Day 18: Where Are You Happiest?

I had one blog post that I wrote a couple of years ago and for some reason never published. It's just been sitting here in draft form, waiting for this particular challenge. The theme for today is "Where Are You Happiest?"

Where we live, a cabin on a lake is not called a cabin on a lake. It is called a "camp," which I believe is in reference to the place where loggers used to live when they were away from home. When I say that we spent the fourth of July weekend at camp, your mental image would be completely wrong if you picture a tent or an RV. It's more like a cottage--not quite all the amenities of home, but with oh, so many perks that more than make up for the lack of a dishwasher.

Yesterday, we were squishing our toes through the sand when my 6 year old said, "Mom, this is the best place in the whole world." I think maybe he is right.

When my husband's parents decided to buy this camp about ten years ago, I was less than thrilled. I can't even remember all the reasons I thought it was a bad idea. Something about feeling tied to that spot for our vacations when I wanted to travel the world. Or maybe I knew they'd spend all their time there and I'd be back to not having a babysitter. Who knows. 

At the time, I'd been down the road to the camp once before, and I remembered it as the most rutted, rustic road I had ever been on. Yeah, it still is. But the camp is situated on a little peninsula on a quiet lake. They've got their own tiny beach on both sides, plus a little section of woods to explore on the other side. 

We fish (well OK, everyone except me fishes. Ew.) We kayak, swim, jump of the floating dock, make fires and roast s'mores and hot dogs. The kids go into the woods and build forts and who knows what else. We spend time with family, and watch movies. We play games--we scare away the wildlife playing PIT, and we play scrabble, boggle, triominoes, skip-bo, Dutch Blitz and sequence. 

J went kayaking yesterday and saw a moose--the first one we've ever seen there. 7 loons came to visit us while she was gone. Last year we accidentally disturbed a loon's nest when we stopped at a small island. My youngest son picked up one of the eggs and brought it to me. It was larger than a chicken's egg and speckled green. We set it back where he'd found it and hopped back in the motor boat and sped away before beginning our lecture about not disturbing bird's nests. Thank heavens, all seems to be well though. Through binoculars, people spotted the loon sitting on her eggs a few days later. Loons are among my favorite creatures on Earth, and their numbers are declining. Hopefully the egg he picked up last year is the loon we saw last week.

31 Day Blog Challenge:

Day 12: Something I Miss

Day 13: Something I Regret

Day 14: My Playlist

Day 15: 10 Things That Make Me Awesome

Day 16: My Greatest Accomplishment

Day 17: Why and When Did I Start Blogging?

Day 17: Why and When Did I Start Blogging?

My first blog post was called "Testing, Testing, 1, 2, 3." It was written on April 29, 2010. This is what it said:

"It's nearly impossible  to decide what I want to write about on this blog. Should I talk about my family? music? books? being an author? religion? politics? 

If I waited until I knew what my niche market was, I would probably never start a blog at all. At least we can cross out politics. For right now, I'm just going to be random."

A picture from my early blogging days
Acadia National Park

 Not a lot has changed over the years. I still feel uncertain what this blog is for. I started blogging mainly because I am a writer, and I needed a platform to share with my future multitudinous fans. Still, what was I going to discuss? Writing? My life? Books I've read?

The matter was simplified when I joined The Prosers. Here is a link to my first blog post there: Life Begins At The Edge Of Your Comfort Zone. I still think its a pretty great one. It was published at the end of 2011, and I pretty much abandoned this blog after that. But lately, I've been missing the ability to simply talk about my life.

When this blog flourished, I did a blog challenge. I also had a bucket list of things I wanted to do before I turned 40, which I didn't finish, but which I had a fun time attempting and blogging about. Some of those blog posts still get lots of hits, which makes me happy, but it makes me even more happy that I enjoy looking back, the way I look back on a journal.

But I'm still torn...
I figure, when my (unfortunately still future) multitudinous fans come searching for me, they aren't going to be particularly interested in my blog about writing. My favorite blogs are the ones that chronicle the lives of authors, not the ones that give their writing advice.

And when I look back at what I love about this blog, it is the way it served as a journal, and the memories it evokes. Still, it worries me to get too personal on the internet. I've tried hard to keep my kids names and faces off.

So I know what I want to write about. I just still don't know who my audience is. Do I make this blog private, so I can spill my whole soul into it? Or do I keep it public, and continue to shelter my family? Both ways seem a little empty. I'd love to hear your thoughts on the subject.

31 Day Blog Challenge:

Day 12: Something I Miss

Day 13: Something I Regret

Day 14: My Playlist

Day 15: 10 Things That Make Me Awesome

Day 16: My Greatest Accomplishment

Day 16: My Greatest Accomplishment

I'm having a harder time with this topic than you would imagine. My children are the greatest thing I've ever done. But at least today, I'm not seeing them as MY accomplishment. Instead, they are a collaborative effort between me, their father, God, and of course, my children themselves. That doesn't even take into account the fabulous people they've been blessed to have in their lives.

I have childless friends who long to be able to say that children are their greatest accomplishment, and I know that it was only a matter of happenstance that I am not one of them, so how can my children be considered an accomplishment? My darling friend Becky never raised her own children. But she used to throw a humdinger of a tea party for my kids every year. Homemade petit fours, homemade hummus, lots of kinds of sandwiches with the crusts cut off, fancy plates, hats for everyone, lots of sheets and a table out in the middle of a meadow.

She had a hammock in her living room, and sometimes she would have us come over, plop me in the hammock with a bowl of hummus, chips and a good movie, and entertain my kids for the rest of the day. She grew up in West Virginia, in indigent circumstances, and the stories she told of her childhood--scrubbing clothes in the stream, toting buckets of water and swimming in the swimming hole--ignited the imaginations of my children. Meanwhile, she let me rest, which helped me be a better mother. She also taught my kids in church. She deserves to call my children one of her accomplishments. I hope she knows that.

The other thing I would probably call my greatest accomplishment is my novel. I've written several, but only one that is publication-ready. Writing it is hard. Getting it ready to be published is crazy hard. I'm totally proud of it. But it isn't published yet. I promised everyone I would self-publish it last year, but then an editor asked for the full manuscript, and of course I've got to give that route my best effort. But the waiting is a killer!

31 Day Blog Challenge:

Day 12: Something I Miss

Day 13: Something I Regret

Day 14: My Playlist

Day 15: 10 Things That Make My Awesome

Day 15: 10 Things That Make Me Awesome

I am awesome. 

I must be. I'm writing this post, aren't I?

Frankly, it's been a while since I've thought of myself in terms of awesomeness. Which is as good a reason as any to spend a few minutes reminding myself what makes me special.

1. I swim twice a week. I started in October. I'll never forget the first time I swam freestyle for an entire half hour without stopping. Now I'm working on getting faster. I thought I'd get bored, but I was wrong. It's meditative, fun and in water. 

2. I am in the process of healing my shoulder. You might not think that is awesome, but finally putting in the work to heal a shoulder that has been chronically injured for well over a decade brings me more satisfaction and pride in myself than I ever dreamed it would. It takes time. There are ups and downs. But several times a day my arm will do something it wasn't able to do before, and I get a jolt of pride. I did this! I am healing myself. My body has been so good to me, and I haven't been very kind to it over the years. But I am learning.

3. I have amazing friends. My husband has been out of town this week, and I have been so, so sick. No one knew how sick I was until Wednesday when I called the church to say my kids just weren't going to make it to their activities. My voice must have sounded like I was near death, because ever since then I've had a constant stream of calls from people begging to help me. Meals, rides...In fact, a dear friend just stopped by as I was writing this to hand me money, and a menu from a Chinese restaurant (with a delivery service). The menu had a little bow on it. I wish I could say that I deserve all this kindness. But really, it's just because somehow I've been blessed with awesome people in my life.

4. My family is awesome. My husband got home late last night, and we're back to our old schedule where he starts his day an hour before I start mine. Plus he took all the kids to school this morning so my day could be a little more relaxed. And my kids. They are amazing and good, and I'm proud of them. Again, I know that's not how I am awesome, but I must be doing something right if I'm surrounded by this much goodness, right?

5. I play the piano.

6. I am a writer, with one manuscript sitting on a publisher's desk as we speak. Keep your fingers crossed for me. AND I have another blog, which I share with some awesome women. If writing is your thing, you should check it out:  The Prosers

7. I'm funny. 

8. I remember my mom telling me once that I was too smart to be critical of other people. She told me that finding the good in people was sometimes a lot harder, and I should use my intelligence for that. I took her advice to heart, and found I have an intuitive knack for understanding why people act the way they do. So, I'm awesome because I see the good in people.

9. I am kind. I try to teach my kids that if anyone has a problem that makes them an easy target for a joke, the last thing they need is to be the target of a joke. I would never want to cause anyone else pain.

10. I'm awesome because I am capable of so much more than I thought I was as a teenager. I hope that in twenty years I'll be able to say that I'm awesome because I'm capable of so much more than I thought I was when I was forty.

31 Day Blog Challenge:

Day 12: Something I Miss

Day 13: Something I Regret

Day 14: My Playlist

Day 14: My Playlist

I love it when I get a good excuse to talk about music! Lately, my daughter has been Broadway-obsessed, which translates to a different type of music being played at my house than usual. There is the nightmare-inducing gorgeousness that is I Am The One and I Miss the Mountains from next to normal. I can't listen to it much or I'll be a basket case, but it is in my head more than is entirely healthy for anyone prone to the winter blues.

We love anything from Newsies, The Scarlet Pimpernel, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat or Phantom of the Opera, and there is ALWAYS Les Mis, except I Dreamed A Dream, which I used to love, but can't listen to since I saw the movie. My favorite Les Mis song is Do You Hear The People Sing?

My Pandora station is filled with Michael Buble and Jason Mraz wannabes with a dose of Dr. Horrible, for good measure. Here's what I listened to this morning:

1. The Scientist by Coldplay

2. My Eyes from Dr. Horrible's Sing Along Blog

3. What Is This Feeling from Wicked

4. It's Time by Imagine Dragons

5. Defying Gravity from Wicked

6. I Won't Give Up by Jason Mraz

7. 93 Million Miles by Jason Mraz

8. Into the Fire from The Scarlet Pimpernel

9. Try by Pink

10. Run by Sugarland and Matt Nathanson

31 Day Blog Challenge:

Day 12: Something I Miss

Day 13: Something I Regret

Day 13: Do You Have Regret?

Um...yeah. Emily Watts once said something like "If there is guilt to be found in a two mile radius, I will find it  and make it mine." Never has anyone so elegantly captured my personality in a single sentence. This was incredibly vivid when my oldest daughter was a baby. I wanted to do parenting right. I read parenting books during every second of her nap times. As a result, if I was holding her, I felt guilty that she wasn't down on the ground strengthening her neck muscles. If she was down on the ground, I felt guilty that she wasn't in my arms, bonding and learning how much I loved her. It took a long time before I learned to put down the parenting books and trust my instincts.

Our new kitten, Apollo
Picture taken by my daughter

Last week, we got a kitten. We've been petless for nearly a year now, and it was with many misgivings that I allowed myself to get talked into this cat. I am not an animal person, but my kids are. Well, this kitten is amazing. It's the first time we've had a kitten when I haven't been completely wrapped up in the business of having my own babies. I can't believe how much time he wants to spend cuddling, and I feel enormous regret that I didn't spend this much time socializing my other animals. He takes nearly as much time as a baby. And he loves me! He loves me so much that my "I am not an animal person" mantra might be crumbling to the ground. Sweet, sweet kitten. Did my other animals need me this much and I just didn't see it? I don't know what I could have done differently, and it isn't that they had miserable lives. Our last cat loved my oldest daughter fiercely, and our golden retriever was strong-willed enough to seek out enough loving to stay happy.

But huge, earth-shaking regrets? No. I do regret that I always talked my mom out of going on a whale watch when she came to visit. Now she's gone. That's on my bucket list of things to do when I get to heaven.

I regret that sometimes I yell too easily, and usually not at the child who got me riled up in the first place. Because I've been holding it in with that child, it's usually the next child to not be perfect that pops my control.

It is bittersweet, to think of the paths that have closed when I've chosen to take a different route. Right before we moved across the country 13 years ago, I was offered a full-time teaching position at a university. I wanted to be a stay at home mom, but someone was offering me my DREAM JOB. I'm grateful my husband had already accepted his current job and our stuff was already packed, so I didn't have to torture myself over the choice. I would make the same decision over again, but there is a tender, raw spot in my heart when I realize I'm no longer qualified for a job like that. Who knows if I ever will be? But do I regret it? No. Not at all. Think of everything I would have missed.

31 Day Blog Challenge:

Day 12: Something You Miss

In Which I Take Back Paradise

Day 12: Something I Miss

I've been sitting at this computer reading through old blog posts and missing my old house more than I can find words to express. It all started when I accidentally changed my layout to the flipcard style and all the pictures of our backyard, our golden retriever, and our swimming pool appeared. Of course I started skimming the posts, and now I'm horribly homesick. What on earth possessed us to move away from paradise?

Unfortunately, paradise is far, far away from an LDS chapel (yeah, I'm aware of the irony in that statement. So were most of the pioneers, I think.). That ultimately was the reason we moved, and I have faith we'll be blessed for it. We are being blessed. We have great neighbors, and my kids are finally involved in all the extra-curricular activities we could never quite manage before. But I'm beginning to realize the source of this empty feeling inside.

Things were easier there. I didn't have to try so hard to make time for family or to find things to do. Of course it wasn't perfect. It was a quirky house. Plus, my teenagers had practically stopped using our swimming pool, and as L, J and I splashed around, my heart would worry about the other two kids. But still, it was a good place, and I really dislike my house now. The other house WAS part of our family, and this house just houses our family.

And me? I've been a writer for too long. Perhaps I'm saying that wrong. I'll always be a writer, but I panic if I don't have a good writing project going. I think it's time to unleash some of that creative energy onto my home. Unfortunately, that means spending money--money I haven't earned as a writer, and that I barely earn as a preschool teacher. I don't know how to make a house a home. I've been very lucky to have homes handed to me up until now.

I'm going to start using this blog to capture that journey.

• I'm shelving any writing projects that aren't already well underway. The ones that I truly care about will get my attention until they are finished.
• I'm making my health a priority.
• I'm going to turn my house into a home.
• I'm going to strengthen the relationships with the most important people in my life--my family
• I'm going to find joy in the things I love to do.

Wow. Do you see how well those goals could transfer into blog posts? Do I really want to commit to writing 5 posts a week? Probably not. But if I work on those in order, perhaps I can settle into a natural rhythm.

**As I looked back through my posts, I also realized that my favorite posts came from the 31 Day Blog Challenge I took part in a couple of years ago. I googled 31 Day Blog Challenge, and found a great one that is on-going. Then SERENDIPITY! The topic for March 12 just happens to be "Something I Miss." It is kismet. I am jumping right in, mid-challenge.

January 2013

This last Sunday, I woke up absolutely certain that I had to rejoin Weight Watchers. In spite of the fact that I knew that my body was in better shape than it had been for a long time, and in spite of the fact that I'd been exercising quite regularly, if not intensely... my weight was continuing to creep up, and up. It has caused (and continues to contribute to) a discouragement that I've only recently begun to admit is actually depression. So anyway, I joined Weight Watchers on Sunday morning , and when I had my first weigh-in on Wednesday, not only had the scale stopped climbing, it had actually gone down nearly 4 pounds! That was happy moment number 1.

Happy moment number 2 happened just a few minutes ago, when I finished a workout on my treadmill that used to be impossible for me. Then I got in good shape, and thought it was easy, and then I stopped doing it all together--for several years. Now I've been exercising quite a bit lately, but I honestly never dreamed I was in good enough shape to finish that workout, especially at this weight. Apparently, I am!!!!

December 2012

It's been a while since I posted on Melanie's Stories...I've been very happy over at The Prosers, but every now and then I want to talk about something that I can't find any way to relate to writing. (If you've been over there lately, you know sometimes my link to writing is tenuous at best anyway.)

One of of those things is getting healthy. I've felt the need to write about my journey to good health for quite a long time. I wish I thought I could do it in some private journal, but the truth of the matter is that I am much more likely to write regularly if I'm putting it out there for the world to see, even if there's a large part of me hoping that no one in the world will see it.

This fall, I hit a low point health wise.  My shoulder, which had been painful for years, started jerking out of its socket--usually at random times. I started saying no to things because I knew I couldn't do as much as I used to. Trying to get in shape usually ended up with me hurting myself. I slept a lot, and I was outgrowing my fat clothes. :( Saddest of all, I could feel my intelligence melting away, and it broke my heart.

For my birthday, my husband got me a family membership to the local swimming pool, and I started going once a week. I've always been a good swimmer, and I still wasn't half bad, even overweight, out of shape and with a bad shoulder. Perhaps that triggered something in me, but I decided to start taking care of myself. I finally went to an orthopedic specialist, who has helped my shoulder issues become manageable. I got diagnosed with low vitamin D, which may be the fad diagnosis for the year, but I think being treated for that has helped. I feel like I'm  coming out of a mental fog, and I'm so happy to find my intelligence wasn't permanently impaired.

One month ago, I decided I needed to exercise 6 days a week. And I have. Even Christmas morning, I did it while everyone else was getting ready for the day. I exercised on the Wii Fit. My decision to do that was based mostly on motivational issues. I couldn't even make myself walk anymore.

Best decision I ever made. I get some good exercise on that silly machine. The best thing of all though, is the yoga and strength training. It turns out my heart is in much better shape than my body which is a blessing. It can go and go, but my body can't--or at least it couldn't, until I spent a month doing yoga.

Christmas Eve, it was cold, and I wanted to be done shopping. As I left the parking lot and headed for the store, I told myself to hurry. It took a moment for me to realize what was happening. I hurried! The pain in my legs didn't come! My hips didn't say "Wait a minute! We don't take that long of a stride!" Faster and faster I went, and when I got to the store, I wandered around, marveling at this body of mine. It is amazing. It does improve, and it enjoys being strong. It is phenomenal.

I've made enough false starts in my life that I'm leery of saying "This is a new beginning." But I don't think I've got to many false starts left. I'm 41, with a family tree riddled with health problems. I don't have to do anything, But I really, really want to.

My plan is to check in once in a while to keep a record of my progress. This is for me. But if you find it, and it helps you in any way, then it is for you too.

What worked this month: Promising myself I would exercise on the Wii Fit 6 days a week and swim once a week. I did it! I didn't specify for how long, but did it for more than half an hour every day.

Plan for January 2013:
1. Exercise on the Wii Fit 6 days a week and swim once a week. Once a week I can substitute something else for the Wii Fit if I want to, but it's not necessary. Glory in it!

2. This month, I've noticed that my eating problems begin at lunch, because I don't know what to eat. In January, I'm going to eat a healthy lunch every day.

The Prosers, Part 2

You'll never, ever in a million years believe it, but I am the new Saturday poster for The Prosers, that blog I was just barely gushing about. Seriously. It's true. If you don't believe me (and even if you do) go check it out!

The Prosers: Melanie is now an integral part of our team. Don't believe us? Look, here's a post

That means there is one less thing this blog has to be. I still want to do a million things with it, but it won't ever have to be a writer's blog. This gives me great hope that it will all sort itself out one of these days.

Anyway, I am over the moon excited to get to work with all those talented authors. Life is good!

The Prosers

No way! It hasn't really been nearly 5 months since I posted here, has it? Where did that time go? It was filled with trying to sell our house, writing the rough draft of a new novel (!) and great family stuff. I'll try and be better, but I've got a few chapters left on that novel, the house is under contract, and Christmas is right around the corner, so it may be awhile. :(

In the meantime, let me recommend a new blog, not to take my place (heavens, no. Not that!) but to entertain you while you wait. It's geared toward aspiring writers, but it's lots of fun, regardless. It's called The Prosers and it's written by a talented group of ladies who are going to be famous someday!

Enjoy!

July's Books

Possession

by: Elana Johnson

published in 2011

405 pages

4 stars

Summary:

The world has been divided into the Goodgrounds and the Badlands. Goodies live without hunger or crime, but they also live without control over their own choices. Vi knows she isn't like everyone else, but she wants to fit in so she can be with Zenn--her best friend and her future Match. Still, she can't help rebelling in small ways, and when she is arrested for walking in the park after dark with Zenn, she is assigned a cell with a man from the Badlands--egotistical, charismatic Jag. The Thinkers who control the Goodlands want Vi to join them, and soon she and Jag are on the run together.

Review:
Dystopian love triangles. I find myself irresistibly drawn to them even though I always think I've reached my dystopian limit. I've been thinking about how dystopian worlds are very well suited for love triangles--do I stay with the guy I've always loved in the world I've always known or do I go with the guy who keeps me off balance and has the promise of a better world? I only like love triangles to the extent that I'm satisfied with the ending for all three characters. Possession is the first book in the series, so the jury is still out on that one.

I haven't had much time to read lately, but I stayed up late to finish this one. I'm on pins and needles for the sequel to come out.

Unfortunately, I'm getting to be such a critic these days--I can't read a great story and leave it there. Parts of this book were very jarring for me. Elana Johnson never slows the action to examine the feelings of her characters. I hate that. Jag was constantly doing things that should have caused intense turmoil in Vi, and when I can't get into her head to feel that emotion I get confused and wonder if I'm misunderstanding things. When the action is over, she finds time to ruminate on it all, but by then I'm emotionally detached. On the other hand, Johnson is very proficient at explaining Vi's feelings during the kissing scenes. :-) I found myself wishing for more character growth, but that's just a personal preference. All in all, this was a very fun book.

buried

by: Robin Merrow MacCready

published in 2006

198 pages

2 stars

Summary, which I took directly from the front flap:

Claudine has long buried her own needs and dreams to cover for her alcoholic mother. She protects herself with careful planning and constant control. Order is her weapon. How deep do you dig to uncover the truth?

After Mom suddenly disappears--another alcoholic binge?--and seventeen year old Claudine finds herself all alone, a much darker reality emerges from beneath years of angry denial and enabling behavior. And as the truth comes closer to the surface, Claudine must dig for the answers she's always worked so hard to cover up.

A suspenseful and mind-twisting psychological thriller, Buried is about the drama and destruction of co-dependency and the redemptive power of secrets revealed.

Review:

I've been eyeing this book at the library for quite a while now, and finally decided to read it. Parts of it were very enjoyable, but I am a big fan of Character stories, and this was an Event story masquerading as a Character story. The story was much darker than the writing style prepared me for, and I only finished it because I needed to know what was happening. Once I found out, I wished I'd never known. People who enjoy mysteries and books about obsessive-compulsive disorder and co-dependency might enjoy this book, but it left a bad taste in my mouth.

Enclave

by: Ann Aguirre

published in 2011

272 pages

4 stars

Summary:

As a Huntress, Deuce's short life is mapped out. She lives in the Enclave, but ventures out to hunt for meat in the tunnels while evading zombie-like creatures called Freaks. It's all she's ever wanted to do, but things become more complicated when she is partnered with Fade, a strange but lethal boy who claims to have come from Topside. The Freaks, who have always been dangerous, but mindless, are showing signs of intelligence and strategy, but the Elders of the Enclave refuse to believe Deuce and Fade. To Deuce's horror and Fade's delight, the pair of them are exiled, and forced Topside.

Review:

Yep. Another dystopian young adult novel. With zombies. And a love triangle of sorts. It couldn't be more different than Possession-humans are barely hanging on in this book. It had more of the feeling of Ship Breaker, which is a high recommendation. Deuce lives in the tunnels underneath New York in the years following what sounds like a nuclear war.  The romance between Fade and Deuce is breathtakingly innocent and beautiful. Fade was my favorite part of this book--he makes the flaws worth it. 

I can't really get into it without spoilers, but let's just say that although I enjoy getting into the head of a leader who seems purely evil and discovering that said person is fighting to bring civilization out of chaos, some reprehensible actions require more contrition and restitution than others. Redeeming an evil character is not something an author should undertake lightly.

Enclave is the first book in a series. I won't be racing to pre-order my copy of the sequel when it comes out, but I'll definitely be reading it. I recommend this book for most teenagers--it doesn't quite earn a Books for Boys seal, but I imagine many teenage boys would enjoy it. There is some frank discussion about rape and keeping women for their sexual and breeding capabilities. There is also a human hunting scene (a la The Most Dangerous Game) that was disturbing, though short.

June's Books, first edition

I haven't read much this month. In fact, I thought I'd only have one book to talk about today, but I whipped through another one at the last minute.

"A Book For Boys" means it's a book I think boys and/or men would like. The market is so inundated with books written for girls that I feel like I've found a treasure when I find a book for my sons, and I want to share it. I hope girls love them too!

The Boy At The End Of The World

by: Greg van Eekhout

This book doesn't come out until tomorrow.

224 pages

4.5 stars*

This is A Book For Boys book!

My awesome friend Karen Smith sent me this book as an ARC (an advanced reader copy). It was so much fun to read a book that hasn't been published yet that I had to make sure and get my review of it up before it came out tomorrow. I hope I get that chance more often in the future.

Synopsis:

Many, many years ago, humans realized that we had used Earth up, and it could no longer sustain us. So they created 4 arks--places where endangered species (including people) could rest in a kind of cryogenic sleep until it was safe to reintroduce them into the environment. But when a young boy named Fisher wakes up, he knows something has gone wrong. All the other sleeping pods in his ark have been destroyed. He is the last surviving human. Luckily he is not completely alone. He has a broken robot named Click and a pet mastadon he names Protein to keep him company. This is a thrilling story of survival and friendship.

Middle grade science fiction. Have you ever heard of it? It's a genre that is sadly filled with holes. What child doesn't want to read a breathless story of survival filled with mutant robots and perilous adventures? This is a book for the whole family. I loved it, and can't wait for the next one. Greg van Eekhout has crammed so much into this book--it will spark conversations about our responsibility to the Earth and the animals on it, about artificial intelligence, and about the importance of morals in scientific inquiry--and yet the whole thing is wrapped up in a rolicking adventure that is pure fun. I highly recommend this one for girls and boys of all ages.

 

Entwined

by: Heather Dixon

published in 2011

472 pages  

Young Adult fantasy

3.5 stars*

In the not too distant past, I could count on loving every single book my teenage daughter read, and she loved nearly everything I did. But then a book called City of Bones changed everything. We both loved it, but it was a sort of aberration for me. I loved Cassandra Clare's writing style, and her characters were great, but I'm not interested in trying other dark, romantic fantasy books, and J is. So lately, most of the books she checks out of the library just stay in her room, and I pick them up only to do motherly things like reading the synopsis and opening to random pages to make sure it isn't TOO dark or TOO romantic. And because of that, I very nearly missed this book.

Entwined is not that kind of book. It's a novel based on the Grimm's fairy tale "The Worn Out Dancing Slippers". It was a lovely story, with well-developed characters. Some of the character development felt clunky to me, but the way they interacted with each other more than made up for that.You know how in the old fairy tales, the hero blasts in and saves the day? And you know how, in the new fairy tales, the heroine figures out how to save herself, and then usually has to go rescue the hero? Well, my favorite thing about this book is that there was none of that. In this story, of a whole bunch of people get to try on the hero's hat. My favorite hero is her father.  I hope you like it.

My rating system:

1=I couldn't finish it. Blech.

2=I finished it, but I wish I hadn't wasted my time.

3=I don't regret reading it, but I probably won't search out anything else by this author.

4=I loved it!

It is nearly impossible to get a 5. To get a 5 would almost always mean that it has taken its place among my favorites. Occasionally, to get a 5 might mean that it ought to take its place among my favorites, if only I had slightly better taste.

Life is good--the Crouse's new pool

L was the first person to swim in our newly lined pool.
She was also the first one to jump off the diving board.

J was the first person to jump in the shallow end.
J was also the first person to catch some sun in a dry spot near the edge of the pool.

But...
I was the first person to jump off the diving board fully clothed.
I was also the first person to dive off the diving board.
Life is good.

Once Upon A Time update

Believe it or not, the middle of June is nearly here, and that is the deadline to finish the Once Upon A Time Challenge. In April I published a list of books I thought I would be reading for the challenge, but only 2 of those books stood the test of time. (I tried to read The Mists of Avalon right after being heartily annoyed by Waiting For Odysseus, and gave it up for awhile. Instead, I'm reading a much shortened version of King Arthur to my younger kids, and that's going to have to be good enough. I couldn't finish City of Fallen Angels either. So here's where I stand:

For fairy tales: A Tale Dark and Grimm
For fantasy: Eyes Like Stars and Alcatraz and the Shattered Lens
For mythology: Waiting For Odysseus
For folktales: King Arthur (Not finished yet)
And I haven't even started reading: A Midsummer Night's Dream, which is sort of the point of the whole contest.
Plus I've got to watch the movie!!!! Lots of work to do. I think I'd better give up house cleaning for a while. :^)

May's Books

I've figured out that I don't much like waiting the whole month to tell you about the books I've read. I think in June I'm going to try writing it every two weeks instead. Still, this was a great month for reading! I read a lot of books I think both boys and girls would enjoy, which is always a plus for me. I hope you enjoy them!

A note about my rating system.

1=I couldn't finish it. Blech.

2=I finished it, but I wish I hadn't wasted my time.

3=I finished it, and I don't regret it, but I probably won't search out anything else by this author.

4=I loved it!

5= It is nearly impossible to get a 5. To get a 5 would almost always mean that it has taken its place among my favorites. Occasionally, to get a 5 might mean that it ought to take its place among my favorites, if only I had slightly better taste.

 

The Emperor of Nihon-Ja

by: John Flanagan

438 pages

published in 2010

 4.5/5 stars

This is a Book For Boys!

This is book 10 in The Ranger's Apprentice series, which starts with The Ruins of Gorlan. 

This is a great series for all YA teens, especially boys. I have no idea if the sword fighting is true to life, but I'd be surprised if it was not, it's so well thought out. I love the intelligent, interesting characters and their interactions, but it's really the action that makes these books exciting.

It took a book or two before I got used to the omniscient point of view. John Flanagan is from Australia, and writers from outside the US are not nearly as locked into the limited third as we are. I'm not sure whether the author's writing has actually improved, or if  I've simply gotten used to it.

The books are about a boy named Will who becomes apprenticed to the ranger named Halt in a magical world based on European medieval history.  The rangers are a select group of men who serve as the intelligence force and police for King Duncan. They are masters of camouflage and certain kinds of fighting, especially the saxe knife and the long bow. These stories are Will's adventures. In each book he is older and travels somewhere new. In this particular book, he is in Nihon-Ja, a country that reminds me of medieval Japan, though the fit is not perfect.  I highly recommend the series, but I think you need to start at book one.

 

(I read this for the Once Upon A Time Challenge)

 

A Tale Dark and Grim

by: Adam Gidwitz

192 pages

published in 2010

There is some confusion in my mind about who this is for. It's definitely for middle grades and up, but it's recommended as a read aloud for ages 6 and up. More on that in a moment. 

4 stars  (I loved it!)

This is a Book for Boys!

My oldest daughter started reading this to my younger children before I read the book. They were all completely entranced. I kept hearing little pieces of the story, and I would say, "Are you sure this is appropriate to read to little kids?" She would assure me that it was. Plus, every place I could find on-line said it was a great read for school age children. So I let it go.

And it was probably completely fine. This book is "“...well... awesome. But in a horrible, bloody kind of way." As if poor Hansel and Gretal didn't have it bad enough, Gidwitz has taken their story and added some of the more obscure and horrifying Grimm fairy tales and tied them into one gruesome tale.

In a world where most of the original tales have been softened and most of the uglier parts have been taken out, Gidwitz has "bloodied them back up." But his narrator has such a snarky sense of humor that it comes across as funny. Every gory scene has a warning in front of it, like this example: "Are there any small children in the room now?” he asks midway through the first tale, “If so, it would be best if we just...hurried them off to bed. Because this is where things start to get, well...awesome.” In addition, adding the horrific pieces back brings the meaning of the fairy tales back, and the narrator makes sure we get it.

So, as I read it, there were times when my eyes got big, and I turned to my daughter and said, "You REALLY read this part out loud?" But mostly I think it was great. All my kids, even my six year old, have picked that book up to read parts of it again.

The Magic Thief (Books 2 and 3)

by: Sarah Prineas

416 pages and 384 pages respectively

Lost: published in 2010

Found: published in 2011

For middle grades, though I think YA readers would like them too!

These are Books for Boys!

4 stars

In April I reviewed the first book in this series. I had listened to it as a book on tape and I said that although I enjoyed it, I thought it went a little slow. I read the sequels instead of listening to them, and it completely solved the problem. These are such fun books! I finished them both in less than a day, and when I was done I wished I'd read them to my younger kids. 

This is the story of Connwaer after his locus magicalicus is destroyed. Without it, he can't communicate with the magic, and the magic desperately needs him. I especially enjoyed book 3. The magical world in these stories is so complex for a middle grade book. I love it when an author doesn't dumb things down for kids. I'm especially fascinated with Connwaer's relationship with Kerrn--the captain of the guard, who obviously respects Conn, yet doesn't flinch to have him arrested if that is her duty.

 

(I read this for the Once Upon A Time Challenge)

Waiting For Odysseus

by: Clemence McLaren

published in 2000

160 pages

Young Adult

2 stars

This is the story of the women who loved and waited for Odysseus--his nurse maid, Penelope, Circe, the king's daughter (whose name escapes me at the moment) and Athena. I love books with strong female protaganists, and I was excited to read more about the stories of these women. But this was not the story of these women. This is the story of them waiting around until they hear a story about Odysseus. It was just his story of them hearing stories about Odysseus, meeting him, falling in love with him and then pining away after he was gone. And you know, there was a lot of sex in the Odyssey, which is remarkably more obvious when being told from the point of view of the women he had sex with. Blech.

 

Pirates

by Celia Rees

374 pages

published in 2003 

Young Adult (Mature)

4 stars!

Nancy Kington is a wealthy merchant's daughter living in Bristol, England in the early 1700s. She has promised to marry her childhood sweetheart, William. When her father dies, she is sent to live on her plantation in Jamaica, where she meets Minerva Sharpe, a black slave. Their lives entwine as they live through an attempted rape, an arranged marriage and a brutal murder. Together they escape to the high seas, where they live as pirates.

This book was exciting and well researched. I love stories set on ships, and found this to be a rollicking adventure. It's more mature in theme than a book like The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle, and yet it has that same strong willed female protaganist that I love so much. The one thing I didn't like was that the overarching plot sometimes took a backseat to the action. 

 

 

Death Cloud: Sherlock Holmes, The Legend Begins

by: Andrew Lane

306 pages

published in 2010 

Young Adult

This is a Book for Boys!

4 stars

When Sherlock Holmes is fourteen, he spends the summer with his eccentric aunt and uncle, and spends his days wandering the English countryside with an orphan named Mattie. When two local people die with symptoms resembling the plague, Sherlock Holmes begins his investigative career. This is the first book about a teenage Sherlock Holmes to be endorsed by Conan Doyle's estate. It's attention to detail is remarkable. I love thinking about how Holmes became the man he was. 

I enjoyed this book every bit as much as I enjoy a good Sherlock Holmes story--which is to say, it's an occasional pleasure for me. The story was far fetched, as Sherlock Holmes stories often are, but the character development was well thought out and fun.

 

You know who you are...

Someone forgot to knock on wood.
Ah, well...back to the drawing board.

My House

Good old-fashioned superstition has kept me from posting a follow up to Help Me Find A House!

We found one, and I'm still afraid that by letting that information loose on the internet I will provoke some spiteful little nixies and the whole thing will fall through. Drat those little nixies. Hopefully, if everyone knocks on wood while they are reading this, the nixies will be none the wiser. Go ahead.

Thank you.

I love the house we've chosen. Not as much as I love the one we're in right now, but I like the location loads better. Hopefully we'll learn to love the new house as much as we've loved this one. It's on a great street, in a neighborhood I've never heard a bad thing about. A neighborhood! The stuff of dreams. There is a girl in the same grade as my oldest daughter right next door. Does that give you chills? And...she has a younger sister in the same grade as my oldest son. And...you won't believe this, I'm sure, but I swear it's true. They are not the only kids in the neighborhood.

We can walk to the library, or if my kids want to take karate or dance, we could walk there too. We could ride bikes to school, if we so desired, and we won't have to get up at 3:30 a.m. just to get to seminary on time.

In the words of  the famous scientist, Dr. Ray Stantz, "Wow. This place is great. When can we move in? You gotta try this pole. I'm gonna get my stuff. Hey. We should stay here. Tonight. Sleep here. You know, to try it out."

In later posts, I'll probably moan about all the things we're leaving behind--including my swimming pool, a great neighbor or two, and the hiking trails my dad built in the backyard. But for now, I want to celebrate where we're headed. A gorgeous backyard, a lovely sun-room and a music room. And people. I might not be able to stay in my pj's on computer mornings anymore. Who knows? A neighbor might stop by!

Hawthorne or Alcott?

When my husband and I went to Boston for the weekend, we hiked on the Battle Trail--a 5.5 mile trail that marks the path taken by British soldiers marching from Boston to Concord.

It's a gorgeous trail in early May, especially if you're coming from Maine, where green hasn't yet asserted itself as the dominant spring color. All the trees along the trail are arrayed in the vivid greens of brand new leaves, and the meadows are covered in spring wildflowers. It's a feast for my winter weary eyes. We pass tourists and joggers, and one incredibly tough woman jogging uphill while pushing two children in a stroller.

On the map of the Battle Trail, it mentions a place called The Wayside, where you can visit the home of authors Nathaniel Hawthorne, Louisa May Alcott and Margaret Sidney. I love Louisa May Alcott, and so we decided to stop there. I was expecting a little neighborhood--and I thought how incredible that one neighborhood could boast of so many famous authors. But it wasn't one neighborhood. It was one house. Seriously. The Wayside is the name of a home that was originally built in 1717. And not only famous authors lived there. Samuel Whitney was living there in 1775. He was the Muster Master for the Concord Minutemen during the Revolutionary War, and munitions were hidden in this house.

 Bronson Alcott bought the house from him and named it The Hillside. I never thought that I had much of a problem distinguishing fiction from reality, but as I looked around the house, I couldn't figure out exactly where Teddy's grandfather's mansion would have been. To the left of the home were paths through a woods that had been there since before Louisa's time, and to the right was an old barn. Teddy couldn't have looked through his window to spy on the March's house. O.K. Melanie! No matter how similar Louisa's personality was to Jo March, it doesn't make Little Women an exact autobiography. Get over it.

Nathaniel Hawthorne bought the home from the Alcotts for $1,500. After buying the house, Hawthorne wrote, "Mr Alcott... had wasted a good deal of money in fitting it up to suit his own taste—all of which improvements I get for little or nothing. Having been much neglected, the place is the raggedest in the world but it will make, sooner or later, a comfortable and sufficiently pleasant home."^[1] Nathaniel renamed it "The Wayside" 'because it stood so close to the road that it could have been mistaken for a coach stop.' Doesn't he sound like a pleasant fellow?

Daniel and Harriet Lothrop bought the house in 1883. Harriet Lothrop used the pen name Margaret Sidney, which didn't mean anything to me until a few minutes ago when I was doing a little research for this blog post. Margaret Sidney is the author of Five Little Peppers and How They Grew! I love that book! What an awesome thing to find out the author wrote it while living in Louisa May Alcott's house.

I loved seeing the home and thinking about its unique history. Look at this picture though:

Notice how Nathaniel Hawthorne's name is written in big block letters? Humph.

My husband says I need to reread The Scarlet Letter before I say this, but in my opinion, Louisa May Alcott's work is so much more important to our society today than Nathaniel Hawthorne's books are. His works are definitely valuable! Yikes, I don't want to start that battle. But Louisa May Alcott is a voice our children need to read today, to be transported back to a time when people spent time with each other and played together.

I wish I knew how old this sign was, and why his name is so much larger than hers. I suppose he may have been much more famous at some point in his life. But is he now? Or maybe it was because he was a man. Or maybe my perception is just skewed.

What do you think?

Help Me Find A House!

I knew I wasn't going to be writing as much for a while, but I didn't expect to stop so abruptly. My mind is so confused lately that I'm finding it hard to complete sentences, let alone blog posts. In spite a lot of prayer, the heavens seem determined to wait until I make a decision on my own. So I'm opening up my mind to that collective conscience called the internet. How do people cope with this thing called moving?

There are two truths battling for supremacy in my mind. We've found a house that will cost us almost exactly the same amount as we're paying right now. We're not exactly house poor, but we say no to a lot more things than I wish we had to. I'd hoped to buy a house that would free up some money. I have dreams of buying new furniture, and a new-to-me car. We'd love to have money to spend on doing things and going places. And don't forget the days of college and missions, which are marching inexorably closer.

So we could keep looking for a house that costs less. But I've seen what's out there. To have a house cost less would mean giving up a great location, giving up a nice yard, and that we'd have to spend a lot of time on fixing up a house with problems. I honestly don't know what the best choice is.

If you were me, what would you do?