Review of GREEMU

Today's review may seem a little unusual to you or at least it did to me! I remember when the crew had the opportunity to review Emu Oil by Koru Naturals and I read the reviews of how awesome it sounded. I wanted to give some a try but never did. This time we were given the opportunity to review a 4 fluid ounce bottle of GREEMU which is the plant based alternative for emu oil from Devonian.

Devonian is a company dedicated to finding ways to replace animal based products with plant based products especially in the beauty world. GREEMU is their latest product design and completely made from plant oils and butters. This vegan alternative contains the ingredients of Macadamia Seed Oil, Palm Oil, Shea Butter, Sunflower Seed Oil, and Rice Bran Oil. It does not contain any animal ingredients.

I tried GREEMU myself because my skin is extremely dry. I have always had dry skin ever since I can remember. I have to use lotion every morning and night to try to keep my skin moisturized. Even then, I will still have flaky spots that require more moisturizer. My hair can also tend to be dry and frizzy since I use color and a flat iron on it.

I read that GREEMU absorbs into the skin more slowly than the emu oil so it was best to use a little at first and repeat the process rather than using a lot to begin with. That is definitely great advice and it took me a while to find what amount worked best. Although it comes in a green bottle, the oil is clear.

I applied GREEMU to my face each night after cleansing. It is suppose to help improve the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. I did find that I had to play around with just the right amount because if I put too much on, it would cause me to have break outs. Eventually, I had a good routine down of just placing a few drops on my wrinkles. I also placed a little on the edges of my nose. During this review period, I went through a terrible sneezing time with my allergies and was constantly needing to blow my nose. As much as I had to blow, my nose surely would have been raw and chapped without the use of the oil so it did a fantastic job helping me through this allergy season!  I can't really tell you that I see a big difference in my fine lines and wrinkles but I may need to give that more time.  Maybe??

I also used the oil on my hair. Again, you really need to play around with how much to use your first few applications because I would tend to overdo at first and my hair would end up looking oily. The instructions said to use the oil from root to tip but I found just adding it to my ends worked best for my hair. 

Lastly, I used the oil as a moisturizer for my body. After showering, I would rub the oil on my skin and this was my favorite use! As I stated earlier, I have to apply lotion morning and night for my skin to feel moisturized. I could actually go an entire day without needing any lotion when I used the GREEMU oil. That in itself is huge for my skin!

After using this oil daily for several weeks now, I have only used a little over half of the bottle. A little really goes a long way. It also doesn't really have a smell at all which I like. This product is made for external use only.

A 4oz bottle of GREEMU currently sells for $10.80. Until May 31st you can receive Get 20% off by entering coupon code GN395Z10.

To find out what other products are available from Koru Naturals visit them on Facebook and Pinterest.

Review of Heroes of History - Ronald Reagan

It is no secret, we are huge fans of YWAM Publishing! About 95% of our read aloud books are picked from their lineup of wonderful books which include Heroes of History and Christian Heroes: Then & Now. So, when the chance to review the book, Heroes of History- Ronald Reagan and the Digital Unit Study became available, we were ecstatic!

YWAM Publishing offers many styles of books focusing on the topics of ministry, education, evangelism, discipleship, and prayer.

This year is our year of American History. We cycle through the history years so this is our 2nd time studying US History. Can you believe that we were in the 1980's just as this book became available to us? We couldn't have asked for more perfect timing!

Ronald Reagan: Destiny at His Side shares interesting facts of Ronald Reagan's life such as acquiring the nickname "Dutch" and how that came about.  This 224 page paperback book takes you through his childhood, adolescent years, college days, Hollywood days, all the way to his political career, death, and burial.  Journey back in time as you visit Dutch's early days of struggling through poverty, his father's alcohol addiction, illness, and small town life.  Through all the hardships, he continued to press on and never gave up trying to chase his dreams.  Even an assassination attempt couldn't stop him! He always had a passion for sports and drama and this book takes you through his life as he explores those passions.  We loved following along his career paths from lifeguard, to radio announcer, to Hollywood actor, to Army officer, to politics.
As always, after we finished reading we were left with so much more knowledge of our 40th President of the United States.  We clearly saw how all the events in his life molded him to be such an effective communicator.     

Although, we mainly use these are read aloud books to supplement our history and Bible lessons there is so much more you can add in when you add in the Unit Study Guide. The study guide includes many ideas to enhance your studies incorporating the subjects of history, art, geography, reading comprehension, creative and essay writing, drama, public speaking, and so much more. 

 
We orally answered the chapter questions after finishing each chapter. All answers are included as well in case you would like your student to read the book on his/her own. The questions include vocabulary, facts, comprehension, and opinion questions. Here is a sampling of the style of questions. I really loved that they included the page numbers for the vocabulary as well so if needed the student could go back to find the word in the context of the sentence.

There are also lots of fun ideas for various projects included. I chose to have my children work on a power point presentation.

 

We would highly recommend any of the books published by YWAM Publishing whether you are looking to supplement your current curriculum or use these as a starting point for a complete unit study! These books are truly our favorites! You can check out another review we did on Milton Hershey.

The paperback book of Ronald Reagan is currently on sale for $7.50 and if can also be purchased in several different formats making it a great on the go resource too! The formats include regular Audiobook CD, Audiobook MP3 download, Nook edition (e-book), Kindle edition (e-book), and regular e-book download. Visit here for all the different options.

I love this map that includes the heroes available in chronological order as well as where they were born and died.

To discover more on what YWAM Publishing has to offer, visit them on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest. They also have a Blog.

Be sure to click the banner below to find out about the other books offered from YWAM Publishing that my fellow crewmates had the opportunity to review.

Review of When Lightning Struck! The Story of Martin Luther

Today's review is from author, Danika Cooley, who has written the new historical fiction novel When Lightning Struck! The Story of Martin Luther. If you are looking to delve further into the upbringing, background, and struggles that Martin Luther dealt with, then I would highly suggest you pick up this book. What better time to be studying about Martin Luther than right now as we just passed Reformation Day.

When Lightning Struck! is the story of Martin Luther, the Father of the Reformation, written for young adults.

As an older adult, I have often picked up a book to try to learn more only to come away feeling like I never really understood the background of Luther because of the way the books were written. That is definitely not the case with When Lightning Struck! The flow of Ms. Cooley's writing style often kept me on the edge of my seat to find out what was going to happen to Luther next. This is a wonderful read aloud book for families. My children also waited impatiently as our next reading time drew near. 

I had no idea of the tragedies, passion, fiery spirit, and true desire to follow God and not man that Luther possessed. His own struggles are captured so clearly in this book and make him even more real.  I came away after reading this book knowing more about his life and dedication than from anything I have ever read before. I'm passing it on to my husband next. I kept reading him excerpts and now he wants to read it too!

Martin Luther's life was too exciting not to be written for teens and younger readers! In this fast-paced, action-packed novel of Martin Luther's life, readers will be introduced to a fascinating time when princes ruled Europe and knights roamed the countryside. They'll learn about a time when powerful forces lined up against each other and believing the wrong thing could get you killed. When Lightning Struck! is far more than just an adventure story, of course. It also tells a theological story. Drawing carefully from Luther's own words, this book introduces readers to a kindred spirit who struggled with what knowing God through Scripture means for daily life. They will understand what was at stake and how powerfully liberating Luther's idea of grace through faith was—in his time and in ours! In crisp, enjoyable prose, author Danika Cooley conveys both the drama and the meaning of the Reformation for younger readers like no one before her!

When Lightning Struck! is designed to be read by middle and high school students, and is a great family read aloud for grades 3 and up. You can also download a free discussion guide and unit study guide to aid in your studies as well.  

To help celebrate this book launch, all Bible Road Trip & Cobblestone Path Products are 50% off through November 11, 2015.  Find out more about those here. 

Also don't forget to enter the amazing giveaway with a value of over $500 in prizes to be given away!  To keep the party going, join us on Facebook, November 10th, 2015 at 9:00pm for even more giveaways!  Can't wait to see you there!

About The Author

Danika Cooley is a married mother of four, a grandmother, a curriculum developer, and a writer. Danika's three year Scripture survey for preschool to high school, Bible Road Trip, is used across the globe. She blogs about godly parenting and homeschooling resources at Thinking Kids.

Review of Stinky Kid Math

Do you ever find that your child needs extra Math help? Have you ever gone through their current math lesson and felt they just didn't get the concept and needed more practice? I know we have and often. As you reach the higher mathematics levels of Algebra and Geometry, sometimes your student might need extra help. Stinky Kid Math offers students that extra help online with Stinky Kid Math lessons.

We used Stinky Kid Math with Jonathan who is my Senior this year. He has struggled with Math and we gave up on Algebra for a while even. He has since picked the subject back up at his own speed and is doing much better with it. I think the struggle really was that we were moving too fast and he needed to practice and practice the same concept over and over to master it. He also needed different learning opportunities because just a worksheet would drive him insane but then again just going through videos gave the same result - insanity. So, what we have found is that we need to mix in all of these resources for him to give him a variety. Stinky Kid Math provides all of these varieties and we use them as a supplement to our current curriculum giving him the repetition he needs in the concepts as well.

Stinky Kid Math teaches students how math concepts work by breaking them down for you in a practical manner. They offer over 350 videos!  You can use the videos as we did and pair them with the current concept that your child is learning or you can go through the lessons in order. The videos are taught by founder, Todd Matia. We found his teaching style to be extremely down to earth. We also liked the way he broke down the concepts to make them relatable to concepts that you may already know something about. For example, when talking about graphing points, he relates the concept back to reading a map. I'm sure you've heard the question, "Where can I use this in the real world?" before. Well, Mr. Matia tells you! The video lessons are very short so it is easy to add these into your day. He also uses different background settings in the videos which we found fun too. We would try to guess where he was going to come to us from next. 

The set up is so simple and very flexible to use. You simply watch the videos related to the concept you are learning, read any textbook pages given, and complete the worksheets or pick and choose which ones you want to do.

Of course, Jonathan's favorite part of this program was the games that were offered. He said some of them were very challenging for him but he still enjoyed them.

Stinky Kid Math offers a free month trial on their website so you can see if this would be a great fit for your family or not. You can also find out more about them on Facebook and Twitter.