28 March - Jane Eyre completed

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I absolutely loved this book. What a wonderful love story & such wonderful characters - Jane, Mr. Rochester. This is now my new favorite Classic, one I'm sure I'll read over and over again.

25 March - self-medicating

Scott had a really bad week last week with school & work (honestly, I don't usually ask for things like this, but we could use any extra prayers right now).  Anyhow, to self-medicate, he thought it would be a good idea to splurge on a new TV.  He's wanted a big screen for a really long time (what guy doesn't?), & he didn't have much difficulty convincing me because 1. I felt so bad for all that he was dealing with, & 2. we could get one in time for my New Mooon party (which I had last night)!

Our friend, Jason, came over & helped Scott take apart our "now-too-small" entertainment center.

And haul it up the stairs (poor Jason didn't know what he was getting himself into).

Our new set up: our family room looks like we're in college again, just with a really big TV.

23 March - Great and Terrible Beauty completed

A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

It was entertaining, but nothing exceptionally good. It was an intriguing concept & a fast read, even though at times, I wondered when it would end. I hate cliff hangers because now I feel like I need to read the rest of the series. Not sure if I really want to or not.

20 March - At Home in Mitford completed

At Home in Mitford by Jan Karon

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

It started out slow, but as I got to the know the characters, I liked it more & more. There were so many that I loved hearing about: Dooley, Puny, Miss Rose & Uncle Billy, Cynthia, & of course, Father Tim. This book didn't grab me like many others have, but it was well written & full of inspiring tidbits. I'll have to hold off before reading the rest in this series. I need something a little more "I-just-can't-put-it-down" before I can settle into another slow read.

17 March - things I'm loving

Things I'm loving right now:

1. Great Impasta's Chicken Mexicana over rigatoni: On Scott's drive home from Palo Alto yesterday, he stopped in Danville to pick up some pasta & a salad for me. It was an incredibly delicious treat.

2. Horchata w/ ice

3. My Goodreads book clubs - The Next Best Book Club and The Book Addicts

Currently Reading:

At Home in Mitford, by Jan Karon

Next to-be-read:

A Great and Terrible Beauty, by Libba Bray, A Reliable Wife, by Robert Goolrick,

 Cutting for Stone, by Abraham Erghese

4. a tiny morsel of Inspiration Pictures that are currently making me happy & a little bit envious:

Domino

Lonny Mag 

(I can't remember where I found the other pics.)

5. And of course, spending as much time as possible with Scott & William.

16 March - what's my age again?

Yesterday, Scott was filling out a census form & asked me how old I was, "26, right?"
I paused & responded, "No. I'm 25."
"No . . . you're 26."
"No I'm not." I started counting my fingers to figure out how old I was. He was right! I double checked only to get the same result.  What?!
This last week, a few people have asked me how old I was. (If it's cutting it even semi-close to my birthday (meaning within six months of it), I'll sometimes lean towards the older side by saying, "almost #__." I tend to claim the older age because so many people think I'm still in high school. Some guy checking my driver's license at the bookstore even asked where I got my fake ID . . . while I had Will with me!) Well I haven't even been hesitating this last week while informing people that I'm 25 - the sister missionaries who came to dinner at my parents' house (who thought I was still in high school even though I'm older than they are) & some of my friends. So for anyone who's wondering, I've done the math, & I am indeed 26 years old!  I never would have thought I'd be someone to not know her age - I was always so surprised when I was younger to see "older" people trying to remember how old they were. Weren't they counting down the days till their next birthday? I was! 
So there you have it. I am officially "old" (or so I would have thought when I was younger) because my brain is fried, I'm delusional, & I'm counting my age on my fingers. So excuse me while I go put in my denchers, sit in my big La-Z-Boy recliner & read my grandma's big-print Romance novels while drinking prune juice :)

15 March - why Lavyrle, of course

When I was at my parents' last week, I really got into reading again (it's been a while since I've been obsessed with books). I finished the library book that I brought with me on the first night there & was ready for my next book. I asked my mom if she had anything fun to read, but she had just gotten rid of most of her books.  After searching the house, she finally remembered some books that my grandma has.  She went into my grandmother's closet & pulled out this disgusting, dirty book - it was a large print, used edition from the library with a mauve/pink shiny cover & a lacy pillow w/ a bouquet of flowers on the front.  If I were walking in the bookstore or library, I would most certainly pass it by!  It was titled The Endearment, was a Romance novel (which I vowed never to read), & to make it worse, the author's name was LaVyrle! Sorry to offend you if you know someone named LaVyrle, but my first thoughts were, "Is she an LDS author?," "What kind of name is that?" and "There's no way someone by that name could write a good book." Talk about judging a book by its cover!

(Honestly, would you pick this book up except to laugh at it?)

Well, my mom told me to just try it & kept saying that she remembered quite liking the stories. And to help me get past the author's name, she started referring to her as "Lovey" (it's a little better). Well, I was shocked when I was hooked from page one. I quickly finished the book & read another one, Years, right after. Both of the stories were really sweet - I loved them (although the first one had some racy scenes)! My mom then surprised me with two more of hers.  Who would have thought that I would be reading LaVyrle Spencer novels, let alone four of them within a week? And I definitely wouldn't classify these as Romance novels (at least what I would have expected one to be) - especially Years (which I especially liked). They are very sweet stories that show the importance of & love between families, point out the beauty in simple everyday things, & make you feel as though you're looking into the lives of very real people. If you want to get on the Lovey bandwagon with me, feel free.