SMILE!

This commercial makes me smile the happiest smile ever!

We're Back!

Well, we're back! Back to school, back to routine, back to busy and BACK to PICTURES!!! Ever since I posted the pictures of Lake Powell I haven't been able to find my camera battery charger! It's been really annoying and for a person who takes their camera absolutely Everywhere it's been driving me nuts to not be able to capture moments that happen all around me! BUT Ethan had the brilliant idea to look into the pocket of his old backpack and lo and behold...he found my charger!! So it is happily plugged in and waiting to be used!! Stay tuned!!

It is the function of speech to free men from the bondage of irrational fears

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Louis D. Brandeis

My English teacher put this on the board today and I really liked it. It's true I don't know what I'm going to do with my English degree when I (finally) graduate but the more English classes I take the more sure I am that this is what I'm supposed to be doing. We also did a rush write where she started a sentence on the board and gave us 3 minutes to finish it, this is what I wrote without even thinking...

Writing is Like...

...an ineffable joy when the right words come. It's something that can't be described to someone unwilling to try. It's my one release that doesn't have to fit perfectly into a box created by someone that doesn't understand me & the freedom it gives me.

Maybe you don't see it, but I was surprised by the way I feel about writing. Give me a piece of paper and I'll write, I usually do it out of habit and it usually starts out with me writing my name 10 times and then I just start going.

I don't know what it is but I love to write.

No true fiasco ever began as a quest for mere adequacy. A motto of the British Special air force is, “those who risk, win”. A single green vine is able to grow through cement. The Pacific North Western Salmon beats itself bloody on its quest to travel hundreds of miles upstream, against the current with a single purpose:

Life

-Elizabeth Town

Reader's Digest

As previously mentioned I toned back my reading this month and worked on projects more but here are the few gems that I picked out. I started the month by reading another Judith McNaught and ended with a wonderful new one.

I was very weary of this one when I started it because it's a little different. It's the story of a teacher who is kidnapped by a famous movie star who has recently escaped from prison. I know what you're thinking and that's exactly what I thought....wacko! It took me a minute to get into it but I ended up loving it. They're stuck in the mountains hiding out from the cops after he hijacks her car at a coffee shop and they're totally awkward and end up being totally cute! You'll love it!

This I absolutely loved this book. It is a very different book and at times a little hard to follow. It takes place in a post-apocalyptic world where everything is dangerous and the only stable thing in the world is the Road. The father and son encounter all sorts of people in different states of desperate. The ending is a little different, just like the rest of the book. Chris recommended this book to me months ago and I spaced it but he recommended it to me again and I ended up reading it the same time as my dad. I HIGHLY recommend it, but you better read fast, the movie comes out October 16!!

I know I read another book at some point in between those two but I can't recall what it was right now so I'll let you know when it comes to me!

Summer Fun

This last month I've been a little MIA and I apologize! I didn't quite bury myself in books like I have previous two months but I did get a little in on the side! We went to Lake Powell with everybody for a couple days and I was so excited to get back on a boat!! I was a little rusty because I didn't get to go last year, but I loved it! Ethan's never been water skiing so we tried really hard to get him up and he made a valiant effort!! He made it up but never quite got the hang of staying up! The little girls were not happy to learn how to ski but they loved swimming and riding on the tube!

Chris and Ty got really good at the surf board without using the rope and I was very jealous!

Read-a-Thon pt. 2!

I haven't slowed down my reading rate and thought I'd share again! I tried to diversify my reading but I'm really stuck on Judith McNaught! She uses amazing words and creates characters that you love and hate all at the same time! I've got some new projects for this coming month so I don't know how many more books I'll get to read!
The Oath
by Lindsay Chase
(no picture)
--I actually read this the last 2 days of May but had already posted my other books. I loved this book. It's about a girl who is cut off from her family and pursues a medical career. It's set in the late 1800's when female doctors were unheard of so she's rejected by society and many others of her profession. It's an amazing book and I loved the characters. It was also interesting to look back at history and see how medical ideas and practices have changed since then. I highly recommend it!
Kingdom of Dreams
By Judith Mcnaught 464 pgs.

--This is one of my favorite books to date! It's technically the first in a "group" of books by Mcnaught and takes place in medieval times in Scotland and England. There's kidnapping, strong characters you love, a twist around every corner and a love story you can't pass up! The Westmoreland family captivates you with their intense personalities and the plots keep you turning pages! I definitely recommend this one!



Whitney, My Love
by Judith McNaught 736 pgs.
--Honestly, I didn't like this book. It's the second in the grouping with Kingdom of Dreams but takes place in the 17-1800's with the descendents of the Westmoreland's in in Kingdom of Dreams. I'm not really sure why I didn't like this book because I still loved the Westmoreland characters but something didn't click, I think part of it was because it was so unlikely. Who honestly meets a person twice and then signs a wedding contract with her dad before even consulting her?! Gentry thought it was ok, but she didn't really love it either. It is essential to read if you are going to read the last/3rd in the grouping at which point you start to appreciate this one!

Until You
by Judith McNaught 448 pgs.

--This is the final of the grouping and actually takes place using the same characters as Whitney, My Love but a couple years later. This one was amazing because it was totally different than all the others, not the same storyline with different names. The main character gets into an accident and gets amnesia. She wakes up and everybody thinks she's someone else so she begins to think she is that person too. I was on edge the whole time waiting to see how she would find out who she really was and what kind of fallout that would have. I loved this book!
Paradise
by Judith McNaught 720 pgs
--This was a breath of fresh air because it wasn't set back in the 19th century, it was a modern day love story. This one again was not quite as realistic as some of the others and I had a hard time with that but story overall was pretty good. The characters are upper class socialites and hard to relate to, but you're dying to find out what happens! In a power struggle over multi-million dollar companies an unlikely friendship emerges and there's mysterious danger scattered throughout. It's one of those that you read because, "why not?"


Shanna
by Kathleen E. Woodiwiss 672 pgs.
--This was a good book with pirates, kidnappings, boat races, and anything you can think of! It takes place in the Caribbean in an emerging society where life is carefree. Shanna is desperate not to marry for anything but love but her dad has a plan of his own. In a moment of panic Shanna makes a deal with a man bound for the gallows, but in an odd twist of fate he escapes death and is empoyed by her father. What ensues is an adventure neither expected! It's a fun book but the ending does drag a little bit. I'd say read it when you've got the time.




Never Look Back
by Betsy Brannon Green 287 pgs.

--Green is an LDS author and I honestly avoid reading any specifically LDS author because I think they are gaggy and cheesey and try waaaay too hard to incorporate LDS terminology and events. I first read Green in high school and actually quite enjoyed her book, Hearts in Hiding. This one I didn't really enjoy as much as the first one, but my boss has really gotten into her so I'm sure I'll be reading more of her books. It's a suspense thriller and you definitely don't expect the ending. If you don't mind LDS author's I'd say this is a good book for you.


Once & Always
by Judith McNaught 400 pgs
--It might sound redundant but I liked this one too!! This is definitely an on-the-edge-of-your-seat book. Lord Fielding, jilted by his first wife's disloyalty and kidnapping of his son is sent into a downward spiral but when the ship both are on he is devastated and vows to never love again. When Victoria is orphaned she goes to live with her distant uncle at Fielding's estate she is thrown into his life unexpectedly. Interesting events to follow....! I recommend it as a quick read!





Digital Fortress
by Dan Brown 384 pgs.

--This book honestly made me lose faith in Dan Brown as an author. I loved Davinci Code and enjoyed Angels and Demons but I could not hack this one. It's a scientific thriller using the most sophisticated of technology belonging to the US Govt. to track terrorists and other conspiracy's over the internet when suddenly they're in a death battle to save that technology. I originally bought it for Ethan to read so hopefully when he gets around to it he'll like it better than I did! I personally wouldn't recommend it but maybe you'll like it better than I did too!!



That's all for June...I'm off to start the list for July!