The Life Ready Woman, written by Shaunti Feldhahn & Robert Lewis, is a guide for moms that helps them with Thriving in a Do-It-All World. Lately, I’ve personally been so overwhelmed by everything that at times, things aren’t getting done because I just can’t handle it all. There’s too much going on at once. We moms have a hard time understanding that we can’t do it all; we need the guidance of our Heavenly Father to even make it through one hour, let alone a whole week.

In this book Shaunti really examines what the Bible says about our lives as women and the responsibilities we have both toward our God and our families. She examines women and their roles throughout history, as well as myths and things we tend to take to heart. She examines all of this from a Godly perspective, really digging into Scripture to guide us along with her, in a totally non-threatening, non-judgmental way.

One reason I really like this book is that it’s written partially by Shaunti, a woman who struggled with the juggling act herself. I like that she’s been where I’m at….she’s lived this balancing act called motherhood. I also like that she makes the tips and guidance she gives very easy to apply to your own life by giving hands-on things we can do to examine our own situations, our own lives.

You can purchase The Life Ready Woman for $9.64 from Amazon. You can also read more reviews on Litfuse.

About The Life Ready Woman:

Are you a ‘Doing it all’ or ‘Do what matters’ woman?

Whether a stay at home; or working mom, an airplane-hopping executive, an empty-nester caring for multiple generations or a single juggling high demands of career and personal life, today’s fast-paced modern world leaves women gasping for balance. We as modern Christian women want to look to the Bible for guidance on how to manage our lives — but because the world of women looks so different today than it did when the Bible was written, it is hard to find chapter and verse that seems to apply to our situation today.

Thankfully, God has given us exactly that timeless, unchanging guidance for how to find peace, clarity, and God’s best for our lives once we know where to look! The Life Ready Woman: Thriving in a Do-It-All World, reveals a profound biblical roadmap for how each of us can find the abundant life we are longing for, rather than the stressful, torn, how-do-I-balance-it-all life we often feel like we are trying to keep up with today. Actually being a LifeReady Woman means that you are clear about your life, bold in your faith, and able to find God’s best for you, and the end result will be that you not only survive but thrive in our do-it-all world.

God has given every wonderfully unique woman different skills and abilities, different desires, and different temperaments — and every woman around the planet and through the ages is certainly living in different circumstances. But no matter what a woman’s life looks like, the Bible says that God has an individual mission and plan that He’s carefully designed for each of us. And He wants us to find it. Starting January 2011, The Life Ready Woman and the Life Ready Woman Video Series will help every wonderfully unique woman to thrive as she identifies and courageously pursues God’s unique design and callings for her. LifeReady Woman puts you on a roadmap to make decisions that will lead to relief, delight, and fulfillment instead of regret.

About Shaunti Feldhahn:

Shaunti Feldhahn is a former Wall Street analyst, best-selling author of the book For Women Only, national speaker, and regular commentator in the media. She has been featured on The Today Show, PBS, TNT and Fox News- to name a few. You can learn more about her many activities by visiting her website Shaunti.com or get some great mom advice from her at MomLifeToday.com. She and her husband live with their two young children in Atlanta, Georgia and enjoy every minute of living at warp speed.

About MomLife Today:

At MomLife Today you will enjoy community with real moms experiencing every age and every stage of MomLife—right alongside you.

Moms need friends we can walk through life with, but more importantly we need friends who will encourage us and equip us in our role as moms in an honest and transparent way … and that’s just what you’ll find by becoming part of our MomLife Today community! We believe that every MOMent counts!

We admit it, being a mom 24/7 is not easy. Rather than lament the role of motherhood, however, we choose to embrace that role and learn from each other how to make it through each day with the right attitude. Come share the joys, sorrows, insanity, and special moments of motherhood with us as we live it and candidly write about it…we’ll have lots of fun along the way! Join us, and do tell… What’s happening in your MomLife Today? www.momlifetoday.com

In celebration of Shaunti Feldhahn’s Life Ready Woman, MomLife Today is giving away 2 Weekend To Remember Gift Packs and much more!

Weekend To Remember Get-Aways offer marriage-changing principles that you can take home and apply to your daily lives to strengthen your marriage. Whether you are newly engaged or have been married for 50 years, you will find value in the tools provided at the getaway.

Don’t miss this opportunity to receive a conference registration for you and your spouse … and more! MomLife Today will be randomly selecting NINE lucky recipients to receive one of these great gifts:

1. 2 Weekend To Remember Get Away conference registrations for two. $259 value each pair (Two couples will receive this.)
2. 2 Life Ready Woman DVD packs. $149 value each (Two different people will receive this gift.)
3. 5 The Life Ready Woman books. (Book will go to 5 people.)

To enter click one of the icons below then tell your friends. Winner will be announced on March 2nd on the MomLife Today website.

(Disclosure: I received a copy of this book, free of charge, from Litfuse, for the purposes of this review.)

The third book in the Lancaster County Secrets series is here, The Choice, written by Suzanne Woods Fisher. Oh, how I love this author and her ability to weave a story, twisting in the tiniest of details to create a masterpiece. This book focuses in on Lainey O’Toole and Bess Reihl. Lainey has come back to Stony Ridge, just passing by on her way to culinary school. However, circumstances, or maybe Divine Providence, dictate a different kind of future for Lainey, one even she herself couldn’t have predicted. For as long as she can remember, having been placed in the foster care system from the age of ten, Lainey has just wanted a family, a sense of belonging. When she decides to stay in Stony Ridge, she starts to feel that belonging within the Amish community. There is something about this simple life, even with all of its sacrifices, that draws her more and more toward home.

Bertha Reihl is grandmother to Bess Reihl, who comes to stay with her over the summer and help with her rose growing/jam making business. Bess and Jonah moved away to Ohio years ago when Jonah’s wife was killed in a terrible accident. Bess is just coming of age, also starting to feel her first love. The story weaves around Bess and Lainey’s transformation and their growth. Not everything is as it seems, and there is a mystery surrounding Lainey. I don’t want to give up the story, but I will say that it’s a story that kept me turning page after page. Then again, Suzanne Woods Fisher is one of my favorite authors. Read more reviews on Litfuse, and you can also read more about this book below….

About the book:

Fifteen years ago, Lainey O’Toole made a split-second decision. She couldn’t have known that her choice would impact so many.

Now in her mid-twenties, she is poised to go to culinary school when her car breaks down in Stoney Ridge, the very Amish town in which her long-reaching decision was made, forcing her to face the shadowed past.

Bess Reihl is less than thrilled to be spending the summer at Rose Hill Farm with her large and intimidating grandmother, Bertha. It quickly becomes clear that she is there to work the farm–and work hard. The labor is made slightly more tolerable by the time it affords Bess to spend with the handsome hired hand, Billy Lapp. But he only has eyes for a flirty and curvaceous older girl.

Lainey’s and Bess’s worlds are about to collide and the secrets that come to light will shock them both.

“Beautifully written, ‘The Search’ is a skillfully woven story that takes readers through unexpected twists and turns on the long country road toward truth. Fans both old and new will find themselves immersed in this heartwarming–and surprising–tale of young love, forgiveness, and coming to grips with the past.”

About Suzanne:

In no particular order, Suzanne Woods Fisher is a wife, mother, writer, lifelong student of the Bible, raiser of puppies for Guide Dogs for the Blind, a gardener and a cook…the latter two with sporadic results.

Suzanne has loved to write since she was a young teen. After college, she started to write for magazines and became a contributing editor for Christian Parenting Today magazine. Her family moved to Hong Kong for four years, just as the internet was developing, and she continued to write articles in a 44-story high-rise apartment, sending manuscripts 7,000 miles away with a click of a key.

After returning from Hong Kong, Suzanne decided to give her first novel a try. For four and a half months, she worked on an antediluvian computer in a cramped laundry room. She didn’t even tell her husband what she was up to. When the novel was completed, she told her family at dinner one night that she had written a book. “That’s why there’s no food in this house!” said her slightly insensitive sons.

Undaunted…Suzanne found a small royalty publisher for that book and wrote three more (all earned multiple awards). With help from an agent, she now has numerous  books under contract with Revell. Also look for Suzanne’s Amish non-fiction, Amish Peace: Simple Wisdom for a Complicated World, a non-fiction book of stories and examples about the Old Order Amish, as well as Amish Proverbs, and coming in Spring of 2011, look for Amish Values for Your Family. The Choice and The Waiting are the previous books in the Lancaster County Secrets Collection.

Writing, for Suzanne, is a way to express a love of God and His word. With every book or article, she hopes readers get a sense of what faith really looks like in the daily grind. She hopes they realize that life can be hard, but God is good, and never to confuse the two.

Suzanne can be found on-line at: www.suzannewoodsfisher.com

Link to buy the book:

http://www.amazon.com/Search-Novel-Lancaster-County-Secrets/dp/0800733878/ref=sprightly-20

Suzanne Woods Fisher’s latest installment of the Lancaster County Secrets, The Search,  is just out and to celebrate Suzanne is hosting The Search iPad Giveaway!

One Grand Prize winner will receive an iPad Prize Package worth over $500 and includes:

• A brand new iPad (16KB with Wi-Fi)
• Signed copies of all three Lancaster Country Secrets books (The Choice, The Waiting, & The Search)

To enter, simply click on the icons below to fill out the entry form/s, then tell 5 or more friends about the contest. Oh, and enter soon! Winner will be announced on February 3rd at Suzanne’s Everything is Coming Up Roses Facebook Party. (Did you know The Search takes place on a rose farm?)

Chocolate….what more can I say? Chocolate and I have had an understanding for quite some time. I love chocolate; it’s my one weakness when it comes to food. Lately, I’ve been trying to very much limit myself as to how much I eat, so I got my family involved in this review; that way we could share the chocolate and enjoy it over time.

Choccreate Chocolates is a place where you can basically design your own chocolate bars. It’s fun to do, but it’s also perfect for gifts. What do you decorate the chocolate with? Try fruit, nuts & cereals, gourmet items, themed candies, sprinkles, herbs & spices, etc. Choccreate was brought about through childhood memories, rich in a mother’s legacy of preparing chocolates for her children every holiday season. I was excited to create some chocolate of my own, one bar for each person in my family. It was super easy and honestly, kinda fun!

First of all, I had to choose between milk chocolate, dark chocolate, or white chocolate. Then I was able to choose different toppings. The toppings are priced differently, so I mixed and matched. Some of the fruits available include bananas, raisins, figs, blackberries, etc. Nuts & cereals include granola, corn flakes, pumpkin seeds, pecan nuts, etc. Gourmet includes things like 23karat gold powder, candied violet flowers, mimosa flowers, etc. Extra ingredients include Cheddar Gold Fish, gummi bears, M&Ms, mini pretzels, brown sugar, etc. Themed decorations include mini hearts, blue/pink feet, red white & blue stars, etc. Herbs & spices include chili powder, cinnamon, granulated honey, etc. Some of the ingredients sounded wonderful, and others seemed questionable, but to each his own, I guess.:)

Here’s a peek at what I created. The kids were so excited, they tore into them before I could even get pics. Don’t worry, I didn’t let them eat them all in one sitting; they’re still working on them, a little bit at a time. First of all, the box they all came in was beautiful, all wrapped up with a bow. The box is definitely reusable; I’ll probably use it to store scrapbook items or crafting supplies.For my husband, Dan, I made a milk chocolate bar with mini pretzels. One of his favorite snacks is chocolate covered pretzels, so this was perfect for him.For my son Jacob, I made a white chocolate bar with mini hearts. He loves white chocolate, and the mini hearts were perfect for Valentine’s Day.For Jaden I made a Smores candy bar with milk chocolate, mini marshmallows and Teddy Grahams. He loves it, and it did turn out so cute!Finally, for myself I made a milk chocolate bar with raisins; one of my favorite snacks when we go to the movies is chocolate covered raisins. Yum!I tried a couple bites, just so I could give my honest opinion (likely excuse, huh?). Each bar is very yummy; I have to say the Smores bar is my favorite so far. The chocolate is not quite as creamy as I would like, but it is very good. The toppings really add to the whole flavor and feel of the bars. It’s a unique gift, perfect for Valentine’s Day or even Easter, both of which are coming up soon. Prices are definitely affordable. My most expensive chocolate bar was $5.15. These would make great “just because” gifts, as well….hint to all the husbands out there. In fact, you can use a special discount for 20% off with the coupon code: heartprints, valid through 2/28/11.

The great news is that, thanks to Choccreate, I’m giving away a $25 gift certificate, so that one reader can create their very own chocolate creations! You can enter to win by doing one or more of the following; just be sure to leave a separate comment for each way that you enter. I’ll draw the winner, via random.org, on Friday, February 4. This giveaway is open to U.S. and Canada. Good luck, and have a wonderful day!

1. Visit Choccreate Chocolates, and let me know exactly what kind of bar you would create if given the opportunity; what toppings would you use?
2. Add Choccreate Chocolates as a Friend on Facebook.
3. Follow @choccreate on Twitter.
4. Tweet about this giveaway; you can tweet once daily to earn extra entries.
5. Blog about this giveaway, being sure to link back to Real Heart Prints.
6. Follow the Choccreate Blog.
7. Leave a comment on the Choccreate Blog.
8. Follow Real Heart Prints or subscribe to my posts.
9. Follow @missmalu on Twitter.
10. Stumble this post.

(Disclosure: I received 4 chocolate bars, free of charge, from Choccreate, for the purposes of this review. All opinions/views are my own.)

It seems that every time I head to town now, there’s at least one corner on which someone is holding a sign, asking for work.  To me, it’s really sad, and I can’t imagine how desperate that person must be to stand on the corner with that sign….it’s an awful feeling in the pit of my stomach every time I see it.  So many people are suffering right now, from living in tent cities to being homeless on the streets to going to bed hungry every single night. Over 49 million Americans (including approximately 14 million children) are facing hunger in America today.

Tim McGraw and Hamburger Helper are working to raise awareness about the hunger people of our nation are facing right now.  They are working to raise support for Feeding America through the Show Your Helping Hand campaign.  You can help.  Right now when you buy certain boxes of Hamburger Helper, you can submit a code from that box onto the Show Your Helping Hand website, thus giving 17 cents toward the work of Feeding America; that 17 cents will deliver one meal to a food bank.

We actually received a prize pack from My Blog Spark, which included a box of Hamburger Helper Cheeseburger Macaroni, a foam Hamburger Helper foam “Helping Hand” (which Jaden loves), and the Tim McGraw Southern Voice CD.  Not only that, but Hamburger Helper made a $10 donation to the Show Your Helping Hand Campaign for me, which I’m so excited about!  Hamburger Helper is definitely nice for when you need a meal in a hurry.  All we had to do was add hamburger to the boxed ingredients, and voila, we had a meal.  It was full of cheesy flavor, and it was something our kids enjoyed, as well.
Tim McGraw’s Southern Voice includes 12 different songs, including Still, If I Died Today, Southern Voice, and others.  I generally don’t listen to a lot of country music, but I have always enjoyed Tim McGraw because so many of his songs tell a story.  They have emotion and feeling throughout. By visiting Show Your Helping Hand, you could have the chance to win an autographed Tim McGraw CD.

The great news is that I am giving away the same prize pack, as mentioned above; it will include a box of Hamburger Helper, a Hamburger Helper foam “Helping Hand,” and Tim McGraw’s Southern Voice CD! You can enter to win by doing one or more of the following; just be sure to leave a separate comment for each way that you enter.  I’ll draw the winner, via random.org, on Monday, December 20.  This giveaway is open to U.S. only.  Good luck, and have a wonderful day!

1. Visit Show Your Helping Hand, and leave me a comment, letting me know how you will encourage others to submit codes and join in the fight against hunger with Hamburger Helper/Feeding America.
2. Like Feeding America on Facebook.
3. Follow @FeedingAmerica on Twitter.
4. Tweet about this giveaway, being sure to use the hashtag #myblogspark.  You can tweet once daily to earn extra entries.
5. Subscribe to the Feeding America Blog.
6. Follow Real Heart Prints, or subscribe to our posts.
7. Follow @mamabzz on Twitter.
8. Blog about this giveaway, being sure to link back to Real Heart Prints.

(Disclosure: I received the prize packs/information, free of charge, from Hamburger Helper, through My Blog Spark, for the purposes of this giveaway post.)