Book Review February 2015

2 Mar

review feb2015

Book Review time again! I am deep in my current book, and so so glad that i have the whole series so that i don’t have to wait before starting the next one! Aside from having company twice this month (so fun!) I have been snuggled on the couch under one of my two favorite blankets, tea on the coffee table and Lady laying near me while I’m reading, reading, reading.

  • Torah Rediscovered by Ariel and D’vorah Berkowitz –  This book shows how Jews and non-Jewish believers can honor the Torah. And also how years of neglect and abuse have muddled the difficult issues in the Torah, and clarifies them.  You might recognize this title as I started reading it mid last year, but as I never finished it, I am halfway through it and it is such a well-written book, and written so that I can understand!
  • Happy Wives Club by Fawn Weaver –  One night, Fawn started a club to get women who love being married together and speak positively about marriage. Very quickly it spread like wildfire across the world – and Fawn traveled around it to speak with some of these women/couples in order to find the secrets of a great marriage. I have enjoyed reading this so far. I am reading it as a part of the Meaningful Marriage Study group that I am a part of on facebook. It is a light read and getting to ‘meet’ these couples has been a joy and through each couple something new stands out to me and makes me pause in contemplation. I very much recommend it!
  • Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery  – Anne Shirley is an awkward, gangly redheaded orphan that is adopted by Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert, siblings who live on the homestead, Green Gables, they grew up on. Anne is prone to get into more scrapes and adventures than any other youngster in Avonlea, which proves for an interesting time for all. As she meets her ‘bosom friend’ and a few enemies in her new life, she quickly steals your heart as she grows up. I have owned this series for years and years but have never made it halfway through this book before! I have no idea why. I have completely fallen in love with the way Montgomery writes.
  • Anne of Avonlea by L.M. Montgomery –  Anne has grown up to be a fashionable young lady of sixteen and has gotten a job to teach at the Avonlea school. But she is still the mischievous and spirited young girl that arrived on Prince Edward Island all those years ago, proving that she isn’t all that different from her students.

on the to-read list: Heal Your Headaches by David Buccholz ; The Complete Adventures of the Borrowers by Mary Norton and the rest of Anne series! Plus, I’ve added to my long term reading list some of your suggestions of past months, so watch for those reviews too!

Have you been able to start the year out with quality reading time? What book has surprised you or disappointed you? 

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Book Review – January ’15

29 Jan

bookreviewjan'15

Welcome to the first book review of 2015!!! How exciting!! On goodreads, I have a goal of reading 50 books this year. Seems quite reasonable to me, that’s only 4 books a month, right? Easy peasy. I mean, I’m currently reading 4 right now, with another one on the bottom of the stack to start whenever. My fellow book-lovers, that made perfect sense to you, I know it did.

Well, I’ll get right to the reviews!

  • Torah Rediscovered -by Ariel and D’vorah Berkowitz –  This book shows how Jews and non-Jewish believers can honor the Torah. And also how years of neglect and abuse have muddled the difficult issues in the Torah, and clarifies them.  You might recognize this title as I started reading it mid last year, but as I never finished it, I am starting it all over again and will finish it this time! It is such a well-written book, and written so that I can understand!
  • Happy Wives Club – by Fawn Weaver – One night, Fawn started a club to get women who love being married together and speak positively about marriage. Very quickly it spread like wildfire across the world – and Fawn traveled around it to speak with some of these women/couples in order to find the secrets of a great marriage. I have enjoyed reading this so far. I am reading it as a part of the Meaningful Marriage Study group that I am a part of on facebook. It is a light read and getting to ‘meet’ these couples has been a joy and through each couple something new stands out to me and makes me pause in contemplation. I very much recommend it!                                                    bookreviewjan2015
  • Wildwood Dancing -by Juliet Marillier – Jenica and her sisters and father live in the Transylvania woods, in Piscul Draculi – a castle that hides a portal to the Other Kingdom. Every month, with her sisters and pet frog, on the Full Moon, they go through the portal and dance the night away. But at home, in their world, everything is changing, and soon, events will bring their two worlds together and change everything. Forbidden love – Unswerving anger over an act of betrayal – an enchanted frog – and the ultimate test of trust. I mean, really, can you get any better than that in a story?? Sigh of contentment. A friend suggested this book to me years ago and I now read it a few (or several) times a year. I am pretty sure I’ve talked about it here on SGL before too. If you like a bit of magic and fantasy, this book is for you. (for those of you that are not sure, let me also say that I don’t read very much magic/fantasy but still love this one) Plus, my OH surprised me recently with a copy of my very own!

             bookreview-jan2015

  • Mrs. Mike – by Benedict and Nancy Freedman – A love story between a young Irish girl, Katherine Mary O’Fallon, new to the Canadian wild, and Sergeant Mike Flannigan of the Canadian Mounted police.  I am only a quarter of the way in, in this book so cannot give it a full recommendation yet. I can say that the opening is fantastic – it sucked me in quickly. It did lose me a little bit as it went on though, with a drunken right-hand man and some other random scenes that I can’t quite recall. But, i give it a tentative review so far. Check back next month for a full review! ( this was a Christmas gift from a friend, and you can see the packaging in the back of the photo, I didn’t waste any time starting it!)
  • Lousia May Alcott : Her Life, Letters and Journals – Edited by Ednah Dow Cheney – This book gives an intimate look at one of America’s most beloved authors.  It was originally published in 1889 (!!), just one year after her death. Combining her letters and journal entries with comments from a family friend (Cheney), shows how ‘faithfully and fully she performed whatever duties circumstances laid upon her’.  I really enjoyed this book, even though it took me over a month to complete it. I talked about it here and still recommend it for any young/older woman to read as motivation to keep at our tasks of loving and taking care of our families.

And for the book that’s on my list to start in the near-future – Heal Your Headache by David Buchholzm M.D. – this book has the “1-2-3 program for taking charge of your health”.  With answers to questions that nearly all headache sufferer asks, this book is a treasure-trove of information, based on ‘the breakthrough understanding that virtually all headaches are forms of migraine.’   “Step 1 – Avoid the Quick-Fix. Step 2 – Reduce Your Triggers. Step 3 – Raise Your Threshold” – I have owned this book for a few years now, after having been recommended to it for years by several doctors. While I have read bits and pieces of it, I haven’t ever read all of it. I highly recommend it to fellow headache/migraine sufferers from the bits I’ve read though.

Two boards for you to check out on my pinterest page – SGL (that way you’ll never miss a post if you don’t want an email!) and my quotes and books board!

Happy reading friends!

~Laura Starr

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Poem by Louisa May Alcott

20 Jan

Hello again, friends, I want to share a poem with you by Louisa May Alcott. She wrote it in memorium of her mother in the late 1870s. I know it is not a ‘happy’ poem but it is so artfully written that I knew I had to share it as soon as I had read it. poetry by Alcott

Transfiguration

Mysterious death! who in a single hour

Life’s gold can so refine,

and by thy art divine

change mortal weakness to immortal power!

Bending beneath the weight of eighty years, spent with the noble strife of a victorious life,

we watched her fading heavenward, through our tears.

But ere the sense of loss our hearts had wrung, a miracle was wrought;

And swift as happy thought She lived again – brave, beautiful and young.

Age, pain and sorrow dropped the veils they wore And showed the tender eyes of angels in disguise,

whose discipline so patiently she bore.

The past years brought their harvest rich and fair; While memory and love,

Together, fondly wove A golden garland for the silver hair.

How could we mourn like those who are bereft, when every pang of grief

Found balm for its relief In counting up the treasures she had left? ~

Faith that withstood the shocks of toll and time; Hope that defied despair;

Patience that conquered care ; And loyalty, whose courage was sublime;

The great deep heart that was a home for all ~ Just, eloquent and strong In protest against wrong;

Wide charity, that knew no sin, no fall;

The spartan spirit that made life so grand, Mating poor daily needs with high, heroic deeds,

That wrested happiness from Fate’s hard hand.

We thought to weep, but sing for joy instead, Full of the grateful peace That follows her release;

For nothing but the weary dust lies dead.

Oh! noble woman! Never more a queen Than in the laying down of scepter and of crown

To win a greater kingdom, yet unseen:

Teaching us how to seek the highest goal, to earn the true success – To live to love, to bless –

And make death proud to take a royal soul

~Louisa May Alcott

Thanks for stopping by, Laura Starr

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Starting out the New Year with a whimper, some tears and a Bang.

6 Jan

starting out the new year with a whimper, some tears and a Bang

I have officially lost my mind. Apparently being on strong pain killers and playing video games the past few days does that to a person . I am, by nature,  a disorganized, laid-back procrastinator. To mess with that though, I went and made a ‘life planner’. To help with growing this little blog of mine and with my writing. To help (hopefully) with cleaning and starting up menu planning.  I also put in a ‘grocery price list’ to start tracking our grocery costs and help me find out where the best prices are for things. I am hoping it helps save some money in the food department! I love the idea of being organized, so maybe this will be the beginning of good things.  Once I get it all together, I’ll share it with all of you!

first put-together of the planner!

first put-together of the planner!

With the beginning of the new year, and a possibly-over-positive outlook on how I’ll be feeling, I have filled up my calendar with blog and writing commitments. A six month series to a first draft for my historical novel i’ve been working on ; a creative group on google plus is starting up again ; a couple of book reviews; a possible collaberation with my brother on a novel,  and I’m pretty sure there’s a few other things. Also planned a craft party with a few friends later this month that I still need to decide what I’m going to make! I’m contemplating these projects:  winter cheeks stick , hair gel or a chapstick holder. But I am really leaning toward these storage boxes, where you cover cardboard boxes with burlap! I’m wanting to make some small ones for our closet – for my collection of scarves and possibly for my sweaters as well. Of course, if I do that one, I’d better start saving some boxes!

For the first time ever (I’m completely free…. you were thinking it, I just helped),I made almond milk this morning!! It was so easy and fun and I’m loving the fact that there are no chemical garbely-gooks in it!! Once I have played with the recipe and gotten it just so, you can look for it here on the blog! I do want to invest in a nut bag though, using cheesecloth worked but I had to be careful that i didn’t drop bits of the pulp back in the milk. Which reminds me of another reason I am loving this, and that is that there is absolutely no waste – you can use the pulp as well! As almond meal, or grind it up (once you’ve dehydrated it, of course!) for almond flour.

starting out the new year

Another project I’m looking forward to has something to do with this :

starting off the new year

That’s right – circular knitting needles. I am going to knit me some slipper socks! I have never used circular ones, and am at the lowest level of beginner in knitting, so I am hopeful that they are a good first-project to do. If not and if any of you wonderful readers are experienced knitters, do you have any suggestions for me? I would be so grateful to hear them!

My last post I mentioned that I have some new plans and series coming to SGL. One of them will be starting very soon – as soon as I’ve gotten my schedule figured out and the first post written – and that is focused on the virtues that I want to cultivate in my own life and to encourage all of you to grow in as well! The Lord has been urging me gently to start this series and I feel that I am finally ready. I also want to start a monthly short story sharing – or parts of my novel I’m writing because I am super excited about it! I hope that’s enough info to wet your appetite and bring you back!

Thanks for stopping by,

Laura Starr

*quick note, i do not normally play video games that much but with recovering from the holidays and traveling and now these blasted debilitating migraines, I’ve found they are good to take my mind off the pain and keep me on the couch =) just so you don’t think i’m always playing video games!

starting off the new year

** I had to share this photo of my dog and her friend that came over to play…errrr, sleep. Aren’t they cute? Two old girls just chillin’

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Book Review – Dec. 2014 and Happy New Year!

31 Dec

this honestly is probably the most pathetic book review i’ve ever done, and probably ever will do! What with being on vacation for the last two weeks and sleeping the first two weeks of the month, I have only read half of one book.

GASP.

I know, I’ll wait a second for you to recover from the shock of that. . . . . . .

Okay, while I waited for you, I researched where the closest public library is to our house! 10 minutes away, I can handle that. Let the checking-out begin!

~Louisa May Alcott : Her Life, Letters and Journals – Edited by Ednah Dow Cheney  -Originally published in 1889 by a family friend, this book gives an intimate picture of one of America’s most beloved authors. Through commentary, surviving letters and journals, it shows how Alcott ‘fully and faithfully performed whatever duties circumstances laid upon her’.   Like I said above, I am only halfway through and love it love it. I have decided that every woman – young or old – should read about this persevering woman.

I am excited to start a new marriage study with a group online, this time around we are going through The Happy Wives Club. (which means, I have got to get it soon!!!)

As almost everyone else, I am thinking about the new year and what I would like to accomplish in it. No, this is not a list of goals that I am going to write out, feel good about planning such lofty things, and then promptly forget about it. I am talking about things that I have been saying I want to do once we got a little more settled here in our new home.   To help me accomplish some of them,over the holiday break, my OH bought me an office chair so I can write and blog without stressing my hip out! I am very excited to set up my little ‘office area’ with an inspiration board and whatever else finds its way there. I am planning on some new series here on SGL and hope by years’ end to be self-hosted.

So please, if you have anything you’d like me to start writing about – let me know and we’ll see what happens! For right now though, Happy New Year and I’ve got to get ready for an impromptu party with some friends tonight.

God Bless,

Laura Starr

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A Glimpse

11 Dec

A Glimpseshe glimpsed it but for a moment.

the flash and glimmer dazzled her

and met her eyes with an eagerness that took her breath away.

She moved not an inch, afraid that any motion

would send it off forever.

But as she stared at it, the world faded away

the worries, the woes,

the hopes, the dreams.

it all ceased to exist for that brief moment

of complete happiness.

Her eyes shone and reflected its’ light back to it

The bent of her back straightened, denying the years of hard labor.

The wrinkles in her face, the tremor in her hands were lent a beauty because of it

and for that moment, she was happy.

But as it faded, and her smile dimmed along with the light in her eyes,

but she thought perhaps, just perhaps, that it all was worth it for that one,

brief, wonderful moment.

For now she could carry on to the end of her days

with that glimpse ever before her.

~what is your ‘glimpse’ that makes the trials easier? Your child’s laughter or smiles? Your husbands arms open to you? Your faith? I’d love to hear them. 

*both poem and photo are created by me =)*

A quick update before Christmas!!!

9 Dec
I really enjoyed sharing what’s going on in my life with this little ‘form’ a few months ago so I decided to do it again! There are several links to go check stuff out so have fun!
Oh, and fair warning, Chanukah starts on the 16th (7 days away) and Christmas is in 15 days
photo courtesy of unsplash

photo courtesy of unsplash

  • making: my dog happy by giving her a bone – myself happy by getting the kitchen mostly cleaned… and getting a short story planned in my head
  • cooking:.contemplating some sort of soup using up the leftover turkey… perhaps crockpot chicken tortilla soup (obviously subbing out the chicken)
  • drinking: candy cane green tea
  • reading: The Inheritance by Louisa May Alcott ; lots of blogs and tons of emails
  • wanting: to try out my samples of Jamberry Nails!
  • crafting: a few christmas presents
  • wishing: the pain to go away and i didn’t have to deal with figuring out what to do next ; that i had a hair dryer so i could try my nail samples!
  • enjoying: my OH being home and that my hair is finally long enough to put up in a bun with just a hairtie!
  • waiting: for some yummy food to magically appear in my fridge
  • liking:  hanging out with awesome friends, planning to-do’s when we are back in Bend
  •  wondering:  why i can’t seem to get enough of wasting time on pinterest
  • loving: sequin dresses, the fact i’m home in a week and the groups i’m involved in online
  • hoping: my new plan for getting my health back actually works
  • smelling: the bone i gave my dog so she’ll stop chewing on her hot spots *gag*
  • needing: a hug from my mom and dad, the pain to go away and a white christmas
 
  • wearing: rolled up jeans (because all jeans are apparently made for women 5foot 10in now) and a plaid flannel shirt
 
 
  • noticing:  i’m so blessed by my OH
 
  • thinking: im hungry…again…for the 3rd time today and it’s only 1:30pm
 
  • bookmarking:  chanukah decorations and recipes – i just created a board on pinterest, check it out here
 
  • thanking: my heavenly Father for sustaining me through my chronic pain – my family and friends for supporting me and my dog for taking naps ‘with’ me
 
  • giggling:  OH made gluten-dairy-chocolate-regular sugar-free brownies last night and they are yuummmmyyy
 
  • feeling: tired. hungry. excited.

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Book Review in November

30 Nov
photo courtesy of stock vault

      photo courtesy of stock vault

Good morning friends! For once, I am up before my OH, with steaming oatmeal and apple cider in front of me. The problem with being up ‘early’ is that before noon I will be asleep on the couch. All well, when I’m hungry, I’m hungry. Aside from trying to eat us out of house and home, I have been able to finish some christmas presents that I am so excited about! They turned out so cute and it has been so fun. OH and I were able to go home for the weekend before Thanksgiving and had a wonderful time with family – both sides were awesome enough to celebrate a few day early. The food was fantastic, the company even more so. I got hugs from 7 pairs of little arms, and snuggled one very cute 3 month old. I even offered to take her home, but OH and her mom said no. (those fun- suckers). Despite my body trying to make me miserable, I was still able to enjoy the few days home. And then, once back here in our new city, I  prepped food for another Thanksgiving meal, only this one was at our synagogue. It turned out to be a small group, but this was my first year going and it was such a good, relaxing time. I was able to dance for a few minutes, but poor-80-year-old-body-that-i-have couldn’t take any more so i ended up knitting =)

Here’s a side note – our brand new, never been used hammer has disappeared… if any of you see it, can you let me know? I’m finally ready to start hanging pictures on the walls (the bare-stark-whiteness-is getting to me) and it has taken itself off on its’ own grand adventure.

I fear that once again this book review is going to be sadly lacking but I am hoping that December’s will be back up to par for all of you. We have plans of turning an empty corner of our living room into a reading nook, and I figure that is where I will be curled up several hours each week.

And, as usual, on to the book review! (don’t be overwhelmed by how long  short it is now, okay?

  • Perelandra (aka Voyage to Venus) by C.S. Lewis – Elwin Ransom is home from his previous adventure from Mars, and receives a new mission from the angelic ruler of Mars, Oyarsa. Ransom calls Lewis (the narrator) to his home to help him get there. – now, i realize that is a super basic explanation of the book. but, the reason is, is that I started to read it when I realized it was a second book in a series. So, I stopped reading it, although I had quickly gotten sucked in. The way C.S. Lewis draws you into his worlds is extraordinary.
  • The Inheritance by Louisa May Alcott –  Edith Adelon is a poor, orphaned Italian girl who is taken in by an English famly to be governess to their daughter. But her purity, goodness, humility and beauty place her in some of their hearts as dear as could be. She catches the eye of two completely different men – Lord Percy and Lord Arlington. But there is one that hates her for her beauty, Lady Ida, who wants Lord Percy for herself. In her hatred, she plots to get rid of Edith. –and you’ll have to read it for yourself. It is Alcott’s first novel, written before she was 20 years old, and it does tend to read that way. But really, it is a great, classic novel. It was made into a movie which is very good but, as usual, they changed quite a bit of the story. Taken as two separate stories, I enjoy them both.

And that’s about it. Sadly, not much reading has happened. I simply must find the library in this new city of mine so that I can start reading in earnest again!

Have you read either of these classics? Do share! If not, what are your favorite classic novels or authors? 

What to get the Chronic Pain Sufferer in your life

20 Nov

what to get the chronic pain sufferer in your life

It is ironic that I decided to write this today. I have spent all day on the couch, in severe pain. I even called my doctor asking for a prescription pain killer – which is completely unlike me. But, the idea for this came a few weeks ago when I was seeing all sorts of gift guides for the gardener, the at-home-chef, the beer lover, the crafter, etc etc. I decided what we needed was a gift guide for the chroni pain-er. hehe. just going with the flow of wording there, folks.

Some of these ideas can get pretty expensive, but I wanted to add them as well, because they really are great! I hope this gives your Christmas shopping list a bit of help! I am seeing some fantastic gift basket combinations while reading this list. Of course, these would be great for birthdays or ‘just because’ gifts as well.

calming essential oils

lavendar scented candles

eye pillows – i have so many of these and they are great!

bottle of excedrin (or their preferred pain killer)

gift certificates for the chiropractor or a massage

music (itunes, cds etc)

hoodie pillow

offers of help to go grocery shopping or do laundry

freezer meals

tea

comfy pajamas

book to read

cozy blanket

neck pillow – i have this specific one, and love it

Please tell me if you have any items to add to this list! I’d love to include more ideas!

Treasured Memories

17 Nov

I woke up this morning with two completely unrelated thoughts. The first was trying to figure out why, in my dream, my OH was trying to make me iron clothes when I was sick (for those of you that don’t know, I only iron maybe twice a year….and that’s only when necessary).

Treasured Memories

And the other thought was that I miss my grandparents and great aunt so much that it almost hurts. They have all three been gone for several years, but at every new bend in the road that I walk, I find I miss them more. I miss my Auntie Opal with her gentle smile and comforting presence. I miss my grandma with her laugh and wealth of knowledge. I miss my grandpa with his twinkling eyes and helping hands. So easily I can see them each as they were when I was young and visiting them in Antelope Or, or at the property that my parents’ now own. Sadly, I don’t remember doing much with my Auntie Opal, other than just simply spending time with her – meals, quiet evenings listening to my uncle’s Elvis records and always being content to be near her. I remember going to my grandma’s house for a meal one time, and that was when I learned I didn’t like buttermilk. But I drank it – for her. I remember washing dishes and planting flowers with my grandpa. I remember how much he loved my grandma – his pet name for her, the way his eyes lit up when he teased her. They were a match, he and her.

My heart aches that my OH will never meet any of them.  He will never know how truly special each one of them were. Words won’t fully describe how each will live on in my heart, and how I cherish the memories I have.

I love you, Grandpa, Grandma and Auntie Opal.

(And Dad and Aunt M, if you read this, I’m sorry if I made you cry.)

~Laura

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