Spray Bottles, Dragons, and a Makeshift Choir

I could start this out with an apology for not keeping up with the loose posting schedule I had been doing. Or I could just tell you what I've been up to and let you decide if blogging has been the most important thing on my plate right now. Hmm... I think I like that second option better.

Forget I even said any of that. It was awkward and self-conscious. Starting the blog post over...


Summer days in this baking desert have been very full of work, play, family, and community. So many things to be grateful for!!
I'm grateful for...

• My nephews--Bobbers, Lum, and Beef Stew (or Stewy). Each one of them has touched my life so much in their own little ways. We were so happy to have them live with us, but we're also very glad for them that they have their own little house. ; )
• Being able to help Perry and Tyler move. It was great to be able to see their house and help unpack some things. What a cute little house for a cute little family!
• The old Jimmy Stewart movie "You Can't Take It With You". Wow! It is so awesomely funny! If you ever want a glimpse of what our life is like--watch that movie! We had a family movie night with that and some yummy microwave popcorn.
• Bible Bee hive meetings. My memorization partner is such a joy! Hi, Hannah!
• The Green Ember by S.D. Smith. Don't let the Beatrix Potter style cover fool you! It's a full-blown, amazingly written adventure! Very good!
• The Restoration Hardware store! *Alice steps into Wonderland* *Angels sing* *Kate goes crazy*
• Singing in a makeshift choir after church. Thank you, Paul and Matthew for setting it up!! It was so much fun. We had a great time singing to the Lord, and it was surprisingly good sounding for a bunch of people who hadn't practiced together before. ; ) One of the newcomers to church actually thought we were a choir which flattered us all immensely. Very good times. ; )
• The sweet texts we're getting from Perry telling us all the cute things that the babies are doing. We taught Lum part of the cup game while they live here, and he just decided to do part of it today! ; )
• Little friends at church! So many of them came up to greet me and give me hugs or hang on my arm as I was talking to someone older.
• Matching my two littlest sisters at church. We wore red skirts and white shirts. ; ) It was so fun! (Every time Daddy would say, "Where's so and so?" I'd just say, "She's in a red skirt.") ; ) 
• Hilarious family discussions of whether or not the word "both" could mean more than two. Google may have settled the issue. For now... ; )
• Music. I'm loving Josh Groban's instrumental "The Wandering Kind (Prelude)", almost everything by the PianoGuys, and "The Cup Song". Here's the original version of it from the movie. (Please note that these links are on YouTube, so be careful to guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Also, "The Cup Song" does unfortunately have a reference to drinking, but what I enjoy about that song is its sound.) Great background music for working in the kitchen or any time the mood needs a little lightening! ; )
• A fresh notebook and about four story ideas! County fair story here I come! Children's picture book second draft here I come! Dragons and chimney sweeps story here I come! Robin Hood, Peter Pan, Queen Susan, and King Arthur all in one story here I come! (I know, the last two story ideas are crazy. I love them.)
• Crazy family spray bottle fights. Wow, enough said there. O.o.
• Our sweet dog Ella. (Lum calls her "Lella".) Love. ; )
• Danny Kaye. We were laughing over our favorite parts in his old movies ridiculously late last night. ; )
• The love of God, so rich and pure, all measureless and strong.

Today what are you grateful for?

Books... Books... Oh! More Books!

Remember this crazy picture I posted about a month ago? Well, I've devoured those books and many more!!

1. The Return of the Indian, The Mystery of the Indian, The Secret of the Indian, and The Key to the Indian by Lynn Reid Banks

I actually only read two of these, finding that after the first three books in the series the stories grew less interesting and more inappropriate. The first book and The Return of the Indian were my favorites, but I would only recommend them for older readers because of the magical element.

2. The Giver by Lois Lowry

I saw the movie first, so I was interested to see how the book and movie compared. The book had a much deeper story (with no teenage romance, yay!) that portrayed the themes much more strongly. Unfortunately, the things that were inappropriate in the movie or that stemmed from a bad worldview were also stronger in the book. I still found it very interesting to read, but I would only recommend it for older readers. ; )

3. On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness by Andrew Peterson

Andrew Peterson is one of my hands-down favorite musicians ever!!! Who knew that he was also gonna' be one of my favorite authors! We recently got launched into this series (I just finished reading North! Or Be Eaten yesterday) and have been enjoying it very much. Full of adventure, Spiritual themes, and lots of neat mysteries... I love the concept of the Throne Wardens!!! They are written for children; but I find them complicated enough (and funny enough!!) for my own tastes and a bit too scary for my younger sisters at this time.

4. The Youngest Templar: Keeper of the Grail by Michael Spradlin

I have always loved the stories of Robin Hood and the legends of King Arthur's time, so I was very excited to find that this series (yes, I read them all!) included a mixture of them both. It could only have been better if it had been written from a Christian perspective with no feminism, all-religions-are-equal-bosh, and magic. In the end, those things dampened my enthusiasm just enough that I wouldn't really recommend the series. : ) But if any of you cool author people write a better version, please let me know!!! ; )

5. David Balfour by Robert Louis Stevenson
This book is a sequel to the classic Kidnapped. It is more romantic than the first one with some moral issues that make you split your brain trying to figure out what you would have done if you were in the same situation. But it did keep me busy, and it was nice to have some more wrap-up of the first book.
; )

Altogether, many of the books I got from the library weren't the best I've ever read, but I skim and skip and find what I can enjoy. ; ) Andrew Peterson's books were definitely the best of the stack! And here's what else I've been reading...

6. Set Free by Rebekah Morris
If you follow the link you won't find the book on Amazon yet because it's still in the editing stage! The link goes to the author's blog post where she talks about its progress and shares a sneak peek illustration. I've been blessed to test read it and write a review for the back cover. I cannot wait for it to come out in print!!!

7. 24 Days Before Christmas by Rebekah Jones
This one is also in the early stages but it should be out by Christmastime. ; ) This is third book I have been blessed to test read for this author, and it has been so much fun!

I've also been reading the book of Ruth for our Bible Bee studies. ; ) What are you reading?

New Experiences Every Day

One of my new experiences lately (besides having pop rocks--they crackle all the way in the back of your brain or at least that's what it feels like!) has been to make my own blog button for this corner of the cyber world. You may have seen on the sidebar the one I made for Noble Novels. Well, I didn't quite like the size it came out so I did a little more experimenting on this one. (I also had to do some experimenting over because I forgot how the program I was using works.) ; ) It was a ton of fun, and I'm very happy with how it came out.

So there it is. If you'd like to add it to your own sidebar first save the picture to your computer. Then go to your blog's layout page and add the gadget for images. They'll give you an option to make it a link, and you can just copy the url for my blog over there. Then, if I'm not making any sense at all, cry and Google (that is a verb) better instructions. ; )

Another new experience has been to do the Bible Bee for the first time ever! It's been so much fun and a bit of good work too! The host family is from our church and only lives half a mile away, so we've gotten to help out a little bit. ; ) It's been really great to make new friends and to become better friends with the old ones. But the best part is that it makes me open the Word every day and actually use my brain to discern what God is saying. I unfortunately don't have any pictures for y'all, but I'll try to get some sometime. ; )

Oh, and pop rocks. Um, they are truly very cool; but BE WARNED, it's a really weird sensation... ; )