Book Review: Tattler's Branch by Jan Watson

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Tattler's Branch by Jan Watson

From Amazon:

Lilly Corbett Still has grown to love her life as the small-town doctor of Skip Rock, a tiny coal community in the Kentucky mountains. Though her husband, Tern, is away for a few months at a mining job, Lilly has her hands full with her patients and her younger sister visiting for the summer.

Lilly turns to her good friend and neighbor, Armina, to help keep things in order—until a mysterious chain of events leaves Armina bedridden and an abandoned baby on her doorstep. Lilly works to uncover the truth, unaware of what a mess she’s found herself in until a break-in at her clinic puts her on high alert. As she struggles between what is right and what is safe, Lilly must discover the strength of her resilient country neighbors, her God, and herself.

My thoughts:


Set in the early 1900's in the hills of Kentucky, Tattler's Branch, captured my attention right away.  The descriptions were perfect and made me feel like I had stepped back into that coal mining community long ago.   Back when neighbors leaned on each other and God for help.

I felt and understood all the characters but  Lilly and Armina were two I would love to talk to!  They both cared about others and were down to earth.  My  kind of people.  Lilly stood out the most to me though because she was a woman doctor at a time when it was unheard of.  She was brave but yet she missed her husband terribly. I love the letters she exchanged with her Mom asking her for advice.

Tattler's Branch had history, mystery, and romance all rolled into one making it a wonderful read! 

I received this book free from Tyndale Rewards with my points. I was not required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed here are my own.
  
  

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Nichole Nordeman CD Review and Giveaway!

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Nichole Nordeman has a brand new CD Coming out the end of the month called, Every Mile Mattered!  I have fallen in love with her gentle voice and have been listening to her CD every chance I get.  The words to her songs are so meaningful and speak to my heart.  This CD is one you are sure to love!  

You can also listen and watch a video of Nichole's song, Every Mile Mattered, at her official website here. 

Every Mile Mattered is available to pre-order:

                       ITunes 
                       Spotify 

                       Amazon

Now on to the giveaway!   One lucky reader will receive Nichole Nordeman's New CD Every Mile Mattered!  This giveaway is for continental U.S. residents only!  

a Rafflecopter giveaway

“Disclosure (in accordance with the FTC’s 16 CFR, Part 255:  “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”):  Many thanks to Propeller Consulting, LLC for providing this prize for the giveaway.  Choice of winners and opinions are 100% my own and NOT influenced by monetary compensation.  I did receive a sample of the product in exchange for this review and post.

Only one entrant per mailing address, per giveaway.  If you have won a prize from our sponsor Propeller /FlyBy Promotions in the last 30 days on the same blog, you are not eligible to win.  Or if you have won the same prize on another blog, you are not eligible to win it again.  Winner is subject to eligibility verification.  This promotion is open to only continental U.S. residents.

My Frugal Ways this Past Week 7/23/17!

The links in this post may contain affiliate links.   When you order from something from one of my links I will receive a small commission at extra cost to you.  You can read my  full disclosure policy here. Thanks so much for helping support Vickie's Kitchen and Garden!

Here are the ways I've saved this past week:  

This is the first year in a long time that I've planted zinnias.  I forgot how pretty they are!   

The garden is starting to come in!   The heat and the rain has really helped a lot.  We have had our share of pests this year but we are trying everything we know.   

I was able to pick 3 more zucchini and 1 cucumber this past week. 

We traveled a little further than usual and went to a discount grocery this past week.  We were able to get a lot of meat to fill the freezer for a really good price.  We have been lax about doing this and have decided to put traveling back there on the agenda at least once a month. There is not much out that way so this is our only destination.  It's still worth it though.  Next time I'll take a picture with the tally.  

We went to an estate sale and they had many household products for sale.  Things like furniture polish, detergent, cleaning supplies, etc. were very cheap. The people who lived there had multiples of everything.   

Here is a little of what we bought.  These products were not open when we bought them.   I cleaned with the Bon Ami and polished furniture with the Murphy's Oil Soap yesterday!   

We also find a lot of things there that will help us run our household.   For instance, rope, different kinds of tape,  oil for the car, etc.  We spent money but we saved a lot in the long run.  

I went to JC Penny early Saturday and received a $10 off $10 coupon.  I bought more back to school clothes for my grandson. 

Menu:  What was on the table last week:

Monday            Grilled Hamburgers

Tuesday            out to eat

Wednesday       Pork chops. Baked Beans, and mashed potatoes

Thursday          Leftovers

Friday               Burritos and tacos

Saturday           Smoked wieners, beans, coleslaw, mashed potatoes, and biscuits.  

Sunday             Steak and potatoes

My Goals for This Week:

At Home

Clean out the van.   Taking grandchildren around town can get very messy!  

Hang more laundry on the line to dry.  


On the blog

Put up another giveaway!  It's been a fun giveaway month on the blog.  Don't forget to enter the giveaway for a $20 Usborne book gift certificate and  the giveaway for the $15 gift card for Amazon or B/N!   I have one more quick one this month and I'll put it up Tuesday!   

What ways have you saved this past week?

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This post has been linked to The Prudent Homemaker, The Art of Homemaking Mondays, Modest Mondays, The Homemaking Party, Thrifty Thursday,

A Garden Update for 7/22/17: How We Are Fighting the Pests!

The links in this post may contain affiliate links.   When you order from something from one of my links I will receive a small commission at extra cost to you.  You can read my  full disclosure policy here. Thanks so much for helping support Vickie's Kitchen and Garden!

It's been a wonderful summer for gardening this year.   It's been extremely hot at times like the last few days but overall we have had it good.   So has the deer!  You can see our defenses in the garden are up.  Do they work?  Yes for a short period of time.  I wouldn't even say a week but maybe a day or two.  He will leave the area that has the pans, owls. or pop cans thrown about by a crazy mad woman, then go to the one area that doesn't have anything, to eat!  

I think though we just might get a harvest!   I'm not going to give up!  

I've been watching my watermelon growing!   They are small Michigan type watermelons not like the huge ones out of the store, but they taste wonderful.   

My row of zinnia's are blooming.   I planted these in my vegetable garden to help with pollination.

Zinnias are an old fashioned flower but they are just so pretty!  

The Japanese Beetle is our other problem. They have been munching on the beans leaves too.  

Our gardening neighbor told us about Bag a Bug and we  have been trying that.  There are a lot of them in the bag since we've set it up a few days ago. I did see a few beetles just last night so I moved the bag just a little closer.  We needed to do something and this seems to be helping for the most part.  

How's your garden growing?


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Review of Baby's First Bus Book Plus a $20 Gift Certificate Giveaway to Usborne Books!

The links in this post may contain affiliate links.   When you order from something from one of my links I will receive a small commission at extra cost to you.  You can read my  full disclosure policy here. Thanks so much for helping support Vickie's Kitchen and Garden!

Baby's very first Bus Book

From the back cover:

Babies will love looking  at the bright pictures and playing with this delightful sturdy book. 

My thoughts:

I have been so impressed with Usborne books that I have ordered many books from them.  They are all so original and cute.  I think Baby's very first Bus Book has to be the most popular for the youngest  The wheels on the book attract the baby right away.  The story keeps them interested as they travel through the town.  It's a perfect gift for a baby shower.

A wonderful, wonderful children's book.

Here is another favorite:

I'm excited now to introduce you to my daughter, Eva, and her family!

 Hi, everyone! I'm Eva, Vickie’s daughter, and your new Usborne book lady! 😊 I am a single Mom of two children. My son is 7 and my daughter is 2 and their love for each other and reading makes me very proud. I am an administrative assistant by day but I absolutely love my job with Usborne Books & More! I couldn't stop buying their books so I decided to join.

What is Usborne Books & More, you ask? Usborne Publishing is a globally minded literacy-promoting body aimed at bringing quality books to kids everywhere! Usborne Books is the 2014 Children's Publisher of the Year, offering over 2000 books for babies through young adult and publishes almost every type of children's book for every age group, from baby books to young adult novels.

To help launch my new business, I’m giving away a $20 Gift Certificate to one lucky reader of my Mom’s Blog!  You can spend the $20 anyway you’d like at my Usborne Book Shop.

One of the best ways to save on your Usborne Books & More purchase is to host your own Facebook Party! As a new consultant, I am able to offer DOUBLE FREE books! It's super easy, very fun, and who doesn't want free books?!?! Anyone who hosts an Usborne Facebook Party with me in August will get a Book of your choice up to $9.99 PLUS a 65% off your $30 purchase coupon in addition to the rewards you see below! Simply email me at evalworthing@gmail.com to set up your party date and you will earn a total of 10 more entries for the $20 Usborne Book Giveaway! 

If you'd like to be in the loop on literacy tips and inspiration, activities for the kids, special Usborne customer deals and more, please head on over to my Facebook group page and "join" it:  

Giveaway!  

Eva will be be giving one reader a $20 Gift Certificate to Usborne books!  This giveaway for the U.S. Only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway




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My Frugal Ways this Past Week 7/16/17!

The links in this post may contain affiliate links.   When you order from something from one of my links I receive a small commission with no extra cost to you.  You can read my  full disclosure policy here. Thanks so much for helping support Vickie's Kitchen and Garden! 


Here are the ways I've saved this past week:

It was very hot one day and I decided to put my bread in the car with the windows rolled up to help rise the bread.  It worked great and in no time at all it was ready to bake.  

I harvested two small zucchini and made zucchini bread.  I only used 1/2 of the recipe and put it in small loaf pans.


I bought a $25.00 Amazon Gift Card on Prime day  and received a $5.00 credit after I bought it.  I received a $1.50 reward for using my credit card to buy it.

I received a  $12.00 coupon back in the mail from Staples for recycling my ink.  I also had a $5.00 coupon on my account (not sure what for).   I bought toilet paper and copy paper.  I put in for the rebate for the copy paper that will end up making it a $1.00.


We cancelled our cable t.v. this past month and we went with Set tv.  We pay $20 a month plus we paid for two boxes to receive it on.  There are over 500 live channels including all the sports channels my husband could ever want and all the shows I love (like HGTV and DIY) plus more.  So. while he is in the living room watching baseball and I'm in the bedroom watching Chip and Joanna.  This is more like regular T.V. and not just shows, although they do have some great on demand movies.   I love the easy to understand remote.  




What was on the dinner table last week:

Monday               Hot Dogs

Tuesday               Out to eat

Wednesday          Homemade Pizza

Thursday             Ham and cheese omelettes

Friday                  Grilled chicken and bacon salad

Saturday              Sloppy Joes

Sunday                Grilled chicken, green beans,  green onions, and biscuits



My Goals for This Week:

At Home

It rained quite a bit this past week so we have lots of weeds. This week my husband will help me with tilling between the rows and I will weed in between the plants.  In spite of the deer everything is growing great! 

Read more books to the grandchildren while they are here.  


On the blog

Put up another giveaway!  It's been a fun giveaway month on the blog.  Don't forget to enter the giveaway for the $15 gift card for Amazon or B/N on Charlotte Hubbard's book tour for Weddings at Promise Lodge.  

What ways have you saved this past week?

Be sure to sign up for my daily email list and never miss a post!  Follow me on Twitter, Pinterest, Facebook,and Bloglovin where I share my frugal list, gardening, recipes, and more

This post has been linked to The Prudent Homemaker, The art of Homemaking Mondays, Making a home-homemaking Linky, Thrifty Thursday, Financially savvy Saturday,