When I Grow Up...

I was so excited when I was scrolling through my reader this morning! Want to know why?
I read an inspiring blog by a friend-of-a-friend called BeingLDS.

pic courtesy BeingLDS

Today, she is showcasing a new book that my very own Aunt wrote.  My aunt is pretty amazing and I can't wait to get my own book!

Go check it out and enjoy! And by the way, check out this page, you'll see my very own Lulu! :) Another delightful surprise this morning! :)

What I've Been Reading Lately

I think I'm behind on my reviews.  Do you care?

Anyhow. Our first selection hails from my sad addiction to Vampire Academy. It's Twilight meets Gossip Girl meets Hunger Games. Basically Twilight with a bit more glamour and violence.  A lot more butt kicking. And embarrassing to admit that I keep reading them. :) This is the newest one, which is actually a spinoff about a few of the characters!

 This one I spotted at a book fair at the library, was intrigued by the cover and synopsis, walked across the library and checked it out for free! Score! It was a ghost story set in New Orleans. Enjoyed it and it was an easy read, definitely geared toward YA.

Last month's book club was Jane Austen's Mansfield Park. I tried. I really truly did. I checked out two different movie versions to try to make it through but I just could never get into the characters!! I thought they were just boring. And I had issues with rooting for the heroine to marry her first cousin! I don't care that it was normal back then.  It just felt creepy.

This month was Cry the Beloved Country and I really enjoyed it! It was a quicker read but still a bit slow to start. But I enjoyed the characters and I really enjoyed learning more about pre-apartheid South Africa. My brother spend a semester there, so halfway through the book, I called him up for a history and demographics lesson on South Africa. This was a good read.

 I enjoyed another good book by Lisa See.  She is a talented author. I love learning about history and foreign countries (see above) through fiction.  This one made me realize I knew nothing about communism really. I have spent some time on wikipedia trying to understand Red China since then.  Her stories always seem to end in tragedy but they I keep reading them!

 This month's book club is one I've read, Eat Cake by Jeanne Ray. A good fun read! So I'm hoping to catch up on a few I've had on my shelf at home and start working on Christmas gifts!!

Peak Color!

It's that time of year where I love love love living in Arkansas!

It's November and it's 60 degrees! The fall stretches out and the colors slowly turn and peak and it's gorgeous! 

 This is Northern Arkansas. We were hoping to see great color on our way to and from Minnesota last month but it didn't peak until recently!

 The roads near my house look like this-oranges, reds, purples, yellows, in vibrant flourescent shades! 

 Arkansas is so beautiful this time of year! And I'm enjoying every second!

Operation Girl's Room

I have tried to get control of the girls' room since we moved in.  But moving Lulu to a bigger bed meant losing space, a lot of space! And we just never could stay on top of toys and messes! 

 The avalanche of toys that is their closet was rarely this contained.  It usually ended in a lava spill of toys, costumes, clothes and crap all over their room!

 So..... last Saturday we got bunk beds!  It took forever to convince W that it was necessary and worth the money but we got a great deal on nice, solid wood bunk beds that were only used for a year! 

We gained back a whole bed's worth of space and even got the closet to close!!!

 We reorganized clothes and toys and now everything fits!

 Where Lulu's bed used to be, there is floor space and enough room for Miss M's clothes finally!

 Here are the girls' beautiful beds! They came with sheet sets and quilts that match my girls' personalities! They are striped and flowery and match but are different. Miss M's is pink and Lulu's is purple!

 Lulu was nervous going to bed last night but she always is with new changes.

 However, Miss M loves her view from on top and gets a big kick out of the fact that Lulu hasn't mastered the ladder yet and therefore can't get up there alone!

Success! Even W is convinced that their room is so much better! Hooray!

ferris beuller, you're my hero

So is the Barefoot Contessa!
I'm convinced that any recipe by Ina Garten will be a success.

One of my very favorites is Weeknight Bolognese! I kind of adore it.  It's tangy and spicy and still just regular, wonderful marinara!

We made Panko-Crusted Salmon Sunday night. It was fabulous!

If you haven't checked out her cookbooks, you need to!

(not endorsed by the Barefoot Contessa, but wouldn't that be fun!)

Happy Holman Halloween!

 Jessie the cowgirl came for an encore evening with friends! She wasn't feeling too good earlier in the afternoon but she pulled up her bootstraps and we headed out!

 Miss M left her cloak at the last Halloween party (we are party animals this year!) and so we improvised. She said she was a spider sister (her headband has a big spider on it)

 And she was my sister (my headband has a big spider on it)

So we went over to a neighborhood where several of Miss M's friends live. We figured we could trick or treat at their houses and see a few familiar faces.  Plus, their neighborhood is flat! :)

Lucky for us, Miss M's friends were just leaving so we joined them.

Lu was a trooper until the last block when I got my workout carrying her back to the car.  The girls had a blast, despite a few setbacks!

Happy Halloween!

baby gifts

a dear friend in Minnesota had a July baby right before a dear cousin in Colorado had a baby! I have delivered one gift but I'm sending off the second gift today! Before she grows out of it! I made two of these sets with a onesie, double tiered skirt and rolled flower clip for a headband.  I fell in love with the fabric and was thrilled for an excuse to buy some! :)

 I love a good twirlie skirt!

 I hope she loves it!