L.M. Montgomery Reading Challenge ::: The Conclusion

I participated in Carrie's L.M. Montgomery Reading Challenge this month, and it was fun reaquainting myself with the pages of a favorite author. I mentioned that January seems to be a month that I pull out the familiar (after the holiday hectic) and this challenge was a perfect fit!

The two books that I read were Jane of Lantern Hill and Chronicles of Avonlea. Jane is one of my favorite Montgomery works and one that I have read many times. Jane lives with her mother and extremely strict grandmother (and an aunt that doesn't figure much into the story) in Toronto. As far as she knows, her father has been dead for many years. She trudges along in life - struggling in school, continually at odds with her grandmother, and wondering why her mother is always so sad. Then, one day, after chance comment from a schoolmate, she finds out that her father is alive! At this point, it doesn't make much impact on her life, other that it is one more person that dislikes her, but then ... a letter arrives from her father and she embarks on a summer journey to stay with him on Prince Edward Island!

The story is mostly set during her two summers with her father. Out from under the criticizing eye of her grandmother, Jane blossoms. She finds a kindred spirit in her father and the two of them set up housekeeping in a home that is full of "magic." She teaches herself to cook, makes wonderful friends, and has several adventures. When she returns home to winters with her mother, changes are noticed in Jane. Along the way, Jane also uncovers some of the mystery of why her parents are no longer together ... but I'll leave the rest of you to read about that because the book has a wonderful ending.

I don't know why I am so drawn to Jane. I think it is the simplicity of her days, the joy she takes in her homemaking, the excitement that she finds in everything whether it is a fresh posy of flowers or a red, ripe bunch of strawberries. Her childhood days, while burdened with the separation of her parents, are spent knowing that she is loved and, for the first time with her father, she is encouraged and allowed to blossom as Jane, not as what her grandmother wants her to be.

As a side note, there is also a movie version of Jane of Lantern Hill. It's been several years since I have watched it, but I remember enjoying it. It looks to be unavailable, but a library might have it tucked away somewhere. :)

The 2nd book I read for the challenge was Chronicles of Avonlea, a collection of short stories with familiar and unfamiliar characters that are linked some how to either Anne or Avonlea. If you have watched any of the Road to Avonlea series that was on the Disney Channel, you will recognize a couple of these stories as they were woven into the sweet series.

I have read this book before. However, as I was re-reading it for the challenge, I was a little frustrated with it. The stories weren't long enough. Just when they had me hooked into the characters and the story, it ended! And moved on to someone else! It is safe to say that I don't read many short stories. :) I want to read a loooong book that I can get buried in, getting to know all about the characters, and come out wanting more.

Seriously, if you need little tastes of life in Avonlea, these stories are perfect. Short, with characters that are full of quirks and personality ... these are great for a quick read when you have just a moment to sit down.

For more reviews on other works by L.M. Montgomery, head over to Reading to Know. And thank you, Carrie, for hosting this fun challenge. :)

Indulge this Mama ... my girlie is turning 3 today and we're doing all sorts of birthday-ish things. Chocolate will be eaten. A new birthday dress will be worn. Goodies will be presented. Happy Birthday to our Natalie girl!

The 4th Photo

Stephanie @ Stephanie's Mommy Brain has tagged me! Here are the rules:


1.) Go to your 4th folder where you store your photos.

2.) Select your 4th picture (no exceptions)! Seriously.. no exceptions.
3.) Post the picture with an explanation and link it back to your tagger.
4.) Tag 4 people to do the same!!

Boy, did I get lucky! :) It's a picture of my rockin' husband playing bass in a show at The Factory in Franklin. This picture is from April of 2005 so I was just sure I would be pulling up some sort of picture of N1 - she would have been about 18 months and there's no shortage of pictures of her at that age!

Passing on the photo love. I'm tagging: Kathy, Mills, Gina, and ... anyone else? :)

National Handwriting Day

Click the pics to read them larger in Flickr if you need to. :)

HT: Katrina

These are the notecards I will send you if you win. :) Have fun!

What's On Your Nightstand ::: January

I love looking at the "nightstand" posts that bloggers put up once a month. Mine is not terribly impressive this month. Janaury (I'm now noticing) is usually a reading rut for me. It should be a great month for reading! I'm inside a lot because of the weather, I've usually got a stack of new books to read from Christmas and birthday ... however, invariably I find myself turning to books that I have read before. Maybe it's because of the letdown after the holidays and I need something familiar after the frenzy? Who knows. :)

Anyway. Here are a few of the books that I'm PUTTING on my nightstand to read in the next few weeks. We'll just have to see what happens.

• Rebecca's Reward by Lauraine Snelling. I've been reading these historical fiction books set in North Dakota since the beginning of her Red River series. I'm finding I'm not as hooked with this book, though, as with some of the others.
• Inkspell by Cornelia Funke. I loved the first book and am plunging into the second one. Has anyone seen the movie for Inkheart that is in the theatre now? I have heard one good review so far. Hoping for a date night with my husband to see that before it makes its way to our Netflix queue. :)
• The Journey that Saved Curious George: The True Wartime Escape of Margret & H.A. Rey by Louise Borden. I admit to a love of all things H.A. Rey as evidenced by a children's classics post. This book is at my local library and I'm going to check it out this week and add it to my nightstand.
• Sabbath Keeping by Lynne Baab. A book that I received for Christmas and I am eager to start.

And, two others that I have read before, but feel that I need to pull out for the good reminders that are in there...

• A Place of Quiet Rest by Nancy Leigh DeMoss
• Living Simply by Joanne Heim

If you are interested in posting your nightstand stack, head over to Five Minutes for Books. :)

Simple Woman’s Daybook ::: January 26, 2009

Do visit Peggy's to see all the other daybook posts this week!

Outside my Window ... grey light is outside the window this morning. Looking to be a cloudy and cold day. That was this morning. Now it is night and I'm just now posting this!

I am thinking ... on friendship, on joy, on so many things right now. A little bit of information overload going on inside my head.

I am thankful for ... so many things. I am blessed.

In the learning room ... just working our way through our phonics workbooks bit by bit. Last week we had a great playday at the zoo (although it was a bit chilly); that was a great treat from all the indoor time that we've had.

From the kitchen ... this week's menu:

Monday: Pasta Fagioli soup … oh. My. Word. this was good.
Tuesday: something easy in the crockpot because it's dance night. I have a roast in the freezer so we may pull that out.
Wednesday: Quesadillas (cheese for the girls; chicken and spinach for the adults)
Thursday: Good question … probably a leftover night of sorts because I'll do my monthly grocery run for February on Saturday.
Friday: McDonald's! Our birthday girl loves her some hamburgers right now and a McD's hamburger and some playtime will thrill her to no end. J

I am creating ... not too terribly much. A few notepads and cards for baby presents. I take that back … I'm making a little verse notebook. To go along with my theme of choosing joy for the year, I'm going to participate in Joanne's Memory Monday and start memorizing some scripture about joy.

I am going ... to make my monthly menu and grocery list this week. Plans for a big shopping run this weekend and I need to be prepared.

I am wearing ... blue jeans and a pink sweatshirt. Comfy clothes.

I am reading ... Rebecca's Reward by Lauraine Snelling. Isaiah. I need to pick me up a non-fiction book to work through, but am undecided as of yet.

I am hoping ... for good news for friends this week that are going into the hospital. One to have a baby and one for heart valve surgery. God is good, all the time.

I am hearing ... a little Wii activity going on behind me. I'm stealing about two minutes to finally post this before I go tuck munchkins into bed.

Around the house ... the princess explosion in the family room has been remedied and the last load of clothes has been folded and put away. Soup is in the crockpot for dinner tonight.

One of my favorite things ... is celebrating birthdays. And we are celebrating one 'round these parts on Friday.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week ... well, let's see. Tuesday: dance and we pick up our coop order for the week; Wednesday: Bible study in the morning and the N's have Awana at night; Thursday: a 3yo checkup for N2 in the a.m. because on Friday … we are celebrating her birthday! Woo-hoo!

Here is a picture thought I am sharing with you ...

Our Saturday – the N's and I went to the circus!

Bloggy Book Review ::: The Centurion's Wife

I love the writing of Janette Oke. Love, love, love. When I was in sixth grade our family moved to Calgary, Alberta, and around that time I was introduced to this Canadian author's writing. My favorite series of her's - I don't know that I can pick one, but I do love her Canadian West series. My family lived an hour away from many of the locations that she mentioned in these books and they make me homesick for the Canadian Rockies whenever I read them.

However, this review is about her newest book co-written with Davis Bunn. The Centurion's Wife is historical fiction, set in the days immediately after the death and resurrection of Christ. The main character, Leah, is the principal maid to Pontius Pilate's wife. She is betrothed to a soldier, Alban, and both are ordered to dig into the death and supposed theft of the body of the man Jesus. Is there a greater threat to Pilate underneath the mystery of the missing teacher? Pilate has a tenuous grip on his position of leadership and is determined to get to the bottom of this mystery, using any means and anyone necessary.

An extremely well-written book for those that are a fan of historical fiction. The gospel is brought to life and beautifully woven throughout this story as Leah and Alban uncover the truth about the Messiah.

From the book:

Mary and I have spent quite a bit of time with the Master. I saw him teach, I saw him heal, I saw him dine with his disciples, I saw him leave, and I saw him return. And this is what I think: I believe every moment of his entire life has been spent setting an example. Every breath, every act, every word, carries message upon message upon message. His every instant was meant to bring eternity into the moment and hope to this fallen world. The death of my brother, our time of broken mourning, our loss of hope...

It was Martha's turn to stop and struggle with her emotions. Then she said, "He did this not only for us, but for everyone who witnessed that day. And for those like you who hear of it. He did this to show that even in the darkest hour, when there is no reason to go forward, no possibility of a better tomorrow, he is there to comfort, to guide, to heal. He brings with him the gift of hope. Impossible, glorious, joyful hope.

This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
The Centurion's Wife
Bethany House Publishers (January 1, 2009)
by
Davis Bunn and Janette Oke
ABOUT THE AUTHORS:
Davis Bunn is an internationally acclaimed author who has sold more than six million books in fifteen languages. His audiences span reading genres from high drama and action thrillers to heartwarming relationship stories, in both contemporary and historical settings.

Honored with three Christy Awards for excellence in historical and suspense fiction, his bestsellers include My Soul To Keep, and Full Circle. A sought-after lecturer in the art of writing, Bunn was named Novelist in Residence at Regent's Park College, Oxford University.

He and his wife, Isabella, make their home in Florida for some of each year, and spend the rest near Oxford, England, where they each teach and write.


Her first novel, a prairie love story titled Love Comes Softly, was published by Bethany House in 1979. This book was followed by more than 75 others.

After Love Comes Softly was published, Oke found her readers asking for more. That book led to a series of eight others in her Love Comes Softly series. She has written multiple fiction series, including The Canadian West, Seasons of the Heart and Women of the West. Her most recent releases include a beautiful children's picture book, I Wonder...Did Jesus Have a Pet Lamb and The Song of Acadia series, co-written with T. Davis Bunn.

Janette Oke's warm writing style has won the hearts of millions of readers. She has received numerous awards, including the Gold Medallion Award, The Christy Award of Excellence, the 1992 President's Award for her significant contribution to the category of Christian fiction from the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association, and in 1999 the Life Impact Award from the Christian Booksellers Association International. Beloved worldwide, her books have been translated into fourteen languages.

She and her husband live nearby in Alberta, Canada.


ABOUT THE BOOK

Janette Oke has dreamed for years of retelling a story in a biblical time frame from a female protagonist's perspective, and Davis Bunn is elated to be working with her again on this sweeping saga of the dramatic events surrounding the birth of Christianity...and the very personal story of Leah, a young Jewess of mixed heritage trapped in a vortex of competing political agendas and private trauma.

Caught up in the maelstrom following the death of an obscure rabbi in the Roman backwater of first-century Palestine, Leah finds herself also engulfed in her own turmoil--facing the prospect of an arranged marriage to a Roman soldier, Alban, who seems to care for nothing but his own ambitions.

Head of the garrison near Galilee, he has been assigned by Palestine's governor to ferret out the truth behind rumors of a political execution gone awry. Leah's mistress, the governor's wife, secretly commissions Leah also to discover what really has become of this man whose death--and missing body--is causing such furor.

This epic drama is threaded with the tale of an unlikely romance and framed with dangers and betrayals from unexpected sources. At its core, the story unfolds the testing of loyalties--between two young people whose inner searchings they cannot express, between their irreconcilable heritages, and ultimately between their humanity and the Divine they yearn to encounter.

If you would like to read the first chapter of The Centurion's Wife, go HERE

Zoo Day

The weather crept up to the 50's today so the girls and I headed for the zoo. :) We were in serious need of some sunshine as well as time on our feet getting much needed exercise!

I thought most moms would appreciate these pictures. The girls sat by each other for about 2.7 seconds so that I could take a picture. This is the "aw, how cute!" picture:

This is an example of the other 294 pictures that I have of the same scene ... the big girls trying to hold down E. :)

Real life. :)

Kid's Pick ::: Betsy-Tacy

My girls and I have settled into a good read-aloud routine over lunch on most days. Typically, we work through a short chapter book at this time - the girls are busy with lunch and will sit a little longer which helps when the book has fewer pictures than our normal books that we curl on the couch to read.

Many, many years ago a good friend told me about the Betsy-Tacy books. Two little girls who are best friends and share many adventures and imaginings together. I recently reaquainted myself with the books and since my oldest is five (just like the main characters ... what a coincidence!) and we jumped right into book one, Betsy-Tacy. The girls have thoroghly enjoyed these stories - how Betsy and Tacy met, their first day of school (and how shy Tacy was), and many other adventures as they play in their neighborhood.

As you read these books, you can definately tell that they were set in a different time period. The girls (five years old!) are allowed to wander their neighborhood with no fear, climbing hills and exploring trees. Not the uber-protective society that our children are, dare I say, constrained by today. I will also share with you that in one of the chapters the little girls deal with the death of Tacy's baby sister. These books were written at a time when a child's death was not uncommon if they caught the flu or the measles. This was handled extremely tastefully - of course, a mama knows whether or not their child can handle reading this, but my girls did fine with it and it allowed for some appropriate age-level discussions about death and what happens.

If you are looking for a beginning chapter book, especially if you have little girls, we highly recommend Betsy-Tacy. Right now the girls and I are reading the second book in the series, Betsy, Tacy & Tib, where a third little girl is welcomed into their circle of friendship.

For more kid picks, head over to Five Minutes for Books!

Giveaway Winner ::: Kiss

Congratulations to Jennifer! She is the winner of Kiss by Ted Dekker & Erin Healy (which I reviewed here).

Saturday Links ::: January 17

I'm guessing that most have (by now) heard about the law that is going into effect requiring manufacturers of children's merchandise to undergo extensive lead testing. A good thing, right? Well, if you are a stay @ home mama that likes to make hair bows and burp rags and sell them on Etsy, then not so much.

Click on the little bear to find out more about this law and what you can do, or you can read a great summarization post over at Rocks in My Dryer.

And now, a few other links... :)

• Shimelle is offering a free scrapbooking class on her blog! Head over here for the details and a introductory pdf you can download. (This is the mind behind the Journal Your Christmas project that I do so if you like that type of project, check this one out. You can't beat the price!) :)
• Have I shared the link to this fun calendar that you can download and print at home? Cute project, even if we are already a few weeks into January.
• These heart cards make me happy. I'm going to try and figure out a little Valentine's goodie for my girls to give their friends using the the little girl card.
• I made these peanut butter energy bars this week .... oh my. Yum.
• Don't forget to enter my giveaway for the new Ted Dekker/Erin Healy book. It ends on Sunday night and I'll announce the winner on Monday.

Happy Saturday. :)