Saturday, June 20, 2009

Show me the books he loves and I shall know the man far better than through mortal friends.

Matt and I LOVE to read! Almost every night we climb into bed and grab our books and read a few chapters before turning off the lights. Since reading is such a big part of our lives we thought we should share what's on our reading list.

Courtney
Currently I am reading "What to Expect The First Year". About a month ago I started stressing about knowing nothing when it came to taking care of children. I think every parent goes through it at some point, right? Well, I went out and bought this most informative baby book. It takes you through every month with developmental details and answers concerned questions. It's a wonderful book and I am learning from it. It's funny for me to see how much I already knew, since I work with children. But reading this book has given me a lot of confidence that I'll know what to do when we have a child. I'm about half way through it right now. I'll finish reading the 6 month milestone today.

My last book was "First Family" by David Baldacci. A really great book! Baldacci is one of my most favorite authors. I have read all but one of his books. This story is a continuation of the King and Maxwell series. Sean King and Michelle Maxwell are two ex Secret Services workers who now run their own private investigating practice. They are hired by the First Lady to find her missing niece. It twists and turns and you're not sure at the end of the book who really is the bad guy. I mean you find out who did it, but...well, I won't spoil it for you. I'm not sure that Baldacci will continue with this series. He ended the book so beautifully, it just completes the story of King and Maxwell. I can't wait for his next book, whatever characters he decides to use!

I think that my next book is going to have to be "Lord of the Rings, Return of the King". I've read the first two this year but I needed a break since it is a very intense story. It's a long and slow read... I love the movies and enjoy reading the story because I'm getting so much more out of it. But it is very tedious. Once I finish "What to Expect" I'm going to buckle down and finish the saga.

Matt
Ok so I have read a few books this past month.

Liberty and Tyranny A Conservative Manifesto by Mark R. Levin:

During this time of where it seams to me that common sense has been disregarded, and replaced by madness, it discusses the progressive movement and how that movement has destroyed our liberty's as Americans. In the end Mr. Levin talks about some ways that we can reverse the liberty's lost and help preserve this great country of ours.

Odd Hours by Dean Koontz:

The fourth book in the Odd Thomas saga, about a young fry cook that can see dead people who have not moved on and he tries to help them, he can not talk to them because the dead can not talk, so he has to try to help them. I have enjoyed each one, the third book seamed to have run the course, so I was not sure if I want to invest my time to a bad book so I waited until it came out in paperback at Sam's Cub. I was pleasantly surprised but how well the storied played out. With Odd on trying to stop a madman from smuggling and detonating nuclear bombs on US soil, while helping Mr. Blue Eye's Frank Sinatra move on, and while he did not end the series, I am happy with the ending.

The Third Revelation by Ralph McInerny:

This is a ok book, it's about the Catholicism and the story of Our Lady of Fatima, the attempted assassination of Pope John Paul II, the CIA, and the Former USSR and the KGB. Since I am not a Catholic I am talking the information provided in the book as fact, and it has a good plot line and some interesting twist, with the conclusion tying everything up nicely by the end. I would not read it again and will place it in my book case to be given to someone else to read.

I don't know what book I will start reading next! any suggestions???

Sunday, June 14, 2009

He that waits upon fortune, is never sure of a dinner!

I love trying new things in the kitchen. It's exciting to find out if something is going to work out well. Well, the other night I decided to try making pizza. I used to have a good pizza recipe that was very tasty; but after going gluten free I gave up the thought of ever having a tasty pizza again. Honestly, the other night I really wanted Pizza. So I found a gluten free mix and we tried it out. Now, most of the time gluten free bread stuff tastes AWFUL! So, I wasn't expecting much. But it turned out fantastic! It wasn't a brick...it was light and fluffy! It still had the gluten free texture but it tasted just like my old pizza recipe! We were so happy! It's something I will make again.

We had fun making our pizzas. It made a really large batch so we each had our own pizza! I made mine, and Matt made his. Matt had pepperoni, ham, and tomato(it was suppose to have olives too but we forgot them). Mine had mushrooms, ham, and tomato. It was a lot of fun and really tasty! I like it when we can both work in the kitchen together.

Sunday, June 7, 2009

The Sugar-Plum Tree

I wanted to share one of my favorite bedtime stories. This is one that my mom read to me, and her mom read to her! I anxiously(and patiently) await the day that I can read it to our children.

It is by an amazing author, Eugene Fields.

Have you ever heard of the Sugar-Plum Tree?
'T is a marvel of great renown!
It blooms on the shore of the Lollipop sea
In the garden of Shut-Eye Town;
The fruit that it bears is so wondrously sweet
(As those who have tasted it say)
That good little children have only to eat
Of that fruit to be happy next day.

When you 've got to the tree, you would have a hard time
To capture the fruit which I sing;
The tree is so tall that no person could climb
To the boughs where the sugar-plums swing!
But up in that tree sits a chocolate cat,
And a gingerbread dog prowls below---
And this is the way you contrive to get at
Those sugar-plums tempting you so:

You say but the word to that gingerbread dog
And he barks with such terrible zest
That the chocolate cat is at once all agog,
As her swelling proportions attest.
And the chocolate cat goes cavorting around
From this leafy limb unto that,
And the sugar-plums tumble, of course, to the ground---
Hurrah for that chocolate cat!

There are marshmallows, gumdrops, and peppermint canes,
With stripings of scarlet or gold,
And you carry away of the treasure that rains
As much as your apron can hold!
So come, little child, cuddle closer to me
In your dainty white nightcap and gown,
And I 'll rock you away to that Sugar-Plum Tree
In the garden of Shut-Eye Town.

Friday, June 5, 2009

Up, Up, And Away

Today is date night...or date matinee! We went to the movies this afternoon. Matt and I both LOVE movies, especially kids movies. So we went and saw "UP".
It is really a fun movie.


It was in 3D! So we got these awesome 3D glasses! Don't they look like the Blues Brothers glasses? I love them! Up was a lot of fun. Pixar did a fantastic job with the story and of course the animations! The 3D element was fairly decent, not as good as Monsters VS Aliens but good enough! I don't want to give away any of it, so I won't go into details. It makes you laugh, it makes you cry, it makes you feel adventurous, & then it makes you all warm and fuzzy-like warm and fuzzy donuts! You really should see it!

Last night we had a Burn Notice Season Premiere Party. We invited a few friends, grilled a few burgers, fried some french fries(first time too), and enjoyed the start of the third season. It was wonderful to have friends over. We have a great apartment that allows for plenty of visitors, and we love having a full house!

But for all the fun we've had so far, it has also been a very busy week! This week we had the pleasure of having our case worker, Julie, over for our home study! It was/is a very exciting prospect! We think it went well, and now we're just waiting for the written report to be finished up. But to prepare for Julie's visit we went a little crazy with the cleaning...I cleaned a lot more than I needed to. Oh well, at least now we have a super sparkling clean home!

Thank goodness that the week is almost over.
Then we'll be off for another week full of adventures!

Here's to all your adventures.