Book Review: The Lost Medallion

About the Book:

The legend of the Lost Medallion has haunted Billy Stone’s family for two hundred years. His father’s search for the treasure ruined his career and his relationship with Billy. But when Billy find the medallion himself, it isn’t the end of his troubles- it’s just the beginning. 

Hurtled back through time, Billy and his best friend Allie must confront and evil that threatens both the past and their future. To defeat this dark force, they must search deep within themselves for the True source of power and strength- or they’ll never see home again. 

More than just a story, The Lost Medallion is a tale of sacrifice, of good versus evil, and of learning that each on of us is a treasure to God.

My Review:

The Lost Medallion by Bill Muir and Alex Kendrick was a book that I was ecstatic about reading and reviewing. Knowing the type of creative and entertaining faith-filled works Alex Kendrick is capable of, especially in the films Fireproof and Courageous, I knew that this book was going to be a great read. 

When I signed up for this tour, I had a vague idea of what the book was about. I understood that there was some sort of lost medallion and a kid was destined to find it and then hold great power. What I didn't know was that the authors were going to go deeper than just the average superficial adventure novel and touch base on some pretty tough topics like self worth, the importance of being a responsible leader and the need to look to God for help in every situation. I found their way of explaining these topics kid-friendly and easy to understand while being entertaining the whole way through. 

I'll be honest: I'm not really into reading about evil kings who kill their subjects with a nail dipped in poison nor am I into the sci-fi genre, but this book was different. As I read, I was truly intrigued by the mystery and danger wrapped up in finding the legendary medallion. I was also surprised by the many twists and turns of this book. For several nights in a row I'd find myself up (at ghastly hours) hurrying to finish one "good" part after the other. 

I thought that I should mention that though there were several mentions to fights it wasn't graphic, gross or gut-spilling.

One of my favorite external parts of this books was the QR codes and pictures scattered throughout. This made the adventure all the more real because I no longer had to imagine what was happening at different intervals of the story, but I could actually catch glimpses into the movie while reading.

I was pleasantly surprised how interested I became in reading and finishing this book. The messages of selflessness, self worth, trust in God and integrity were all clear and weaved right into the story, in a way that kids could easily understand. I love to find a book, that though targeted to another audience, in this case to young tweens and teens, can still be appealing to another audience, in my case a romance-historical-Amishetc. fiction reader :) If you're looking for a book that's a bit outside of your comfort zone, I encourage you to read The Lost Medallion. It was definitely a worth while read filled to the brim with suspense, action, adventure and faith! It wasn't a stagnant read, actually, it was pretty easy to get through because it was so interesting! I'd happily rate it 5 out of 5 stars!

Baking With Little Sister: PB Cookie In A Cup

My sister Genesis loves to bake cookies with me. Almost every night before she goes to sleep she asks me, "Kianna, can we bake cookies tomorrow?" Months before, we used up all of our chocolate chips while making this recipe, so I was stuck. I was on a mission to find a new recipe that we could make to hold us off until we got a chance to get some more chocolate chips. I found this great recipe for Peanut Butter Cookie In A Cup and since we had all of the ingredients  on hand, it was perfect.

Here's the recipe and a Instagram video of my sister and I baking it while jammin' to KLOVE.

Peanut Butter Cookie In A Cup

1 Tablespoon of Butter

1 Tablespoon of Peanut Butter

1 Tablespoon of firmly packed Dark Brown Sugar

1 Tablespoon of Granulated White Sugar

2-3 drops of Pure Vanilla Extract {a splash}

Small pinch of Kosher Salt

1 egg yolk

3 level Tablespoons of All-Purpose Flour

Crushed Peanuts for topping (optional)

In a bowl, melt peanut butter and butter together in microwave for about 30 seconds. 

Add sugars, salt and vanilla and stir to combine. 

Add egg yolk and stir again. Add flour and give a final stir. Scoop mixture into a mug.

Sprinkle peanuts on top (if you're using peanuts) heat in microwave for around 45 seconds. Microwaves vary, so start checking for doneness at 35 seconds. Serve warm!

Portraits // Alicia

On July 27th, Alicia and I decided to have a little photo shoot. We had done one about six months back and at the time we realized how hard it is to pose and shoot in manual all while getting some decent photos of each other. We faced several setbacks, like uncharged cameras but we got through it laughing. We vowed that the next time we had a photo shoot, we'd be more prepared and we were. We busted out "the BIG cameras" and scouted the location we planned to shoot in. We got a sense of light and where we wanted each other to pose. We had so much fun! 

Ali (as I call her) is my now 16 year old cousin. We've been besties forever and have these funny inside jokes that with just the slightest look at the each other, we can burst out laughing. She is super talented at drawing (even though she won't admit it) and her laugh makes me laugh. Without further ado here are just a few of my favorites of her. She's gorgeous!

 

Score Thrifty: With Just Twenty Dollars In My Pocket

Today I went thrifting with one goal in mind: get as many things as possible, all with out going over my $20 budget. I had seen the idea on Pinterest and knew that it'd be a great challenge for me. I think that if I have this goal every time I go thrifting, I'd be more selective and choosy about what I get and how much I spend. Believe me, my wallet will thank me later! Doing this challenge also made thrifting extra fun; almost like a treasure hunt….

My first stop was to a thrift store in Mt. Vernon; a cutesy little neighborhood with pretty shops and what not. I like going to this thrift store for their great shoe selection and pretty baskets and skirts and you get the idea. I once found a pair of TOMS there! Today I found these super cute biker-esqe, vintage boots. They were regularly $7.99 but since this thrift store has the shoes at 50% off, these boots only cost me $4! They were the single most expensive thing I purchased!

 The detailing in these boots is just gorg. The snaps there allow you to fold the high-top part down.

I also scored this beautiful Gap jacket (I should have steamed it first) I plan on wearing this when the weather gets a bit colder with one of my new scarves. It was regularly $6.99 but with an additional 50% off, I scored it for just $3.49

I love the detailing in the sleeves and neckline.

My second and final stop was to my neighborhood thrift store. This store is "THE" place to get great books! They sell them for 90% off the original retail price!

I got this vintage Snoopy 5 piece book set for about $0.30! When I saw it on the shelf, I didn't even thumb through it! I just saw that awesome graphic cover and was like "I'm getting it!" Then, in the car, I looked at them and guess what? These 5 books are…. comic books! Sweet!

I also scored these American Girl books for my little sister at about $0.19 apiece! When she learns how to read, she'll really enjoy these :|

I like helping Genesis grow her library so these classics are her's as well. I remember reading and loving these books as a kid! Now, wasn't that Amelia Bedelia something? I also bought some other books for Genesis and even an English & Grammar book for me… I guess that in the spur of my happiness to start 11th grade I bought that English book.

I borrowed Joshua Harris's book "I Kissed Dating Goodbye" from the library about two years ago and didn't get to finish it then… We went on a trip during the time I had borrowed it and it just didn't get done. I loved it SO much that I bought a copy of my very own! The best part? It only cost me $0.20!

So, at the end of the day, I only spent 13.47!!! I was under budget!

I think that today's "haul" went well. I purchased a great crop of books all 90% off the original retail price and even scored some pretty awesome boots for the fall! 

So, I dare you to try this challenge! The next time you go thrifting, set a budget and try to find as many things you can while staying at or below budget!