FF#94...Spooky Fall!

Happy happy Friday!  Hope yours is going as well as mine!  Posting today to share the latest and greatest Fashionista Friday challenge from If the Shoe fits...Scrap it!

The FF#94 challenge is based on how you are inspired by this time of year...so we are giving you some options!  Share with us either your Halloween or Fall inspired projects (or both! or a combo of both!).  My sample is something a little different than I normally create for the Shoe...it's something in progress for my daughter (who is Halloween's BIGGEST fan!)...she requested it specifically (well...she was supposed to do the bulk of the work...that didn't end up happening!):

and up close

I started piecing this quilt top yesterday, and finished it up earlier today.  She picked the fabrics...I did all the cutting, stitching, piecing, etc. She thinks it's pretty cool though!  Now I just have to get it quilted!

Thanks for stopping by...now head on over to the Shoe and share your inspiration with us!

little life lessons

1. Don't speak too loudly while your hubby is on the phone...the person on the other end might hear you refer to them in less than flattering terms (learned this one last week)
2. Don't make said comments when the person you are really irritated with is your hubby...not the other person (see above)
3. Don't ever start a sentence with "hold my beer while..." it usually leads to many comical (at your own expense) stories for many years to come (learned this one a few years ago while at Talladega)
4. Don't expect to automatically be able to do something just because you saw a tutorial on someone else's blog (many semi-painted canvases and piles of "artsy" junk filling up space in my office taught me this one)
5. Don't give up just because you don't get it right the first time (still working on this one)
6. Don't drive someone's prized vehicle and then complain about how it drives (hubby learned this one today (for the second time!))
7. Don't drink and blog (learned that after re-reading last night's post...does it make sense to anyone???)
8. Trust but verify (re-live that one EVERY day!)
9. Don't believe that just because you have it all together at work, you have it all together outside of work (have to remind myself of this EVERY day!)
10. Don't attempt to make important decisions first thing in the morning if you haven't had a cup of coffee (this may just be me)
11. Don't give up...even when you break ever rule listed above...tomorrow is another day!

what to do when we grow up

what is there to do when you are left wondering and considering something?

especially when you aren't entirely sure what to say...

but you respond best you can...

and still have no idea how it is you should have responded...but you responded with what you thought was the best you could do....

and you sometimes wonder if you weren't a grown up...would you have to wonder?

would any of the stuff matter?

or...were you the best grownup you could be in your response...

i like to think when we were kids it was much easier...hurts were easily forgotten...the sky was always blue (or purple or pink or...whatever color you picked for your sky back then...)

and life was always good...

and then we grow up...

and it's not perfect...

words leave lasting hurt...

and we have to engage our brains to respond...

our brains are often way too logical...but then in all the logical thinking are you forgetting that you were hurt....

but then again i think back to being a kid...and were hurts really forgotten so easily?

and then we end up back where we began...with some logic applied

hurt hurts

and no matter if we are a kid...or a grown up....

hurtful words and actions

still hurt

but as a grown up...i know

sometimes we have to figure out why it hurts...

and

with caution...

we have to consider

forgiving the hurt...

and that's what happens...

when we grow up

since I'm on the topic already...

considering the past few posts have been book-related...figured I'd throw my two cents in on the e-reader conversation...(please forgive the pics...you can read about my camera issue here)...

I own a Nook (Nook Color to be specific)...my hubby owns a Nook Color...my kiddo has the original Nook...my mom has the original Nook...we're pretty much Nook peeps around here.  Before the Nook...we had one of the Sony e-readers...well two to be exact...so the Nook was not my first e-reader adventure...but man....once I used the Nook...there was no turning back...so here's some info on the Nook...my opinion (and strictly my opinion!!!) about the Nook...and well...a little conversation about e-readers in general...

Here is my story (sorry...it's lengthy...but maybe you will find it interesting, skip down a few paragraphs if you are strictly looking for a review of the Nook):

I love books...like...A LOT!  I love to read...my most favorite hobby...which I don't even consider a hobby...I read because that's what I do...and enjoy it immensely...so much so...that it was never a surprise to my hubby if I went to the bookstore and came home with 5-6 new books (mostly just paperback...hard cover editions are just too bulky sometimes)...but he was starting to get sick of it...not the cost...not the habit...the having to STORE the books...because I have this problem...once I buy a book...I'll never get rid of it...I often re-read books...multiple times over the years...I would and will swap books with my Mom...every time I would drive to her house I would load up with a bunch of books for her...and return with just as many from her to me...she reads a lot too.

Hubby was having serious issues with the amount of space all these books were taking up...to include multiple plastic totes stored in the garage...books on every table...bookshelves were a joke...I could fill them faster than he could build them...that when the e-reader craze really got crazy...he suggested I get one...I was shocked...how dare one forsake the feel of holding a good book in one's hand????  (Never mind that I would sit and read for hours upon hours and actually lose feeling/cramp up/have shooting pains from having my hand hold the book(s))...but...when you are married...and your hubby is as cool as mine is (most of the time...don't tell him I said that!)...and you are some what curious about the e-reader thing...well...you'll give it a try!

and I loved the Sony E-reader (can't remember what model i had...sorry!)...it was so nice...no hand cramping...easy to read...easy to use...didn't miss having the actual book in my hand (the physical book so to speak)...BUT...limited library (this may have changed since my experience over a year ago...so take this with a grain of salt!).  There was a particular book I really wanted to read...but the Sony library didn't have it available...so...I was prepared to go and buy the hardcover edition...hubby threw a fit...WHY...was his main question...you have an E-READER!!  I (calmly) explained to him that the Sony e-reader store DIDN'T have the book...and I REALLY wanted to read it.  He was not happy...so I didn't buy the book (at that moment).  And THEN...

We made a visit to the local Barnes&Noble (a regular occurrence for my household)...and there was this lovely display of Nooks...and such a helpful salesman standing there...(original Nook...this is pre-color Nook)...and I had ONE question...did they have the book (see paragraph above) in their e-library...his response...OF COURSE!  Yeah...I was sold at that moment...pretty sure hubby was too...it meant I didn't have to buy the actual physical book!  Hubs looked at me and said...you want it...I said...OF COURSE...and the salesman had a good day!

and I haven't looked back since...loved EVERY STINKING minute of reading with the original Nook (so much so that we got one for my Mom and my hubby later on)...

and THEN...

the nook color came out...another lovely sales person at a different Barnes and Noble hooked me at hello...so last Christmas (it was a fantastic Christmas present!!!)...I got a Nook Color...and then hubby got one...so kiddo ended up with his original Nook (and she likes it too...just struggles sometimes with the whole real book vs e-book debate...what can I say...she's a seriously spoiled 12 year old)...

overall...LOVE the Nook Color (except on a sunny day at the beach...but then I steal kiddo's Nook!)...love the ability to download a new book from just about anywhere (with a wifi signal of course) so I can be traveling...and finish a book...and then get another one within seconds...the Barnes and Nobles customer service (Nook customer service) is phenomenal...had an original Nook pretty much die (after almost a year..no idea why) and sent it back in and got my replacement easy peasy!

So there you have it...my Nook story!

Later this week I'll post about the e-reader vs. e-reader app...and why I have both an e-reader and an iPad...instead of just one or the other...but figured this was enough for today!  Enjoy!

P.S.  I did not mention the Kindle...I have never used/operated/touched a Kindle...nor will I ever (it's a personal thing)...so I won't share my opinion on it...but I do have several friends that have Kindles and love them as much as I love my Nook!

more books

I've been on a serious reading binge the past few weeks.  It must be the cooler weather...nothing better than curling up with a good book under a comfy quilt on the couch!

My kiddo totally got he hooked on the stories of Percy Jackson last January (2010) (I think it was January...).  All of the books in the series are great (I'm thinking of revisiting them soon...so maybe a full review of just that series will follow later).  So after reading those books...I was amped up for some more olympic hero action...and along comes The Lost Hero.

Kiddo totally loved the book...and so did I.  I recently reread the book as it's follow up Son of Neptune was released last week, and I wanted to refresh my memory on the basis of the series (this is the Heroes of Olympus Series)...well I finished up Son of Neptune the other day...and well...definitely had an opinion about it...so figured I'd share!

First...

The Lost Hero

Ok...just to start...it definitely helps if you have read the Percy Jackson series first; you will already have an idea about some of the characters and the original premise...fewer "huh" moments so to speak...This was a really good book!  It did a great job of introducing "new" characters to a pre-existing world and working within the original confines established in the Percy series.  The story was very similar in layout to the PJ series, but added some new details that kept it fresh...it definitely did not feel like an older story reheated or anything. Rick Riordan does a fantastic job "selling" the idea of demi-gods and Olympus on Earth.  And considering these are "children's books" this adult was thoroughly entertained.  I would also agree that these books are appropriate for the recommended age level (9-11), but the audience should not be turned off by that recommendation...this book is truly a story for all ages.

Kiddo really enjoyed the book, as did I...and we both anxiously awaited the next book...and were thrilled when it came out last week!

The Son of Neptune

So, book 2 in the Heroes of Olympus series does a fantastic job of picking up where book 1 left off...and honestly...as much as I enjoyed the first...this one was AMAZING!  The story followed the usual path...but was much richer in detail...and definitely kept me guessing at times as to what might happen next.  How much I enjoyed this particular book may have something to do with the fact that Percy Jackson (absent in The Lost Hero) returns in Son of Neptune...and there is a familiarity with this character...you know where he's been and what he's done before...so the basic idea of he's wandering lost without his memory makes you want him to remember and realize all that much more.  The new characters added definitely give a new perspective and put a bit of a different twist on the story line...but all for good...definitely no "jump the shark" moments.  Again, it's age appropriate, but IMHO...it's very limiting to list the age recommendation as 9 to 11...as this may turn some new to the series readers off...again...as an adult...I thought it was a great book and it definitely left me hanging and anxiously awaiting the next installment (in like a YEAR or something!)  Thankfully Riordan has another series, the Kane Chronicles (another fantastic series), out...falling at different release intervals, to keep us readers hooked!

Well...there you have it...another bit of a book review from me...with little to no spoilers!  Hope you enjoy!  I'm off to work on book 2 of this series...might post more about it later!

P.S.  All above is my own opinion....no one asked for or solicited this opinion...just figured I'd share what I thought were some pretty entertaining reads with you!

a bit of a rave...and a bit of a rant

Last weekend I was feeling a bit under the weather and spent the majority of the weekend propped up in bed reading...turns out I was actually coming down with something...so I stayed in bed on Monday too...during all this bed rest...I read quite a bit...and most importantly i finally read the books my hubby has been recommending...the Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins. I read all 3...and I must say...there is one to rave about...and the other two...well...not so much.

Book 1:  The Hunger Games

WOW!  What a stunning story.   A gruesome adventure at that.  The story telling is amazing, the characters are fantastic, and I found myself really cheering for the main character Katniss and the main secondary character Peeta.  The basic idea of the book is not new...battling to the death in front of a live audience in a demonstration of how inhuman the world has become...but the author does a great job in telling the story, making you feel like you know these characters...that you are one of the people watching it happen.  The descriptions are fabulous.  I will say this much...the book is recommended for reading levels of age 12 and up...and I definitely DO NOT think this is an appropriate book for age 12...perhaps 14...but that's just my own opinion.  I really enjoyed the book and was excited to get to part 2.

Book 2: Catching Fire

Bummer...what a let down from the first book.  I actually became quite annoyed with the characters.  Katniss became particularly whiny...and Peeta was incredibly irritating.  The story has it's moments, and is a tolerable read...but the characters seem to move backwards...as fantastic as they were, as much as you cheered for them...this go round...I was almost cheering against them!  I will say there were many times I stopped reading to ponder whether or not these were the same people from the first book!  However, as irritating as the characters were, the writing was still quite wonderful, and it was easy to picture many of the scenes.  I was not a huge fan of the ending, but the last few chapters were some of the better parts of the book but the ending felt forced and rushed...and then it was on to part 3.

Book 3: Mockingjay

I will be perfectly honest here...this book made me mad!  I just can't say that enough.  While there are moments of the story that are reminiscent of the great story of the first book...in the end...all they were were just flashes of the original.  The writing is still very good, and there are bits and pieces that do make you think and wonder about how it's going to end...once I arrived at the ending...I felt a bit robbed.  If this was the ending the author originally intended...then at least make it feel that way...the final chapters again felt forced and rushed as if there was a deadline looming and the words just had to be put on pages.  Very disappointed.

Overall:

I did enjoy reading these books...and after the initial investment in the characters, I had to see how it all finished.  I was most disappointed because it started out so well...but finished poorly.  It's quite funny as my hubby told me that he felt the books got progressively better...but for me, the first book was the only truly good book of the trilogy.  To each their own!

Well that's my bit of a rave and a bit of a rant; I may do  more of these book reviews as I do spend a great deal of time reading, and I like to share my thoughts on books.  Disclaimer: everything mentioned here was my own opinion, not intended to be disparaging in any way towards the author or anyone who has a different opinion of these books.

FF#93...where my GIRLS at???

quick post...happy to share with you the latest Fashionista Friday from the Shoe!  Real quick like...we are sponsored this week by Kenny K Downloads...and I LOVE LOVE LOVE the Kenny K images!  Here is my contribution:

Oh yeah...2 samples for this week!  This is HOW MUCH I love these images!  So go to the Shoe...check out the fabulous theme...and play along with us!

Supplies: Images - Kenny K; Masks - Tim Holtz; Ink - Copic, Distress Inks - Rusty Hinge, Broken China, Walnut Stain, Crushed Olive, Black Soot, Memento Tuxedo black, Ranger archival in Black and Coffee; Tattered Angels Glimmer Glaze in Cowboy; Spica - Chocolate, Turquoise, Silver, Gold; sentiments - Sea Side Stampin; Ranger Alcohol mixatives in Gold; Stampn'Stuff clear embossing powder