to recapture the hope and peace his time at war has eroded. But when he encounters a precocious little girl in need of Pete’s friendship, can he convince her widowed mother that he’s no longer the bully she once knew?
In Tricia Goyer’s Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, Meredith Turner, “Merry” to those who know her best, is using her skills as a combat nurse on the frontline in the Netherlands. Halfway around the world from home, Merry never expects to face her deepest betrayal head on, but that’s precisely what God has in mind to redeem her broken heart.
The Turner family believes in God’s providence during such a tumultuous time. Can they absorb the miracle of Christ’s birth and His plan for a future?
Purchase a copy: http://ow.ly/BwVP9
About the authors: 

TRICIA GOYER is a prolific author of nearly forty books, including Chasing Mona Lisa, and a speaker and blogger. 
CARA PUTMAN is the author of twenty books includingShadowed by Grace. She is the winner of the 2008 Carol Award for historical fiction. 
SARAH SUNDIN is the critically-acclaimed author of the Wings of the Nightingale series, the Wings of Glory series, and the forthcoming Waves of Freedom novels.

I’m a blog book reviewer for LitFuse Publicity so I was given this book complimentary in exchange for an honest review on my blog and social media-all opinions are my own.

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Last week’s exercise workouts -Jillian Michaels and TurboJam!

I haven’t been diligent lately with posting my weekly exercise workouts here on my blog and because I updated my ipad, I accidentally took off all my pictures from my device. 🙁  

Here are my workouts from last week, November 2-8 without pictures. Boring I know-sorry!

Sunday Nov 2
(40) mins Leslie Sansone
(28) mins Jillian Michaels Kettlebell

Monday Nov 3
(20) mins Leslie Sansone
(28) mins TurboJam lower body

Tuesday Nov 4
(29) mins Fit Test for Peak10
(20) mins AM yoga
(15) mins Leslie Sansone

Wednesday Nov 5
(52) mins Pure Cardio Peak 10 day 2

Thurs, Fri, Sat
Rest days/sick/female issues

How are your workouts going? Are you doing any particular program?

I decided Peak10 wasn’t something I could do right now-its too high impact-so I started a 4 week Chris Freytag challenge this week.

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Awesome changes are coming!

As some of you know based on my Instagram post last week, I am in the process of changing my social media names and branding myself to better explain my purpose of blogging and what I want to accomplish. I will be switching over this blog to a different format and html, but I will keep you updated as to when that will be so you can easily find me! I don’t want to lose any of my followers! 🙂

For the past couple of weeks I have been meeting with Amanda Tress with http://fitpregnancyandparenting.com/hire-me/ as part of her mentor program and have learned so much! I HIGHLY recommend her!!

2015 will be an incredible year full of growth and new things for my blog, my fitness clients and my Origami Owl partners.

I will keep you posted with my exciting new brand, blog and everything else that’s coming! Stay tuned!

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Messy Beautiful Love BOOK CLUB starts now! #EmpowerMoms

Last month I posted about the pre-order of Messy Beautiful Love and I’m excited to announce today that this month’s WomenLivingWell.org book club study is that exact book!! 
Part of my passion for Empowering Women is to not only encourage fitness, nutrition and healthy lifestyles; but also developing yourself and your relationships. 
They have already started week 2 but you can jump in at any time. I admit I’m behind because of all the other books I read for blog review, but reading a couple of chapters a week shouldn’t be too hard. 

http://womenlivingwell.org/2014/10/messy-beautiful-love-book-club-begins-november-3rd/

So are you going to join me?

If you don’t have the book you can order it here from my amazon affiliate link:
Messy Beautiful Love: Hope and Redemption for Real-Life Marriages

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Stay fit during the Holidays! Starting a new 4 week challenge tomorrow with Chris Freytag.

I posted last week that I’ve been discouraged and have not been able to find a workout program that I’ve stuck with in the last month due to injury and/or program being too advanced.

So I decided to go thru my exercise dvd stash to find a program that I’ve done before, and that it be a shorter 4-6 week program to stay in shape during the holidays.

Introducing the program I’m starting tomorrow:

10 Pound Slimdown Xtreme
by Chris Freytag

Have you heard of it? It’s been around for at least a year or so.
Here’s the description:

Lose up to 10 pounds in 28 days. Are you ready? With Chris Freytag’s Slimdown Xtreme DVD Program, you can make it happen! It packs body cardio, yoga, and core workouts–as well as recovery routines and a healthy eating guide–into four intensive weeks to help you achieve your workout goals. From Chris Fretyag.

As always, please consult your personal physician before beginning any diet or exercise program.

Take a realistic approach: If you work consistently and follow the program, you maximize your results.

Includes DVD set of six extreme 40-minute workouts, five 20-minute recovery workouts, and two bonus 10-minute workouts; better eating guide; workout plan; and measuring tape
Made in USA

I will be following the 4 week Xtreme calendar which is here:
http://gethealthyu.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/10lb_Xtreme_WorkoutTracker-4.pdf

You can get more info and purchase the program here for $39.99:
http://gethealthyu.com/product/10-pound-slimdown-xtreme/

Chris Freytag is a phenomenal fitness trainer!! I have many of her dvds including this program and her original 10 pound slimdown (which is included in the xtreme workouts). I would highly recommend her workouts to anyone!

Check out amazon for a listing of several of her workout dvds here:
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=sr_pg_1?rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Achris+freytag&keywords=chris+freytag&ie=UTF8&qid=1415568476

As always, I will post weekly recaps about this challenge here on my blog and daily posts on my Instagram page. I hope you will join me in this 4 week Xtreme Challenge so we can stay fit during the holidays!

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