Hi, my name is Erin. I'm from Georgia but live in Oregon now with my family of four. I've been blessed with a son and daughter ages 5 and 2 1/2 years old. I have been married to my husband for six and a half years now.
I enjoy graphic design, loom knitting, blogging, reading all sorts of books, crafting, exploring the great outdoors, homeschooling my children, and more!
Archive for July 6th, 2009
International Justice Mission
July 6th, 2009 | 
Author: 
The International Justice Mission was at our church this last Sunday. If you haven’t heard of them before, you should know that they are a human rights agency that secures justice for victims of slavery, sexual exploitation and other forms of violent oppression. IJM lawyers, investigators and aftercare professionals work with local officials to ensure immediate victim rescue and aftercare, to prosecute perpetrators and to promote functioning public justice systems.
Their mission four-fold purpose is
- » Victim Relief
» Perpetrator Accountability
» Victim Aftercare
» Structural Transformation
You should know that more children, women and men are held in slavery right now than over the course of the entire trans-Atlantic slave trade.
- Human trafficking is the world’s third largest criminal enterprise, after drugs and weapons.
- More than 2 million children are trapped in forced prostitution.
- 80% of persons trafficked are women, and 50% are minors.I am wanting to do my part in helping support this organization and fighting this injustice and lo and behold, I came across and children’s shoe company called Bugaloo that is giving 5% of each pair of shoes it sells to International Justice Mission. I’ll be reviewing a pair of these shoes very soon but wanted to let you know about what this company is doing to help.
My Fourth of July
It was nice to be able to sleep fourth of July morning! We slept until around 9am had bacon and eggs for breakfast and ventured out for a mustard and ketchup bottle. We never did find bottles for our ketchup and mustard which is a drag since we buy our ketchup and mustard in bulk at Costco. It’s not ideal for me to throw the giant jugs on the dining table! You’d be surprised that Target and the local grocery stores didn’t carry any. OH well! 
I did happen to pick up some incredibly cute red, white, and blue napkins and plates that had robots on them. You can guess that my husband was pretty pleased with my choice. As much as I like being traditional, I like kooky and fun twist on things and that is why we got them to use on the 4th! I was really meaning to take a picture of the 4th of July spread but totally forgot and by the time I realized it, everything had been eaten. Oops! lol
So while we were out, I decided that EA Sport Active was an incredibly beneficial purchase to both my husband and I and purchased it for $50.00 at Frys. I tried it a week ago, and I bought it on that and reading reviews from others that had tried it out. Am I feeling the burn? You betcha! But do I want more? Yes! I love how it’s set up and I like that we can customize our own workouts! My husband I were on so much of a buzz over it, that fourth of July evening we went on a hour walk plus our 30 min workouts! Are we sore? Yes. But it’s all for getting in shape and staying there!
My in-laws came over on the 4th. We grilled out hot dogs and they brought delicious potato salad, chips, soda, and some very yummy Silvan blackberries. I’d never had those type of berries before but I must say they were very good! My husband played the wii with his dad while my mother in law and I chatted while playing with Melody. We didn’t do too much because it was pretty hot in the apartment. Megan, my sister in law didn’t stay very long because she was heading out to see a fire works show with her friend ( hence that we didnt’ get any photos of her).
Well, after family left, my husband and I went on a walk and returned home around 9pm. We watched the encore presentation of the Capitol 4th and then headed to bed. Suprisingly Melody stayed up and watched the whole show with us. LOL… She really enjoyed the music.
How was your 4th of July?
FIRST: Valley of the Shadow by Tom Pawlik
It is time for a FIRST Wild Card Tour book review! If you wish to join the FIRST blog alliance, just click the button. We are a group of reviewers who tour Christian books. A Wild Card post includes a brief bio of the author and a full chapter from each book toured. The reason it is called a FIRST Wild Card Tour is that you never know if the book will be fiction, non~fiction, for young, or for old…or for somewhere in between! Enjoy your free peek into the book!
You never know when I might play a wild card on you!
and the book:
Tyndale House Publishers (May 13, 2009)
Tom Pawlik, winner of the 2006 Jerry B. Jenkins Christian Writers Guild’s Operation First Novel contest has drawn praise from critics with his first novel, Vanish. Novel Journey has declared, “Tom Pawlik writes a scary, fascinating, suspenseful story; one you won’t want to miss” and Faithful Reader said Vanish “…delivers a Christian message and certainly succeeds in stirring the imagination and the spirit.”
Tom Pawlik has a BA in communication and works in the marketing field. He has been active in Christian teaching, youth work, and music for over twenty years. In addition to writing fiction, Tom is an accomplished songwriter and musician who writes and records at his home studio. He and his wife, Colette, live in Ohio with their four children and a dog.
Visit the author’s website.
Product Details:
List Price: $12.99
Paperback: 432 pages
Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers (May 13, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1414326793
ISBN-13: 978-1414326795
AND NOW…THE FIRST CHAPTER:
Darkness enveloped him. Thick and heavy, wrapping around him like a blanket. He could feel its weight pressing in on him. Squeezing him. Smothering him. And far off in the darkness, he heard sounds. A deep rumble mixed with a jumbled, muddied squawking. The noises were muffled and distant but growing steadily louder. Like a train approaching: the thunder of the engines and the clacking of its wheels on the tracks.
A pinprick of light blazed in the darkness. Tiny at first, but getting closer. Every second it grew larger and more intense. The sound roared now as the light rushed toward him and then . . .
Everything exploded into chaos.
Light and sound washed around him like a giant whirlpool. He could feel himself spinning inside it. Being buffeted and pulled along by a current.
And he was still freezing.
Lights flashed in his face. A dizzying array of reds and blues. Light and darkness. Shadows loomed over him and moved about. He tried to focus on the shadowy images as they swirled around him. Then he recognized them.
People?
He was surrounded by people. Actual human beings! They were speaking to one another. Devon could hear distinct voices but still couldn’t make out the words. And the voices sounded worried. Anxious.
Devon’s vision was becoming clearer. Several people with uniforms and badges hovered over him. An ambulance was parked nearby, and two police cars, their lights flashing.
Paramedics? And cops? Was there an accident somewhere?
His mind was a jumble of thoughts and he tried to recall what had just happened. Images flashed through his mind. Terrifying ones. Disjointed and vague memories of huge, empty buildings. Skyscrapers. An entire city, void of life. A dull, overcast sky. Gray, faceless creatures reaching out hands with long, bony fingers like enormous spider legs.
And a farm out in the middle of nowhere . . .
Terrell. Where was Terrell? They had been together just a few days ago. Or had it been only a few minutes?
Devon tried to turn his head but couldn’t. Something was holding him in place. He struggled to move but was too weak.
He had to get out of here. He had to find Terrell.
He could hear the voices better now. One of them called for help. Something about a stretcher. Legs and feet shuffled out of view, then back in again. More lights.
Not far off, a row of strangers huddled together, watching. Devon scanned their faces, and one of them caught his eye. One face seemed out of place in the group. One man was standing off a little ways by himself. Standing in the shadows, staring right at Devon. His face seemed to draw Devon’s gaze toward him, as if pulling him down into a pit.
It was long and narrow. Pale skin almost glowed against the shadows behind him. His cheeks were gaunt and sunken. And his eyes . . .
His eyes shone a pale yellow. But they seemed hollow. Then he smiled. His thin, puckered mouth expanded into a wide grin. Rows of brown, rotted teeth dripped with black saliva.
Devon couldn’t take his eyes off the man. Then someone passed between them and he was gone.
Suddenly Devon felt himself moving. Floating. He could see several people standing around him. Cops and paramedics. They slid him into an enclosed space where white light surrounded him. Two people climbed up beside him.
What was going on?
Devon heard doors slam shut with a thud and a click. A moment later, he could feel himself moving again.
His eyes widened and his breathing grew more rapid. The crowd. The paramedics. The cops . . .
They were there for him!
They had put him into the ambulance!
One of the paramedics leaned close. He had reddish brown hair, green eyes, and a broad, freckled face. “. . . what I’m saying? You’ve been shot. . . . going to be all right . . . Cook County Memorial . . . understand?”
He was pressing something against Devon’s chest. Devon glanced down. Now in the light he could see his shirt was cut open and drenched in blood. A large, white piece of gauze was taped to his chest.
Devon looked back up at the medic and his breath caught in his throat.
The man’s face had changed. His eyes glowed yellow. His lips parted in a twisted grin, showing dozens of teeth. Dark and rotted, all jammed together in his mouth. Black liquid, like tar, dripped onto his chin.
“The door is still open,” he croaked. His voice was gargled and deep.
“Leave me alone!” Devon squeezed his eyes shut. “Leave me alone! Leave me alone!”
He felt a hand on his forehead and opened his eyes again. The medic’s face had returned to normal. The guy was working on Devon as if nothing had happened.
Devon tried to slow his breathing. His chest burned and a sharp pain knifed through his ribs with every breath. He struggled for air as darkness began to close in around him. Sounds grew muffled. The medic’s voice sounded urgent but began to fade. Devon could feel them moving around, trying to save him.
And he could feel himself slipping away.
Excerpted from Valley of the Shadow by Tom Pawlik. Copyright© 2009 by Tom Pawlik. Printed with permission from Tyndale House Publishers. All Rights Reserved.
My thoughts:
I’m not finished reading this book yet but wanted to say that though this book in the second in it’s series, it stand alone well. In saying that, there’s no missing back story that will leave you clueless. I’ll be posting my full review once I finished reading through this book but I want to let you know I’m enjoying it! It’s a real page turner!
