She's a Graduate

This past Saturday morning, Pippa made up her final class at PetSmart and graduated from puppy training. Her last class was supposed to be on Saturday, November 16, but because I was in a car riding back home from Dallas. So, I called the trainer on Monday and rescheduled for Saturday the 23rd at 9:30 a.m.

We got to PetSmart a little early because I wanted Pippa to have her nails, or talons as I like to call them, trimmed. After the nail trimming, we headed over to the training area. It was just us since the other dogs in the class had graduated the previous week. The Pip performed some of her learned tricks and then got a stubborn streak and wouldn't do anything. As Linda the trainer said, I know she can do it, but she's just being stubborn. I think she also needed a natural break which apparently deters her from performing as she should.

 

Linda took Pippa's photo for the graduation board and I snapped one with my camera as well. Linda then gave us a goody bag of treats and a scoop and also a certificate of completion and a magnet that says, "My Dog has Class". We discussed the Intermediate Class which I might do with Pippa some time next spring after I get back from vacation. Linda said she needed to mature a few more months first.

So, The Pip is a graduate and can perform a few tricks. Minding on the other hand we need to do a lot of work on because she has a mind of her own. 

Gevalia Foam at Home House Party

~~ Edited to note that my BFF, Jackie made some awesome sausage pinwheels and I have no idea why I didn't mention it in the original post because they were scrumptious! ~~

This past Monday night, I hosted a Gevalia Foam at Home House Party with some of my friends and it was a really fun night. I was selected to host this House Party last month and was so excited when I found out I was one of 5,000 people who got to host. I sent out invites and then last week sent out a reminder to everyone with the menu. I decided on brunch food which was actually a first for our group. As many times as we have gotten together, we have never had brunch food and it turned out to be such a great idea. 

I made a breakfast casserole on Sunday night that had smoked sausage in it as opposed to breakfast sausage that so many breakfast casseroles have and baked it on Monday when I got home.  It was the first time I had made this particular casserole and it turned out really great. It had a great flavor to it and everyone seemed to like it. Here is a link if you are interested in checking it out. Kendra brought a delicious hashbrown casserole that was yummier than any other I have ever had. It was super cheesy and so good. Erika made pumpkin bread which is one of her specialties this time of year and it was good as always. Amanda brought fresh fruit and a yummy cream cheese and toffee fruit dip, Amberly brought doughnuts, and Candy brought some orange juice in case anyone needed a break from all the coffee. 

We go started about 6:30 and I began brewing drinks for everyone using the Keurig. The Gevalia drinks we were sampling are specific to Keurig brewers. The boxes come with a packet of goodness that makes the drink foam. Then, you place the K-Cup in the Keurig as always and brew like normal. The drinks come out really yummy as you can see from our comments below. The party pack also came with some toppers where we could have made designs in our foam but while I was brewing, I had forgotten about those so we didn't use them. I was also given coupons to pass out to the girls who wanted one. 

It was a fun night of fellowship with good friends, good food, and good coffee. You can read what each of us thought about the drinks below.

 

From Left to Right:

Kendra: Caramel Macchiato - Rich in flavor, great caramel taste, foamy

Erika: Cappuccino - Good flavor, frothy and foamy, tasted better than expected

Jackie: Caramel Macchiato - Tasted very sweet and needed no sugar. I'm not a big fan of coffee, but I would drink this again. 

 From Left to Right:

Candy: Mocha Latte - Great amount of chocolate, not too strong, really good!

Amanda: Caramel Macchiato - Not too strong, love the froth, better than most K-Cups I've tried

 From Left to Right:

Me: Caramel Macchiato - Had a nice taste, love the froth on top, not too sweet as it required no sugar, would definitely drink again

Amberly: Mocha Latte - Very frothy and chocolatey and not very strong. I don't like coffee, but I like this!

Dallas - Part Two

After our trip to the merchandise table, we found our seats which were in the upper level behind the stage. This may seem like a terrible seat to some people, but honestly it wasn't bad at all. When you think about it, we were closer to the stage than those on the other side of the arena. There were also screens on which we could see the "up close and in action" shots so really, you will get no complaints out of me and I would definitely sit in this type of seat again. 

The band that opened was called Midlake and they were from nearby Denton, Texas, of which they reminded us on multiple occasions. They weren't too bad, but all of their songs sounded very similar and I doubt I'll be rushing out any time soon to buy their album. They took the stage around 7:45 p.m. even though, as mentioned, the show was slated to start at 7:00 p.m. and played for about 30 minutes. 

After the Midlake set, the stage was switched and finally at about 8:45, Pearl Jam came on stage to the roaring applause of the 20,000 or so people and opened to one of my favorite songs off the new album which is called "Pendulum," and it only got better from there. They played a perfect mix of both old and new songs for three hours and Eddie Vedder's energy was amazing. I didn't want it to ever end. This was the first Pearl Jam show I had seen indoors and I think that contributed to how electric the atmosphere was and the sound was incredible. I thought my eardrums might explode and I honestly didn't care. Eddie Vedder's sister and nephew were in attendance and maybe he wanted to make the show extra special because of that; because to me, he sounded better than he ever has and while he always puts a lot of energy into his shows, it just seemed even more incredible than it usually does. 

Before the Dallas show, there was about a two week break in the North American tour and I had noticed that during the last show before the break, Pearl Jam had played "Chloe Dancer/Crown of Thorns" and I thought to myself how much I would LOVE to hear them play this duo of songs live. "Chloe Dancer/Crown of Thorns" was originally sung by Mother Love Bone and I had it on a cassette tape which Justin and I proceeded to wear out by rewinding and playing over and over and over again on our way to school in the mornings. Well, as luck would have it, "Chloe Dancer/Crown of Thorns" was one f the last set of songs in the second set and I could hardly believe my ears. Even though they had not played "Elderly Woman Behind a Counter in a Small Town" (AKA "Small Town") yet (which is my all-time favorite and was requested by me via Twitter), I didn't care since they had played "Chloe Dancer/Crown of Thorns."

After the second set, they took a small break and then came back out. The drums were elevated on the stage and there was a little platform behind the drum set. Eddie Vedder took the stage and instead of going to the front, he came to the back to that little platform and sang "Small Town" while facing us in the back. With that, my dream concert was complete. There was seriously nothing else they could have played that would have made it any better. It was absolute perfection. As is always the case, they sang "Keep On Rockin' in the Free World" at the end, but surprisingly sang "Indifference" after that and then what was a magical night in Dallas came to a close. 

We walked back to the car and then drove to Nevin's grandmother's house, finally arriving around 2:00 a.m. It was obviously dark and since we were in farm country, there weren't many lights and at one point we turned onto a small dirt road where the sign said, "Darden Cemetery" which was a little creepy. I slept surprisingly well seeing as how it was a strange environment but the exhaustion from the day before had apparently taken over. 

The next morning we were up and ready to go earlier than we anticipated and we headed out around 8:30, stopping for gas and breakfast before hitting the interstate. We only made two other stops on the way home which will come as a big surprise to those of you who are familiar with me and my tiny bladder. We made it back home around 9:00 p.m. and the drive was really not as bad as I had anticipated. While there wasn't much to look at, there was good conversation and music and really, what more can you ask for? 

I'm so thankful I stepped out of my Type A comfort zone and took this trip. It was such a great experience and has provided me memories to last a lifetime.

Dallas - Part One

I'm sure you're probably wondering about Dallas, or at least how my trip to Dallas was because if you're anything like my best friends then you have about 134 questions to ask about my trip. Sorry, but I probably won't provide the answers in this post; but, I will provide a synopsis of the trip and maybe that will appease you all for now. 

My flight for Dallas left Huntsville at 10:06 a.m. Everyone seems perplexed that I didn't take the American Airlines direct flight from Huntsville to Dallas, but last time I checked, money wasn't growing on that one tree in my backyard and so I opted for the cheapest and fastest ticket out of town. That ticket happened to be on US Airways which meant that I had to fly to Charlotte first. Yes, I realize this does not even make the slightest bit of sense. I had about 45 minutes scheduled between my flights, but because the Vice President (yes, Joe Biden) was in town, a lot of flights were late coming in and people were running around like crazy trying to make it to their next gate. I was just casually walking to my next gate and felt like at some point I might be run over by a running man or women in a business suit. 

My flight from Charlotte to Dallas was about three hours and I was hoping that they might actually show a movie and was disappointed when that did not happen. I had a window seat (my favorite) and the guy next to me slept most of the way and it was really an uneventful flight. I felt like there was more legroom on the US Air flight than I usually have on the Delta flights so that was nice. 

I arrived in Dallas a little after 3:00 and finally wound my way down to the baggage claim where I met Nevin. I didn't have any bags to pick up, but it was the easiest place for meeting I suppose and it all worked out. We walked to the car where I met Nevin's brother, Nolan and we set off for the JFK Museum. I had bought tickets for the 4:30 - 5:00 p.m. time slot and had also printed direction before I left and gave them to Nevin before we set off. In typical man fashion, Nevin totally ignored the directions I gave him and instead wanted to use his phone which took us into Fort Worth. I knew all along that we were not headed in the right direction, but was trying to be polite and so I didn't say anything until we ended up in the wrong place and now I can never let him forget it. 

Nevin turned the car around and we headed back towards Dallas and he would probably like for me to mention that we made it to the museum in 30 minutes when the GPS said it would take 50. I have no proof of this, but this is what he said so I have to believe him. We ended up arriving at the museum at 5:05 and I was concerned they wouldn't let us in since this was past the time slot for our tickets. Thankfully, they still accepted the tickets and we had no problem at all. 

I had seen online before leaving that the museum has extended hours right now and is open until 7:00 p.m. but at 10 minutes until 6:00 p.m. when we were not even halfway through the exhibits, a security guard came round and told everyone the museum would be closing in 10 minutes and I was like, "huh?" So, I started zipping through exhibits as if there would be no tomorrow and clearly the museum did not close at 6:00 p.m. because we didn't finish up until 6:45 p.m. and no one attempted to kick us out. There were a few things I skipped and so I obviously wished I had more time to spend there, but at least I've been. 

From the JFK Museum, we walked to the American Airlines Center, which was six blocks away, for the concert. The tickets said the show started at 7:00 and there was an opening band, but I should have known there was no way the show would begin then because I've never been to a Pearl Jam show that started on time. In other words, we totally had time to find a place for a sit down meal, but instead I had a hot dog and a Diet Coke which I proceeded to spill all over my sleeve. No one's ever called me graceful. 

I came to the concert with the intention of buying one of the limited edition posters that Pearl Jam sells specific to each show and so we headed to the merchandise table after I cleaned myself up. I was one of the lucky ones who actually got a poster, because as predicted by yours truly, they sold out. I'm so excited about this souvenir and plan to have it framed as soon as possible. The poster is actually double-sided and so I want to inquire about having it framed with glass on both sides. This might be someone's project for my February birthday. 

This is where I will leave you for now. I'll continue the story tomorrow because I'm sure I'll end up saying a lot about the concert and well, there's not much to say about a 12-hour ride home. Plus, if I keep typing this post will be forever long and you might want to stop reading. So, until tomorrow...

And The Winner Is...

Congrats to commenter #2, Kimberly Washer, who won the recent giveaway of the book Audrey Bunny! I think I have your home address, Kimberly, but please email me and provide it to me so I can be sure. Thanks to all who entered and don't be sad if you didn't win, I've got another giveaway coming up soon! Hope everyone has a great weekend!

The Fifth Class

Well, last Saturday was Pippa's fifth class in her training at PetSmart. In this class she learned to stay and shake. Sophie wasn't able to make it as her parents had a conflict at the last minute, but Latte was there and ready learn. 

Since both Pippa and I and Latte and his mom were early, we were able to get started early and were also able to ask Linda about some of the other classes offered at PetSmart such as Click a Trick - I'm a big fan of pet tricks. She told us a little bit about it and at some point I might take Pippa back for more classes but I think first I may just try out You Tube and see if I can teach her some tricks from there. The Pip's main issue is that she is easily distracted and so when there are a lot of people or other dogs around, she doesn't perform so well. The next class available is one that helps with this but I haven't decided yet if I will take it or not.

Pippa was very uncooperative last Saturday. For the first 10 minutes or so, she did okay with Linda, but then lost interest in the treats Linda was offering and so I started working with her and she was having none of it. Linda said that there is always one class in which the dog just doesn't want to participate and clearly this was going to be the case for Pippa. I began to wonder if she might need a bathroom break and when Linda suggested I take her out for a minute I did just that.

We walked out the front door and I headed towards the back of the store where the delivery trucks come and there is a grassy knoll along the roadway. I thought I could take her over there in case she needed to take care of business. Well, apparently she couldn't wait that long and she pooped all across the parking lot. I, of course, had no baggies with me so I just had to leave it in hopes that no one saw us. Thankfully it was not an area where shoppers are walking around. We finally made it to the grassy knoll where she finished her business and we then returned inside.

After we got inside, she still wasn't all that into the class, but eventually we got her to cooperate with "Stay" and eventually she also did "Shake". We've been practicing "Shake" a lot since last Saturday because it is one of my favorite dog tricks and I want to make sure she is a pro. Since there were only two dogs in the class, it went a lot smoother than it usually does, although we were still both very tired by the time we got home.

Pippa has just one more class which includes the graduation left in her puppy training. It's supposed to be this coming Saturday, but since I'm taking my impromptu trip to Dallas, I will have to reschedule after I get back. I'm sure putting a graduation cap on The Pip will be a trick unto itself.

​Photos From My Phone - November 2013 Edition

It's been a while since I've posted photos from my phone. Most of the photos I took using my phone have been included in various posts on the blog so there's not a lot to choose from this time around. Most of these have been posted on Instagram; so, if you follow me there, then I apologize for the duplication. ​

​
First up is a photo from a couple of Sundays ago. I was meeting my cousin, Alexandra at Hayes Nature Preserve so that she could take some photos of me and Pippa for our Christmas card. It was a gorgeous day so I drove up and over Monte Sano Mountain on the ​

​way and am so glad I did. The leaves and fall colors were amazing and so worth the drive. Yes, I pulled over to take this picture. 

 

This picture is of what was once a peace lily that was sent to me by my co-workers when my grandfather passed away earlier this year. Apparently it is Pippa's favorite toy because she has shredded it to what is now nothing. There are no stems left. I'm going to leave it in the pot for a while and see if it will grow again, but I'm not holding out hope. All the boxes in the background, by the way, contain Christmas presents. I promise I'm not a hoarder. .

I took this photo while stopped in traffic on the Parkway the week after the time changed. I don't know why it is, but every time daylight savings time ends, people seem to lose all capability of driving and the traffic ends up backing up. I have never understood this strange phenomenon, but nonetheless, it always happens. 

Finally, I took a photo of Pippa sitting up on the chair beside the front door. The Tide used to do this all the time and it always gave me a chuckle, so I'm glad that Pippa seemed to have picked up this habit as well. I used PhotoGrid to place their photos side by side. 

Book Review and Giveaway - Audrey Bunny

~~ This Giveaway is Now Closed ~~

Let's start the week off right with a book review and giveaway! I'm pleased to have the opportunity to share with you a review of the book Audrey Bunny by Angie Smith. The book was released last month and is a really lovely story about which emphasizes that everyone is special and wonderfully made by God.

The story is about a bunny with a physical flaw of a spot on her chest over it heart. The bunny sits in the bottom of a barrel in the store for a long time, all the while wishing it will be chosen by a child. The bunny fears that because of the mark on her chest, no child will ever want it. 

A little girl comes in one day and notices the bunny bit doesn't buy it and the bunny is sat; but, a few days later, the little girl comes back to pick out a toy for her birthday and she chooses the bunny. 

The bunny and the girl are both happy and love each other very much. One day, the girl brings the bunny to Show and Tell at the school and the bunny is afraid all the girls' friends will not like it because of the mark on her chest. The girl, however, brags about the bunny and her friends think the bunny is wonderful. 

Audrey Bunny is a great story and more importantly, a nice lesson for children in accepting and loving people for who they are even if they are not what the world might consider beautiful. The book has the most gorgeous illustrations by Breezy Brookshire and will make a wonderful addition to any child's collection. 

Here is some more information about the book and the author...

Audrey Bunny (B&H Books, October 2013) was inspired by the loss of Angie Smith's daughter, Audrey, only a few hours after she was born. She illustrates how in God's eyes, everyone is perfect just they way He made them and He doesn't make mistakes. 

In the tale, Smith writes about Audrey Bunny, who is insecure due to a mark over her heart. Audrey Bunny tries to hide the mark in fear that she will never be worthy of a young girls love because of her imperfection. However, with the help of a young girl's unconditional love, Audrey Bunny learns that the mark over her heart is what makes her special. 

"The theme incorporated throughout the lines of Audrey Bunny is one that all little girls should know and understand, " says Smith. "God doesn't make mistakes. Every single one of us is perfect in our own, unique way."

Angie Smith is a well-known speaker and bestselling author of I Will Carry You, What Women Fear and Mended (B&H Publishing Group). Audrey Bunny is her first children's book. She has a master's degree in developmental psychology from Vanderbilt University. 

How would you like a copy of Audrey Bunny for the special child in your life? The nice team at Shelton Interactive is providing a copy for a giveaway and I'm so happy to host this on the blog. All you have to do to enter is leave a comment on this post. The giveaway will be open until 10:00 p.m. Central time on Thursday, November 14 and the winner will be announced on Friday, November 15. Thanks for reading, and good luck!

He Spoke My Love Language

It's been a sweet forever since I've really done anything crazy. Well, in particular, something that wasn't planned and by the book. I'm a very organized and type A person and flying by the seat of my pants makes me a little antsy and uncomfortable. I like to know what I'm doing and when I'm doing it at all times and when that plan goes awry, I get a little nuts. In other words, I haven't cut loose since I was in my 20s. So, when I received a text from my friend Nevin on Monday night, my inner 20-year old screamed "DO IT" and so I am.

 

The text from Nevin was kind of cryptic at first and it seemed like there was a hidden message. It read, "I was wondering if you had any vacation left and could be free on Friday, November 15." My first thought was to wonder what in the world he needed my help with such that I would need to take a day off from work. A minute or so later, the next text came through and it said, "Pearl Jam concert". Y'all, that was really all he needed to say because Pearl Jam, well, it's my love language and has been since I was 14 years old. I asked, "Where" and here's the kicker... the concert is in Dallas. That's Dallas, Texas, not Dallas Mill in Huntsville. My adult and by the book instinct was to immediately say, no because I am a responsible adult, but my inner crazy wanted to go, go go. I got a few more details in that I would need to book a flight to go to Dallas on Friday and then ride back home in a car with him on Saturday. That's an 11 hour or so trip. I told him I would think about it overnight.

 

So, the next morning, my inside was still screaming for me to go. I had looked at prices for plane tickets on Monday night and the prices were the same the next morning. I went ahead and booked the flight and so I'm headed to Dallas next Friday. No, I really didn't need to spend the money, but I went ahead and did it anyway; sometimes you just need to step outside the box and it's been a long, long time since I have done that.

 

I feel so good about this decision. I am so excited about this trip (yet dreading the long drive home the next day). I really need a break from the stress of work and the mundane routine of life and this unexpected adventure fell in my lap at just the right time. I could not be more thrilled and I know I made the right decision. I'm super, super excited. 

My flight will land in Dallas around 3:00 p.m. and I told Nevin that I want to visit the Book Depository as soon as I land. I've been fascinated with all things Kennedy since I was a child thanks to my late Great Aunt Juanita and I want to check out the museum. So, that's first on the agenda.No doubt, this little adventure will provide some interesting blogging material. So, check back the week after as there is sure to be an entertaining story or two. Let the adventure begin!

Classes Three and Four

Well, Pippa had her third and fourth training classes last weekend and overall I would say she is doing rather well. We have two classes to go, one this Saturday in which she should learn to shake and then one more (which will have to be rescheduled, more on why later) in which she will graduate. I might enroll her in another class some time next year, probably after my vacation in March since I am saving up for that.

 

The third class was last Friday and was a make up since we had missed the week before due to Pippa getting fixed. This class was drop it, leave it, and down. Drop it  is obviously to drop an item and leave it is to leave something alone, and finally, down is to lie down on the floor/ground.

 

The Pip did really well with leave it and in fact is still doing pretty good. We practice this with throwing treats on the ground. I really want to use this command when she is going to town on my foot or arm or any other random thing she should not have in her mouth. She has been "leaving it" with random objects on occasion, but needs some practice and she does really well when I throw a treat on the floor and tell her to "leave it." For whatever reason, we didn't even practice drop it, but I think I can work with her at home on this one. Even The Tide knew, "drop it."

 

As for down, well, that one didn't go so well. She still is not able to get down when tempted with a treat. Her butt always pops back up and she ends up standing again. So, this one definitely needs some work. Sophie joined us for the make-up class since she too was fixed on the 24th and missed the same class Pippa did.

 

We were back the next afternoon for class number four which was "Come"! We used string cheese for this class and it was a big thrill for all the dogs. Sophie was back as was Latte and even Latte, who you might recall is deaf, did a really good job. Linda, the trainer, has been using a laser light with Latte and it seems to be working great. 

Pippa did a good job with "Come!" but this one will take a lot of practice because her attention span is shorter than that of a gnat, I think. We also worked on loose leash walking and "leave it" while walking and she did rather well on those too. After class was over, Linda gave us some free treats which a sales rep had left at the store. It was a full size bag and I, for one, was really grateful to receive them

 

As mentioned, this coming Saturday we will learn shake, which I'm really excited about and I think there is something else too that I cannot recall at the moment. So, we've got two classes left and then she will be a graduate of the puppy training class. Now, if I could only get her to perform these newly learned tricks when there are a lot of people around. That, my friends, will take lots of practice.

Over The Last Few Days

I'm very behind on the blogging this week and I do apologize. I've been busy at work and busy in the evenings and have had zero time to write anything. In fact, I just noticed I didn't even recap my Halloween; so, perhaps I should start there. 

Halloween night my cousin Lauren had a party at her house and a lot of my cousins and my Aunt Linda and various friends were all there celebrating the festivities. We had a spread of snack foods and Lauren made tortilla soup and it was all delicious. Despite it being windy and rainy, there were quite a few trick-or-treaters out and about and all the littlest cousins went out for a while as well. I went home around 7:00 p.m. and lit my own jack-o-lantern in case there were any latecomers on my street. At 8:00 p.m. I was about to get up and close up shop when two little ones and their moms stopped by. I gave the kids handfuls of candy and the little boy (who was probably three or four) made it abundantly clear he did not want chocolate. It was kind of funny and I didn't take offense, but his mom told him not to be picky. It gave me a good chuckle anyway. I closed up after they left and Halloween 2013 was in the books. 

On Friday, Pippa had to make up her missed class at PetSmart and then we had our regularly scheduled class on Saturday. I'll write more about this later. After class on Saturday, I dropped Pippa at home and then went to the grocery store and returned a dress to Belk and then came back home to continue doing a whole lot of nothing.

Sunday after church, Pippa and I went to Hayes Nature Preserve and met my cousin, Alexandra, there so that she could take some photos for the 2013 Christmas card. Now Pippa is crazy a lot of the time, but on Sunday afternoon, she was as crazy as I have ever seen her. She ran around like a wild dog and was even foaming at the mouth and looked rabid. (I promise she has had her shots!) It was really, really bizarre/interesting/entertaining. Alexandra, bless her, was patient and took photos as best she could. She thinks she got at least one good shot, and really, that's all we need. I'm anxious to see the results of our afternoon. Of course, after we were done attempting to get a good photo and got back into the car, Pippa laid down and went to sleep. You would think she could have remained calm for at least one photo. 

Sunday afternoon I cooked a lot of snack food for a jewelry party that mother and I hosted on Monday night and finished up after church. Monday night was the party and we had a great turnout and a good time with laughing and talking and eating - what more could you want? 

So, that sums up the last few days which have been busy and fun all at the same time. Hope your days are also filled with fun and I hope to write again sooner rather than later.

Book Review: The Adventure Bible Storybook

I am so pleased to review for you today the Adventure Bible Storybook. This is a storybook and CD set released by Zonderkidz, a division of Zondervan and it would make a wonderful Christmas gift for the young children in your family!

There are two CDs in the set, one which covers the Old Testament and one covers stories in the New Testament. Each story on the CD is less than four minutes long which is great for holding the attention of small children. The story is told, not verse by verse, but in more of a summary with different voices and also background noises such as animals, or rain, etc and at the end of each story is a "words to treasure" section, which can be used as a memory verse with your child.

The Old Testament covers Adam and Eve , Moses, The Plagues, David and Goliath, Esther and Jonah and a few others. The New Testament covers the birth and baptism of Jesus, Jesus Walking on Water, various miracles of Jesus, Jesus' death on the cross and resurrection, and the journeys of Paul. This is obviously not an entire layout of either the Old or New Testament, since it is only two discs, but most of the major stories that kids learn about in Bible school are included.

The book that accompanies the CDs is so great. There are vividly and beautifully drawn pictures which are sure to capture the attention of children. Kids can follow along in the book as the CD is being played which is sure to help them better understand and envision the stories of the Bible.

Some liberties are taken in telling the stories in that the Bible characters may carry on a conversation that isn't in the Bible, but one that could very well have taken place. No scripture is taken out of context, which is exceptionally important.

This is such a great way for children to enhance their Bible knowledge or if they are not familiar with the Bible, it would be a great way to introduce it. As mentioned, it would make a great gift for any child. The set sells at a reasonable price at various retailers such as Amazon and Barnes and Noble.