Smart Kidz Media has created their wonderful programming, Smart Kidz Radio. This is a program that is designed for kids to easily use online to listen to music created especially for kids. But they also offer so much more.

Smart Kidz Radio offers an On Demand program for kids, in different genres. On Demand allows your child to choose from various channels of music. All are developed specifically for children and safe for them to listen to.

There is also a live stream available. This allows your child to listen to the programming as it’s presented online. All of the songs are designed specifically with children in mind and safe for listening ears. There’s no junk here.

My favorite part of the program was the podcasts. There’s a ton to choose from, each a different song or show. These are fun stories and more to listen to. I particularly enjoyed the audio on Cinderella, one of my favorite stories.

My children really enjoyed these as well. The songs are all educational or stories shared for them to listen to. They are fun and not boring. The kids loved listening along.

Smart Kidz Radio features hundreds of songs to listen to. It promotes positive development and character for children. Moral values are an important feature as well.

The best part is that Smart Kidz Radio is FREE! You heard me right. It’s free. You simply sign up with the website using an email and creating a simple password of your choice and you’re ready to go. The program is offered free because the company feels these values are important to education and should be available for children every where.

The On Demand access is not free but is available for a small fee. The cost is $39 for a year or $3.99 a month and gives you access to each of the available stories at any time. There is a free 14 day trail for this additional service.

You can log-in through your laptop or computer, or with an app for your device. There is an iOS app and an app for Android available as well. All are easily accessed with internet availability.

All of this great stuff is found in one easy place and a great encouragement for children as well. I know our family has greatly enjoyed listening to the stories available to us over and over. The big kids even enjoyed listening to the stories with the younger kids. The younger kids enjoyed dancing along with all the great songs that encouraged them both mentally and physically.

Jackson’s favorite was Treasure Island which began with the Pirate’s song. Jack loves pirates right now and enjoys all tales he finds. This was a wonderfully exciting thing for him at 5.

Smart Kidz Radio is fun for all kids! You can join online too and enjoy the fun for yourself. I promise your kids will enjoy this one as much as we have!

You can find Smart Kidz Media online at:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/smartkidzmediainc/ @smartkidzmediainc
Twitter: https://twitter.com/smartkidzmedia @SmartKidzMedia

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Through Great Waters Press, Hal and Melanie Young have developed some of the greatest parenting materials available today. As parents, they struggled to find materials that spoke of how to raise boys in this day and age. Like you and I, they wished for something more that would give them advice on being a parent and when they did not find what they were seeking, they began to write and to share about it all themselves.

No Longer Little: Parenting Tweens With Grace and Hope is one of the wonderful books that Great Waters Press has produced recently. We are long time fans of Hal and Melanie’s wonderful parenting advice so when this review became available I had no doubt that I wanted in. I am personally thankful for all of there wonderful advice and their friendship through the years.

My friendship with these two wonderful authors began many years ago with my review of Raising Real Men which you can find here: Raising Real Men. It is a wonderful book that Mother’s of boys should absolutely add to their reading list.

In addition to this review book, we were also gifted a copy of their other book Love, Honor, And Virtue: Gaining or Regaining a Biblical Attitude Toward Sexuality. You can read our review of this book at Love, Honor, And Virtue {Crew Review}.

No Longer Little: Parenting Tweens with Grace and Hope is a book that is written to speak to the heart of parents of youth. As a Mom, I have found the tween years to be the hardest. Those little souls are growing up and transitioning from little kids to young adults. Their bodies are developing. Their minds are growing. Their hearts are expanding to learn love and care for others. It’s a difficult transition for us all.

No Longer Little helps you through this transition, offering solid Biblical advice as guidance. The tween years are so different than the other stages of life we go through and sometimes we need a little extra help understanding these changes and the obstacles they can create for some children. These are the years where they don’t want to be treated like a baby any longer but they’re still not quite the adults they hope to one day be.

Hormones change the body. Hair grows in unexpected places. Feelings begin to develop that can be confusing. Faith is questioned and the child’s mind begins to make more choices of their own, leading the way to being an adult.

We, as parents, play an important role for our children during these years. We are the ones guiding their direction, helping them make the choices that are important to their futures and we are the loving arms they fall back to when they are in need of guidance or have faced a failure they’ve never experienced before. Heartbreaks, brave efforts, opening mindsets- all of these need our love and guidance as our child grows.

No Longer Little shows you, the parent, how to give grace and forgiveness through your child’s changes. It guides you with experiences and stories of hope. And like with all of Hal and Melanie’s advice, it speaks to your heart as you read, offering solid advice that we as parents need. Hal and Melanie don’t shy away from truth and honesty as they teach but they push right on in to the facts and honesty that we need to hear, discussing the good parts as well as the tough ones we often wish to ignore.

I wish I had this book for my older teens but I am thankful I have it for my two younger children now. The advice given within these pages is well-thought through and encouraging to me as a parent of a tween and a future tween. Like Raising Real Men, I will be recommending this book for many years to come to friends and family who need it as much as I have.

No Longer Little: Parenting Tweens With Grace and Hope written by Hal and Melanie Young and published by Great Waters Press is available for around $15.

You can find Hal and Melanie Young and Great Waters Press online at:
Facebook: http://facebook.com/raisingrealmen @raisingrealmen
http://facebook.com/halandmelanie @halandmelanie
Instagram: http://instagram.com/raisingrealmen
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/raisingrealmen @raisingrealmen
Twitter: http://twitter.com/raisingrealmen @raisingrealmen

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Disclaimer:

Hal and Melanie Young are two of my favorite people when it comes to parenting advice, especially for my boys! They’ve been there and they speak open and honestly, from their hearts on the love and care of boys. So when the review for Great Waters Press came up, I knew I wanted to do this review for them and for us as well. Love, Honor, and Virtue: Gaining or Regaining a Biblical Attitude Toward Sexuality is a book written to young boys speaking to the heart of sexual desire that is so often ignored these days.

You can also read our other review for Great Waters Press No Longer Little: Parenting Tweens With Grace and Hope.

I’ve been friends with and fans of Hal and Melanie Young for many years now. I first found their friendship through reviewing their book Raising Real Men. You can read that review at this link: Raising Real Men

They are great people. They have have a strong faith in God. They have a heart for helping others. And they have a heart for raising boys and reaching to the hearts of parents.

There are tons of materials on the market that speak to parents. Most of those materials focus on raising girls. Great Waters Press saw a need for parents who were raising boys, like they were themselves, and they began to develop materials that helped in this journey we as parents were facing. They began to develop books that specifically related to parents of growing young men. I can’t tell you how thankful I’ve always been for this!

Love, Honor, And Virtue: Gaining or Regaining a Biblical Attitude Toward Sexuality is a book written towards boys older than 12, that focuses on the aspects of sexual relations in their lives. As a woman, I see daily the downfall of our society and the lust that is fully represented daily in our days and our lives. You can’t turn on the TV without seeing a half naked woman. Every where you look on social media, sex is prevalent. Movies, video games, even books provoke the mind with sexual imagery. Young men do not stand a chance without proper guidance.

That’s what this book hopes to give – guidance to parents to help them adjust their children, their sons to the sexual exploitation that is found in today’s world. Sex is a beautiful thing. It’s a Godly gift, but not in the way that it’s daily represented to our families.

Sex should be a pure and blessed moment between two people who love each other deeply, preferably two people that have fallen in love and are married to each other. Love, Honor, and Virtue brings forth points that reshape the mind, things we are easily taught to believe in today’s society and corrects them with Biblical statement and belief. Hal and Melanie don’t bite their tongues when discussing these things. They speak directly and with extreme confidence on the subject, matter-of-fact to the young men who’s mind they wish to reach.

If you have a younger son, I’d recommend that you read this book with them, discussing each chapter as you go. Some chapters are a little more informative on sexual desire and need a parents guidance. Older sons would do well with the book alone, but you, as the parent, are the only one who can judge if your son is mature enough and ready to read this book on their own. Use your discernment.

I, as a parent, have the book and I have read the book. My son and I have spent many years discussing the subject matter presented within these pages. His father has a history of sexual addiction and I have done my best to teach my son different than his father was taught by helping him to understand how to treat women and how to choose a bride that will meet his needs in the future, when he’s old enough to love and provide for her and his family. I did find some points in this book that I can expand upon in the future and so I will be allowing my son to read this and discuss it at an appropriate time in the near future.

Love, Honor, And Virtue is a book that all parents should read and share with their young sons. It’s us who will change the way society views sex and women. That change starts in our homes by teaching the right ways versus the wrong of how today’s society presents these things. Love, Honor, And Virtue can definitely help you to guide that discussion for your sons.

Love, Honor, And Virtue is available from Great Waters Press, written by Hal and Melanie Young, for around $10.

You can find Hal and Melanie Young and Great Waters Press online at:
Facebook: http://facebook.com/raisingrealmen @raisingrealmen
http://facebook.com/halandmelanie @halandmelanie
Instagram: http://instagram.com/raisingrealmen
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/raisingrealmen @raisingrealmen
Twitter: http://twitter.com/raisingrealmen @raisingrealmen

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1. A Walk To Remember – I love the characters in this movie and the love they share.

2. Cheaper By The Dozen – I’d have a dozen kids if I could!

3. What Dreams May Come – my idea of Heaven and Death

4. Gone With The Wind – my Mother’s namesake

5. Good Morning, Vietnam – where my love for Robin Williams began

6. Diary of a Mad Black Woman – because everyone has a bit of Medea inside

7. My Fair Lady – the romance is amazing

8. North and South, The Movie – because Orry Main

9. Maleficent – because even the most wicked have a story to tell.

10. Fried Green Tomatoes – because Tawanda is amazing

These are the movies that I love the most and can watch again and again and again. What are some of yours?

About the Book

Title: Plain Everyday Heroes

Author: Laura V. Hilton, Rachel J. Good, Thomas Nye

Genre: Christian Amish

Release Date: July 4, 2018

Playing with Fire

Arie Zimmerman has been in love with Noah Behr from almost the moment they met, but after a devastating wildfire destroys the community, everything changes. Noah questions how a loving Gott could allow such things to happen. As Arie and her family struggle to rebuild their home and lives, Noah escapes to California to fight another off-season wildfire—and maybe find Gott in the process.

When Noah returns, he promises Arie the prize money if she will help him with a chili cook-off to fund the fire department. Of course, in order to spend more time with the girl he loves, he’s also willing to pitch in unloading the new furniture and animals her daed bought at an auction. He’ll even help Arie slice and dice vegetables if he can taste test the recipes.

More than just the kitchen heats up as they spend time together. But will Noah find a still missing Gott in the process and discover there’s more to life than what he initially believed?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

An Unlikely Hero

Mysteries intrigue secondhand shop owner Benuel Miller. Although strangers may think a blind man would be easy to cheat, those who know Benuel realize he’s honed his other senses to pick up clues his eyes don’t see, making him a savvy business owner. When a stranger enters Benuel’s secondhand shop, the man is shocked by Benuel’s accurate assessment and unsolicited advice. Wary, he hopes Benuel won’t find out his true intentions, but the shopkeeper is already on the case.

Later, Mari and her twin sister, Frannie, stop in Benuel’s shop with Frannie’s three-year-old son, and Benuel senses trouble. His hunches have never led him astray, but is he misreading something here? He can’t help being drawn to Mari, yet is she as sweet and loving as she seems? Or is she hiding a deep, dark secret?

One explosive night when tragedy strikes, Benuel risks his life to find out the truth. Can he unmask the stranger from his shop to foil a sinister plot? And will what he discovers destroy his only chance for love?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Racing the Slow Girls

A recipe for fast-paced, comical, Amish adventure— Ingredients: Three fun-loving teenage boys on bicycles. Mix in an adorable little girl on a pony, a few spunky teenage girls, and a hint of romance. Directions: Place the characters in a beautiful setting, such as Holmes Co. Ohio. Roll in the boys on bikes. Stir up a few harsh words spoken carelessly. Add plenty of retaliation by the girls. Place in the heat of a family emergency until everyone is completely undone. Sit back and enjoy an Amish adventure with a cup of coffee.

Click here to purchase your copy!

About the Authors

Laura V. Hilton is an award-winning, sought-after author with almost twenty Amish, contemporary, and historical romances. When she’s not writing, she reviews books for her blogs, and writes devotionals for blog posts for Seriously Write and Putting on the New.

Laura and her pastor-husband have five children and a hyper dog named Skye. They currently live in Arkansas. One son is in the U.S. Coast Guard. She is a pastor’s wife, and homeschools her two youngest children.

When she’s not writing, Laura enjoys reading, and visiting lighthouses and waterfalls. Her favorite season is winter, her favorite holiday is Christmas.

Rachel J. Good is the author of several Amish series in print or forthcoming—Sisters & Friends, Love & Promises, and two books in theHearts of Amish Country series—as well as the Amish Quilts Coloring Books and the contemporary novella, Angels Unaware, part of the Hope Chapel series. Visit Rachel at her website: www.racheljgood.com.

Thomas Nye writes novels about horses and Amish life, with a touch of romance, and a foundation of faith in Christ. He and his wife, Shari, live on her family farm where they raised five children. Their six grandchildren love to visit Karma and Karla, a team of draft horses which Thomas purchased from an Amish friend.

Arie’s habanero chili

1 lb stew meat: venison, or beef

1/4 cup bacon bits

1/2 Onion, diced

Green pepper, diced

2 cans of habanero Rotel

1 can tomato sauce

1 can kidney beans

1 can pinto beans

1/2 cup sliced jalapenos

1 TSP cayenne pepper

3 TB chili powder

2 TB beef bouillon

1 TSP paprika

1 TSP pepper

2 TB garlic

salt to taste

Saute onion and pepper, set aside. Sear stew meat in hot pan until brown. Do not over cook. Add meat and other ingredients to pot and simmer until done. Add water if necessary. Serve with cornbread. Approximately 7 servings

Recipe compliments of Michael Hilton (Laura’s son)

Blog Stops

Blog Stops
The Avid Reader, July 7

Blossoms and Blessings, July 20

Giveaway

To celebrate the tour, Celebrate Lit is giving away

Grand prize: a $25 Amazon gift card

Click below to enter. Be sure to comment on this post before you enter to claim 9 extra entries! https://promosimple.com/ps/d19d/plain-everyday-heroes-celebration-tour-giveaway

My Review:

You’ll find three amazing Authors sharing stories within the pages of this book. Novels that contain so many stories in one are a favorite of mine, especially when they blend together so well. You’ll love the plain, everyday heroes that are shared within the pages of this book.

I was drawn to the story of Arie and Noah after just reading Laura Hilton’s Firestorm. The story line is similar though it’s a different setting. The name Arie drew me in, too. I have ancestors who share the name on both sides of my family. It was like reading there story when I was reading this story.

I love stories about characters with challenges like Benuel. Not being able to see never stopped him from figuring out a person’s true intent, though sometimes even his inner vision was clouded. Mari’s heart is his for the taking if he can just get past the feelings of wrong that he has.

The young love that Thomas Nye shares is unforgettable and refreshing. It’s a fun story that keeps you laughing throughout. Young love is always fun.

You’ll enjoy all three of these books in one, just as I have. It makes a great Summer read, something to do as you lay in the breezes a long the waterside. Definitely one you won’t want to miss!