Review: I Like Giving by Brad Formsma

"One reason community is so important is that living isolated from the people around you makes it really hard to give."

Watch the book trailer and see for yourself!

 The Friday 56

 

"So many people had showered us with kindness during our battle with cancer. Why not bless Anne with a free ticket?" -- Brad Formsma

 

LadyD Books Review

This is a powerful book with simple words to understand but it comes with a dynamic punch that will turn your life around. I think so many of us have heard the expression, 'It's more blessed to give than receive.' We get the concept and have applied it now and then, especially when it's convenient for us. 

Here the author gives us a plethora of examples of shared testimonies and heartfelt stories of the giving experience. What I personally gleaned is that giving is a way of life, looking for the opportunity to meet a need, and it can be in the form of a smile of encouragement or in helping someone get a new car. Do we want to spend our lives always caring for material stuff we gather in this lifetime or simply be motivated by a universal principle of giving to our fellow man? 

This is an easy book to read, but as you go deeper perhaps you'll be challenged with the choice to become aware of others needs and be an instrument of generosity. I think you'll be amazed at the many opportunities that come your way and how you will grow as a person. For sure, you will be rewarded with a renewed passion and unending joy to give more frequently and the world will be a better place.

I really liked this book and give it 4/5 stars. Recommend it! Many of the stories will leave you teary-eyed while other testimonies will shock and awe you because they are over the top stories. Such a blessing to see the children and parents so deeply involved in giving... I get it!

What Others Are Saying

 

“Important and exciting! I Like Giving could be the beginning of a movement of generosity.”
–Mark Batterson

“I Like Giving will light you up on the generosity dial.”
—DAVE RAMSEY, host of The Dave Ramsey Show and New York Times best-selling author

“Brad’s understanding of generosity is a wake-up call for the giver inside us all.”
—MICHAEL JR., award-winning comedian

About The Author

Brad Formsma is the creator of ilikegiving.com, a website viewed in more than 165 countries, which inspires people to live generously through its short films as well as a platform for all to share their experiences in giving. Brad and his wife, Laura, have three children and live in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

  This book was sent to me by Blogging for Books  in exchange for my honest review.

“Important and exciting! I Like Giving could be the beginning of a movement of generosity.”
—MARK BATTERSON, author of The Circle Maker - See more at: http://waterbrookmultnomah.com/catalog.php?work=234388#sthash.t9qBmO0r.dpuf

Brad Formsma

BRAD FORMSMA is the creator of Ilikegiving.com, a website viewed in more than 165 countries, which inspires people to
live generously through its short films as well as a platform for all to share their experiences in giving. Brad and his wife,
Laura, have three children and live in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
- See more at: http://waterbrookmultnomah.com/author-spotlight.php?authorid=185133#sthash.06iSCeQw.dpuf

Best wishes and much continued success to Brad Formsma!

-- LadyD

Brad Formsma

I Like Giving: The Transforming Power of a Generous Life

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“You can’t get a cup of tea big enough or a book long enough to suit me." C. S. Lewis

Ten Little Ducklings for Swim Lessons

 At the Safari Park I came across this mama duck with her ducklings. In the Spring, I love how the warm sun casts shadows and ripples of light on the water. I'm a huge fan of water reflections.

 Once on the other side of the lake, mother duck takes a break, enjoying her afternoon rest.

O.k., I guess four baby ducks decide to finally settle down for a short afternoon nap because mama duck says so!

Aren't these little guys adorable? How many do you see? They are up and ready to get into formation!

Ten little ducklings lined up for swimming lessons! I had so much fun seeing them all grouped together and watching their activity for a little while. Fortunately, they all pretty much stayed together so I could get a few lovely shots.

Photos for Wild Bird Wednesday

Have you ever had the opportunity to Take-Care-of-Ducklings or visited a hatchery?






“You can’t get a cup of tea big enough or a book long enough to suit me." C. S. Lewis

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Paleo Comfort Foods by Karen Evans: Review

Salads, Soups, Snacks and Veggies.
Well organized with many tasty recipes. Come see!

 The Friday 56

 

"Gluten is a protein that's found from a family of wheat products that includes barley, rye, semolina, bran and of course heat itself which is only among a long list of other products." -- Karen Evans from Paleo Comfort Foods: Low Carb Gluten Free Foods The Whole Family Will Enjoy

Book Review

First of all, I just love the organization of the book from snacks, soup, salad, veggies and poultry. I've tried the Roasted Cauliflower and Marinated Asparagus. Included within each recipe is a nutritional fact breakdown that is very useful and informative. I found the measurements and serving sizes to be accurate also. I'm looking forward to trying Turnip Tots and the Chilled Carrot Soup. Overall, it's a nice cookbook if you're a fan of gluten free recipes!

5/5 stars.

Recipes

Roasted Cauliflower

1 Cauliflower head, cut into florets

3 Cloves garlic, minced

2 Tbl. lemon juice

2 oz. Parmesan Cheese

Olive oil for drizzling

Salt & pepper to taste

Arrange florets on the baking pan. Sprinkle minced garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper and olive oil. Bake 200C for 25-30 mins.

Marinated Asparagus

32 oz. Asparagus cut into 2" pieces
12 oz. Balsamic Vinaigrette
1 Tbl. lemon zest
2 oz. Fresh parsley, chopped
Salt & pepper

Blanch asparagus. Place in a shallow container. Pour vinaigrette over all. Make sure it's covered and refrigerate 3 hours. Season with salt and pepper, sprinkle lemon zest and parsley.

Turnip Tots 

 

8 pieces baby turnips

1 Tbl. vegetable oil

1 Tbl.  butter

2 Tbl. mint leaves, minced

1 tsp. lemon zest

2 oz. Japanese bread crumbs (Panko)

salt & pepper

Boil water and cook turnip tots 10 mins. Cut into wedges. Heat oil, melt butter. Cook 10 mins. Stir in lemon zest, mint, bread crumbs and salt & pepper. Cook 5 mins. more.

Chilled Carrot Soup

 

1 oz. olive oil

32 oz. carrots, peeled and chopped

2 large leeks (white & pale green parts) chopped

2 garlic cloves, chopped

1/2 tsp. dried red pepper

2 Tbl. ground cumin

50 oz. chicken broth (or vegetable)

1 oz. lemon juice

lime zest

4 oz. sour cream

In a large pot, heat oil. Saute garlic. Add carrots and leeks. Saute 5 mins until soft. Add cumin and red pepper. Stir and add broth. Bring to boil. Reduce heat, simmer 35 mins. Leave pot uncovered and cool soup room temperature. Using a blender, puree soup. Optional, whisk in sour cream. Sprinkle fresh cilantro and lime zest.

Chickpea Salad

 

1 1/2 oz. olive oil

18 oz. (canned) chickpeas, drained

1 oz. red onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 med. size tomato chopped

4 oz. parsley, chopped

1 oz. lemon juice

salt & pepper

Place all in bowl and chill 2 hours. Add more seasoning if necessary.

There's so much more to try but these are a few recipes I wanted to share with my readers. Do you have a favorite salad to make or vegetable side dish?

 “You can’t get a cup of tea big enough or a book long enough to suit me." C. S. Lewis

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Think Pink and Orange

With all my many wonderful trips to the San Diego Safari Park, I find myself once again in front of these marvelous wading birds, the Flamingos. Photo for Wild Bird Wednesday
If you haven't been to our Animal Park, I highly recommend making an entire day of it. Get your walking shoes on and of course, bring your camera!

Flocks numbering in the hundreds may be seen in long, curving flight formations and in wading groups along the shore.  Did you know a flock of flamingos is called a flamboyance?!

One thing for sure, Flamingos form strong bonds and they are very social birds! Flamingo comes from the Spanish word, Flamenco which means fire. I love their coloring!

From the photos it seems that Flamingos often stand on one leg, the other leg tucked beneath the body. I'm not really sure why that is since the birds can't tell me!  Perhaps they are conserving body heat while standing in or near the water.

Additional Information

Caribbean Flamingo
San Diego Zoo
SeaWorld Parks

Kid's Books

Flora and the Flamingo

Those Funny Flamingos (Those Amazing Animals)

Felipe the Flamingo

 So, where do you go to see the lovely flamingo in your area?




 “You can’t get a cup of tea big enough or a book long enough to suit me." C. S. Lewis

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Book Review: Attack Your Day! Before It Attacks You!

Successful tips for paper and electronic time management methods! Learn about time sponges, coloring your choices, saying no and the gift of time. 5/5 stars. Highly recommend.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Book Description

Smarter time management for a whole new world: faster, more flexible, and easier! Mark Woods' activity-based Attack Your Day system has helped thousands of individuals supercharge their productivity – in work and business, in school, and throughout their personal lives. Now, it's your turn! Attack Your Day's five crucial "activity management" skills and 101 productivity strategies can help you achieve unprecedented levels of effectiveness, as you move relentlessly towards achieving your most important goals in life. You'll learn how to dramatically improve the way you choose and prioritize your activities… organize your day so it's inherently more productive… make sure the most important tasks get done… overcome procrastination once and for all… know how and when to "turn on a dime" in response to events, without sacrificing focus or efficiency… learn how and when to say NO to interruptions. You're always doing "something": make sure you're doing the right things at the right times the right way, and you can transform your life!

Attack Your Day!: Before It Attacks You 

 

 Editorial Reviews 

 

Avoid overwhelm, deal with interruptions, and enjoy your best life.

The new time management is activity management.  An activity is anything we do.  It's a phone call, responding to an email or drop-in visitor, a work-related task, an unplanned meeting, exercising, spending time with family or friends. It’s even eating, sleeping or an emotion that we feel.  We engage in an activity every second of every day.

The activities we decide to do (or not do) can either direct us towards our goals in life or drive our stress level up to the point of overwhelm where we can’t seem to get anything accomplished.

Most old, established time management strategies do not fit today’s high intensity, rapidly changing, fast-paced environment.  What we need is fast, flexible, easy solutions. You’ll find them in this book.

 

The Friday 56 

"If you want time management to be easy, you need to "take-it-easy" for 30 minutes by yourself every day. Be a "lone arranger" and let tour mind, your subconscious, and your heart guide you."

My Review

 

The book grabbed my attention right away with a powerful statement about 3 incredible gifts. The points concerning time, energy and choice are well written. The author successfully breaks down simple time management approaches (for paper and electronic management methods) and covers a lot of material regarding your choices, arranging them and focusing on your activities. I especially love the part concerning "coloring your choices." It's a great visual for prioritizing and responding to what is vital, necessary, real, practical and efficient. For personal application on how to say no, the quotes discussed here provide an excellent platform of strength and confidence for the reader to practice at home, at work or anywhere for that matter. Slicing your time like pie and arranging your plate are excellent points to apply to one's life also. I'm not sure I will use all of the 6 bucket recommendation ideas for effective time/activity management but overall, I find the writings very useful and inspirational. I will personally reflect often upon the motto: Plan, Simplify, Be Strong.

5/5 stars! Highly recommend.

 

From The Back Cover

 

“Finally, a quick-fix approach to activity management that doesn’t take more time to learn than the amount of time it saves!”
--Trapper Woods, CSP

“This book is filled with nuggets of wisdom! Attack Your Day! delivers a unique and practical approach to activity management for a more productive life.”
--Greg S. Reid, bestselling author, Three Feet from Gold

About The Author 

 

Trapper Woods is a well-known expert in the field of time management, work-life balance, and customer service and is affectionately known as Father Time.  He has traveled more than 2.5 million miles, influencing tens of thousands of people throughout the United States and Canada.

Mark Woods has seventeen years of experience in training, project management, sales, and marketing. Mark uses his business experience to provide results-oriented strategies that drive peak performance in today’s fast-paced work environment.

Attack Your Day!: Before It Attacks You

Yes, Spring is in the air and I wanted to share with my readers one last view of the snow capped mountain range of "San Jacinto" from my view. I love country living and I especially find strength in gazing upon this glorious mountain range. Photo for Skywatch Friday

Are you up on a hill or in the lowlands? How far of a drive before your surrounded by hills and mountains? It takes me about a half hour drive and the view, along with the fresh air is worth it!

Happy weekend!




 “You can’t get a cup of tea big enough or a book long enough to suit me." C. S. Lewis

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Review: Baseball Animals by Christopher Jordan

5/5 stars! Perfect for my 5 year-old grandson. The Chicago Cubs were named to reflect youth & playfulness of their players, as well as the incredible strength of the black bear.

Amazon Snippet

In these Major League Baseball licensed books, children are introduced to exciting early concepts through two engaging titles that teach young readers about opposites and introduce them to various animals unique to the world of professional baseball. Children and parents alike will enjoy these fully illustrated and licensed books that celebrate the exciting world of baseball with MLB players, team logos, and more.

In MLB Animals, children will learn about the various animals specific to professional baseball and discover why each team selected the particular animal when naming their club.

 

Product Details

• Age Range: 3 - 7 years
• Grade Level: Preschool - 2
• Series: Major League Baseball: First Base Books
• Hardcover: 24 pages
• Publisher: FENN-TUNDRA (February 11, 2014)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 177049474X
• ISBN-13: 978-1770494749

My Review

 

I love how the book is nicely organized with an educational description of each animal and then asking the children to guess which animal is associated with a particular professional baseball team. When you turn the page over, you'll see a pro ballplayer in uniform with an explanation of why their team is named the Baltimore Orioles, for example. My grandson who is 5 years old loved seeing the majestic bald eagle and learning about the marlin. Naturally, he was fascinated by the diamondback rattler and his love for the sport of baseball has grown more because of his connection with baseball animals. We love the book because it's visual and so engaging. It's well written, keeps their attention and the illustrations are beautiful!

5/5 stars. Recommend!

 About The Author

 

CHRISTOPHER JORDAN is an avid sports fan. He has played competitive hockey, baseball, and football and even drove in a kart racing league. He coaches tyke hockey and little league baseball and is a published children's book author and father of three great kids who he is introducing to the exciting world of sports. He and his wife and their children live in Toronto, Canada.

Baseball Animals




 “You can’t get a cup of tea big enough or a book long enough to suit me." C. S. Lewis