King's Faith [DVD Review & Giveaway]

*This giveaway is now closed. Kristy Love be looking for an e-mail: you won! Thank you to all who participated. Giveaways don't happen without entrants :)*

Well, I'm wetting my toes: I've never reviewed a movie before. I'll also go ahead and tell you I generally do not view "Christian" movies; almost every movie in our home, whether rented or purchased, is a main stream, Hollywood production. That being said, I knew that I couldn't compare this movie to anything mainstream; this is a small budget film.  I also have only seen one small budget film I'm aware of and it was ages ago. So what you will get is purely my thoughts on the movie itself. (Also, I'd like you to know any "commercial" info in this review is not required of me for my review; I chose to relay it to you in order to help you consider enterting the giveaway and/or purchasing the film.)

Let me start with the info on the back of the case:

About KING'S FAITH
Eighteen foster homes. Nine arrests. One life-changing moment.
After Brendan King's life spiraled to rock bottom, the teen found hope in a new relationship with Christ while serving time in a juvenile penetentiary. Recently released from prison, Brendan finds solace in the foster home of a couple struggling with suppressed grief.
As the city-bred teen enrolls at a suburban high school, he finds support from a group of believers. Yet the bonds of his old way of life - and the gang that wants to know where he hid their stash on a long-ago night - are strong. In his darkest moment, Brendan found faith. Now he must decide if it's worth the price to hold on to it.
KING'S FAITH is produced by DiBella and Faith Street Film Partners LLC, a Rochester, NY-based collective of filmmakers, churches, investors, and supporters.

Let me first say adoption and fostering both always pull at my heart strings. Though I'm not completely active in helping with either at this time, I'm always asking, praying, hoping to be more heavily involved in ministries with such. I think, at this time, it comes more from me than from Ben, but he is not opposed to the idea of either and we sometimes dream of actually doing one or the other, though we both definitely enjoy helping however we can in our current circumstances with both. Thus, when I received the e-mail to review this, I knew I wanted to see what kind of story was woven in this film.

I was, however, a little skeptical of what the acting would be like. The only other "Christian" film I've ever seen left much to be desired when it came to the acting. However, King's Faith had decent acting. Again, it's no Hollywood film, but I felt I could genuinely connect with the characters and felt as though they portrayed their parts well. How they spoke their lines, the expressions they used, the interactions with other characters, even the non-speaking parts really brought you in to a story. Needless to say, I was impressed.

I enjoyed watching it as it is a pretty mellow movie with a few mildly intense scenes scattered throughout. It is rated PG-13 for violence, drug content, and thematic events; I wouldn't show this to a young child, but a pre-teen would possibly enjoy it and I think it is laced with a ton of great conversational bits for those of you with older children. Though every kid is different, and there may possibly be a pre-teen who shouldn't watch this, I personally believe I would love to sit with my kids to watch this and discuss it when they are older.

It is full of so many great themes, opening doors for discussion on topics such as grace, forgiveness, how our choices affect us, testing of faith. Here is one quote which stuck with me and is a big theme throughout: "If you stand firm in your faith, anything is possible." But one of the reasons I love this quote is because Brendan's life doesn't become easy simply by him choosing faith before he was released from the penitentiary. And the life of the couple who fosters him isn't a cake walk either.

For those of you familiar with these movies, it was described to me as a cross between "Fireproof" and "To Save a Life". Though I'm not familiar with either of those movies, I heard great reviews on "Fireproof". I will personally say I'm not sure I will frequently watch "King's Faith" but I know it will not sit on my DVD shelf and simply collect dust. (Let me be honest, I have very few "go to" movies which I watch on a regular basis. So the fact it will not collect dust, like some movies I own, is a testament to the fact this movie is worth watching, in my opinion.)

And in order to keep from completely giving the movie away, I'll wrap up the review there. Now, on to the giveaway (YAY!):

I have one copy of KING'S FAITH to give away. The giveaway is open to US residents with a physical address (no P.O. boxes, sorry!) age 18 and up. It begins today, Tuesday, November 5, at 12 am CST, and will close on Sunday, November 16, at 12 am CST. The only mandatory entry for the giveaway is to leave a blog comment; I would love if you'd answer this question: What are your thoughts on discussing drug use with pre-teens and teens? The winner will be randomly selected via Rafflecopter. They will be announced in an addendum at the top of this post, as well as on the Rafflecopter form, within 48 hours of the giveaway's close. I will also contact them via e-mail. (Please ensure you use a valid, working e-mail address to enter with on the Rafflecopter form.) The winner will have 48 hours to contact me via e-mail at mylifestidbits@gmail.com to claim their prize. I will need the winners full name and physical  address to forward to giveaway sponsor so they can mail the winner their prize. For any other information regarding giveaways hosted on my blog, please visit the official giveaway page.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

"Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Rufus and Ryan Go to Church! [Book Review & Giveaway]

*UPDATE: The giveaway officially closed yesterday, Saturday, October 5, 2013. Congratulations, Dena! You will be receiving an e-mail. Please contact me within 48 hours so we can get your copy of "Rufus and Ryan Go to Church" headed your way.*

"Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned in this post for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

When I was contacted about reviewing this book, I immediately opted in. I knew it may be slightly ahead of where Zoë is, but the title itself seemed like a book we could start reading with her now and she would grow in more understanding of as she aged. My hope is by the time we are taking her with us or giving her the option of joining us in the service, she will know what to expect, but have learned it in a fun way.

I am so glad I opted in! This book really is a fun way for a kid to see the church service, though big and possibly scary, is really more like a big class with people of all ages. There are some differences in the way our church works and this book describes how a service goes, but it's on such a child's level that you can easily adapt it so you're child will know more of what to expect when they join you.

Zoë loves to sit and read the story to herself and also frequently comes to find her daddy or me so we can read it with her. It quickly became a favorite for her, finding it's way into the rotation of nap or bed time stories, frequently, I might add. She has even gone to find it first thing in the morning:

Still in her PJs

I also loved how there are already aspects of a relationship with Christ we are incorporating in the home she is learning occur in the service, too: prayer, praising God through worship songs, reading bible stories. We want all of these to be a "norm" in our household and I think they can help bridge the "I'm too little for the service" gap. Thus, reading about a kid who is her age who sees these similarities will hopefully be an encouragement for sitting through a church service. (I do know that there may be some kind of interruption or childhood-energy causing us to leave the service in the middle. I just think discussing what its like before we ever get there will help her enjoy the service a little more, whether or not we have to leave early.)

If you want to look up a bit more about the book, or buy it, feel free to check out the book on the publishers website or their facebook page. (And no, I was not required to put those links on here. I figured I give you easy access if you want to go straight to the publisher for more information.)

Now, on to the giveaway!

Might I suggest, even if you don't have a child in your home who is in the age range for this book (it is recommended for ages 2-5), but you know someone with a child or you have a niece or nephew in this age range, go ahead and enter! You can give it as a gift or a simple "I was thinking about you". My guess is they will love it!

What you need to know:

I have one copy of Rufus and Ryan Go to Church! to give away. This giveaway is open to US residents with a physical address (no P.O. boxes. Sorry!) age 18 and up. The giveaway begins today, September 26th, at 12 am CST and will close on October 6th at 12 am CST. There is only one mandatory entry for this giveaway: blog comment on this post. The winner will be randomly selected using Rafflecopter. The winner will be announced in an addendum note at the top of this post, as well as in the Rafflecopter form, within 48 hours of the close of the giveaway. They will also be contacted via e-mail. (Please make sure you use a valid, working e-mail address to enter using the Rafflecopter form.) The winner will have 48 hours to contact me via the e-mail listed in the announcement post to claim their prize. I will need the winners full name and physical address to forward to the blogger network so they can mail them their copy. For any other information you would like on giveaways hosted on my blog, please visit the official giveaway page.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Happy Thursday to everyone! Be sure to spread the word so your friends don't miss out on a chance to win a great children's book!

Firmoo Online Glasses Store [Review]

So I know I've seen the Firmoo reviews floating around the blogosphere. And secretly, I wanted to try it. I've never been brave enough to try glasses out online because I'm ridiculously hard to find frames that fit my wonderfully oval facial shape (read: long). It just isn't easy.

For those of you who may not have heard about it, Firmoo is an online glasses site. You can purchase non-prescription and prescription glasses and/or sunglasses. And honestly, they have some really cute frames.

So I went through the frames and chose this pair. I went a bit out of my comfort zone in that they aren't as rectangular as I normally get and thought maybe, just maybe I would like the way they fit. They looked really cute online. Even Ben thought they were becoming via the try on tool.

Well, my glasses arrived this past week while I was back in the good ol' BR. Naturally, one of the first things I did once I was going through the mail, was rip open my Firmoo package. I was so excited and somewhat anxious about trying on a pair of glasses I hadn't actually ever set on my physical face.

Unfortunately, as soon as I saw them on myself in the mirror, I realized that I would never want myself seen in public with them on. Funny enough, they actually looked decent on my husband. They just did not look good on me. At least, I don't feel comfortable in them. And the height of the frame was much more than I like and feel looks good on me (read: I think they are too big for my face). Here are a few pictures so you can see them on me (please pardon my hair. It's been some crazy days over in these parts):

So as I look at this picture, I can see how some people may actually be ok wearing these frames. They're a bit "taller" than what I like for glasses.

This is how I would feel inside all the time if I were to wear them out and about. 

Just another to give you an idea of how they looked :)

Overall, my experience was great. I just happened to run into the one problem that has always kept me from an online purchase of glasses: my hard-to-fit face. If you are brave enough to try or you generally don't have trouble finding glasses that work on your face, I would recommend you give Firmoo a shot. They even are running a "First Pair Free Program" where you pick your free pair of glasses, all you have to do is pay for the shipping. Also, I e-mailed their team just to let them know what happened and they gave me a suggestion that I may try if I brave online glasses "fitting" again, and I think will be helpful for those who do want to try and may have a hard-to-fit face: they list the  height and width for every glasses frame so make sure to find a pair that will work with your face. You will likely have to coordinate with your eye doctor for measurments OR measure an old pair of glasses to give you an idea of what you're looking for.

All in all, Firmoo had great customer service and a pleasant (and fun I might add) experience of virtually trying on glasses. Definitely a positive experience overall.

*Disclosure: I was sent a free pair of Firmoo glasses for this review. I was in no other way compensated. All views and opinions, as well as photos, are my own.*